SMSA Wednesday Night Series A-5. A very full crew on the boat. Another downwind start, with decent breeze for the first couple legs of the race. The wind started to die on the last leg, and we didn't quite make the finish how I wanted to. Still a fun race! Pictures coming later.
Century Club: Jonathan Nepini
Saturday, May 7, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
The delivery crew braving the weather
Taking a turn at the helm
Woke up early planning on participating in the CRCA Herrington Harbor to Cambridge race, but the event was cancelled in the middle of the night due to the forecasted heavy weather. Steve had already delivered the Barba Roja to HH for the race, so most of the race crew went up and helped deliver the boat back to Solomons. We ran under full main and a #3, and rocketed down the Bay on a broad reach with following seas. The trip usually takes about 6 hours and we got it done in 4. I took a turn at the helm and surfed the boat down a wave to 12.3kts, an all-time speed record. I got to practice driving in heavy air and larger swells (by Bay standards) and was able to test out some new foul weather gear. It was a cold, damp, and blustery trip, but I had a great time anyway.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)
Thursday, May 5, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
All smiles at the finish
Pre-race chip overboard rescue (look close for the floating Doritos!)
It seems that I'm becoming semi-regular crew for Tommy Birchfield on his Mutineer. Tonight was a real drifter, but we were still able to get two races in. One of Tommy's high school teammates joined us and we worked on optimizing the boat in light air with a third crew member. A couple friends from the Barba Roja crew raced against us on one of the club's 420s and we had some nice friendly competition. Hoping they both continue to race on Thursdays.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)
Wednesday, May 4, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Making the most of the light wind
A tidy spinnaker run
SMSA Wednesday Night Series A-4. A great fleet of 16 boats, and both of our usual rivals were out, making for interesting racing. The wind shut off just before a crowded first mark rounding, costing us first place, but we had a great spinnaker run and the wind built nicely for a beating leg to the finish. We managed a solid second place finish. Overall a fun race!
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)
Friday, April 29, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
A nice view from up top
As the lightest member of the Barba Roja crew I took a trip up the mast to retreive the jib halyard that unclipped itself on Wednesday & did a brief survey for a new electronics package that will be installed soon. 42 feet feels much higher at the top than it looks from the bottom! Afterwards several of us took a nice relaxing Friday cruise up to the bridge and back. Great way to decompress after a hectic week.
Thursday, April 28, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Last upwind leg of the night
Doing our best to hold the boat down
Had great downwind legs all night
First successful Thursday night of the season (got rained out a couple weeks ago). Crewed on Tommy Birchfield's Mutineer for the first time and had a blast. 15kts of breeze and 180lbs combined crew weight made things pretty interesting for the first two races, but the wind died down a bit for the third and we had our best results of the evening. I've only been out on small boats a few times so I did lots of learning & getting up to speed with the boat. Looking forward to crewing again & pushing the boat faster.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)
Wednesday, April 27, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Tonight's crew
Pre-start
Another Wednesday in the books. RC put us on a long course, with a reaching start & long upwind & downwind legs. A full crew meant we could carry full sail into the low 20s in the gusts. Our downwind run was a bit tricky, and we had to put in a gybe and an early douse due to shifting winds. We had a few problems & equipment glitches, but still managed a win in our class. Overall a good race.
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield)
Sunday, April 24, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Today's route
Took a quick lap around Back Creek before the SpinSheet crew party to enjoy the summer-like weather.
Friday, April 22, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
Pretty sunset afterwards
The vehicle
Today's route
Decided to celebrate Earth Day and the gorgeous spring evening by breaking out my paddleboard for the first time this season. First ever solo paddle too. I launched off Leonardtown Wharf and took a quick lap around the top of Breton Bay. Low tide meant super shallow water upstream of the Wharf, so I circled back and stopped by the docks at my alma mater. Treated myself to an ice cream cone afterwards. A fantastic start to my weekend!
Wednesday, April 20, 2022
Number of days:
1 day
The crew hard at work
Pre-start, a nice evening on the water
Today's race was a mix of highs and lows. Much more breeze than was forecasted made for ideal conditions. We worked together well as a crew today and pulled off some clean tacks and mark roundings. We carried a kite on two reaching-ish legs & I got rounded up on one of them due to a lack of communication between myself and one of our trimmers. Still need to work on my driving under spinnaker. Our kite got a small hole at some point, and blew out spectacularly on the hoist for the last leg. A costly race for our skipper...
(Photos courtesy of Steven Birchfield & Polly Traynham)