Best Comeback Ever!

Wigs provide some Pride Night color on Full Moon.

If you’re never over-early, you’re probably not trying hard enough. So it was that Full Moon and one other boat were across the starting line just before the horn for the Pride Night Duck Dodge, requiring us to circle around the end buoy to restart and costing a few minutes. Full Moon crew Michael “Who, Me?” Medina, Marcelle “Eagle Eye” Van Houten, Daniel “Big Six” Mengedoht, Leslie “Shutter Bug” Synnestvedt, and skipper John “Legendary” Mengedoht nonetheless found a nice upwind groove to the Freeway buoy, which was placed a bit farther west than normal. This apparently confused quite a few boats, which proceeded farther north than necessary to round the fixed Gasworks green buoy rather than the official Duck Dodge buoy. The good news for Full Moon was that this allowed us to advance from near the back of the fleet to closer to the middle.

Full Moon and a Hobie 33 were just barely early across the starting line.

Well-placed tacks to pick up the wind shifts brought Full Moon past a few more boats to the Aurora buoy where the mighty Equalizer was soon launched. Favoring the middle of the lake to escape the wind shadow of boats to windward, Full Moon got past a few more boats on the long broad reach south, culminating in passing speedy Necessary Evil (Catalina 30) just before the AGC buoy.

Getting past Necessary Evil.

A straight shot upwind to the finish line widened the lead over boats behind and, much to our amazement, we received the horn for third place! Given the disastrous start, this was surely Full Moon’s best comeback of all time.

Skipper's Choice

Early on the first leg to AGC. Can you spot Full Moon?

Full Moon crew Randy “NA” Olsen, Chad “Amber Ale” Harnish, Carey “Azimuth” Reibman, Daniel “Dry” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Not Dry” Mengedoht intended to set up near the middle of the starting line for the Skipper’s Choice Duck Dodge but ended up a bit too far back and in a crowded pack of boats near the “pin” end. Starting eleventh isn’t a recipe for success but Full Moon soon moved up to eighth on the first upwind leg (SW wind) to the AGC buoy.

Daniel at his normal station when not on the bow.

The Equalizer was quickly launched for the long second leg, Full Moon threading through boats heading in the opposite direction. The wind was just right for great speed, Full Moon nearly getting up on a plane at one point. Nearing the Freeway buoy, Full Moon had moved up into fifth place.

Cap'n John with a post-race cold beverage.

The third leg was a straight shot nearly close-hauled to the Aurora buoy. Full Moon managed to pass one boat only to have a J22 squeeze inside to round the buoy ahead. The final leg was upwind where Full Moon crossed the line still fifth but way ahead of the rest of the fleet.

Late For the Prom

Full Moon is beyond the red J24 at the start.

Full Moon crew Michael “Almost 70” Medina, Daniel “Chaperone” Mengedoht, Kristen “Perfect Drop” Rue, and skipper John “Early” Mengedoht prepared for the Prom Night Duck Dodge with Tux t-shirts and our traditional mirror ball. Unfortunately, skipper John approached the starting area a bit early and ended up near the “pin” end and trapped to leeward of relative giant (Catalina 36) Tranquilitee. Once able to duck behind and to windward of Tranquilitee, which appeared unable to point very well, Full Moon was near the back of the pack.

Michael holds the jib sheet.

This intolerable situation didn’t last too long, Full Moon gaining on the first leg and passing Tranquilitee via a well-timed “slam dunk” tack. Rounding the Freeway buoy meant just continuing straight for Gasworks and tacking near the shore. This reduced the number of tacks needed to reach the Aurora buoy. With a starboard tack approach locked in with sufficient time, the spinnaker pole was raised and the Equalizer launched just after rounding the buoy.

Daniel mans the "pit."

Full Moon then managed to pass three boats with spinnakers on the broad reaching leg south while gaining nicely on a fourth boat approaching the AGC buoy. The Equalizer came down perfectly but there was an issue yet again with the pole after jibing around the buoy. (The extra long “turbo” pole can be challenging to stow.)

Full Moon (blue, black and white spinnaker) heading for the AGC buoy.

The final leg upwind was a straight shot, and Full Moon crossed the line in what we believe was seventh place, not at all bad given the poor start. Meanwhile, it was a gorgeous warm evening with a nice breeze, a welcome rarity in June.

Barbie and Two Kens

Full Moon crew Daniel “Steady On” Mengedoht, Anne “Socks” Gustavson, and skipper John “Golden” Mengedoht were a little short-handed again and opted for fourth start (no spinnakers) in the Barbie Night Duck Dodge. The wind was very light out of the northeast for the start and Full Moon opted for better clear air over the advantaged but crowded pin end of the line. Unfortunately, a couple of larger boats got past in the first hundred yards.

Full Moon approaches the starting line.

The wind improved slightly approaching the Freeway buoy but a boat close behind to leeward prevented a tack until getting close to Gasworks. This proved helpful, though, as the resulting course heading west generally had better wind than some other options. A tack near the Westlake shore ended up bringing Full Moon right to the Aurora buoy for a tight rounding to avoid traffic.

Slingshot (left) and Necessary Evil (right) sneaking up from behind.

Once around, it was difficult to escape the wind shadow from third start boats Slingshot and Necessary Evil, both flying large spinnakers. Heading toward the middle of the lake (always a good idea) eventually brought clear air and Full Moon passed both boats, at least for a while, despite not flying a spinnaker. Unfortunately, speedy Summer Salt (Harbor 20) got better wind from behind and ended up ahead at the AGC buoy as the breeze finally filled in.

The wind slowly fills in. That may be Full Moon on the far left.

It was a straight shot to the finish line where Full Moon expected to be second (at best) behind Summer Salt, but it turned out they were in third start and Full Moon got the horn for first place!

Daniel holds the proof - a Gold Duck!

Sunny Mardi Gras

Full Moon (far right) on approach to the AGC buoy. The eventual third place boat is on the left with the blue spinnaker.

Full Moon crew Michael “Zoomer” Medina, Marcelle “Origami” Van Houten, Daniel “Holy Hell” Mengedoht, Kristen “Sta-lo” Rue, and skipper John “Not Sorry” Mengedoht went with a starboard tack start for the Mardi Gras Duck Dodge, sixth across the line. This was a safe choice, given a crowded start line and strong wind, though boats able to get through on port tack enjoyed an advantage. Others (behind us) were apparently not so lucky with some collisions and close calls!

Daniel enjoys the post-race sun.

Three tacks later, Full Moon passed the Freeway buoy, then tacked westward near Gasworks to head to the Aurora buoy. After rounding, the Equalizer was soon launched, providing excellent speed on the long broad reaching leg south and allowing Full Moon to gain substantially on boats ahead. With a smooth spinnaker drop just before the AGC buoy, Full Moon nearly passed a couple of boats heading into the final leg.

Marcelle also enjoys a golden glow.

Unfortunately, jibing around the buoy, the jib sheets fouled badly on the spinnaker pole. The resulting lack of speed dropped Full Moon back to seventh at the finish, not at all bad, all things considered.

Missed It by That Much!

Full Moon crew Randy “No Pull” Olsen, Daniel “Pull” Mengedoht, Chad “Shrimper” Harnish, Ben “Gold Hat” Spicer, and skipper John “Consistent” Mengedoht were slightly delayed for the start of the Western Night Duck Dodge due to an untied jib sheet but well positioned for clear air. While crossing the line in sixth or seventh place, this helped with gaining on the boats ahead on the first leg to the AGC buoy.

Full Moon and the Equalizer.

After rounding the buoy, the Equalizer was soon hoisted to good effect, the breeze having shifted from southwest to the west. The question then became whether the center of the course would be best or more toward the east side of the lake. Full Moon passed and then fought off the Catalina 30 Necessary Evil in the middle and was looking good to maybe take the lead when the wind veered strongly into the northwest. This made the spinnaker untenable, and the takedown was ugly, the spinnaker pulling backward then taking a bath. This allowed two boats from the east to slide ahead as well as Necessary Evil before rounding the Freeway buoy.

You can't see the finish line but Full Moon (left) was maybe 10 feet behind Necessary Evil (right).

The leg to the Aurora buoy was hard on the wind and Necessary Evil inexplicably sailed a lower course. (Perhaps they had issues of their own?) Two tacks later, Full Moon was back in front and around the buoy. The final leg was mostly a run but in much lighter wind. A spinnaker would have been beneficial but the Equalizer was a thoroughly soggy pile in the bottom of the cockpit. Necessarily Evil, on the other hand, was able to get a spinnaker up and slowly gained from behind. At the finish line, they were barely ahead to get the horn for third place with Full Moon fourth. All things considered, this was an excellent finish as there were a lot of boats behind us!

No Rain, No Pain

Full Moon is first across the starting line but the J22 SYC4 was better positioned.

Too shorthanded to fly the Equalizer (spinnaker), Full Moon once again raced in fourth start for the Onesie Night Duck Dodge. Crew Daniel “Random Task” Mengedoht, new crew Kristin “Muscles” Rue, and skipper John “Strategerie” Mengedoht managed a great start right on the line. Unfortunately, the J22 SYC 4 was not far behind and closer to the Committee Boat, giving them the lead once we all tacked. Even more unfortunately, there was a t-bone port-starboard collision not far behind us! (We hope the damage was minimal, but the crash was quite loud!)

With clear air and good wind, Full Moon enjoyed good speed on the upwind leg to the AGC buoy, rounding still in second place and ahead of several third start boats. (For some reason, the Race Committee elected to do a clockwise course, which can encourage boats to approach an upwind mark on port tack for an easier and faster rounding, but things went smoothly so far as we saw.) The course to the Aurora buoy was roughly dead downwind so Full Moon went through a few gybes and even ran “wing and wing” at times but still managed to stay even with some boats using spinnakers, passing two just before rounding.

The course to the Freeway buoy was a close reach, providing good speed. The rounding went well, and it was then upwind to the finish line where Full Moon got the horn for second place!

Auspicious Beginning?

 

Full Moon is seen at the left, not long after the start.

Full Moon wasn’t supposed to make it to the first Duck Dodge of 2025 but skipper John “New Toy” Mengedoht got home from a business trip just in time to gather sons Ian “Tactical Ballast” Mengedoht and Daniel “Straight, No Chaser” Mengedoht to join the race in fourth start (no flying sails).

The Mengedoht boys enjoying incredible early May weather.

Unfortunately, the wind was nearly nonexistent, coming weakly out of the south before the start, fading to zero, then reversing to come sporadically and very weakly out of the north. This led to a massive cluster of boats from all the starts barely moving, if at all, struggling to get to the AGC buoy at the south end of the lake. The boats that could fly a spinnaker tried them but with very limited results – a spinnaker is of no value if it won’t fill.

Daniel secures the Bronze Duck from the race committee.

Somehow, Full Moon managed (mostly) to keep moving. The wind returned to a barely felt southerly on approach to the buoy and Full Moon slipped into a gap to go around. Clearing other surrounding boats plus those still heading for the buoy was a challenge but then the wind began to fill in from the north, ultimately sending Full Moon on a fast romp upwind.

One more duck on the mast... We're running out of room!

This continued all the way to the Freeway buoy where the wind faded a little and shifted into the west, setting Full Moon up for a beam reach to the finish line. With the long drift southward, it was difficult to gauge how we were doing but Full Moon received the horn for third place and the Bronze Duck!

Fading Light

Michael supplies the Race Committee with the traditional "Committee Appreciation."

Full Moon crew Randy “Stereo” Olsen, Michael “Tippy Cup” Medina, Marcelle “Deck Ornament” Van Houten, Daniel “Low Pole” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Close Enough” Mengedoht enjoyed an average start for the final Duck Dodge, on port tack too far from the favored Committee Boat end of the line. Things improved on the first leg until the giant ketch Jolly Roger stalled at the Freeway buoy. Full Moon approached on starboard tack, but a port tack boat failed to duck (or tack) with the result that Full Moon couldn’t quite make it around the buoy. Given the chaos around Jolly Roger, Full Moon kept going, even though this would officially be a DNF.

Full Moon is nearly on time for the start but too far from the favored end and moving a bit slow.

The Equalizer worked wonders on the long reaching leg south, Full Moon gaining substantially on Slingshot (J30) and some other boats. The wind went light near the AGC buoy, however, leading to a minor pile-up of boats. Full Moon managed to find a lane close to the buoy but then struggled to get going. This allowed Makima (Thunderbird) to get past and for Slingshot to pull back ahead. In the end, Full Moon was about fifth, ignoring the missed buoy.

Full Moon sailing into the sunset, post-race.

The final race on Full Moon is historically Martini Night and the skipper upheld the tradition with three olives “for the protein.” It was a gorgeous evening on the lake, and we enjoyed sailing around for quite a while.

Commodore Daniel with cocktail shaker.

Full Moon averaged fourth place for the season, including four races in second start, but not counting four races we skipped. We scored a whopping six ducks, one gold, four silver, and one bronze. Despite the success, third start still seems most appropriate with typical competition from Tailwind (Capri 25), Makima (T-bird), Honey Bee (Ranger 26), Iskra (S2 8.0), Necessary Evil (Catalina 30), and several J22s.

Touch N' Go

It will soon be much closer than this at the start.

Full Moon crew Randy “Pleasure Point” Olsen, Michael “Cabin Boy” Medina, Anne “Birthday Girl” Gustavson, Daniel “Seizure Story” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Shhhhh” Mengedoht set up for a starboard tack start like most of the fleet for the Band Night Duck Dodge. This was complicated by a boat that was essentially stalled and very much in the way of a lot of boats. Then Necessary Evil (Catalina 30) pushed up from leeward, making side to side contact several times with Full Moon, which had been dealing with another boat to windward. I could drone on about rules, but an essential one is that hitting another boat is not okay if it can be avoided… Thankfully, there was no damage.

Boys on the Boat - Daniel, Randy, and Michael.

Full Moon did eventually pull clear to windward and gained sufficient room to tack in front of a Harbor 20. Things were then looking very good, with only Tailwind (Capri 25) apparently in front but a J22 and Makima (Thunderbird) were on a tighter line to the freeway buoy and Full Moon rounded in fourth.

The boats behind will soon be much farther behind!

It was a straight shot to the Aurora buoy. Once around, it took a minute or two for a gybe set but then it was onto the reach/run to the AGC buoy with the Equalizer. Full Moon gained a bit on the leaders and quite a bit on the boats behind, but it wasn’t enough to change positions. With a clean drop at the buoy, Full Moon headed upwind for the finish to place fourth.

Avast There!

Full Moon approaches the line on port tack.

The forecast for the Pirate Night Duck Dodge was for another light wind drifter but we were blessed with fairly robust wind out of the south. Full Moon crew Michael “Halyards” Medina, Ben “Takedown” Spicer, Daniel “Pointy End” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Long Tack First” Mengedoht ended up approaching the starting line on port tack and had to duck a Buchan 37 before tacking to cross the line in fifth place. The Buchan proved to be in the way, behind and just to leeward, for much of the first leg until there was finally room to tack westward. Ducking Rajun Cajun (J24) wasn’t too painful but then Honey Bee (Ranger 26) plugged the works with no steerage right at the AGC buoy.

Full Moon has ducked and tacked behind the Buchan 37, still a decent start.

Once around, Full Moon headed northeast with the genoa before gybing and hoisting the Equalizer, which kept Full Moon in the hunt on the long leg north. Tacking after rounding the Freeway buoy placed Full Moon in the center of the lake for the best wind. Unfortunately, the Buchan had reappeared behind and to leeward, once again preventing a desired tack. In the end Full Moon had to duck behind the Buchan and finished fifth, just ahead of Honey Bee.

August Drifter #2

Full Moon (far right) chasing the leaders.

The Wrestling Night Duck Dodge featured extremely light wind with apparently random shifts. Full Moon crew Randy “Stay in the Middle” Olsen, Rob “Jib Sheets” Lane, Logan “Fancy Knots” Pulsifer, Daniel “Low Pole” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Giant Jib” Mengedoht set up for a starboard tack start near the pin end of the line but were a bit late on timing (skipper error), crossing ahead of a few port tack boats but behind six other boats. The good news, if any, is that the first tack resulted in a course directly to the Freeway buoy once all the wind shifts were through.

Parking lot at the AGC buoy.

With no Aurora buoy (shortened course), the Equalizer was hoisted for the long leg south, but the wind had shifted from a northerly to a west to southwest direction, resulting in flying the symmetrical chute more like a badly cut genoa. The wind held for much of the leg but faded out near the AGC buoy. This allowed Full Moon to catch up with boats ahead until running into the same dead air, while also allowing boats from behind to catch up.

Full Moon (top right) heading for the finish. Some boats are still heading to the AGC buoy.

Rounding the AGC buoy was slow and painful, and the wind remained extremely light and confused. Some boats were able to eventually do well with spinnakers, but it wasn’t worth the effort to repack the Equalizer. In the end, Full Moon finished about sixth in second start, not bad at all given the conditions.

The Lady Washington was out and ended up at Full Moon's marina! Let's hope they're around for Pirate Night.

Rockin' The Pink

Full Moon crosses the start line near the front of the pack.

Full Moon crew Michael “Left” Medina, Daniel “Right” Mengedoht, Marcelle “Great Grapes” van Houten, Anne “Layers” Gustavson, and skipper John “Shifty” Mengedoht enjoyed a decent start in extremely light wind for the Pink Boat Duck Dodge. Staying to windward of most boats helped on the first leg and Full Moon rounded the Freeway buoy in first place, already mixing it up with boats from earlier starts.

Full Moon on the first leg. Lots of boats behind!

The Aurora buoy was set far to the west, making for a long and painful leg as the wind remained light to nonexistent. Things were not improved when the old ferry/party boat Trek opted to cruise through the fleet hailing loudly about boats in “the shipping lanes” needing to get out of the way. Unlike Puget Sound, there are no shipping lanes on Lake Union, and it isn’t like sailboats ghosting along in light wind can suddenly scamper out of the way. Meanwhile, Trek is reasonably maneuverable, clearly saw the sailboats ahead, and could have picked a course around the sailboats to the north instead of through them.

Full Moon about to round the Freeway buoy with lots of second start boats.

Anyway, once around the Aurora buoy, the Equalizer was set for the long reaching leg southward. Amazingly, the wind was sufficient to keep the nylon monster flying. After a clean drop at the AGC, it was on to the final upwind leg in gathering darkness. Approaching the finish line, the Race Committee announced a 9 PM time limit. With some vigorous kinetics (and some minor clock fudging by the Committee), Full Moon was awarded the Gold Duck for first place.

Adding the Gold Duck sticker to the mast in the dark.

Recovery for the Bronze

Full Moon heads toward the Aurora buoy. Most of the boats ahead will soon be behind!

Full Moon crew Randy “Popcorn” Olsen, Daniel “Soundtrack” Mengedoht, Robert “Solo Cup” Leykam, and skipper John “Relaxed” Mengedoht were late to the starting line for the Olympics Duck Dodge, crossing the line near the back of the fleet. The Race Committee unusually chose a downwind start, the wind having shifted from the southwest to nearly due south. With a relatively short first leg and anticipating a reach instead of a run, Full Moon opted not to use a spinnaker and, amazingly, managed to use clear air to claw past nearly half the boats ahead before rounding the Freeway buoy.

Full Moon about to round the AGC buoy. The T-bird will be passed on the final leg.

Full Moon had good speed on the close reach past Gasworks, but the wind dropped to nearly nothing heading to the Aurora buoy and a group of boats converged. Then, with a (relatively) wide gap between other boats and the buoy and nobody hardening up their course, Full Moon easily slipped inside and around for another large gain.

Daniel tests the Bronze Medal for third place.

The long upwind leg south featured different wind directions on different parts of the course and Full Moon was able to enjoy a long stretch pointing nearly straight down the lake, gaining significantly on boats farther east. This good fortune wouldn’t last, though, as conditions became very shifty and lighter approaching the AGC buoy and multiple tacks were needed to get around.

The skipper adds to the 2024 Duck Collection.

The Equalizer was put to good use for the final leg, the course being directly downwind. Much to our amazement, a horn sounded as Full Moon crossed the finish line – Full Moon had taken third place for the Bronze Duck!

Tropical Silver

Full Moon (top center) heads up the Eastlake shore just after the start. TaTonka (yellow boat) and SYC 2 are briefly in the lead.

Full Moon crew Randy “Halyards” Olsen, Daniel “Hold My Beer” Mengedoht, Chad “Gift To Neptune” Harnish, Logan “Late Substitution” Pulsifer, and skipper John “Slow Start” Mengedoht returned to third start for the Tropical Night Duck Dodge. With the pin end favored, Full Moon again went with a starboard tack start, just behind eventual winner Raptor (T-bird) before tacking a bit early to head up the Eastlake shore.

Raptor leads Full Moon around the AGC buoy.

Starting on port tack with at full speed initially favored TaTonka (SJ24) and SYC 2 (J22) but they both lost ground on the upwind leg as Raptor pulled into the lead with Full Moon second. A slow moving second-start boat created a tacking challenge for Full Moon at the Freeway buoy, giving Raptor a greater lead and allowing TaTonka to nearly catch up.

Daniel and Chad scoring beers from the floating "island."

The order remained for the second leg, though Full Moon gained a bit. The Equalizer provided its usual magic on the long reach south to the AGC buoy, Full Moon gaining a lot on Raptor while leaving TaTonka far behind.

It was yet another sunny but breezy evening!

The next short leg was free of other traffic and Full Moon was able to score quite a few (partial) cups of beer buzzing by the floating tropical “island.” The final leg was a straight shot upwind where Full Moon received the horn for second place and another Silver Duck for the mast.

Adding the Silver Duck to the collection on the mast.