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Clipper Around the World Race

Relocated here

I'm Losing It

A case in point:

This morning I staggered to the kitchen to punch on the coffee maker and then a few steps off to the bathroom. Dawg was waiting for me to take her down to the street to get the papers, so I avoided filling even half a cup of java. Trying to save time, I also paused to assemble a Netflix item to return via mail box. (If I could accomplish that, I would be 2-3 days ahead of the normal week's procrastination.) On the way down a set of ten flagstone stairs my head slashed through a spider web. I resolved to obliterate it wielding a newspaper on the way back up to the house. Which I did. 

I reached the front porch with the newspapers in hand but also with the Netflix envelope, too. Damn. Well, back down to the mail box. Back up and now inside the house, I realized I still had the Netflix. Whassup with that? Take it down later with the recycle cans, I resolved. 

90 minutes later, looking everywhere for the newspapers' sports pages and the Dodger box scores, I couldn't locate either paper.

WTF were they?

Gybe Turkey

Relocated here.

The Winds Are Back!

At gusts of 35 knots.

This is the varsity sailing. I was happy to have my seat on the 50-yard line.

I wasn't close enough to get this shot from my vantage point on the beach and breakwater. I was fortunate enough to keep my camera dry while I retrieved my crazed Doberwoman, Ballou.

Ballou goes completely bat-shit-crazy when she sees kite-boarders. Yesterday, she jumped out of my car and instantly became a crazed and alien monster half a kilo down the beach. The boarders, thinking such a beast would be dragging them out of the water and destroying their expensive rigs, started yelling epithets at me as soon as they identified me as the hapless dog owner. However, they were in no danger: Ballou only swims in horizontal water. And it didn't matter what smack they yelled at me cause you can't hear jack in 30+ knots of wind & surf.

I'm just glad the laws didn't show up.

For Sail or for Sale?

That is the Question!

Several months ago I listed my boat as for sale on a freebie brokerage site without charge. The listing consisted of a brief description, a photo in full racing mode, a price and my contacting code. The only immediate response was from Trophy Wife who was enraged. 10 days later came an inquiry fom New Mexico. Because my boat is more of an island boat that a lake boat, I think my unreflective response was somewhat tinged with scepticism and sarcasm. Understandably, The New Mexico party did not stay engaged.

Then, yesterday came a second inquiry: was my boat still available and if so, could I supply more photos? This morning I responded that he should ask Trophy Wife; but that since he was asking me, I would send along a couple of photos. Which I did.

Back when I was playing tennis for three decades, I thought I would play it until I couldn't walk - that there was no life after tennis. And now, what with Trophy Wife and I having been sailing together for four decades, I cannot face life after sailing? 

That's a question.

I know of two - and recently a third case - where a sailor's life ended with his pitch-poling backwards over the rails into the sea, impelled by a medical event. Personally, I think that's as good a way to go as any. However, from the POV of his family/crew, his dying in bed with his topsiders removed might be preferable. The over-the-rail alternative requires other younger & healthier mates risking themselves in recovery of the MOB.

Another consideration is my current deferred maintenance on home and health. Perhaps life after boat could be enhanced, sans yacht. Maybe, just by down-sizing in the yacht department could open up the possibility of a upsizing in home, hearth and health.

OTOH, the breeze is up today. I hope yesterday's E-correspondent was just kicking boat bumpers. If he calls, I should just leave it up to Trophy Wife. Now days it's not such a good market, anyways.

Snatching Victory from Defeat

Actually, salvaging a couple of crooked numbers from absolute, double zeroes.

After three hours last night, we left the miserable sloppy, 2-knot (plus) waterboarding torture, convinced that we were DNF. There was blood in our eyes and murder in our hearts, and resentment toward the Race Committee for sending us on even a 2-mile windward-leeward-windward-leeward course. We did not hear the race-shortened announcement. I attribute that to several facts: 

• Our boat makes a deafening banging & clattering racket in no-wind chops.  
• We were too shorthanded to spare crew below to listen to the VHF. 
• A few years ago it was deemed politically correct for the Club to dispense with shotguns in favor of air horns. 
• The marks have been moved so far off the beach this year (to accommodate the sissies who can't navigate kelp beds) that  we can hardly hear the RC's audibles. 

Once back to my computer I see that we were bestowed 19th place out of 21 finishers. BTW, one reason we were short-handed by two last night, is that the two lads were on this Harbor-20 that beat us!

I'll take it, just to get over it and to move on. After all, I learned something: I learned to make the quick-release clip on the end of my preventer a quick release clip.

Now that backing into our slip has become S.O.P., I'm ready for some winds which can bend the bills back on our caps!

Following 'Boats of Interest' in the "Virtual" Clipper Around the World Race

There's the real race and the simulated race.

From the satellite rendering of the real (wet) race to the right, it appears that 11 boats are almost 50% of the way through to finishing.

In the Virtual Regatta version, 90,000 of us are approximately in the same position. There is a lot of consensus among racers as to the most optimal course: the rhumb line. It's a reaching leg with a very consistent Easterly. Boats off to a good start, like my Vigilance, are in a good position. It's my instinct to be conservative as I'm still trying to capture my first finish under 1,000 in this race. Vigilance is currently just under 350th place!

The image below this shows boats of interest I am tracking to help me evaluate Vigilance's performance.  Keep in mind that boat images sizes are hugely magnified.(Click to enlarge.)
Here is a graph of many of the same 'boats of interest' who finished in the top 5,000 which displays their evolving positions on the leader boards. (Click to expand).
 
Other boats in the legend are not to presumed to have been lost at sea. They made appearances in the top five thousand, but their subsequent plummeting from view was too ignoble to be depicted without expressed permission.

I added DaveDWiz late in the leg because I anticipated his "fall from grace with the sea". He had seemingly been permanently ensconced in position #1 on the leader board, as his course was directly at the finish line - as the crow flies. (Note the finish line as depicted by a star in the satellite map above.) But eventually, a timely westerly did not materialize - none was forecast - and he had to tack in order to fetch the eastern tip of Jamaica in order to finish.  Actually, Dave recovered much better than I had expected. I include his case not for ridicule, but for instruction: leader board positions always stand to be trumped by boat location.

Happily, my Vigilance managed to finish in the top 1,000 (353rd), but her location was not sufficiently to windward to prevail over boats she led on the leader board. Plus, her skipper is always chicken about running aground. Many boats were lost rounding Jamaica.

Of our group, the top four finishers were Hirilonde (4th), Marie Brunet (35th), Polya (261st) and Amil Sar (296th). Congratulations to them (especially) and to all who finish (eventually)!

Racing Fleet Turns Tables on Race Committee

News at 11

Usually it's the other way around. Usually the Race Committee is unduely optimistic in the course it selects, and then the wind dies leaving crews on slower boats out of the post-race party in the bar.

Yesterday's Wednesday was pay-back. 

The RC saw no wind and gave our 31-boat fleet a short 2-leg course. Pre-race conditions were so inauspicious that seven or eight boats didn't even bother to suit up. But a timely easterly did materialize. At least 5-6 knots, and it was steady. Again, there was a westerly chop left over from the 25-knot plus winds of the previous three days. This left us roughly with the same conditions as last week's but with the course half as long!

Starting conditions called for my tactic of revving up the motor and killing it off 30 seconds before the warning signal. With the resulting momentum, we were able to luff a couple of barging friends up and hit the line in 5th place. Trophy Wife, our light-wind specialist,  relieved me at the helm and I was able to shoot some photos.

Although we never gained much on the first four, we stretched off ahead of the pack behind us. Lost a small yellow boat at the turning mark who sailed over us while we were sorting out the spinnaker. But we can always carry our small chute earlier and longer than anyone else. We passed the yellow hotshot to leeward and fought off other challenges, finishing 5th overall and on corrected time!

Especially in these conditions this was quite an achievement. This kind of success can only be attributed to the hard-core crew folk who regularly muscle this heavy 20-year old island performance cruiser through the most unpromising of slops. And I am so glad our mainsail trimmer has survived New Orleans' ups (Saints' celebrations!) and downs (BP's desecrations!) to rejoin us - on schedule - for the rest of 2010's Spring through October.

When you have four guys who know and read the helm's mind before the helm deigns to speak, you know you have solid gold on board.

With a Fleet dinner meeting tonight I am glad I was able to write this ahead of time, during the day: otherwise, with just a few beers in me, I'd prove insufferable...

Clipper Race - Lay Days

In the real race, boats are transitioning through the Panama Canal. The 9th Leg of the Clipper Race Around the World (Panama to Jamaica) is scheduled for the 18th of March.

For the Virtual Race, I plan on a redo of my Leaderboard Chart. Because Leg is relatively shorter, I'm planning to capture three data points per day whenever possible. Charting will display boats sailing in the first 10,000.

I think 11 boats is the maximum for a legible chart. Any more and it becomes more like spaghetti. The default priority goes to:

1. Vigilance
2. Spirit of California
3. No Turning Back
4. Macavity
5. Always on my Mind
6. Amil_SAR
7.  RodH
8. Euroniekk
9.  
10.  
11.  
12.  

If you want your boat to be considered on the list or desire to take your boat off the list, please indicate in comments below. In order to obtain 11 boats, I may fill in with other boats of interest as the Leg gets underway.

Cinco de Mayo 2010

This picture from yesterday's beer-can twilight is deceptive. These are troublesome conditions for me. The breeze was an easterly at about 5 knots. At least it was steady. But the chop was large and substantial from the west. The problem is always to control the boom, especially down wind. Sometimes, I have resorted to strapping the friggin' mainsail amidships and let the spinnaker do the work. (Let the waves ooch the rocking boat, Laser-style.)

Rigging the preventer is always on my shoulders. If anyone gets hurt on my boat, it will be in little or no wind and in a chop.

Out of 27 boats we finished 12th on elapsed time and corrected to 13th.

Clipper Around the World (Virtual) Race Finishes Leg 8

San Francisco to Panama
After more than 2,500 miles of sailing (virtually), I have to savor this moment-mostly, because this moment promises to be fleeting. Vigilance is crossing on port No Going Back [Lime] and Little Surprise [Yellow] who are (virtually) within sight of each other off the coast of Costa Rica. Vigilance is going 9.1 knots in 17.8 knots of wind. Among the boats we have been tracking in this 8th Leg of the Clipper Around the World (virtual) Race, this a competition for 2nd place. (Polya is 69 miles ahead of us!) Also in the picture is Macavity2, whose skipper is a primary adversary on my own (real) waters. Stuck gunnel-to-gunnel with Macavity2 is Canadian RodH.

Exciting moment!

But in 2nd place at noon, I slip back into a virtual 6-way tie for 3rd by midnight! Only a drastic change in the weather can save me from much worse of a fate. But that's sailing, isn't it?

Click to expand the chart...

When Virtual Sailing Is More Than Just a Game...

Posted by Paula, skipper of No Going Back:

Christine was one of the most amazing people I have ever met and will probably ever meet. She spent her life caring for others and she would often go out of her way to reach those who were in need.

Following the death of her husband about 18 years ago, she took the opportunity to realise one of her dreams and do some travelling. Over the next number of years she was enthralled to visit the Unites States, Israel, Lebanon, Egypt, Cyprus, France and Spain. A winter holiday in the sun had become an annual event in recent years and a couple years ago, she got great enjoyment from a bumpy camel ride across shifting sand dunes.

Just over 15 years ago, Christine joined and became an active member of her local Active Retirement Association and was delighted to be elected to the busy and challenging position of Secretary. The Association opened up new and exciting adventures, interests and activities for her, and her days and evenings became a helter skelter whirlwind of activities and outings.

All that changed suddenly when, about three years ago, Christine had a stroke. She now belonged to a new Association, this time for Stroke Victims. Instead of pleasurable activities her days were now filled with doctors' appointments, physiotherapy, various medication trials and hospital visits. Her motor muscles and speech were clumsy, her coordination and concentration poor.

Christine tried a number of activities to try and improve her circumstances - crossword puzzles, Sudoku, reading out loud and old fashioned touch typing on her newly acquired laptop. She was working on her own, without direction, and feeling isolated.

Myself and my sister,Trish, had boats in Volvo Ocean Race Game and decided that she needed a V70 to help with her rehabilitation. I helped her build a boat and choose colours whilst Trish explained about fat and thin wind arrows and sail changes. 'Foxrock' was now racing with Christine at the helm. A boat was also built for another sister so now we were a family at sea.

VORG was very user friendly and as Christine had a lot of time on her hands she soon became addicted. The compass rose was tweaked constantly, sails changed, meals taken before or after wind changes and 'on screen' messages sent and received. SMS messages and phone calls were made and returned with her three daughters when our boats were stopped, on the rocks or just to say 'Hello'.. She even had her own VORG friends and enjoyed fun and banter on screen from other sailors. She got a great buzz from some sailors who mildly flirted with her. Her many sleepless nights were often spent with the ever changing V70's keeping her company.

VORG helped her concentration, motor muscle movement, verbal and written communications. Christine also learned new skills as, like me, she had never stepped on a boat in her life. Imagine her excitement when during the middle of one race, Foxrock suddenly appeared on top of the leader board where she stayed for about 6 hours.

Christine helmed her boat until the end of VORG and enjoyed the summer away from her laptop. During that time she was bitterly disappointed her health didn't allow her to join Trish and myself in Galway for the official stopover with the real boats.

When summer was over I was anxious for Christine to build a Clipper to help continue her rehabilitation. Virtual Regatta was not as user friendly as VORG and she now became confused and sometimes lost her way trying to get Foxrock loaded. She struggled with wind change times and adjusting her sails. But quality time was spent with both Trish and myself as we gently encouraged her to steer Foxrock towards the finish line.

Christine got an aneurysm one evening at the end of October 2009 and slipped peacefully away. She was 83 years old, but behaved like a forty something. I had decided to let Foxrock drift peacefully on her own VR journey but after a few days saw her alone in the ocean so guided her safely to Cape Town, a city Christine had always wanted to visit.

Foxrock is now sailing with the Pilot boat and following our Clipper progress. I miss Christine and our chats, her support, advice and words of wisdom. I will especially think of her on March 14th next, Mothering Sunday, my first year ever without her.

Miss you Mum... XXX

Clipper Round the World Race Resumes

Race 8 of the Clipper Race Around the World started April 20th.

And simultaneously 80,000 plus Virtual Racers started their yachts on their computers in their homes and offices around the world (mostly in France)!

This leg goes from San Francisco to the Panama Canal.

Twice daily I will attempt to track a handful of virtual racers, real friends and virtual acquaintances from former races. The real racers? Not so much....!















The real Clipper Race (left) is contrasted with the virtual race (right) with 80,000 plus competition. Vigilance's goal is always to finish 999th or better. She has a long way to go! (See below and click to enlarge)

Another Beer Can Race Spent in the Bar Drinking Beer!

Running out of excuses, we are!

This morning, we turned the boat around in the slip to ease an exit against the wind. Nevertheless, this afternoon with cross winds gusting between 20-30, we thought better of it. Trophy Wife gave voice to the contradiction in my own mind about turning the boat in the slip into launch mode:

If we've already exceeded the allotted throw-outs in this series, why bother venturing out in marginally destructive conditions?

All the crew showed up for duty, but nevertheless respected my decision. It took everyman jack of them just to tighten and reinforce docklines.In the Spring Series we have already dropped more DNS's than we have drop outs. In a 20+ fleet, that's an insurmountable deficit for winning the series. We will race for daily glasses (and enjoyment) for the remainder of the Spring Series, keeping our powder and rig dry for the next series.

In the meantime, I have to publish a shot of the winner of the Monty Race last Sunday. (Click to expand.)

Monty Race

Enjoyed another long-ish race on Sunday. This was a 16.5 mile windward leeward race in 2-6 knots of wind and flat seas. Five and half hours on the water! This was an inaugural race for a cup Trophy Wife and I dedicated to our fleet. Two years ago, when the race was first sailed (sans trophy) we failed to finish the first leg. Last year we finished last. It promises our heavy-air boat only no-wind, no-win experiences. Nevertheless, this year we finished 16th out of 24 starters.

It was a very good experience. I learned I could trust two people at helm: one guy kept the boat moving to weather in 3 knots; and another lady proved her spurs by sailing the entire leeward leg and finishing. I also learned how much fun I can have racing when I'm not on the helm! Unexpected discoveries of hidden talent is one of the few benefits of sailing without your regular crew. Fun.

I also built my case for spending $500 to get a VMG readout visible from the helm. Another day or two and I'm going to pull the trigger on that puppy!

It's Hellish Watching from Shore

While a fourth of your fleet gobbles up big points just for finishing....

Today, it was blowing so hard, I couldn't back out of my slip. (26 knots) If I had been able to, and if it hadn't been so frigging cold, I might have flown my minuscule jib long enough to record a start so I could come back to the bar with a DNF score. With 75% of the fleet not even suiting up, that would have been significant accomplishment. But I am an old man now, and I sail more now for enjoyment than for accomplishment. One year has changed a lot.

How old am I, (Baydog asks)? It all depends on the boat. Right? And the man, too! How does one know when one has reached a degree of age and infirmity that he begins to worry about the safety of others who might have to rescue him? It's laughable. My boat - I can't go sailing unless my crew takes me. I would and could downsize easily but Trophy Wife loves boat marginally less than me. That has to be a major concern.

I Don't Reef Any More....

I don't reef any less, either!

I'm too old for that. It blows too hard. I drop my main. It blows harder, I go in!

I have a monster main which I can de-power well, up to a point, anyways. The blade is indestructible and I discovered in 30 knots I can point 65deg with it up alone. That's enough to start & retire. Tried reefing my main (incorrectly) on a cruise and tore a grommet. I always said I'll never reef. My tombstone will read,

HE REEFED

PCYC Race

We did reasonably well for this year's Platform Grace Race, especially well considering we were short-handed. We finished 4th in elapsed time as well as corrected time out of 11 finishers. (We won it one year!)

It was the heaviest finish I can remember. Pretty wooly with large seas and twenty knots: the ugliest spinnaker dousing I've ever had a part in! Stuff happens when you're short a pair of hands.

It was also the warmest sail back. We actually could have sailed all the way. The downer for five other boats were engine failures and spinnakers threaded through props after the race.

Next week's race, The Full Monty, is another longer race up to Goleta Beach and back. But there's a big difference. Platform Grace was 17 nautical miles down and a 17-mile return trip. The Full Monty is 15.31 up and back. Once we're finished, we're done! Home! Much mo' better!

This week we'll be short crew again; more line-up changes with new role players, maybe.

Bucket Boat No. 2: The J/100

This is a sleek 33-footer, has all the ingredients for a winning Sailing World Magazine’s Overall Boat of the Year award for 2004. It's a stunning looker, with a dark blue hull and narrow beam.Very clean on deck: Everything is led aft, making it easy for shorthanded sailing. I'll take the J/100 with the optional, self-tacking Hoyt Boom for the headsail. A standard marine head. There's no built-in fridge, just a large cooler.

This boat only displaces 6000 pounds would be quite sensitive to weight placement while sailing. If the mainsail trimmer goes to leeward to release the traveler, it would be noticeable. When all four or five crew can be sitting to weather, legs in, there can be gentleman rules for this class!

A tiller makes all the difference in the world when it comes to sailing. On my current boat with the wheel I wear my arm out sitting to leeward trying to keep my eye on the jib. Maybe I would add a power winch for the main halyard for single-handing!

2010 Is Under Way!

Finished our first race (in real wet water) this year. We've had our troubles thus far in 2010. A dodgy engine (clogged intake), a dodgy harbor (shoaled), Dodgy weather (couldn't back out of our slip) and a dodgy race committee (failed to check on all marks ore selecting course) all conspired to keep her from scoring.

Today was perfect. 11.4 nautical miles! 24 boats finished! We corrected out to 6th place. The boat in the photo followed us all the way on the last two legs but corrected over us. Not a problem for me! And her skipper appreciated getting this shot in his email!

2009-2010 Clipper Race: Leg 7

Qingdao to San Francisco

This leg is over for me. I finished a lamentable 2,069th out of some 85,000 Many Players' Virtual Regatta. 

However, my virtual yacht, Vigilance, did much better than the real California entry, California:  California was caught in a 70-knot blast and was demasted. 

That never happened to me, of course!

It was my goal to finish under 1,000. That's always been my goal since the VORG. I attribute my failure to (a) mental rust, (b) bad start, and (c) underestimating the competition. These are all replicated too often in real yacht racing, of course.

I think I should leave it right there....

Bucket Boat #1: The E-33

The best review of the E-33 I've read is Practical Sailor's in November 2008:

The trophy daysailer market is rife with branding, image, and various forms of snob appeal. The e33, however, makes its pitch on practical grounds. Reports from the field highlight the performance/comfort/control combination that makes the e33 a fun raceboat. You don't need a big crew, you can exercise your tactical talents to the max, and you give away nothing in boatspeed. Our time sailing the e33 convinced us that it is not only a legitimate “performance sailboat,” but that attaining that performance is sinfully easy. The e33 daysailer's bonus points include a cockpit that takes up more than half the deck space and can hold five or six adults comfortably; cockpit-led control lines; carbon-fiber spars; and a hydraulic headstay control. Below, Spartan accommodations include berths for four, an enclosed head, and a built-in cooler. With the look of a classic and the innovative design of a modern daysailer, the e33 is e Sailing Yachts' intelligent, inspired, comprehensive attempt to capture the fun of performance sailing.

With 50 lofts in 30 countries, you might think that Robbie Doyle, founder and president of Doyle Sailmakers, would have more than enough to keep him busy. Nonetheless, he's leapt into boatbuilding. Partnered with designer Jeremy Wurmfeld, Doyle created the e33. One of the many attractive, expensive daysailers to hit the market recently, this 33-footer has minimal accommodations, a 16-foot cockpit, and a host of solutions and innovations.

The Etchells-inspired e33 Doyle remembers how the e33 came late '60s and early '70s. about:

Dirk Kneulman (Etchells builder and former world champion), Jeremy, and I were fantasizing about a boat that would be as much fun to sail as the Etchells without the bumps and bruises, a performance boat that could be sailed to the max with no hiking, a boat that gives you 'no excuse not to sail.'

A college All-American (Harvard 1971), Doyle apprenticed with Ted Hood early in his career, spent significant time pursuing The America's Cup, then founded Doyle Sailmakers in 1982. "Much of my course work was in naval architecture at MIT," he explained. That background, he asserts, not only taught him the basics of boat design, but influenced his approach to sails. Utilizing the principles of elliptical loading demonstrated in the famous Australian wing keel in 1983, Doyle became the first to apply the principle of Elliptical Aerodynamic Loading to sail shapes. The e33 thus grew out of Doyle's racing experience, his feel for what sailors want, his understanding of technology, and his capacity for innovation (Stack Pack, Quicksilver reefing, etc.).

Wurmfeld was trained in conventional architecture. After a short time on the job, however, he bolted his desk to become a charter skipper in the Caribbean. After that, he came ashore to enroll in naval architecture at Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology. That degree led to a six-year stint at Sparkman & Stephens before he went out on his own in 2004. Wurmfeld also has raced Etchells on Long Island Sound for years .....

The Design The Etchells, a 30-foot, three-man keel racer introduced as a candidate for the Olympics in the mid 1960s, made a stellar starting point for the new design. Originally known as the e22 (for its waterline), the Etchells failed to be chosen for the Games despite dominating the selection trials. There are now more than 50 fleets around the world with more than 1,300 boats actively racing. Rock stars such as Dennis Conner, Jud Smith, and Dave Curtis as well as Kneulman and Doyle attest to the quality of Etchells competition. Called "eternally contemporary" and praised for tacking in 70-degrees and slipping effortlessly through the water, the boat has spawned more than its share of fanatics.

With a ballast/displacement ratio of 63 percent, Etchells are very stiff, Wurmfeld says. The e33's ballast/displacement number is 43 percent, so it, too, stands up well in a breeze. The boat's narrow beam (8 feet, 6 inches) minimizes the effect of weight on the rail; the "no hiking" part of its personality is for real. "We gave the e33 a proper bulb at the end of a 5-foot, 9-inch keel where its weight pays off," Wurmfeld says. Like many of the others vying for the "perfect daysailer" mantle, Doyle's boat is better for being bigger. Top speed (projected at better than 10 knots) is unlocked by a generous, 27-foot waterline length. Large overhangs forward and aft help assure that it's dry underway.

The biggest benefit of its bigness, though, is its huge cockpit. Deep enough to be supremely secure, it seems to go on forever. From transom to companionway, it offers uncompromised lounging, sailing, and elbow room.

The slender hull has V-sections forward of the keel for weatherliness and wave handling. Relatively slack bilges and an easy run of U-shaped sections aft strike a balance between minimizing parasitic drag and providing lift at high speed. Wurmfeld says the foils also reflect the tension between racing efficiency (deep/high-lift) and daysailing practicality (moderate draft/tracking). One-design competition is always a possibility, but Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) is the boat's most-likely arena. It rates 90 with a cruising chute in New England and 103 without. Reports from the field highlight the performance/comfort/control combination that makes the e33 fun to race. You don't need a big crew, you can exercise your tactical talents to the max, and you give away nothing in boatspeed.

Wurmfeld says.

Starting a new company, we had to beware being all things to all people. But the look of the boat was critical. The relationships of masses, shapes, and angles needs to be pleasing to the eye. The counter and transom were my treatment, and Robbie had the last word on the bow angle.

Like an Etchells, the e33 can be dry-sailed and trailered. At 5,800 pounds, it's targeted for the 3-ton lifts at many yacht clubs. "You need a 300-horsepower tow vehicle," Doyle says. "Strong points for a lifting bridle are built into the boat."

The Rig We asked Doyle if there was a connection between the elliptical aerodynamic loading that he pioneered in the 1980s and the high-roach sailplan of the e33. "When I was building sails for Courageous back in 1977, we tried a high-roach main as an experiment. It became the only main we used that whole summer to win the Cup."

The textbooks point out that induced drag is minimized by an elliptical (high roach) planform. That makes the ellipse or "Spitfire wing" shape the most efficient outline for a lifting surface, be it wing, keel, or sail. Certainly, sailboards and multihulls have gone heavily in the "fat-head" direction. With the advent of carbon-fiber spars (which Doyle labels "hard not to tune"), masts can now be made stiff enough to stand without a backstay. That, plus refinements in fulllength batten technology let monohulls like the e33 benefit from elliptical mainsails and the efficiencies they bring. Doyle says,

We resisted putting battens in our jib, but a (roller-reefable) triangle didn't give enough punch in light air," Vertical battens (which make for a bettersetting, more-versatile sail) let us add roach for more power.

The e33's recessed furler with control line led to the helm affords a jib that is elegant and ergonomic as well as efficient. Says Doyle,

Because our sail area is more efficient, we need less of it. You can handle our jib without a winch. And our center of pressure is lower. That promotes stability. The J-100, for instance, has a mast that's 7 feet taller than ours.

Crack off the main, and a lot of the boat's sail area goes away. The sheet and traveler let you open (or close) the leech optimally via the top batten. Sails are cut full with easy-to-manage systems like the cunningham to flatten them in a breeze. If you are racing, the Sailtec hydraulic headstay assembly forms a singlepoint rig adjustment that you can massage puff-by-puff. If you are daysailing, you can set it and forget it.

Not only does the deck take up half the boat, it is unbroken. More comfortable and less silly than the ubiquitous pushpit seats that adorn many of today's auxiliaries, the afterdeck affords room to read, snooze, or veg in security and comfort. If sunbathing were politically correct, you could do it there, too, all without interfering with the steering or working of the boat.

Just forward of the rudder post is a full-width traveler bar. Sited aft where toe-stubbing is no concern, its control lines are nonetheless convenient to the helm. A gracefully laminated gooseneck tiller sweeps from under the traveler forward to the helmsman.

In the center of the cockpit is a raised pod/footrest that houses mainsheet blocks and can accept a table. If you choose to have the available centerline winch, it goes there beneath the head of the tiller. The sturdy molding houses control lines (halyard, jib furler, spinnaker tackline, and self-tacking jibsheet, if you choose that option) and is low enough to be unobtrusive yet substantial enough for foot bracing. Another nice solution.

It doesn't surprise us that a boat built by a sailmaker should emphasize sailhandling. The gross and fine-tune systems for the main are not afterthoughts. The big blocks have a home in the pod, and the little ones have been incorporated into the main (carbon-fiber) boom. Two-part control for the jib might have been cumbersome, but fairing the blocks for the fine-tuner into a cabintop channel makes the assembly look clean and work well.

Below, you'll find "the bare necessities." Bunks for a cozy family of four, an enclosed head, and cooler complete the list. No galley, no running water, no weight, no worries.

Doyle and his wife, Janet, took the boat on the Eastern Yacht Club cruise. In four nights and five days aboard, she enjoyed "a dry and comfortable cabin with spacious bunks ... zero time over a hot stove ... and having 18 aboard for cocktails in the cockpit." Simplified, camping-out cruising has its charms. The e33 can easily provide them.

The boat has an auxiliary (a 14-horsepower Yanmar diesel with folding prop on a sail drive), but we doubt it will see much use. Open, narrow, light, and maneuverable, the e33 simplifies boathandling (under both sail and power) around docks, moorings, and marinas - an aspect of "performance" that is easily overlooked.

A 2:1 halyard and ball-bearing Ronstan cars for the battens took the strain out of raising the main. With the sail fully hoisted, the cunningham became our prime means of draft control.

The jib's conventional double-sheeting works so well that we wonder why anyone would choose the optional self-tacker. The standard 105-percent jib looks to us more hassle-free and foolproof than the self-tending alternative

Falling off and running before a moderate sou'wester out of Marblehead, Mass., we noted how the jib settled into wing-and-wing untended and how comforting it was to have a clear field of vision over the bow. We sat at the rail, the seat, switched sides: there didn't seem to be a bad spot to steer from. There was nothing "corky" about the way it cut the water. There was little wobble as we surged along. Deep, narrow boats have a feel of their own.

Outside the harbor, we lost some of the breeze and picked up a bit of chop as we rounded onto the wind. This is where we expected her to be at her worst: light wind and waves. Did she have the raw sail power to punch through the slop? With no trial horse in sight and drawing only on seat-of-the-pants approximation, we loosened the headstay and bagged the main a bit. Our acceleration improved as did our speedo numbers. While the e33 lacks the same "power reserve" you might expect from a boat with a taller rig and an overlapping headsail, its ultraefficient rig and easily driven hull make it more competitive than you might think. An optional Code-O turbocharges the boat in light air.

On the way back to the mooring, the local "harbor hurricane" in the entrance channel bumped the breeze up into the teens. As advertised, an ease of the main and pump on the headstay had us driving through the puffs at better than 8 knots, no hiking necessary. Flat water showed her close-windedness off to advantage; tacking in less than 80 degrees was impressive.

Wending through the crowded mooring field, the e33 was balanced enough to let us bear away without spilling the main, responsive enough to carve tight turns. Several times, we approached from dead downwind and luffed around a moored boat or ball. The narrow hull carries the e33's weight for boatlengths at a time, the jib feathers harmlessly amidships. More than once, we drove to leeward around an obstacle despite a building puff and minimal helm, positive result! Some critics called her "too much boat" for the average sailor. Others said that only top-notch pros like Doyle could get the most out of her. However, our time on the water convinced us that she is not only a legitimate "performance boat," but that attaining that performance is sinfully easy.

On the printed page, the profile/sailplan of the e33 emphasizes the contrast between its modern-looking rig and its heritage hull. On the water, that mismatch is minimized to the point that we didn't find it to be a problem. Though it doesn't approach the "million dollar" pricetag of some of today's new daysailers, the e33 (with a base price of better than $150,000) is not cheap. But when it comes to quality items like the carbon mast and boom, you get what you pay for.

Indeed, the "trophy daysailer" market is rife with branding, image, and various forms of snob appeal. The e33, on the other hand, makes its pitch on practical grounds. As the marketing literature emphasizes, it is an intelligent, inspired, comprehensive attempt to capture the fun of performance sailing. Thanks to the talents and experience of Doyle and company, it succeeds admirably in doing just that.

Aesthetics aside? Can you put aesthetics aside more easily than price? There are certain points made by Trophy Wife with which I certainly agree. Obviously the sail plan appears to be diminutively out of proportion with its LOA. I read somewhere the mast is 7 feet shorter than a J-100. Can that be possible? They seem to get the same PHRF out of it as with a J-100 or a J-105. How can that be? Is it much lighter in displacement?

I do like the roach and even the square top. Makes it look like a 'player' on the start line.

But look at that lovely long, self-bailing cockpit and low freeboard! The hull looks deceptively fragile, like it might bend and fold up midships. But with those modest overhangs, fore and aft, you know it still has to be fairly dry in a sea. Its slender hull would make it a dream, backing into my slip.

If it had the J-100's Gary Hoyt-style jib spar, its functionality for short-handedness would be immeasurably improved and it would be a solo racer's unparalleled ideal.

What would one name his E-33?

• Lust?
• E-Lust?
• E-llustrious?

Beware the Ides of March?

Recall all incompetent drivers!

Clipper Race - Leg 5

Qingdao to California











Ten months, 35,000 miles of ocean racing and around 400 people facing the challenge of a lifetime. When the starting gun goes off for the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race on 13 September 2009 the fleet of ten sleek, stripped down 68-foot yachts will embark on a full circumnavigation of the globe.

This fifth leg is the longest individual race of Clipper 09-10 and the crews will be at sea for approximately 35 days. Five weeks living and working in the same 68-foot space as 17 other people as they race across the Pacific Ocean, the biggest expanse of water on the planet.

The day the Clipper 07-08 fleet left Qingdao it snowed. It will be a chilly start to Leg 5 and, in addition to the possibility of snow and ice, fog and fishing boats are a certainty. As the boats race towards the south of Japan they will remain quite tightly bunched but, as you enter the Pacific, tactics once again come into play as skippers and crews are faced with the old dilemma; shortest, warmest route risking light airs, or stay north where it will be colder but the winds stronger.

The real race track:




























Racing against 77,000+ virtual racers simulating the real race is my fantasy boat, Vigilance. I am now in 1,533rd place.

The highest I have sailed was 936th. My personal goal in this leg is to finish in three digits - under 1,000.

I had to resort to auto helm this morning in order to spend the day running a real race for my real yacht club.

The hemorrhage of 600 places has been catastrophic.

Vigilance's track is shown in violet. The other track is Spirit of California. The positions of a very small fraction of the other 77,000 boats are also displayed.

This Geriatric Sailor's Next Boat?