Last call for Lady Liberty...

STATUE of LIBERTY RACE [color:"red"] [/color]

If you're already signed up: See you on July 2 - you should have received the participant brochure today. If not, request it at info@statueoflibertyrace.com .

If you're still on the fence: We have 76 boats preregistered today. Check out the list on the event website (scroll down). You still get early sign-up discounts if you sign up by end of day June 30.*

If you have friends that are still on the fence: Ditto. Tell them to get on it! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

If you can't make it this year: We hope to see you in 2007.

Thanks!

The Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club [color:"blue"] [/color]




* SHBCC members preregistration closed May 31st.

Thom, What a great list of sailors! Wish I could be there! With so many great teams it's hard to know who to root for! I'll stick to regional loyalty, and root for the New England teams first, but I have to support Velocity, and those Texas teams too! A very exciting list of registrants! What about Rick Bliss? Ed Nolen? Anyway, I'll pray you have good weather, and winds.

Thanks Brian. We're very happy with where we are today. Not sure if we will meet our "Objective 100" but we consider this year just a warm-up for bigger and better.

Personally I am rather new to the catsailing scene and so it will be great to meet so many people from this forum on July 2. We had a small but great SHBCC team to plan all the marketing, find the sponsors and create the website. We'll definitely be back with pictures and a race report.

You guys just may make it if the weather report is good.
81 right now.

FORCAST:
High: 83°F
Precip: 30%
Wind: WSW 10 mph

Now 82

Rick will be there, but with parts / without boat.

Finally, Gertie (Team CF) is signed up! Pst....my money is on Tygert or Lucky Duck!

Hey Duck, Any room in your tent?

N20 14
F18 13
H16 13
H20 5
N6.0 4
NF17 3
H17 3
TheMightyHobie18 3
P18 3
P16 3
18SM 2
Rey33 2
P19 2

Phil, Glad to know Rick will be there. It certainly is great to have a parts truck at an event!One more plus for the geat organizers of this one!

Only if Andy stays on the boat.

DOH!

That's OK, I'll pick him up again <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

88 boats registered and counting!

you guys need to lookout for Trey and Alan on Undecided. Those guys are fast when they sail together. (I slow the boat down because I suck)

Will we repeat all sequence of events this year again? I need to break a mast on F17 prior the race then.

90 boats registered and counting!!!

If you are on the fence, jump off and join us!!

Hey, whens the last time there were this many I-20s in one place, or one race?????

And the Galesville (Md) crowd sure is representin, aint they?

I will be demonstrating the more refined side of Maryland with A touch of Class wearing my blue blazer and captains hat tilted at a jaunty angle. Holding tiller and mainsheet with pinky extended. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> Ed

You A class guys are sooo snobby; but I knew you when, Ed... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
David
H20
781

I will not be attending so someone else will have to be DFL <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

don't worry, Ed took a spin on the I20 once and got his doilies ruffled. From that point on he's had to fake his Aclass snobbery <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

It happened in Myrtle Beach. I was there. I witnessed it.

"And the Galesville (Md) crowd sure is representin, aint they?"

I don't say this very often, but or and, I've gotta thank me wife for this one!

"I will be demonstrating the more refined side of Maryland with A touch of Class wearing my blue blazer and captains hat tilted at a jaunty angle. Holding tiller and mainsheet with pinky extended."

Duck, Your being modest! Give that there NY/NJ crowd the full Galesville sight I see on a regular basis: "my blue blazer and captains hat tilted at a jaunty angle. Holding tiller and mainsheet with pinky extended, standing on the windward hull with the beams at about 45 degress to the waters surface, crossing the finish line!

Tad: First of all congrats and best wishes on the mariage thing. Its great stuff.

True True, the I-20 is a blast and thanks much to Trey for letting me drive. I screwed up crewing so bad he had to. If I could just get it in and out of the water by myself I would get one. Maybe when I grow up.

Chris: We'll see how it goes in NY/NJ, thats the BIG pond. As far as flying the hull goes, its easy on a toy boat.

Dave N.: Looking forward to racing against you, Chris B. and George & Sue if they're going. You guys will walk if the breeze is on, which it usually is for this one.

COASTAL WATERS FORECAST
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE UPTON NY
517 AM EDT THU JUN 29 2006

ANZ338-292130-
/O.ROU.KOKX.MA.F.0000.000000T0000Z-000000T0000Z/
NEW YORK HARBOR-
517 AM EDT THU JUN 29 2006


SUN
SW WINDS 5 TO 10 KT...INCREASING TO 10 TO 15 KT IN THE
AFTERNOON...THEN DECREASING TO 5 TO 10 KT. WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. A
CHANCE OF SHOWERS. A CHANCE OF TSTMS. VSBY LOCALLY 1 TO 3 NM IN
THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

91 boats registered. Do you really want to miss this?

My last post before race, I am on my way down to the club. You can also come if you want to marvel/laugh-at my Hobie 17 sporting a 230 sq ft spin on a 14 ft pole. Hope to see you all there.

Phil, I hope to hear/read a detailed account of the race once you're rested up! Good luck!

only 10 knots?

could be a long day.

WindGURU is calling for 12-14 pretty steady all day <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

http://www.windguru.cz/int/index.php?sc=264

Lets hope....

12-14 knots on Windguru, from SW, a good direction - it may be a broad and a close reach conditions... Course to the Statue is pretty much straigt North.

94 right now! - not a 100 yet, but getting close (we're also going to expect a few dropouts)

Get a flavor:

Only thing I'm worried about is all the debris that's being washed down the Hudson River from the rains this week.

Crews are going to have to keep their eyes peeled.

Good point...stay focused - 200%.

latest from NOAA buoy (Ambrose Light) predicts 10-15 we will see. sw winds mean fast approach get to the island early for best viewing. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

98

regretfully, I'm not making it. Combined with several other factors, Bonnie broke her arm/wrist last week and just had surgery today. Screws and plates. Before anyone starts to assume anything, I was in St. Louis at the time and have the airplane tickets to prove it!

Go 100!!!! You guys will make it. Registration is almost always less than the actual total. You guys are setting the model for event marketing and participation.

Thanks Jake - entirely valid reason to not make it! Too bad for you all. Wish we could have met you here. Hope Bonnie gets better soon.

About 8 boats have trickled in today (other than local members). The TCDYC boats were the first to arrive (Tom and Jennifer), and a bunch of other boats including an unexpected RC30 with Bill Roberts who just signed up tonight (gate to the beach proved too narrow for the 16 foot beam, but we found a workaround). Rick Bliss has arrived too, but indeed no boat, just the truck.

We'll try to get you all an update on the actual registrations tomorrow evening (Saturday 6pm-9pm is the first registration slot, Sunday 7am - 8:30am is the second)

Weather's still working for us. Parking lot filling up quickly...

Hats off to everyone who's fighting their way through traffic right now to get here!

i am stuck at the gate too! F40............help! This is a beach cat race is'nt it? <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

It's getting interesting

NEW YORK HARBOR-
254 PM EDT SAT JUL 1 2006

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH
SUNDAY EVENING


TONIGHT
SW WINDS 5 TO 10 KT. WAVES 1 FT OR LESS.

SUN
SW WINDS 10 TO 15 KT. GUSTS UP TO 25 KT IN THE AFTERNOON.
WAVES 1 TO 2 FT. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND TSTMS IN THE AFTERNOON
WITH VSBY 1 TO 3 NM.

What are those boats with radar pods on the mast? Is the race that far?

Hobie Bobs??????

It's a mast float to keep the boat from going turtle in the event of a capsize.

1.Accelerated chaos New course record
2. Tygart
3. myself
4. Matt bounds
Corrected unknown. We hit the road before the 16 finished

Corrected:
1. Team Accelerated Chaos (I-20)
2. Matt Bounds (Hobie Tiger)
3. Mark Modderman (Hobie 16)
4. Paul Krutty (Hobie Tiger)
5. Rich McVeigh (Hobie 16)

First four boats to finish (3 I-20's and H-Tiger) all broke the old record.

What an awesome day!

Thanks, guys - you made the drive worth it.

Now I need a nap.

What an awesome day of sailing! Thanks so much to everyone who made this race possible this year. I am sure they are all still celebrating on the beach with the party they had planned! Unfortunately we both have to work in the morning.
Race was a spin blast to the statue in 12-18 with gusts well into the the 20's, and a very very close reach back to the beach. Was a drag race for sure with the challenge of keeping the pointy end up!
Thanks again to everyone who helped put this event on!
Chris
www.acceleratedchaos.com

It was fun. At some point there were 7 boats floating upside down inside of New York harbor, with largest "beach cat" from supercat family (27 or 30 footer) blocking entrance to harbor right under Verezano bridge in main chanell. Ferry services were distracted for about an hour.

In solo division A-cat wiped out two F17 and banch of H17

YAHOO! Way to go Chris! Wish there was a video of that ride! Congrats to Matt, and Barry too! I was thinking of you guys while I was stuck at work! Will look forward to more reports.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/03/nyregion/03mbrfs-002.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
http://www.1010wins.com/pages/52550.php
http://www.silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/1151932660135490.xml&coll=1

Wow! That sounds a little hairy! Are results up yet? Is the registration page up to date? Just curious as to wether anyone else I know raced. How did Trey Brown and Alan do? How about Sean McQuilken(?)? Hope everyone and their boats are alright!

Well, the race was not interrupted at all (how do you stop a bunch of guys reaching full speed toward the Statue?). Actually, beside a few capsizes everybody enjoyed the experience a lot.
79 boats on the starting line. Only a few boats did not make it around the Statue.

A 1000 thanks to everybody, your participation is what make this event so exceptional. One special to the Texas team who made the trip.

Results are attached and will be posted shorly on our website.

See you next year.

Jacques
SHBCC race.org

It's over and it was great. Or better, it was AWESOME .

+ It was awesome because participants came from Massachusetts, Florida, North Carolina, Maryland, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, Delaware, Michigan, Virginia, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Washington and Ontario. Thanks everyone for coming out from so far!
+ It was awesome because the weather was PERFECT. Thursday through Sunday we had blue skies and temparaturs around 85 F degrees.
+ It was awesome because we saw 79 boats at the start. Not the 100 we are hoping for, but if everyone brings one more friend next year we'll be good <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />
+ It was awesome because the first 4 BOATS BROKE THE RACE RECORD. The race record fell by 8 minutes!!
+ It was awesome because everyone worked with the organizers to make things go smooth on the parking, on the beach and at the registration.
+ It was awesome because we finally worked through the coast-guard concerns and did have a complete race after a bit of a (helicopter) buz with the capsized RC30.
+ It was awesome because even the fun race on Saturday around the 3 lighthouses in our bay happened in perfect sailing weather.
+ It was especially awesome for everyone to get to know some of the faces and the characters that go behind the screen-names on Catsailor.com (yes...Trey, Alan, that would include you)

+ It was awesome because we had great sponsors who provided great stuff for prizes (APS, Harken, Murrays, Ronstan, Sailingproshop and New England Catamarans)and a beer sponsor (Duvel) who set up a great tasting event.
+ And finally, it was awesome because tons of volunteering SHBCC club members put in a lot of effort and time to help out where they could.

We're looking forward to another awesome one next year!

Thomas

From the New York Times Monday July 3rd

Staten Island: Boats Capsize During Race
E-MailPrint Reprints Save By MICHAEL WILSON
Published: July 3, 2006
A catamaran race from New Jersey to the Statue of Liberty was interrupted yesterday morning when several vessels capsized in the rough waters near Staten Island. The Statue of Liberty Marathon, held by the Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club, was midway through its eight-hour course when the boats capsized near the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge shortly before noon, said Petty Officer Angelia Rorison, a Coast Guard spokeswoman. Officers on several Coast Guard vessels pulled the racers from the water. There were no injuries. An official with the club, Jacques Pierret, said at least five boats capsized, the largest a three-person vessel. "It was gusty, very gusty after the Verrazano Bridge, and it was pretty rough conditions," he said.

Leave it to the newsies to blow something completely out of proportion.

Yes, the RC-30 went over just inside the bridge and was upside down for a long time.

We saw a Nacra F-18 and an N-20 go over while jibing on the back side of the statue - but they righted fairly quickly and continued on with no issues.

Other than that, yeah the wind in the harbor was weird, but certainly not uncontrollable. Mostly wind shadows from the anchored ships / barges.

What's the corrected course record?

Congratulations to all! Way to go Velocity! 9th out of 79! I can't believe Chris and Nate had to come back last night so they could work today! Nice to have the energy of youth. Hope you guys are still feeling the thrill of setting a new course record! Sounds like it couldn't have been much better. How about those Moores? Nice work Barry! I'm hoping to read acounts from all of you... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

This may be interesting.
I found the past results are on the website.

The corrected course record is 4:14:44 set in 2003 by R. Mcveigh and L. Phan on a Hobie 16.
That is also the record for a Hobie 16 at an elapse time of 3:13:24 .

the past winning corrected times are:
2006: 4:26:45
2005: 6:24:01
2004: 5:18:41
2003: 254.74 min. 4:14:44
2002: 470.98 min
2001: 401.77 min
2000: 498.88 min
1999: 269.48 min
1998: 431.33 min
1997: 454.68 min
1996: 304.14 min

Ill start off with a few photos from the beach.

Photos on Flickr

Good times......

Just to let you guys know....we have video from onboard our Nacra 20, as well as a load of pics. I'll repost when all of this goes up on velocitysailing.com. There are some awesome videos of us reaching on the boat, as well as some great shots going around the statue.

See the attachments on my last post and this one for a taste...

What's the story with the capsized RC30? How did they right it and was there any damage to the rig?

2nd hand info was that it pitchpoled, got the msat stuck in the mud, then broke the battens and the boom when it was righted.

But it is 2nd hand.

We were distracted with some spinnaker sheet issues after we jibed away from Staten Island, so we didn't see it go over, but Paul K. saw it blow over in a gust. He said it looked like nobody blew the spin / main sheet since neither was flogging as it went over. We ended up going by them right after it happened (like 20 ft away - not intentionally - that's just where the spinnaker took us <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />) and asked them if they were OK. The chase boat was already there.

After we rounded the Statue and came back, they were still there. A NYC Harbor Police boat was circling and they had the RIB from the club assisting in the righting process. They were definitely stuck on the bottom - almost turtle, but one hull up about 4 ft.

Late that afternoon, I saw them back at the beach with the sails down. The mast looked OK - even clean.

Are there any more pictures or details on the wooden catamaran? Is that a hand made Tornado?

Cheers,
Michael

there were 3 Texas Teams there and 2 made it around the statue with no problems. Tommy T had kidney stones and spent the day in the hospital and was sorely missed by his buds on the water. (myself and wife, Todd and Britt.)

Sorry Marc, in my mind the team was the whole Texas people. Again, that was great to have you with us. I am sure that your camping place with the sign and the texas flag has been captured in many pics, that was cool!

Thanks again for coming

Jacques

No offense taken, We loved the race, it was a gift to me to sail around the statue and be sitting in the middle of NYC harbor, I grew up in manhattan and saw the statue for the first time when I was 11, I hope the coast guard does not give you too much trouble and we get to do it again next year with more of our fleet. I was a little disapointed though, we did not see even one body in the water.

I saw the RC from similar perspective as Matt... just missed it flipping but sailed right by just after it happened. When they got back to the beach most of their battens were poking out of the front of the batten pockets but that was all the damage I saw.
I got a chance to talk to the Tornado guy... he's from Syracuse.. bought it from Texas years ago, I think he said it was almost 30 years old but gets sailed rarely and when it does is always on fresh water. He sailed with his young son... probably about 10.

Ah, the CG. We are working on it right now... We will have a debriefing with them and are ready to admit several mistakes:

1. Boats should be able to be righted by their crews without external help (does that mean that the size should be restricted?).
2. Containment zone around the Statue should be strictly controlled (you go in, you are DSQ, no exceptions).
3. Nothing to do with CG: finish line should be firmly secured!

Hopefully, we will make it through for next year.

Jacques