VX One Midwinter Championship at Pensacola Yacht Club - Days 1 & 2
by Talbot Wilson 16 Jan 2022 11:21 PST
January 15-17, 2022
2021-22 Winter Series #2 [WS#2] — started with lots of splashes Saturday on Pensacola Bay. The first leeward leg of race #1 saw five boats turn turtle and then on the final run to their finish two more went over. Seven total turtles. And then the rain came in for race #3.
In race #1 Leg 2, one of the sailors had to be picked up by a safety boat and returned to her boat when she couldn't swim fast enough to catch the boat. Her boat, VX One #175, Capsized and was righted by the crew. As the boat came upright the one in the water got separated from the boat.
Later one other person went overboard on the second downwind leg, but was quickly recovered.
Racing was set for a first warning at 1055. The wind was out of the East with gusts to 20kts and shifting a little South. After several short AP postponements, racing got under way. PRO Hal Smith's Pensacola YC committee and the VX One fleet got in four tough races.
In race #1, 35 boats started and two did not finish. In race #2, 34 boats started and two did not finish. In race #3, 33 boats started and three did not finish. In race #4, 32 boats started and three did not finish.
Gusty winds building ahead of an approaching cold front with rain moving across the bay at the start of race #3, took their toll on the fleet. It was a rough day on the bay. The first W-L around the course in race #4 was wet, but the final two legs for Day 1 were better with only 10-12kts and no rain.
Leading after four races on provisional results was VX One Class President Chris Alexander in #276 'Counterproductive'. Alexander, from Gulfport [MS] Yacht Club, had finished third overall in the WS#1 regatta in December.
Paul Kleinschrodt from Buccaneer YC in Mobile AL in #196 'Merica"' stands second. Kleinschrodt finished WS#1 in fourth place.
Results after Day 1: (four races)
1. 276, Counterproductive, Christopher Alexander, GYC / Edison Sailing Center, 1-1-3-5-; 10pts
2. 196, Merica", Paul Kleinschrodt, Buccaneer, 4-4-5-1-; 14pts
3. 275,, Greg Griffin, EYC, 2-2-8-4-; 16pts
4. 232, Katana, William Lydens, MBYC, 10-5-1-8-; 24pts
5. 269, Double The Fun, Hayden Bennett, Sail Newport, 5-7-7-6-; 25pts
6. 286, Leatherback Beer, Timothy Pitts, Coconut Grove Sailing Club, 8-10-11-2-; 31pts
7. 123, Bro Safari, Marc Farmer, RSTLYC, 12-11-10-3-; 36pts
8. 310, Old Man's 5-0-5, Paul Murphy, Storm Trysail Club, 3-6-18-13-; 40pts
9. 284, Jailbreak, Matt Haddon, None, 15-3-16-12-; 46pts
10. 171, The Wagon, Charles Brown, Ida Lewis, 6-12-15-17-; 50pts
The racing schedule continues Sunday and Monday in the three-day Championship. With a cold front passing and high pressure building on the other side, it will be cold sailing, in the 40-45ºF range on Sunday, if it is not too windy to race. VX One class rules and the NOR set a steady 3-minute 25 kt wind limit for racing. Two trusted weather models predict 23 with gusts to 35 and 20 gusting to 29.
Races not started are postponed. No racing Sunday.
Sunday morning Pensacola YC PRO Hal Smith and the VX One Class officials signaled no racing Sunday as they hoisted AP over A up the club flagpole. The decision was made for the safety of the competitors.
In racing Saturday with gusts to about 25kts, seven boats capsized in the first of four races completed. But the temperature was about 60ºF.
At 0800 Sunday, the temperature had dropped to 38ºF and winds were gusting to the mid 20's knocking the wind chill down into 20's. Some weather models still predict gusts in the high 30's or even up to 40Kts later in the day. With no relief in sight, the decision was unanimous.
Racing will continue as scheduled on Monday morning with a 0955 first warning.
Full daily results are posted at www.regattanetwork.com/event/23476#_home
Regatta Entry and the new combined NOR/SI's for the series and are now available on Regatta Network.
Series 2: www.regattanetwork.com/event/23476
Series 3: www.regattanetwork.com/event/23477
VX One Winter Series information will be posted on Regatta Network and the Pensacola YC web site 'Racing' section, www.pensacolayachtclub.org/Racing, and on the VX One Class website, vxone.org/na.