Hey All,

Doc Poulsen and I travelled last weekend , to magnificent Santa Cruz , California for the Area G Alter Cup Qualifier.The Santa Cruz Yacht Club put on a first class regatta !!

My belief is that you gain something from every race that you enter that will help you improve in future regatta's. Having said this , I suspect i'll have to look long and hard to find anything of value from what was a unmitigated goof fest on my part , while racing...

Beginning plans fro BIG improvement in '06...


Best To You All !


Paul Kilkenny
USA #300

Pointy tip up

Lesson 1. It's hard to sail in 25-30 knots.
Lesson 2. It's even harder when there's big swell and whitecaps as well.

My hat goes off to the three boats that actually finished all the races on Sat.!!!

... conditions where perfect for the intended purpose - selecting the best cat sailor in our area.The Taipan F16 handled the conditions well ( gusts at "A" mark to 33kts.{NWS
bouy measured } , wave frequency much LESS than boat length and breaking 5 ft.er's ). I just could not get the boat to GO, and when the H16's started beaten me boat for boat I had rather a crisis of confidence !

It's OK though , i'll not struggle for the motivation to sail on those cold winter days ahead.

By the way , take a look (attached) at my project mast and boom sheeting setup (Hall Spars) for next season !!

PK

Gotta love the diamond adjuster--not that I'd know what to do with it.

As far as conditions go--that photo you posted of us is before the wind really picked up.

... true , and now everyone knows I capsized Before racing had actually started ( serious stuff actually as I'm told the 505 nats. crash boats all had rifles aboard in case a Great White materialized mistaking crew for a marine pinniped)!

One lesson of value actually : a guy showed up at the local catamaran store (Surf City Catamarans - awesome shop !) a week before the Championship and picked up couple things for his single handed cat which he'd just payed cash fer (don't know what kind). The owner asked if he'd be around to watch the regatta a few days hence. Guy say's , " wow, would they let me race too ?!" Long story short nobody can talk this guy
out of racing (even though he knows nothing 'bout rac'n ) ; owner sells the guy one of Rick's VCR tapes...Few days later - his first regatta is the Alter Cup Qualifier ! Day dawns nasty (see previous) ; boats are dropping out left , right and center; i mean really good sailors w/ years of sailing experience and lotsa accomplishments , just heading to shore,
... quit's... This guy capsizes 12 to 18 times in three races. The US Sailing Pro issues him a warning due to exposure to the 57 degree water. Dude will not quit !
End of first day he's in fourth place and a real threat to get the F18 and the tickets to Pensecola !! That night at the
bar guy's are talking about how cool it'd be if (miracle) the guy actually won and all where sure he'd skipped dinner to watch part two of the tape !
A lesson in tenacity i'll never , ever , forget...

Long live the Hobie 14--I wished my mast were as short as his on Sat...but where'd he go on Sunday? I sorta wondered if the gunners DID feel threatened and encouraged (paid) him not to return.

Photo attached of a much friendlier Santa Cruz day.

Phil,

From the attachement you posted...my suggestion is to try sailing your Taipan with it underneath YOU, not hte other way around


Mike.

let's see - pointing nice and high , favored end of the line,
flying a hull , ...oh yeah , sail ABOVE boat...

The "devil IS in the details..."

Going to the L.B. midwinters this year Mike ?


PK

Fur-Sure, eh!
Also hope to go to the US T Nats Nov. 18-20 in Houston...but gots to get me a spinny monkey that can also help drive there & back. 9(~1500 miles each direction!)