This weekend marks the first time we will have all 10 Match 40′s on the water racing together. Ten teams are gathering from around the world to train on Thursday and Friday and then compete on the weekend.
To follow the racing, either come on down or join twitter or watch the twitter feed on the Oakcliff website http://www.oakcliffsailing.org.
If you are planning on racing the match racing for classic sailors on Sunday, don’t worry, the boats will be ready and rigged for you to just step on board.
Team members Jan, Matt, Dave, Benny, Nate, and Molly stayed in England and are heading down to the boat everyday to finish off projects before the Fastnet. This week our main goals are re -waterproofing the inspection ports and a couple other spots, prepping the cockpit to be re grip taped, fixing the tack lines and spin sheets. We haul the boat on Tuesday.
The container still hasn’t arrived, I am positive several of you are familiar with international shipping delays. Luckily we all packed a bag with some clothes into the Transatlantic Race container, so I am relieved to report that we are now wearing clean clothes. The race container didn’t arrive until last Thursday 21st and we sailed into Gosport Firday the 15th so for a while we were rocking the sailing gear we crossed the Atlantic in. We washed it, I promise.
The race container arrived in South Hampton, a small English town that launched the Mayflower and the Titanic. Sadly it was completely destroyed by World War 2 bombing so there wasn’t much to see, but it is now one of our favourite places in England since it was where we were reunited with clean clothes.
The team decided to go exploring and ended up at Stonehenge. After falling out of the mini van we rented, we wandered around the pile of rocks that has intrigued people for centuries. It was a sunny English day (only slightly overcast) and Stonehenge was truly inspiring. Our audio guides explained the folklore, astrological significance, and archaeological theories about the stones.
After Stonehenge the six of us piled back into the mini van piloted by Matt Noble, who has a new found sympathy for soccer moms, and drove to Salisbury for lunch. We found an old tavern where we drank Guinness, ate bangers and mash, and got 45 minutes worth of travel advice from a very friendly waitress. We were so full we could barely stand, but we forced ourselves to waddle around the corner and see the Salisbury Cathedral. The cathedral has the tallest steeple in England, which housed the oldest clock in England and the Magna Carta.
The cathedral was massive and breathtaking, full of intricate stained glass windows, engraved stone floor, and beautiful statues. The guys charmed the 60 year old lady who gave us a brief introduction to the church and exclaimed “what a handsome bunch of fellows” when the group walked in. The clock was a massive contraption that was roughly 4 meters wide and 20 feet tall (our measurements are slowly deteriorating the longer we stay over here… I am a little worried about measuring out all of the grip tape panels for the cockpit). It rang every hour. The guys spent several minutes huddled around it and to their credit figured out exactly how it worked. They were so enthralled they didn’t notice the other tourists creeping closer to listen to them discuss the mechanics of it.
As a history major I was astonished and excited to see the Magna Carta. It was perfectly preserved parchment full of the smallest writing I have ever seen, especially noteworthy since our guide explained that it was written with a swan quill.
The boat comes out tomorrow and we are hoping to going to go off exploring again. More stories to come soon.
To see more picures of our road trip check out the team Facebook Page, All American Offshore Team
When we last visited, the Ker 11.3 was on their way North and the 50 had just competed the Boston Harbor Wednesday Night Race. On Friday, both boats made it to Marblehead, arriving in such pea soup fog that they directed them to the harbormasters dock and we were able to stay shoreside until the start of the race on Sunday. Score!
Acorns Aidan and Randy, supporter Ann and I drove up on Friday with a car packed full of gear and food and the new emergency tiller for the 11.3. Aidan and Randy had made it themselves from start to finish. Everything from lay up and vacuum bagging to filling and sanding and painting. Everyone else arrived in various forms of transport and we were off the dock on a bright and sunny Sunday. The start had us all go around two marks before heading off to Halifax. It was basically a show for the thousands of spectators but we took it on and the 50 was the only boat to deploy the A3 genneker on the 1st 1.5 mile leg. Hello world Oakcliff is here!
We headed out from Marblehead with a double head rig, jib top and genoa-staysail. Soon we were able to deploy the spinnaker and sailed with the A3, A5 or Jib Top, 90% of the way hardly ever dropping below 10 knots and hitting top speeds of 17. Jeff MacFarlane and Mike Nicoletti double handing the 11.3 were close to the same speed in perfect performance conditions.
Coming into the finish in the middle of Tuesday night we were in pea soup fog with everyone on the rail listening for other ships as well as navigational aids. It was great to have the AIS (automatic identification system) on board both boats as we could see the ships positions and their speed and direction and visa versa. We still used all of the ‘old fashioned precautions’ as well, as in running lights, radar reflector and fog horn tooted regularly and LOUDLY from the rail. The Ker 50 finished at 3:38am on Tuesday morning and the 11.3 a few hours later. This race was the fastest in history with 3 boats breaking the previous record.
When the sun came up and the fog cleared we realized that we were in a beautiful place. I described the place (land and people and restaurants) as cozy like a big welcoming warm hug. We also discovered that there is a fair amount of entertainment in the down town. The very friendly customs agents told us where to go.
Out on the town we ran into a boat that we had beaten in IRC 1. They bought Suzy, Ann and myself a drink and grumbled about being beaten by an ‘all girls team’. Ann informed them that we were actually a coed team to which they responded. “OH thank God!” I said – Really!? and then added – You know what, you weren’t beaten by an all girls team, you were beaten by a team of women and children. For some reason they stopped buying me drinks.
A big congratulations to everyone who raced and raced hard:
Oakcliff Ker 50 – 3rd in Class and 11th Overall in IRC:
Watch Captains Mark DiSanti and Mike Komar who was on his second overnight race. Navigator and acorn, Jacon Mayer who was not only navigating for his first time, it was also his first overnight race. He did an excellent job. Also from Oakcliff, Aidan Vascatto, Randy Neureuter, acorn graduate Colling Leon, supporters, Bob Zazzera, Sue DiSanti, Ann Schwagerl, Dr. Rob Gorski, Dan Nudelman and new recruits, Dan the perma-trimmer Warnekros, Match Racer Bobby Martin, Nick Osvlads and ESPN reporter and America’s Cup veteran Suzy Leech.
The Ker 11.3 – 1st in Double Handed Class and 11th Overall in PHRF:
(including all fully crewed boats!) Jeff MacFarlane and Mike Nicoletti
At 03:25 UTC the Oakcliff All-American Offshore Team crossed the finish line off Lizard Point, and in doing so concluded a Transatlantic Race that was 6 months in the making. It is an achievement that could not have been reached without your enthusiastic support. The sixteen of us onboard the Vanquish have been given an incredibly opportunity, an opportunity none of us will forget, and for that we are incredibly grateful. We’re currently on our way to the port of Gosport, 160 miles from the finish line, and we wanted to take some time to thank everyone who helped us along the way and made all of this possible.
Our race was a tough one. We were up against some of the best sailors and technology in the world, a North Atlantic weather pattern that offered no more than 25 knots of wind and some difficult obstacles that simply proved unavoidable. We left Newport behind us as we chased the fleet east, pushing all the way. At the race’s halfway point we stood in 3rd place, behind Puma Ocean Racing’s brand new Volvo 70, and the record-setting Rambler 100, but it was not to last. A ridge of high pressure stood between us and England, and as hard as we tried, we could not evade it. We sat motionless for several days and watched those in front of the ridge sail to the finish, and those behind it sail back to us. The ridge finally moved east and our race resumed, but it was too late. Our final finishing position is 6th place out of 26, a result of which we are very proud. More important than the standings however, we finished this race as a team, and we got to do it our way: the Oakcliff All-American Offshore Team way.
Next up we have the Fastnet Race, another test of this team’s endurance and abilities. We are all looking forward to some time off, but equally as much to reconvening back here in England in less than a month’s time for our next adventure together…..
The Oakcliff All-American Offshore Team is on the homestretch: land is in sight and we can smell England. It’s been a long and tough race, though we managed to squeeze a few extra days into the voyage—extra days that maybe now seem a burden, but in a week, month, ot year, will probably seem like a privilege. I for one am hesitant to finish. I’ve gotten to know the 15 other sailors on this boat well enough that I want to stay another day, sail another race. But there’s still this race to finish, and as it now turns dark we’ll get back to it for one last push to Lizard Point, 20 nautical miles away.
We’ve had a hard go of it in the standings. The fast boats from our start and the faster boats from the June 29 start managed to beat the high-pressure ridge that we couldn’t avoid, and we parked up along with the Beau Geste for a few days. We sat for long enough to allow the slower boats we had already passed to catch up, and then, when everyone was even, the ridge lifted and moved east—as did we. The way the ratings work, we lose, but it’s made for a fun day of good company. We’re approaching the finish with five other boats in sight which after just under 3000 miles of sailing is pretty neat. We went all day with Beau Geste beside us, at one point close enough to ask for toilet paper. If this has been a long race for Vanquish, it has been an even longer one for them (15 feet longer). We wondered if they were serious!
There will be plenty of time for reflection in the coming days, but for now—it’s time to grab a quick bite to eat (“Eat Your Veggies” freeze dried pasta) and head up on deck for the last few hours of Transatlantic Race 2011 goodness. We’re all awake and planning on enjoying the remaining time on the rail. T-minus 3 hours.
-Amory
Not much to report from the Vanquish today. I may be grossly mistaken but I think the Oakcliff All-American Offshore Team has relocated somewhere near the equator and we’re stuck in the doldrums. We spent most of today virtually motionless, which is not the way we saw a transatlantic race coming to an end. Our three-day “training” session before the July 3 start was considerably windier than anything we encountered these past ten days and, in reality, the lightwind Block Island Race earlier this spring was more relevant from a preparatory perspective.
It is not to say we aren’t making the most of our drifting hours. Jesse braved the North Atlantic waters for a cold shower. Many have taken to rapping. I’ve been giving camera lessons. Matt has watched each of the movies on his iPod several times, it seems. In a move of utter desperation, Chris finally removed the “Paint” app from the nav station pc’s as they were proving to be too much of a distraction for the rest of us.
For the on-deck watch there’s not much to do but keep tabs on Beau Geste and Sojana to the southwest (9 miles and 14 miles, respectively). We’ve been going toe-to-toe with Beau Geste these last few days and we led the way east for most of yesterday, only to wake this morning and see them parallel to the south. Today we’ve again worked hard to go fast forward and we enter the night in the leading role. We will see what the next 10 hours bring. Nonetheless, it’s nice to know there are others suffering the tropic conditions out here at latitude 51 north.
At this point nobody really knows how long we’ll be out here. Most of us have already missed flights or had to change plans, but so is life and I know there’s nowhere else I’d rather be “stuck” than on this boat, in this ocean, with the AAOT. The stars are out, it’s a full moon, and there’s not a ripple on the water. Life is good!
Crew survey pt. 2:
Mark Towill
Worst memory so far: 0.04 knots on speedo, July 13, day 10
Best memory so far: Downwind driving in 24 knots, day 2
Favorite meal: BBQ Sauce, Sweet Baby Rays
Misses most: Ice Cream
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Cham”wow” boots
What’s next: Home to Hawaii, RC44’s in Marstrand, Sweden
Do it again: In a heartbeat.
Chris Branning
Worst memory so far: Finally finding the ridge of high-pressure
Best memory so far: Seeing us hold 3rd place in standings for a week
Favorite meal: “Tuna helper,” Alfredo with tuna
Misses most: Girlfriend
Day sailing or night sailing: Dawn/Dusk
Favorite piece of clothing: custom seat wedge, nav table necessity
What’s next: Moving to Airstation Miami (now an official Coast Guard helicopter pilot)
Do it again: In a heartbeat.
Charlie Enright
Worst memory so far: 3 days and counting in the ridge
Best memory so far: 25 knots of boatspeed
Favorite meal: Texas Pete hotsauce
Misses most: His girl and their dog
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Crocs
What’s next: Back to North Sails in Portsmouth, Rhode Island
Do it again: Tomorrow.
Kaity Storck
Worst memory so far: Sleepy driving
Best memory so far: Jan’s singing/Colin’s speaking
Favorite meal: Twix Bars
Misses most: The “guy”
Day sailing or night sailing: Definitely day
Favorite piece of clothing: New Dubarry sea boots
What’s next: Team racing with two brothers in Newport
Do it again: Absolutely, I’d be disappointed if I didn’t.
Jesse Fielding
Worst memory so far: Watching his cooler floating away
Best memory so far: Swimming in the North Atlantci
Favorite meal: Alfredo with Tuna
Misses most: The Ravers.
Day sailing or night sailing: Both
Favorite piece of clothing: Gill Crosswind pants
What’s next: Rhode Island.
Do it again: Hands down.
Jan Majer
Worst memory so far: Groundhog Day - sailing into the same ridge of high pressure three days in a row.
Best memory so far: Pushing as hard three days into the light stuff as we did in the heavy air!
Favorite meal: Buffalo Chicken mac/cheese
Misses most: My girl.
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Johnson & Johnsons’s Baby Powder
What’s next: Staying with boat, Fastnet Race
Do it again: You bet.
Benjamin Allen
Worst memory so far: Doing 0.
Best memory so far: Doing 20.
Favorite meal: Alfredo w/ Tuna
Misses most: His Bed
Day sailing or night sailing: Dusk/Dawn
Favorite piece of clothing: Dubarry Boots
What’s next: Traveling to Palma, Mallorca, Spain
Do it again: “Most Def.”
Happy hump day from the Oakcliff All-American Offshore Team. Things here on the Vanquish aren’t all that much different than before: we’re still bumping up against this high-pressure ridge immediately to our east, and as soon as we get enough wind to sail up to it, the wind dies when we get there and we have to wait for the next pulse to do it all over again. We’ve been working that oscillation in a northerly trend all day to better position ourselves between the remaining fleet to our north and where we think the next abundance of wind will be to our east.
Just now we switched from the A2 spinnaker we flew for most of the day to the code-0, and have pointed our bow in a more easterly direction across the ridge. We have picked our latitude and we will attempt to cross the no-wind zone from here on out. No more up or down, only across. It’s a big commitment but one we have to make!
Otherwise, things are becoming quite pleasant on board. We have been blessed by an abundance of sun and dry weather, and morale is particularly high given the un-anticipated duration of this race. We must have a sexy keel or something because this boat seems to attract plenty of attention from the aquatic life below. Today we came across numerous pods of dolphin, maybe 6 or 7, with many choosing to tempt life under the bow. There were a couple sunbathing sunfish, flopping lazily in the swell. We saw several packs of fin whales, which, according to our onboard expert-of-all-things-swimming, are second biggest only to the blue whale. Quite a sight. This was a wildlife day to remember!
There are just over three hundred miles to go to our finish and while we’re all trying really hard not to look past that, today has been a day of reflection for a lot of us. Downtime is plentiful when the going is this slow… I’ve begun to think about what I’d miss most, what I’ll remember most, what I’ll forget first, but the most important things I could think of were the friends I’ve made out here—friends I hope to keep forever. The other thing I thought about were the people that made all of this possible, for all of us. There a lot of thank you’s to be given, and they will in due time. But on behalf of the entire AAOT, a heartfelt thank you, in early fashion.
Tomorrow will in all likeliness be our last full day together on this trip and I have no doubt we will make the most of it.
-Amory
Our good fortune has, indeed, come to an abrupt end! The day started strong with a steady 8 knot southerly that gradually gave way to a dying southeasterly, that also “gradually” disappeared. We didn’t know when or where it would happen, but it has and it’s put us in a bit of a tough spot.
We’re drifting about with no real direction or method of propulsion at the moment, and it’s not all that much fun watching a potential 3rd place finish get away like it currently might be. Jazz is making 7 knots towards the finish line, with 180 miles to go. We need to finish about two days behind them to correct out, and it’s looking less and less likely. Beau Geste is 12 miles to our southeast and struggling as well, so it’s almost a race restart for the two of us.
Even though the sailing is a bit dull, life out here goes on as always. We’ve started rationing paper towels by cutting our remaining roll in half with a hacksaw (ingenious), we got a too-close-for comfort flyby from a fleet of whales (species unknown), passed–within sight–three slower boats (Nordwind, Prodigy, and Scho-ka-lola), and witnessed the first sunset of the race. It’s about time!
Well it’s time to go move the sail stack again, all the way forward and to leeward, and get geared up for a quiet night on deck. The sun’s down now and temperatures have dropped quickly so we won’t be moving a lot to keep us warm. It’s all layers on deck for the next few hours.
Hopefully we’ll have some progress to report by the morning!
-Amory
The “Daily Bag” – Jesse Fielding
OakCliff All AMerican Offshore Team
S/V Vanquish
Atlantic Ocean
Its a battle to find some computer time with all of the racing and maintenance but today is as good a day as any to brief the inter-webs on some of the goings on in Offshore Ocean Racing Land.
The “Day Bag” is somewhat of a science experiment, part math project, part R and D. THe provisioning process for the Transat on Vanquish is a culmination of data collected on the Block Island Race, Annapolis to Newport Race and our offshore Training Session. We took note of how much freeze dried made the optimum meal, how many bars the crew needs for certain modes of sailing (hard running with lots of grinding vs. upwind), and other data points like how much water we need, burn rate on paper towells/toilet paper/paper bags/sunscreen/gatorade powder etc etc. We tried different brands and different products within our budget and put together a specific supply list for each day. Those supplies go into large plastic tote bags, labled for each day of sailing and are brought forward from their stacked position one time per day. This process provides one more aspect of discipline to the offshore experience and one that keeps the crew well supplied but not focussed on fending for themselves on an hourly basis which would distract from the task at hand which is racing the sail boat. When the paper towells are gone for the day, use the sponge; when the coffee is done for the day its done and we all self regulate which is the sign of a good team.
In the Galley there are different pouches with fan favorites such as a “Texas Pete” hot sauce (pronounced onboard “Tehas” Pedro), Sweet Baby Rays BBQ, rations of bars, each freeze dried meal, oatmeal etc. We can come down in the middle of the night and know where to find one of our 4 daily bars, or some blue gatorade powder for our 11th Hour Racing Water bottle.
The head is a world in and of itself and and due to our exit strategy from a particularly large wave yesterday morning, our private luxury head is now a lot more public. The head door sheared off its hinges and went TKO to leeward. It was another speed bump for the team today but as we have cleared today’s speed bumps like the head door, water maker, water tight forward compartment and grinding the boat upwind in 18 knots the team has become stronger for it.
Mary Jane Farms
The saga pertaining to aquiring the Vanquish freeze dried supply for the fastnet race was nothing short of arduous…Given fears that the world was going to end on something called “The Rapture,” and a series of global crisis, freeze dried availablility of the stock standard Mountain House brand was in short supply. What could be found in various venues did not meet our needs as a team for the Transat and Fastnet races. We needs four full cans (ten servings per can) of the same flavor. We need 2 full meals a day and therefore need a grand total of 28 meals, or 112 cans of freeze dried. We searched out door stores, internet retailers, Mountain House direct, tried out other brands such as Back Packers Pantry, Nitro, a Norweigan Brand and had trouble with either the exposure to foreign exchange rates or availability. In our travels to REI, an outdoor outfitters, we tried a package of a new Organic brand called Mary Jane’s Farm. As soon as we tasted the first packet we called the number on the back of the environmentally friendly packaging and found out how to order in bulk. Its a real pleasure to work with a company that has the agility to fire off a full order in a matter of days; and the Vanquish is lucky to have their product onboard. Everyone loves the food and we would wager we are eating better than most on the race; minus SOJANA and PHAEDO and Maltese Falcon. Its not five star Michelin but its the best meal you have eaten in the last 8 hours so no complaints from us.
Off to the bunk for some shut eye before the next battle begins.
Jesse
We left Newport a week ago today in superb conditions and have really lucked out in that department ever since. We’ve had favorable winds and weather almost all the way but it appears that good fortune is about to change. With only three boats in front of us on the leader board we have a lot more to lose than gain, so you can be sure that everyone out here on the Oakcliff All-American Offshore team is working overtime.
Our day started in bright sunshine—a pleasant surprise—and 12 knots of wind; that held for most of the afternoon. We passed the German youth entry mid-morning, maybe five miles to leeward, and kept on trucking. At about 2:00 PM the clouds rolled in, the breeze began to ease and shift to the north, as was expected. In the last few hours it’s lightened still and we’re trudging along with the code-zero in about 7-10 knots of wind, and a big and very confused seaway. The going is now, officially, slow from here on in.
The high-pressure ridge to our east (er, above us), is no longer stationary and has started to move east with us, towards England. Not so great. Glass half full: it will be harder for our competitors to our east to punch through it’s eastern limits. I guess we’re all in here together! It’s going to be an ugly finish for a lot of us…
After yesterday’s difficult times, today was absolutely jovial in comparison. Lots of laughs, lots of energy, and it’s clear we’re all looking forward to putting our best efforts forward in the final stages of this memorable race. I found some time to get a quick little survey together of one-half the crew (the other half to follow tomorrow). Enjoy!
-Amory
Ben Quattramoni
Worst memory so far: Losing one boot while up the rig
Best memory so far: The start in Newport
Favorite meal: Alfredo with Tuna
Misses most: “Bagel Boys”
Day sailing or night sailing: I dig the night baby
Favorite piece of clothing: Gill Crosswind Pants, sleeping bag on the go
What’s next: Quick beer then the airport, sailing with Powerplay Racing
Do it again: “Only if there’s more breeze! In a heart beat.”
Dave R.
Worst memory so far: Drinking salt-water accidentally
Best memory so far: Ghost stories at night, in the fog
Favorite meal: Pasta primavera
Misses most: A fine lager
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Gill Bamboo Base layer shirt
What’s next: Hanging out in Gosport, finding that fine lager
Do it again: “Of course.”
Matt Noble
Worst memory so far: The god #*^% genoa-staysail halyard
Best memory so far: Sun!
Favorite meal: Pasta BNT (bac-un, noodle, tomato)
Misses most: Beer
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Boots
What’s next: Traveling Europe
Do it again: “Of course.”
Molly Robinson
Worst memory so far: Watching Ben Q. lose his boot
Best memory so far: The Pat Showell/Chris Welch brainwash sessions
Favorite meal: Chili mac
Misses most: Hot showers
Day sailing or night sailing: Day
Favorite piece of clothing: Red winter beanie hat, with ear fluffs
What’s next: Finding a pub in Gosport
Do it again: “Absolutely.”
Colin Orsini
Worst memory so far: Damage to his head, in the head
Best memory so far: Sailing at night with all of the phosphorescents
Favorite meal: Bare burrito
Misses most: Girl time (with his girl)
Day sailing or night sailing: Day
Favorite piece of clothing: His Le Chameau boots, the “Rolls Royce” of sea boots
What’s next: finding a really big English meal
Do it again: “Yes, please.”
Chris Welch
Worst memory so far: A head experience, undisclosed
Best memory so far: Posting (keeping) highest VMG average among AAOT helmsman
Favorite meal: Alfredo w/ Tuna.
Misses most: Girl time (with his girl)
Day sailing or night sailing: Night time is the right time.
Favorite piece of clothing: His Le Chameau boots, the “ferrari” of sea boots
What’s next: Straight home for RC44 sailing with Artemis
Do it again: “For sure.”
Pat Showell
Worst memory so far: One particularly painful jibe
Best memory so far: The start in Newport
Favorite meal: Alfredo w/ Tuna
Misses most: The Sun
Day sailing or night sailing: Day
Favorite piece of clothing: Warm jacket
What’s next: Traveling, going to London
Do it again: “Yeah”
Nate Fast
Worst memory so far: The chili bin incident.
Best memory so far: Sunny sailing, what little we’ve had
Favorite meal: Bare burrito (fresh, not old)
Misses most: More than 3 hours of sleep
Day sailing or night sailing: Night
Favorite piece of clothing: Gill neck/wrist gasketed smock
What’s next: Traveling to France and Denmark
Do it again: “Hell yeah.”
