Magic Nylon

Yes, that is a fresh duck sticker being applied to the boom!

Full Moon crew Randy “Danish” Olsen, Michael “Chips” Medina, Debra “Duck Luck” Ricard, Fernand “Airflow” Ricard, and skipper John “Wind Wizard” Mengedoht hit the start line right on time for the “Tarts and Vicars” Duck Dodge but were once again closely surrounded by other boats and had to work hard to poke out ahead of the pack. Meanwhile, boats to leeward with clear air took off on a tight reach to the “Freeway” buoy to take the lead spots.

A tight and crowded rounding just behind the Ranger 23 True Blue left a bigger boat close to windward and Full Moon again struggled for clear air. Once free, Full Moon made back some distance but it was clear that boats closer to Gasworks had slightly stronger breeze and a better wind angle – Full Moon was right back with True Blue again at the “Aurora” buoy.

In fairly light wind, the mighty Equalizer doesn’t always shine so brightly and for the first third of the downwind leg, Full Moon mainly just kept pace with other boats. Then boats ahead began to lose steam. Full Moon threaded carefully through the fleet, somehow just keeping the Equalizer full while boats to the left and right struggled with collapsing sails. Old rivals Shogun and Ignitor (from the previous start) fell behind and Fortis was nearly caught as well. At the AGC buoy, the only third start boat in plain view was the San Juan 24 Orca, just behind us!

Pinching off Orca and then forging ahead, Full Moon headed for the finish line. A few horns sounded ahead – were they from first start (two laps but some extremely fast boats), second start (one lap, 5 minutes head start), or Full Moon’s third start? Crossing the line right next to the Committee Boat, Full Moon got the toot for third place and the Bronze Duck!

Finishing not too far behind was the Santana 20 Hot Cookies. Upon learning that Full Moon scored third, her skipper suggested Full Moon really belongs in second start with a faster group of boats (second start is for “half-fast” boats, compared to “fast boats” in first start and “cruising and slower” boats in third). I couldn’t agree more, at least in theory. Full Moon raced second start for many years until invited to switch to third start this summer by the Race Committee. However, when there are boats like Olson 30s allowed in second start, boats like Full Moon can’t hope to be competitive, unlike around 2000 or so when Full Moon would occasionally manage to beat Scat or Dreams to score a duck. Now even Dreams has apparently moved to third start!

Boys Weekend

Daniel and Ian in Poulsbo getting ready to play Trouble in the cockpit.

Daniel, Ian, and I took Full Moon out for an end-of-summer mini-vacation this last weekend, cruising through the locks and across the Sound to Poulsbo. Daniel slept most of the way over, recuperating from an overnight with his pre-teen buddies at the Community Center. Ian and I, though, got to enjoy a terrific reach across to Port Madison, cranking at over six knots for much of the way with bright sun and a cloudless sky.

The wind faded for the run through Agate Pass so the jib came down and the iron sail was fired up. The passage into Liberty Bay brought some more wind, though, and we sailed a good part of that leg as well. The wind was still blowing nicely right in front of the Port of Poulsbo Marina but with no slip reserved, we dropped the sails to claim one near the end of the dock.

Time to head to Mora Ice Cream for an afternoon treat! A slow walk through town yielded two good book stores and several likely dinner options. Daniel found a new book he's been waiting for and Ian and I were tempted by some interesting used books. After a trip back to the boat to play several rounds of Trouble, we headed to J. J's Fishhouse for dinner, which had a good dinner for Ian but not so good for Daniel and I. We both had fish and chips with tough and not especially tasty fish. The cold beer was perfect, though!

Back to the boat to shift gear around for sleeping. A few more games and it was lights out until morning. Up reasonably early, we headed for the showers and a big breakfast at Sheila's, hoping the thick fog would burn off quickly. It thinned a bit so we headed out, hoping not to have to rely on the GPS to find our way home. Sure enough, it got a bit worse turning into Port Orchard but it was mostly still possible to see the shore and, more importantly, find the buoys.

Rounding the corner into Port Madison, the fog continued, though there was enough wind to prompt some sailing for awhile. When our speed dropped below 2 knots, though, we went back to Yamaha power. Thankfully, we had the elderly but fully functional handheld GPS, though heads on swivels and keen ears were employed as well - it would be no fun meeting a big freighter in the fog.

Four miles later, we were off Shilshole, still fogged in. With a brief pause to bag up the sails and set out fenders and lines, we headed for the locks, still watching for buoys until the sun finally popped out just outside the railroad bridge. The locks went smoothly and a sailboat ahead managed to get the Fremont Bridge to open nearly as we arrived and it was home sweet home on Lake Union.

Fun with Fortis

With very light winds for the start of the Pajama Night Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Randy “Quik-Pack” Olsen, Tammy “Pink Toes” Cross, Dave “Cheese Board” Pulsifer, Ian “Fabio” Mengedoht, Daniel “Carrot Thief” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Tilted Kilt” Mengedoht attempted a mid-line start in hopes of separating at least a little from all the other boats. Unfortunately, the wind dropped to zero just before the start and Full Moon hadn’t quite made it to the line. When the wind did eventually fill in, Full Moon made the most of it but not before losing a number of places to boats better positioned for the start.

Traffic and following the limited wind took Full Moon nearly to the south end of Lake Union before heading across on port tack toward the AGC buoy. This move was somewhat perilous, given the need to dodge behind starboard tack boats, but still paid off by keeping Full Moon in slightly stronger breeze. Approaching the buoy, though, Full Moon had to duck behind a line of four starboard tack boats and this allowed old rivals Fortis (from the previous start), who arrived slightly later, to sneak inside and round ahead. Thus began a see-saw battle with Full Moon typically gaining the edge between buoys and Fortis having much better luck actually rounding the buoys.

The mighty Equalizer was launched for the long downwind run to the Freeway buoy and a move toward the middle of the lake helped get by a few boats but the wind remained light, barely filling the spinnaker at times. Approaching the buoy, a red Santana 20 cut inside with no rights and bopped the buoy with their bow. Rather than re-round or take a penalty turn (it is, of course, the Duck Dodge…), they simply pulled ahead and stole Full Moon’s wind. Sure enough, this setback set the stage for Fortis to get by once again as the wind finally filled in for the upwind leg to the Aurora buoy.

Full Moon managed to close the gap to Fortis a bit but the wind had shifted to northwest and Full Moon was unprepared to launch the spinnaker for the final leg! Fortis pulled ahead for good (not that it really mattered since Full Moon was in a later start), though Full Moon was still fairly quick without the Equalizer and easily held off anybody from behind. In the end, Full Moon was a very respectable sixth place out of well over twenty boats on a gorgeous sunny evening.

Unexpected Success!

The Pre-race "conference."

Doug usually takes all the pictures but was caught in this one...

The happy Avenger!

Full Moon crew Michael “Fourth!” Medina, Marcelle “Rum” Lynde, Doug “Tug” Schoemaker, Chuck “Droid” Weldy, Daniel “The Avenger” Mengedoht (AKA “Big Pour”), and skipper John “Seventh” Mengedoht went for yet another port tack start for Duck Dodge No. 13, which worked pretty well after ducking two starboard tack boats. This lead to a tight-reaching port tack drag race to the “Freeway” buoy and, as boats converged, Full Moon was unfortunately forced wide and outside and then further delayed as inside boats opted to hold off on tacking right away. This allowed a few boats to get by, though Full Moon caught a few in return on the close reach/beat to the Aurora buoy.

Approaching the buoy, there was again a lot of traffic and the shifty wind lead to a few extra tacks. Savvy sailors aboard the Catalina Almond Joy nailed the perfect line to the mark to round well ahead and, judging by all the boats in front, it looked like Full Moon would have to work a bit just to ensure a top ten finish.

A jibe-set of the mighty Equalizer went smoothly to send Full Moon toward the center of the lake and, hopefully, stronger breeze. Unfortunately, the jibe back to starboard was called too soon and Full Moon headed nearly dead downwind toward the AGC buoy. All the same, the large sail area began to help out and Full Moon began closing the gap to Almond Joy, ultimately pulling up inside and to leeward to make the pass just before the buoy. Passing boats always feels great!

Heading upwind to the finish, it was hard to tell which boats might be in third start and which might be from the earlier second start. Heading toward the line, a blue boat ahead got the horn from the Committee Boat to designate a top three finish. Could it be that Full Moon was that close to the lead? There was one boat between Full Moon and the finish – the big Buchan 37 Dreamscape. Dreamscape was forced to tack around a drifting powerboat while Full Moon nailed two smooth tacks to cross just ahead! As it turned out, Full Moon was an excellent fourth place, much to the amazement of her skipper who was certain several boats ahead were also from the third start.

It was yet another beautiful evening on the water (if a bit colder than it should be…) and the rum concoctions tasted great during the usual post-race cruise around the lake. Hard to believe there are only three races left this summer!

Not Quite Tropical

The dark sky provided a nice backdrop for the glowing sails at the start.

Where are we going?

Sun through the spinnakers.

It's always a good time on Full Moon!

Full Moon went for a port tack start at the pin once again for the Tropical Night Duck Dodge, which worked just fine except for several large boats with the same idea. Blanketed by the big boats sails, crew Randy “GeoTag” Olsen, Art “American in Paris” Teller, Tammy “Bon Voyage” Cross, Ian “Rusty” Mengedoht, Daniel “Thurston Howell IV” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Islander” Mengedoht struggled for speed until an opportunity finally came to tack into clear air. By this time, Full Moon was well behind the lead boats, though several boats were passed on the remainder of the first leg to the Aurora buoy, including old rival Ignitor.

The Equalizer went up smoothly to start the second leg and, once clear of traffic, Full Moon took off and got by a number of boats on the long reach to the AGC buoy, including several boats from the second start. The next leg to the floating “island” (a Tropical Night exclusive) was challenging as the breeze got lighter and somewhat unpredictable. Full Moon lost a place or two to larger boats but then was able to nail the approach to score a good number of free beers dispensed by the “island” natives.

On the final leg to the finish, Full Moon was able to get ahead of well-sailed Ranger 21 True Blue and the San Juan 28 Zephyr but could not quite catch the deceptively quick Catalina Almond Joy. In the end, Full Moon was a still-respectable ninth out of well over twenty boats. Despite the less than tropical temperature, it was time to break out the rum drinks and celebrate another fun summer evening on the lake.

Ups and Downs

Mengedohts, large and small

"Big Thud" before the fall

Michael and Marcelle

Prepare to be Equalized!

Full Moon crew Marcelle “Where’s My Cup?” Lynde, Debra “Any Cup Will Do” Ricard, Michael “Bagarita” Medina, Dave “Big Thud” Pulsifer, Daniel “Golden Boy” Mengedoht and skipper John “What Next?” Mengedoht were well outfitted with beads and masks for the Mardi Gras Duck Dodge. With winds just north of westerly, a port tack start was strongly favored and Full Moon hit the line right on time and with good speed. At the Freeway buoy, Full Moon was up with the lead boats but ended up having to swing wide around a slower boat, losing a couple of places in the process.

The second upwind leg across Gasworks was fun as Full Moon battled with Cobalt from second start, somehow outpointing and then closing the door on the theoretically faster J24. There were still several third start boats ahead, though, and Full Moon’s hopes rested on the mighty Equalizer.

Unfortunately, some tangled lines delayed the hoist of the nylon giant. Once up, it was certainly helpful as Full Moon slowly got by a big Catalina 36 and then began to reel in the San Juan 28, Zephyr, but the gap to the lead was still a bit too much to overcome.

Rounding the AGC buoy, disaster struck as the Equalizer refused to come down! Several places were lost as the crew struggled upwind with the spinnaker trying to fill in the opposite direction. It finally came down, though, and Full Moon surged ahead, hoping to pick off a few boats before the finish. Sure enough, Full Moon outpointed and then tacked (cleanly) in front of the San Juan 24 Orca just before the finish to take a very respectable sixth place. Then it was time to break out the Margaritas, beer, and munchies as the sun dipped all too soon behind Queen Anne Hill.