Words of Wisdom

Words of Wisdom – 04-09-06 - Moose McClintock

The Moose Whisperer

Let me start by saying, as I did at the awards, that no one is as surprised as I am that I had a good day. The last time I wrote one of these WOW’s was when Dan asked me to do it so the “mid-fleet guys” like me could get a perspective. As I’ve gotten older I have come to accept that my best days of Lasering are behind me but I approached this day a little differently than most because I knew there would be big and talented fleet and also because my boss was going to be sailing and if I didn’t show some ability he would start questioning my time off for personal sailing.

The biggest difference in my preparation was my sail, I bought a new one before the season started with the intention of using it if I went to any class regattas the next year or two. I have been using the “ITA” for most of the season and I think it’s a really good sail, I was sailing much faster this year than the last couple (though my season results sure don’t show it) and I think the sail has a lot to do with it. The biggest difference with the new sail is there is much more return in the leech since it hasn’t stretched. This return allowed me (for once) to hold lanes because I had a little bit more power in the back of the sail. In fact, whenever I felt like I needed height I eased the sheet about 6”, the sail powered up immediately and in several instances I was able to pinch with the same speed into wind shear lines that lifted me off the boats to leeward and kept me in the breeze, this was an eye opener for me. Ed once told me that you should never use a new sail on a windy day since the leech would go immediately, I was freaked that I was trashing the sail the first race but after the breeze calmed a bit in the second race I realized the value of the new sail was immense and my speed and pointing reinforced it.

Other than my sail, my other valuable preparation was mental. Ever since I was a little kid I’ve always gotten really excited the night before a big regatta, usually to the point of not being able to sleep. Sure enough, I awake about 2:00 AM on Sunday morning and mentally sailed about 30 races. I did a pile of check-ins in my mind, from what I had to do

1. before sailing: lots of fluids, fixed my bailer, ate a banana for potassium, minimal clothing (though I was going to wear my shorty wetsuit I ended up with my old, lightweight drysuit, it was colder than forecast), first on the water and a quick sail upwind and down to get sail adjustments correct, passed wind, relaxed and stretched a little (very little, I should do more)
2. in pre-start: get the big Ronstan watch on my mast set, multiple line sights from 2, 1.5, 1 and .5 lengths below the line, get my mainsheet organized in the back of the boat so I’d be able to ease at the weather mark (a huge problem for me), look up the beat for the first puff off the line, try to stay away from the big packs on the line
3. to first beat: pick a side and hike as hard as I could (about 30 seconds, usually) to get over the boats near me, then hang the 220 lbs. of beer guzzling granite over the side for the long haul, try to stay away from the laylines early and don’t be afraid to take a step up tack in a lift near the weather mark to converge with the fleet in clear air
4. to the run: the best lesson from the Steve Cockerell for me was watching the escape from the weather mark (PJ and I talked about how good Ed is at this when we were at the AC a couple weeks ago), I made sure my mainsheet was free to run instead of screwing around with it wrapped around my feet, this allowed me to get dead downwind immediately at speed. I gybed immediately to get on the headed tack if I had to and I was consciously sailing the angles much more than usual since the shifts were so big and
usually packing more breeze
5. to the final beat: I went around the left gate almost every time, it seemed to be more upwind and the right paid huge on the first shift every time, I sailed in bad air and a couple times cracked off and reached to leeward of the boats ahead of me to get to the shift

With all the mental preparation from a sleepless night and newfound speed in a new sail, I was able to sail with my head out of the boat for one of the few times this year. The first race I was trying to start at the boat and saw I’d get shut out as the breeze really kicked in and everyone surged to the line, I reached down until I found the girls side by side and started dead astern of them and blew by them in the first big puff after the start, I guess it’s payback for getting the crap kicked out of me by them in the light stuff. From there I went straight in a lift to the left side with lifting current, got headed and rounded second right behind Andy and ahead of Dave Moffet. It was perfect breeze for the Harry A. and the three of us extended on the reach, I got a little lost on where the leeward marks were at the boat rounding and let Dave get to my left where he kicked my ass but I held on for a third which I figured would be my best finish of the day (per usual).

I’m a little fuzzy on the next couple races except I know that I had three straight starts at the committee boat that allowed me to sail straight in a lift to the left side, I always took the first breezy header back to the right and tacked under the fleet coming back. This conservative approach (I knew if I started tacking a lot I’d flip) didn’t leave me leading much but I was always in the top couple at the weather mark and from there I was
actually pretty quick (for me) off the breeze so I could round the leeward gate doing well and I was picking off a couple more boats on the way to the finish. I guess Mark Bear would say I was in the zone.

The last race was actually the best race I sailed though it was my worst finish. I had no idea how I was doing for the day though Scott kept coming up and telling me I was doing great (it’s been a while since I did well so I’ve long since stopped after racing to see how everyone is doing, maybe this is a good thing). The pin looked very favored and I tried to get down there as fast as I could after getting a sight. nfortunately I realized at about 20 seconds I’d never make it to the first, second or third row and never get within 5 lengths of the pin so I gybed and started taking sterns. I found a very narrow lane that I could tack into under the storming right hand part of the fleet (the pin got flushed, go figure), I carried a lift to about 4 lengths from the mark when I got a little header, I stepped up and tacked just under the layline when another righty came in and got me around the mark around 10th. A quick gybe (again the Cockerell method, I was starting to death roll as I bore off and rather than fighting it I kept going right into a gybe) and I was on the headed tack with breeze and rolled about 4 boats, a gybe back halfway down the run and I was laying the right pin with pressure. As I said earlier, I had gone around the left hand pin every race and should have here but I figured the right hand was so far upwind that it would take a huge shift to lose anyone going the other way. So of course I lost two boats but what the heck……

Anyhow, it was a great day on the water. I am truly honored to be able to take home a generously donated (by last race winner Andy Burton) Laser half model that commemorates (for me) the value that Pete Milnes brought to this fleet. The huge new perpetual was beautiful (as was Edith in the picture taking), I think that only those of us that go back to the beginning of the fleet can truly appreciate the integrity and enthusiasm that is necessary to found and encourage a group as diverse and enthusiastic as ours. I hope to have more good days in the future though I’m pretty sure this was the perfect example of the blind squirrel finding a nut, it happens. But I’ll be out there next year, cranky as ever, and I expect you’ll all take some satisfaction in continuing Pete’s fleet.