2004 OLD NEWS

Last revised 01/25/05

PIRANHA WINS 2004 NATIONALS

From Scuttlebutt 9/30/04: 

* Dave Voss appeared to have an easy time defending his Schock 35 National Championship in his Piranha. Piranha won five of the eight races and finished no worse than third in the 16-boat fleet racing at the California YC. Jeff Janov's Ripple won a tie-breaker to take second place over Whiplash sailed by Ray Godwin in the championship series sailed in 5-12 knots of breeze on the Santa Monica Bay. - http://calyachtclub.com/cms/RaceResults/Series135.htm

Schock 35 Nationals by L. Ajello

The final show of the year turned out to be one of the most exciting, showcasing 16 boats on the line!  The event, hosted by California Yacht Club, was blessed with sunshine, lots of meat on a grill, plenty of alcohol, cooperative seas, and winds in 6-13 knot range all weekend.  It was perfect Southern California weather and perfect weather in which to race a Schock. The top of the fleet ran true to form with the usual suspects.  The excitement in this class comes from the middle.  With places four through eight separated by only 13 points, it looks to be a dogfight next year.  We also saw some boats that had been absent for a while, a newcomer, and one resurrection.

Many thanks to the event chairman and Power Play owner, Sparkle, and his crewmember Brooke Phillips, for organizing the festivities and selling those really cool tee shirts.  There were no leftover shirts, so some people missed out.  The tees sold out, I imagine, because everyone has so few white tee shirts around. Brooke was the lone casualty of the weekend, breaking her hand on Friday.  Trooper that she is, she served on Race Committee for the rest of the regatta.  Thanks Brooke! 

The regatta started on Friday, giving the fleet 3 full days and 8 races to beat each other up.  Day one started with Ripple taking two bullets and staking a claim to that coveted gold S immediately. It looked like Jeff Janov wasn’t letting his arch-nemesis ride off into the sunset with any more accolades. 

Piranha (12 pts) was not to be denied however, and won the Nationals in convincing style for her swan song.  Voss and associates captured bullets in all three races on Saturday and five bullets overall en route to victory.  My network of spies reports that the crew of Piranha continues to employ voodoo and the black arts for their success.  This time they sacrificed a living organism on Friday morning to their pagan god.  It might not be enough to have a great tactician aboard anymore, unless he or she can do double duty as a witch doctor as well. Congratulations and a fond farewell to her crew who are moving up in weight class to a Farr 40, named…Piranha.  That’s using the old imagination. The fleet will be hard pressed to find another owner willing to give so much to the fleet.  Hopefully we’ll be able to find an owner to keep the boat in town. Good luck at World’s and Big Boat Week!  And don’t forget to check your lifelines BEFORE you race, okay Dave?

Ripple (29 pts) and Whiplash (29 pts) slugged it out for second all weekend long.  Ripple won on a tiebreaker despite a couple of erratic races that saw them finish uncharacteristically out of the top five.  They were buoyed by two bullets and some help from Perfect Circle (51 pts) in the last race. On the very last loop around the course Perfect Circle ran into some equipment problems on the approach to the windward mark.  In second, right behind Piranha, they lost a jib sheet, forcing an unwanted tack, and then the main halyard snapped.  Fred Young’s crew didn’t give up though.  They rounded the mark, flew the spinnaker sans main, and made repairs on the downwind leg to get the main up ¾ of the way.  They weren’t in time to prevent Ripple and Notorious (50 pts) from slipping by, and a certain second turned into a frantic fourth.  They held on to beat Whiplash though, thus handing second place overall to Jeff Janov.  And Fred’s crew thought Ripple was cheering for them out of the goodness of their hearts.

Tom O’Neill was back after a protracted absence from fleet competition and had Notorious competing as if she didn’t miss the entire second half of the season.  If they hadn’t been tagged with 17 pts for a DNF in the third race on Friday, they almost certainly would have earned a podium finish. They had five top five finishes including a second and two thirds and placed sixth overall.  Perfect Circle had her best regatta of the year with three top five finishes including a third and came in a point behind them in seventh.  Two penalties and an 11^th place finish in race 7 dashed their podium dreams as well.  Kathmandu (55 pts) followed in eighth place and also had 3 top five finishes—two seconds and a third!  Their efforts were foiled by a lost protest and a DSQ in the first race on Saturday removing them from podium contention as well.  

It’s often said that the crews who win are the ones that make the fewest mistakes.  Well, perhaps it’s the crews that make the least egregious ones.  Power Play (42 pts) and JoAnn (47 pts) ran their typical, workmanlike races all three days. While they didn’t often crack the top three their errors were limited. Power Play had five top five finishes and never dropped lower than seventh while JoAnn sported three top five finishes—including a third—never coming in worse than eighth.  On Sunday both boats covered each other well and never had more than what seemed like a couple of boat lengths in between them.  In the end Power Play won the duel coming in fourth overall while JoAnn rounded out the podium finishers in fifth.  Rumor has it that Sparkle was assaulting other boats with water and ice barrages after the race because even with a member of his crew on race committee he couldn’t break into the top three.  He was overheard to have claimed that starting next year the amount of beer on board before the race is being upped by a case.

Strategem (81 pts) and Xylocaine (82 pts) finished ninth and tenth overall, respectively, and each had a seventh place finish for the weekend.  In one of the seemingly many side bets over the weekend, Mark Hinrichs owes Fred Young a large bottle of Captain Morgan’s for getting beaten like a red-headed step child. One of the burning questions I keep getting pestered to ask of both Mark and Sal is the meaning of the names of their boats. So, how ‘bout it guys?  Where do those slick names come from? And do they mean anything, or did you just like the way they sounded?

Shillelagh (89 pts) had three top ten finishes to come in 11^th overall with Mako (94 pts) hot on their heels.  With two top ten finishes Dave Michaelis and crew show steady improvement with each regatta and look to have Mako challenging the middle of the fleet next season.  We saw the reemergence of Outlier (100 pts), like a phoenix from the ashes.  Richard Fish brings back a great boat to the SoCal Schock fleet. His crew improved steadily over the course of the regatta and finished in the top ten three times including two on Sunday taking and 8^th and 9^th place and 13^th overall. Congratulations Richard!  We’ll be looking forward to seeing you next season!

The most interesting story may belong to Empress (107 pts).  Tony Aquino purchased the boat on Wednesday, two days before nationals.  He got a crew together on Thursday for a short practice, and then raced all three days finishing fourteenth out of sixteen boats scoring a 10^th place finish in the seventh race on Sunday to boot!  Way to go guys!  Coming in behind them in 15^th was Twister (118 pts). Gringo (124 pts), skippered by Monte Yearly, made her first appearance of the season—with a crew of four!  Getting a Schock around the buoys for 8 races is a lot of work for four people.  Hats off to Monte and company for their efforts to support the class! 

Many thanks to class President, Fred Young—who was reelected for another term on Sunday—for all his hard work and dedication to making it a fun season.  Also deserving of recognition are the board’s treasurer, Marylyn Hoenemeyer, Rules Chair, Dave Voss, Photographer Mike Phillips, and Advisory Board members Jeff Janov and Steve Murphy as well as the many people who pitched in their time and effort over the season to serve on race committee, organize the events or encourage boats and crews to come out for the races.  Hopefully we’ll see you all at the Fall One Design.

If you have more photos - send them to me by email and I will post them!

PIRANHA IS FOR SALE

Although this is and will be the best one-design racing class in Southern California, after 16 years (and two boats), it has come time for us to move on.  If you are seriously interested in buying the two-time winner of Nationals and North Sails Race Week and three-time winner of the overall Season National Championship, Piranha is now for sale.  With this boat there is no excuse to lose!  Email to dave@vossassociates.com if interested with phone contact info.

PACIFIC COAST CHAMPIONSHIPS/NORTH SAILS RACE WEEK

Great wind/great regatta.  On a tiebreaker, Joann edges out Power Play for the regatta - which then gives them fourth place for the season by one point over Power Play!  Piranha saved the regatta by winning race #6 after being over early and restarting.

The War Offshore:

Golison/North Sails Race Week, host of the Pacific Coast Championships and the season championship for the SoCal Schock 35 fleet, served as the backdrop for the most exciting event of the season. Only the stoutest hearts in the Schock fleet attended the event, totaling ten in all. Despite the drop off, battles were fought, scores were settled, and this year’s champion was crowned in what was without question the most competitive regatta of the season.

The weekend got off to an early start by getting two races in on Friday. The winds funneled in from the Pacific between Point Fermin and Catalina Island and built from 7 to 17 knots. Further complicating the wind was the enormous shadow cast by all those cargo ships. You’d think the valet could have left them somewhere more convenient than right beside our racecourse; they weren’t even American cargo ships. Add June Gloom into the equation for wet, windy, overcast conditions, and the first two days of the regatta were atypical for Southern California. Insultingly, we also had to slum it by sharing our course with the Farr 40’s.

Day one played out pretty true to form. Piranha took two bullets, followed by Ripple and Whiplash in second and third respectively. Kathmandu picked up a fifth in the first race and Perfect Circle surprised with a fourth in the second race. They mixed it up with JoAnn and Power Play with Xylocaine, Strategem, and Mako filling out the standings after Friday ended. Once the sails came down, everyone headed over to the "Schock Dock" for free beer and munchies courtesy of regatta organizer Bruce Golison. There everyone had a chance to relax and wring out their very wet clothing before heading over to the hotel for the first party of the weekend hosted by North Sails.

Friday also afforded everyone the chance to meet Richard Fish, the new owner of Outlier. Richard sailed with Fleet President Fred Young aboard Perfect Circle. Richard seemed to enjoy himself immensely as he took stock of what he needed to do before competing in the fleet next season, including a plan to get himself a solid crew. It was almost a perfect day for him except somebody told him about Outlier’s escapades involving large rocks and broken keels. Great job guys. Well, at least this came up after he bought the boat.

Saturday is where it really got interesting, however. It started with Sparkle’s brashness (those English think they’re soooooo superior, don’t they?). Right before the sequence he told Fred Young that Perfect Circle finished ahead of Power Play on Friday due to Sparkle’s charity, of which there would be none on Saturday. So sans charity, and without any excuses, Perfect Circle handed Power Play a great big turdburger to eat twice more! Except for beer, Sparkle kept his mouth largely shut the rest of the weekend. Rumor has it that the bowman on Perfect Circle has Sparkle’s number and put him right in his place, at the back of his own boat.

With the wind up again, and the conditions wet once more, the day was to hold many surprises. It seemed that the committee boat was in the mood to call multiple boats over early at the start. In two of the races at least five boats were signaled to return to the starting line. This forced some alterations in tactics and close competition…sort of. Piranha and Ripple managed to overcome terrible starts and an over-early-happy race committee to finish at the top for the second day. Dave Voss’crew taking two bullets and a second and Jeff Janov finishing behind him twice and taking the third bullet. The rest of the fleet saw the most unpredictable results all season. Whiplash managed only a fifth place finish for the day and was near the back of the pack for the other races. Perfect Circle had what was, according to skipper Fred Young, their "best day ever" by finishing 4th and 5th in two of the races. Kathmandu, obviously devoid of an original plan, decided they would be copycats and took a 4th and 5th as well, helping to knot up the standings. Xylocaine started with a fourth before fading the rest of the day and Mako rounded out the standings while not competing in one race. Perhaps the most interesting boats to watch were Power Play and JoAnn who were playing "Jekyll & Hyde" all day, juxtaposing 3rd place finishes with 6th and 7th place ones. At the end of the fifth race, only six points separated third place from seventh place. No one could have scripted a closer regatta going into the third and final day.

Once everyone was back on the Schock Dock, where Steve Murphy so graciously arranged food and beverages (thanks, Steve!), the leaders were cajoled and harassed into giving up some of their secrets for success as well as answering some questions from the rest of the fleet. Dave Voss’advice for sailing in Long Beach was simple: when in doubt, go right. There you have it, sage advice. He also suggests leaving the runners on when it’s the windiest and using maximum backstay when flying the light #1. Dave’s question for the day: "Do you ever get tired of sailing in clear air?" We never did get an answer to that. We did find out however, that certain members of his crew employ black magic to help increase their mojo. Some crewmember or crewmembers perform rituals the morning of race day that include doing household chores in the buff whilst wearing 6-inch stilettos and chanting in Creole. Dave, please tell us that it is NOT you!

Jeff Janov was up next. He thinks letting the main out is key to sailing in those conditions and does so often. Jeff is a man of action, not words as it turns out. When Fred Young wanted to know how Ripple passed Perfect Circle in the last race, forcing Fred to settle for 4th, Jeff’s response was "I don’t know". Did you ever consider running for office Jeff? Fred will obviously have to employ some dubious interrogation tactics to get more out of him. I will post any pictures of Janov obtained from whatever Marine posting Fred uses to beat it out of him. I hear Guantanamo Bay is beautiful this time of year, Fred.

Finally it was the ever-candid Ray Godwin. While most crews switched over to the #3 by the end of the day, Whiplash did not. When asked why he flew the heavy #1 instead of the #3, Ray told us that they left the #3 in the trunk. He did say he believed that they point better with the #1 up than with the #3, so luckily there was no harm. We also found out that Ray Godwin has had a tremendous role in helping Perfect Circle improve this year. Before each race Fred Young asks Ray for a blessing as they sail past one another before the start sequence. Reverend Ray gives his blessing only to Fred. It seems to have helped immensely as Fred’s performance has improved all season and was terrific all weekend long. In an unrelated turn of events, Rev. Ray withheld his blessing near the end as Perfect Circle inched closer in the standings by beating Whiplash in multiple races. Will the Reverend be giving out any more blessings for nationals? Stay tuned.

And then there were two…races left for the championship to be decided that is. Sunday saw more typical Southern California weather. The sun came out to play, the winds settled down below 10 knots and the decks stayed dry in what were perfect conditions for racing Schocks. Everyone was able to fly the light #1 all day and the only thing from Saturday to repeat itself was the chronic early starts. You’d think the race committee was getting a kickback from the air-horn company or something. With Piranha and Ripple separated by only 3 points, and the middle of the fleet crammed up as it was, it was to be an exciting finish.

Piranha captured a bullet after returning to start from an over early passing the last three boats within 200 yards of the finish and JoAnn stunned Ripple’s chances for a win by taking second and forcing Janov and crew to settle for fourth. Whiplash finally settled down to come in third and put some breathing room between her and the middle of the pack. By taking fifth, Malibu Mark and the crew of Strategem played spoiler and tossed the proverbial monkey wrench into the plans of several boats to challenge for a podium finish. The last race of the regatta proved to be the most exciting of the entire season.

Once more five boats were called over early, including Piranha. Here was Ripple’s chance to go for the jugular as Voss was seventh to the weather mark and Janov had established a lead. Whiplash, Power Play, Perfect Circle, Kathmandu, and JoAnn slugged it out in the middle while Strategem, Xylocaine, and Mako stayed close behind. The leeward mark saw the gaps close everywhere and Ripple and Piranha in a dogfight. They were neck and neck at the last weather mark with Kathmandu nipping at their sterns. Then we had the pleasure to witness the most entertaining maneuver all season long. In a last ditch effort to put some boats between them, Ripple took Piranha far beyond the last windward mark. Refusing to allow Voss to tack, Janov looked determined to take him past the cargo ships if necessary. The yelling could be heard hundreds of yards away. By the time the two boats tacked to round the mark they were so far past it they could have flown their spinnakers to get to it. Meanwhile, Kathmandu slipped by both of them and assumed the lead.

For the entire downwind leg Ripple hounded Piranha and used everything in their arsenal to foil their assault on the championship. Kathmandu built an insurmountable lead that gave them their first bullet of the season. Whiplash, Power Play, and JoAnn dueled for the remaining podium spot and kept it exciting all the way down the course with everyone desperately looking for any advantage they could find. Eventually Ripple finished second, but could not create space between them and Piranha, who took third. Perfect Circle and Whiplash found themselves neck and neck for the last leg. Fred Young closed the distance and went deep with Ray Godwin before Whiplash gybed away late in the race. In the final approach, the blessor proved just a little too much for the blessed as Perfect Circle went a little too deep and just couldn’t heat it up enough to gain her slim lead back and finished fifth (seventh overall) to Whiplash’s fourth. JoAnn and Power Play also finished in a virtual dead heat with JoAnn taking sixth (fourth overall) and edging out Power Play in the final race (seventh) and the overall standings (fifth overall). Strategem came in eighth (eighth overall) just ahead of Mako who was ninth (tenth overall) and Xylocaine who came in tenth (ninth overall).

Piranha won the championship overcoming horrible starts and uncharacteristic mistakes all weekend to be anything but boring. Ripple’s Hail Mary pass at the last mark rounding of the season was the most exciting thing I’d seen in the fleet all year and was anything but vanilla. Watching Whiplash battle through adversity all weekend and take the most difficult path to the podium possible was anything but predictable. Finally, Mako’s determination to gut it out all year was an inspiration to anyone watching. That fish isn’t on steroids, he’s just got a lot of heart.

What a great weekend everyone! It will be my pleasure to compete with all of you once more this season at the Schock 35 Nationals in August (thank God it’s at home, right?). Get your practicing in because after this regatta, who knows how things may go.

Class Calendar now available (including MdR Fleet Schedule and notes)! 

Ullman Sails Schock 35 Tuning Guide

(Download by clicking on Ullman icon at left)

There is sailing life in December after all!  Kathmandu is winning races in San Diego!

"We had a good regatta this weekend. It was definitely an S-35 day with average 8kts for both races.  We finished 3^rd in the first race behind an RP50 (Staghound) and a B-32.  Second race we starboard tacked the RP50 twice on the way to the 1^st mark and rounded just in front of them.    They squeaked by under us for a bit then we rolled past them before the 2^nd mark.  They pulled ahead on the long downwind leg but we pulled back on the last upwind.  We ended up beating them with corrected time and took 2^nd in the regatta ahead of a 1D35 and a NM43 (Vim).

Photos are proof showing Kathmandu beating Staghound (rated -52!!!) to the top mark, and being the 1st boat to the top mark in the whole fleet. (Click on photo to see larger version)

It looks like an exciting year ahead with four new boats joining in class racing.  Newcomers to the class are: Steve Murphy/"Joann" (formerly Santana 3030 owner) who bought Super Gnat; Don and David Michaelis/"Mako" who bought Water Moccasin; Mike Swimmer who has just bought Twister and one more team is forming that I hope to announce shortly.  The addition of these boats this year will be a strong bump for the Class as between them they only represented a total of three race appearances in Class last year with their former owners.  Joann has already made a splash taking third in its first regatta in early November just behind Whiplash that took first (both of them hammering the J-105 and J-109's).

Our new Class President Fred Young has been the most active new Pres. in years and big plans are in the works for 2004, so start to get ready, the new year is just around the corner!

My spies are keeping track of who's doing what to prepare for the new season, so watch for the 2004 Racing Line to be posted in late-December!