Canadian Seaspray Championships
Congratulations to Stan Storwick the 2008 Canadian Seaspray Champion! Once again the Osoyoos club put on a great event. (Photos on the photos page & results on the results page.) John Zupan our brewer of fine wine and as generous as always has produced a label to showcase his vintage. Regatta participants were lucky enough to partake and some were gifted a bottle of his superb product. Many thanks John!
The racing was very tight at the top of the fleet and the first three positions were finally determined on the last race. Personally, this was my favourite regatta as I really enjoyed the closeness of the outcome.
We also welcomed a new competitor from Washington state, John VanderSchalie. John has sailed SJ 21's and enjoyed racing the Seaspray. John thanked Stan for being so helpful in getting his boat and skills prepared. Perhaps a new fleet will start to develop in his area. John sails on the Snake river and lives I believe in the Lewiston area.
The AGM for the Canadian Seaspray association was held in conjunction with this event. The minutes of this meeting will be out to you shortly.
With the end of this year's Canadian sailing season on the horizon a couple of things you should keep in mind are that the North Americans for next year will be in Osoyoos, BC and the Canadian Nationals are planned for Lake Newell hosted by the Newell Sailing Club south of Brooks, Alberta. Dates and times etc have not been established as of yet.
Time ahead to think about not only developing your boat and sailing skills but perhaps helping to get others involved in sailing this boat. We owe a lot to people who have patiently helped us with trying to perform better. People like Stan Storwick or Bob Richards are necessary in any successful fleet. With the rising costs involved in travel, working out methods of getting more boats on a trailer are one solution but another is getting more boats to start to compete in your area as well. It doesn't always mean getting involved in a sailing club either it's just that sometimes the clubs may be the only access to water in your area and may also be a way of finding more people to sail with.
Have a good fall!
Join the Seaspray Association by filling out the following form and sending it along with your check for $20 for 2009
Application for 2009 membership in the CDN Sea Spray Catamaran Assoc
Name___________________________________
Address with Post Code____________________________________________________
Sail No._______________ Res Tel______________ Email_______________________
Club___________________Bus Tel______________ Fax _______________________
I enclose my cheque for $20 payable to the Sea Spray Association and Hereby Agree to abide by the class constitution and bylaws pertaining thereto.
Dated the ___ day of ______________ 200_ Signature_________________________
Please mail to: 609-3339 Rideau Place SW, Calgary Alberta T2S 1Z5
North American Championships
News about this years North Americans and results held at Huntington Lake California August 23,24 and 25 2008
Here is a good description,
For the Record;
Stan received the "Native North American Fowl Award to the really nice guy who told us his downwind secret"
Jay and Pam
August 19th;
Jurgen and I set out for California from Osoyoos towing two Sea Sprays behind the truck. Sunny day, light traffic and looking forward to our sailing at Huntington. Made good time and covered a lot of miles as we reached Weed, California as it was getting to be dusk. Booked into a motel and had dinner at a local restaurant.
August 20th;
Up early and on the road before 5:00. Got onto #5 and noticed a bit more traffic that increased as we went south into Sacramento. Switched to 99 until we turned off to get to Huntington before Fresno. Quite confusing the last 75 miles or so as it seems we take a slightly different route each time. Arrived at Huntington sometime around 4 pm. Registered at the lodge and decided to see if we could locate Steve. Spent some time with him and found he was in his usual state of fixing his boat just prior to the races starting. This year he was doubly involved as his grandson Sam, was sailing a Sea Spray as well.
August 21st;
Up early and at the beach rigging our boats by @9:00am. Ready to go by @ 10:30 so spent the day reaquainting ourselves with the lake, locating marks and just enjoying the wind conditions. Later in day met a new Sea Spray sailor - Phil (?) who will likely be one to contend with at the top end of the fleet along with Sam.
(Likely Phil Minnehan who had indicated he was going to this event-editor.)
August 22nd;
Again up early. Out sailing @10:00 in the usual winds that really get the Sea Spray moving. Jay, Pam and Phil all got out for a bit of a sail in the late afternoon with Pam and Jay both showing good boat speed. A pleasant suprise was Phil's handling and speed on the Sea Spray as he has only been with it for a short time.
Evening was a social event at Kurt Leonard's campsite. A bit of discussion on how many races/courses to sail and starting procedure came up and were decided on. A somewhat loose, relaxed approach to the whole thing that had us setting up five possible courses, a five minute sequence with specified flags, and a series of eleven races with two throw outs for the series. Had a great meal at the lodge's restaurant and went to bed early.
August 23rd: (Saturday)
Up for breakfast cooked over an open fire by Jay and Pat (?). Got finished and on the water by 10:30 ready to race. Total of seven boats on the line which was down from the previous two years. Competition would likely be good as Jay, Pam and Steve are all keen and capable of winning. The three that are newer to the fleet: Jurgen, Sam and Phil are just as keen and although still in the learning curve have potential of being serious contenders as well. As for myself, I usually place somewhere in the top.
A few mishaps during the day with both Jay and Steve losing their masts in separate races. Steve also had some problem with his Jib sheeting in the first race. A minor touch with Jay rounding mark eight had Jay doing some penalty turns in one race. My boat was incredibly fast down wind compared to the others.
At the end of day one I was sitting well in 1st place with two first place and two second place finishes. That's when I blew it as I let Jay know how I got the boat moving well down wind. (Subsequently won the Turkey award for the dumbest move during the regatta). The secret: Pop the hyfield lever on the windward shroud which allows the jib to billow out and act as a spinnaker. This allows the boat to go faster and deeper. You can actually feel the puffs as the wind shifts a bit and go even lower. (Thanks Stan for that bit. Now everyone else knows-editor)
August 24; Sunday
Another four races in wind that is a bit stronger. Made a serious mental mistake and started to think I could win this regatta. Therefore started to sail a bit more aggressively and tried to cover the opposition which consisted mainly of Jay, Pam and Steve. Usually when I try harder I don't do quite so well and this was not an exception. Tacking became a problem and the harder I tried to get it done fast the worse it became. I probably blew four critical tacks winding up in irons with a net loss each time of several hundred yards. Best race of the day was a second with a sixth being the worse.
End result was I had slipped out of first place at the end of the day.
August 25, Monday
Only three races today! The first one saw me again blowing a tack. This put me in fifth position for the race. Another one to throw out so after catching up to Phil decided to go behind the islands toward eight. Another error as Phil easily passed me on that leg.
OK I blew it! relax and focus on the next race. This paid off as I finished 1st. One race to go before it is all over. Concentrate and get a good start. Timing is right but I don't here a horn until well over the starting line. Thinking that I am over early I reround the outer mark and cross behind the fleet on Port. By the weather mark I have caught the leaders and am right behind Pam. From there to the finish we trade places a couple of times with Pam crossing first and myself second. Steve had another breakdown with rudder problems. A great day of sailing to finish a great regatta.
I placed second overall with Pam placing 1st. It will be great to see a Simonson name on the trophy as Harold was one of the stalwarts of the fleet during his days of sailing always a keen competitor and a fun guy. Steve placed third and if he ever got his boat in pristine shape would likely be next to impossible to defeat. Jay came in fourth overall which is somewhat off the mark for him. He did a great job of organizing the event and likely that had something to do with his placing.
Overall impression: Great regatta, good food and socializing. Wind conditions awesome! Race committee excellent! Road trip with Jurgen a good experience. Memories are made of this.
Trip back home took two days with an overnight stay north of Bend and an easy day's travel to Osoyoos the following day.
Stan
Alberta Provincial Championships
After the racing season and before it gets cold plan to get your boat work done. Always remember if you compete with a Seaspray to keep it in top shape and do not over load it when sailing in higher wind conditions. If taking people out sailing is important to you plan on getting a second bigger boat that is purpose built for two or more people. Years ago when I got my first seaspray I took people out sailing in fairly high winds. Once when I had a particularly big person with me I noticed the screw that held the rear beam in the hull was popping up and down. I realized something was wrong and headed in. Had we kept sailing we could have destroyed the hull because the rear beam sleeve had separated from the hull.
When the season ends consider what items need attention and try to get them fixed so that the boat is ready next spring.
There are a number of Seasprays available for sale for anyone looking for competition boats. These are located in BC and Alberta. Prices will vary depending on equipment and level of development of the particular boat.
Looking for a competition boat?
The option is to buy or to rebuild or change your present boat. Buying a wrecked Seaspray may seem like a bargain provided you anticipate the expense and work involved in getting it up to speed. If you a busy person consider buying a competitive boat when they become available. They are worth the price asked. The nice looking used factory production boat would be overpriced to a dedicated rebuilder or a person considering it for competition if the price is $2500 to $3500(this price is fine for the person using it only for recreational sailing). They generally need almost as much reworking as a decent $1000 boat (looking like it's on it's last leg). Sometimes boats ready for the garbage bin can be had for a few hundred dollars or less. The most important aspect of a potential rebuild candidate is the hulls, cross tubes and the mast if you are going to keep the boat halyard rigged. The big costs in a rebuild are new sails, new hardware and lines, launching dolly, reworking the trampoline or possibly a new trampoline. There are also time costs as well as many upgrades are big time bandits and can stretch on for months. Some parts are getting harder to source and some pictures on the website may indicate other possibilities to create something that will work for your particular need. There are a few good candidates for competition boats available that I am aware of. If you are interested in acquiring one let us know. We are all interested in building interest in this great class.