Reports
Noteworthy
Long Time. Seventeen hours was the longest period that olde timer Randy can ever recall the race taking. Last year he was done in twelve.
Long Distance. While the course is 40 river miles round trip, Randy’s GPS showed 49.17 miles traveled - that’s an additional 9 miles just tacking back and forth!
Moonlit. Unlike previous years, the moon stayed in position to light the entire route this year, with no deep, dark shadows in the moonlight with which to contend in the canyon.
Crew. Chuck enjoyed having two crew, as he was able to get some good naps in, both in the V-berth and on the trampoline. Philosophy on this ranges to that of Commodore Snell who leaves shelving and shoelaces behind for racing weight advantage.
Warm. Chuck was in shorts and T shirt until about 2 am, when he changed to long sleeves/pants. Changed back again about 7 am. Water was about 65º.
Start
Good WInd. There was good wind at 6:00 pm, with all boats starting well. As the cruiser in the event, Alex didn’t start E.Z.Duzit for a half hour to give the racers a chance to maneuver and spread out.
Randy caught the wind well at the start and disappeared down river. Wes was also sailing fast and separated from the other two boats, chasing after Mantis.
Over Powered. Hanson had his big genoa up on his Mac25, which was heeling the boat way over. He switched to a regular jib and the boat pointed 15º higher.
Slug. Chuck’s trimaran sailed sluggishly and he was shocked at how fast Mantis and Yellow Jacket disappeared. He even checked rudder and center board to see if they were fouled... His best explanation is that Randy had tied an invisible anchor to the trimaran.
7:30 pm
Flukey Wind. Randy was still screaming down river in good wind with Wes considerably behind him. The flukey wind drops to fitful whisps where the Mac25 and Syringa are, and continues generally poor to non-existent as they creep slowly down river with the GPS showing under a 1/2 knot speed for many hours.
E.Z.Duzit cruised about taking pictures of the sailboats and enjoyed the views on it’s way to tying up at the Wawawai dock to sleep about 11 pm.
Parking Lot
Randy had good wind and maintained good speed to about Granite Point. A place he dubbed The Parking Lot. He parked there, completely becalmed with no apparent river current for over two & half hours!
Then Wes showed up - and got to park there with Randy for yet another half hour!
Slowly the wind eased in and they were able to creep away from The Parking Lot.
Wawawai Turnaround
4 am. Just before twilight, around 4 am, Wes and Randy came even with the boat ramp and turned back into a building sunrise breeze out of the east for a twenty mile tacking duel up river. Last year Randy made the turn four hours earlier.
5:30 It took till 5:30 or so for Hanson and Raddon to make the turn at Wawawai and catch the building breeze.
This was about the time the crew aboard E.Z.Duzit awakened to wave at Syringa, have a hearty breakfast, and motor back upriver, catching pictures of the sailors.
Sunday Morning
Duke It Out. Yellow Jacket & Mantis were able to happily duke it out much of the way back. They traded the lead back and forth, right up to the 10 second separation at the finish - after seventeen hours of racing a forty mile course. Almost exactly the same separation as Mantis and Syringa in last year’s twelve hour duel over the forty miles.
Flukey Wind. The flukey wind fades yet again for Syringa at 11 am, still several miles from the finish. Chuck decides the cruise is over - he fires up the engine and arrives back at Clarkston’s Hells Canyon Marina about 1 pm.
Jeff soldiers on (sailor’s on?) and crosses the finish line at almost 3 pm, and back to the Marina about 5 pm, 23 hours after racing started.
Background
Race Overview
This Report provides a full description of the Race/Cruise setup.
Race Course
This map illustrates the 20 mile course from Chief Timothy Park to Wawawai.
