Slow Boat

Seven guys, most a bit north of 200 pounds, are not recommended for speed enhancement on a 2400 pound sailboat but crew Randy “Equalizer” Olsen, Art “Cherry” Teller, Doug “Sabbatical” Schoemaker, Troy “Orange Tux” Charlesworth, Ian “Bow Rider” Mengedoht, Daniel “Tunes” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Mobile Ballast” Mengedoht all turned out to enjoy the sunny weather for the Prom Night Duck Dodge. With very light southwesterly wind and a crowd near the Committee Boat, Full Moon opted for the middle of the start line. The wind favored this approach for a while and then filled in closer to the Westlake shore, giving a big advantage to boats that had tacked over in that direction earlier.

 

Full Moon stayed out of this cluster. Yes, that IS an Olson 30 in second start...

Once around the AGC buoy, the short run to the Chandler’s buoy would have benefitted from a spinnaker but the next leg northbound appeared to be a close reach unsuitable for the Equalizer so the nylon monster stayed in the bag to save the hassle. Speed proved to be pretty decent to the Freeway buoy, Full Moon actually gaining on several boats.

 

Second start from another perspective.

Returning upwind to complete the first lap, Full Moon somehow punched out to leeward of the J24 J Estalt, leaving the supposedly faster J Boat behind. Several boats converged at the AGC buoy and Full Moon was able to pick a path avoiding slower cruisers being lapped. After the short leg to the Chandler’s buoy, Full Moon launched the Equalizer for what was now mostly a beam reach north. This worked well until the wind faded and shifted a few hundred yards short of the Freeway buoy. Back under the genoa, Full Moon rounded and then headed to the finish line, chasing – and nearly catching – a much larger Beneteau.

 

Thundorca also enjoyed having a few extra crew!

Despite the weight penalty and finishing behind both Zephyr and Ignitor (a rare event these days!), Full Moon sailed fairly well and stayed in the top 2/3 of the fleet, actually beating a Hobie 33 and the J24. A bit more breeze would have been nice but it was a gorgeous evening on the water.

The "duck boat" was back, zooming around the lake.