sorry bout the formatting.
Ovl First Name Last Name Fleet City State Time
1 Arden Anderson F Fond du Lac WI 0:45:49
2 Kevin Gratton F Fond du Lac WI 0:46:49
3 Don Altmeyer U Fond du Lac WI 0:49:45
4 Jeff Adamski F Ostego MN 0:50:47
5 Steven Cool F Wayzata MN 0:51:15
6 Randy Howell U Dallas Center IA 0:52:04
7 Adam McCuskey F Minnetonka MN 0:52:44
8 Brad Woodworth U Dryden ONT 0:53:50
9 Steve Johnson U Shoreview MN 0:55:34
10 Herve Deve S Minneapolis MN 0:56:23
11 Randy Johnson F Forest Lake MN 0:56:36
12 Larry Miller U East Gull Lake MN 0:57:11
13 Roland Rioux L Winnipeg MB 0:58:10
14 Roger Mondale F Plymouth MN 0:58:29
15 Ulf Jentler F Des Moines IA 0:59:43
16 Jay Corbett F Richfield MN 1:00:01
17 Ray Muller L Thunder Bay ONT 1:03:01
18 Peter Hill I Minneapolis MN 1:03:10
19 Dave Hopkins P Edina MN 1:03:35
20 Peter Hartwich I Excelsior MN 1:03:45
21 Kelly Johnson L Shoreview MN 1:04:59
22 Robert Christensen L St Louis Park MN 1:05:59
23 Bruce Stratford U Dryden ONT 1:06:25
24 Dave Chizek L Excelsior MN 1:12:22
25 John E. Kust Jr. U Minnetrista MN 1:13:09
26 Wayne Anderson F Elkhart Lake WI 1:20:09
27 Chuck Nelson C Lake Elmo MN Classic-18:22
28 Randy Rutledge F Deephaven MN DNF
29 Rob Evans F Orono MN DNF
30 Jeff Cole F Orono MN DNF
31 Arnie Cleveland I Prescott WI DNF
32 Stuart Vandervaart L Dryden ONT DNF
33 Kris Diller L Mound MN DNF
34 Bonnie Koeberl L Muskego WI DNF
35 Mark Felton S Chanhassen MN DNF
36 Gregg Anshus S Chatfield MN DNF
37 Shannon Stratford S Dryden ONT DNF
38 Jack Gleason S St Louis Park MN DNF
39 Don Specht U Bloomington MN DNF
40 Michael Reed U Cary IL DNF
41 Margot Woodworth U Dryden ONT DNF
42 Jeff Koeberl U Muskego WI DNF
43 Paul Matousek U Sioux Lookout ONT DNF
44 Larry Reed F Dallas Center IA DNS
Crossing Results
Moderator: MK
Crossing 25
Crossing 25: Comments
The forecast looked weak for days. Everything I saw a week out was for light westerly wind on Saturday and light southerly on Sunday. Then for a few hours on Wednesday, some forecasts showed some good wind, only to be dramatically reduced on the Thursday forecast. I was almost tempted to not even bring my gear, given the .0002 pressure gradient over the state.
Our band played Thursday night, so I was pretty groggy on Friday, finally making it on my way up mid-afternoon on Friday. The fall colors were on fire, and when I made it to Mille Lacs it went off the charts. A drive through Father Hennepin was like a dream, never before seeing such a quilt of color, stretching from the forest floor to the tops of the trees, in contrast to the blue sky. I knew the weekend was to be special when the albino doe came up to me. She was less than fifty feet from me, eventually joined by her albino fawn. A brown doe and her two babies joined in. I played my trumpet for them and they seemed to enjoy it. A park ranger came up to me and asked if I was the same guy that played this time a year ago. He said he really enjoyed it, but couldn’t resist telling me to be sure to not do it from 10pm to 8am. He filled me in on the albino deer and we both new it was a very magical day.
Friday night was filled with wonderful reunions, meeting up with volunteer staff and the racers who had traveled in early. It’s become quite a regional crew, heavily represented by Wisconsin, Canada, and Iowa. Roger Mondale is perhaps the longest standing Minnesotan in the crew. The evening seemed pretty loose for me, since I had little expectation the Crossing would happen on Saturday, and I had to leave Sunday morning. We woke Saturday to glorious sunshine and light NW wind. The breakfast seemed relaxed; again, many thinking there wouldn’t be enough wind. Yet, the breeze began to build, and by the time the 11am skippers meeting took place, we knew it wouldn’t be a pump fest.
It was off to Malmo for the start. The north shore drive was enough of a gift in itself, but rounding the northeast corner, seeing the lake lit with caps, was pure adrenaline rush. The park was filled with windsurf sails to the north and kites to the south. The relaxed feeling had totally disappeared as the anxiety of rig size came into play. Anyone who’s done the Crossing knows you win it from the lulls, not the gusts. Rigs over 10M were common, even though the wind readings were around 18mph. I rigged a 9.6M with a light wind slalom board and quickly went out to check conditions. It was a quarter mile out to water deep enough to launch. I sailed out about two miles, fully wound. On my return I scanned the horizon for landmarks, since we’d been informed it’d be a seven mile out and then return to start. The race boats were just arriving, time to hydrate and check lines, take a brief rest, and head out to, check the start line and get close enough to hear the committee boat megaphone. A few sailors are frantically struggling with their bigger sails, some coming in to rig down; others opting out of the race. Winds were gusting over 25mph.
With several boats in the water, all flying flags, it was once again a challenge to discern where the start line was. Some of us sat on our boards waiting for the countdown; others didn’t dare drop their sails for fear they’d not be able to get them back up. The Sport Fleet got a start in strong clean wind and the lead boat disappeared. The A Fleet left five minutes later, in a wind lull. Kevin Gratton and Arden Anderson road the start line to the port mark for clean wind and the best start. Kevin made a commitment to not look back, thinking Arden was close on his tail. Eventually, he looked back to see he was all alone, the pack a great distance behind. Unfortunately for him, the wind had lightened up seven miles out, and the easy, powered broad reach was no longer working. It became a tactical game of playing the waves and wind shifts. When Pat dropped anchor, Kevin found himself downwind of the boat, allowing the other sailors to catch up. After a lousy start, I had made a lot of ground up given the strong winds, only to loose it all when I hit the wind hole in the middle. It was a grueling bob to the mid-mark, all hopes of finishing well vanished. Winds couldn’t have been more than 6mph when I saw Arden on full plane with his 12M double luff sail, meticulously playing the energy of the waves. They were definitely winning the race in the lulls, but deserving full credit for hanging on through the monster gusts. Meanwhile, those of us bobbing up and down on short boards, balancing big rigs, could only agonize over our seven mile gruel back to shore. Fortunately, our group prayers were answered when a wind line came through a half mile into the return. Longboards and shortboards jockeyed back and forth throughout the race. Personally, there were a few sailors I exchanged position with at least five times. The home stretch was welcome relief and the water tower dome I’d spotted earlier helped guide me to the finish. Unfortunately, the finish line had to be in deep water, so no exciting spectator finishes.
It was great to have the beautiful Malmo park to relax at. Kiters relished perfect conditions as racers kicked back and recounted the highs and lows of the race. The benefits of an out and back were discussed as we avoided the typical shuttle hassle. The race line had been good, the start and finish were clean, and most importantly, there was no serious injury. Thanks to great volunteer support and twenty-five years of experience, we had once again safely enjoyed “the challenge”. Belinda Jensen, Channel 11, joined us for some interviews with the winners. I should be broadcast Oct. 22 on Minnesota Bound. Her husband, Dave, was one of those I frequently changed position with on the race course. A professional video graphics person is to make a dvd of the event.
The Y gave us a great meal that night. Everyone had their story, their insights to a day’s unfolding, and the decisions made. Eloquent boat master, Pat, led the ceremony with recognition of those making the event possible. Rob Evans took over MC duty as we recognized the resolve Mike’s had to keep this thing going, with frequent chants for five more years and his presentation of a silver platter. The Blue Moose commander, Woody, perhaps best captured such deep appreciation for the opportunities Fleet 8’s efforts have provided us over the years as he and the Larry duo handed out embroidered hats to The Staff, The Vultures, The Commodore, etc. A round of other sailors accented the gratitude with their personal comments. Some racers retired, exhausted from the day. Others carried on into the wee hours of the morning, celebrating another successful Crossing.
It was definitely a time to reflect on what has been, what this 2006 event was, and what the future years will be. The fresh energy of the very active racers coming to the scene within the past ten years, the kiters wanting to see how to merge into the event, the experience of us old timers (and our fatigue), the representation of three generations of wind enthusiasts...it was a night of gratitude and wonder at how it can be kept alive for others.
Sunday we woke to clear skies, warmth, and a fresh SE breeze. We had to leave, but I would love to hear some stories, since the conditions looked perfect for more racing.
Once again, thanks to Fleet 8, the Y, the volunteers, fellow racers, and all who put the energy forward to make this happen. Congratulations Arden and Kelly!!
The forecast looked weak for days. Everything I saw a week out was for light westerly wind on Saturday and light southerly on Sunday. Then for a few hours on Wednesday, some forecasts showed some good wind, only to be dramatically reduced on the Thursday forecast. I was almost tempted to not even bring my gear, given the .0002 pressure gradient over the state.
Our band played Thursday night, so I was pretty groggy on Friday, finally making it on my way up mid-afternoon on Friday. The fall colors were on fire, and when I made it to Mille Lacs it went off the charts. A drive through Father Hennepin was like a dream, never before seeing such a quilt of color, stretching from the forest floor to the tops of the trees, in contrast to the blue sky. I knew the weekend was to be special when the albino doe came up to me. She was less than fifty feet from me, eventually joined by her albino fawn. A brown doe and her two babies joined in. I played my trumpet for them and they seemed to enjoy it. A park ranger came up to me and asked if I was the same guy that played this time a year ago. He said he really enjoyed it, but couldn’t resist telling me to be sure to not do it from 10pm to 8am. He filled me in on the albino deer and we both new it was a very magical day.
Friday night was filled with wonderful reunions, meeting up with volunteer staff and the racers who had traveled in early. It’s become quite a regional crew, heavily represented by Wisconsin, Canada, and Iowa. Roger Mondale is perhaps the longest standing Minnesotan in the crew. The evening seemed pretty loose for me, since I had little expectation the Crossing would happen on Saturday, and I had to leave Sunday morning. We woke Saturday to glorious sunshine and light NW wind. The breakfast seemed relaxed; again, many thinking there wouldn’t be enough wind. Yet, the breeze began to build, and by the time the 11am skippers meeting took place, we knew it wouldn’t be a pump fest.
It was off to Malmo for the start. The north shore drive was enough of a gift in itself, but rounding the northeast corner, seeing the lake lit with caps, was pure adrenaline rush. The park was filled with windsurf sails to the north and kites to the south. The relaxed feeling had totally disappeared as the anxiety of rig size came into play. Anyone who’s done the Crossing knows you win it from the lulls, not the gusts. Rigs over 10M were common, even though the wind readings were around 18mph. I rigged a 9.6M with a light wind slalom board and quickly went out to check conditions. It was a quarter mile out to water deep enough to launch. I sailed out about two miles, fully wound. On my return I scanned the horizon for landmarks, since we’d been informed it’d be a seven mile out and then return to start. The race boats were just arriving, time to hydrate and check lines, take a brief rest, and head out to, check the start line and get close enough to hear the committee boat megaphone. A few sailors are frantically struggling with their bigger sails, some coming in to rig down; others opting out of the race. Winds were gusting over 25mph.
With several boats in the water, all flying flags, it was once again a challenge to discern where the start line was. Some of us sat on our boards waiting for the countdown; others didn’t dare drop their sails for fear they’d not be able to get them back up. The Sport Fleet got a start in strong clean wind and the lead boat disappeared. The A Fleet left five minutes later, in a wind lull. Kevin Gratton and Arden Anderson road the start line to the port mark for clean wind and the best start. Kevin made a commitment to not look back, thinking Arden was close on his tail. Eventually, he looked back to see he was all alone, the pack a great distance behind. Unfortunately for him, the wind had lightened up seven miles out, and the easy, powered broad reach was no longer working. It became a tactical game of playing the waves and wind shifts. When Pat dropped anchor, Kevin found himself downwind of the boat, allowing the other sailors to catch up. After a lousy start, I had made a lot of ground up given the strong winds, only to loose it all when I hit the wind hole in the middle. It was a grueling bob to the mid-mark, all hopes of finishing well vanished. Winds couldn’t have been more than 6mph when I saw Arden on full plane with his 12M double luff sail, meticulously playing the energy of the waves. They were definitely winning the race in the lulls, but deserving full credit for hanging on through the monster gusts. Meanwhile, those of us bobbing up and down on short boards, balancing big rigs, could only agonize over our seven mile gruel back to shore. Fortunately, our group prayers were answered when a wind line came through a half mile into the return. Longboards and shortboards jockeyed back and forth throughout the race. Personally, there were a few sailors I exchanged position with at least five times. The home stretch was welcome relief and the water tower dome I’d spotted earlier helped guide me to the finish. Unfortunately, the finish line had to be in deep water, so no exciting spectator finishes.
It was great to have the beautiful Malmo park to relax at. Kiters relished perfect conditions as racers kicked back and recounted the highs and lows of the race. The benefits of an out and back were discussed as we avoided the typical shuttle hassle. The race line had been good, the start and finish were clean, and most importantly, there was no serious injury. Thanks to great volunteer support and twenty-five years of experience, we had once again safely enjoyed “the challenge”. Belinda Jensen, Channel 11, joined us for some interviews with the winners. I should be broadcast Oct. 22 on Minnesota Bound. Her husband, Dave, was one of those I frequently changed position with on the race course. A professional video graphics person is to make a dvd of the event.
The Y gave us a great meal that night. Everyone had their story, their insights to a day’s unfolding, and the decisions made. Eloquent boat master, Pat, led the ceremony with recognition of those making the event possible. Rob Evans took over MC duty as we recognized the resolve Mike’s had to keep this thing going, with frequent chants for five more years and his presentation of a silver platter. The Blue Moose commander, Woody, perhaps best captured such deep appreciation for the opportunities Fleet 8’s efforts have provided us over the years as he and the Larry duo handed out embroidered hats to The Staff, The Vultures, The Commodore, etc. A round of other sailors accented the gratitude with their personal comments. Some racers retired, exhausted from the day. Others carried on into the wee hours of the morning, celebrating another successful Crossing.
It was definitely a time to reflect on what has been, what this 2006 event was, and what the future years will be. The fresh energy of the very active racers coming to the scene within the past ten years, the kiters wanting to see how to merge into the event, the experience of us old timers (and our fatigue), the representation of three generations of wind enthusiasts...it was a night of gratitude and wonder at how it can be kept alive for others.
Sunday we woke to clear skies, warmth, and a fresh SE breeze. We had to leave, but I would love to hear some stories, since the conditions looked perfect for more racing.
Once again, thanks to Fleet 8, the Y, the volunteers, fellow racers, and all who put the energy forward to make this happen. Congratulations Arden and Kelly!!
Ride...just be it!
www.just-be-it.com
www.just-be-it.com
Wonderful re-cap Randy. I can hear you play the trumpet just reading your story.
For my own experiencing of this year’s crossing: Learn and put it to use next time. All the excitement I felt inside for doing this “Amazing Race” again as I finished well last year, this year I didn’t even make the start line. Doooh!
Way to big of a sail, wrong board and not feeling a 100%, it was just not my day to come through the finish line on the 25th. Crossing.
All the analyzing after, the” if I would have”…, doesn’t change a thing when you don’t finish. It just doesn’t feel the same.
The crossing is a very, very unique race. You only get one shot at it, not like other regattas where you race for 2 days and have the choice to get to shore and change equipment, and throw out your worst race. Not with the Crossing. It doesn’t leave much room for wrong decisions. But it also gave me a great message, that, when you think, you have it all figured out and you are so sure, you’ll have no problems accomplishing the mission, things (wind) can just change so quick and the course of a race is not always as predictable and easy as you thought it would be….just as in life. So here I go again, hoping to choose the right gear next time, and feel that energy and competitive edge inside at the start line and through the finish line. For all of us who tried and didn’t make it this time, thanks for all the laughs, pats on the shoulder (and cold beer) on Malmo Beach.
Congratulations again Kelly! Way to go!!!! You sailed awesome!
Can’t wait to see you all next year…
Woodette
For my own experiencing of this year’s crossing: Learn and put it to use next time. All the excitement I felt inside for doing this “Amazing Race” again as I finished well last year, this year I didn’t even make the start line. Doooh!
Way to big of a sail, wrong board and not feeling a 100%, it was just not my day to come through the finish line on the 25th. Crossing.
All the analyzing after, the” if I would have”…, doesn’t change a thing when you don’t finish. It just doesn’t feel the same.
The crossing is a very, very unique race. You only get one shot at it, not like other regattas where you race for 2 days and have the choice to get to shore and change equipment, and throw out your worst race. Not with the Crossing. It doesn’t leave much room for wrong decisions. But it also gave me a great message, that, when you think, you have it all figured out and you are so sure, you’ll have no problems accomplishing the mission, things (wind) can just change so quick and the course of a race is not always as predictable and easy as you thought it would be….just as in life. So here I go again, hoping to choose the right gear next time, and feel that energy and competitive edge inside at the start line and through the finish line. For all of us who tried and didn’t make it this time, thanks for all the laughs, pats on the shoulder (and cold beer) on Malmo Beach.
Congratulations again Kelly! Way to go!!!! You sailed awesome!
Can’t wait to see you all next year…
Woodette
Last edited by Woody on Mon Oct 02, 2006 8:17 pm, edited 2 times in total.
We would like to thank Michael, Pat and the dedicated staff of Fleet 8 who make these events, with The Crossing in particular, so much fun for us to attend. Without an organizational body like Fleet 8, we would truly be at a loss. So, a little reminder for you all to join Fleet 8 and support the body that brings us 'together'.
It was too bad that more kiters/windsurfers were not on the water Sunday. I fully understand the favourable conditions of Reddy Creek for kiting, and I wish there could have been a way for all of us to be doing our thing on the water together, at the same location, which is sharin' the wind...
My story from the Crossing:
I rigged my largest sail, a 9.8m V8 and had my trusty ol' Mistral Prodigy under my feet. By the time I had made my way on the water, the wind had aready started to build. I sailed out a couple of miles to get a feel for the conditions and felt very comfortable in my choice of gear. I rigged my sail very fat without too much downhaul. This was the right choice prior to getting on the water, but with about 5 minutes before the start sequence, the wind filled in HEAVY! I was thinking to add some more downhaul, but decided to sail in to shore quickly to check on my 'Woodette' as she seemed to having some difficulties getting to the start line. I reminded her that we sail in these winds all the time back home and to have a fun crossing, just HURRY UP to the line!! I then sailed back to the group to position myself for a good start. I had my ipod nano with me and with the song 'Barracuda' by Heart playing in my earphones I was getting ramped for a good crossing! I've only tried sailing with tunes playing once before and really enjoyed it, so I thought I'd try it again for the crossing seeing as it can be such a long time on the water. If you've never tried listening to tunes while sailing before, do it, it's really cool! So, with the blast of the horn we were off! The wind did slack off a bit during the upwind leg portion, so I had to tack to clear the mark. I rounded the mark in the lead group and felt really good about my chances at a top ten finish! The wind decided to crank back up during the next 10-15 minutes or so of the race and I was really struggling to keep myself on the board, trying to manage the gusts with my 'fat' sail. I thought a couple of times to stop and add some downhaul, but kept on going telling myself out loud "KEEP GOING WOODY", so with stretched arms, I held it together for the most part 
One big gust lifted my board as I come off a wave and I quickly went into survival mode hopping out of my straps as I pointed quickly up wind. I was back-winded by my sail and hit the drink...no more tunes too 
If there was a good thing about my crash, my sail was in a perfect position to uphaul, so with a quick jerk up I was back sailing on course. The wind seemed to let up a bit after the crash and I was really dialed and in good form until we hit the big hole of no wind at the turnaround point. With everyone slogging except for Arden and Kevin it seemed we headed back to Malmo. It wasn't too long though before we we're all back on a plane racing for the finish. I Yahoo'd to everyone that I knew on the way back and was just taking in the 'moment'. I found myself talking to the wind and getting little puffs which where just enough to get me through some of the holes on the way back and being thankful for these little 'gifts'. A couple of formula guys passed me on the way back, but I was really trying to reel my buddy and Team World member Randy Howell (IA) also on a Prodigy with a 10.8m sail. No way though, he was fast on Saturday! So being fully powered for the last 5 or so miles I just enjoyed the ride to the finish.
I was sad to hear on my return that my Woodette never made it, along with a couple more of the Canadian contingent
We've always had the ability to say "wait until next year", and I hope that continues...
Great fun times before, during, and after The Crossing!! It was really great to see you all again and share the stoke on the water! I am still stoked about my 8th overall finish and pretty impressed with the top three guys all from Fond du Lac! Way to go Wisconsin!!
Cheers
It was too bad that more kiters/windsurfers were not on the water Sunday. I fully understand the favourable conditions of Reddy Creek for kiting, and I wish there could have been a way for all of us to be doing our thing on the water together, at the same location, which is sharin' the wind...
My story from the Crossing:
I rigged my largest sail, a 9.8m V8 and had my trusty ol' Mistral Prodigy under my feet. By the time I had made my way on the water, the wind had aready started to build. I sailed out a couple of miles to get a feel for the conditions and felt very comfortable in my choice of gear. I rigged my sail very fat without too much downhaul. This was the right choice prior to getting on the water, but with about 5 minutes before the start sequence, the wind filled in HEAVY! I was thinking to add some more downhaul, but decided to sail in to shore quickly to check on my 'Woodette' as she seemed to having some difficulties getting to the start line. I reminded her that we sail in these winds all the time back home and to have a fun crossing, just HURRY UP to the line!!
I then sailed back to the group to position myself for a good start. I had my ipod nano with me and with the song 'Barracuda' by Heart playing in my earphones I was getting ramped for a good crossing! I've only tried sailing with tunes playing once before and really enjoyed it, so I thought I'd try it again for the crossing seeing as it can be such a long time on the water. If you've never tried listening to tunes while sailing before, do it, it's really cool! So, with the blast of the horn we were off! The wind did slack off a bit during the upwind leg portion, so I had to tack to clear the mark. I rounded the mark in the lead group and felt really good about my chances at a top ten finish! The wind decided to crank back up during the next 10-15 minutes or so of the race and I was really struggling to keep myself on the board, trying to manage the gusts with my 'fat' sail. I thought a couple of times to stop and add some downhaul, but kept on going telling myself out loud "KEEP GOING WOODY", so with stretched arms, I held it together for the most part One big gust lifted my board as I come off a wave and I quickly went into survival mode hopping out of my straps as I pointed quickly up wind. I was back-winded by my sail and hit the drink...no more tunes too If there was a good thing about my crash, my sail was in a perfect position to uphaul, so with a quick jerk up I was back sailing on course. The wind seemed to let up a bit after the crash and I was really dialed and in good form until we hit the big hole of no wind at the turnaround point. With everyone slogging except for Arden and Kevin it seemed we headed back to Malmo. It wasn't too long though before we we're all back on a plane racing for the finish. I Yahoo'd to everyone that I knew on the way back and was just taking in the 'moment'. I found myself talking to the wind and getting little puffs which where just enough to get me through some of the holes on the way back and being thankful for these little 'gifts'. A couple of formula guys passed me on the way back, but I was really trying to reel my buddy and Team World member Randy Howell (IA) also on a Prodigy with a 10.8m sail. No way though, he was fast on Saturday! So being fully powered for the last 5 or so miles I just enjoyed the ride to the finish. I was sad to hear on my return that my Woodette never made it, along with a couple more of the Canadian contingent
We've always had the ability to say "wait until next year", and I hope that continues...Great fun times before, during, and after The Crossing!! It was really great to see you all again and share the stoke on the water! I am still stoked about my 8th overall finish and pretty impressed with the top three guys all from Fond du Lac! Way to go Wisconsin!!
Cheers
Crossing Results
Great posts from everybody (Tighe, Randy, and the Woody’s…sounds like some band headlining the county fair). I thought I would weigh in with my observations.
Like everyone said, the forecast early in the week was for cold and miserable without a trace of wind. Fortunately, the weather came around and started showing up just before noon on Saturday. Mike did a great job of rounding up the troops and making the call to do a race. It was determined that we would be sailing an out-and-back from Malmo, rather than a crossing due to a vareity of things that I am glad I didn't have to worry about so that I could just go race.
Once we got to Malmo everyone was wondering what to rig. The wind looked steady, and even seemed to be building. The forecast was that the wind would decrease throughout the day, but there was nothing on the horizon that would indicate a change in the wind early in the afternoon. I rigged my 11.6 thinking it wasn't very windy, but put quite a bit of downhaul on it just in case I needed some control.
Once some people started heading out on the water, I started to have second thoughts about the 11.6 because I saw some much smaller sails planing around out on the water, but I decided that I would stick to my big sail and just hope I could hold things together. As I watched people from shore, I noticed that the wind seemed to be puffing and lulling a bit, so I even went back to my sail and slacked the downhaul about an inch right before I headed out to the line.
As I was dragging my gear through the 200 or so yards of shallow water, I was impressed by how many sailors (and kiters) were out on the water, and I was also very thankful for the warm day that we had. Mostly, though, I was starting to regret taking that inch of downhaul off of my sail since the wind seemed a lot stronger now that I was out on the water.
When I finally got to deep enough water, I stepped onto the board and sailed around for a bit trying to convince myself that I would be ok with the big sail. I'm also pretty sure I prayed for the wind to back off a couple notches at least 4 or 5 times.
The line was set with the pin end much higher into the wind than the boat, so I hung around there waiting for the gun. Kevin Gratton was hovering just to windward of me, and I kidded with him that it was nice to see him in the right place at the start since he had a rough start at last year's crossing. I was glad to see Kevin there because then I knew I must be in the right place because he has his tactics in order at least 90% of the time. Plus, I knew that I would want to keep an eye on him since he is one of the best guys to have ever done this race.
When the gun sounded Kevin and I got off to great starts on port tacking and were able to roll out in front of the rest of the fleet that started on starboard. Kevin was to the inside, and I wansn't able to climb on top of him as we beat to windward, so I figured I would just wait for him to tack to the upwind mark. Apparently, he was also waiting for me to tack, so this was quickly turning into a game of chicken, but fortunately Kevin eventually tacked before we sailed all the way right back into shallow water. When we came about, both of us had to sail a reach or lower to get to the mark, but we had enough of an advantage from the start that we both easily passed the upwind mark ahead of the rest of the fleet.
With some hoots and hollers (more on my part I think), we both buckled down and started screaming out into the middle of the lake. After the first mile or so we encountered our first big gust and I went right back to regretting taking the big sail, and had to start doing some creative survival sailing in order to just keep making progress. In the real big gusts, I would put my back foot in the chicken strap, hunker down low and just let the sail sheet out until I could hang onto it. This was slow going and ugly, and was also pushing me a fair bit off the wind. When the wind would back off, I would pinch back into the wind with my back foot again in the outboard strap. I ended up doing this zigzagging for control for about 10-15 minutes while I watched Kevin pull away from me and Don Altmyer progressively chew away at the lead I had on him.
I remember thinking that I was very impressed with Kevin speed and I was hoping that he was on something much smaller than me so that I didn't feel completely inadequate by how he was just running away from me in the gusts. Later, Kevin told me he was on a 9-something which made me feel better, and he also said that he just sheeted in and didn't look back until over halfway to the marker bouy. I'm guessing that by the time he looked back I was probaby just a small dot. He probably had at least a half mile on me, and Don even overtook me for some portions.
I just kept trying to make progress out into the lake and continued to tell myself that this is a long race and that the wind is bound to come down sometime. Even if it didn't, at least I was getting to sail the race on formula gear in 70+ degree weather, instead of the cold drift-fest that had been forecast earlier in the week.
Thankfully, as we got within a mile or two of the center buoy the wind did start to back off, and I could see that I was gaining on Kevin and leaving Don behind me. Even better (for me), Kevin eventually fell off a plane, and I was able to keep going and even pass him before we got to the halfway mark. I planed to within about 100 yards of the mark and was actually glad for the rest. After rounding the mark, I waited for a decent puff and worked my board off a steep piece of chop and was able to get planning.
HOO-WAH, I was in business. I focused on staying on a plane, and had a good time sailing back through the fleet and seeing the approaching familiar faces and shouting encouragement to one another. I stayed on a plane the whole way back and only encountered one big gust along the way. I knew that if I was comfortably powered it would be unlikely anyone else was more powered and able to close in on me. I spent the last half of the race concentrating on shore and trying to figure out where the finish line was. The multitude of RC boats really helped keep me moving in the correct direction, and I was very glad when I was finally able to make out the finish line boats. It felt very good to cross the finish line and know that I hadn’t given up with the big sail. The old adage of “Races are won in the lulls, not the gusts” definitely applied here. I was just lucky that the lull lasted as long as it did, because Kevin sailed a heck of a race when the wind was on.
It was great seeing so many sailors at the crossing. It is a very unique event with a lot of history, and I am glad to have had the opportunity to sail in it. I would like to give a big thanks to everyone that helped make the race happen and I hope to see everyone back there again next year.
Like everyone said, the forecast early in the week was for cold and miserable without a trace of wind. Fortunately, the weather came around and started showing up just before noon on Saturday. Mike did a great job of rounding up the troops and making the call to do a race. It was determined that we would be sailing an out-and-back from Malmo, rather than a crossing due to a vareity of things that I am glad I didn't have to worry about so that I could just go race.
Once we got to Malmo everyone was wondering what to rig. The wind looked steady, and even seemed to be building. The forecast was that the wind would decrease throughout the day, but there was nothing on the horizon that would indicate a change in the wind early in the afternoon. I rigged my 11.6 thinking it wasn't very windy, but put quite a bit of downhaul on it just in case I needed some control.
Once some people started heading out on the water, I started to have second thoughts about the 11.6 because I saw some much smaller sails planing around out on the water, but I decided that I would stick to my big sail and just hope I could hold things together. As I watched people from shore, I noticed that the wind seemed to be puffing and lulling a bit, so I even went back to my sail and slacked the downhaul about an inch right before I headed out to the line.
As I was dragging my gear through the 200 or so yards of shallow water, I was impressed by how many sailors (and kiters) were out on the water, and I was also very thankful for the warm day that we had. Mostly, though, I was starting to regret taking that inch of downhaul off of my sail since the wind seemed a lot stronger now that I was out on the water.
When I finally got to deep enough water, I stepped onto the board and sailed around for a bit trying to convince myself that I would be ok with the big sail. I'm also pretty sure I prayed for the wind to back off a couple notches at least 4 or 5 times.
The line was set with the pin end much higher into the wind than the boat, so I hung around there waiting for the gun. Kevin Gratton was hovering just to windward of me, and I kidded with him that it was nice to see him in the right place at the start since he had a rough start at last year's crossing. I was glad to see Kevin there because then I knew I must be in the right place because he has his tactics in order at least 90% of the time. Plus, I knew that I would want to keep an eye on him since he is one of the best guys to have ever done this race.
When the gun sounded Kevin and I got off to great starts on port tacking and were able to roll out in front of the rest of the fleet that started on starboard. Kevin was to the inside, and I wansn't able to climb on top of him as we beat to windward, so I figured I would just wait for him to tack to the upwind mark. Apparently, he was also waiting for me to tack, so this was quickly turning into a game of chicken, but fortunately Kevin eventually tacked before we sailed all the way right back into shallow water. When we came about, both of us had to sail a reach or lower to get to the mark, but we had enough of an advantage from the start that we both easily passed the upwind mark ahead of the rest of the fleet.
With some hoots and hollers (more on my part I think), we both buckled down and started screaming out into the middle of the lake. After the first mile or so we encountered our first big gust and I went right back to regretting taking the big sail, and had to start doing some creative survival sailing in order to just keep making progress. In the real big gusts, I would put my back foot in the chicken strap, hunker down low and just let the sail sheet out until I could hang onto it. This was slow going and ugly, and was also pushing me a fair bit off the wind. When the wind would back off, I would pinch back into the wind with my back foot again in the outboard strap. I ended up doing this zigzagging for control for about 10-15 minutes while I watched Kevin pull away from me and Don Altmyer progressively chew away at the lead I had on him.
I remember thinking that I was very impressed with Kevin speed and I was hoping that he was on something much smaller than me so that I didn't feel completely inadequate by how he was just running away from me in the gusts. Later, Kevin told me he was on a 9-something which made me feel better, and he also said that he just sheeted in and didn't look back until over halfway to the marker bouy. I'm guessing that by the time he looked back I was probaby just a small dot. He probably had at least a half mile on me, and Don even overtook me for some portions.
I just kept trying to make progress out into the lake and continued to tell myself that this is a long race and that the wind is bound to come down sometime. Even if it didn't, at least I was getting to sail the race on formula gear in 70+ degree weather, instead of the cold drift-fest that had been forecast earlier in the week.
Thankfully, as we got within a mile or two of the center buoy the wind did start to back off, and I could see that I was gaining on Kevin and leaving Don behind me. Even better (for me), Kevin eventually fell off a plane, and I was able to keep going and even pass him before we got to the halfway mark. I planed to within about 100 yards of the mark and was actually glad for the rest. After rounding the mark, I waited for a decent puff and worked my board off a steep piece of chop and was able to get planning.
HOO-WAH, I was in business. I focused on staying on a plane, and had a good time sailing back through the fleet and seeing the approaching familiar faces and shouting encouragement to one another. I stayed on a plane the whole way back and only encountered one big gust along the way. I knew that if I was comfortably powered it would be unlikely anyone else was more powered and able to close in on me. I spent the last half of the race concentrating on shore and trying to figure out where the finish line was. The multitude of RC boats really helped keep me moving in the correct direction, and I was very glad when I was finally able to make out the finish line boats. It felt very good to cross the finish line and know that I hadn’t given up with the big sail. The old adage of “Races are won in the lulls, not the gusts” definitely applied here. I was just lucky that the lull lasted as long as it did, because Kevin sailed a heck of a race when the wind was on.
It was great seeing so many sailors at the crossing. It is a very unique event with a lot of history, and I am glad to have had the opportunity to sail in it. I would like to give a big thanks to everyone that helped make the race happen and I hope to see everyone back there again next year.
-
Professor Robae'
- Posts: 353
- Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2003 12:18 pm
- Location: Minnetonka
Yes; lots of good comments and points here. I also rigged an 11.6 meter sail and it spanked me hard! Probably my biggest mistake was not spending enough time practicing with this sail in powered and over powered conditions. I had a "chicken" foot strap on the board, then took it off before the race since we were only reaching back & forth; mistake. Arden; your technique of sheeting out, heading down and resting during the gusts sounds great; I wish I had thought of this at the time! Another big problem was being over 2" short on the recommended downhaul setting since I couldn't pull it any further (maybe the setting is off? Wrong!). I'm definitely ordering one of those handy downhaul cranks!
After rounding the first mark and finding myself doing some serious tail-walking in the strongest wind of the day, I decided to fight the beast with everything I had; bad strategy for a distance race! After a while my back leg cramped up pretty severely and I knew I was toast... I dropped the sail and rested a bit, looked up-wind for a time and saw no hint of it lightening. Then said the heck with it; and sailed back in to rig a smaller sail & board. After hearing from lots of different people about how much the wind dropped off just after I left: OUCH! That hurt worse than my leg did for sure!
They call it the Ultimate Challenge for a good reason; you need to have good plans for all the possible contingencies! I have definitely learned plenty of new lessons for future races. What a great time we all had that night sharing tons of fun stories about the history of this grand event. Thanks to everyone that has volunteered their time to make it happen for so many years; especially Michael Fox!
The rest of the weekend was awesome: Great free sailing for the rest of the day on Saturday, then fun course racing during the middle part of the day on Sunday. And to cap it off; the wind really came up in the late afternoon and I sailed for many glorious miles; most of the time being over-powered on the same formula gear that kicked my ass the day before!
What a perfect ending to an (almost) perfect weekend!
After rounding the first mark and finding myself doing some serious tail-walking in the strongest wind of the day, I decided to fight the beast with everything I had; bad strategy for a distance race! After a while my back leg cramped up pretty severely and I knew I was toast... I dropped the sail and rested a bit, looked up-wind for a time and saw no hint of it lightening. Then said the heck with it; and sailed back in to rig a smaller sail & board. After hearing from lots of different people about how much the wind dropped off just after I left: OUCH! That hurt worse than my leg did for sure!
They call it the Ultimate Challenge for a good reason; you need to have good plans for all the possible contingencies! I have definitely learned plenty of new lessons for future races. What a great time we all had that night sharing tons of fun stories about the history of this grand event. Thanks to everyone that has volunteered their time to make it happen for so many years; especially Michael Fox!
The rest of the weekend was awesome: Great free sailing for the rest of the day on Saturday, then fun course racing during the middle part of the day on Sunday. And to cap it off; the wind really came up in the late afternoon and I sailed for many glorious miles; most of the time being over-powered on the same formula gear that kicked my ass the day before!
What a perfect ending to an (almost) perfect weekend!
Crossing Recap...
Hello everyone, great recap from Randy, Woody's and Arden, Professor Robae’ here's the weekend recap from me and my experience with Mille Lac this year, sorry if it is a bit long. I just got into it when I got started writing….
As always, this race is so much different than any other race, all you get is one shot at doing well. If anything goes wrong then you won't finish in the top spot and have to wait yet another year for another chance. This was the case for me last year, standing on the beach in shallow water at Malmo, adjusting my boom length when the start went. Hurrying out, just clearing the start line when most sailors already hit the upwind mark. I ended up being perfectly tuned for the race but was chasing down sailors all the way across to the finish in Garrison, now this year I wanted to be as perfectly tuned but with a good start, and perhaps a chance to finish in the top 5 which was my goal for this 25th (4th for me) annual crossing.
Like Arden said, the winds were not supposed to be as strong as they were when we arrived to Malmo Saturday morning in perfect temperature; I had picked up a new dry-suit from Midwest Mountaineering in Minneapolis on my way up to Garrison on Friday, I did opt to not use it and ended up just using a shorty suit for the race. The water was pretty chilly (for a shorty) but I figured I would be on the board most of the time since the winds were pretty light...
Rigging next to Arden I decided to go with my BIG ol' 12.5m RS-2 race sail that still has Jimmy Diaz's sail numbers and sponsor logo's in it. This pulling machine would hopefully keep me planing in the lulls on my
Bic Techno Formula. I also rigged my favorite sail, a North R-type 10.5m in case the conditions were changing some, and I would opt for my One Design Long board, since I new that can always happen at any time up on Mille Lac.
Once in the water for the first time with the BIC and 12.5m race sail the long walk out to deep water began, I new that it was shallow, but boy, this takes a lot of effort and time to get out far enough with my 70cm fin in order to be able to jump on the board. Once about 1/4 mile out from the beach I was clear to go. I had parked my 10.5m sail on a buoy in the water 10 meters from the beach, I new it would take me a while (and a lot of effort to get to it but a good idea to have a backup plan just in case).
I went out a few minutes to feel the 12.5 and how it handled with a lot less downhaul than normal. to make sure I would have enough power to go through the lulls. The winds had built significantly from when I started my 8 min walk from the shore to deep water. I was a little worried that I would be way overpowered, and wish that I would have down hauled the sail at least to speck. I know once this sail is tuned it is a beauty to sail with in light conditions, very balanced and not at all heavy as some people may think. I had sailed it last weekend just to prep for the crossing and I had a great 2hr session in similar conditions. I went out on a few test runs, it felt weird, something wasn't right, I had to muscle the sail real hard just to get going and stay sheeted in was almost impossible, it felt like I was going to be thrown over forward every time I hit some chop, it was exhausting to sail just 500 yards and turn around. I needed to put more downhaul in the sail to get it to handle the way normally does.
Knowing how much tension the 12.5m sail takes and that it is impossible to pull more downhaul on this type of sail on the water without a rigging tool (crank) I knew I had to opt for my backup sail laying at the shore, or run up to my car and get the crank, . I worked my way back to Jeff Koebls buoy with my gear, he had put an anker and his backup plan (long board) on a buoy 3-400 yards further out than me, smart move. I stopped there and tied my board to his buoy. I started to run back in waist deep water to the shoreline where my 10.5m sail was waiting for me.
Every 30 seconds or so I would turn around to look out towards the start boat to see if Mike on the starting boat had raised any flags. Half way between by board on Jeff's buoy, and the 10.5 sail I saw that the yellow flag was up, not knowing how long it had been there I knew that I was in time trouble to potentially miss the start. For a second I thought about turning around and go back to the 12.5, but knowing that it was pretty much impossible to sail the sail the way it was rigged I went for the 10.5. (I wish I had the downhaul crank stuffed in my wetsuit at this point) once I got to the sail I started dragging it behind me back out to my board. TB Ray (Ray Muller) sailed by me on his long board when I was about knee deep, he said, you are going to miss the start. Hurry up, I said, “Do you know the exact time to start?” He goes, 7 min... I was a good 7 min wading from my board still. I also met Paul Matousek from Canada coming in when I went out. He was coming in to switch to a smaller sail as well; he was overpowered on a 10.8 sail and a Formula he said. Boy, it must really blow out there now I thought, perhaps I am making the right move and people with bigger stuff will get in trouble and I can pick them off down the course... A minute later I heard the Sport fleet start go off. I was still about 200 yards wading from my gear... I was getting frustrated and tired pulling my sail with me as the water got deeper and deeper, seeing people line up for the start about 1/4 mile out from me...
I finally arrived back at my board, I was so tired, my quads were tight, almost cramping from the long hard run /walk from the beach, my whole body was exhausted from doing a 1/2 mile of hard workout in the brisk cold water, at this point my feet were almost numb, I only had my shorty wet suit and no warm boots, just some beach sandals that gave me no heat whatsoever...
I quickly switched my 12.5 sail for my 10.5 and jumped on my board, right as I beach started I heard the horn go for the start signal... Crap, I thought, all that hard work for nothing... I saw Kevin and Arden and one other guy out in front, take off around the upwind buoy. I still had a way to go to get to the start line... Once I got out to the line everyone was gone, there were a few Sport Fleet sailors in the water when I sailed by, I new I had to clear the upwind mark so I wouldn't get turned around, I figured I would do that and then do some sail tuning. My sail felt crappy, the boom was rigged way to high, (I had barley any down haul on it, (I rigged it for my One Design) I kept sailing past the upwind marker to get cleared, when I tacked I could barley still see the fleet in front of me, a mile or two (maybe more) in the horizon... Mike Reed sailed by me on his Formula going way faster than me, I wasn't very tuned at all, I should be going the same speed as Mike. I had to stop adjust my boom height and tune my sail for Formula setup, I sat down on the board to change my downhaul tension (which is easier on this sail than the 12.5 but still hard on the water) I tied the downhaul line to my harness hook, then I can lean back and push with my foot against the mast sitting down on the board (my own trick) to pull more outhaul tension, a 1-2 min pit stop, I know the sooner I tuned the sail the better off I would be to catch some sailors in front of me...
When I got going again Mike was a little dot in the horizon... I could not see the rest of the fleet anymore... Now I had my gear tuned though, my favorite sail, perfectly rigged, I started the catch-up hunt to pick people off.... The wind was hauling now; I bet it was steady 20Mph w/ some gust in the 25's. I was finally locked in and was going fast... Yeiiihaaa!!!
After about 3-4 min I passed some Sport Fleet guys going way slower than me, I could not see who they were, another 2 min later I sailed by Jeff Koerbl, he was in the water, I think he was on a 10.9 and his Formula, I yelled at Jeff, "Let's go get em"... Another minute later or so I sailed pass Mike Reed, he was also in the water... I kept going, I was cruising now, and this is so much fun... I know that being tuned right is the key to go fast and not get tired on a crossing...
After a while I started to see the whole fleet in front of me, I got closer and closer to more sails. Looks like they were stuck in a wind hole, great I thought, perhaps I can catch them.....
Arden came flying back on his Formula towards me, he was planing in the wind-hole, one of the few, I thought, I wish I would have had my 12.5 now, tuned right, I could have picked a lot more people off here, I still planed though and passed a few more people before the turn around.
I finally saw the turnaround boat and went low of it to tack around it like they said on the shore you can do after the change in decision was to do an out an back. When we checked in for our safety gear someone asked which way to go around and Renee said either way since nothing was said about which way to turn around.
I tacked around the boat, said "hi" to Pat and mentioned that I missed the start, and he quickly told me that I had to go around his boat the other way, I was confused, the lady on the shore told me one thing, Pat something else... Aaarrghh.. I took another 2 minutes and made another lap around his boat, the last thing I wanted was to get disqualified on the crossing. I went around the proper way.... Again there were 5-7 sailors about a 1/4 mile ahead of me...
A little mad and frustrated I pumped up on a plane in what still was a big wind-whole, after a few hundred yards the wind came back and everyone was going fast again. The adrenaline pumping from missing the start, messing up my sail tuning, and now the messy turn around I was pretty mad, I think it helped me keep the sail sheeted in during the gusts on the way back to the finish.
I think I was somewhere in the middle of the pack now, having passed perhaps 10-15 people so far, I saw Bruce Stratford up in front of me, I gained on him quickly, I went to pass him on the high side, I got real close, then I lost my concentration for a second looking at how Strat was muscling and fighting hard with his 9.8m race sail on the long board. All of a sudden I lost it over a wave top, I got catapulted forward when my board’s nose went under a big wave, WAAAAM.. I was in the water… I saw Strat sailing away… At the time I fell in I must have been about 20 yards behind him, ready to pass… Darn…
I quickly got back up and it only took me about 30 seconds until I was going fast again. Strat was now a good 2-300 yards in front of me. It took me another couple of minutes to close the gap again. I blew by him and yelled at him, "let’s go Strat"…
Further in front there were another 6-8 sailors, I think Peter Hill, Peter Hartwich, Ray Muller (Thunder bay Ray) and Jay Corbett and some others… I started the hunt for them; they were a good 1/4 mile to a mile ahead… The finish line must have been about 4-5 miles out now…
On the last part of the race I was working the wind-holes and looked for lifts upwind, I was able to keep planing and sailed good and as fast as I could, knowing I had nothing to loose at this point, I was flying… During the last part of the race, about a mile or 2 from the finish line I passed 6-8 sailors, then the last mile my calf cramped up, perhaps from the cold water or the long run/walk I did with my sail from the beach in the beginning to try making the start. Jay Corbett closed on me the last few hundred yards when I tried to stretch my back leg’s calf out while sailing, he was to far behind and I was able to hold him off. I think he would have got me if the race was another half a mile. I ended up in 15th place at 59:43, which I was happy with under the circumstances and all the mistakes I did during the race.
I can't wait for next year’s Ultimate Challenge race, and all the twists it will throw at us... Hopefully I will break the streak of missing the start 2 years in a row, and finally have a clean race. “The Crossing” takes some time to get good at, but boy it is a challenge in so many ways, you really have to bring your A-game and something little can really make it a very tough day, but this is what makes this race such a fun event and why we come back, and will come back for years to come…
Thanks again to the organizers and everyone for showing up. Everyone should take one assignment with them home, to bring a new person with you next year, and we would have nearly 90 people attempting again. Kiter or windsurfer or one of each...
Sunday we had some great fun sailing and racing at Garrison, I got to try Jeff Adamski’s tandem board with him and boy that was fun, perhaps next year there will be someone attempting the Crossing on a tandem, that thing moves… I know Starboard is making a Formula tandem for their production anyone up for a team race?
/ Uffe
USWE 22
As always, this race is so much different than any other race, all you get is one shot at doing well. If anything goes wrong then you won't finish in the top spot and have to wait yet another year for another chance. This was the case for me last year, standing on the beach in shallow water at Malmo, adjusting my boom length when the start went. Hurrying out, just clearing the start line when most sailors already hit the upwind mark. I ended up being perfectly tuned for the race but was chasing down sailors all the way across to the finish in Garrison, now this year I wanted to be as perfectly tuned but with a good start, and perhaps a chance to finish in the top 5 which was my goal for this 25th (4th for me) annual crossing.
Like Arden said, the winds were not supposed to be as strong as they were when we arrived to Malmo Saturday morning in perfect temperature; I had picked up a new dry-suit from Midwest Mountaineering in Minneapolis on my way up to Garrison on Friday, I did opt to not use it and ended up just using a shorty suit for the race. The water was pretty chilly (for a shorty) but I figured I would be on the board most of the time since the winds were pretty light...
Rigging next to Arden I decided to go with my BIG ol' 12.5m RS-2 race sail that still has Jimmy Diaz's sail numbers and sponsor logo's in it. This pulling machine would hopefully keep me planing in the lulls on my
Bic Techno Formula. I also rigged my favorite sail, a North R-type 10.5m in case the conditions were changing some, and I would opt for my One Design Long board, since I new that can always happen at any time up on Mille Lac.
Once in the water for the first time with the BIC and 12.5m race sail the long walk out to deep water began, I new that it was shallow, but boy, this takes a lot of effort and time to get out far enough with my 70cm fin in order to be able to jump on the board. Once about 1/4 mile out from the beach I was clear to go. I had parked my 10.5m sail on a buoy in the water 10 meters from the beach, I new it would take me a while (and a lot of effort to get to it but a good idea to have a backup plan just in case).
I went out a few minutes to feel the 12.5 and how it handled with a lot less downhaul than normal. to make sure I would have enough power to go through the lulls. The winds had built significantly from when I started my 8 min walk from the shore to deep water. I was a little worried that I would be way overpowered, and wish that I would have down hauled the sail at least to speck. I know once this sail is tuned it is a beauty to sail with in light conditions, very balanced and not at all heavy as some people may think. I had sailed it last weekend just to prep for the crossing and I had a great 2hr session in similar conditions. I went out on a few test runs, it felt weird, something wasn't right, I had to muscle the sail real hard just to get going and stay sheeted in was almost impossible, it felt like I was going to be thrown over forward every time I hit some chop, it was exhausting to sail just 500 yards and turn around. I needed to put more downhaul in the sail to get it to handle the way normally does.
Knowing how much tension the 12.5m sail takes and that it is impossible to pull more downhaul on this type of sail on the water without a rigging tool (crank) I knew I had to opt for my backup sail laying at the shore, or run up to my car and get the crank, . I worked my way back to Jeff Koebls buoy with my gear, he had put an anker and his backup plan (long board) on a buoy 3-400 yards further out than me, smart move. I stopped there and tied my board to his buoy. I started to run back in waist deep water to the shoreline where my 10.5m sail was waiting for me.
Every 30 seconds or so I would turn around to look out towards the start boat to see if Mike on the starting boat had raised any flags. Half way between by board on Jeff's buoy, and the 10.5 sail I saw that the yellow flag was up, not knowing how long it had been there I knew that I was in time trouble to potentially miss the start. For a second I thought about turning around and go back to the 12.5, but knowing that it was pretty much impossible to sail the sail the way it was rigged I went for the 10.5. (I wish I had the downhaul crank stuffed in my wetsuit at this point) once I got to the sail I started dragging it behind me back out to my board. TB Ray (Ray Muller) sailed by me on his long board when I was about knee deep, he said, you are going to miss the start. Hurry up, I said, “Do you know the exact time to start?” He goes, 7 min... I was a good 7 min wading from my board still. I also met Paul Matousek from Canada coming in when I went out. He was coming in to switch to a smaller sail as well; he was overpowered on a 10.8 sail and a Formula he said. Boy, it must really blow out there now I thought, perhaps I am making the right move and people with bigger stuff will get in trouble and I can pick them off down the course... A minute later I heard the Sport fleet start go off. I was still about 200 yards wading from my gear... I was getting frustrated and tired pulling my sail with me as the water got deeper and deeper, seeing people line up for the start about 1/4 mile out from me...
I finally arrived back at my board, I was so tired, my quads were tight, almost cramping from the long hard run /walk from the beach, my whole body was exhausted from doing a 1/2 mile of hard workout in the brisk cold water, at this point my feet were almost numb, I only had my shorty wet suit and no warm boots, just some beach sandals that gave me no heat whatsoever...
I quickly switched my 12.5 sail for my 10.5 and jumped on my board, right as I beach started I heard the horn go for the start signal... Crap, I thought, all that hard work for nothing... I saw Kevin and Arden and one other guy out in front, take off around the upwind buoy. I still had a way to go to get to the start line... Once I got out to the line everyone was gone, there were a few Sport Fleet sailors in the water when I sailed by, I new I had to clear the upwind mark so I wouldn't get turned around, I figured I would do that and then do some sail tuning. My sail felt crappy, the boom was rigged way to high, (I had barley any down haul on it, (I rigged it for my One Design) I kept sailing past the upwind marker to get cleared, when I tacked I could barley still see the fleet in front of me, a mile or two (maybe more) in the horizon... Mike Reed sailed by me on his Formula going way faster than me, I wasn't very tuned at all, I should be going the same speed as Mike. I had to stop adjust my boom height and tune my sail for Formula setup, I sat down on the board to change my downhaul tension (which is easier on this sail than the 12.5 but still hard on the water) I tied the downhaul line to my harness hook, then I can lean back and push with my foot against the mast sitting down on the board (my own trick) to pull more outhaul tension, a 1-2 min pit stop, I know the sooner I tuned the sail the better off I would be to catch some sailors in front of me...
When I got going again Mike was a little dot in the horizon... I could not see the rest of the fleet anymore... Now I had my gear tuned though, my favorite sail, perfectly rigged, I started the catch-up hunt to pick people off.... The wind was hauling now; I bet it was steady 20Mph w/ some gust in the 25's. I was finally locked in and was going fast... Yeiiihaaa!!!
After about 3-4 min I passed some Sport Fleet guys going way slower than me, I could not see who they were, another 2 min later I sailed by Jeff Koerbl, he was in the water, I think he was on a 10.9 and his Formula, I yelled at Jeff, "Let's go get em"... Another minute later or so I sailed pass Mike Reed, he was also in the water... I kept going, I was cruising now, and this is so much fun... I know that being tuned right is the key to go fast and not get tired on a crossing...
After a while I started to see the whole fleet in front of me, I got closer and closer to more sails. Looks like they were stuck in a wind hole, great I thought, perhaps I can catch them.....
Arden came flying back on his Formula towards me, he was planing in the wind-hole, one of the few, I thought, I wish I would have had my 12.5 now, tuned right, I could have picked a lot more people off here, I still planed though and passed a few more people before the turn around.
I finally saw the turnaround boat and went low of it to tack around it like they said on the shore you can do after the change in decision was to do an out an back. When we checked in for our safety gear someone asked which way to go around and Renee said either way since nothing was said about which way to turn around.
I tacked around the boat, said "hi" to Pat and mentioned that I missed the start, and he quickly told me that I had to go around his boat the other way, I was confused, the lady on the shore told me one thing, Pat something else... Aaarrghh.. I took another 2 minutes and made another lap around his boat, the last thing I wanted was to get disqualified on the crossing. I went around the proper way.... Again there were 5-7 sailors about a 1/4 mile ahead of me...
A little mad and frustrated I pumped up on a plane in what still was a big wind-whole, after a few hundred yards the wind came back and everyone was going fast again. The adrenaline pumping from missing the start, messing up my sail tuning, and now the messy turn around I was pretty mad, I think it helped me keep the sail sheeted in during the gusts on the way back to the finish.
I think I was somewhere in the middle of the pack now, having passed perhaps 10-15 people so far, I saw Bruce Stratford up in front of me, I gained on him quickly, I went to pass him on the high side, I got real close, then I lost my concentration for a second looking at how Strat was muscling and fighting hard with his 9.8m race sail on the long board. All of a sudden I lost it over a wave top, I got catapulted forward when my board’s nose went under a big wave, WAAAAM.. I was in the water… I saw Strat sailing away… At the time I fell in I must have been about 20 yards behind him, ready to pass… Darn…
I quickly got back up and it only took me about 30 seconds until I was going fast again. Strat was now a good 2-300 yards in front of me. It took me another couple of minutes to close the gap again. I blew by him and yelled at him, "let’s go Strat"…
Further in front there were another 6-8 sailors, I think Peter Hill, Peter Hartwich, Ray Muller (Thunder bay Ray) and Jay Corbett and some others… I started the hunt for them; they were a good 1/4 mile to a mile ahead… The finish line must have been about 4-5 miles out now…
On the last part of the race I was working the wind-holes and looked for lifts upwind, I was able to keep planing and sailed good and as fast as I could, knowing I had nothing to loose at this point, I was flying… During the last part of the race, about a mile or 2 from the finish line I passed 6-8 sailors, then the last mile my calf cramped up, perhaps from the cold water or the long run/walk I did with my sail from the beach in the beginning to try making the start. Jay Corbett closed on me the last few hundred yards when I tried to stretch my back leg’s calf out while sailing, he was to far behind and I was able to hold him off. I think he would have got me if the race was another half a mile. I ended up in 15th place at 59:43, which I was happy with under the circumstances and all the mistakes I did during the race.
I can't wait for next year’s Ultimate Challenge race, and all the twists it will throw at us... Hopefully I will break the streak of missing the start 2 years in a row, and finally have a clean race. “The Crossing” takes some time to get good at, but boy it is a challenge in so many ways, you really have to bring your A-game and something little can really make it a very tough day, but this is what makes this race such a fun event and why we come back, and will come back for years to come…
Thanks again to the organizers and everyone for showing up. Everyone should take one assignment with them home, to bring a new person with you next year, and we would have nearly 90 people attempting again. Kiter or windsurfer or one of each...
Sunday we had some great fun sailing and racing at Garrison, I got to try Jeff Adamski’s tandem board with him and boy that was fun, perhaps next year there will be someone attempting the Crossing on a tandem, that thing moves… I know Starboard is making a Formula tandem for their production anyone up for a team race?
/ Uffe
USWE 22
Woody - you might want to check this out - an aqua pack for the iPod. Still need to get some waterproof headphones to go with it though (I think you can get them for $20). Maybe the utlimate set up would be to get a cheaper aquapac (like a lot of people use for a GPS) that would house an iPod with bluetooth adapter. Not sure there are water proof blue tooth headphones though. If there are, that would be sweet.
http://www.aquapac.co.uk/usstore/erol.html
Apparently, Heart is still big in Cananda. Who knew.
http://www.aquapac.co.uk/usstore/erol.html
Apparently, Heart is still big in Cananda. Who knew.
Adam Anderson
Michael - I am Arden's brother. He was at UW, but I don't remember if he worked on a Cirrus project, but my guess is that he is the guy you remember. His email is ardenalan@yahoo.com if you want to contact him. I'll direct him to check out your reply here to see if he remembers you (he doesn't normally check out this forum since he is in Fond du Lac, WI).
Adam Anderson
UW
Michael,
Yeah, I worked at UW Space Science ~2000-01. What part of it were you in? Were you part of Hoofers too?
Uffe...nice post.
Later,
Arden
Yeah, I worked at UW Space Science ~2000-01. What part of it were you in? Were you part of Hoofers too?
Uffe...nice post.
Later,
Arden
Arden
I worked on the Cirrus project very breifly in 2001 I believe...they brought me in to help with design and modeling on some sort of light collector thing and then before long I think the funding went away...it was also right about the time I started windsurfing. I remembered a guy with your first name being there and remembered you sharing some stories of you and your brother's sailing escapades so I thought you might be the same individual...regardless, good to hear that you're doing well, and congratulations on the victory...Adam, hope to see you out on the water soon.
I worked on the Cirrus project very breifly in 2001 I believe...they brought me in to help with design and modeling on some sort of light collector thing and then before long I think the funding went away...it was also right about the time I started windsurfing. I remembered a guy with your first name being there and remembered you sharing some stories of you and your brother's sailing escapades so I thought you might be the same individual...regardless, good to hear that you're doing well, and congratulations on the victory...Adam, hope to see you out on the water soon.
Great recall of events Uffe. If you take out your miscues, you would have had a good chance at top 5 for sure! NEXT YEAR buddy!! I'll be gunning again for a top ten finish with my new (to me) formula board! WOOHOO!
I'll also be getting an Otterbox for my nano for my next years sailing. Any advice on waterproof earphones?
Woody - still buzzing from the fun weekend
I'll also be getting an Otterbox for my nano for my next years sailing. Any advice on waterproof earphones?
Woody - still buzzing from the fun weekend
WOODY after checking out your get wet ipod, I found this site it has some good stuff.
http://www.h2oaudio.com/
Thanks for the fun weekend
Look for a story on KARE 11 oct 22 Minnesota Bound it also might be a KARE news extra, I will try to keep it posted when I know.
I agree we should all recruit some more participants.
Dave (HT Dave to Woody)
http://www.h2oaudio.com/
Thanks for the fun weekend
Look for a story on KARE 11 oct 22 Minnesota Bound it also might be a KARE news extra, I will try to keep it posted when I know.
I agree we should all recruit some more participants.
Dave (HT Dave to Woody)
The Crossing is definitely the ultimate opportunity (around these parts at least) to meet some very talented sailors, kiters, their families and a lot of other great people to boot.
It’s also a three day party combined with some great events!
I have never attempted to participate in an organized windsurf race and learned some valuable lessons.
I chose big gear I was not that used to sailing, especially in the variety of conditions a long distance race can throw at you… old AHD 310, 10M sail and a never before used formula boom.
My first challenge was just getting the harness lines set and tweaking the adjustable outhaul which I installed way too far back to adjust comfortably on the fly… DOH!
Then the wind picked up and I was still struggling to get it all together. The Sport fleet (my chosen fleet) horn sounded but I needed to go back and put more downhaul on the sail… DOH!
On the way back out to maybe consider making the A Fleet start a nice fisherman came by close and asked “Hey are you guys doing some sort of race or something?”
“Yes, it looks like they are racing over there!” I politely replied. Then he yelled something else but I didn’t understand and kept sailing, although for some reason I was only half planing in sufficient wind.
A few seconds later the angler came alongside again and said “You're snagged in my line!”
Sure enough I dropped in and flipped the board over and his line was wrapped around the 50cm fin… DOH!
Unwrapped and after mutual apologies started sailing once again. By this time the A Fleet had sort of long gone so I sailed by the start line boats and out a ways and did some nice free sailing for a while until the Fleet started returning and I humbly went ashore to check in.
It was nonetheless a very great day… and I feel I understand much better the appeal and challenge of racing. Maybe I’ll get it together next year!
Sunday I ended up at Reddy Creek riding behind a 16M kite with some “kiter” friends who had just arrived that morning. No kids for our one year old to play with like Malmo the day before, but he did get to eat some sand.
Overall it was very impressive to see and talk to folks coming from Canada, Wisconsin, Iowa, etc. I was inspired to look up Dryden, Ontario on a map… it looks like there are a LOT of lakes in that part of world!
Thanks so much to Mr. Fox and the entire Fleet 8 Staff.
Mark F (as in DNF!)
It’s also a three day party combined with some great events!
I have never attempted to participate in an organized windsurf race and learned some valuable lessons.
I chose big gear I was not that used to sailing, especially in the variety of conditions a long distance race can throw at you… old AHD 310, 10M sail and a never before used formula boom.
My first challenge was just getting the harness lines set and tweaking the adjustable outhaul which I installed way too far back to adjust comfortably on the fly… DOH!
Then the wind picked up and I was still struggling to get it all together. The Sport fleet (my chosen fleet) horn sounded but I needed to go back and put more downhaul on the sail… DOH!
On the way back out to maybe consider making the A Fleet start a nice fisherman came by close and asked “Hey are you guys doing some sort of race or something?”
“Yes, it looks like they are racing over there!” I politely replied. Then he yelled something else but I didn’t understand and kept sailing, although for some reason I was only half planing in sufficient wind.
A few seconds later the angler came alongside again and said “You're snagged in my line!”
Sure enough I dropped in and flipped the board over and his line was wrapped around the 50cm fin… DOH!
Unwrapped and after mutual apologies started sailing once again. By this time the A Fleet had sort of long gone so I sailed by the start line boats and out a ways and did some nice free sailing for a while until the Fleet started returning and I humbly went ashore to check in.
It was nonetheless a very great day… and I feel I understand much better the appeal and challenge of racing. Maybe I’ll get it together next year!
Sunday I ended up at Reddy Creek riding behind a 16M kite with some “kiter” friends who had just arrived that morning. No kids for our one year old to play with like Malmo the day before, but he did get to eat some sand.
Overall it was very impressive to see and talk to folks coming from Canada, Wisconsin, Iowa, etc. I was inspired to look up Dryden, Ontario on a map… it looks like there are a LOT of lakes in that part of world!
Thanks so much to Mr. Fox and the entire Fleet 8 Staff.
Mark F (as in DNF!)