Acura - Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week - Day 1

by Rich Roberts on 28 Jun 2008 Before three days of sailing commenced as Acura presents Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week, Dave Ullman looked outside from the podium at the notorious June Gloom and offered key tips for sailing the local waters, especially in Friday's conditions. When the racing started, he said, the wind would be 'about 7 knots.'

That's not what everyone wanted to hear, but it turned out OK for some of the 138 boats racing on three courses in 19 classes in the West's largest keelboat regatta that is co-hosted by the Long Beach and Alamitos Bay Yacht Clubs.

'It was our conditions,' said Chris Redman, skipper of Oscar Krinsky's 1D48, Chayah, in the Fast 50 class after they won the first two of seven races scheduled through Sunday. 'We like light air, but the best part was having Oscar back out there with us.'

Krinsky, a Long Beach sailor and longtime leading competitor around Southern California, has been battling cancer since last year and still has some chemotherapy treatment remaining. But he was able to ride along with his team Friday, as Redman drove. 'It was a big deal for us,' Redman said, 'a real boost.'

The only downside was that after missing the recent Yachting Cup at San Diego, Chayah has little chance of overtaking Alec Oberschmidt's Staghound in the Ullman Sails Inshore Championship series that concludes here.

Other opening day leaders included Neil Senturia of San Diego, whose Occam's Razor, won One Design Boat of the Day honors with a 1-5 performance that has him tied for first with Tom Hirsh, also of San Diego, in the tough new Flying Tiger 10 class.

Senturia only regretted that working the left side of the course in the second race as the wind clocked right. 'If we'd played the right we wouldn't be tied,' he said. 'But we love sailing at Long Beach, and the Flying Tiger fleet is a lot of fun. Everyone is real friendly … no yelling at each other or anything.'

John Kilroy's Samba Pa Ti from California YC and Jim Madden's Stark Raving Mad, leaders in the Fast 70 and Fast 40 classes, respectively, were co-PHRF Boats of the Day.

Another San Diego sailor, Bennet Greenwald, has been sailing a J/105 only 2 1/2 years but made a strong start with a 4-1 day toward winning here for the second year in a row. The J/105s are the largest class with 14 boats.

'There's a lot of racing left,' said Greenwald, who credited his success to tactician Randy Smith, a local, and the rest of his crew. 'I'm just glad to be out there. All I do is stand in the back and hang on by my fingernails and pray they don't scream at me too much.' He didn't even complain about the weather.

As it was, the wind started out at about 7 knots, as Ullman expected, then fluttered up to 9 or 10 as the sun finally broke through near the end of two flights of races.

Ullman called it 'a classic Catalina Eddy day,' referring to the condition when the breeze is coming from the east end of Santa Catalina Island 22 miles offshore. The best sea breeze comes off the west end of the island down the San Pedro Channel.

'When you start in a Catalina Eddy effect, when you get out there the wind is going to be left of 180,' Ullman said. 'Later, when you see some blue sky over your head, you have to think about going right.

'If, at some point, you see Palos Verdes clear [to the west], that's when you *have* to go right, because the west wind is already over Palos Verdes … anytime the wind is right of 210.'

Everyone will keep that in mind the next couple of days. Racing will continue Saturday and Sunday starting at noon, conditions permitting.

Ullman Sails is the title sponsor. ACURA is the presenting sponsor. Other supporters are West Marine, the City of Long Beach Recreation and Marine Dept., Gladstone's Long Beach, the 5.70 Open class in association with Nauteek Tactical Electronics, True Wind products, Mount Gary Rum, J/Boats, Atlantis Weather Gear, Duffy Electric Boats and DISC Spine & Sports Center.



Class leaders (After 2 of 7 races)
FARR 40 (9 boats)---Piranha, David Voss, California YC, 2-1, 3 points.
CATALINA 37 (10)---Team San Diego, Annie Nelson, San Diego YC, 2-1, 3.
J/80 (6)---Avert, Curt Johnson, California YC, 2-1, 3.
J/105 (14)---Perseverance, Bennett Greenwald, San Diego YC, 4-1, 5.
MELGES 24 (4)---Where's Bob, Robert Tennant, Treasure Island SC, 1-1, 2.
SCHOCK 35 (5)---Power Play, Stephen Arkle, South Coast YC, 3-1, 4.
FAST 70 (5)---Tie between Samba Pa Ti (Transpac 52), John Kilroy, California
YC, 2-1, and Peligroso, Mike Campbell, Long Beach YC, and Dale Williams, St. Francis YC, 1-2, 3.
FAST 50 (7)---Chayah (1D48), Oscar Krinsky/Chris Redman, Alamitos Bay YC, 1-1, 2.
FAST 40 (5)---Stark Raving Mad (J/125), Jim Madden, Newport Harbor YC,
SPORTBOAT (9)---Tie between Nemesis (Melges 30), Southwestern YC, 2-1, and Entropy (Tripp 41), Chris Hemans, Balboa YC, 1-2, 3.
J/120 (8)---Racing Saturday and Sunday only.
FLYING TIGER 10 (8)---Tie between Occam's Razor, Neil Senturia, San Diego YC, 1-5, and Harbor Sailboats Racing, Tom Hirsh, 2-4, 6.
MUMM 30 (5)---Babe, Doug Steele, California YC, 4-1, 5.
CAL 25 (6)---Jane's Addiction, Steve and Jane Horst, Bahia Corinthian YC, 1-1, 2.
OPEN 5.70 (7)---Havic, Rich and Tony Festa, South Coast YC, 1-3, 4.
J/29 (6)---Sedona, Bruce D. Lotz, Dana Point YC, 1-1, 2.
PHRF-4 (11)---Martela (IMX 38), Viggo Torbensen, Dana Point YC, 2-1, 3.
PHRF-5 (9)---Medusa (Viper 640), John Riddell, Arizona YC, 1-1, 2.
RANDOM LEG (4)---T-N-T, Wes Selby, American Legion YC,

Complete results www.lbrw.org

Ullman Sails Inshore Championship standings www.ullmansails.com