Wednesday Night Series: 2019

Race 16

Aug 28, 2019      Wind Conditions: Heavy

None

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Race 15

Aug 21, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

Our penultimate race, with the crew of Jaded as our RC. The rain ended a little before six, and in a light NE breeze the RC set a W-4 course with a start line just west of Hogback. After the start, the wind died completely, and transformed this from a race into a drift up to the windward mark. After an hour of this, with no boat having yet reached the first mark, RC shortened course to finish at the windward mark. Congratulations to Brass Ring for line honors and the win, with Uncle Ludwig and Knot on call finishing second and third on corrected time.

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Race 14

Aug 14, 2019      Wind Conditions: Heavy

The small jibs made a rare Wed night appearance tonight. Big breeze out of the north, and the crew of Brass Ring was our RC, setting an I-5 course with a windward mark dropped at 30° and North Canoe as the leeward mark. Uncle Ludwig reached the top mark first, followed closely by Stinger, Vaporize, Wild Thing and Spirit. Several boats opted to not deploy spinnakers downwind, including Wild Thing, Stinger and Vaporize in the lead group of boats. Uncle Ludwig maintained her lead at the first leeward mark, with Wild Thing rounding immediately behind. Wild Thing took the lead on the next upwind leg and finished first for line honors. Stinger and Spirit battled with Uncle Ludwig and eventually finished just ahead. Congratulations to Stinger on the win, with Knot on Call and Spirit in a (not-so-rare-this-season) tie for second on corrected time. After-race festivities were held at the Diamond Point Grill.

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Race 13

Aug 07, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

The crew of Fuzzy Logic was our RC tonight. The decision to go ahead with the race was based on a lot of input to the RC for the evening, Christina and Willy Lund, and the WNC, Rodger Voss. Along with radar and future-cast data a consensus from those at Yankee and LGC was to not postpone or cancel but to race. We thank you for your patience. The Committee Boat set an ambitious W4 course and waited for the fleet of eight boats to assemble. In a shifty 5 knots out of the south we had an aggressive start, with Animal being called over early. They rounded the end and ducked behind the fleet and headed towards the west shore as the rest of the fleet lifted to the east. About 10 minutes later Sails Call starts and bails off to the west following Animal. Uncle Ludwig tacked to the right to consolidate even though it was a huge knock. Those that saw how well Animal and Sails Call and now Uncle Ludwig made out going west realized it was a big shift to the right and east was not the way to go. A big whoops for Vaporize, Spirit, T and woot! A lesson learned for the next upwind leg where Spirit went from last to fifth. I was okay with that. It turned out to be a beautiful night for a race. No rain, no storm, and the wind picked up to a steady 8 knots. The RC got Race 13 in and everyone back to their moorings before dark. You would think being over early at the start would put you in last place. Au contraire. Animal comes back and wins the race by a big margin. Congratulations Andrew and crew. Finishing second was Uncle Ludwig, and third was Knot on Call. Doug Brandow sailing Sails Call started 10 minutes late and comes in fourth. Nice comeback.

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Race 12

Jul 31, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

The crew of High Jinx was our RC tonight, setting up a W4 course in a light south breeze, with North Canoe as the windward mark. Throughout the race the east side of the course seemed to be favored. Vaporize reached the windward mark first, and lead around the course to cross first for line honors, followed shortly by Wild Thing. On corrected time, there was a total of just 13 seconds between the first four boats. Congratulations to Doug Brandow’s yet-to-be-named J/22 for the win, followed by Wild Thing in second, Stinger in third, and Vaporize in fourth. After the race there was a raft-up with beer and pizza provided by Night Shade’s John Carr and the Adirondack Brewery — thanks John! Check out photos from Deb Katz on our Flickr album.

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Race 11

Jul 24, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

Nice weather with breeze from the North for Race 11. Crew of woot! on committee boat. Course was an I-5, with windward mark set into the breeze at 25 degrees, leeward mark Hogsback. Wind of course shifted to the West after race underway. The start was delayed a bit due to the pin mark working its way free and drifting downwind. Spirit grabbed it, used its on-board anchor and line, and reset the pin. The pin-end boat had a perfectly timed start - was crossing the line one second after the horn. Uncle Ludwig hit Vaporize at the start, Vaporize protested, and then took off north, keeping the fleet far behind for the entire race. Cut Loose and Brandow and Wild Thing were the next group around the windward mark. Wild Thing made some ground downwind, as the asymmetrics did their thing with the skewed course. While the committee boat was enjoying the race, we noticed the pin mark was once again drifting south... We fetched it, and it appears the line was cut by a propeller! Two anchors and line lost at sea! Damn! Viper kept growing the separation and finished first on corrected time - congrats! And second place to Brandow, and third to Cut Loose — nice to see some new boats taking the top spots.

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Race 10

Jul 17, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

The crew of T was our race committee tonight. setting a W6 course in very light winds. First air movement came from the south, then switched to the NW. So we dropped a windward mark at 325 degrees with a start line near Hogback for a W6 course with eventually 12 boats, including a very late entry by Wild Thing. Wind shifted west and boats seemed to reach that mark on a single tack. So we moved the leeward mark north to a new course of 120 degrees. Wind took a big pause before boats could reach that mark, but came in again from further NW. So we now moved the windward mark north to approximately 320 degrees and shortened to finish at that mark after the third leg. Boats reached the finish on port and on starboard in competitive clusters. Then the wind died and sun quickly settled for the roundup at the Holiday Inn. Congratulations to Stinger, Spirit and Cut Loose for first, second and third, respectively.

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Race 9

Jul 10, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

The crew of Sails Call was our RC tonight, setting a W6 course in a 5-knot south breeze with North Canoe as the windward mark. Twelve boats turned out on this beautiful summer evening — and most of them wanted to start down at the pin end of the line. Throughout the race, pressure seemed better on the east side of the course, and boats that worked that side of the course came out ahead. Wild Thing was first to the windward mark (which included rounding a stubborn fishing boat drifting near North Canoe), and led the long starboard tack run down the course. Animal, Vaporize. Uncle Ludwig, Knot on Call and Stinger rounded next in close succession. The wind started to drop at the end of the first downwind run, and RC signaled a shortened course as Wild Thing rounded first, followed by Animal and Vaporize overlapped at the mark, with Knot on Call, Uncle Ludwig and Stinger in the next group. The wind died almost completely for the first half of the second beat. Thankfully the breeze began to fill again from the southeast, and boats headed towards Long Island to reach the pressure. At the windward mark the RC again signaled a shortened course and indicated that a finish line would be set about halfway down the run. With the breeze filling in, boats split on the run, where again the east side seemed to pay off. Congratulations to Wild Thing for line honors and the overall win. Vaporize finished next, though on corrected time Knot on Call took second and Uncle Ludwig was third. After the race we christened a new location, the TR Lounge at the Holiday Inn in Lake George Village.

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Race 8

Jul 03, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

Vaporize was the RC for this pre 4th of July race on Wednesday night. Originally the start line was just east of the LGC with a windward mark set at 17° about a mile away near the southern tip of Long Island. When I got back to the start area, the wind shifted almost 180°, so I decided to used the pin originally set as the start to now be the windward mark and had everyone start at North Canoe gvt mark, using a W4 course. There were 11 boats on the start line with winds about 8 knots or better from due North. At the first mark, at 16:00 were Stinger, Wild Thing, Woot, followed by Uncle Ludwig. On the downwind run to the second mark at 28:30 was Wild Thing, Stinger Woot and Uncle Ludwig. With the winds holding steady there were some changes at the third mark with Wild Thing, Stinger, Spirit (helmed by John Jacobs) and Woot leading the rest of the fleet. At the finish Wild Thing held line honors, leading the whole race, but Stinger and crew were first on corrected time.

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Race 7

Jun 26, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

We had a little bit of everything in tonight’s race! The crew of Cut Loose was our RC, and set an I-7 course in a light south wind, with north Canoe as the windward mark and a ball due north for the leeward mark. Just before the start, weather radar was showing two small cells approaching, and lightning was reported ten miles away. RC determined that the closest cell would pass south of us, and started the race on time. New entries Jaded and Fuzzy Logic joined the fleet tonight for a total of 13 boats on the line. There was a small left shift in the breeze, and the pin end was slightly favored. Stinger and Wild Thing started at the pin end, with a larger crowd at the boat end of the line. Vaporize arrived late, giving the fleet a big head start. About halfway up the first beat it became apparent that the storm cell was going to hit our race course, and crews scrambled to don foul weather gear. With the rain came bigger breeze from the southwest, providing a lift to the mark on starboard tack. Wild Thing was first to the mark, set the kite and was launched downwind in the big breeze. Several of the next boats around waited a few minutes for the breeze to settle before spinnakers went up, with Knot on Call one of the first to set. That first downwind leg provided planing conditions for the sport boats. Wild Thing came down the east side of the course, woot! jibed early to go west, and Nelson reported that Vaporize “tripped over its keel” after a jibe… heading back upwind the sun came out and the breeze dropped, and spinnakers started to droop on the second downwind. RC signaled a shortened course and set up a finish at the leeward mark. Wild Thing crossed first for line honors, followed by woot! As Spirit and Uncle Ludwig battled down the center of course, Stinger went deeper into the right corner downwind and crossed the other boats at the finish for the win on corrected time. And we have a three-way tie for second with Wild Thing, Knot on Call and Spirit! Family Feud and woot! also tied for seventh. Congratulations to all boats for getting through a fun, fast, slow, wet, sunny, breezy, light evening! After race festivities at the Adirondack Brewery included a celebratory cake and some tune-less singing for Steve Jackson’s retirement :)

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Race 6

Jun 19, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

Thanks to the crew of Knot on Call for doing committee boat duty. They set a W-6 Course for the 11 boats that turned out for the sixth race of the season. Square line, great course, countdown and flags were flawless. We appreciated the teamwork of Paul and Cathryn. Congratulations go to woot! for taking line honors, and to Uncle Ludwig for the win on corrected time. Family Feud (formerly Craic Attack) driven by Russell Merchant finished second, and Sails Call was third. Spirit finished second in the J/24 Fleet.

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Race 5

Jun 12, 2019      Wind Conditions: Medium

Thanks to the crew of "UNCLE LUDWIG" for doing COMMITTEE BOAT Duty. They set a W-4 Course for the 12 boats that turned out for the fifth race of the season. It was a grand time on the committee boat. Clearly, it was the fun place to be. Some boats' crew were being dropped off to join in the fun. They got the fleet off "All Clear" and it appeared Stinger won the start at the pin end. He tacked and crossed half the fleet before tacking back to leebow Vaporize and cover the rest of the fleet. It was a fun tactical leg upwind to the Diamond Island mark, with the lead changing many times. woot! rounded first followed by Vaporize, and they took the hard angle to the right. The other Js jibed over to the left. The course was shortened to the leeward mark to give us just over an hour race. woot! took line honors once again this week followed by Vaporize. CONGRATULATIONS to STINGER for the win on Corrected Time! KNOT ON CALL was second, followed by ANIMAL in third.

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Race 4

Jun 05, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

The crew of Wild Thing was our RC tonight. With a light north breeze and a front approaching from the southwest, RC set a W-2 course with the windward mark at 20°, southeast of Cotton Point, and a start/finish line southwest of Hogback. In spite of the threat of rain, 12 boats turned out to race. A bit of a crowd at the boat end resulted in Cut Loose being shut out. Stinger started down at the pin end along with Uncle Ludwig, t and Vaporize, woot! started mid-line, and Spirit, Animal, Knot on Call and High Jinx (with Bob Rippel coming out of retirement) down at the boat end. Uncle Ludwig was first around the top mark, followed by the two sportboats, who quickly jibed to head east. The spinnakers did not last long — the rapidly approaching front spun the breeze around to the southwest, and turned the final leg into an upwind beat to the finish. Congratulations to Uncle Ludwig for breaking her string of deuces with a line honors finish and the win! Animal cross the line next for second, followed by Stinger in third. Check out the "Series" page on the website for current season standings — with four races in the bank we've earned our first drop.

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Race 3

May 29, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

W4, light south wind, windward mark at 195° with crew of Animal as Race Committee. Congratulations to "woot!" for the outright Victory as well as line honors. Following John Haller, BY JUST ONE SECOND on corrected time, was Uncle Ludwig in second, Stinger, then Spirit.

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Race 2

May 22, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

A cool but beautiful light wind evening. The crew of Spirit was our RC, and set a W4 course with the start line at Hogback and Cotton Point as the windward mark at 350°. Vaporize joined the fun tonight with her new/old keel, starting at the boat end of the line between Knot on Call and Wild Thing. Animal was the first boat to tack to port and head north, followed by Wild Thing, Vaporize and woot! Stinger and Uncle Ludwig went left early to come up the left side of the beat. Boats on the right came out ahead, with the sportboats leading the pack. Wild Thing rounded first, followed by Vaporize and woot!, with the rest of the fleet close behind. Wild Thing led the way downwind in the light and patchy breeze. Vaporize went hard to the east, and stalled in a hole at the top right corner. Wild Thing similarly stalled about three-quarters of the way down the run, and waited for the breeze to fill in as the symmetricals worked their way down the course. woot! made steady progress down the west side of the course. RC signaled a shortened course, with the finish at Hogback. woot! took advantage of a late wind shift to the east to pass Wild Thing on the final jibe to the finish. Congratulations to woot! for line honors, and to Stinger, Uncle Ludwig and Cut Loose for taking the first three spots on corrected time.

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Race 1

May 15, 2019      Wind Conditions: Light

A light wind start for our Wed night series, with several boats showing off their spring finery: a new jib on woot!, a new paint job on Cut Loose, and a new skipper for Knot on Call! Witch Way was our RC tonight, and set a W5 course with the starting line near Hogback and a windward mark set at 327° for the northwest breeze. Pre-start indications of a right shift meant most opted for the boat end of the line, with Knot on Call and Wild Thing starting furthest to leeward. The breeze settled after the start for a square course. Uncle Ludwig worked the right side in the first beat, reaching the windward mark first with a bear-away set down the west side of the course, followed by Wild Thing, who jibe-set and headed east. Knot on Call and woot! rounded next, with woot! also making the move to the east. Wild Thing passed Uncle Ludwig on the first downwind, then extended on a long port tack north all the way to the starboard layline. With the breeze dying as boats made their way downwind on the fourth leg, RC signaled a shortened course and finished boats at the leeward mark. Congratulations to Wild Thing for line honors and the win, with Uncle Ludwig and Knot on Call finishing second and third — only eight seconds separating the first three boats on corrected time!

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