Tough Doublehanded Farallones

April 10, 2011

"It was a young man's sport today," said Gordie Nash, who sailed with Pat Broderick on the Wyliecat 30 Nancy. But the start of the 2011 BAMA Doubleanded Farallones was calm and surreal, as a large counter-current flood on the starting line confused the racers and made getting to the ebb out in the middle the first big move.

Pat and Gordie on Nancy didn't have to debate sail choices. ©2011 Christopher Harvey

Bob Naber, on BAMA race committee, reports on the start: "We had light west winds and an unexpected big flood at the start. Nobody started on time. The boats got flushed towards Ft. Mason until an offshore southerly near the shore filled in and the chutes came up. Most boats were across the line an hour after their starts, with the big heavy cruisers bringing up the rear."

Moore 24 start. Bill Erkelens' Nevermoore (ex-Eight Ball), which won overall, is #85 on the right. ©2011 Bob Naber

A big hole formed in the center of the Gate, and the boats that made it out eventually got swept up in the ebb. And that was that - get out into the current first and you were gone.

But you ended up into a building westerly for the rest of the day. The landlubbers' weather report on KCBS radio said, "Breezy." Racers reported 30-35 knots in the windiest places, but mostly about 25 knots which is usual for San Francisco Bay. "The most we saw was about 29 knots. The waves and wind were normal for springtime here," said Gordie.

Most of the fleet made it around the islands and had a good time, but some retired early. "Retirements began as folks cleared Pt. Bonita," said Bob. "Seasickness was first, then some fear of gear failure was the first indicator it was rough." The RC asked why boats are retiring and many answered, "To keep our yard bill down and so we can race next week."

There were no major breakdowns, but one boat got hit from behind as they were leaving the Gate. The Black Soo Starbuck is missing a chunk of carbon fiber out of her transom. Skipper Stephen Buckingham decided it would be prudent to retire. The overtaking boat did her turns and kept racing.

A collision took a couple bites out of Starbuck. ©2011 Stephen Buckingham

Nearly a third of the 74 starters would retire. Such tough conditions make winning even sweeter, and we wish to congratulate all the winners (and all the finishers) for completing such a tough race. Let no one say Northern California sailors are wimps. More photos are available in an online gallery. For results, see www.sfbama.org/2011/dhf/index.html.

First to finish was Urs Rothacher's F-9RX Tatiana. Urs told the race committee, "On the way back, main and jib sheets were manned at all times." ©2011 Erik Simonson/www.pressure-drop.us

David Kuettel's Thompson 1150 Serena. ©2011 Erik Simonson/www.pressure-drop.us

Continue on to 'Nancy's Doublehanded Farallones Race.'