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.

Vive La France!

The start of the Bastille Day Duck Dodge was a classic drifter with one start trying like mad just to clear the line for the next. Full Moon was well-positioned on starboard tack with just a tiny bit of wind until encountering a parked Catalina 36 to “leeward.” With other boats drifting down from “windward,” crew Randy “Grand Prix” Olsen, Sara “Game Night” Skinner, Dave “Scotch” Pulsifer, Daniel “Bartender” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Lucky” Mengedoht were soon engaged in a game of bumper boats. Once the fending off was accomplished, though, a line of wind appeared, reaching out for Full Moon’s bow. It wasn’t huge but it was enough to allow Full Moon to accelerate away from the pack and into a solid second place, not far behind a well-sailed red Santana 20.

Rounding the AGC buoy in heavy traffic (from second start!), the mighty Equalizer was launched for the long close reach up the lake. The wind angle didn’t favor the spinnaker but the greater sail area was useful in the still-light breeze. Approaching the “Freeway” buoy, it appeared that only the always-competitive Tuesday might be a threat. Sure enough, as the breeze went light and unpredictable, Tuesday got by but Full Moon got some good shifts to return the favor and round the “Aurora” buoy comfortably ahead.

Unfortunately, the wind angle to the finish was another reach and Full Moon was unprepared to relaunch the Equalizer. Caught up with battling a J-22 and sailing a little too far to windward, Full Moon allowed Almond Joy and a blue J-24 to get by to leeward. Surely the J-24 was from second start? Nope. Duck Denied – but Full Moon was a close fourth place!

Great White North

Full Moon crew, working hard!

Eileen and Tammy cruising past Gasworks

Ignitor (left) shall not pass!

The Mengedoht boys having fun as usual

Full Moon crew Art “Moose” Teller, Doug “Perfect Light” Schoemaker, Eileen “Muscles” McHugh, Tammy “More Torque” Cross, Daniel “Big K” Mengedoht and skipper John “Strange Brew” Mengedoht were a bit thin on décor for the Canada Day Duck Dodge, but managed a decent start near the favored end of the line. Initially blanketed by a lot of nearby boats, Full Moon eventually found a clear lane and made good speed upwind to the AGC buoy.

Turning downwind, the mighty Equalizer was launched but the wind remained light enough to reduce the normal advantage gained by the nylon monster. Nevertheless, Full Moon got by some boats, including Fortis and good old Ignitor, which had started some 5 minutes earlier in second start! After rounding the Freeway buoy, Ignitor tried mightily to catch up in fluky light air approaching the Aurora buoy but could never quite get overlapped.

The fleet was a bit piled up at the Aurora buoy. Full Moon maintained forward progress and found a bit of breeze after going around. This came and went for the final leg upwind, though Full Moon did well in each little micro-puff. In the end, Full Moon had to settle for fourth place but was clearly in the hunt for the lead and will continue trying third start, at least for awhile.

Third in Third

At the invitation of the Race Committee, Full Moon switched this week from Start 2 (“half-fast boats”) to Start 3 (“cruising and slower boats”). Given the large number of boats in the second start, many of which are considerably faster than Full Moon, this may be appropriate, though there are also quite a few second start boats which are clearly slower!

Unfortunately, crew Randy “Languid” Olsen, Galina “Rested” Gordeeva, Michael “Lethargic” Medina, Debra “Relaxed” Ricard, Daniel “Sitting Duck” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Tired” Mengedoht got held up at the start with a wall of boats apparently unwilling to make the tack onto port for the beeline to the “Freeway” buoy. Once clear, there were a lot of boats ahead but a few were soon dispatched.

Heading to the “Aurora” buoy, Full Moon got by a few more boats and then popped up the mighty Equalizer for the long reach down the lake. As on many occasions, the Equalizer proved invaluable as Full Moon reeled in boat after boat, even passing several boats from the second start. Closing in on the AGC buoy, Full Moon eased inside a cluster of boats slowing to windward and, with full overlap rights, passed the entire group in one shot.

With the finish line in sight, the fleet looked quite a bit thinner and, sure enough, a Santana 20 was given a horn, followed soon after by a larger San Juan. As Full Moon crossed, the horn signaled yet again as Full Moon had scored the Bronze Duck for third! After the awful start, this was a very pleasant surprise.

Dead Calm

Are we moving?

Flying into the sun with the mighty Equalizer.

Rounding the Aurora buoy.

In stark contrast to last week, Duck Dodge No. 2 featured glassy calms and often imperceptible wind. Full Moon crew Michael “Safety Nuts” Medina, Don “Swabby” Caffrey, Dave “Blue Mountain” Pulsifer, and skipper John “Slowest” Mengedoht managed a good start in what looked like a clear lane but old rival Fortis nailed the favored Committee Boat end of the line for a small advantage. It was then very slow going most of the way toward the “Freeway” buoy until a bit of breeze began to fill in from the north.

Full Moon played the shifts pretty well as the wind clocked around until it was out of the east. This turned the next leg to the “Aurora” buoy into a downwind run and the Equalizer was soon up and flying well. This brought Full Moon slowly up to a group of boats nearly stalled out ahead, including Fortis, resulting in a fairly crowded and very slow rounding of the Aurora buoy.

Fortis remained just ahead and then managed to increase their lead a bit during the interminable reach southward. Then the wind began to fill it a bit more from the northeast and, after a pause to rerig the spinnaker gear, the Equalizer was once again put into play. Full Moon was able to obtain an overlap inside Fortis and, with a smooth douse, round the AGC buoy cleanly ahead.

On the final leg Fortis fell farther behind but then settled in about 50 yards back. The wind continued to be agonizingly light and Fortis eventually took a slow “flyer” toward the Eastlake shore. This paid off but not quite enough as Full Moon crossed the finish line half a boat length ahead to take eighth in the fading light.

Surfin' Safari!

Full Moon crew Art “One More Time” Teller, Chuck “Laptop” Weldy, Dave “Silver Bullet” Pulsifer, and skipper John “Crazy Ivan” Mengedoht pulled out the small “#3” jib for the first time in years as the wind blasted at 18 knots for Duck Dodge No. 1. After a decent start, Full Moon stayed on the edge of control upwind but managed to hang in there with most of the fleet, rounding the Aurora buoy with old rivals on Fortis.

Launching the ancient standard spinnaker rather than the giant Equalizer, Full Moon flew downwind, even popping up onto a plane a few times, surfing the small Lake Union waves. The takedown wasn’t pretty but the foredeck was quickly sorted (thanks, Art!) and Full Moon returned upwind to complete the first lap.

Fortis was close behind after rounding the Freeway buoy and threatening to get past but Full Moon proved tough to get by. Approaching the Aurora buoy, Full Moon just held onto the layline while Fortis needed a few extra tacks and Full Moon was ahead for good.

The second spinnaker run was even better than the first and the chute came down cleanly for a smooth rounding at the AGC buoy. The final upwind leg proved uneventful except for catching a Thunderbird just before the Freeway buoy. (Always a pleasure!) One final spinnaker run took Full Moon across the finish line about tenth (we lost count) out of well over twenty boats – an excellent finish on an evening that favored the larger boats. More importantly, it was a fun and entertaining beginning to the summer racing season and a good time was had by all.

Saving the Best for Last

Shoot The Moon slowly gaining from behind. Randy Olsen photo.

Full Moon skipped Goosebump Race No. 5 as the main halyard remained stuck at the top of the mast. A creative solution with an extension ladder and a very long telescoping pole (23’!) finally brought the shackle end down to the deck Sunday morning in time for the final race.

Several boats, including usually savvy Shoot The Moon, mistook the 1 minute warning for the start and were caught over early with a tough time getting back to restart in the light and shifty winds. We’re not sure if Shoot The Moon ever did properly start as they abandoned the race later but it was fun to be ahead of the big 40 footer.

Meanwhile, Full Moon crew Randy “Ethernet” Olsen, Art “Safety First” Teller, Chuck “Porter” Weldy, and skipper John “Pole Control” Mengedoht nailed the start and were battling the blue Thunderbird Selchie for first place until a red Santana 20 caught some breeze along the Westlake shore to surge ahead by a large margin.

After holding 3rd through the short reaching leg to the “Cove” buoy, Full Moon deployed the Equalizer to good advantage, pulling ahead of Selchie and closing on the red Santana, which had hoisted its spinnaker sideways! Unfortunately, a late wind shift necessitated a quick jibe with not quite enough time to jibe back and Full Moon rounded the Freeway buoy bareheaded and shrimping a bit besides. The jib was quickly hoisted but Selchie and the Santana were now solidly ahead and 30’ Tenacious was charging up from behind.

Rounding the Aurora buoy, Full Moon just caught the red Santana when the Santana got a nice puff of breeze and pulled back ahead. Then Tenacious swept by and a large 40+ footer started to challenge as well. In the end, Tenacious got by everybody to take the win, Selchie was a close 2nd, the red Santana held onto 3rd, and Full Moon somehow held off the big boat for a still-excellent 4th, our best finish of the series.

One is Enough!

Is there something missing here? Randy Olsen photo.

Goosebump Race No. 4 (Superbowl Sunday) got started with a “bang” for Full Moon crew Art “Packers” Teller, Randy “Not Steelers” Olsen, Daniel “Blue Balloon” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Splice-Nut” Mengedoht as a fitting at the end of the main halyard failed 10 minutes before the start. Unfazed, the valiant crew lowered the mainsail and prepared to race with just the genoa jib!

Performance upwind was reduced somewhat (more so on the short reaching leg) but the wind was strong enough that the difference wasn’t huge. Under the mighty Equalizer spinnaker, Full Moon was fast enough to pass some boats, though taking it back down was a challenge with no mainsail to help block the wind. Poor Daniel (10 years old) struggled mightily to help with the take-downs and at one point we thought he might be pulled aloft (or overboard) by the nylon monster!

In any case, through two laps, Full Moon held her own and still managed to finish about 12th (we lost count…) with 12 boats still behind, including a Thunderbird. Not bad at all!

Tossing Back a Cold One

Daniel scouts the competition. Michael Medina photo.

Full Moon crew Randy “Otter Pop” Olsen, Michael “Icicle” Medina, Daniel “Klondike Bar” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Creamsicle” Mengedoht lined up for a potentially great port-tack start at the buoy end for Goosebump Race No. 3 but encountered a long wall of boats on starboard tack with no holes to sneak through. The ensuing dive to leeward and late tack to starboard placed us mid-fleet at best. At least it wasn’t our usual overly conservative start!

After clearing the starting line, Full Moon held a good pace to the Aurora buoy. With a decent but very cold breeze and smaller than normal crew, the mighty Equalizer spinnaker was left in the bag. Good old Shogun and a speedy red Santana 20 threatened a bit after getting their own spinnakers up and under control but could not muster the speed to pass.

Returning upwind and then around again for a second lap brought no changes in position, despite forgoing the spinnaker yet again on the second lap. However the breeze dropped considerably for the final downwind leg to the finish line and Full Moon finally launched the Equalizer to ensure nobody overtaking at the end. Full Moon finished a respectable 12th so we are, if nothing else, consistent!

Location, Location, Location!

Gaining on Surt with the big red spinnaker. Objects in the camera are closer than they appear...
Randy Olsen photo.

The wind completely died just before the start of Goosebump Race No. 2, leaving boats in a wide variety of positions and distances to the start line. Full Moon crew Art “Red Lobster” Teller, Randy “Sea Ray” Olsen, Chuck “Big Lips” Weldy, Daniel “Cryogenics” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Are We There Yet?” Mengedoht did their best with what tiny and unpredictable puffs of wind appeared, “tacking” several times before settling in with an all but imperceptible southerly to ooze across the line.

Quite a number of fast boats were behind Full Moon at this point but, unfortunately, quite a number of others had been a little closer to the starting line and had drifted a bit farther down the course. Finally, the wind began to fill in toward the Westlake Shore and all the bows pointed west. The first boats to catch the wind would have a huge advantage. The end result was Full Moon about mid-fleet and mixing it up with 41’ Surt, which was fun but short-lived.

After a quick reach to the “Cove” buoy, Full Moon launched the mighty Equalizer and nearly caught up to speedy Runner and, surprisingly, Surt, but could not manage to get by anyone. The nylon monster came down cleanly at the “Freeway” buoy but Surt had some issues and Full Moon swapped positions once again. At the “Aurora” buoy, Surt came roaring back and soon zipped by for good and the race was then on for Full Moon to hold off a big Columbia 40 and a Catalina 36, both determined not to lose to the little guy in front. Try as they might, though, Full Moon remained ahead at the line to finish 12th. Starts are always crucial, this one much more than most, but it was all a lot of fun and good racing once the wind appeared.

Thrice Around!

Yes, that is Shoot the Moon behind, though not for long! Michael Medina photo.

Full Moon crew Debra “Escape Artist” Ricard, Marcelle “Bleeder” Lynde, Michael “Hangman” Medina, and skipper John “Crazy Ivan” Mengedoht enjoyed a good start at the favored end of the line for Goosebump Race No. 1. Relative giant (40 foot) Shoot the Moon soon came roaring up from behind in very breezy conditions but Full Moon was still in an excellent fifth place midway through the first lap.

Flying the ancient standard spinnaker rather than the oversized Equalizer proved the smart choice as Full Moon fairly flew downwind. Rival Runner was a bit faster, though, and the well-sailed Tuesday faster yet, both boats getting by near the end of the spinnaker run. Upwind was another story. Full Moon easily kept pace with Runner and Tuesday, succumbing only to two much larger 36 to 45 foot boats, bigger nearly always being better in strong wind.

The second lap was similar to the first with Full Moon remaining within striking distance of Runner and Tuesday. On the long upwind leg, Full Moon actually got past Runner and closed to right on Tuesday’s transom but it wasn’t quite enough to get by. On the final downwind run (yes, there were three laps), Full Moon elected to forego the spinnaker with the wind rising into the low 20 knot range. Tuesday consolidated her lead and Runner surged ahead, though working hard to manage their spinnaker.

On the final leg to the finish, Full Moon stayed within 20-30 yards of Runner but couldn’t close the gap, finishing an excellent ninth out of some twenty boats. Amazingly, the threatened rain never appeared and the sun even broke out near the end.