Tulip Regatta- F18 Pacific Northwest

Anacortes Yacht Club

April 5, 2013

The 2013 NWF18 season started with the annual Tulip regatta in Anacortes, WA, hosted by the Anacortes Yacht Club on April 5.  This has become the annual kick off regatta for the season, with most of the top teams participating.  This year 7 boats registered, though only 6 managed to make it out on the water Saturday.  The Honey Badger had a late arrival Friday night and some mechanical issues, and some teams found the weather Sunday just a bit too un-tenable, but more on that later.  The F18’s have been sailing the Tulip Regatta for four years now, and get invited back every year.  AYC puts on a great event, with excellent food Saturday night, cheap drinks, a raffle to benefit youth sailing, and usually decent spring weather.

Saturday brought good wind and sunny skies, with the usual unpredictable Fidalgo Bay shifts and puffs.  The Race Committee got off four good races in the Southerly breeze, and in what has become the norm for the 2013 season a different boat took first in each race!  Fidalgo Bay is a tricky place to sail, with strong current and variable winds, and no one got a free pass.  Most boats got at least a few good downwind rides, and the monohull’s oohed and ahhed as the F18’s flew around the course, often cheering as boats sailed past.

Sunday conditions were a different story…  Most of the fleet arrived Seafarers Park Sunday morning in a cold, still rain.  Most.  Over warm coffees most teams discussed the merits of sailing or not, in what most of us considered misserable conditions.  Most.  While huddled inside the camper of the Shrek3 team, various participants attempted to contact the one team who staged their boat on the dinghy dock, to inform them of the fleets decision to wait out the weather for something a bit more civilized.  Well, the Rum Line didn’t get the message, and from our cramped and steamy cave, we all saw the Rum Line making its way out on the water.  Damn.  It was too late to call them back, they were racing, which left the rest of us with only 15 or 20 minutes to rig up and get to the first start.  JoyRide was first to jump, wanting desperately to defend a tie for first with Rum Line.  Lucky for JoyRide, the Race Committee also thought it was a good idea to delay for weather (or there was a wind shift), and the race was postponed just long enough for them to make the start.  Unfortunately for JoyRide, the RC actually posted the courses correctly, and it was JR’s poor transcription that resulted in sailing the wrong course, handing the win to the Rum Line!  The rest of the fleet made it out for the second race, but alas the short lived front had rolled through and although the rain stopped, so had all the wind!  Only two races on Sunday left a six race series in which the always quick RumLine managed to knock out a well deserced victory.  Turns out showing up does count!

Results:

Sailed: 6, Discards: 0, To count: 6, Rating system: PHRFTOT, Entries: 7, Scoring system: PHRF TOT