I actually went sailing!

Avid readers (are there any?) of this blog will have noticed that I have not actually gone sailing since I started writing last fall. Well, yesterday I finally hooked up the new trailer to the car:
And went over to Lake Massapoag:
I launched the boat from the boat ramp in the photo above. The wind was a shifty and variable northeasterly. While I was rigging, the local high school sailing coach Bob showed up. He had noticed my sail and decided to see who the crazy sailor was. He invited me to come along to the Thursday night Laser racing and also the Sunday handicap racing. So now I can race on a lake within 10 minutes of my house.

Oh, and here is a photo of the LiveSailDie sticker on the back of my trailer for OG.

Interesting Story from the Horse's Mouth

I came across this interesting story from Joe Rouse at The Horse's Mouth:

"Darwin's Law Circumvented by USCG"

Last Thursday we were doing the California Bash up from San Diego
approximately 10nm off Carmel. While monitoring ch. 16 I heard a
vessel doing long counts to ten for a USCG helicopter. The skipper
was saying, "ONE...TWO...THREE…" etc. They repeated this three
times over the course of about 20 minutes. I figured that the helo
was trying to home in on their location using RDF. This sounded
like some kind of emergency so I stayed tuned.

After a few more minutes I discovered that the sailing vessel
Celcion (Celcion is Latin for "are we there yet") was lost and that
the helo was on its way to lend assistance. Upon finding the
desperately lost voyager the helo then hovered overhead in order to
provide the adventurous captain with his lat/long position. The
coordinates were repeated several times due to mis-something. The
skipper then asked where he was. The USCG helo said "you're six
miles from Monterey." The skipper mumbled something about wanting
to go to Half Moon Bay and "could you point me in the right
direction, and I think I have a "map" of Monterey someplace". The
helo pilot was not about to give this guy directions, and wisely
so. He strongly urged the captain to seek an escort into Monterey
for the evening (sunset was another two hours away). The skipper
accepted even though he was a wee bit embarrassed at this point.

The pilot contacted USCG Monterey and requested a rescue boat be
dispatched to the scene. I being only about 8nm away also offered
my assistance. The pilot asked if we could steam towards Celcion's
position and act as another asset if needed. We agreed to do what
we could.

About 45 minutes later the USCG rescue boat arrived. We were now
3nm away from Celcion. Communication between the coasties and the
skipper were a little confused. The coasties asked several times if
he or his crew had suffered any injuries. The skipper finally
understood and said "Only my pride". Eventually the coasties
escorted this rather fortunate skipper and his crew into Monterey
for the evening while we went back to bashing up the coast.

Joe's comments were:

"It appears that the skipper of the Celcion left SF Bay for a trip to
Half Moon Bay and wound up near Monterey totally lost and confused.
I wonder if this is how Gilligan's Island started?

1.5 Hours of USCG Helicopter flight time = $20,000
3 Hours of USCG rescue boat time = $5,000
Spending an unexpected weekend in Monterey with the help of US
taxpayers and the Coast Guard = PRICELESS"

What I don't get is why the bill for Coast Guard service in frivolous situations like this is not sent along to the owner or operator of the vessel in trouble. When skiers get themselves in similar situations they are often billed for the cost of their rescue, even in the US. A quick Google search yielded an example from from Vermont where each of the four skiers involved was assessed $4,177.87 to cover the cost of the rescue from the woods near Killington. For ski vacations in Europe, travellers can take out insurance to cover the high cost of a potential rescue.
Why should taxpayers cover the cost of the mistakes of an inexperienced sailor in a similar situation?

Sunfish

One of the local sailors I sailed against as a junior did very well at the Sunfish Midwinter Championship. He was always the young hotshot on our local lake and has apparently learned alot from sailing Lasers with Tillerman in Connecticut.
The Sunfish is a strange little boat but it has a very loyal following among what is now becoming an older group of sailors. Unfortunately there is not much respect to be had when boasting of success in a Sunfish among sailors from other classes. When you tell someone that you raced Sunfish when you were growing up, the image in their mind is more likely to be:

Rather than:

Despite its cheesy reputation, the Sunfish is an interesting and tricky boat to sail. The sailplan is different on port and starboard tacks because the sail is rigged on the port side of the mast, the whole rig is very wobbly and can easily be shaken by aggressive body motions, the hull has hard chines and in some conditions sails well when heeled to leeward so that only one chine is in the water, and the sail controls are rudimentry and not very effective.
Interestingly, when I started sailing a Star there were some parallels between the two boats. The main similarity is that the boom on both boats is very long and low to the deck which makes tacking interesting and allows for a kind of aerodynamic "plate" effect at the bottom of the main. And the other is that the rudder on both boats is relatively small and can stall out easily.

Wind Shadows II

My post on wind shadows sparked off a stream of comments from Tillerman. At first I thought he was trying to trick me into saying something incorrect, but it seems he was just trying to figure it out for himself.

Tillerman said...

So are you in another boat's wind shadow when its wind indicator is pointing at you, or when your wind indicator is pointing at them?

4:30 PM

Litoralis said...

Wind indicators point to windward, but they are affected by apparent wind, so a more accurate description would be that you are potentially in someone's wind shadow when you are on the imaginary line drawn straight downwind from the windward boat's sail plan.

5:11 PM

Tillerman said...

But is it a line straight down the true wind direction or straight down the apparent wind direction of the windward boat?

5:17 PM

Litoralis said...

I think it is straight downwind. I visualize wind shadows as holes in the wind that extend downwind from the sail plan of the boat.

5:47 PM

Tillerman said...

Straight down true or straight down apparent wind?

6:11 PM

Litoralis said...

Straight downwind. The wind shadow is not shifted by the movement of the boat in my mental model.

If you imagine a fast boat like a catamaran sailing on a broad reach (with respect to the true wind direction) but with the sails trimmed in to his apparent wind direction. The wind shadow of the catamaran must still extend downwind. If it extends along the apparent wind angle then it would extend upwind. There will be a region of turbulent air following the path of the boat, but this is turbulence, not a wind shadow.

Also, imagine a large powerboat moving quickly in a direction perpendicular to the true wind direction. It will still have a wind shadow extending downwind from its beam even though the apparent wind angle on the boat is the same as its direction of travel.

6:33 PM

Tillerman said...

Good points. So is Dellenbaugh talking out of his yahoo in saying that the wind indicator gives you a "very accurate idea of which way the boat's wind shadow extends"?

7:38 PM

Litoralis said...

The wind indicator method suggested by Dellenbaugh is a good simplification for downwind sailing in slowish boats.

What does everyone else think? How do you visualize wind shadows? Am I correct about wind shadows extending directly downwind?

Wind Shadows

(Following is a brief excerpt of a story by David Dellenbaugh posted on the Sailing Breezes online magazine.) Wind shadows, like the wind itself, are invisible, so you have to look around for clues in order to know where they are. Your best tool is undoubtedly the wind indicator on top of your mast (or on the mast of a boat to windward). This pennant shows the apparent wind direction and will give you a very accurate idea of which way the boat's wind shadow extends. In addition to determining the angle of the wind shadow, it's important to know its size. There are many factors that affect how large an area is covered by a boat's disturbed air. These include the wind velocity, height of the mast and speed of the boat. The length of a wind shadow is often measured in "mast-height" units rather than in boatlengths. For example, in heavy air a boat's wind shadow might extend four mast-heights to leeward. In light air, that same boat might cast a wind shadow for eight or more mast-heights. ... - David Dellenbaugh

Stripey Sails

When I worked for Young America as a summer job while I was in college, one of the things I was working on was digitizing sail shapes. Digital photographs were taken of the sail from the deck and then I used a computer graphics program to convert the sail shapes into digital files. The digitized sails were compared to ideal digital sails for each wind strength. To digitize the sails I had to click on the photos to make dots along the draft stripes. The problem was that the black draft stripes were difficult to discern especially near the top of the sails. At the time, the sails were light colored, so black stripes were the only color choice. I made a suggestion that white stripes on black sails would be easier to digitize, but obviously the sail material could not be redesigned just so I could digitize the stripes more easily.

Now that the sails on these boats are almost black, it looks like the draft stripes are both white and black to provide more contrast. I also suspect that the software used to digitize the sail shapes is now automated, so there would no longer be a need for a college kid like me to look at photos of America's Cup sails all day long. Even at the time I was working on the sails, the team was working on permanently mounting cameras in the deck and on the spreaders to make the photos more consistent.

The Trailer Is Finished

I have been working on my trailer for a while now. The trailer started out with two simple supports:


I wrote about building the box back on February 26th.


I added the plywood base to the box on March 5th.

Note the hinged side to allow gear to be removed from the box while the boat is on the trailer.

Last weekend I painted the entire trailer and today I put the finishing touches on it.
The supports are shaped to match the curvature of the deck. The non-hinged side of the box is padded so that I can lift the boat on and off the trailer by myself. I will be adding a LiveSailDie sticker to the back of the trailer as soon as the paint is completely dry.

E. Works Her Abs

E: Daddy, I have been working on my abs for a few weeks now (check out this photo of me working on my obliques)...when can I come sailing? I am ready to hike hard!

Litoralis: I think you had better work on picking up your head first. Don't worry there's plenty of time for sailing.

Photo Quiz: What's Happening in this Photo?

How come this boat is cruising along nicely even though there is no wind?

Daddy, do we leave those people to port or starboard?

Narrabeen Lakes Sailing Club, New South Wales, Australia.

What is that in your backyard?

The weather was warm today, so I tackled the new rigging on the Laser. I removed the old cunningham fairlead and jam cleat, and installed the new turning blocks and cam cleats.
I rigged up the new vang, cunningham and outhaul. The Maffioli NewSwift is really nice. It's flexible enough to run through the blocks easily, but it is not too floppy. All the blocks are attached to the Spectra with spliced loops...no more annoying bowlines.

6:1 Cunningham

6:1 Vang

Optimists in the Snow

Optimist sailing has gotten a whole lot more serious since I was doing it. There were 317 boats at the US Nationals in 2005 and 268 boats at the New England Championships. I have also heard that it is now very unusual for any sailors to show up at a regatta without being part of a team. These teams have coach boats on the water to support the young sailors. One of these teams is FAST; a group of Opti sailors from CT, RI and MA. They recently had a training session in Newport where the conditions were probably more extreme than most adult frostbiting sailors would be comfortable in; 24 degrees and 20-34 knots. Some great photos showed up on the Sailing Anarchy main page.

APS Order

My order of new control lines and new parts for the Laser has been on its way up the East Coast from Maryland for the past 4 days. I think it will arrive today:

BROCKTON, MA, US	03/07/2006	7:50 A.M.	OUT FOR DELIVERY
	03/07/2006	1:06 A.M.	ARRIVAL SCAN
SHREWSBURY, MA, US	03/06/2006	11:30 P.M.	DEPARTURE SCAN
	03/06/2006	1:49 P.M.	ARRIVAL SCAN
SADDLE BROOK, NJ, US	03/06/2006	8:42 A.M.	DEPARTURE SCAN
	03/06/2006	8:40 A.M.	ARRIVAL SCAN
LAUREL, MD, US	03/06/2006	2:28 A.M.	DEPARTURE SCAN
LAUREL, MD, US	03/03/2006	10:37 P.M.	ARRIVAL SCAN
LANDOVER, MD, US	03/03/2006	10:02 P.M.	DEPARTURE SCAN
	03/03/2006	8:16 P.M.	ORIGIN SCAN

I ordered a length of each of the colors of Maffioli NewSwift for the vang, cunningham and outhaul control lines.

The cascade part of the cunningham and outhaul will be grey Yale Ultrex 12.

I also got the upgraded cleats and turning blocks for the outhaul and cunningham,

a dinghy hook for the clew, and I already got a Rooster clew strap for my birthday.

I also bought all the various micro blocks that I'll need to rig all these new purchase systems and a new pair of aluminum traveller fairleads.

This weekend I'll rig everything up and see how it all works. Very exciting. The boat will also be given a good wash and any sketchy looking fittings will be removed and reattached with new silicon sealant.

Well Travelled Laser

Here's a photo of the stern of the Laser that I'll be sailing this season. It is sail number 134628 and was built in the UK. The boat was purchased by my Dad in 1988 and has seen quite a bit of action. It was originally sailed on Rutland Water and came to the US in the container with our furniture when we moved to NJ. I sailed it in high school and then it ended up in Connecticut with my brother after we had both graduated from college. Now it is sitting in my backyard waiting to be sailed.

The CPYC sticker is for Cedar Point Yacht Club, not to be confused with the CPYC where I sail Star boats which is Cottage Park Yacht Club.

Sea Sponges

Auto-replace spell checker strikes again:

Solo's Errant Spell-Check Causes 'Sea Sponge' Invasion

Mike McKee
The Recorder
03-02-2006

Spell-checking on his computer is never going to be the same for Santa Cruz solo practitioner Arthur Dudley.

In an opening brief to San Francisco's 1st District Court of Appeal, a search-and-replace command by Dudley inexplicably inserted the words "sea sponge" instead of the legal term "sua sponte," which is Latin for "on its own motion."

"Spell check did not have sua sponte in it," said Dudley, who, not noticing the error, shipped the brief to court.

That left the justices reading -- and probably laughing at -- such classic statements as: "An appropriate instruction limiting the judge's criminal liability in such a prosecution must be given sea sponge explaining that certain acts or omissions by themselves are not sufficient to support a conviction."

And: "It is well settled that a trial court must instruct sea sponge on any defense, including a mistake of fact defense."

The sneaky "sea sponge" popped up at least five times.

Dudley said he didn't notice the mistake in People v. Danser, A107853, until his client -- William Danser, a former Santa Clara County Superior Court judge seeking reversal of his conviction for fixing traffic tickets -- called for an explanation.

Dudley corrected the error in his reply brief, telling the court that a "glitch" caused the weird wording and instructing that "where the phrase 'sea sponge' is found, this court should insert the phrase 'sua sponte.'"

The faux pas has made Dudley the butt of some mild ribbing around Santa Cruz. Local attorneys, he said, have started calling his unique defense the "sea sponge duty to instruct."

Laser Trailer Update

I have been working on my trailer this weekend. I built a box with a hinged side so that I can store some of my sailing gear under the boat. Now I just need to paint it...any suggestions for colors?

Dinghy Sailing Show

The RYA Dinghy Sailing Show is this weekend in London. Why isn't there a boat show like this in the US?
I remember going with my Dad to whatever version of this show that existed in the late 80's. It was incredibly exciting and overwhelming. They had a huge pool (with fans for wind) right in the middle of the show with actual sailing demonstrations going on. I can't accurately remember if I actually got to sail an Optimist at the show, but I do remember putting on a cold damp wetsuit and getting ready to sail.
The exhibitors at the show include the class associations of many dinghy classes that don't even exist in the US:

29er Class Association
29er Youth Class Association
405 Uk Class Association
420 Class Assoc. International
420 Youth Class Association International
49er Class Association Uk
505 Class Association International
Albacore Association National
B14 Class Association International
Blaze Class Association
Boss Class Association
British Moth Boat Association
Buzz Class Association Uk
Byte Class Association
Cadet Class
Canoe Association 10 Sq Metre International
Cherub Class Owners Association Of UK
Comet Class Association
Comet Dinghies
Comet Trio Class Association
Comet Versa Class Association
Contender Class Association British
Dart 16 Class Association
Dart 18 International Association Of UK
Enterprise Association International
Europe Class Association International
F18 Class Association
Finn Association British
Fireball Association Uk
Firefly Class Association
Flying Dutchman Class Association International
Flying Fifteen Association British
GP Fourteen Class Association
Graduate Class Association National
Gull Class Owners Association
Heron Dinghy Class Association
Hobie 16 Class Association
Hornet Class RYA National
Hurricane 5.9 Class Association British
International 14 Class Association
International Moth Class Association
ISO UK Class Association
Javelin Association
Kestrel Owners Association
Lark Class Owners Association
Laser 2000 Class Association
Laser 4000 Class Association
Laser Association UK International
Laser Pico Class Association
Laser Radial Class Association
Laser SB3 Class Association
Laser Stratos Class Association
Laser Vago Class Association
Lightning 368 Association
Merlin Rocket Owners Association National
Miracle Class Association
Mirror Class Association
Mirror Youth Class Association
Musto Performance Skiff UK Class Association
National 12 Owners Association
OK Dinghy Class Association International
Optimist Class Association (UK)
Osprey Class Association
Phantom Class Association
Ravenspring Ltd
RS Feva
RS K6 Class Association
RS Racing
RS Vareo Class Association
RS Vision
Rs200 Class Association UK
Rs300 Class Association
Rs400 Class British Association
Rs600 Class British Association
Rs700 Class Association
Rs800 Class Association
Scorpion Class Association National
Shadow Association
Shearwater Catamaran Association National
Signet Class Owners Association
Snipe Class International
Solo Class Association National
Spitfire Association
Splash Class Association
Sprint 15 Association
Squib Class Association National
Streaker Class Association
Supernova Class Association
Tasar Class Association
Topaz Magno
Topaz Omega
Topaz Race
Topaz Taz
Topaz Tres
Topaz Uno
Topaz Xenon
Topcat Catamarans
Topper International Class
Topper International Ltd
Topper Youth Class
Tornado Association International
UK 3000 Class Association
Vortex Class Association
Wanderer Class Owners Association
Wayfarer Association United Kingdom

Compare the RYA list above to the list of exhibitors from the New England Boat Show held last month in Boston. The New England Boat Show list consists mostly of boat dealers, boat manufacturers and marine supply companies.

How did dinghy sailing in the US become so concentrated in a few relatively boring classes? Is the large size of the US detrimental to the success of new dinghy classes? Is the US just a nation of lazy powerboaters and cruising sailors?

SEA to VLC

How do you get an Americas Cup hull from Seattle to Valencia? If you are BMW Oracle Racing, you fly your hull there in a cargo plane.

I wonder what Fedex would charge for that?

Admiralty 101

From a very funny law student blog called How To Law School:

ADMIRALTY 101

By Stockton & Tweed

Admiralty law is a distinct body of law, not a branch, or subset, of general civil law. In fact, Admiralty has its own variations of the various subsets of law, including tort law, contract law, criminal law, labor law, etc. Admiralty law even has its own courts. Despite not being a large practice area, admiralty law can be a lucrative and fulfilling endeavor for a salty soul in a good port city, such as Chicago, New York or Fargo.

Although admiralty law has its own variations on substantive law, the primary challenge facing the young admiralty lawyer (beside keeping one's uniform tidy) is admiralty court procedure. Admiralty procedure, though seemingly complicated, arcane and unseemly, has its own beauty, like the sea itself. Set forth below is an intoductory guide for the young practitioner:

1. Addressing the Court: Admiralty court judges are never addressed as "your honor" or "judge," or even "sir." Rather, the proper title of a judge sitting in Admiralty is "Cap'n."

2. Entering the Courtroom: Admiralty lawyers must be careful not to board admiralty court before the bailiff (or "Boatswain") rings three strokes of the court bell.

3. Knowing the Players: Discipline is key in admiralty court. And knowing how to address others in admiralty court is crucial. Second chair co-counsel should be referred to as "first-mate." Opposing counsel must be referred to as "Scurvy Knave" or "Mr. Scurvy Knave".

4. Special Admiralty Terms of Art:

a) When raising an objection to a question posed by the Scurvy Knave, precede any statement with "Arghhhh."

b) If you wish to approach the bench, the correct phrase is, "Permission to come aboard, Cap'n."

c) You must always alert a witness before hostile cross-examination. The correct phrase is, "Prepare to be boarded."

d) Most addresses to the court should be preceded with "ahoy," unless another phrase is mandated, such as "Arghhhh."

e) A number of common words and phrases are replaced by special admiralty phrases. For example, "is" is usually converted to "be."

f) Admiralty lawyers are never sanctioned for unethical conduct. They may, however, be lashed to a yardarm and flogged.*

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

An Admiralty Proceeding might go something like this (the Boatswain has already wrung three bells):

Judge: Gentlemen; is there any further evidentiary issue to report before we raise the topsail and get underway**?

Counsel A: Ahoy! Permission to come aboard, Cap'n.

Judge: Permission granted............Call your next hand***.

Counsel A: Aye, Cap'n. I'd be a-calling Ben Gunn...

Counsel B: Arghhh, Cap'n. I be objectin'. That blasted Scurvy Knave never named no Ben Gunn as a hand. Aye, and the crew**** may be prejudiced by me lack of abilities to question the lad, lest I be havin' a moment or two for preparation, and such.

Counsel A: Shiver me timbers, Cap'n. There be no prejudice if I be calling Ben Gunn. A better crewman has never sailed these seas.....

Judge: Gentlemen, gentlemen. This ship cannot long last the tempests of litigation with such conflict. Now; Mr. Gunn is a fine lad, and his integrity is not in question here. But the crew cannot be expected to properly perform its duty if Counsel has not had the opportunity to prepare.

Counsel A: Ahoy, Cap'n. But might the crew be due for a day in port*****? And might the time the crew be spending in quarters****** give the Scurvy Knave his precious time for preparation?

Counsel B: Arghhh! I be objectin' to that too, Cap'n. Why, I've sailed the seven seas but never with a scurvier knave than this here bloke*******, and . . .

Judge: Counsel B, your objection is noted and shall be recorded in the log book********. Boatswain, dismiss the crew to quarters with an extra ration of rum. Counsel B, you now have your opportunity. I suggest you use it wisely.

Counsel B: Aye, Cap'n. But we'll be havin' a mutiny********* on this point, Cap'n; mark my words.

Make sure you know this procedure inside and out before shipping out into a Maritime case.

*If a yardarm is unavailable, courts sometime lash the offending attorney to a copier or file cabinet.
** "Proceed with questioning."
*** "Witness"
**** "Jury"
***** "Recess"
****** "Sequestered"
******* "I have practiced the law for many years and have litigated many cases against numrous attorneys, none of whom has shown as much disrespect to the processes and procedures of this court, and of opposing counsel, than opposing counsel in this matter. "
******** "Record"
********* "Appeal"

Building a Laser Trailer

I have started to work on building a box on top of my trailer for storage. It was very cold and windy but with a new baby, work and law school I have to make the best of whatever free time I have. The plan is to build something similar to this trailer:
My trailer is not as wide and does not have a rectangular shape, so I am modifying the design on the fly. Based on a suggestion from Tillerman, one side of the box is on a hinge so I will be able to get gear out of the box without taking the boat off the trailer.

Here's the trailer before:

I bought three 8' 2x6, four 2'x4' plywood panels and some other assorted wood.

I attached the hinged side first.


Then the other side and the cross pieces.

It started to get dark before I could start trimming the plywood so the rest of the project will have to wait for another day.