2007 SCYA Midwinter Regatta

Santana 20s hosted at Mission Bay YC

February 17 & 18, 2007

Results taken from www.mbyc.org

Report by Eric Kownacki

We had grand hopes for Saturday. Sunny, blue sky with a few high clouds. As the S20 fleet left MBYC and headed to the ocean, there was a 5 knot sea breeze along with a knot ebb tide which made the trip quick and painless. As we rushed out the channel we were greeted by...nothing. The worlds biggest parking lot. Jet skis, fishing boats, every power craft you could imagine but no wind. After a few hours of postponement, the RC got everyone off when a light (2-4 knot) SW came in teasing everyone into believing the low sitting to the south was headed in. The breeze never picked up. There was just enough to get in a single W-L and that was it. Jeff Keenan timed a perfect port tack start at the pin and he and Pete Hunter who flopped onto port to leeward of Jeff headed right. Kownacki followed Keenan on his port tack start and took a hitch to the left. Those to the left won out and at the top mark it was Hunter, Kownacki and Keenan. Kownacki passed Hunter on the run and that's how they finished race 1 with Kownacki, Hunter and Keenan for win, place and show.

That was it for Saturday as everyone mooched a tow back to the dock after a day slatting in the ocean for a few cool beverages.

Sunday was a different day. The breeze was at 8 knots from the SW early in the morning and built from there. Race 2 was another W-L. By race time the breeze was in the 10 knot range and had shifted to the south. With a square line, the S20's split ends with some choosing the pin in an effort to get to the beach with the hopes of picking up a geographical shift along with a backing breeze while others started at the boat and headed to the right looking for more breeze and less swell. In general the breeze was moving left but there were enough opportunities to get to the right. At the top mark it was Kownacki and Hunter with Derek Martin close behind. This is how it stayed until the leeward mark (the course had a leeward offset finish mark where you had to short reach to the finish). With Hunter a few boat lengths behind Kownacki and Martin about 4-6 behind Hunter both Hunter and Kownacki suffered the same gear failure. The teeth on their Harken carbo cleats failed and both boats lost their spinnakers. No change of position but by the time their spinnakers were both up and drawing, Martin had drawn within a boat length or 2 of Hunter making for a dramatic finish. Kownacki, Hunter and Martin for win, place and show. A nice 4th place finish for John Porteous who sailed with a combined crew weight that couldn't have been much more than 425 pounds and hung in there in the building breeze.

Race 3 - The breeze continued to build and by the finish we had gusts in the high teens and a starting breeze of 12-14 with good sized swell as the storm inched its way closer. Course was W-L twice around. At the top mark it was Hunter, Kownacki and John Weightman. Things tightened up on the run but the order remained the same at the bottom mark. Hunter and Weightman chose to go right while Kownacki tacked after rounding and headed left. At the next crossing, the order became Kownacki, Hunter and Weightman and remained so. The run to the leeward mark was worth the price of admission as the breeze was topping out in the high teens and the waves and swell had built. A few surges (I wouldn't call them planning), a few precarious cork screws and all that goes with sailing the Tuna's downwind in waves and breeze made for a good time.

In the end it was Kownacki, Hunter and Martin. A great result for Derek Martin sailing with new crew to take his place on the podium. Thanks to our friends from Orange County and Eugene for making the trip. I'm sure Sunday's racing made it worth while. With the 4 out of towners, we raced with 13 boats (same as last year) which was the second largest fleet racing amongst the 9 fleets racing at MBYC this weekend.