Practice Day Pics - 2/25/07

Let's try to capture the inner thought of everyone on board.

Heather: "boy, this kite was set up so right. It looks just perfect"
Eli(s)e: "I wish I had brought a pillow with me"
Kate:"I know that there's no sun, but shades do make me look cool"
Arthur: "Let's see if I can read the specials at the Saint Francis today"





Chin up, serious look, straight back.

A real captain.











Pom Pom Girls














Micromanagement:
Excerpt from a phone conversation -

Nat: "are you tacking toward the city front?"
Heather: "No, we're not tacking now"
Nat: "Any chance you could tack toward the city front? You're too far away, we can't see you"
Heather:"Sorry, I am having a really hard time hearing you."






Ave Caesar - Navigatori Te Salutant

Berkeley Midwinters Feb 10

With a forecast for possibly heavy breeze and storms, Elise sailed the Berkeley Circle race with 4 crew: Roger, Heather, Amy, and Nathan. Nat had some last minute urgent issues to take care of (funny how sailors seem to have all kinds of obligations come up suddenly on days that just happen to involve inclement weather...). Elise was also parked in her dry slip in such a manner as to prevent the competitor next to her from leaving (stanchion lock), which greatly impressed the neighbors when they tried to get to the hoist first. So awed were they by our skills in parking,maneuvering the trailer, and launching the boat that they grew quite nervous later in a starboard crossing when we ducked them.

We had the opportunity for a bit of spinnaker practice before the race, and it went well though light air made it difficult to keep the kite full through the gybes. Unfortunately, we didn't have quite enough time to get the boat tuned for upwind (jib cars in particular were significantly out of position).

The course was Berkeley Circle #4 (triangle, windward leeward). Conditions were light to medium, #1 weather but not overpowered.

We had a good start at the committee boat end of the line (second tier, but right on the heels of the boat which timed it perfectly and with a significant edge over boats further down the line). Unfortunately, we spent the first several tacks upwind tuning the boat and consistently losing distance. The jib car position was the main item needing a change, though backstay was also an issue. We basically lost the race on the first upwind.

Tacking was pretty smooth, with Roger and Amy working trim. The first spinnaker set took about a third of the first downwind leg, but was correct and smooth when executed. A gybe at the offset mark went well, as did the drop at the leeward mark. I apologized for calling the drop a bit early but wasn't heard forward, so Roger helpfully translated my comment for the foredeck as allegations of incompetence (the call forthe early drop) which were proven (by a quick, correct drop) to be scurrilous and unfounded.

Being solidly behind, we took a few flyers upwind and downwind (reasonable choices upwind, but the downwind flyer towards the Berkeley shore proved a loser). We also got in a nice gybe set at the second windward mark, which was completed faster than our normal set. After a close encounter with a Santa Cruz 27 mistakenly heading down while we ducked her, we crossed the line and headed for home.

After a hat-overboard drill, we got to the dock without being too sodden, though a squall blew through just before we passed the spit leading into the harbor. It was a very successful day for Heather on her first day as foredeck (no significant mistakes except a setup issue at the dock), and also for Amy and Roger keeping things under control in the cockpit.

The finish wasn't what we were hoping for, but we've learned a lot in the first series and should be able to apply that in the Spring Keel.

Spring Keel

A little taste of what's coming up next! - and this time, I am planning to be there :) And the good news is that we don't have to travel far to get to the start line...

* from our beloved fleet captain *

"Okay Folks. Well that about wraps up our mdinwinter series. We saw anything and everything, so pretty much your typical BYC midwinter series. Hopefully everyone enjoyed it as much as we did. I must say that I am ready for some true windward/leeward courses though, with more passing lanes and opportunities to catch up to that Motorcycle Irene. Great job Will, by the way.

So, the StFYC Spring Keel is just around the corner. March 3rd and 4th. There are currently 7 boats signed up with StFYC, so hurry up and get your entries into StFYC. It is so simple to sign up for this regatta. You just go to their webpage and fill everything in online. There is a link on the front page of the e27 website that takes you directly there. Couldn't get much easier than that.

Back in 2003 this event was one of the biggest on our schedule. We had 17 boats make it out to the starting line. The conditions are still usually winter-like so don't be scared to come out and play on the city front. You 6 boats at StFYC have no excuses for not making it out for your own hometown event!!!

Hope to see you all out there!

-Jason Crowson

Moxie #83

"Rah, Rah, Rah!""

PFD (Pet Flotation Device)

Hershel: "What the heck is this ridiculous outfit? I look completely stupid in this thing"











Hershel: "Oooo, wait a minute. Is this a treat that I see on the floor?"

Ladies Ladies Ladies

Kate working Trim 2 (note the super cool hat) - I am thinking that we should all wear that same hat

















Heather smiling at the bow, thinking "Nat looks SO ridiculous as a pole sleeve"










Kate showing off. I am not sure if she's working pit or practicing boxing. In any case, I want to be her friend.

A girls' sail out

Hallo Hallo Beethovens!

This weekend marks a historic milestone for Elise...

First, Nate and Nat were scheduled to participate in the very famous Three Bridge Fiasco. There's a good reason why it's called a fiasco, we didn't even show up for the start line! Nat had an urgent last minute pro appt right in the middle of the race and Nate got a cold! What were those two thinking about???

The weekend was brightening up though as the girlies on the program decided to meet for an afternoon of fine cuisine, fashion, gossip and hard training.

Let's start with the cuisine. We had some fabulous lunch at the St Francis Yacht Club (thank you Amy!!) and we debated for hours some of the most fundamental questions on this planet. Why are French fries called French fries? What is French about them???
Toward the end, we were trying to find clever ways to attract the waitress' attention. I suggested to dance on the table. Amy thought that it would be hugely effective but would have the unexpected effect of putting my membership in jeopardy. A very wise thought indeed. I am glad that I asked.

We then proceeded to a fashion show, admiring the latest collection of boat covers as we need to select a bride dress for Elise (she will hopefully soon be wedded to the club).

After we delighted our senses with those beautiful scents and tastes, we hopped on board for the heavy work. After about 40 minutes of fiddling about with the "always start first time, just look at the label and you know it'll work" Honda engine, we were off.

Fortunately, there was wind for us out on the Bay. Not like some Ushuaia Bay somewhere South of here...

We first started with some gentle tacks, then some trimming...then we looked at setting up a kite which we did not launch because Amy drove us way too fast back to the harbor.

Thank you ladies for taking the time to practice. Good crew work is a necessary conditions to a successful program and to everyone's enjoyment!

Big take aways for the girls:
- Weight matters (more than size...) . So unless there is a very good reason not to be on the rail, move back up there as fast as you can
- Speed of movement/execution is paramount! Observe the other crews on the boats nearby. Around the marks, tacking, hoisting or dropping a spinnaker just before rounding a mark. The longer you can keep your sails up, the faster you can tack, change course, the faster you can bring your weight back onto the rail, the faster the boat will go :)
- Always say "ready" preferrably when you are. That way, the skipper doesn't have to look around to figure things out
- Try to learn one job and become really good at it, then you will a) have fun! b) make us go really fast ;-) c) master the "piloting" skills and have the opportunity to look around the boat to learn the other jobs.
- Come to more practice days :) Practice makes perfect - even the pros recognize this :)

We then decided to practice some spinnaker sets, hoist, trim, gybes and drop...Because there were only three of us left at that time, we decided to do this...at the dock!!
So some weird passers-by must have thought: these girls are dumb. They are hoisting and trimming a sail but they don't realize that they are still tied to the dock!

Do you think that this would hurt my membership application?

Truth is that there was barely enough wind to fill up the kite (I could hold it with my bare hands...). Here are our positions:

- Heather: foredeck
- Kate: Pit/Trim 2
- Nat: pole sleeve, Trim 1

We went through a lot of ceremonious "pole up, pole down", "set, hoist and drop, sometimes in the water" and "gybe "- if possible without hitting the wall. Definitely getting clearer in everybody's mind.

Conclusions of the day:
- Heather: if you're up for it, let's train you up for foredeck! Thing to work on: gathering the spinnaker on deck if possible, unless this is a net fishing day.
- Kate: if you're up for it, let's train you up as Trim2/pit. Things to work on: move fast back onto the rail and listen to Trim 1/pay attention to the foredeck person to work in harmony with them
- Nat: you need to practice starting this stupid engine under any conditions
- Amy: since you worked as Trim 1 and Trim 2 this time around, we might need to choose one or the other for this season. Thing to remember: weight on the rail and try to move as fast as possible!

And now for the good news! Nathan who made up that weird excuse is not exempt of work. He's the main contributor to a crew manual! Coming to a theater near you SOON!


- Finally please note the feminine touch. Amy asked us to be back at the dock at 03:30. Touchdown was 03:33- Hopefully our starts will be more precise...

Pics coming up...

Elise Health Bulletin #3

Dear Beethovens,

We are approaching an extremely important milestone: the end of Priority 1 task on Elise. A heartfelt thank you to Nathan for getting a few things right (but like he said, I don't pay him for nothing...now, I hadn't realized that this was a paid program. I wish people told me about these things).

Sail Controls:
Most recently, Elise's long-awaited outhaul was overhauled (read line was replaced). This entailed fishing out lines and blocks inside the boom through multiple contorsions and screw-driver miracles. We have removed some ill-looking cleats on the traveler, leaving the ones that are the furthest away from the traveler.
Elise also has a free-running cleat fixed to the Cunningham.
With the battens in the main, this brings up back to full control of the main!
We are also replacing the halyards and getting a reefing line (not really needed for the bay, but will certainly look really pro for the offshore program ;-)), hopefully ready for our next race!

Race Gadgets:
a) Roger patiently entered the waypoints for Berkeley Midwinters into the GPS, so if we get bored, we now have some entertainment. I will try to enter all the other Bay and most common near offshore waypoints so we can use the GPS to get a compass heading on downwind legs.
b) Nathan is nearly done putting together our first "Crew Manual" (which will be posted to the online working sheet for the Elise crew shortly!)
c) We have a glossy new flag sheet (and if you can't remember your VHF alphabet, all the clues you need are in there :)), which will make it a lot easier to figure out which course we are supposed to sail next time around.

Comfort:
The benches are getting a nice little shampoo to protect the wood from follicles :) They should be all shiny for your next visit on Elise :)
We have a cozy sewing kit which can become very handy during the offshore program.
Two instrument covers for the compasses are on order and should reach San Francisco on Wednesday!
We are also in the process of ordering a boat cover (all the Expresses lined up at the St Francis will have the same looking cover :) It's a bulk order!). We get to choose the color, if you have any preference, please let me know!
And we have launched a "logo" context so we can get some Elise gear ready and impress the competition.

Next on the list:
- fitting the halyards
- replacing the knotmeter (a permanent "zero" is quite depressing...)
- getting a proper thermos so that hot tea can be served after the race, as opposed to "barely warm if you have a good imagination" beverages

Then, off onto Priority 2 items!!!!

There were other boats on the water...

"rear view"








Sideways...

Crew Work Pictures

Roger chose the really hard job of trimming...















Captain Brian - eyes lost on the horizon...














A well-deserved lunch!! Boy feels like it was a cold day!

Berkeley MidWinters Pics!!!

A very studious crew.










What is really cool about spinnaker, in addition to the fact that they make the boat go really fast is that they provide for really nice photo framing opportunities.













Rouding the windward mark (time to hoist the spinnaker!)

Sat, Jan 14, Berkeley Midwinters One Design Race

Attending were Roger on trim #1, guest skipper Brian Boschma, the new
Arthur Zwiegincew, and Nathan on bow (Nathalie absent), killing time by taking video clips of the kitties). The course was triangle-w-l, start/finish line centered.

After examining the conditions at the starting line for a different event,
Elise proceeded to the Berkeley Circle start and crossed the line six
minutes late, hot on the heels of several other late starters.
Being too far out to have seen the course flags, and unable to hear
the VHF announcements (VHF and GPS being in Nat's seabag), the first and
second leg strategies largely involved determining the course amid several
widely scattered fleets. Taking advantage of the leading 27s' courtesy in
pointing out several wind holes, rapid progress was made up the first
windard leg ("windward" by courtesy only, as for the second month in a row
the first leg was strongly unbalanced).

Downwind speed was good, with a nice call by Brian on spotting wind
inshore that allowed us to pick off a few boats stuck towards the center
of the bay in extremely light air.

Shifty breeze led to the second downwind being mostly upwind (with
several sail changes between #1 and spinnaker). A scattered and widely
spaced fleet resulted in a few boats taking extreme right or left courses
and others (including Elise) trying to split and cover, with too much
distance to Diane in front to catch up and a healthy (but not necessarily
decisive) lead over several boats behind.

The final "upwind" was a deep kite leg towards the finish, with several
27's behind (Swamp Donkey trying to catch up).

All in all, a very nicely sailed race given the less than ideal start. We
had good speed in general and learned some things about jib trim in
particular. Several established boats had slight edges when the wind
dropped to almost nothing; this is something to watch and learn from.

Pending official results, we believe that we beat Taz, Swamp Donkey,
Expressway, and possibly another boat or two.

Oracle

The Oracle guys went out to play. Not quite as beautiful as "Elise" but we thought we'd give them a chance anyway.

Pumpkin Getting Ready For A Day Sail

I am taking my travel litterbox with me, not sure what kind of amenities they have on the boat. This borrowed lifejacket is definitely too big for me, must be horse size. This should be a nice day. I heard that they have a woollen ball for me to play with on board. Kind of cool. And there were 19 birds sitting on the spreaders last time Nat saw the boat. hehe :) Will be a hell of a hunting party!

Elise Health Bulletin #2

Dear Beethovens,

Elise is starting to look really really good. Most of the changes are now extremely subtle.

1) Elise has a new clutch on the port side. This cluch has no line going through it but it is red and green and looks beautiful with the blue winch covers. So we thought that we'd put it on anyway.
2) The battery is fully hooked up, and can be recharged through an elegant solar panel
3) The horseshoe has a little hut on the stern pulpit now
4) The interior is now super practical. There is a "push me and I will light up" type light velcro'ed to the bunk of the companion way on the port side. It is then easy for any dripping wet crew to walk to the nav table, open it, switch on the cabin light and then reach out to the individual light switches.
5) We managed to fit an unbelievably narrow piece of red rubber over an unbelievably big round bulb - in fact, we managed to do this twice with no collateral damage. We can now process photographs in the cabin.
6) Elise is now officially registered with the AAA of the seas. This doesn't mean that you should plan a breakdown.
7) The nav table can now stay in an open position without any risk of finger chipping, thanks to an extremely elaborate velcro set up
8) The Cunningham cleat has been declared disabled due to some oblique-looking bent. We will try brute force as a method of recovery. Right now, with limited Cunningham and outhaul, the main doesn't look too happy :(
9) We have tried all the old "mystery" sails and are happy to report that the inventory also comprises
- #4 (that's the tiny one! very cute!)
- #2
- #3
10) North Sails is still trying to fit the mainsail slug into the pre-feeder. They have now decided to bring all their tools to the boat directly so they can do QA in real-time at the mast.
11) The jib tracks are now numbered so we can be a bit more clever about our fairlead positions, seconded in this task by a miracle of technology: a waterproof race notebook!!!

If you must remember only one thing -
The cooler is now FULL with beer and water. We have chocolate chip cookies too and salty grapes on board.

NatGyver M.D. (Mad Doctor)

Good Looking Sailors

Heather: "is this Brad Pitt on that boat or am I daydreaming?"














Mark: ancho(RED) posing for The Gap.


















And before the rain, a rainbow.

Active Sailors

Mark busy setting up the genoa. We ended up swapping it for a #3 jib. We did not use the genoa at all come to think of it, since we hoisted the spinnaker to get to the start line. So I guess that we made Mark work a little too much...The view was superb though from the bow. No regrets.






Heather is fighting with the main sheet block.


















Mark and Nat are helping with putting the boat away. Note the gear...There was a small change in the weather pattern shortly after the race ended. The wind went up to 25 knots and some very dark looking clouds decided to spray their "Grand Cru" content all over our heads...

Elise Race #2 - Berkeley MidWinters - December 9, 2006

Hello music fans,

Nathan will do a professional writeup about the race - but it might be interesting to also follow our brave little Beethovens as they ploughed through a day of heavy weather and laughter.

Here are our positions during the race:
Driver: Nathan
Trim #1: Roger
Trim #2: Mark
Pit: Heather
Foredeck: Nat

And our positions outside of the race:
Driver: Heather
Trim and chit chat: Nathan
Beer #1: Roger
Beer #2: Mark
Wiping off the salt from a bunch of grapes as she is assaulted by waves on the foredeck: Nat

And a few things that you may not read about in the official report:
- Heather hanging off the boom in a strange carp position
- Nat trying to recover a spinnaker pinned on deck between the jib sheets, looking like she's leading a silk painting workshop
- The entire crew trying to figure out why no boat is crossing the finish line...ultimately realizing that there was one more windward/leeward zigzagging to do.
- Nathan hosing off the grapes to get the salt out
- "I am a social cookie eater - if no one else is having some of those chocolate chip cookies, I will have to put them away"

We put the boat away BEFORE the heavy heavy rain started - obviously, this was part of the plan.

Pictures are coming soon :)

Dress Rehearsal - and Launch

Nathan and Roger have a strange way of boarding...

Truth is that Elise lives on a trailer., albeit in a very respectable trailer park!


Oooo, a view of Elise being dressed up. Looks like the photographer has had quite a few beers. Doesn't look quite straight...Wonder who took this picture.

Kitty Sailors

Hershel is packing the spinnaker Pumpkin is making sure that we won't be leaving without him.

Out to the Ocean...and Back To The City

Don't tell anyone but we did not have working navigation lights. We fixed this today and I am pleased to announce that Elise is as flashy as a Christmas Tree now.

Fiona asked many questions about right of way. We were on starboard tack and this huge ship didn't seem to be turning onto the usual channel for huge ships. First rule of the road: "if it's big, leave it alone."

The effect of "Calissons" on someone's mood are remarkable. Especially when it is combined with a tiny bit of salt and a lot of sun. Nat looks particularly happy on this picture...

If you don't know what a Calisson is, it's a 15th century candy from Aix-en-Provence. Ours were a bit more recent.

Beauty AND Beast

Cruising Day on the Bay

Fiona looks very professional but she's still trying to figure out which way is port.

And Nathan looks like a star at the Cannes film festival.

The big star of the day, looking absolutely stellar in her new bottom pants, sorry, bottom paint is Elise...

Elise Health Bulletin #1

Dear regular crew, I thought that I'd share some of the newest and greatest about Elise as she slowly but surely advances on the path to perfect tuning :)

Hull (and looks)
- Elise has a brand new bottom paint. It looks absolutely fabulous - a subtle light grey can only add to her elusive personality ;-) The boat was quite fast during the midwinters, despite a few extra coats of paint.

Mechanics/Electronics:
- The outboard is working again! And I have a broken carburator in my trunk for anyone who's interested in salvaging damaged mechanical parts :) I will take 2% on the eBay transaction. It faithfully propelled Elise through the water from Alcatraz back to the dock at a good 6 knots SOG (ok, ok, there might have been a little help from the current), proving once again that Elise under any condition can be a really fast and light boat.
- The battery is hooked up, only for us to find out that most bulbs need changing :) Some of them were too corroded to still work, and a solid arc of salt seems to have established a short-circuit :) And a super sexy solar panel is now on board, awaiting some super sexy connectors and a little extra piece of super sexy technology to avoid battery overcharge. The super sexy battery was steadily delivering a solid 12V nominal to power up the starboard side compass illumination light and the knotmeter (which showed a disappointed 0 kt...but then I guess that we were docked...)
- A sobre-looking barometer now decorates the galley - and should the Internet, all cellphone networks, telephone lines, newspaper and harbormaster VHF channels be disabled at the same time, will help us understand which way the weather is headed.
- We are in the racing business now, with a "turn it on and it works" ICOM hand-held VHF and a buggy GPS which can't find Alcratraz, even as we sail about 100 yards away from the island.

Sails/Wind Instruments:
- A brand new windex is presiding majestically over the recently brushed up/soaped up deck and points to the miracle wind direction. It also has two little pennants to help us during our downwind legs :)
- All the sails now have hanks and can be hoisted - some of the tack fittings for the old sail don't fit the current set up, but nothing that can't be remedied with a magic shackle :) All main sails have been fixed (small tear in one of them, tiny holes that needed to be patched in others) - the Dacron main is missing the top batten but we are actively working on changing this. It looks like North Sails is having some difficulties counting up to 4.
- The spinnakers have two super functional high tech lots of velcro everywhere type launch bags. They make us look really competent and I am sure must be very intimidating to everyone else in the fleet. And the 2nd kevlar main now has a brand new bag, which means that we can all wear the sail ties as necklaces.
- We have a new winch handle...

Looks:
- A shiny blue tarp cover is elegantly tossed over both sides of the deck and rests gracefully on the trailer to protect lines and woodwork from acid sun beams as well as the interior from nasty rain.

If You Remember Only One Thing
- the cooler has 9 bottles of beer in it. Grand Cru.

The Bad News
On the sad side, we have lost a cup holder, a fairly traumatic incident for all of us.

So what's next?
- We need to fix the outhaul which seems to have decided to be frankly un-cooperative.
- We will change the halyards for all the headsails as we believe that they all suffer from high sun exposure with no sunscreen
- We will replace all the lights so that we can be enjoy the illuminated skyline from Angel Island without having to pay a tax to the Coast Guard
- We will service the Cunningham cleat as it works only one way at this time (you can secure the line in but like Hotel California, you can never check out...)
- We will get some wine for the most civilized amongst us
- We are checking with the USCG to see if we can fly a French flag for fun and not upset anyone

Elise First Race

Nathan asking Amy to get him a beer.

Jens tired after the race. Or is it because of the beer?

Elise's First Race Under New Management

Berkeley Circle, Nov 11, one design event
Crew: Nat (driving), Nathan (foredeck), and Jens+Amy on trim

Summary:

It was a very encouraging first day (one race, one design around the buoys). We made substantial improvements each leg on trim, speed, and pointing. The results haven't been posted yet but we're probably lower middle. Sail handling (sets, douses, ...) went well.

Details:

Wind was light-medium. A few gusts and sustained puffs made things interesting but in general it was enough breeze to keep moving but not so overpowering as to make it difficult the first day out.

We sailed under 3DL #3 and dacron main, the latter short one batten (the top one). At the starting line, the fleet was split in jib choice.

The course was a simple Olympic (triangle, then windward leeward) with all marks to port including starting pin and finishing pin.

The arrival at the start line was too late to really inspect the line and set up properly, but we still had enough time to pick our spot on the lnie and get set up for a reasonable start. This positioning was a pretty standard committee boat end, starboard tack affair. During the final stages of the start, Nat did a reasonable job with two fairly aggressive people hollering different directions at her (Jens and Nathan).
We had a good start all things considered- todo for next time is to be closer up to the line and drive anyone who's in the way over early.

Immediately after the start, we began to suffer on speed and didn't have driving and trim properly coordinated. We gradually lost distance to the boats we'd started with, and had a little trouble pointing high enough (particularly surprising given our #3 versus the #1 (#2?) some of the
nearby boats had selected). This upwind (first chance to tune against other boats) and the following downwind was where we lost most of our distance.

We had a good spinnaker set at the mark which only suffered a bit from the lack of practice on spinnaker setup (we should have, but didn't, have time to run through at least one set and gybe before the race).

Speed downwind was good, but the course was very unsteady on the first two downwinds (out to the offset and back from it to the leeward mark).
Todo for next time is to give the driver a compass bearing after rounding each mark.

The gybe execution was reasonable, but needed better communication fore and aft about when the pole was made on the mast again (and coursekeeping during the gybe- we wound up too high coming out).

The second half of the first downwind (offset->leeward) was puffy and a tight reach. If we'd had our act together from the beginning, the kite was carryable, but we wound up falling seriously off course to leeward and had to drop. The drop was conveniently facilitated by the halyard coming loose and dropping the spinnaker in the water. Fortunately, no
shrimping resulted (simply wet from being dragged across the surface while half full of breeze). Todo for the next event is to use a velcro strap around mast and halyard just below the cleat (which is vertical on the mast so that the bowman can run everything without help from the pit).

The second upwind was much improved over the first in both boatspeed and pointing. We had a few boats close to compare against (particularly Taz). Todo for next time is to be faster on the coordination of trim and helm to get acceleration from puffs. We had a few solid puffs that just resulted in big heel and Nathalie applying the rudder liberally, slowing the boat down.

The second downwind was straight down, and had clean sail handling. We were playing a long catchup game, and had the chance to play with one boat (Attack from Mars?) to practice sitting on their air, a game we need to practice a bit more.

During the final upwind, we had much better coordination and speed. We made a smart move going right a bit to stay out of the current, resulting in a dramatic pin end finish cutting off three port tackers who had been well ahead of us.

Overall, it was a very encouraging first day out.

Nat: unless you see pulsing arterial blood leaking from one of the crew, whatever else is going on is not more important than steering a consistent course. The two-handed traveler+tiller interplay is the main thing to work on upwind.

Amy: If you don't know what a request means, let us know fast and loud. Be assertive about it. Also, bow and trim#2 need to be out on the rail instantly after the tacks.

Jens: you and I needed to talk more about setup, especially Amy's parts- we didn't adequately prepare her coming in to marks.

Nathan: it's possible to be a lot more efficient about bow setup to avoid moving weight around too far off the rail coming in to windward marks.

Tuning:
The #3 seemed to like the leads pretty far forward- up at the shrouds. We need to number the holes in the track for future reference.
We need to experiment with the main. We had a considerably
tighter leech than our competition in the puffs (might want to allow the top to fall off). We'll also check it out when we have a full crew- being short some rail weight hurt us a bit at times.

-Nathan

It's a girl!!!!!

Hi everyone,

I am very pleased to announce a new member of the family! Elise, a
20-year old Express 27 (www.e27.org) made her entry into our world on
Thursday 12 October. She lives at the St Francis Yacht Club on the
marina, in San Francisco - with a splendid view of the Golden Gate Bridge

(pour ceux qui ont besoin de lunettes pour lire ca...Elise est un bateau...)

Nat, Hershel and Pumpkin