Early Solstice Cruise

Full Moon went for a "solstice" cruise two days early as the weather forecast for the 21st looks like a lot of rain. It was beautiful on the 19th, though, the sun taking the edge off the chilly temperatures.

Fantastic Start to Fall

Full Moon elected to forgo the Rum Run on Saturday but still got out to enjoy the sunny warm weather (high of 79 degrees!). After a trip home and back for the Yamaha to change the oil, a spin around the lake was inevitable. We'll have rain this week but fall is often great sailing weather!

The outboard is prepared for a trip home and an oil change. It barely fits on the hand-truck but it works better than the dock carts.

You wouldn't know it from this photo but the lake was packed with boats, kayaks, and paddle boards.

Halyard Hunter!

Marcelle on her way back down the mast, halyard in hand.

After a few weeks of head-scratching on the best and safest way to retrieve Full Moon's main halyard from the top of the mast (see the Invisible Mainsail post), Marcelle "Halyard Hunter" Van Houten volunteered for a trip up the mast in a bosun's chair, with Michael "Muscles" Medina and skipper John "Safety Line" Mengedoht grinding both the jib halyard and standard spinnaker halyard. Since these two halyards don't go to the top of the mast (Full Moon has a fractional rig), Marcelle made use of a lightweight extension pole with "hand-crafted" hook to snag the main halyard and bring it down. Thanks, Marcelle!

Invisible Mainsail

The Duck Dodge finale, “Martini Night” aboard Full Moon, had a challenging beginning as the main halyard parted ways with the mainsail at the top of the mast as it was being hoisted. Crew Randy “KJR” Olsen, Michael “Two Toots” Medina, Marcelle “Olives, Please” Van Houten, Adam “Ascot” Michalak, Katharina “Fancy Dress” Stoll, and skipper John “Captain Solo” Mengedoht swiftly decided to begin the race with just the jib. Unfortunately, Full Moon does not sail at all well without the mainsail, as prestart maneuvers clearly demonstrated.

The Invisible Mainsail deployed upwind.

It was then swiftly decided to make use of the “invisible mainsail” (outboard), to “sail” the course rather than just cruise the lake. The invisible sail proved highly effective as Full Moon easily passed all third start boats and moved up into the second start fleet. (Care was taken not to cause difficulty to other boats due to the wake, especially since the wind had faded to nearly zero.) After rounding the Freeway and Aurora buoys, the Equalizer was launched and the invisible mainsail was deactivated, though still dragging through the water, ready for quick redeployment.

It's much easier to see the spinnaker through the Invisible Mainsail!

Surprisingly, the Equalizer alone was sufficient for Full Moon to maintain pace with second start boats, including a Capri 25 and a J22, on the long reach/run to the AGC buoy. The jib was rehoisted and the Equalizer dropped cleanly to the deck just before rounding the buoy.

Full Moon's spinnaker is just visible at the far left. The wind was very light!

The invisible mainsail was again deployed for the final leg to the “finish,” where Full Moon was greeted with a siren and whooping from the Committee Boat. Martinis were soon dispensed to the thirsty crew as Full Moon continued “sailing” and enjoying a very pleasant evening on the lake.

Many stern lights are visible as quite a few boats struggled to finish in the dark.

Slow Boat to Aurora

Daniel, Judy, Anne, John, and Dave. We'll miss you Daniel but best of luck for your senior year!

Full Moon crew Michael Medina, Dave Pulsifer, Judy Tiffany, Anne Gustavson, Daniel Mengedoht, and skipper John Mengedoht were well-positioned for the start of the Team Spirit Duck Dodge and looking forward to having some decent wind for the race. Unfortunately, the wind faded to near-nothing approaching the Freeway buoy, leading to a large group of boats barely making way. Full Moon is usually a great light air boat but suffered greatly in the congestion. The extremely light wind continued to the Aurora buoy, though Full Moon did find a few pockets of breeze here and there.

Full Moon is caught in the pack heading for the Aurora buoy. We passed virtually all of these boats before the finish! 

Once around the Aurora buoy, there was enough wind for the Equalizer, enabling Full Moon to pass quite a few boats that had gotten by around the Freeway buoy. The drop and rounding of the AGC buoy went well and it was on to the finish line in the fading light. Light winds or not, a great time was had by all!

Bronze Age

 

The second start fleet heads north to the Freeway buoy.

Full Moon crew Randy “Rainier” Olsen, Doug “Sunset” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “Kolsch” Schoemaker, Daniel “Short-timer” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Patience” Mengedoht were struggling for clear air for the start of the Decades Night Duck Dodge when the breeze filled in a bit. Rather than risk being over the line early, a “doughnut” maneuver bought some space and time, though it would have been nice to be closer to the Committee Boat with full speed on. There appeared to be a few boats over early – some by quite a bit – but we won’t name names, especially since Full Moon passed the two most obvious ones on the first leg to the AGC buoy.

Full Moon managed to keep the spinnaker flying but not everyone was so fortunate.

Two well-timed tacks brought Full Moon to the buoy in fading breeze and then quickly around, though a much larger boat with a bit more momentum was able to briefly get past. This was quickly rectified with the launching of the Equalizer, though the wind remained very light.

The wind was very light near Gasworks!

The leg to the Freeway buoy was quite long with the buoy set well north. Full Moon did pass several boats on this leg, though we were dismayed to see eventual winner Where’s the Beef well ahead. Meanwhile, a Harbor 20 had been slowly gaining. Once around the Freeway buoy, the Harbor 20 hugged the Gasworks shoreline while Full Moon took a longer path in hopes of better breeze. This paid off quite well and Full Moon was able to gain quite a bit before rounding the Aurora buoy, which was also set far north.

Many boats "parked" along the Eastlake shore.

The final leg was a bit nerve-wracking as the Harbor 20 appeared to be slowly gaining while the breeze was fading. Boats still trying to make it to the Freeway buoy were essentially parked along the Eastlake shore. In the end, Full Moon persevered, and we were astonished to get the horn for third place and the Bronze Duck!

Randy snags the Bronze Duck. Thanks, Committee!

Tropicana

Dan likes this sailing stuff!

Full Moon crew Randy Olsen, Daniel Mengedoht, Dave Pulsifer, Jack Ewer, Dan Ewer and skipper John Mengedoht enjoyed a decent start for the Tropical Night Duck Dodge. Unfortunately, a jib sheet came adrift at the first tack (skipper error!), causing an untimely tack back until the offending sheet could be re-tied. For all that, the first leg was fast with decent, if shifty, wind and Full Moon was still in the top quarter of the fleet to the Freeway buoy.

Randy, Dave, and Jack working hard.

The leg to the Aurora buoy was a close reach, followed by a beat to windward, made slightly more interesting by the gravel barge doing its regular cruise through the north end of the lake. The person setting the buoy might consider a more southerly location to avoid the potential conflict?

The gravel barge makes its regular evening appearance.

The Equalizer was helpful on the long south leg to the AGC buoy, though the shifting breeze necessitated a jibe and shifting the jib to the port side to keep the foredeck crew busy. A clean drop and rounding and Full Moon headed at a good clip to the floating beer island, where multiple beers were snagged. Unfortunately, a tack was required not long after and it’s hard to chug those heavy IPAs!

The skipper likes being ahead of all those boats!

The second lap was relatively uneventful and Full Moon ended up ahead of all traditional rivals for a pretty decent finish. Good times!

Daniel at his usual post. Gonna miss this guy next summer!

The obligatory sunset shot.

Boys Night Out

Full Moon is out of the picture as second start heads for the Freeway buoy.

The women bailed for the Mardi Gras Duck Dodge so the Full Moon crew of Randy "Raindrop" Olsen, Dave "Hat" Pulsifer, Daniel "Dry" Mengedoht, and skipper John "Sponge" Mengedoht was smaller than normal. Opting for the middle of the line for clear air proved a mistake as the Committee Boat end was heavily favored, old rivals Fortis and Ignitor both leading Full Moon to the Freeway buoy by a healthy margin. The Aurora buoy was again set very far to the north but some good strategy allowed Full Moon to gain on several boats on the second leg.

Big fat raindrops came down twice during the race. Was that in the forecast?

After rounding, the Equalizer allowed Full Moon to slowly reel in Fortis by going a good distance to leeward and more toward the middle of the lake. Ignitor was also in range until Full Moon fell into a large wind hole with several larger boats to windward near the AGC buoy. Soon, a couple of third start boats came by a bit farther to leeward, still with a bit of wind, though they all had trouble dousing their spinnakers at the buoy.

Full Moon's blue and white spinnaker can just be seen chasing Fortis's red one.

After finally making it around, Full Moon headed east in hopes of stronger wind while Ignitor went west into the downwind traffic. The wind remained very light but was stronger on the east side, allowing Full Moon to beat her old rival, though still behind two third start boats.

Once the rain quit, it was a gorgeous evening.

Taco Night?

Full Moon crew Randy “Ford” Olsen, Ian “Tenor Sax” Mengedoht, Rebecca “Grand Caravan” Herivel, Daniel “Catch 22” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Formula One” Mengedoht prepared for the Toga Night Duck Dodge mainly by making sure to have plenty of cold beverages aboard. Given the level of participation seen on other boats, maybe it is time to retire this theme?

Full Moon (far right) on approach to the Aurora buoy.

Prestart maneuvers were a bit scary as one larger boat coming downwind (starboard gybe) elected to turn and keep turning toward Full Moon for no apparent reason (and despite some loud yelling) until running into Full Moon’s port (stern) quarter. Since Full Moon was on port tack, there wasn’t much to say about right of way other than that you’re supposed to hold your course and not turn to create a collision in a crossing situation when it could easily be avoided. Amazingly, the same boat then proceeded to bash into yet another victim shortly thereafter. I’m not naming names but the Duck Dodge is NOT the place for beginning sailors!

Full Moon (center) shortly after launching the Equalizer.

Despite all that, Full Moon got off to a good start on port tack in clear air near the middle of the line, followed by a straight shot to the Freeway buoy, which was a bit south of its normal location. Heading for Gasworks – but not too close – paid off with Full Moon passing several boats on the way to the Aurora buoy. The Aurora buoy was set very far to the north, making for some challenging tacking in light air while staying clear of moored ships and dodging boats coming the other way under spinnaker. Once around, the mighty Equalizer was hoisted but not very helpful until clearing out of the wind shadow of several much larger boats. The long reach/run to the AGC buoy was a bit slow, Full Moon gaining on boats ahead while worrying about boats gaining from behind.

Full Moon after the finish (boats beyond are from second start).

The final upwind leg felt a bit faster and only two tacks were necessary to hit the line, Full Moon finishing an excellent fourth place.

That Reindeer Was Smoking a Joint!

The Christmas in July Duck Dodge offered some extreme wind variations, even for Lake Union in July. Full Moon crew Daniel “St. Bernese” Mengedoht, Ian “Sax Man” Mengedoht, Chris “Anchor Steam” Beza, Rebecca “Low Brass” Herivel, and skipper John “Knight Bus” Mengedoht were well positioned for a good start until a Seascape 27 with good speed on jammed into the boats congregated at the Committee Boat, pushing most to leeward and up close and personal with Full Moon. The wind at that point was very light so it took quite a while to get any clear air.

Daniel at his usual post.

The wind eventually filled in a bit from the northeast but was then nearly dead at the Freeway buoy, leading to a challenging rounding. Once around, the wind was predominantly from due east but very light and shifty. A few boats attempted to fly spinnakers with limited success. Approaching the area where an Aurora buoy should have been visible, there was no buoy to be found (did the gravel barge take it out?) and the fleet took a left turn to the south.

Boats heading for the AGC buoy before Full Moon arrives with more wind.

The wind then began to fill in rather nicely out of the northwest, allowing Full Moon to gain rapidly on boats ahead, passing quite a few and nearly catching speedy Scat! Naturally, the wind then began to fade approaching the Aurora buoy, allowing a giant Beneteau 41 and a few other boats to catch up. Unfortunately, the Beneteau skipper appeared unfamiliar with the basic windward/leeward rule, squeezing into boats to leeward trying to make it around the buoy, including Full Moon, which was second closest to the buoy. Making matters worse, boats overlapped to windward began to turn as soon as they reached the buoy, making no allowance for leeward boats also trying to go around. Chaos and bumper boats resulted, thankfully with no serious crunching sounds.

Ian and Rebecca enjoy racing thrills.

The final leg, once boats spread out a bit, was drama free, Full Moon finishing somewhere in the upper fourth of the fleet. All in all, it was an entertaining evening, though a few skippers would do well to remember the rules and the need to avoid collisions, even gentle ones.

The Mirror Ball is All

Full Moon returned to racing for Prom Night after two weeks of no Duck Dodge (too hot on June 29 and no race planned for July 6). After so many years of this theme we skipped the prom attire and settled for just hanging the little mirror ball from the backstay. Congratulations to old rival Ignitor, however, which scored the Black Duck.

Ignitor scored the Black Duck!

With a reaching start, crew Randy, Dave, Judy, Daniel and skipper John set up near the buoy end of the start line in hopes that a hotter angle and less congestion would be better than a slightly shorter distance. Unfortunately, Full Moon was over early, though we had company to share in our embarrassment. (Not that the race committee seemed to notice?) Approaching the AGC buoy, the wind got very light (as usual) and traffic got heavy (as usual) and Full Moon actually got pushed onto the buoy by two boats close to windward.

Once around, it was a straight shot upwind to the Freeway buoy with Full Moon close behind Ignitor. Splitting tacks on the way to the Aurora buoy (which was set far to the north) brought Full Moon right onto Ignitor's transom but a leisurely spinnaker hoist allowed the gap to increase. Full Moon almost got by closing in on the AGC buoy but couldn't quite get past the wind shadow of the bigger boat.

The upwind leg to the Freeway buoy was similar to the first lap but Full Moon had better luck on the next leg and managed to round the Aurora buoy just in front of Ignitor. Unfortunately, there were issues with the spinnaker hoist and Ignitor surged back into the lead, this time for good. It was great fun to have some boat to boat racing with our old rival and yet another gorgeous evening on the lake.

Full Moon enjoys the post-race glow (far right).

Solstice Race

The third start fleet heads for the AGC buoy.

The skipper’s choice for the Skipper’s Choice Duck Dodge was no theme at all. A theme every week is just too much work!

James and the Giant Jib.

Crew Randy “Invisible” Olsen, Doug “Short Lens” Schoemaker, James “Tacoma Limes” Schoemaker, Troy “Peaches” Charlesworth, Daniel “Pink” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Dodge, Dip, Duck, Dive and Dodge” Mengedoht enjoyed a decent start toward the pin end of the line as this had proved favorable last week with similar SE wind.

Troy and Daniel balance the boat.

Things generally went well on the first leg, but the wind was near zero and very shifty at the AGC buoy, leading to some parked or very slow-moving boats. With Full Moon on final approach on starboard tack with at least two boats close by to windward, Scat came zipping across in front on port tack, causing further confusion. In the end, Full Moon skipped the buoy rather than risk a collision. This disqualified us for the race, but we weren’t going to place anyway and coming around again for a second try just wouldn’t have been worth the effort!

Full Moon is at top left, in front of at least some other boats!

Heading back north on port tack, Full Moon had to avoid a number of southbound boats on starboard tack but still managed not to get too far to leeward, avoiding the need to tack for the Freeway buoy.

Watch out for floating distractions...

The Aurora buoy was set farther north and west than usual and Full Moon opted for a more southerly course to avoid extra tacks up against the moored ships on the north shore of the lake. This proved wise as Full Moon passed a few boats before rounding the buoy.

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Randy enjoys the smooth ride past Gasworks.

The final leg called for a spinnaker, but the crew was more interested in cold beer so Full Moon opted to sail deep with the genoa with a bit of wing and wing for a slow easy ride to the finish line. The weather was spectacular, especially for June, and we sailed on for quite awhile before heading to the marina.

Full Moon "finishes" just ahead of Ignitor.

Windy Pirates

Full Moon chases two J-boats across the starting line.

Full Moon crew Randy “Pork Rinds” Olsen, Chuck “The Shrimper” Weldy, Chris “Aquavit” Beza, Ben “Cup-holder” Spicer, Daniel “Media Mogul” Mengedoht, John “Not That Good” Mengedoht enjoyed a decent start for the Pirate Night Duck Dodge, hindered a bit by a couple of boats “barging” at the Committee Boat.

Uh-oh! Giant Beneteau sneaks up to leeward.

Once clear of a giant Beneteau 41, Full Moon rode out the big gusts for a fun romp to the AGC buoy, then launched the Equalizer for the long run/reach to the Freeway buoy, at which point Full Moon was actually in front of a J92S, an Olson 25, and another smaller Jboat or two!

Aaandd the Beneteau gets past... for now!

After a clean spinnaker drop, it was a straight shot to the Aurora buoy, then back upwind to complete the first lap.

Is it supposed to look like that? A little more hoist and a level pole will help!

The Equalizer went up again after rounding the AGC buoy and Full Moon was clear of other traffic except for the big Beneteau, which held onto a small lead.

Ben enjoys a beer on the easy leg to the Aurora buoy.

The spinnaker drop went great until it didn’t, with some of it enjoying a rinse cycle in the lake, but it was quickly brought on board to round the Freeway buoy. After another straight shot to the Aurora buoy, it was on to the finish, Full Moon not first but not last, either!

Randy enjoys the sun as we head south.

Damp Jammies

The first leg. Full Moon is barely visible on the left.

Full Moon crew Michael “Aluminum” Medina, Kate “Met Market” Freels, Chad “Snakebite” Harnish, Daniel “Dry” Mengedoht, and skipper John “QC” Mengedoht opted for foul weather gear instead of pajamas for the Pajama Night Duck Dodge and this proved a wise choice. A gray wall of clouds appeared above Lake Union and brought strong and gusty winds, along with a good bit of rain later in the race.

A good start was hampered by the massive 40’ Thundorca, which prevented an earlier tack for the line (totally fair, just unfortunate for Full Moon). Full Moon still did reasonably well on the beam/broad reach to the Freeway buoy, though quite a few boats catching up from behind in a gust bailed out from rounding the mark and opted not to circle back around. (This included Thundorca, which really should have refused their second-place duck sticker but, hey, it’s the Duck Dodge!) Unfortunately, the group of “cheaters” set Full Moon back in the fleet with little hope of catching up, especially to the larger boats.

It was a straight shot in lots of traffic to the Aurora buoy. After a wide rounding to avoid traffic, it was on to the AGC buoy with a wind angle way too tight for the spinnaker, not to mention that the wind was still fairly boisterous. Early in this leg is when the rain hit hard, though not for all that long.

The wind eased toward the south end of the lake and this might have been a clue to consider setting up the spinnaker for the final leg but then it was hard to predict if the wind would increase again closer to the finish. Better safe than sorry! In the end, a good time was had by all and none of us had to dry out any pajamas…

Crazy Wigs!

Rainbow wigs rule!

After waiting a few extra weeks for all crew members to be fully vaccinated, Full Moon finally returned to racing action for the Crazy Wigs Duck Dodge. Enjoying the rare June combination of 80 degree temperatures and a nice northerly breeze, crew Michael “Pole Stopper” Medina, Marcelle “Pole Dancer” Van Houten, Adam “Cookie Monster” Michalak, Katharina “Spin-Dry” Stoll, Daniel “Still Pulling” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Rusty” Mengedoht managed a fairly good start, though bigger boats slowly crept up on the first leg to the Freeway buoy.

Katharina likes this racing stuff.

Traffic delayed any early tack toward the Aurora buoy, then more traffic and wind shifts led to some extra tacks just to make the buoy. Once around, the topping lift for the spinnaker pole refused to cooperate and the entire south-bound leg was spent trying to coerce the pole and spinnaker into a usable configuration. This naturally allowed quite a few boats to get by before the spinnaker finally came down before rounding the AGC buoy.

Daniel at his usual post.

With any hope of a decent finish long gone, Full Moon dropped out of the race and broke out the usual post-race food and beverages, though continuing to enjoy a fabulous light air sail around the north end of the lake. This ultimately proved to be an excellent decision when the wind dropped to zero at the south end of the lake, leaving a floating mass of first and second start boats struggling for what seemed like an hour trying to complete their second lap to finish.

John and Michael enjoy the fading light while heading back to the dock

The topping lift issue turned out to be a broken block at the base of the mast that jammed the line whenever any load was applied. This should be an easy fix before next week’s race.