Vallejo 1-2!

Constance participated in the Vallejo 1-2 race last weekend. The first leg is a singlehanded race from Berkeley to Vallejo YC in the Carquinez strait, a good 18 miles. I decided to try out the spinnaker division, winds are usually light enough in th North Bay this time of the year. Still, I've never handled "The Monster" singlehandedly! There was a small craft advisory in effect after 1p so I was somewhat nervous and promised myself to get the beast down at the smallest sign of big winds. I shouldn't have worried, the race was mostly a drifter with highest winds maybe around 8kn. Anyways, I finished the race without fouling anything, and only corrected out due to time to last place. Very happy about it! 2 spi sets and douses, 3 gybes, all by myself! https://www.jibeset.net/show.php?RR=JACKY_T006056317&DOC=r101&TYP=html

Even though I got only last place in my division, overall I got 17 out of 42 boats that started, and 23 boats that finished! Not too bad I think!

The return trip was double handed for us, unfortunately even less wind. We managed to get out of the Napa river quite well, but then got stuck at Pinole Pt when the tide turned and the wind completely shut off. Our stealth anchor got deployed twice, but no progress in the rare zephyrs that showed up here and there. With no hope to finish we called it quits at 3:30p and pretty much motored home, a good 30mls to be precise. Still, a great day on the water, had some fun meeting other sailors at Vallejo YC! 

Spi is up!

Just before the start

Summer Sailing!

Haven't been posting things for a while. We've been busy sailing Constance around the SF Bay.  Weekends are a huge relief from daily job pressure and other ordinary things, so we usually stay at least every 2nd weekend on the boat. Summer is the time to go sailing here! The thermals set in around noon and increase from a benign 10-15kn all the way to 30-40kn on a hot summer day. Which can be quite cold in San Francisco, by the way. What's causing the thermal wind is really the temperature difference between the California Central Valley and the Coast. Over a distance of 100 miles the temperature difference can be as high as 40 degree Fahrenheit or 20 degree Celsius. The hot air rises over the Central Valley and pulls in cold air from the ocean. Hence the fog you often see in the summer in San Francisco. The air has to funnel in between Peninsula of SF and the Marin Headlands in the North, creating an accelerated flow of air roughly between the City Front and Alcatraz Island. That area is also called "The Slot", where the highest wind speeds can be reached. The 34th America's Cup in 2013 happened exactly here for a reason!  Below a video from one of those days, early afternoon just south of Alcatraz, winds peaking around 25-30kn. No problem for Constance with the first reef tucked in!