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2006 Midwinters

2006 got off to a decidedly milder start than 2005 with the 2006 SCYA Midwinters on 2/18 and 2/19.
SDYC once again played host to the Beneteau 40.7 one design fleet on the far ocean course,
although this year the 5 participating 40.7's were joined by a healthy J-120 fleet and 5 Columbia 30's
in their first one design event. Completely different from last year was the weather - sunny, mild,
pleasant, and fairly light winds, in contrast to the massive storm that greeted the fleet last year.

Saturday was sunny and stayed fairly light all day, with winds topping out around 9 knots and flat
seas. The five boat fleet of Super Gnat, Wiki Wiki, First Light, Drumshanbo, and Blue Agave ran 3
races of 4 legs each. Cliff Thompson and Super Gnat got the year off right with two straight bullets
in the first 2 races, while First Light got the bullet in the 3rd. Wiki Wiki was the master of consistency
with three 2nd place finishes. The owners and crews wrapped things up right in the SDYC bar after
the races.

At least one major squall blew through early Sunday morning, but by race time the day was almost a
clone of Saturday. During the final run of race 4 (another 4 leg race), a squall blew through to the
north of the fleet causing a 30-40 degree wind shift and a quick increase in wind speed to almost 20
knots. Most of the 40.7's had finished or were near the finish line when the wind picked up, but the
Columbia 30's all had most of the downwind leg left and turned in some spectacular wipeouts. Super
Gnat again took the bullet in race 4, with Wiki Wiki once again in 2nd. Race 5, a 5 leg race, started
in a good 12-14 knots of wind left over from the squall, but wind speeds had dropped back to 8-10
before the boats reached the first weather mark, and during the race the wind shifted radically back
and forth. Drumshanbo came from behind to take the bullet, with First Light grabbing 2nd.

In the end it was no contest: Super Gnat won the regatta with only 9 points, followed by Wiki Wiki in
2nd with 12 points, First Light in 3rd with 14 points, Drumshanbo in 4th with 15 points, and Blue
Agave in 5th with 25 points.

Many thanks to SDYC for hosting another fantastic regatta. The next class event is NOOD regatta
on 3/17-3/19.

Beneteau Cup 2005

The first annual Beneteau Cup regatta was held off the coast in San Diego, CA on October 29-30 for the Beneteau First 36.7,
First 40.7, and PHRF class boats. The five race regatta hosted by San Diego Yacht Club was held in near perfect conditions
with sunny skies, flat seas, and solid 12-15 knot breezes.

The First 36.7 fleet used the regatta as their 2005 West Coast Championships with seven boats participating. The fleet saw
a changing of the guard as Steve Ernest of Dana Point and his crew aboard “Aimant de Fille” won the championship with a
convincing victory. They finished with only 6 points, as they scored 4 bullets and one second place finish. Second place
went to the 2005 North American Champions, Chick and Alexis Pyle aboard “Kea”. Andy and Camille Rasdal, “Valhalla”,
rounded out the top three with a very consistent third-place finish in each race. Marty Burke - “Bella Vita”, Bob Carlson –
“Ariel”, Bo Kopaniasz – “Sorcerer”, and Laird Mooney/Bob Sorraco – “Tsunami” finished out the class.

The First 40.7 fleet conducted their 2005 Southern California Fleet Championships with a strong nine boat fleet. Armando
Silvestre and his crew from Coronado Yacht Club on “Estela-B” followed up their 2005 San Diego NOOD championship with
another solid championship performance to win the regatta with 8 points. Kirk and Kathy O’Brien, “Drumshanbo” had a great
second day, scoring 2 bullets and a second place, to finish with 11 points and second place overall. Brian Ganz and his crew
aboard “Austin” moved up the board on the second day to finish in third place. Mike Dorgan/Steve Wright – “French Toast”,
Mike Honeysett – “Wiki Wiki”, Warren Gross – “Silhouette”, Cliff Thompson – “Super Gnat”, Gary Jorgensen – “First Light”,
and Russ Chandler – “Changes in Altitudes” completed the scoring.

Both the First 36.7 and First 40.7 fleets used the Beneteau Cup regatta as the final regatta in their 2005 High Point scoring
(highest accumulated point total of all designated High Point regattas). Chick and Alexis Pyle (“Kea”) repeated their 2004
performance with another solid year winning the First 36.7 High Point Trophy going away. Armando Silvestre (“Estela-B”)
finished out a great year winning his first High Point trophy for the First 40.7 fleet.

The PHRF Beneteau Cup races were on Saturday only. Ed and Nancy Washington aboard their Beneteau 473 “End of
Watch II” won the regatta going away winning each of the three races. Jim and Carol Dalton (Beneteau 473, “Plan B”), David
and Liz MacVean (Beneteau 473, “Eliza M”), and Paul Nierman and Deborah Horowitz (Beneteau 323, “Pandemonium”)
rounded out the 4 boat fleet.

All in all, the regatta was a great success with the sparkling conditions allowing the racers to truly compete without excuse.
Special thanks goes out to San Diego Yacht Club for their gracious hosting of the event and providing the race committee.
Thank you to Beneteau USA for supplying the trophies and co-sponsoring the event, Southwestern Yachts for their regatta
sponsorship, and to Karl Strauss Brewery for post regatta beverages.

                    Latest News - Newport to San Diego,
                  Estelle-B Wins 2005 Class High Points
             SuperGnat Finishes 3rd In Class In Transpac

Newport to San Diego Race
July 30th saw the final race of the 2005 Southern California Beneteau 40.7 high point series calendar, the annual Newport to San Diego race, hosted by BCYC
and SDYC. This year's race was a 65 mile straight shot starting immediately south of the Newport Beach break wall, and finishing at SD buoy 3, with no marks in
between.

Only 2 40.7's showed up for this year's race - First Light and Changes in Altitudes. First Light had stayed over in Newport Beach after the Crew of 2 Around
Catalina race, and CiA motored up Thursday night. The boats raced in class A, against a variety of 51 and 54 rated boats, plus a -54 Andrews 70. The race
started in a light westerly breeze a little too tight for a spinnaker. First Light started with their jib top reacher and moved quickly into the lead pack, while CiA
started with a genoa and fell back early. Within an hour of the start all the boats had popped spinnakers, and the rest of the day was spent in a glorious drag
race in gradually deepening winds that peaked at about 14 knots, stayed strong most of the afternoon, and were still blowing 7-9 at sunset. On First Light we
saw peak boat speeds right at 10 knots, and had a lot of 8-9 knots bursts on the waves. Unfortunately the wind never really got strong enough to surf, so
average speeds stayed in the 7 knot range (FL averaged 7.2 knots for the race).

Once the spinnakers came up there were very few passing lanes until the end. The SI's allowed boats to start motoring at 6:00 PM, which a number of boats in
the section used to move ahead as the wind lighted up. Both of the 40.7s stuck it out and sailed to the finish, with First Light finishing at 7:51, good for 4th place
and CiA 12 minutes behind at 8:03, landing them in 7th. No RC boat was provided at the finish, so boats self-timed their finishes at buoy 3.

Although the turnout was small and neither boat was able to do very well against the mixed fleet (which was won by a very fast Columbia 30), it was a nearly
perfect sailing day, with hours of light surfing under spinnaker and a finish before sunset.

Fleet Championship Series Results
With that race, the high point series was concluded, with Estelle-B winning the class championship series with 15 points. Wiki Wiki finished 2nd overall with 38
points, with First Light 1 point behind in 3rd place, and French Toast in 4th with 51 points. Complete results are posted on the Fleet Standings page.

SuperGnat Takes 3rd In Division in Transpac
A special congratulations to class president Cliff Thompson and the crew of SuperGnat for finishing 3rd in Division 5 in the centennial Transpac sailed this July.
SuperGnat completed the race in 315:58:12, correcting out 12.5 hours out of 1st and 4.5 hours out of 2nd. We'll have a full report from Cliff when he returns.

A reminder: The Beneteau Championships will be sailed on October 29th and 30th.

5/2/2005

April 30th and May 1st saw the last big one design weekend of the spring, San Diego Yachting Cup hosted by SDYC, with SDYC also hosting the traditional
Leukemia Cup benefit regatta on the afternoon of the 29th. Sailors had 3 nearly perfect days of weather, and the nearly flawless race committee work that SDYC
has been known for all year.

The weekend started with Leukemia Cup, a fixed course race in north bay sailed in handicap classes. Three 40.7's showed up to race in class 2 against a variety
of 30 to 40 foot boats in 7-9 knots of breeze. First Light got in front of the fleet early and ended up crossing the finish line second, behind only the big woody
Brushfire. Wiki Wiki and Super Gnat followed close behind, for a corrected finish of 3rd, 5th, and 6th respectively.

The one design action started the next morning, with six 40.7's showing up for Yachting Cup. Estelle-B, Wiki Wiki, French Toast, and First Light were all in for
their 3rd major one design regatta, while Super Gnat returned to one design racing after the Cabo race, and Drumshanbo made their first major appearance.
Although not racing their own boat, Russ and Pete, the owners of Changes In Altitudes, sailed with Wiki Wiki and First Light at various times over the weekend.
For the first time this year, SDYC was finally able to use the America's Cup course west of Point Loma for racing, and the 40.7's got to race on this course along
with the J-120's, 1D35's, and the 2 big boat classes.

Race one started into a reasonably steady 6-8 knot breeze, and almost immediately the fleet picked up where they left off from NOODs. Estelle-B made all the
right calls and got out fast early, stretching out for an easy win, with Wiki Wiki following about a half minute behind. First Light, French Toast, and Super Gnat
finished 3-4-5 clustered about 30 seconds behind Wiki Wiki, and Drumshanbo brought up the rear.

By the start of race 2 the winds were blowing a steady 8-9, and increased throughout the race to 12-13. Race 2 saw extremely close racing, as all 6 boats stayed
clustered very closely together throughout the first 2 legs. Estelle-B and First Light broke away from the pack in leg 3 and wound up racing overlapped all the
way down leg 4 to the finish, with Estelle-B winning by only 2 seconds over First Light. A minute behind, Super Gnat and Wiki Wiki battled the entire last leg as
well, with Super Gnat securing 3rd by only 1 second over Wiki Wiki. Drumshanbo came in 9 second after that, and French Toast only 14 seconds behind
Drumshanbo.

Race 3 started into 12-14 knot winds, with the J-120's switching over to their #3's, a poor decision since the wind dropped significantly - at times to as little as 5
knots - right after the start. As a result, the 40.7's ran right into the middle of J-120 fleet, making for a significantly harder tactical situation than the previous
races. Again all the boats stayed clustered close together on the first leg, but on leg 2 Estelle-B broke from the fleet and gained a significant advantage by the
leward mark. Super Gnat followed in clear air, but Wiki Wiki, Drumshanbo, and First Light mixed it up in the dieing breeze, and with the boats chewing up each
other's air, Wiki Wiki hit the windward mark at the end of leg 1. Over the last 2 legs, in varying breeze, the boats settled into clear air, and in the end Estelle-B
won easily over Super Gnat, with First Light in 3rd, Drumshanbo 4th, French Toast 5th, and Wiki Wiki in 6th after the penalty turn, with all the boats spread out at
the finish.

Sunday was a repeat of Saturday in terms of conditions. Race 4 started into a 7-9 knot breeze and gentle swell. The wind made a couple big shifts during the
first leg, and First Light made the right calls to round the windward mark in first by a couple seconds over Estelle-B, with the rest of the fleet a short way behind.
From that point First Light was able to increase their lead, and won over Estelle-B by more than a minute and a half - Estelle-B's first loss since Wiki Wiki beat
them in race 5 of NOODs. The fleet spread out over more than 4 minutes, with Super Gnat taking 3rd, Dumshanbo in 4th, Wiki Wiki in 5th, and French Toast in
6th.

Race 5 again saw a significant increase in wind speed with the start in 11-13 knots of breeze, and gusts over 14 during the race. Again the J-120's went to small
headsails, and again the 40.7's ran into their fleet. Estelle-B hopped back into the lead quickly in race 5, with Drumshanbo and French Toast in pursuit. The
boats were able to run deep and hit 7's and some 8's on the speedo in the downwind legs, and in the end Estelle-B hung on for a 9 second win over
Drumshanbo, with French Toast 3rd, Wiki Wiki 4th, Super Gnat back in 5th when their throttle slipped into neutral causing their prop to free-wheel, and First
Light in 6th after wrapping kelp around their sail drive which they couldn't get free.

In the end Estelle-B easily won their second straight regatta, with First Light in 2nd place and Super Gnat in 3rd. Drumshanbo, in their first major buoy regatta,
took 4th in a tie-breaker over Wiki Wiki. With their results and only one high point race remaining (Newport-San Diego on July 30th), Estelle-B has now won high
points for the year. Wiki Wiki will be hard to beat for 2nd, but First Light and French Toast are theoretically still in the running for 2nd place.

The fleet would like to once again SDYC for hosting a great regatta, and all the owners and crews for the excellent sailing!

3/21/2005

Three nearly perfect days of sailing greeted the six Beneteau 40.7's that attended the 2005 San Diego NOOD regatta, held March 18th, 19th, and 20th at
SDYC. While stormy conditions were forecast, in true southern California fashion there was more sun than rain, and conditions that, for the most part, were
nearly ideal.

Racing opened Friday with two 6-leg races held on the "near" ocean course in the Coronado Roads. Conditions were overcast and generally light, with 7-9 knot
winds from the south and an occasional few rain drops. The 40.7's got the first start of NOOD, and quickly showed two characteristics that would hold
throughout the weekend: Very tight racing, and dominance by Estelle-B. All 6 boats tended to be clustered together 2-3 legs into each race, with every boat
showing the others it's stern at one time or another. It was Estelle-B, sporting a new set of Elliot/Pattison sails, that set the standard, sailing two flawless races
and taking two bullets. Wiki Wiki finished 2nd in both races, following closely by Silhouette and French Toast, who were 3rd and 4th in both races. First Light
and Changes in Altitudes brought up the rear, swapping 5th and 6th places.

The rain and wind arrived Friday night. Saturday morning looked like it might be a repeat of Midwinters, with squalls and a strong southerly wind, along with 2-3
foot chop in the channel, greeting the sailors. However, by race time the rain had quit and the sun came out part of the time as broken clouds drifted by, and the
only remains of the storms were a leftover and decreasing chop, a westerly swell, and a lot of broken up kelp. All three races Saturday were 4 legs with varying
distances. Race 3 started with 14-16 knot winds, and again Estelle-B raced off to a bullet pursued by French Toast, while WIki WIki and Silhouette battled for
3rd and 4th, and First Light and CiA battled over 5th and 6th. Race 4 was started in 12-14 knot winds with shorter legs, with Estelle-B winning her 4th straight
bullet. French Toast held off First Light to secure 2nd place, followed by Changes in Altitudes in 4th place, Wiki WIki in 5th, and Silhouette in 6th. The final race
of the day started in 9-12 knot winds and a shorter course again. For the first time in the regatta Estelle-B struggled, getting buried at the start. Wiki Wiki and
French Toast broke from the pack, with WIki WIki going on to win with French Toast 2nd. First Light and Estelle-B spent a good part of the last leg in a jibing
dual with First Light hanging onto 3rd, Estelle-B 4th, Silhouette 5th, and CiA in 6th.

Sunday, the last day of winter, was the sort of day San Diego sailors live for. Bright sun, 12-16 WNW knot winds, and good sea conditions (albeit with a fair
amount of kelp) were the order of the day. Race 6 was run on a 4 leg course with lively wind, and once again Estelle-B climbed to the top of the fleet. Silhouette
bounced back with a 2nd place, followed by French Toast in 3rd, First Light in 4th, Wiki Wiki in 5th, and CiA in 6th. The 7th and final race was run on a 5 leg
course giving an upwind finish closer to home. Estelle-B gained an early lead and stretched out to a comfortable win, followed by Silhouette, First Light (despite
hitting the pin end of the starting line and doing an immediate 360), CiA, Wiki WIki, and French Toast.

With 6 bullets in 7 races, Estelle-B was the obvious regatta winner with only 10 total points. Wiki Wiki took second in a tie breaker over French Toast, followed
by Silhouette, First Light, and CiA. Only 6 points separated 2nd from 5th, demonstrating how close the racing was. Although Wiki Wiki was the only boat other
than Estelle-B to hear a gun, 4 different boats finished last at one time or another, and 4 boats (Estelle-B, Wiki Wiki, French Toast, and First Light) beat every
other boat at least once.

The fleet would like to thank SDYC for nearly perfect race committee work and great race organization, and Sailing World and Land's End for bringing one of the
best run regattas in the country to San Diego. The next class even is San Diego Yachting Cup on April 30th and May 1st.

2/24/2005
Beneteau 40.7 Midwinter’s, 2005, SDYC - Cliff's Notes

My, what a weekend!

The owners & crews had a quick skippers meeting on Saturday, as the weather was very stormy. Most of the skippers wanted to go in the ocean, and so we did.
The first challenge was to get out of the bay, as it was very rough.

On the race course, because of the conditions, everyone was having problems of one sort or another. The seas were very short and steep, with rain, and a wind
strength between 22-24 knots. Crews were getting sick, and several boats did not have the right combination of sails. As a result, several boats retired on
Saturday.

As for Super Gnat, we reefed the main and carried the #3 jib upwind, and on the first leg did not set our chute. At the end of the race, we were 3rd with Wiki Wiki
(Mike Honeysett) taking the gun.

While that was going on, the RC boat snapped a chain and lost their anchor. After seeing a huge squall line coming our way, we called it a day and flew our
chutes down the bay and went home.

On Sunday, the conditions were somewhat better, with the ocean down a little, (became worse as the day progressed), and the wind strength topping out at a
meager 20 knots for the day. We were able to get three races in. Super Gnat carried a full main and used the H-1 in the first race and changed to the #3 for the
last two races.

For some reason, Super Gnat got launched in the first race. So after the first race, Super Gnat and Estela-B (Armando Sivestre) from Coranado Yacht Club
were tied with Wiki Wiki a point back. In the second race Super Gnat led for awhile, Estela-B led, and so did Wiki Wiki. On the second beat of two, Estela-B hit the
left side hard, came out on top, and won the race with Wiki Wiki second and Super Gnat 3rd. First Light (Gary Jorgensen) and Silhouette (Warren Gross) were
beginning to push the front boats and getting closer all the time. So now Super Gnat had 7pts, tied with Wiki Wiki, and Estela-B in the lead with 5pts.

In the final race of the day, on the first beat, Super Gnat was either 4th or 5th around the top mark, after doing a penalty turn. As we bore away and set, we
seemed to get launched down on the inside of the other boats, some of which were having trouble setting chutes. I think we rounded 1st (?) at the leeward mark
and covered Wiki Wiki up the next leg. At that leeward mark, Estela-B ripped her spinnaker which took her out of the race for first place. On came Silhouette, who
went to the left corner and was first to the weather mark, but as I heard at the bar, she wrapped her mainsheet around the mark, which took her out of contention
for the win. Super Gnat had a good set, Wiki Wiki did not, and First Light had her best race, finishing 2nd.So Super Gnat won the last race and the regatta with 8
points, followed by Wiki Wiki (second) and Estela-B (third), at ten points.

Although Mike Dorgan (French Toast), did not have a #3, he hung in there, and finished all the races. He was followed by Russ Chandler (CIA, Changes in
Altitude), and Kirk O'Brien with his new boat, Drumshanbo.

The fleet later thanked the RC folks with a couple bottles of wine for their efforts on the race course.

I was very impressed with how the Beneteau 40.7 handled the sea conditions and how well it sailed. It handled the rough conditions very well and was fun to sail,
especially downwind at 9-10 knots.

Cliff Thompson
"Super Gnat"

2/21/2005

Wet, windy, and wild would be the best description of the 76th annual SCYA Midwinters. San Diego Yacht Club hosted the Beneteau 40.7 one design fleet at the
February 19th and 20th event, originally planned as 5 races over the two days to be raced on the old America's Cup course west of Pt. Loma. The southerly wind
direction and high sea state forced a move of venue to the Coronado roads, and the combination also limited the action to one rugged race on Saturday and
three races on Sunday.

One of the toughest jobs Saturday was simply getting to the course, which meant battling 20-25 knot head winds and a steep 6 foot chop all the way from Ballast
Point to the race course area. While 8 boats made it out to the race course, both Silhouette and Drumshanbo had to drop out prior to the start, the former lacking
enough able bodied crew, and the latter lacking a #3 headsail.

After a short postponement while the race committee fought the conditions to get a course set, the remaining 6 boats, most with reefed mains and #3's, started
into a 22-24 knot headwind and big seas. Shortly after the start Corinthian broke it's anchor chain, leaving 40 feet of chain and the anchor on the bottom. For the
rest of the race the committee boat crew fought to keep the boat on station with no anchor. Wind speeds were reaching 28 knots at the windward mark, and most
of the fleet went conservative on the downwind leg. Lacking a #3, Changes in Altitudes dropped out part way through the race, finding the going tough with a
larger headsail. French Toast blew out the head of their smallest headsail, and finished the final two legs of the race without a jib. 5 boats finished, with Wiki Wiki
leading the way, followed by Estelle-B, SuperGnat, First Light, and French Toast.

The race committee rolled the fleet into sequence for a second race with 4 boats still competing, but a large squall blew in by the windward mark as the race
started, obscuring the pin end of the course. After a Coast Guard helicopter buzzed the pin boat, all wisely decided to call it a day.

Sunday saw more favorable conditions, with 14-18 knot winds and 2-4 foot seas, and as a result the fleet got in 3 full races of 4 legs each. Drumshanbo again
decided to head for home, with some minor damage and lacking a full sail inventory, but the other 7 boats started all three races. SuperGnat held off Estelle-B to
win race 2 with most of the fleet clustered closely together at the finish. Race 3 ran somewhat longer legs, allowing for a good tactical race won by Estelle-B with
Wiki Wiki and SuperGnat hot on their tail. First Light finished with a spinnaker torn from head to foot. The fourth race started into a squall that eventually passed
outside the course, and a somewhat building chop. Changes In Altitudes blew up it's traveler and was forced to drop out, while Estelle-B shredded a spinnaker,
dropping them back in the pack. After Silhouette lassoed the windward mark with it's mainsheet, SuperGnat cruised to an easy finish with First Light and WIki Wiki
battling for second a short distance behind.

SuperGnat wound up the overall winner, with Estelle-B winning a 2nd place tie breaker over Wiki Wiki. SuperGnat and Estelle-B were awarded trophies at the post
race party hosted by SDYC. First Light finished 4th, Silhouette 5th, French Toast 6th, Changes In Altitudes 7th, and Drumshanbo in 8th. The owners pitched in to
buy a couple of well earned bottles of wine for the race committee, who did an incredible job in very rugged conditions to get 4 races completed.

The fleet would like to thank SDYC, and especially PRO Jim Person, race administrator Jeff Johnson, and all the race committee members for a job well done. The
next fleet event will be the 2005 Land's End NOOD Regatta, March 18-20 at SDYC.