With the “Heads of Sate” all away at a Melges 24 event, it was a very small group of Mothistas that traveled to Santa Barbara for their annual Skiff Fest. You can’t have a Skiff Fest without a Moth fleet! Saturday morning was gloomy as four of us unpacked and rigged up, with Eric taking the award for the fastest drive ever “with a Moth on the roof” from OC to SB, after sleeping in, and Dana making the trip down from San Francisco. Still he was ready just in time for the first start.
As we sailed out the June gloom gave way to sunshine and exiting the harbor we were on foils from the getgo in a building breeze. Wind steadied at 15 - 18s, and we cranked out three races.
Richard managed a 1,2,1 with Nat, 2,1,2 and Dan and Eric catching up fast and trading places as they get used to their boats. Race 3 started and finished dramatically. All four boats foiled in to the pin end on port but with Nat and Dan pushing down on Richard, he was able push them over the line before the start. But Nat soon came back and on last down wind came down on the pressure of the day, whilst Richard was trying to low ride through a pack of I14s to the line in no pressure. Richard scrapped through by about a ½ boat length for his second win of the day, sweating bullets the whole way and regaining the overnight lead, after Nat’s emphatic win in race 2.
Day 2., and we had a bit of June gloom again but little wind made for a slow sail out and a bit of worry about what we were going to get. Magically as the 5 min gun went first Nat then Richard were up on foils. By the gun we were all on it and another incredibly tight, well fought for port hand start. Aggressive starts were the order of the day, with all hard fought and full on foiling. Nat pushed Richard over in race 2, getting him back for pushing him over yesterday, and foiled off over the horizon for the win whilst Richard Eric and Dan fought it out for the remaining places. The morning group foil tuning session seemed to have paid off for Eric, he was really pushing it and almost won the last race.
This was a fun, low key event, well run, and with awesome conditions, one that we hope with become a permanent fixture for the Moth class going forward.
2010 Cal State Champs report - ABYC.
Written by Zach
Monday, 19 April 2010
2010 California State Championships April 17-18
Alamitos Bay Yacht Club and The International Moth fleet, a perfect fit!
ABYC recently hosted the Moth California State Championships, where competitors were treated to excellent conditions both on and off the water.The breeze built all day both days with moderate chop, topping out at around 12-14 knots on Saturday. A solid 15 –18 knots ended Sunday, providing an exciting blast downwind home to the great spread of snacks and beverages at the top of the dinghy ramp, compliments of the club.The fleet kept up its reputation for a high level of competition, camaraderie and an open invitation to new participants, with it being the first regatta for a few!
Interested in joining the most exciting revolution occurring in sailing today?
Want to skim effortlessly above the water?
Want to be a part of the fastest growing, fun, competitive yet friendly, racing fleet in the US today?
If your answer to any of these is yes, then
Come join us in our ABYC Moth Demo day……
The Moth fleet in ABYC is growing rapidly. We already have 6 active boats and our fleet is growing fast. On April 17th and 18th we will be holding our first ever Moth regatta at ABYC. Entrants include local boats as well as the Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, Bora Gulari, and the multiple medal wining McKee brothers.
On Friday 16th, (late afternoon) we will be holding a demonstration event where sailors with a genuine interest in joining the fleet can take a demo sail in a Moth. Full support and coaching will be provided as well as a representative from Bladerider, one of the major Moth manufacturers. All you need to do is turn up with your wetsuit and PFD. These boats are deceptively easy to sail for the average dinghy sailor, all you need is a modicum of athletic ability, and a go for it attitude. We will also show you how easy and quick they are to rig and launch single handedly at ABYC. As this will also be a practice day for the regatta, many Moth “pilots” will be around to answer your questions etc.
You may think these boats are for the young and the talented, but the average age of the top 2 sailors at the recent Dubai Worlds was 50!, and the “weekend warriors” are out having there competing, having fun and coming in with the biggest grins!
Come and join us!
To sign up please email:
Mark Gaudio: gaudio at cox.net
Or
Richard Davies: richarddaviesat at mac.com
If you’d like to discuss please call Richard on 805 410 2396 or see me at ABYC, I’m out Mothing most weekends J
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