Do or Do Not

Full Moon, comin' through!

The Star Wars Duck Dodge featured ample wind and mostly cloudy skies. At the start, the wind was out of the northwest, setting things up for all boats to easily cross on starboard tack. Full Moon crew Michael “Nibbler” Medina, Marcelle “Buns” van Houten, Katie “Lightsaber” Freels, Matt “Blaster” Allert, Daniel “R2” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Zig Zag” Mengedoht appeared to have a well-timed start but got caught in a boat sandwich squeezing through the line, a few boats to windward being unwilling to alter course per the rules. Once the boats spread out enough for a little clear air, Full Moon was mid-fleet but soon began to reel in a few competitors.

A gravel barge made things interesting for second start boats.

Traffic began to thin out a bit more after rounding the Freeway buoy and a fast romp to the Aurora buoy. The long beam reach in strong breeze to the AGC buoy made a spinnaker an iffy proposition and few boats made the attempt. After a short leg to the Chandler’s Cove buoy, it was back to upwind mode.

Katie, John, and Matt enjoy post-race beverages.

Since the sign boards on the Committee Boat indicated two laps for all starts, Full Moon took the best course for the Freeway buoy instead of crossing the finish line. Approaching the buoy, Full Moon needed a surgical series two quick tacks to just stay ahead of a well-sailed Harbor 20 and stay inside the J30 Slingshot, which was presumably in second start. Unfortunately, on the long southbound leg, both boats got by. Slingshot, though, completely skipped the Chandler’s Cove buoy or we might have returned the favor!

Michael agrees, it wasn't warm out there.

In the end, Full Moon finished somewhere in the top ten boats, though there was a Facebook post suggesting the Race Committee scored third start boats after just one lap! Regardless, it was a blast racing around the lake, Full Moon recording a speed of 7 knots at one point with extended periods going over 6.

Bronze in the Rain

Full Moon through the spyglass.

Full Moon crew Randy “No Spinnaker” Olsen, Adam “Cheap Cider” Michalak, Jackie “Luck Charm” Hensey, and skipper John “New Folds” Mengedoht nailed the third start for the Ugly Sweaters Night Duck Dodge, enjoying first place all the way to the Chandler’s Cove buoy. Unfortunately, the Ranger 33 Chula just managed to get an inside overlap to round the buoy inside and take the lead.

Post-race treats.

Heading back north on a close reach, Full Moon encountered a patch of light wind, allowing Chula to consolidate their lead, Tuesday (Columbia 26) to slip by, and a J22 to catch up. Even old rival Shogun threatened briefly until the wind kicked back in, Full Moon threading past some slower second start boats to maintain third place rounding the Aurora buoy.

Jackie and Adam

With a relatively short leg to the Freeway buoy and variable wind angles, Full Moon elected not to hoist the spinnaker. Tuesday deployed theirs for only a slight gain to hold onto second place. After rounding the buoy, Full Moon slowly gained on Tuesday upwind to the finish but could not make up the distance, still very happy to secure third place.

Getting ready to apply the new duck!

Meanwhile, having presumably spotted an opportunity to score an easy “duck,” 40-foot Thundorca (a third start regular despite her size), switched to first start so at least there were three boats in that start. Full Moon had briefly considered making the same move but opted to stuck to third start to avoid a second lap in the drizzle. As long as the Race Committee does nothing to regulate it, boats are able to freely choose which start they want and first start will remain sparsely populated. This seems nuts to me but it is what it is!

Minimum Tacks

We should have gone in first start. Only two boats, Tipsy Gypsy and Distance, made that choice, leaving behind an unclaimed third place duck for the first Duck Dodge race of 2017. Instead, Full Moon crew Randy “It’s a Job” Olsen, Michael “Temporary Bachelor” Medina, Dave “Spacer” Pulsifer, Judy “Barefoot” Tiffany, Daniel “USC” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Buoy Hugger” Mengedoht requested third start, figuring we may as well join the trend of boats migrating to “slower” starts.

The buoy end of the starting line appeared favored, though it was placed very close to the east shore, and Full Moon opted to approach on starboard tack before tacking to cross the line. Unfortunately, we were a bit late to the line. Worse, we got rolled by a big Catalina 36 to windward and ended up just skirting the docks and houseboats in bad air before tacking for the Freeway buoy. Light air near the buoy then made for a closer rounding than desirable.

Full Moon zipping along under the Equalizer.

Heading west followed back a tack to the north and another to the west brought Full Moon right onto the rhumb line for the Aurora buoy and another close rounding in a bit of traffic. Once around, the mighty Equalizer was hoisted to good effect and Full Moon began reeling in some competitors, especially those who apparently forgot that the course did not include the AGC buoy! The drop went smoothly, followed quickly by a jibe around the Chandler’s Cove buoy.

Full Moon took a “clearing” tack to get to windward of a couple of boats and then another tack for a straight shot to the finish line. At that point, it was hard to tell if a top three finish was in the offing but it was not to be, the top three boats being Jinx, Offline, and Tailwind. Nevertheless, apart from the start, Full Moon sailed well and managed to pass a few boats from second start. More importantly, we all enjoyed a gorgeous early May evening on the lake.