Out on Bad Cat today for an especially fresh frostbite race, with gusts north of 30kts. We kept the sail plan rather conservative, with a storm jib and double reef in the main. We lacked for power a bit on the first leg, made ground back on the reach, and were glad we didn't gear down to bigger sails as we took waves over the bow coming back upwind. A speedy reach finished the race. I trimmed the jib, and enjoyed being able to play around on some new hardware I don't ride on frequently. A great day out and a fun race!
Century Club: Jonathan Nepini
Sunday, November 16, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Barba Roja, Dauntless, & Bad Cat power reaching before the start
Thursday, November 13, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Took a quick lap off Forest Landing this evening. The tide was low, and when I came in, I realized I snagged a stick at some point and put a bad pinhole in my board. I was never so impressed with it as a piece of hardware, but was especially disappointed to see it pop so early. Back to the old ride I guess...
Wednesday, November 12, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Unusually low tide at the ramp and I found a freshly lost trailer tag on my way out. I took a quick lap around Mill Creek and got back around dark. Did the right thing and arranged for the tag to get turned in to the police and returned to its owner.
Wednesday, November 5, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
A quick lap off Forest Landing before it gets totally dark. Season is really winding down now.
Sunday, November 2, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
In the mix in a slow, crowded start
SMSA frostbites #1 on a beautiful, very un-frostbite day. Steve was out of town and asked me to skipper Barba Roja in his absence, and we set out with a solid crew of five for the race. We started well, if a scoshe late, in light and shifty conditions. We sailed a clean upwind leg, but found a hole shortly before the upwind mark and let the fleet run away. We set the spinnaker, and got a little bit of ground back. Not my best performance, but a fun race overall and not entirely uncompetitive given the boat and the conditions.
Thursday, October 30, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Out this evening for my last Solomons paddle of the year, as club checkouts end soon. Nice conditions for a ride up to Twin Cove and back. The season is quickly coming to a close, but I'm trying to squeeze a few more trips in where I can.
Wednesday, October 29, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Despite the raw, damp, gusty conditions, I was dead set on the idea of a paddle today, and headed off Forest Landing for a quick lap. I headed up to Camelot (though the property is being sold and the sign has been taken down) in misty rain, and then back past the boat ramp to the beaver dam. The tide was way up, and approaching the top of the ramp when I returned. I'd stop short of calling it a nice paddle, but I think the fresh air was probably good for me on what's ended up being a stressful week. A bad day on the water beats a good day at the office, right?
Thursday, October 23, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
A gorgeous sunset over Piney Point
Wanted to go take a peek at a house down in Piney Point and decided to go for a paddle while in the neighborhood. I hugged the shore up around Lighthouse Rd and enjoyed a gorgeous sunset. A nice way to ease into the weekend.
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
A gorgeous sunset view
Out for our weekly sunset sail today on Barba Roja. Great conditions and pleasant weather for a relaxing sail with good company. We put up "Dory" the staysail and experimented with rolling the furling headsail to tack. Afterwards, we leisurely ambled across the river basin and sailed almost all the way back to the slip.
Tuesday, October 21, 2025
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
A very brief lap off Clarke's Landing after work and before going to dinner. Heavy conditions but warmer than anticipated weather made for a good workout on the way out and a pleasantly quick ride back.