late summer sailing

In the Great Lakes, we face the end of the sailing season, so every good sail is another gift. Tonight I headed out for an after-work sail in a north breeze. Our schooner was out there and a couple other yachts were heading out from the moorings. It felt like working jib weather. As it turns out, that was good choice. I tried to cross courses with the schooner to say hello. We both tacked at the same time. I was downwind but accelerated faster, got out in front, and kept on pulling away slowly. It's fun to beat the 55' boat in a 20' boat, especially when the wind is "schooner weather." To be fair, the schooner's strong point is not going to weather ( I was crewing this summer when we had her going 9.8 on a reach), but she had a lot more sail area and waterline length so I wasn't sure I'd beat her at first. I was a bit overpowered and had to luff the main a little bit and occasionally head up in a puff to keep the boat on her feet. With a north wind in Grand Traverse Bay, there's a long fetch from out in Lake Michigan, and we get some substantial rollers. The waves were beginning to grow but I stayed mostly dry. When I came about, ahead of the schooner, I fell off a little onto a close reach and then a beam reach. The little Cal 20 was staying above 6 knots for extended periods, slowing down into the upper 5s when we'd climb an unfavorable wave. The wind kept increasing and 4 of the other 5 yachts headed in. The prospect of getting the sails down and furled seemed increasingly daunting as the wind and seas built, so I fired up the outboard just to make sure it was happy, found a bit of shelter, and got the jib and then the main down and powered back onto my mooring. I usually sail on but in a north blow, it's easier to power onto the mooring because of other nearby boats. Wow, what a perfect evening for sailing. Just exhilarating. Chris Campbell Cal 20 #1220, /Martha C/

Hello All, Brenda and I arrive in Annapolis on Wednesday (10/7) and currently scheduled to fly home on Saturday (10/10). We would like to meet up with any list members that will be there. We'll bring our foulies and gear in case we get a chance to do some sailing/racing. I think someone on this list said something about a "Good Old Boat Regatta" going on around that time. (We make good crew.) --Michael--

Michael: count yourself in as crew on the Cal 29 Bay Breeze for the GOBR. I am at least one or two short so far. I can only promise you that the beer will be cold and (if we hold true to form) we will be DFL. But we have more fun than anyone else. Contact me off list and we will set up details. Les Hester Bay Breeze 3-29 #1005 SwanCreek, MD From: Michael D To: Cal Boats Sent: Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:23:14 +0000 (UTC) Subject: [Cal_Boats] Annapolis Boat Show Hello All, Brenda and I arrive in Annapolis on Wednesday (10/7) and currently scheduled to fly home on Saturday (10/10). We would like to meet up with any list members that will be there. We'll bring our foulies and gear in case we get a chance to do some sailing/racing. I think someone on this list said something about a "Good Old Boat Regatta" going on around that time. (We make good crew.) --Michael--

Thanks for sharing, I feel that I was there, My Best, Mike --- On Wed, 9/16/09, Chris Campbell <cl… [at] charterinternet.com> wrote: From: Chris Campbell <cl… [at] charterinternet.com> Subject: [Cal_Boats] late summer sailing To: Ca… [at] yahoogroups.com Date: Wednesday, September 16, 2009, 6:17 AM In the Great Lakes, we face the end of the sailing season, so every good sail is another gift. Tonight I headed out for an after-work sail in a north breeze. Our schooner was out there and a couple other yachts were heading out from the moorings. It felt like working jib weather. As it turns out, that was good choice. I tried to cross courses with the schooner to say hello. We both tacked at the same time. I was downwind but accelerated faster, got out in front, and kept on pulling away slowly. It's fun to beat the 55' boat in a 20' boat, especially when the wind is "schooner weather." To be fair, the schooner's strong point is not going to weather ( I was crewing this summer when we had her going 9.8 on a reach), but she had a lot more sail area and waterline length so I wasn't sure I'd beat her at first. I was a bit overpowered and had to luff the main a little bit and occasionally head up in a puff to keep the boat on her feet. With a north wind in Grand Traverse Bay, there's a long fetch from out in Lake Michigan, and we get some substantial rollers. The waves were beginning to grow but I stayed mostly dry. When I came about, ahead of the schooner, I fell off a little onto a close reach and then a beam reach. The little Cal 20 was staying above 6 knots for extended periods, slowing down into the upper 5s when we'd climb an unfavorable wave. The wind kept increasing and 4 of the other 5 yachts headed in. The prospect of getting the sails down and furled seemed increasingly daunting as the wind and seas built, so I fired up the outboard just to make sure it was happy, found a bit of shelter, and got the jib and then the main down and powered back onto my mooring. I usually sail on but in a north blow, it's easier to power onto the mooring because of other nearby boats. Wow, what a perfect evening for sailing. Just exhilarating. Chris Campbell Cal 20 #1220, Martha C