Star North American Championship

Photo by Bronny Daniels

Marina del Rey

The final two races of the Star North American Championship were held today in identical conditions to the other days, 7-8 knots from the southwest and choppy seas.

While Arthur and I had great starts and were up front in both races, we could not match the speed of Eric Doyle. We got a 2, 4 to his 1, 3.

There was a lot of up and down and back and forth with other players but the championship boiled down to just that.

Next Star event for me is the Vintage Gold Cup in Gull Lake Michigan, where I will be Sailing with my son Danny in our 55 year old wooden Star, GEM. More on that later.

The Star World Championship in mid October is next on Arthur and my schedule and we will be working hard on a good result there.

For complete results go to: www.starclaas.org/NorthAmericanChampionship

Paul

 

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Star North American Championship-Day 3

photo by Mary Stuyvesant

Marina Del Rey

Race 5 and 6 were held today in 7-8 knots of wind and very sloppy seas. On weekends, Marina Del Ray gets a lot of chop from all the recreational boats that come out of the harbor and head up to Santa Monica and Malibu.

In Race 5, Tutu and I had a great start and good speed. We managed to win the race with Eric Doyle in a close second and Steve Gould with Greg Seek in third.

Race 6 did not go so well for Tutu and I. We weren’t fast and I went the wrong way almost all the legs. We finished 12th. Mark Reynolds with Roger Cheer crewing won the race. The left side of the course was good and Nick Madigan of Newport got over to that side on the second windward leg, sailed well and finished 2nd. Eric Doyle again was strong with a third place.

After 6 races, Doyle/ Infelise are leading by 4 points over Arthur and I with Vasella/Trinter 9 points back in 3rd. Mark Reynolds is in 4th wirth Carlie Buckingham sailing well today to move up to 5th.

Races 7 and 8 will be tomorrow to close out the Championship.

For complete results go to: http://results.calyachtclub.com/RaceResul…/2018/star-na.html

Paul

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Star North American Championship

photos by Bronny Daniels
 
Marina Del Rey
 
Races 3 and 4 of the Star North American Championship were held today in 8-11 knots of wind from the southwest. The sea was quite a bit more choppy than yesterday which made for some challenging steering for the helmsmen.
 
Eric Doyle and Payson Infelise continued their winning ways in race 3. They were fast and smart, which is deadly. I on the other hand, sailed not so smartly in race 3 and we finished 6th. Chrlie Buckingham, fresh off qualifying the USA for the 2020 Olympics in the Laser class, sailed a great race to finish second and Peter Vessella and Phil Trinter rounded out the top 3.
 
The start to Race 4 had two general recalls before the fleet finally got off under a black flag. As we rounded the first mark, a few to the top contenders were notified of their disqualification for starting early under the black flag. Among them were Eric Doyle, Mark Reynolds and John MacCausland, all three being past world champions.
 
Arthur and I sailed very fast down the first run to pass Jim Buckingham and grab the lead. We kept it simple up the second windward leg and stretched out to a comfortable lead for the run to the finish. Vasella/Trinter were very fast today and grabbed second from Buckingham/Moss who finished 3rd.
 
So after four races, Arthur and I have the lead by 2 points over Vasella/Trinter. But this lead is tempered by the fact that Eric Doyle made a mistake in race 4 that carries a hefty penalty. After tomorrows racing, each team’s score will be summed after discarding their worst race, which will help Doyle a lot obviously.
 
Arthur and I need to keep working on all aspects of our sailing. We have moments of greatness but not consistently enough.
 
For complete results go to: http://results.calyachtclub.com/RaceResults/2018/star-na.html
 
Paul
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Star North American Championship

photos by Mary Stuyvesant

Marina Del Rey

Today was day 1 of the Star North American Championship in Marina del Rey, California. The conditions were beautiful for Star sailing; 7-9 knots with a moderate sea.

In race 1, Eric Doyle, with Payson Infelise up front, held a narrow lead of Arthur Lopes and I. Eric had a bad start but dug his way out by playing the left side of the course and it worked. Rick Merriman, Vasella/Trinter and john MacCausland with Arnis Baltins rounded out the top 5 and things pretty much stayed that way around the 6 mile race track.

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In Race 2, I was a bit late at the start and was just barely able to get a clean lane. We were forced to the right pretty quickly and rounded the first mark 8th. Benny Mitchell with Patrick Powell crewing held a comfortable lead at the first mark after a 1.7 miles windward leg. Eric Doyle was second, with Vasella, Andy Mac Donald, and Merriman in a tight group. Mark Reynolds, out sailing for the first time in a while rounded just ahead of Arthur and I.

Arthur and I had a good downwind leg to round the gate 4th and all but caught Doyle and Mitchell by the second windward Mark. We could not quite get around them and the three of us finished within 3 boat lengths with Mitchell taking the win, Doyle 2nd and Arthur and I third.

So after Day 1, Doyle leads with 3 points, we are second with 5, Vasella is third with 9 and MacDonnald and MacCausland are tied on 11.

6 more races are scheduled for the championship which will end on Sunday.

For Complete scores go to : http://results.calyachtclub.com/RaceResults/2018/star-na.html

I am also posting on my FaceBook page. Trying to move into the 21st century.

Paul

www.cayardsailing.com

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