J-80 Fleet 10

Oyster Stew Tuning Session

April 28, 2018

Rain Date April 29, 2018

Fleet 10 would like to welcome fellow J-80 sailors to our tuning and training session. We plan to run starting drills and short windward/leeward practice races, as described below. The object is to help you get your timing, boat handling skills, and boat speed back after the long winter hiatus.

Rendezvous, 11:30 am, in the vicinity of the entrance to Lake Ogleton on the Severn River/Annapolis Harbor. The committee boat will be a blue 32 foot lobster boat called Oyster Stew. The committee boat will monitor channel 68. We will advise of any changes to instructions and provide some limited commentary on this channel. If traffic requires a change, we will go to channel 72. Please be sure to bring your radio and TURN IT ON!

When you first arrive, look to pair up with another boat and work on upwind boat speed. Go through plenty of tacks; set a spinnaker, work on a couple of jibes and takedowns. As you warm up, stay in the general vicinity of the committee boat. We will set up a starting line and a weather mark. Exact location will depend on the breeze direction. First gun for the starting drills will be at noon.

STARTING DRILLS (12:00 PM)

Once the line is set, we will begin a series of rolling practice starts, using a five-minute sequence:

Five Minutes Flag up

One Minute Flag Dropped

START Flag up Long Horn

The next five-minute sequence begins with the start signal from the previous sequence. Continue this pattern ad-nauseam.

These will be continuous, rolling starts. After starting, you will have just enough time to sail upwind for 100 yards or so to check your speed and acceleration. Don't get too far upwind. You will already be into the next sequence. We will run one hour's worth (12) starts or so.

WINDWARD/LEEWARD PRACTICE RACES (FIRST WARNING ~1:15 PM)

There is no better way to practice racing than to race. After an hour of practice starts, we will take a short break. Stay near the line! Get ready to race. We will use either a government mark or an orange inflatable as the windward mark. The leg will be short, adjusted to breeze velocity. Leave the windward mark to port (go around counter clockwise). Finish through the start/finish line. Blue Flag means one lap, Red Flag means two laps. The same five-minute starting sequence used for the practice start, will be used for the practice races. We will try to get in at least two short races.

RC WILL USE CHANNEL 68 (OR 72 IF 68 IS TOO BUSY) TO ANNOUNCE CHANGES TO SAILING INSTRUCTIONS. ALL SKIPPERS ARE REQUESTED TO HAVE AND USE RADIOS FOR THIS PRACTICE SESSION. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO COMMUNICATE WITH ONE ANOTHER AS WELL AS THE RC.