Light & Shite Miami OCR Day 2- Skip Dieball
Miami OCR produced some very tough conditions today. After being postponed on land for about an hour, the RC sent out all fleets. It seemed like a very bold move as there really wasn't much wind on the Bay.....and it turned out to give the RC fits as they remained postponed throughout much of the late morning.
The Finn/470 course managed to get underway at about 2:30pm.....it was an incredibly long day. The 470 women and the Finns got in 2 races, while the 470 men only got in one.
Geoff is hanging tough. A bad opening race yielded to a very respectable 2nd race. After all the shuffling, he's in the same spot as yesterday 11th out of 48ish.
Until tomorrow....
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Monday, January 22, 2007
Miami OCR - Day 1 Skip Dieball
After spending the weekend in New Orleans at the US Sailing Symposiums, I arrived late Sunday to Miami, which made for an early first day of the OCR.
I'm working again with Geoff Ewenson, who turned in a decent day with a 14,11. The Finn group that traveled to Miami this year make up many of the top 25 spots in the ISAF rankings. For that reason, the entire make up of the US Sailing Team selection points will be interesting to watch as the week progresses. The top Finnster after combining Pre-Trials, Miami OCR & Ft. Lauderdale will go to the Olympic Test Event in China, and the top three guys will go to the combinded World Championships in Portugal later this year.
It was an interesting day as a front moved out but we still had a significant cloud cover. These clouds produced some steady winds, albeit with some oscillations.
Here are some shots from today:
After spending the weekend in New Orleans at the US Sailing Symposiums, I arrived late Sunday to Miami, which made for an early first day of the OCR.
I'm working again with Geoff Ewenson, who turned in a decent day with a 14,11. The Finn group that traveled to Miami this year make up many of the top 25 spots in the ISAF rankings. For that reason, the entire make up of the US Sailing Team selection points will be interesting to watch as the week progresses. The top Finnster after combining Pre-Trials, Miami OCR & Ft. Lauderdale will go to the Olympic Test Event in China, and the top three guys will go to the combinded World Championships in Portugal later this year.
It was an interesting day as a front moved out but we still had a significant cloud cover. These clouds produced some steady winds, albeit with some oscillations.
Here are some shots from today:
San Diego - Training/Thistle MWW
The days leading up to the 2007 Thistle Midwinters West were spent with a lot of learning! Not only were there a few teams out there early to shake the rust, but the annual pre-event Clinic was a success. Both Greg Fisher and I spent the afternoon working with nearly half the entrants in honing their set up and boat handling.
I also had some time spent with my friend Pete Bellin and his team as they prepare for a full-blown sailing schedule for 2007. Their team made huge gains through the 2 days spent! We are looking forward to getting back together later this spring to check the progress.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Roll Tacking - Skip Dieball
This past summer I was giving a clinic at Put-In-Bay for the Jr. Racers and we talked at length about Roll Tacking. The Jr. scene is generally coached up by College Sailors, so many times I'll notice that teams try to violently roll the boat through the tacks. Although the spirit is good, many times the execution is not good and sometimes counter productive.
In order to execute good Roll Tacks, we have to understand what it is we are trying to accomplish. In most sailing (outside of College Sailing), the goal of a good maneuver is to minimize the "pain" of losing speed. Tacks and maneuvers related to tacks (720s, leeward mark roundings) are sometimes the most painful in terms of "down speed" maneuvers. So as we've evolved in sailing, so has our attention to these maneuvers.
The first thing I try to communicate to folks is that you have to be smooth in executing all maneuvers. In order to be smooth, you have to be coordinated with yourself and your teammates. In this article you will see that Steve Frazier (Univ. of Rhode Island) and Jesse Shedden (Florida State U.) execute a great roll tack in the Interlake.
It didn't take Steve and Jesse long to make smooth Roll Tacks, but it did take a bit of coordination to get there. Let's analyze their maneuver.....
A successful Roll Tack starts on the front end. You've got to make certain that everyone is ready and that the driver has communicated his/her intentions of tacking. Once everyone is ready, the driver then scans the water to find a "flat spot" in which to start (and finish) the maneuver. If you try to pull off any tack or gybe in the presence of waves, it could be counter-productive.
Once you are satisfied that you can get through the water without the waves knocking you around, start off by communicating that you are turning the boat. On my boat, I simply count to coordinate the facets of the tack. The initial turn is "1", followed by "2" when you are in the eye of the wind and "3" when you want to roll the boat through the tack.
Here you see Steve and Jesse in their "1" stage. Notice that there are no violent motions with either the tiller of crew weight. The Interlake (and most boats) will naturally want to turn into the wind, so the job of the driver is to maintain a nice pace through the tack and the coordinated crew work.
Still in the "1" phase, you'll see that both Steve and Jesse are now moving their weight inboard so that the boat maintains a nice pace through the tack. If they didn't move in, Steve would have needed to use more tiller/rudder to turn the boat, which causes the boat to slow down slightly.
As they move into the "2" phase (into the eye of the wind), you'll see that they haven't moved drastically one way or the other. The boat still has a nice pace and Steve still has control over the turn of the boat. Many times (especially in Interlakes) I'll see the driver stand up or the crew lean against the boom. This might be needed in some boats that have a tough time turning, but in most dinghies (especially Interlakes), the boat will turn on its own.
Now fulling into the "2" phase, you'll notice that both Steve and Jesse are moving their weight to the rail. This, coupled with the position of the tiller/rudder helps get the boat through the eye of the wind faster and gives you the heel you need to gain leverage through the "3" phase. Notice that the mainsail is still tight (you gain energy off the tight leech) and the jib is "boxed" or backwinded. This helps pull the bow through the eye of the wind.
Now the guys are through the eye of the wind and the boat has the proper leverage for them to cross through and exit the tack with hopefully the same speed as you entered the tack. Note that the tiller has never really been "forced" hard to the side.
The "3" phase is the quickest of the four phases. This is where not only will you slide your weight out, but you'll then cross over to the other side as the boat is turning to its "exit" course.
The 4th phase below is the final phase and here you see both Steve and Jesse on the new weather rail and the boat exiting the tack with great speed (evident by the flow off the rudder). You'll notice that Jesse has his arm above his head finishing the trimming of the jib. On 1407, the jib is 2:1 with a pulley off the clew. Jesse can make his life easier by always monitoring the "lazy sheet" and making sure it isn't too loose. If that lazy sheet is ready for the tack, the amount of sheet to pull will be substantially less.
As you can see there are many facets to the Roll Tack. What is important, and what I keep telling folks at clinics and seminars, is to be smooth with the maneuver. If you are like me and don't have the agility of a 20-something College Sailor, then scale it back, but always stay coordinated. Your boatspeed won't suffer if you concentrate and coordinate.
This past summer I was giving a clinic at Put-In-Bay for the Jr. Racers and we talked at length about Roll Tacking. The Jr. scene is generally coached up by College Sailors, so many times I'll notice that teams try to violently roll the boat through the tacks. Although the spirit is good, many times the execution is not good and sometimes counter productive.
In order to execute good Roll Tacks, we have to understand what it is we are trying to accomplish. In most sailing (outside of College Sailing), the goal of a good maneuver is to minimize the "pain" of losing speed. Tacks and maneuvers related to tacks (720s, leeward mark roundings) are sometimes the most painful in terms of "down speed" maneuvers. So as we've evolved in sailing, so has our attention to these maneuvers.
The first thing I try to communicate to folks is that you have to be smooth in executing all maneuvers. In order to be smooth, you have to be coordinated with yourself and your teammates. In this article you will see that Steve Frazier (Univ. of Rhode Island) and Jesse Shedden (Florida State U.) execute a great roll tack in the Interlake.
It didn't take Steve and Jesse long to make smooth Roll Tacks, but it did take a bit of coordination to get there. Let's analyze their maneuver.....
A successful Roll Tack starts on the front end. You've got to make certain that everyone is ready and that the driver has communicated his/her intentions of tacking. Once everyone is ready, the driver then scans the water to find a "flat spot" in which to start (and finish) the maneuver. If you try to pull off any tack or gybe in the presence of waves, it could be counter-productive.
Once you are satisfied that you can get through the water without the waves knocking you around, start off by communicating that you are turning the boat. On my boat, I simply count to coordinate the facets of the tack. The initial turn is "1", followed by "2" when you are in the eye of the wind and "3" when you want to roll the boat through the tack.
Here you see Steve and Jesse in their "1" stage. Notice that there are no violent motions with either the tiller of crew weight. The Interlake (and most boats) will naturally want to turn into the wind, so the job of the driver is to maintain a nice pace through the tack and the coordinated crew work.
Still in the "1" phase, you'll see that both Steve and Jesse are now moving their weight inboard so that the boat maintains a nice pace through the tack. If they didn't move in, Steve would have needed to use more tiller/rudder to turn the boat, which causes the boat to slow down slightly.
As they move into the "2" phase (into the eye of the wind), you'll see that they haven't moved drastically one way or the other. The boat still has a nice pace and Steve still has control over the turn of the boat. Many times (especially in Interlakes) I'll see the driver stand up or the crew lean against the boom. This might be needed in some boats that have a tough time turning, but in most dinghies (especially Interlakes), the boat will turn on its own.
Now fulling into the "2" phase, you'll notice that both Steve and Jesse are moving their weight to the rail. This, coupled with the position of the tiller/rudder helps get the boat through the eye of the wind faster and gives you the heel you need to gain leverage through the "3" phase. Notice that the mainsail is still tight (you gain energy off the tight leech) and the jib is "boxed" or backwinded. This helps pull the bow through the eye of the wind.
Now the guys are through the eye of the wind and the boat has the proper leverage for them to cross through and exit the tack with hopefully the same speed as you entered the tack. Note that the tiller has never really been "forced" hard to the side.
The "3" phase is the quickest of the four phases. This is where not only will you slide your weight out, but you'll then cross over to the other side as the boat is turning to its "exit" course.
The 4th phase below is the final phase and here you see both Steve and Jesse on the new weather rail and the boat exiting the tack with great speed (evident by the flow off the rudder). You'll notice that Jesse has his arm above his head finishing the trimming of the jib. On 1407, the jib is 2:1 with a pulley off the clew. Jesse can make his life easier by always monitoring the "lazy sheet" and making sure it isn't too loose. If that lazy sheet is ready for the tack, the amount of sheet to pull will be substantially less.
As you can see there are many facets to the Roll Tack. What is important, and what I keep telling folks at clinics and seminars, is to be smooth with the maneuver. If you are like me and don't have the agility of a 20-something College Sailor, then scale it back, but always stay coordinated. Your boatspeed won't suffer if you concentrate and coordinate.
Bringing old Thistles back to life....by Skip Dieball
Check out some of the progress:
This winter Ernie Dieball and I hit the road for New England to lay claim to a couple of old, wood Thistles in search of a new home. The idea was that we could put in a little effort and with any luck, find some new fleet members and enhance Fleet 37, our home fleet.
The trip out there and back is a story in itself packed with Monster Energy Drink hallucinations, bad hotels, New England Patriots traffic, locking keys in vehicles, etc. We made it back to Toledo in about 36 hours with 2 boats.
My dad (known by thousands as just Denny, AKA The King), a highly talented boatbuilder (retired), has been keeping busy with projects to keep my mom happy, but I could tell he needed his boat fix. He's been there, done that with all things plastic and fiberglass. I presented him with a deviation in wood boats. His only reservation was with "brightwork", which I assured him I had neither the time nor the talent to keep up with over the years. The 2 boats are/were/will be painted interior & exterior and all bigtime mods had already been made (glassed bottoms, beefed up chainplate areas, etc.).
So, I will attempt to update this blog with the boat's progress. I am truly amazed how quickly The King has gotten one of them ready for new wood and interior paint. The other is not far behind and our goal of having these things ready for June 1st launch is laughable at this point....should be more like April 1st.
Check out some of the progress:
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
MIAMI ORANGE BOWL
The Orange Bowl is famous for being a Youth Regatta in Miami between the holidays. What a lot of people don't know is that out of Coconut Grove Sailing Club there is an adult version of the Orange Bowl sailed in Lightnings and Lasers. Over the years the Lightning division has been up over 30 boats, but attendance has slipped the past few years. This year it hit an all-time low with only 5 boats. Team Quantum Racing was one of the boats and our goals were outside of the actual regatta as we wanted to get in some great sailing and test some new sail designs and fabrics.
The boat was already down in FLA from the previous Jax/Clearwater/FLL trip. Thanks to buddy Sponge and his wife Kylie for looking after our machine for a few weeks. Our plan was to get the boat back to Sponge's place, but an unfortunate collision (yep, we wrecked in a 5 boat fleet) forced us to tow the boat back North....but that's another story.
The racing proved to be great. Our scores aside (we won all but 2 of the 8 races) we learned a lot and we are grateful that the other 4 boats were all strong Blue Fleeters (NAs top division). Our sails looked great and we had height/speed when we needed it.
Team Quantum Racing for the Orange Bowl was Skip Dieball, Mike Stark, Karl Felger. Here's a pic of the champs:
Here's a view from our host's great home:
The Orange Bowl is famous for being a Youth Regatta in Miami between the holidays. What a lot of people don't know is that out of Coconut Grove Sailing Club there is an adult version of the Orange Bowl sailed in Lightnings and Lasers. Over the years the Lightning division has been up over 30 boats, but attendance has slipped the past few years. This year it hit an all-time low with only 5 boats. Team Quantum Racing was one of the boats and our goals were outside of the actual regatta as we wanted to get in some great sailing and test some new sail designs and fabrics.
The boat was already down in FLA from the previous Jax/Clearwater/FLL trip. Thanks to buddy Sponge and his wife Kylie for looking after our machine for a few weeks. Our plan was to get the boat back to Sponge's place, but an unfortunate collision (yep, we wrecked in a 5 boat fleet) forced us to tow the boat back North....but that's another story.
The racing proved to be great. Our scores aside (we won all but 2 of the 8 races) we learned a lot and we are grateful that the other 4 boats were all strong Blue Fleeters (NAs top division). Our sails looked great and we had height/speed when we needed it.
Team Quantum Racing for the Orange Bowl was Skip Dieball, Mike Stark, Karl Felger. Here's a pic of the champs:
Here's a view from our host's great home:
It has been a busy winter. After the trip to the Star NAs, I spent a little time at home, then went back down to Florida.
The first stop was in Jacksonville where we (Greg, Paul, Matias, John, Fezz) tested out our newest Thistle designs. The main and jib looked great and we have a few more enhancements to address to make these things ready for battle. It is a fun process and working with these guys has been great. We formulated a plan to do some Winter Training in Jacksonville in Feb, so look for reports from the road.
Here are some pics of the testing
Here are some pics of the testing
After the time in Jacksonville I motored down the road to Clearwater where I caught up with Geoff Ewenson at the Finn coaches regatta. It was a fun trip and one that will no doubt be relived again through other fleets. The participants had fun getting coached up all weekend and the drills that were implemented were great! Here's some action:
After the week in Clearwater I trucked on down to Ft. Lauderdale to spend some time with my North Cape friend, Anna Tunnicliffe. She had a good group of training partners together and I went out and took some video and stills. Here's some of the action:
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