Halloween Spectacular Regatta
7 Green fleet sailors 10 RWB sailors
More than 152 sailors converged on Lake Forest for the Halloween Spectacular regatta October 27-28. Day one brought calm winds out of the north ranging from 6-10 knots and light chop. Thirty-eight Optimists made their way to the windward-leeward course and began speed testing, checking the starting line and course configuration.
Racing began around 10:45 with an all-clear start and a significant right-hand wind shift making the boat-end of the starting line favored. In addition, it led to a long starboard tack upwind to the windward mark and long port jibe downwind to the leeward gate. The course was considerably short, approximately 25 mins, which made the start that much more important.

A port tack approach allows sailors to take

advantage of these holes on the starting line.

Several top sailors approach the line on port tack, against the natural flow of the fleet, in order to find an opening on the line. This maneuver is ideally performed earlier in the sequence when sailing in larger fleets and light winds. The sailor then uses sail trim, body weight and rudder to maintain a position on the line with a leeward hole to accelerate. Another skill, the double-tack, is utilized to defend against ‘sharks’ attempting to steal our place on the line.
Boat speed through the chop and starts were critical because the wind was very consistent. Sailors in the front of the fleet consistently start in the front row with clean

air and the option to tack. The best sailors play the mainsheet and use their shoulders simultaneously to work the boat over every wave, up the face and down the back.
The Race Committee lengthened the course and moved the windward mark to the right for the second race. The competition was tight and Chicago Yacht Club sailors continued to fight for every point. Six races were completed before the breeze slowly faded. CYC finished strong with 4 sailors in the top 6 to close out the day.
We learned a valuable lesson about gear selection and proper preparation in cold weather. A few of us we’re underdressed and unable to focus on the racing as a result.Remember: it’s much better to peel layers off instead of adding layers after being cold.
Windward mark
It should be our goal to find the starboard lay line near the top third of the beat. We risk being tacked on or sailing a header without having ‘a runway’ to play the shifts if we get to an edge too early. Also, it’s easier to call the lay line closer to the mark.
How do we fix this? Tack 6-8 boat lengths before the lay line and sail in a clean lane.

Sailors reaching the starboard-tack lay line too early increase the

risk of sailing in dirty air or on a header, and over laying the mark.

Day two brought much different conditions: scattered showers and 10-20 knots out of the west. Sailors enjoyed a costume contest in which our own Annie Samis and Nissana Berman participated as a Chicago style hot dog and Ruth Bader Ginsburg respectively.

During our briefing, we discussed the wind forecast and characteristics of an offshore or ‘geographical’ breeze. We could expect relatively flat water and very shifty, puffy conditions. We talked about how to super vang, de-powering the sail and how it’s easier to do on land rather than on the water. However, we still had a number of sailors launch with very little boom vang or outhaul tension applied.
Super Vang:

1. Ease the sprit tension and remove twists out of the boom preventer.
2. Raise the daggerboard halfway (if on the water) and over trim the mainsheet (boom
   to deck).
3. Remove slack from the boom vang and then ease the mainsheet.
4. Tighten sprit to the proper tension and lower the daggerboard.

Racing was action packed with unpredictable puffs and shifts coming from both sides of the course. Mere seconds separated the top pack making mark roundings very thrilling. We discussed the importance of playing the shifts and ‘connecting the dots’ on the upwinds while committing to one side on the downwind.
Above: Annie Samis, Deana Fedulova, and Christian Prendergrast fight for the inside at the leeward gate.
Connecting the Dots:
This is a common phrase used to describe upwind sailing strategy in puffy conditions. Similar to playing a game of chess, our sailors must think several moves ahead and identify the next puff before other players. Sailing fast while looking upwind and ‘keeping our head out of the boat’ is a skill we can always improve.
One takeaway from the day was fleet management and to always cross the course with pressure. Sail on the lifted tack (pointing closest to the next mark) to the side with a majority of the fleet until you reach the next puff or shift. Use that puff to consolidate back towards the middle of the course. It’s important we remain patient while sailing towards the next line of pressure and refrain from tacking before we reach the new breeze.
The decision to stay with a majority of the fleet minimizes risk if pressure fills from the other side or the shift is not in our favor. Is it impossible to cover the entire course so we must commit to a side and play the odds. If the other side does pay, we will have only lost a a few boats rather than several. This is an important lesson while in the front of the pack. Try splitting from the fleet or playing the opposite side if you find yourself trailing in a race.

Above is a screen capture of a video with :18 remaining until the start. The group at the starboard-end appears to be closest to the line while a significant sag develops in the middle and towards the pin-end.
This is another screen capture of the same video at the START. Most of the boats at the starboard-end nail the start while a majority of the fleet in the middle and at the pin-end are 5-10 boat lengths below the starting line. We must look over our front shoulder at the starboard-end of the line in addition to looking at the pin-end. This will give us a better idea of where the starting line exists.
Three races were completed on Sunday with intermittent rain and and winds gusting in the high teens. I’m proud of our team for managing the conditions with ease and putting forth 100% effort. We were treated to warm chili and pumpkin carving on land before the award ceremony.

Congratulations to Christian Prendergrast on taking top honors. Best of luck to Christian as he travels to Myanmar for the IODA Asian and Oceanic Championship November 10-17. I look forward to seeing everyone else next weekend!