Was watching my vhs W1000 for 2000 highlights last night...
my god, I really miss the excitement associated with the race. I look at the people that I havent seen in far far too long and hate that the race is gone. The Virginia Beach and NC friends I had... and so forth. I mean think about it... how "Bad A$$" were these competitors!!! "The Chuck" (Norris) has nothing on these guys. I swear if I hit the big lottery, I would reinstate the event.

Well, there is something a/b the night legs and rounding the cape that the T500 is missing.... The outer banks is an experience that is for sure!!

Sometimes, you still get a night leg in the Tybee. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Jump to 2:00 - http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1155184286/bclid24526455/bctid44132156

Shorter legs... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I remember that night.

We couldn't see where the shore started and the water ended, so when we smelled "dead fishies" we gybed.

Then we almost hit the jetty because it was pitch black. Fun Fun. JDub you gonna come out to be an Adventure Online "Talent" again or have you been replaced by Tammy?

Ohhhh...that leg. I remember the sun going down and we still had 45 miles to go. Then at about midnight, I was out on the wire, driving the boat with the kite up reaching a bit (when the wind finally did come up), mild sea state, pitch black (could barely make out the white decks), while trying to keep my eyes open. I thought it was crazy that I was either THAT tired or THAT comfortable driving the boat from the wire that I could fall asleep while doing it. With the beach strobe marking the finish line coming into site a couple of miles away, a hole opened in the clouds exposing the moon which illuminated things for a short while. Frank and I looked around and noticed the silhouette of a Nacra 20 behind us - not very close, but not as far away as we would like. The moon shortly thereafter disappeared again behind thick cloud cover and our attention focused again on the yellow strobe that was visible only when we sailed to the top of each big gentle roller. The shadow of another boat on our tail instilled a bit of adrenalin and neither of us were quite as sleepy anymore. Considering the amount of time we had sailed in complete and utter darkeness and as long as it had been since we had seen another boat, we could very well have been duking it out for 1st place ... or last place. Maybe, just maybe, that was Team Tybee on our tail. An hour or so later, as we approached shore and could envision the finish line, the lights from the streets and hotels started to light things up. We saw that it was Team Tygart, the team we have been battling all week with for 3rd place finishes, in the dark and they had closed on us. They were farther out in fresher breeze while we were getting choked by the wind shadows of the tall buildings. Frank and I desperately footed to try and cover and got right down on them to only miss covering them by one wave as they rode it and shot their bow into clean air. We gybed for the beach and decided to not fight them through the surf (we didn't have much chance anyway) to make a safe landing...as the first wave broke over the stern of the boat and accelerated us to the beach, it was then we noticed a swimmer in the water...then someone tried to illuminate the swimmer with a spot light and put it right in my eyes. That was the hardest I've ever driven a boat bow first into the sand.

After what? 14 - 16 hours on the water we finished 3-4 within seconds of each other? That's nuts.

All we need is about 27 teams to pony up a $5,000 deposit (non-refundable of course), and I'll be glad to make it happen.

Send your money to my offshore account, US funds only.

mike@itsmyrace.com

The first guys just did it. Why can't that happen again?

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know the sailing distance from Ft. Desoto to Jetty Park? And I'm not trying to start anything, so someone please tell Ding to leave me the [censored] alone.

Perhaps creative minds could work out a long course with Abaco race week.
http://regattatimeinabaco.com/index.html

Cape roundings are it. To me that was the best part.And the offshore breakers are about as fun as it gets.Full speed, trapped out, sailing through breakers at night is a rush I probably won't get to experience again. At least on the W-1000 night legs we'd planned for it.

I have heard many stories first hand from Mark Murray and I am not sure I would be interested in doing that race!

I want to round the cape before I eventually hang it up someday. Also, while I admit to considering the night legs really exciting as a spectator, after being out there for hours on end IN it, I can do without. Being offshore, in the dark, on a boat like that, in the middle of the night is nuckin futz.

I should continue that story for the better conclusion...

Now completely blinded, I felt the boat surge ahead, bow down, and undoubtedly poised with the bows into the sand at a beach I can now only imagine. I knew Frank was near standing on the trampoline as he was only moments before trying to point out the swimmer in the water. As the bows dug in and the boat decelerated, I thought Frank was a gonner as I saw his shadow headed for a faceplant somewhere in the midst of the self tacking rigging and I slid and rolled on the deck of the boat. Our gracious and incredibly responsive ground crew, both awake AND sober, settled down the boat and picked us up out of the sand as I let forth a blast of profanity. While pausing for a moment only to catch my breath, my Mom, who had joined us for the her first Tybee and is certainly not accustomed to such language, patted me on the shoulder and said, "that sucked". Frank managed to catch himself with the mast rotation bar and made a safe 3 point (cheek, foot, arm) landing between the hulls.

If you watch the video, you can see my state of mind early ..,. and then a little later after I gained my composure.

Jake's right about the night stuff. Unless you have a death wish, it is a bit mind numbing. I don't mind the night stuff too much as long as you don't have lights on the shore to get in you head. You start to see wierd things, and I mean WIERD.

Lee Wicklund/ Team Chums

Going around the jetties at night is a serious trip. The only thing on them is ONE light... How far is the light from the end??? All you hear are waves breaking and spinnakers... Oh wait.. the second night... you can't go too far from the jetti b/c there are more rocks!!! Not to mention the fishing boats, the buoys... jelly fish.... unmarked sand bars... oh yeah.. and the other unlit boats.

I'd do it again.... but with a capable skipper I trusted... not like the first time.

Will,

I may need crew soon.

Lee

my "employer" has me sending you a check tommorrow... it will be for 10,000... so just send me the difference back in a cashier check form <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

off topic here:

Long story short, I was in Round Island Regatta a few years back, on my then Nacra 6.0na, + spin. It was about 11-12pm, and we were slowly sailing back in the ICW towards the finish.

It was a moonless night, often with little lights on the banks.

My crew Emory, wasn't really paying attention at that moment. I just finished relieving myself, kneeling near the windward stern. I looked up and out of nowhere, this huge steel 'nun' appeared about 10-15 ft ahead. We were probably doing 4-6 knots.

I had no time to utter a word, or we would have nailed this huge steel bouy, sticking up about 3 ft out of the water, no light on it.

I Pushed hard-a-lee, and then pulled hard again, and we narrowly missed it, whew!

My crew and good friend Emory, nearly thrown off the boat, looked at me in dismay, looked back, and we high fived.


I have never had the opportunity to sail the Worrell, or Tybee, but I have sailed and raced at night several times,
-challenging.


BTW, I will be sailing in this years Great Texas 300, again,
check it out www.GT300.com

There still exists one nearly sure night leg and that is the Around the Island Race in Ft. Walton. I've finished before dark only once in - I don't know how many attempts - but I've never quit and I've never been last to finish. One night, we were sailing through the darkness spin, main and jib near the the Navarre bridge. Suddenly, the crew yells "Dock - dead ahead!" There is an immediate gybe with associated confusion. We get the [censored] sorted out and head back into the channel and immediately again "Dock - dead ahead!" It was a T-head. I missed both collisions by inches.
That said, the RTI in Ft. Walton is a catamaran classic sailing race. Your claim to being a serious racer are always subject to challenge until you have finished it.

Nacraphiliac

All the W teams have night leg stories... we talk about them and remember being there ourselves... I've spent a LOT of time on the water after dark under sail (mono's and cats) and power (HIGH and low speeds) and NOTHING comes close to the W1k. One night, 14 miles off shore, double trapped with the kite up clocking 20+.... I've know plenty of stories and have several of my own, but.....