Goosebump No. 2 January 19, 2003
Mild Goosebumps
Full Moon began the 2003 sailboat racing season last Sunday with Goosebump Series Race No. 2 on Lake Union (we skipped No. 1). Crew Chris “Turkey Rollup” Beza, Randy “Rental” Olsen, Art “Big Bag” Teller, Ian “Deck Inspector” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Rusty” Mengedoht had a good start in very light wind and rounded the first mark a close fifth. With a single start and no handicapping, this was doing well, given the bigger boats in the race.
Running downwind under spinnaker, the game was to find the wind and boats changed position with each small puff. At the downwind mark, Full Moon was squeezed outside by speedy Scat and old rivals Shogun and forced to live in disturbed wind for a fair distance after rounding. The final long upwind leg proved critical with Shogun finding stronger wind by sailing a longer course out into the middle of the lake. At the downwind finish, Shogun had improved to third with Full Moon a still very decent sixth.
Goosebump No. 3 January 26, 2003
Blustery Fun
Braving strong winds and the threat of heavy rain, Full Moon crew Debra “Gear Gal” Ricard, Jay “Rookie” Thoman, Art “Spinnaker, Please” Teller, and skipper John “Bulging Seams” Mengedoht had a well-timed start for Goosebump race No. 3 but were initially hampered by having two 40-footers a little too close by. Rounding the first two buoys in fourth place, Full Moon was the only boat to fly a spinnaker in the powerful winds, allowing an easy move up to third.
Continuing around Lake Union for two full laps, Full Moon gained slightly but could not catch 40 foot Shoot The Moon or speedy Scat. However, the rest of the fleet was not a threat and Full Moon finished an excellent third. Old rivals Shogun were no-shows, perhaps preferring the Superbowl Pregame Show over a thrilling romp on the lake.
Goosebump No. 4 February 2, 2003
Perfect Start
Full Moon crew Kathleen “Rookie” McCarthy, Randy “Zero Percent” Olsen, Art “Boat Dreams” Teller, and skipper John “College Fund” Mengedoht obtained a perfect start for Goosebump Race No. 4, first across and at the favored end of the starting line. Unfortunately, by the end of the first leg, big boats and wind shifts conspired to push Full Moon back to sixth.
Despite big gains under spinnaker, old rivals Shogun remained ahead in fifth, just out of reach for the rest of the short one-lap race. However, all was not lost as arch-rival Ignitor was held off at the finish to place seventh just behind Full Moon.
Goosebump No. 6 February 16, 2003
Multicolored Monster
The final sailboat race of the Goosebump series provided Full Moon crew Art “Pull!” Teller, Kathleen “I’m Pulling!” McCarthy, Alex “A-Rod” Gossland, and skipper John “Bigger Isn’t Always Better” Mengedoht with a wild ride as the wind fluctuated between 10 and 17 knots. After a decent first two legs, the wind appeared light enough to fly Full Moon’s oversize spinnaker. This proved a poor decision as the wind rose rapidly and most of the first downwind leg was spent trying to raise and then control the nylon monster.
Back under control, Full Moon had dropped to sixth and the battle was on to pass two well-sailed San Juan 24s. Upwind, Full Moon was faster but not downwind under the ancient “small” spinnaker and Full Moon was only able to pass one boat to finish fifth. Ignitor and Shogun didn’t start but occasional rival Fortis was vanquished to seventh.
Duck Dodge, May 13, 2003
Fun With Fortis
With dubious strategy but effective tactics, the Islander 28 Fortis held Full Moon off to cross the starting line nearly dead last in the first Duck Dodge sailboat race on Lake Union. Despite this crushing setback, Full Moon crew Amy “Shrinkage” Henderson, “Good Call” Paul Myers, Debra “Ready” Ricard, Chris “Mint Milano” Beza, and skipper John “Telltales” Mengedoht quickly found the passing lanes and began to pick off boat after boat.
Fortis was toast shortly into the second leg, after a very crowded rounding of the first mark, followed two legs later by old rival Shogun. By the second lap, Full Moon had climbed into ninth out of about twenty-five boats and was still gaining. At the finish, Full Moon was seventh for a huge comeback in the twenty-five-boat fleet, the only bad news being arch-rival Ignitor ahead in fifth.
Duck Dodge, May 20, 2003
Drizzle Fizzle
For once, Full Moon was early to the starting line for the Duck Dodge sailboat race and crew Kathleen “Muscles” McCarthy, Kelly “Rookie” Earls, Paul “Ripper” Myers, and skipper John “Extra Drag” Mengedoht had to make some radical maneuvers in the drizzling rain to avoid trouble. Once started, however, Full Moon was first onto the advantaged port tack and was mid-fleet at the first buoy.
The first downwind leg proved problematic as the spinnaker went up and then quickly back down as the wind shifted forward. Naturally, the wind shifted back again and, without a repacked spinnaker to re-hoist, Full Moon slowed, allowing several boats to pass. The wind was better behaved on the second lap and the spinnaker was gainfully employed but it was too little, too late. While finishing ahead of new rival Fortis, Full Moon placed twelfth, well behind old rival Shogun.
Duck Dodge, May 27, 2003
Fun In The Sun
Full Moon crew Barry “Bloody” Shuman, Debra “Lady Liberty” Ricard, Fernand “Arthritic Digits” Ricard, Todd “Single” Charlton, and skipper John “Last Leg” Mengedoht had a decent start in a huge fleet for the “Hat Night” Duck Dodge race, though arch-rival Ignitor held an early lead. Enjoying the balmy breeze and some ice-cold Coronas on the first leg, Full Moon quickly got by old rival Shogun and passed Ignitor soon after.
On the third leg, Full Moon stole the wind to pass theoretically faster Dreams, though Dreams got by upwind a few legs later. By the second lap, Full Moon was closing on the leaders until a giant Catalina 390 challenged successfully under spinnaker and Full Moon fell back in the wind shadow.
Rounding the final buoy, Full Moon worked the wind to perfection and, not having to tack for the finish line, aced speedster Scat while also passing the Catalina 390 and 33-foot Whodat, placing a well-earned sixth out of some twenty-five boats. Ignitor finished ninth while old rival Shogun and occasional rival Fortis were too far back to count.
Duck Dodge, June 3, 2003
Boys Night Out
Full Moon finally had a good start for the fourth Duck Dodge and crew Art “Speedy” Teller, Roy “Rookie” Hague, Todd “Boy Scout” Charlton, and skipper John “Woody” Mengedoht held their own up the first leg, outpacing a much larger Catalina. Rounding the first buoy, the giant spinnaker was deployed in the steady breeze and Full Moon got by a few of the unwary to stay near the front.
Heading into the second lap, the wind went light at the “Aurora” buoy and the lead boats bunched up, allowing Full Moon to slip into fourth place and stay there for the long spinnaker run down the lake. On the final leg, one boat (Tuesday) got by upwind but another (Scat) misjudged the finish line and Full Moon placed an excellent fourth out of twenty-five boats. Arch-rival Ignitor was never a threat, finishing tenth many minutes later.
Duck Dodge, June 10, 2003
Good News, Bad News
The Pirate Night Duck Dodge began with light winds and the fully costumed Full Moon crew Barry “Busy” Shuman, Chris “Coolpix” Beza, Debra “Not Anymore” Ricard, Kelly “Pirate Booty” Earls, and skipper John “I See It” Mengedoht had a good start at the advantaged end of the line. On the long downwind third leg, Full Moon made the best of the wind under spinnaker and at the end of the run was second, though several boats were close behind.
Turning back upwind for the second lap, boats that went left found stronger wind and, having gone right with the lead boat, Full Moon fell to fifth, though still quite close to the front-runners. Running downwind again under spinnaker, Full Moon easily held her own but had to battle the very well-sailed Tuesday on the final leg, falling behind by a boatlength to finish a still excellent sixth out of twenty-five boats. Arch-rival Ignitor was never a threat and Shogun was a rare no-show.
Duck Dodge, June 17, 2003
Shirts and Skins
The starting line was wall to wall boats for the 6th Duck Dodge race but Full Moon crew Lisa “Blisters” Crane, Anneka “Winch Wench” O’Connell, Jay “Soggy Nylon” Tarner, Art “Seen Better” Teller, and skipper John “Beer Time” Mengedoht got a good start in the top third of the fleet after watching an especially interesting pre-race show on a large power boat. A Catalina 390 cast a huge wind shadow at every turn on the first leg, but Full Moon surged ahead on the second leg and then took off under spinnaker for a long run down Lake Union, staying within 100 yards of the lead boat.
Arch-rival Ignitor snuck ahead on the second lap, staying there for three legs as a small freighter held things up a bit, but Full Moon returned the favor on the final upwind leg, finishing downwind under spinnaker to place fourth. Ignitor ended up eighth and old rivals Shogun were farther back still, though easily earning the Party Barge award with fifteen people aboard, all enjoying the warm sunny evening.
Duck Dodge, June 24, 2003
Sun Fun
With blatant disregard for right of way rules by several boats, the start of the seventh Duck Dodge race was chaotic at best but Full Moon crew Samantha “Dangerously Cheesy” Meinders, Erin “Bottom Polisher” Meinders, Pam “Boomer” Hunt, Randy “Blue-Right” Olsen, and skipper John “3 Inches” Mengedoht escaped unscathed and in the top third of the fleet. Mixing it up with arch-rival Ignitor, Full Moon pulled ahead under spinnaker on the third leg, staying in touch with the lead boats.
Into the second lap, Full Moon was only 100 yards out of first but there were still six boats ahead and Ignitor was threatening once again. Back under spinnaker, Ignitor was vanquished for good and speedy Perfectly Strange dispatched as well, leaving Full Moon battling for fifth with Runner. The final leg was extremely close but Runner prevailed and Full Moon finished an excellent sixth out of over twenty-five boats. Ignitor was ninth, and old rivals Shogun twelfth.
Duck Dodge, July 1, 2003 and July 8
Double Feature
Locked out by a wall of boats on starboard tack, Full Moon crew Kathleen “Red Pants” McCarthy, Samantha “Boom Boom” Meinders, Debra “Not Debbie” Ricard, Art “See Nothing” Teller, Grace “Nose Job” Teller, and skipper John “Used Car” Mengedoht had a poor start near the back for the Stars and Stripes Duck Dodge. There were several collisions and a Hobie 21 turned turtle in the surprisingly strong wind but Full Moon avoided the carnage and began picking off boats one by one, blowing by old rival Shogun on the first leg.
The giant spinnaker was a handful but it went up and down more or less as planned and in between provided some exciting speed. In the end, after two speedy laps, Full Moon managed ninth out of over twenty boats. Arch-rival Ignitor didn’t show and old rival Shogun placed sixteenth.
Maintaining the string of poor starts, Full Moon crew Anneka “Spinnaker” O’Connell, Erin “Two Words" Meinders, Samantha “Pretzels” Meinders, Paul “Wrong Side” Myers, and skipper John “Fashionably Late” Mengedoht nevertheless sailed a brilliant first lap of Duck Dodge No. 9 to move into the front half of the fleet. Battling arch-rival Ignitor and occasional rival Fortis upwind to start the second lap, Ignitor maintained a narrow lead as the wind made a radical shift from south to north.
Returning north up the lake, Full Moon slowly gained on Ignitor but could not pass. Rounding the final buoy, Ignitor was only a boat length ahead but they held on to the finish to place fifth, with Full Moon sixth.
Duck Dodge, July 15, 2003
Wild Ride
Full Moon crew Amy “Too Many Mai Tais” DiMarco, Art “Big One” Teller, Jay “No Leverage” Tarner, Lisa “Prom Queen” Crane, and skipper John “Center Digit” Mengedoht had good timing for the start of the Prom Night Duck Dodge but not good position. Once again near the back of the fleet in the surprisingly strong winds, Full Moon battled several larger boats to good effect and, despite having control problems with the oversize spinnaker, completed the first lap in decent shape.
Ahead, however, were old rival Shogun, sometime-rival Fortis, and a nemesis from a few years back, Whodat (arch-rival Ignitor did not start). Halfway through the second lap, Full Moon dispatched both Fortis and Whodat under spinnaker. Shogun, running with a small crew instead of their usual twelve, finished an excellent sixth with Full Moon eleventh out of some twenty-five boats.
Duck Dodge, July 29, 2003
Hot, Hot, Hot!
There was no race last week but Full Moon returned to action for the Pajama Night Duck Dodge with temperatures in the low 90s. With a light breeze and some ice-cold beverages to take the edge off, crew Amy “Convict” DiMarco, Pam “Teddy” Hunt, Randy “Galley Slave” Olsen, Art “Forestay” Teller, Grace “Scary Driver” Teller, Ian “Double Digits” Mengedoht (celebrating his 10th birthday), and skipper John “No Helm” Mengedoht had a good start on a very crowded line.
The extra-large crew made Full Moon a bit sluggish upwind but all rivals were behind at the first buoy. While arch-rival Ignitor briefly got by on the second leg, excellent spinnaker work took care of business downwind to put Ignitor back over 100 yards.
The second lap featured an ongoing battle with the 38-foot Airloom and much-smaller Full Moon was hard-pressed to keep up. In the end, Airloom managed to finish just ten feet ahead to take seventh with Full Moon eighth and Ignitor ninth out of some twenty-five boats.
Duck Dodge, August 5, 2003
Soaked!
The twelfth Duck Dodge sailboat race began with strong, gusty winds and an ominous dark sky. Full Moon crew Barry “Saturated” Shuman, Doug “Drenched” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “Sopping” Schoemaker, Sarah “Sponge” Allen, and skipper John “Soaked” Mengedoht had a good start right next to arch-rival Ignitor and powered ahead of them by a good margin at the first buoy, though behind the fastest boats by about 75 yards.
Flying the “small” spinnaker on what proved to be a long reaching leg, Full Moon put more distance on her rivals and gained a bit on the lead boats, though not enough to pass anyone. The beginning of the second lap saw Ignitor gain a bit upwind as the fleet spread out and the light sprinkles became a downpour, leaving the unprepared very wet indeed.
Under spinnaker, Ignitor was still well behind and didn’t seem a threat until just after the final buoy when a boat inside Full Moon had trouble with their spinnaker drop, preventing Full Moon from tacking toward the finish. At the finish line, Ignitor tacked in the tight space between Full Moon and the Committee Boat and, while it was close, Full Moon prevailed by five feet to take eighth place.
Duck Dodge, August 26, 2003
The Big Bang
After two weeks off, Full Moon returned to racing action for the Toga Night Duck Dodge. Crew Kelly “Boom” Earls, Pam “Bruiser” Hunt, Randy “Govenator” Olsen, and skipper John “Tiller Tenderizer” Mengedoht had an excellent start in decent wind. By the first mark the wind faded quite a bit and Full Moon faded as well, dropping to ninth as the faster boats got by.
On the slow spinnaker run Full Moon gained a bit, especially on the boats behind, but was unable to pass anyone. While continuing to challenge two boats ahead on the final legs, Full Moon held position to finish ninth out of about twenty-five boats. Arch-rival Ignitor was never a threat, finishing thirteenth with old rival Shogun not far behind in fifteenth.
While sailing around after the finish, a resounding bang echoed off the hills and all turned to see the giant Beluga smashing into Hare Mare near the finish line (Beluga clearly at fault). Hare Mare shares a marina with Full Moon and her skipper services Callison’s video-conferencing equipment. Hare Mare suffered considerable damage and we wish them well with repairs.
Duck Dodge, September 2, 2003
Sunset
The final Duck Dodge sailboat race is always Martini Night on Full Moon and so it was this year. Full Moon crew Amy “Slipin’” DiMarco, Art “Flashlight” Teller, Pam “Vodka Shampoo” Hunt, Randy “Speedwagon” Olsen, and skipper John “Ketch 22” Mengedoht had a decent start but the first upwind leg was very short, leading to a mass of boats converging at the buoy. Full Moon was trapped in the morass and the boats that escaped first had the race in hand.
Full Moon eventually escaped and passed a few boats, especially on the first spinnaker run. But the already light wind began to drop, as it often does with the coming of darkness, and by the second lap the sun was gone for good.
Ghosting along on the second spinnaker run in the dark, Martinis in hand, it was impossible to know the finishing order. Arch-rival Ignitor was somewhere ahead but Full Moon did hold off the theoretically faster Perfectly Strange after battling them the entire race. All in all, it was a great time on the water and a fitting finale to an incredible summer.
Goosebump No. 1 January 11, 2004
Dead Calm
After a few months off in the boatyard for osmotic blister surgery, Full Moon returned to sailboat racing action last Sunday on Lake Union for Goosebump Race No. 1. Crew Lori “Rookie One” Jay, Eric “Rookie Two” Anderson, Randy “Rail Rider” Olsen, Art “Rock The Boat” Teller, and skipper John “Two Inches” Mengedoht faced very light winds at the start which soon faded to a mere whisper and began to clock around the compass.
Boats spread out in search of wind but no lasting advantages were found. At the first (and, as it turned out, only) buoy, the entire fleet bunched up into a knot. After over an hour of minimal progress, a few boats fired up the iron sails to go home but the Full Moon crew elected to drift a while enjoying some rare winter sun.
The wind finally filled in with Full Moon about 100 yards from the finish line with arch-rival Ignitor was close at hand for a final skirmish. Full Moon managed seventh in the no-handicap, one-size fits all race, with Ignitor vanquished to ninth. Old rival Shogun made better use of the meager wind, deploying their spinnaker on occasion, to finish fourth.
Goosebump No. 3 January 25, 2004
The Equalizer Pays Off
After skipping Race No. 2 (the skipper had food poisoning!), Full Moon crew Thomas “Locked Out” Bath, Jay “Wet Sheets” Thoman, Art “Pole Control” Teller, Randy “Strings” Olsen, and skipper John “Squeeze Play” Mengedoht hit the starting line for Goosebump Race No. 3 with good timing and excellent position. Rounding the first buoy in 4th place, Full Moon briefly fell back, struggling to hoist the Equalizer, a super-sized spinnaker. Once the Equalizer was up, Full Moon took off and easily passed two boats to take over 3rd place.
Rounding two more buoys, Full Moon held position and gained additional distance on the fleet but the front-runners (including a 40-footer) were too fast to catch and Full Moon finished an excellent third. Arch rival Ignitor finished 10th behind occasional rivals Fortis and Shogun.
Goosebump No. 4 February 1, 2004
Equalized Again
Full Moon crew Barry “Twisted” Shuman, Lori “Pink” Jay, Eric “Not Wet” Anderson, Randy “Strings” Olsen, and skipper John “Improviser” Mengedoht nailed the start for Goosebump Race No. 4 and, for a short time at least, were in first place. Faster boats (there are no handicaps) soon prevailed and Full Moon rounded the first buoy in fourth place.
Struggling once again with the spinnaker set up, Full Moon lost a few places but quickly regained them with the giant Equalizer, moving up to third place and staying there until passed on the final leg by a speedy 30-footer. At the finish, in a dying breeze, Full Moon took an excellent fourth place, beating two 35-footers. Arch rival Ignitor was eighth and old rival Shogun ninth.
Goosebump No. 6 February 15, 2004
Flying Finale
After weeks of light to non-existent wind, the final Goosebump sailboat race more than made up for it with gusts to 20 knots. Full Moon crew Jay “Bubba” Thoman, Randy “Halyard” Olsen, Art “Spearfisher” Teller, Grace “Grinder” Teller, and skipper John “Wipe Out” Mengedoht had a less than stellar start but managed good speed in conditions greatly favoring larger, heavier boats.
The giant Equalizer spinnaker was deployed on the first lap, providing both scary gyrations and incredible speed with Full Moon jumping onto a plane toward the end of the downwind leg. Unfortunately, the spinnaker takedown was problematic and Full Moon lost some of the distance gained in the speed burst.
The wind grew even stronger on the second lap and deft sail handling was required to keep the boat on its feet. Wisely choosing a smaller spinnaker, Full Moon again flew downwind to take over eighth place. This time the spinnaker came down nicely but the jib was reluctant to return to its normal heights so Full Moon again lost some of the distance gained under spinnaker.
In the end, Full Moon did quite well to take ninth given the conditions and the competition (there is no form of handicapping). Arch-rival Ignitor didn’t make the race.
Duck Dodge May 18, 2004
Duck Soup
For the first Duck Dodge sailboat race, the Race Committee elected to shift Full Moon to a different start with somewhat slower boats. However, they didn’t get the word to most of our traditional rivals so Full Moon had a new set of competitors.
Regardless, Full Moon crew Randy “360” Olsen, Debra “Grinder” Ricard, Dean “Overboard” Dennis, Michael “Soggy Shorts” Medina, and skipper John “Crazy Ivan” Mengedoht had an excellent start and quickly owned second place. With winds at 17 knots and climbing, Full Moon nevertheless flew the giant Equalizer spinnaker on the first lap with marginal control but astonishing speed. At the end of the first lap, Full Moon’s few challengers were toast.
The wind increased into the low 20s on the second lap and a spinnaker was not needed but the crew did have to contend with some gear failures and do their best to keep the boat somewhat upright. At the finish, Full Moon was some five minutes ahead of the nearest competitor - so it’s possible the starting lineup will change again next week! It was strange not to be head to head with old rivals Ignitor and Shogun but the Gold Duck sticker looks very nice on Full Moon’s boom.
Duck Dodge May 25, 2004
Black Hole
The Race Committee was late for their own race for the second Duck Dodge and were a bit inconsistent with their horn signals but Full Moon crew Barry “Bloody” Shuman, Annette “Rookie” Hillesland, brother Mark “Bubba Gump” Bruser, Eric “Early” Anderson, and skipper John “Raingear” Mengedoht were happy just to see the rain let up for a while. After a decent start and solid upwind leg, Full Moon rounded the first buoy in fourth place.
Launching the standard spinnaker in surprisingly strong wind, Full Moon rocketed ahead to take the lead. Unfortunately, the wind quit at the next buoy and the fleet bunched up into a knot. Clearing the knot was problematic and Full Moon fell to fifth. Playing the now-fickle winds to best advantage, though, Full Moon picked off first one boat and then another and missed second place by only a few feet for a tremendous comeback – and the prized Bronze Duck!
Duck Dodge June 1, 2004
Reality Check
Full Moon switched back to the second start (with faster boats) for the Silly Hat Night Duck Dodge and crew Art “Old Man” Teller, Randy “Rail Rider” Olsen, Eric “Chips” Anderson, Thomas “Stuffer” Bath, and skipper John “Windless” Mengedoht led the fleet for a good part of the first leg. Unfortunately, a ship had taken out the first buoy, leaving individual boats to decide where to make their turns. This cost Full Moon a number of positions as some boats turned earlier.
Things went further downhill from there as the formerly lusty wind fizzled at the northern corners of the lake and luck became as important as skill. After two and a half laps (three spinnaker runs!), Full Moon managed to finish a somewhat disappointing 10th. However, old rival Shogun was still behind in 11th and arch-rival Ignitor was way back in 16th so all was not lost.
Duck Dodge June 8, 2004
Redemption
The fourth Duck Dodge sailboat race appeared to be a drifting contest before the start with light to no wind. Full Moon crew Debra “Foredeck Queen” Ricard, Doug “Shutterbug” Schoemaker, Jeffery “Spinnaker” Schoemaker, Kelly “Rookie” O’Neil, and skipper John “Tall Tales” Mengedoht were well-positioned for the start and avoided a pile-up at the starting buoy. The wind filled in and Full Moon was in the top few boats on the first leg. Rounding the first buoy, the oversize Equalizer spinnaker was hoisted and Full Moon took off.
Gybing the giant spinnaker at the next buoy provided some anxious moments with the equally giant pole but the spinnaker remained full and Full Moon rounded the final buoy solidly in second place. The final leg saw no changes and Full Moon easily captured the prized Silver Duck sticker, finishing the short one-lap race in an astounding 30 minutes.
Duck Dodge June 15, 2004
Pirate Fleet
Full Moon crew Lori “Boom-Boom” Jay, Michael “Flyin’ Eye Patch” Medina, Randy “Up 3 Times” Olsen, Doug “Bloody Palms” Schoemaker, James “Mini-Shoe” Schoemaker, and skipper John “Birdman” Mengedoht were well-prepared with attire and accessories for the Pirate Night Duck Dodge but were forty seconds tardy to the starting line for a less than ideal start. Undaunted, Full Moon began a steady advancement, catching and passing Ignitor and Shogun early on the second leg under the giant Equalizer spinnaker.
With a strong and steady breeze, the course was a full two and a half laps around Lake Union, including three spinnaker runs and many tactical battles. The long race and wind conditions favored larger, faster boats and Full Moon did very well to finish seventh out of over twenty boats. Arch-rival Ignitor could do no better than fourteenth with Shogun sixteenth.
Duck Dodge June 22, 2004
Sun Fun
The weather was incredible once again for Duck Dodge sailboat race No. 6. Full Moon crew Scott “Rookie” Homan, Randy “Up Once, Wet” Olsen, Pam “Bungie” Hunt, Lori “Wet T-shirt” Jay, Ian “Cookie” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Pinkie” Mengedoht had a decent start at the favored end of the line and rounded the first buoy in the top third of the fleet.
The giant Equalizer spinnaker proved a handful on a long close reaching leg up Lake Union but provided great speed. Other boats were equally fast, though, and Full Moon more or less held position. The second lap was more of the same and Full Moon finished a very respectable seventh out of over twenty-five boats. Arch-rival Ignitor finished tenth several long minutes later.
Duck Dodge June 29, 2004
Solar Gain
The amazing weather continued for Duck Dodge sailboat race No. 7. Full Moon crew Eric “Muscles” Anderson, Debra “Halyard Queen” Ricard, Ben “First” Kim, Art “Pole Control” Teller, Grace “Sleepy” Teller, and skipper John “Screwed” Mengedoht had good timing for the start but a poorly angled and very short starting line made a mess of things. The results weren’t pretty and Full Moon managed to cross the line roughly 15th. Full Moon is famous for comebacks, though, picking off several boats on the first leg and several more under spinnaker on the second leg.
The second lap brought Full Moon within 100 yards of the first place boat and a top five finish looked possible. The lead boats were all skillfully sailed, though, and Full Moon finished a very respectable 7th out of nearly thirty boats. Arch-rival Ignitor, though starting ahead, was never a threat and finished 17th while old rival Shogun finished way back in 25th.
Duck Dodge July 6, 2004
Summer Disappears
The Red, White & Blue Duck Dodge began with dark skies and light winds for a big weather change. Full Moon crew Amy “Next Time” DiMarco, Michael “Twisted” Medina, Chuan “Speedy” Nguyen, Essie “The Winch” Jacobs, and skipper John “Teacher” Mengedoht were well positioned for the start but hampered by a 36-footer with a giant wind shadow. Breaking into clear air, Full Moon moved up into the top five boats but lost ground by not having the spinnaker ready for the short run past Gasworks Park.
The giant Equalizer was hoisted for the next long leg for a nice speed boost but trouble re-hoisting the jib was costly. The second lap saw the wind go even lighter and the leaders were out of reach. In the end, Full Moon finished tenth with arch-rival Ignitor eighth.
Duck Dodge July 13, 2004
Fickle Winds
Duck Dodge No. 9 served up a bizarre start with extremely light wind coming from multiple directions and a whopping 100 racing sailboats on Lake Union. Full Moon crew Michael “Rammin’ Speed” Medina, Eric “Clean Drop” Anderson, Karen “Army Brat” Hadac, Steve “Native” Hadac, and skipper John “Screamer” Mengedoht struggled in the fitful breeze, surrounded by boats on all sides. When the fleet eventually spread out, Full Moon was near the back with rivals Ignitor and Shogun half the lake ahead.
Once moving, though, Full Moon was unstoppable and the giant Equalizer spinnaker provided some major gains. Through 1 ½ laps, boat after boat fell behind and, rounding the next to last buoy, Ignitor was passed. Approaching the final buoy, Shogun was ahead and razzing us (fools!). Much to their chagrin, Full Moon slipped by and easily stayed there to the downwind finish. Full Moon crossed the line 12th with Shogun 13th and Ignitor 15th out of 43 boats in our start.
Duck Dodge July 27, 2004
Jammie Time
The Pajama Night Duck Dodge provided the sailor’s dream – a warm and sunny evening with a decent northerly breeze. Full Moon crew Amy “Peaches” DiMarco, Art “Hot Jammies” Teller, Grace “A Little More” Teller, Lori “Slippery Silk” Jay, Eric “Surf’s Up” Anderson, and skipper John “Jouster” Mengedoht were well-dressed for bed and had an excellent port-tack start, staying in the top four boats to the first buoy.
With a relatively long two-lap race and excellent crew work, Full Moon passed a couple of boats, including one from the previous start, but had to allow a few faster boats by in turn. In the end, Full Moon finished an excellent fifth out of twenty-two boats with arch-rival Ignitor seventh and old rival Shogun struggling at the back of the fleet.
Duck Dodge August 3, 2004
Shift City
Duck Dodge sailboat race No. 11 began with light southwesterly wind and Full Moon crew Alisha “Hi-Dive” Mason, Paul “Big Pull” Johnson, Art “Wet Pack” Teller, Grace “Halyards” Teller, and skipper John “No Mercy” Mengedoht enjoyed a decent start in the top third of the fleet. Rounding the first buoy, the Equalizer spinnaker went up nicely for a short run followed by a long reach that got progressively tighter as the wind shifted west and then northwest.
The second lap saw the wind shift back west and fade out at the south end of the lake. This allowed trailing boats a chance to catch up, including rivals Ignitor and Shogun. Shogun elected to fly a spinnaker in the confused wind but this proved unwise as the wind shifted yet again, roaring out of the north. Ignitor fared better until tearing their giant flyweight jib. Full Moon escaped the tight mass of boats and took off upwind, turned the final corner and finished an excellent seventh. Ignitor followed in ninth with Shogun right behind in tenth.
Duck Dodge August 10, 2004
Overboard
The Tropical Night Duck Dodge began with the rescue of a kayaker and continued with Full Moon crew Randy “Back Flip” Olsen falling overboard five minutes before the race start – this before the first Boat Drink (rum and tropical fruit juices) had a chance to be absorbed. Rescue No. 2 was completed rapidly but dry crew Pam “Shoe Saver” Hunt, Barry “Twisted Pole” Shuman, Ben “Second Time” Kim, and skipper John “Full Spinnaker” Mengedoht faced a challenging start and crossed the line toward the back of the fleet.
With Ignitor and Shogun well ahead and wind fading in and out, a classic Full Moon comeback was needed. The wind was briefly cooperative and Shogun slid astern by the second buoy but Ignitor remained hundreds of yards ahead. The gap closed ever so slowly downwind and up again and Full Moon finally got by for good with half a lap remaining. In the end, Full Moon was ninth with Ignitor eleventh and Shogun somewhere back in the fading light.
Duck Dodge August 17, 2004
Nearly Ducky
Full Moon crew Amy “Latitude” DiMarco, Art “Jibe Again” Teller, Grace “Cabin Girl” Teller, Lori “Freckles” Jay, Eric “Muscles” Anderson, and skipper John “Scorpio” Mengedoht nailed the start for Duck Dodge No. 13 and were soon battling for the lead with perennial speedsters Dreams and Scat plus a well-sailed red Thunderbird. Positions were swapped several times before Dreams and Scat pulled slowly away and the fight was on for third.
Full Moon had an edge downwind under spinnaker and the T-bird was slightly faster upwind. Full Moon led by 40 yards at the end of the final downwind run but was held up by another boat, allowing the T-bird to close up. The final leg was close all the way but the T-bird prevailed by five feet at the finish for the Bronze Duck with Full Moon 4th out of 32 boats. Arch-rival Ignitor could do no better than 16th with Shogun even farther back in the dimming light.
Duck Dodge September 7, 2004
Final Fling
Full Moon crew Randy “Skyy Blue” Olsen, Pam “Cosmo Girl” Hunt, Dean “Jello Shot” Dennis, and skipper John “Dim Bulb” Mengedoht were blocked by two slow boats at the start for the final “Committee Appreciation” Duck Dodge and crossed the line near the back of the fleet. Meanwhile, arch-rival Ignitor had their best start of the summer and, with a short one-lap race, were out of reach, even for the Comeback Kings.
Occasional-rival Fortis was in range, though, and Full Moon turned up the heat, holding off three much larger cruisers upwind and then blasting off under spinnaker. Sneaking inside Fortis at the end of the spinnaker run, Full Moon pulled ahead for the final two legs for an 11th place finish out of over 20 boats. Ignitor remained near the front to place 5th. Shogun did not start.
Full Moon received the highly coveted Black Duck for the best gift to the Race Committee (Jello shots made by Amy DiMarco), compensating somewhat for the rare loss to Ignitor.
Duck Dodge Rum Run October 23, 2004
Rum Float
Each October, the Duck Dodge Committee puts on the Rum Run sailboat race out on the Sound. This year Full Moon crew Amy “Shots” DiMarco, Lori “Ski Gear” Jay, Michael “Boat-Hopper” Medina, Randy “Moist Muffin” Olsen, Pam “Pina Colada” Hunt, and John “Boat Hook” Mengedoht joined Frank “The Fisherman”, Kathy “Bailey Rocks” Dennis, and skipper Dean “Casual Start” Dennis on the big and beautiful 47 foot White Star to enjoy the race in comfortable style.
Despite being a tad late to the starting line, White Star did well in the early going, enjoying a decent southerly. Unfortunately, the wind began to fade as the fleet crossed the Sound to Bainbridge Island and smaller, lighter boats began to catch up and pass by. Struggling to keep moving in extremely light wind and an opposing current up the Bainbridge shore, White Star eventually retired to motor in to the traditional post-race raft-up in Port Madison where she made a splendid party platform. All had a great time, as usual.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Old Stories, 2001-2002
Goosebump, January 7, 2001
Full Moon Is First!
After a few months off, Full Moon returned to sailboat racing Sunday for the first race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union. Crew Chris "Hot Chocolate" Beza, Kari "NO Raisins!" Einset, Anneka "Spectacles" O'Connell, Art "Weather Rail" Teller, and skipper John "Motorboat" Mengedoht braved the raging wind (zero knots) and stormy seas (not a ripple) but found the competition seriously lacking, leading the "race" from start to finish.
This wasn't at all hard to do considering the first race will actually be held NEXT Sunday! Racing calendars in local boating magazines had left the date of the first race in doubt and Cap'n John wasn't taking any chances on missing a race. Likewise, the loyal Full Moon crew wasn't about to miss a beautiful sunny afternoon on the water, racing or not. So score one for the race committee and we'll be really ready next Sunday!
Goosebump, January 14, 2001
Lake Union Speed Demons
In the first sailboat race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Lisa "Spinnaker" Berenson, Anneka "Telltales" O'Connell, Randy "Clockwise" Olsen, Barry "The Juror" Shuman, and skipper John "Rusty" Mengedoht enjoyed the panorama of many boats ahead at the start. Starting nearly last is not normally a recipe for success but, tacking away from the fleet into undisturbed wind, Full Moon managed to pass at least six boats before the first buoy to move into sixth place. Having demonstrated some measure of skill upwind, the spinnaker then went up with a major twist, allowing the leaders to relax somewhat. Let's just call the first lap a "practice lap."
Still, Full Moon is not slow and with old rival Shogun ahead it was time for knuckling down. Halfway through the second lap, Shogun was within range and several 40 footers were wallowing in our wake. The second spinnaker hoist was perfection, Shogun was toast, and behold, Full Moon was in third place, rapidly closing on Audacious (captained by Suzanne Lusnia's husband Mackenzie Skene). Turning upwind, much larger Audacious managed to widen the gap and they finished second to perennial speedster Scat. Full Moon retained third, easily holding off Shogun (fourth) and Shoot The Moon (fifth).
Goosebump, January 21, 2001
Wizards In The Mist
The second sailboat race of the Goosebump series featured continuous drizzle and extremely light wind. Full Moon crew Chris "Saturated Shoes" Beza, Paul "Soggy Buns" Myers, Anneka "Fog Vision" O'Connell, Art "Rock The Boat" Teller, and skipper John "Sponge Gloves" Mengedoht managed a nearly perfect start, leading the race for most of the first leg. However, always-speedy Scat gained bit by bit and rounded the first buoy ahead to take the lead. Meanwhile another speedster, Goose N' Duck, was creeping up from behind.
Rounding the second buoy, Full Moon was still second but the wind soon dropped even more, leaving the water like black glass. Somehow still ghosting down the lake, Goose N' Duck continued to pursue Full Moon while the entire rest of the fleet was stuck, unmoving, at the second buoy. Goose N' Duck eventually oozed by, halfway to the final buoy, though Full Moon did close the gap somewhat toward the finish to take a very respectable third. Some forty minutes later, the rest of the fleet finally made it to the finish with old rivals Shogun taking fifth.
Goosebump, January 28, 2001
Doldrum Decisions
The start of the third sailboat race of the Goosebump series began with extremely light wind (again!). Full Moon crew Pam "Hot Cider" Hunt, Vivian "Wind Repellent" Ledesma, Randy "Raspberry Frango" Olsen, Barry "Chest Hair" Shuman, and skipper John "Tight Squeeze" Mengedoht were well positioned for the start with clear air and right of way. Unfortunately, several boats on the opposite tack ignored the right of way issues, forcing Full Moon to tack to avoid collision. This left Full Moon in dead air to leeward of nearly the entire fleet.
Full Moon clawed past five or six boats before the first buoy but then the wind began to fill in from behind, bringing the last place boats up into the middle of the fleet. The resulting buoy rounding was more than a little crowded but Full Moon squeezed inside the 40 foot Shoot The Moon and was off to pursue the leaders. At the second buoy, Full Moon had picked of a few more boats and managed to pass even more on the long upwind leg to the third buoy. After a perfect spinnaker set and short downwind run, Full Moon rounded the fourth buoy and headed for the finish line to place sixth, holding off the 45 foot Zephyr (seventh) and Shoot The Moon (eighth). Old rivals Shogun finished ninth. Given the fluky wind and disadvantaged start, this was a terrific comeback, celebrated with a round of hot beverages before returning to the dock.
Goosebump, February 4, 2001
Wind, And Plenty of It
Be careful what you wish for. After three races with very light wind, the fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump series began with a solid 25 knots. Anneka "Hurricane" O'Connell and John "Typhoon" Mengedoht had their hands full with no other crew aboard Full Moon and, struggling with hoisting the sails, were nearly last at the start. At least Full Moon MADE the start - arch-rivals on Ignitor came out, checked out the wind, and went right back to the dock!
The larger boats had the advantage in such strong winds but, once going, Full Moon managed to pass a few all the same. After two quick laps of Lake Union, Full Moon placed tenth out of fifteen boats. Old rivals Shogun were the only boat to dare try a spinnaker, finishing sixth for their trouble.
Goosebump, February 11, 2001
A Perfect Day
The sky was blue, the sun was warm, the wind was a beautiful 15 knots and Full Moon was perfectly positioned at the start of the fifth Goosebump sailboat race, pinning most of the fleet to leeward. Full Moon crew Paul "Soggy Sock" Myers, Anneka "Grinder" O'Connell, Randy "Rail Rider" Olsen, Karl "Boom Stopper" Schmidt, and skipper John "Speeeed" Mengedoht proceeded to operate like a well-oiled machine which, considering the crew is different for every race, is pretty amazing!
The only downside to 15 knot breezes when your boat is 25 feet long is that 45 foot boats are simply faster. By the first buoy, the big boys were already past. So, too, was the hot custom 25 footer, Scat, though not by much. As the race progressed through two laps, Scat tried in vain to catch the three big boats while pulling a bit farther ahead of Full Moon. Full Moon, in turn, left all the other boats farther and farther behind. The positions remained the same to the finish, with Scat in fourth and Full Moon an excellent fifth.
Goosebump, February 18, 2001
Last Dance
The sixth and final sailboat race of the Goosebump series served up a little welcome sunshine, along with light winds. Full Moon crew Cynthia "Chocolate Fudge" Faw, Ed "Maple Nut" Sweetnam, Ian "Mini Me" Mengedoht, and skipper John "Mojo" Mengedoht were third across the starting line and kept that position for much of the first leg until passed by a 45-footer and a blazingly fast Synergy 1000. For the first lap, Full Moon remained solidly in fifth while the Synergy took over the lead.
Lurking behind Full Moon and slowly gaining on the second lap was old rival Shogun with arch-rival Ignitor next in line. Full Moon held off Shogun until the downwind leg (a Shogun strength) when Shogun slipped by into fifth. Full Moon closed the gap toward the finish but had to settle for sixth place. Ignitor fell farther back and finished seventh, minutes behind Full Moon.
Duck Dodge, May 15, 2001
Silver Lining
Braving "Spring Storm 2001" for the first Duck Dodge sailboat race of the season on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Anneka "Mainsail Shower" O'Connell, Randy "Fingers" Olsen, Paul "Sponge" Myers, Art "Rusty" Teller, and skipper John "Wet Head" Mengedoht were rewarded with a steady downpour and surprisingly light winds. After a well-timed start, Full Moon was in third place for the first upwind leg and gaining rapidly on arch-rival Ignitor. By the second buoy Full Moon overlapped Ignitor's transom and on the downwind run Full Moon pulled ahead under spinnaker while closing the gap on Scat in first place. Scat held position on the final upwind leg to finish first in the short one-lap race while Ignitor fell farther and farther behind to take a distant third. The Silver Duck award to Full Moon for second place more than made up for the wet weather, especially when combined with victory over Ignitor.
Duck Dodge, May 22, 2001
Bronze Me, Baby!
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series offered up May weather at its very best – sunny skies with a nice, steady breeze out of the north. Full Moon crew Chris "Handi-Wipes" Beza, Vivian "Obnoxious Shoes" Ledesma, Debra "Tasty Treats" Ricard, Barry "Bowrider" Shuman, and skipper John "Speed" Mengedoht gambled on a port tack start (which means you must yield to boats coming on the opposite tack) and lost the gamble, starting mid-fleet.
Unfazed, Full Moon set off upwind, picking off at least three boats to pull into seventh place while dodging a tug and barge near the windward mark. Blasting off downwind under spinnaker, Full Moon went a little farther off the Westlake shore, found stronger wind, and blew by three more boats including old rival Shogun. Unlike all the other boats, Shogun kept their spinnaker up for the next leg, using it to good advantage to pull back ahead but Full Moon squeaked inside at the buoy for the final leg to windward and the finish.
Again finding better wind toward the middle of the lake, while avoiding the crowd on the Eastlake shore, Full Moon passed one last boat, taking third place by a wide margin for the Bronze Duck. Shogun fell back to place ninth. Arch-rival Ignitor failed to show up, no doubt embarrassed by their loss to Full Moon last week. Perennial speedster Scat again took the Gold Duck with the equally quick Olson 25 Dreams in second.
Anthony’s, June 1, Duck Dodge, June 5, 2001
Full Moon Double Header
Forgoing the third Duck Dodge race last week, Full Moon crew Paul "Light Beer" Meyers, Randy "Pasta" Olsen, Debra "Dark Beer" Ricard, Barry "Bag Boy" Shuman, and skipper John "GPS" Mengedoht headed out on Lake Washington for the first sailboat race of the Anthony's Homeport Summer Series. With wind rising to well over 20 knots (some boats registered over 30), Full Moon had a good start off Kirkland and held her own with the big boats bashing through the chop to Hunt's Point. Rounding the buoy, few boats hoisted spinnakers and Cap'n John decided not to risk the 1978 vintage chute on Full Moon. This proved a wise choice as boats with spinnakers had a lot of trouble in the strong wind and Full Moon was able to rocket along with just a small jib and full mainsail.
At the downwind buoy off Sand Point, Full Moon was still in sight of the leaders and arch-rival Ignitor was well behind. Heading back to Kirkland and the finish, Ignitor was in hot pursuit but to no avail, finishing 55 seconds behind. With handicaps applied (Anthony's uses the PHRF system), Full Moon finished a solid fourth, followed by Ignitor in fifth and Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia's husband) in seventh.
Returning to Lake Union for the fourth Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Vivian "Vino Fino" Ledesma, Anneka "Hot Lips" O'Connell, Karl "Dry" Schmidt, Art "Krackel" Teller, and skipper John "Sugar" Mengedoht were well positioned for the start when the race committee sounded the horn a full minute early. This gave a huge advantage to boats closer to the starting line. Fortunately, Full Moon found better wind and no traffic toward the Westlake side and passed five or six boats by the first buoy to round in third place!
Heading up the lake under spinnaker, Full Moon passed Scat for second and by the end of the lap had passed Dreams for first. Unfortunately, Dreams retook the lead upwind. Back under spinnaker, Scat caught up to Full Moon at the downwind buoy and all three boats were in close contention at the final buoy. Dreams held on up the last leg for the win while Scat faded and Full Moon easily took the Silver Duck for the second time in three races. Arch-rival Ignitor had to settle for fourth place with old rival Shogun just behind in fifth.
Duck Dodge, June 12, 2001
The Equalizer
When Full Moon races in the Duck Dodge, she is pitted against several boats that, in theory at least, are much faster. For the fifth sailboat race of the series, Full Moon had a partial equalizer – a spinnaker some 45% larger than standard. Crew Lisa "Red Line" Berenson, Amy "Chips Ahoy" Henderson, Barry "Size Matters" Shuman, Art "Big Pole" Teller, and skipper John "Low Side" Mengedoht had a perfect start in light wind and led the fleet until the wind filled in from behind. Rounding the second buoy, up went the Equalizer and Full Moon regained the lead, though perennial rocket ships Scat and Dreams were close behind.
For the better part of four legs, Full Moon held on to the lead. However, toward the end of the last downwind run the wind died and the race was up for grabs. Wind arrived first for Scat and then Dreams leaving Full Moon third for the Bronze Duck at the finish line. Arch-rival Ignitor placed sixth and old rival Shogun gave up in the light wind. It was a thrilling race for all hands, the Equalizer proved its worth, and Full Moon has two seconds and two thirds in four races - our best record ever!
Duck Dodge, June 19, 2001
Pajama Party
The sixth Duck Dodge sailboat race was Pajama Night and Full Moon crew Brenda "Rookie" Barnes, Chris "Pasties" Beza, Anneka "Old Habits" O'Connell, Barry "Wet Jammies" Shuman, and skipper John "Nightshirt" Mengedoht came well dressed for a sleepover. Full Moon had an excellent start in decent wind but a few boats closer to the Westlake end of the line had an edge for the first leg. The first lap saw the fleet slowly spreading out but few position changes.
On the second lap, Full Moon gained substantially under the Big Spinnaker, closing rapidly on supposedly faster Scat and Dreams while traditional rivals faded. On the final leg, it appeared Full Moon might be in contention for a Bronze Duck but two even faster boats had already finished and Full Moon was sixth, just behind Scat. Arch-rival Ignitor finished over five minutes later in eleventh with old rival Shogun in thirteenth out of about twenty boats. The weather was perfect, the Coronas were ice cold, and the finish was thrilling. We couldn’t ask for more!
Anthony’s, June 29, Duck Dodge, July 3, 2001
Friday Fun And The Black Duck
Full Moon crew Paul "Pedal Power" Myers, Anneka "Kit Kat" O'Connell, Randy "Both Ways" Olsen, Art "Higher Pole" Teller, Grace "Giggles" Teller, and skipper John "Bumper Boats" Mengedoht skipped the Duck Dodge last week to do another Anthony's sailboat race on Friday. After a good start off Kirkland, Full Moon did well to windward, keeping up with many larger boats. Rounding the Sand Point buoy, the spinnaker went up beautifully, glowing brightly in the evening sun.
After lowering the spinnaker and clearing the buoy at Hunt's Point it was back to Kirkland for an uneventful finish. Up in the bar at Anthony's (following a suitable delay while the racers had a round or two) the results were posted: Full Moon finished fifth out of eleven boats, squeaking by Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband) on corrected time. Arch-rival Ignitor, no doubt dreading another defeat, failed to show up for the race.
Returning to Lake Union for the Stars and Stripes Duck Dodge on July 3, Full Moon crew Carolyn "Got It Wet" Jones, Mike "Hard Lemonade" Jones, Art "Three Times!" Teller, Grace "Near Miss" Teller, and skipper John "Downwind Demon" Mengedoht were well prepared for the theme with appropriate clothing and boat decorations. This earned the coveted Black Duck award, our first of the year.
After a well-timed start at, unfortunately, the disadvantaged end of the starting line, Full Moon was in the upper third of the fleet for the first leg. Using the Equalizer (Full Moon's giant new spinnaker) for the first downwind leg, Full Moon blew by old rival Shogun and arch-rival Ignitor. For the next several legs, Full Moon continued to pull away from Ignitor and others, passing another boat or two as well. At the end of two and half laps, the race ended under spinnaker with Full Moon fifth just behind Dreams and a well-sailed Ranger 26. Ignitor finished eighth and Shogun was too far back to tell.
Anthony’s, July 27, Duck Dodge July 31, 2001
Full Moon Returns
After a few weeks off, Full Moon crew Amy "Outa Practice" Henderson, Barry "Wet Pole" Shuman, Paul "Moon" Myers, Anneka "Rollin' a Fatty" O'Connell, and skipper John "High Side" Mengedoht headed out to Lake Washington for Anthony's Race No. 8. After a good start in a tightly packed fleet, Full Moon tacked away into clear wind and cruised to the first buoy at Hunt's Point. Downwind under spinnaker, Full Moon was able to catch some waves, surfing to over 7 knots and gaining a bit on the "faster" boats. After a clean spinnaker drop at Sand Point, it was back to Kirkland on a close reach in building winds for the finish. With handicaps applied, Full Moon finished a very respectable fourth with Audacious sixth and arch-rival Ignitor a no-show.
Back to Lake Union for the Prom Night Duck Dodge, it was time for crew cross-dressing with Christy "Flasher" Bates, Amy "Shrimping" Henderson, Barry "Prom Queen" Shuman, Amy "Black Tie" Pearson, and skipper John "Barbara Bush" Mengedoht. Full Moon was late to the starting line and struggled in light wind surrounded by other boats. Once in clear air it was a different story but by then the damage was done and the lead boats were out of reach. Two laps later, Full Moon finished 12th out of 25 boats with old rival Shogun in 6th and arch-rival Ignitor 8th. A great time was had by all and the "girls" received numerous wolf whistles.
Duck Dodge August 7, 2001
Tropicana
The twelfth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Tropical Night and, as is usual, one of the race marks was a floating "island" dispensing cold beer to thirsty racers. Full Moon crew Pam "Pina Colada" Hunt, Anneka "Speed Knot" O'Connell, Randy "Death Roll" Olsen, and skipper John "Use 'em All" Mengedoht were well equipped with grass skirts and plastic leis. After a solid start in 15-knot winds, Full Moon sailed well to the first buoy and, forgoing a spinnaker, lost very little ground downwind, even with a change of jibs on this leg. Back upwind, Full Moon had a boat blocking the beer supply at the “island” but managed to pass perennial speedster Scat shortly thereafter. With winds dropping back to 10 knots, up went the Equalizer (very large spinnaker) for the second downwind run. This proved a poor choice as the wind rapidly built back up, leaving Full Moon seriously overpowered. The ensuing struggle to lower the spinnaker cost a few places, including allowing Scat to sneak by. Upwind to the island again, Full Moon handily scored several beers and, speeding to the finish, managed to outsail Scat to the line for seventh place. Arch-rival Ignitor could do no better than twelfth and old rival Shogun sixteenth out of over twenty boats. It was a gorgeous evening on the lake, refreshing to have good wind, and the pina coladas were very tasty!
Anthony’s, August 17, Duck Dodge August 21, 2001
Shogun Scores!
Skipping the Duck Dodge last week, Full Moon crew Chris “Ice Man” Beza, Anneka “Ben & Jerry’s” O’Connell, Grace “Ocean Motion” Teller, Art “Wild Hair” Teller, and skipper John “Mega-Phone” Mengedoht headed to Kirkland for Anthony’s Race #11. Full Moon had a decent start and sailed well to Hunt’s Point in light winds out of the southwest. After rounding the buoy, nearly all boats hoisted spinnakers but the wind was slowly shifting northward and Full Moon’s ancient spinnaker was ill suited to the wind angle. After a slow mile watching other boats pull ahead, the spinnaker came down. Shortly thereafter the wind swung around to the north and Full Moon picked up speed. Unfortunately, the wind shift came too late for Full Moon as the race committee had moved the finish line to the Sand Point buoy and there was not enough time for a comeback. Full Moon finished seventh with Audacious eighth and Ignitor once again a no-show.
Full Moon returned to Lake Union for the Toga Night Duck Dodge but a constant shower discouraged all but a few from wearing soggy bed sheets. Full Moon crew Carolyn "Wet" Jones, Mike "Zipper" Jones, Randy "Goretex" Olsen, David "Sponge" Zeitlin, and skipper John "Mainsail Shower" Mengedoht hit the starting line with excellent position to windward and led the fleet until speedy Scat slipped inside at the first buoy. After hoisting the spinnaker and then gybing around the second buoy, old rivals Shogun snuck up from behind and, with excellent spinnaker work, oozed ahead. After a clean spinnaker drop at the final buoy, Full Moon gained rapidly on Shogun while holding off a theoretically faster J24. Unfortunately, Shogun had too much of a lead, finishing second behind Scat while Full Moon easily dispatched the J24 for the Bronze Duck.
Duck Dodge August 28, 2001
Moon Dance
The 15th Duck Dodge sailboat race began with a nice breeze and Full Moon crew Debra "Halyards" Ricard, Amy "Got It Wet" Stokes, Art "Congested Cow" Teller, and skipper John "In vs. Out" Mengedoht had a better than average start at the favored end of the line. Unfortunately, the race committee set a long 2 1/2 lap course and, naturally, the nice breeze soon faded. Worse, while Full Moon passed a boat or two on many legs (there were nine legs, three with spinnaker), old rival Shogun always seemed to find better wind.
Heading up the final long upwind leg, night having fully descended, Shogun remained just out of reach while Full Moon slowly pulled away from three supposedly faster boats. Lights appeared to port revealing Goose N' Duck and Scat heading for the finish but it was impossible to tell how many boats might remain ahead. Rounding the final buoy, up went the Equalizer in the moonlight for the downwind run to the finish. Ghosting along with nary a ripple on the water, a horn sounded from the committee boat – Shogun had taken third place, defeating Full Moon for only the third time all summer. Finally, nearly three hours after the start, Full Moon crossed the line in fourth. Many boats, including arch-rival Ignitor, failed to finish at all.
Duck Dodge September 4, 2001
Martini Night!
The final Duck Dodge sailboat race is always Martini Night aboard Full Moon and crew Amy "Buoy Dancer" Henderson, Pam "Stirred, Not Shaken" Hunt, Randy "Cosmopolitan" Olsen, Barry "Head Banger" Shuman, and skipper John "Inches" Mengedoht were well prepared for a floating party. The Race Committee opted for flag signals rather than the usual air horn, leaving most of the sailors confused and unsure of the starting time. Nevertheless, after some very close quarters maneuvering, Full Moon managed a good start on the left end of the line.
Unfortunately, the right side paid huge dividends for the first leg and Full Moon fell well behind the leaders. Hoisting the Equalizer for the downwind run, however, Full Moon was soon back in the hunt, passing old rivals Shogun among others. Turning back upwind, Full Moon stayed right, which was again the place to be. Unfortunately, nearing the upwind buoy on a collision course, arch-rival Ignitor refused to yield right of way. The resulting crash tack to avoid collision allowed Shogun to slip by. Back under spinnaker, Full Moon closed the gap to Shogun but couldn't quite get by, finishing mere feet behind in eighth place.
Duck Dodge Rum Run October 27, 2001
Adventure in Endurance
The Duck Dodge Committee offers the Rum Run sailboat race out on the Sound the last Saturday before Halloween. Full Moon crew Paul “Strapless” Myers, Anneka “The Mummy” O’Connell, and skipper John “GPS” Mengedoht made the voyage, in a steady rain, out through the locks to Shilshole to pick up Art “Auto-Inflate” Teller and Barry “Body Floss” Shuman. With light wind out of the north and an opposing current, the race got a very slow start off Shilshole, heading for Spring Beach (north of Carkeek Park). As the boats oozed forward a bored crewmember on a large boat broke out a saxophone and played two solos only to be matched by a trumpet player on another boat. We didn’t know we were supposed to bring instruments!
Pacesetter Scat stayed close to shore but Full Moon found slightly better wind farther out and pulled into the lead, at one point nearly passing the lead boats from the first start. As predicted, the wind slowly clocked around to the south and spinnakers began popping up in the drizzle. Rounding the buoy, Scat had regained the lead but Full Moon was substantially ahead of rivals Ignitor and Shogun as the fleet headed southwest across the Sound toward the finish line in Port Madison.
As fate would have it, Full Moon sailed into a “hole” in the wind in the middle of the Sound which Ignitor missed, sailing well north of the direct course to the finish. The doldrums erased any advantage Full Moon had gained and brought many boats into close proximity. After over 4 ½ hours of patient attention to wind and sails, Full Moon crossed the finish line in fifth, less than a minute after Ignitor crossed in third. Shogun was eighth a few minutes later. Disappointment with fifth place, after holding second for most of the race, was offset by a gift from the Race Committee. Apparently, when Full Moon placed second in a previous Rum Run, the Committee had run out of Silver Duck awards and they had been saving one for us ever since!
Goosebump January 20, 2002
Winter Fun for Full Moon
Full Moon returned to sailboat racing action Sunday for the second of six Goosebump races on Lake Union. With winds gusting to over 25 knots, Full Moon crew Anneka “Systems Engineer” O’Connell, Randy “Reefer” Olsen, Paul “Muscles” Myers, Barry “Halyard” Shuman, Ian “Gatorade” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Round-Up” Mengedoht paused to put a necessary reef in the mainsail just before the start, crossing the line next to last. By the first buoy, however, Full Moon had advanced to fifth place, there to remain for the better part of two laps, hanging on in the howling wind.
On the next to last leg, Full Moon dropped briefly to sixth behind arch-rival Ignitor. Approaching the final buoy, Scat, Lulu, and Ignitor were side by side with Full Moon right on their transoms, and Full Moon managed to squeak inside them all to round the buoy. Blasting upwind to the finish line, Scat held onto third but the battle was on with Ignitor, Full Moon being ahead but Ignitor in better position to windward to cross the line. Approaching the line, Full Moon had just enough room to tack in front of Ignitor to beat them by five seconds – a great victory given that the conditions favored the longer and heavier boat.
Goosebump January 27, 2002
Snow Job
Oh, the weather outside is frightful,
The crew is so delightful,
The Committee Boat didn’t show,
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
The Race Committee failed to show up for the third Goosebump race but the crew of Shoot The Moon suggested a course and starting time which all boats agreed to. Full Moon crew Anneka “Chute Stuffer” O’Connell, Paul “Grab It” Myers, Art “Sheets” Teller, and skipper John “Three Hands” Mengedoht had a good start but picked the wrong side of the lake for the first leg, falling to fourth place. Flying back downwind with the giant Equalizer, Full Moon gained rapidly on all but 40 foot Shoot The Moon.
Heading upwind again, Full Moon soon picked off arch-rival Ignitor and American Promise in light snow and hail. By this time, the wind had become much stronger and Full Moon flew the standard spinnaker for the second downwind run. American Promise managed to catch up at the last buoy but Full Moon turned on the speed to the finish to hold onto second place. Ignitor finished fourth, several minutes later.
Goosebump Febuary 17, 2002
Goosebump Finale
After a few weeks off, Full Moon returned to action for the final sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union. Crew Elisa “Rookie” Pittner, Anneka “Spinnaker” O’Connell, Paul “Grinder” Myers, and skipper John “Too Easy” Mengedoht had a good start in the middle of the line and rounded the first buoy fourth, right on the stern of a San Juan 24. Full Moon quickly passed the San Juan, leaving only giant Shoot The Moon and speedy Scat to contend with.
At the second buoy, Full Moon jibed and quickly set The Equalizer, our huge spinnaker. Pulling steadily away from the rest of the fleet, Full Moon reeled in Shoot The Moon which, inexplicably, was flying only one sail. By the third buoy, Full Moon was dancing on Shoot The Moon’s transom but could not pass the forty-footer. The final leg to the finish saw no change with Full Moon crossing the line less than a minute behind Shoot The Moon to take third. Over five minutes later, the rest of the fleet began to cross the line with old rival Shogun stealing fifth from arch-rival Ignitor in the last fifty yards.
Duck Dodge May 14, 2002
Full Moon Returns
Full Moon returned to sailboat racing action Tuesday for the first Duck Dodge on Lake Union. Crew Anneka “Winch Wench” O’Connell, Art “Line Dancer” Teller, Paul “Curly Fries” Myers, and skipper John “Port Tack” Mengedoht had a good start in blustery conditions, then battled successfully with bigger boats on the first upwind leg. As the fleet spread out around the course Full Moon lost ground to a few faster boats while pulling away from everyone else.
Rounding the buoy for the second spinnaker run, Full Moon hoisted The Equalizer and began to reel in a speedy J24 and the Olson 25 Dreams. At the end of the run, Full Moon had just passed Dreams and held the inside position at the buoy. Heading back upwind, Full Moon held off Dreams but couldn’t quite catch the J24, finishing fifth out of about 20 boats. Old rival Shogun placed seventh and arch-rival Ignitor was a no-show.
Duck Dodge May 21, 2002
Red Shoes For Speed
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series began with a drizzle and light to nonexistent wind. Full Moon crew Shannon “Red Shoes” Knepper, Barry “Power Pole” Shuman, and skipper John “The Professor” Mengedoht had a relatively pathetic tenth place start but quickly found the groove and began to pick off the competition. By the first buoy, Full Moon had played the scraps of wind to climb to fifth and by the second buoy was solidly third and contending for the lead.
At the end of the downwind leg, Full Moon was dead even with the second place boat but was forced to round the buoy on the outside. This proved decisive and Full Moon had to settle for third place and the Bronze Duck. Arch-rival Ignitor placed fifth several minutes later and old rival Shogun failed to finish.
Duck Dodge May 28, 2002
Silver Lining
The third sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series began with the forecast drizzle and moderate winds. Full Moon crew Anneka “The Apprentice” O’Connell, Lisa “Rookie” Crane, Jay “Biker” Tarner, Barry “Giant Pole” Shuman, Ian “Yoda” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Loaded” Mengedoht enjoyed an excellent start and were not far behind the theoretically much-faster CF 27 Dangerous When Wet at the first buoy. Turning downwind after the second buoy, Full Moon hoisted The Equalizer and closed the gap but could not quite catch up.
Sailing upwind onto the second lap, Dangerous When Wet pulled out ahead as expected but once again Full Moon made up the difference under spinnaker. Heading toward the downwind buoy, the wind dropped, allowing arch-rival Ignitor to close up within 50 yards. However, Full Moon had also nearly caught Dangerous When Wet. Rounding the buoy and heading for the finish, Dangerous When Wet was able to pull ahead again to take first but Full Moon easily held off Ignitor to take the Silver Duck. Old rival Shogun finished sixth, several long minutes later.
Anthony’s Race June 7, 2002
John And The Giant Jib
Full Moon headed for the big lake last Friday for the first Anthony’s Homeport race. Crew Anneka “Whip It” O’Connell, Debra “I’ll Pull Anything” Ricard, Paul “Crack” Myers, Art “Hung Jury” Teller, and skipper John “Michael Jackson” Mengedoht had an excellent start off Kirkland but opted to follow the east shore rather than stay with the fleet toward the middle of the lake. This proved unwise, allowing most boats to pull substantially ahead.
Rounding the Hunt’s Point buoy, the spinnakers went up and Full Moon began to gain but the wind began to shift to the north and a wind angle not normally appropriate for spinnakers. With the new wind direction promising a downwind run to the finish, most boats, including Full Moon, opted to try and fly their spinnakers like giant jibs until rounding the buoy. Unfortunately, after rounding, the wind then shifted back south and the spinnakers were finally retired. Ultimately, the distance lost on the first leg could not be overcome and Full Moon hit the finish line seventh with arch-rival Ignitor a minute ahead in fifth.
Duck Dodge June 11, 2002
Stuck In The Middle
Returning to Lake Union for the Pirate Night Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Anneka “Chains” O’Connell, Chris “Wet Spot” Beza, Art “Shoot ‘Em Off” Teller, Ian “Short Squirt” Mengedoht, and John “Bandana” Mengedoht had a very poor start, near the back of the fleet. While able to make substantial gains upwind and especially downwind under spinnaker, the lead boats remained out of reach and Full Moon had to settle for ninth out of twenty-two boats.
However, arch-rival Ignitor was even farther behind in tenth and old rival Shogun brought up the rear in twenty-second so all was not lost. In addition, Chris Beza had just passed the architectural licensing exam and had brought some excellent champagne to celebrate. Congratulations, Chris!
Anthony’s Race June 21, 2002
Chopped!
Full Moon headed for Lake Washington again for the 3rd sailboat race of the Anthony’s series. Crew Amy “The Boom” Pearson, Randy “Not Up Enough” Olson, Pam “Nine Knots” Hunt, and skipper John “What Rating?” Mengedoht had a good start off Kirkland on a warm, sunny evening that, unfortunately, brought out scads of speeding power boats, stirring the lake to very steep, closely spaced waves. Full Moon, being light weight and wide in the beam, slows significantly pounding through the chop and was soon trailing the fleet.
The downwind leg brought no relief as the waves rocked the boat heavily fore and aft, alternately filling and dumping wind from the spinnaker, though Full Moon did gain a little. In the end, Full Moon simply could not overcome the conditions and finished dead last, though all aboard enjoyed the beautiful evening on the water.
Duck Dodge June 24, 2002
Start Two and One Half
Returning to Lake Union for the Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Anneka “Limbo” O’Connell, Shannon “Cleat Me” Knepper, Doug “Mega Shoe” Schoemaker, James “Mini Shoe” Schoemaker, Randy “Brady Bunch” Olson, and skipper John “Casual Start” Mengedoht, along with crews of many other boats, suffered from confusion in the starting signals and crossed the line fully three minutes late (or was that two minutes early?). Even for Full Moon, this was a serious handicap but all was not yet lost.
Upwind and down through two laps, Full Moon passed after boat and, on the second downwind leg, old rival Shogun fell behind, though arch-rival Ignitor remained out of reach (both rivals having started right on time). At the finish, Full Moon was tenth out of over twenty boats with Ignitor ahead in seventh and Shogun twelfth.
Duck Dodge July 2, 2002
Stars and Stripes
With flags and pennants flying, Full Moon crew Carolyn “Mad Dog” Jones, Mike “Hard Lemonade” Jones, Gina “Mom” Gerber, Steve “Holdin’ On” Klem, Art “Giggles” Teller, Grace “Green Line” Teller, and skipper John “Flag Face” Mengedoht had a good start in a huge fleet of boats for the Stars and Stripes Duck Dodge. With two and one-half laps of a large rectangular course, it was a long race and the crew got a workout with three spinnaker hoists and drops.
While handily beating rivals Ignitor and Shogun, the fleet included many boats that are just plain faster than Full Moon and, with no formal handicap system, eighth place was the best that could be achieved. Shogun finished tenth and Ignitor appeared to be nearly last.
Anthony’s Race July 19, 2002
Fun In The Sun
After taking a week off, Full Moon returned to Lake Washington last Friday for Anthony’s Race Six. Crew Chris “Shutterbug” Beza, Kari “Bowline” Einset, Art “Rodeo” Teller, Vivian “Stinky Shoes” Ledesma, Pete “Not Up Yet” Simatovich, and skipper John “Pole Up, Pole Down” Mengedoht had a good start in light wind. The upwind leg to Sand Point in a strengthening breeze was uneventful until nearing the buoy when a 40-footer passed to windward, stealing Full Moon’s wind and forcing two extra short tacks.
Once under spinnaker, Full Moon took off, moving into third place and battling a hot Melges 24 near the downwind buoy at Hunt’s Point. On the close-reach romp to the finish line Full Moon held steady in third, our highest finish ever in the Anthony’s series. Rivals Shogun and Ignitor were no-shows.
Duck Dodge July 23, 2002
Graduation Day
Ian “Mini-Me” Mengedoht and friends Sean “Muscles” and Charlotte “Chatterbox” Dennis (ages 7 and 8) recently completed two weeks of sailing lessons and, as a graduation treat, crewed with parents Dean “Shoulder Bolder” and Kathy “Drink Holder” Dennis and skipper John “Patience” Mengedoht in this week’s Duck Dodge. After a good start on the crowded lake, Full Moon did the first lap without spinnaker, allowing a few boats past, while rivals Ignitor and Shogun tried to catch up.
On the second lap, the spinnaker was deployed, though not without difficulties, and Ignitor slipped by. At the downwind buoy Ignitor led by 30 yards but the Full Moon crew played the wind shifts to perfection to the finish line, beating Ignitor by a full minute to take tenth. Shogun remained far behind and out of contention.
Anthony’s Race July 26, 2002
Ignitor Trounced!
Full Moon crew Anneka “She Can Handle It” O’Connell, Sean “Rookie” O’Connell, Paul “Beermeister” Myers, and skipper John “Mr. Squeeze” Mengedoht had an excellent start for the Anthony’s Race No. 7, sneaking between the starting buoy and a 35 footer named Aolius. On the first upwind leg to Hunt’s Point, Full Moon, Aolius and Thatuna, a Thunderbird, slowly pulled far ahead of arch-rival Ignitor and the rest of the fleet. The margin remained the same if not greater downwind under spinnaker to Sand Point.
Turning back south on a close reach to the finish off Kirkland, Full Moon battled Aolius, finishing 10 seconds ahead but losing out on handicap to place third. Ignitor managed to finish fourth but was over 12 minutes behind Full Moon!
Duck Dodge July 30, 2002
Jammie Time
Back on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Anneka “Big Rig” O’Connell, Art “Wet Down Below” Teller, Pam “Can You Hear Me Now?” Hamlin, Steve “Shrimper” Petherick, and skipper John “Woodie” Mengedoht had their jammies on, despite the iffy weather, for the Pajama Night Duck Dodge. Full Moon had a very good start and was soon mixing it up with an usually wide variety of boats upwind, the bigger boats having an advantage in the relatively strong breeze.
Sailing around the course, the wind proved fickle, changing direction frequently in wild swings and occasionally dropping to nearly zero. Nevertheless, Full Moon continued to do well with excellent crew work, staying ahead of arch-rival Ignitor and old rival Shogun. Ignitor gained a bit on the second lap to make things interesting but could not catch up. Full Moon finished well ahead in fifth with Ignitor seventh and Shogun eighth.
Anthony’s Race August 16, 2002
Chopped Again
After taking a week off, Full Moon returned to action for Anthony’s Race No. 10. With a decent start in light winds, crew Vivian “Easy Roundings” Ledesma, Pete “Spiderman” Simatovich, Art “Dirty Sheets” Teller, Grace “Sleepyhead” Teller, and skipper John “Black Sheets” Mengedoht soon fell behind the leaders in the dreaded Lake Washington chop.
Rounding the first buoy at Sand Point, Full Moon was fifth and, with the wind slowing fading, remained in fifth on the run down to Hunt’s Point and back to the finish line off Kirkland. Arch-rival Ignitor finished well ahead in fourth.
Duck Dodge August 20, 2002
Prom Night Drifter
Full Moon crew Anneka “Side Slits” O’Connell, Shannon “Sequins In Seattle” Knepper, Randy “Burn Baby Burn” Olsen, Pam “Funseeker” Hunt, and skipper John “Yuk, Yuk” Mengedoht were well-dressed under the mirror ball for the Prom Night Duck Dodge. With light to non-existent wind, the starting line was a mass of drifting boats and Full Moon did well to avoid a pile-up at the Committee Boat.
Arch-rival Ignitor found some wind early and pulled ahead to the first buoy but Full Moon slowly reeled them in down the length of the lake to move just ahead at the second buoy. Unfortunately, Ignitor was able to sneak back just inside at the third buoy and regain the lead.
The finish line was a repeat of the start with perhaps twenty boats drifting slowly across the line. Full Moon managed a respectable fifth with Ignitor about 40 feet ahead to take fourth.
Anthony’s Race August 30, 2002
Motor Madness
Full Moon crew Anneka “Rubber Band” O’Connell, Paul “Poser” Myers, Doug “Six Wraps” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “Ben & Jerry’s” Schoemaker, and skipper John “Low Side” Mengedoht voyaged to Kirkland for the final Anthony’s sailboat race of the summer. Full Moon had a decent start in light winds but lost ground to many boats upwind to Hunt’s Point. Rounding the buoy, the wind shifted to the northwest, making the next long leg to Sand Point a tight reach – conditions which allowed Full Moon to gain back a bit.
At Sand Point, the spinnakers went up and Full Moon slowly reeled in and passed arch-rival Ignitor as the wind began to fade out in the dusk. Eventually, the wind died altogether leaving 30 boats adrift about 300 yards from the finish line. Apparently tiring of the wait in the dark and hoping to be first to the bar, Ignitor fired up their engine and began to motor toward the shore. As fate would have it, however, the wind filled in at last and Ignitor killed the motor to head for the finish line – ahead of Full Moon! In the end, Full Moon was fifth while Ignitor should have fessed up and widthdrawn, but didn't!
Duck Dodge September 3, 2002
Last Call
The last race of summer is always Martini Night aboard Full Moon and crew Amy “Gloveless” Pearson, Shannon “Big Olive” Knepper, Art “bARTender” Teller, and skipper John “Now, Please” Mengedoht happily maintained this fine tradition. After a good start in decent wind, Full Moon performed well, losing ground only to a few faster boats and handily dispatching a theoretically faster J24.
Rounding the first buoy, the spinnaker went up and Full Moon took off, easily distancing the bulk of the fleet, though not gaining quite enough on the leaders. At the end of the short one-lap race, Full Moon placed a well-earned fifth. Arch-rival Ignitor and old rival Shogun were no-shows.
Full Moon Is First!
After a few months off, Full Moon returned to sailboat racing Sunday for the first race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union. Crew Chris "Hot Chocolate" Beza, Kari "NO Raisins!" Einset, Anneka "Spectacles" O'Connell, Art "Weather Rail" Teller, and skipper John "Motorboat" Mengedoht braved the raging wind (zero knots) and stormy seas (not a ripple) but found the competition seriously lacking, leading the "race" from start to finish.
This wasn't at all hard to do considering the first race will actually be held NEXT Sunday! Racing calendars in local boating magazines had left the date of the first race in doubt and Cap'n John wasn't taking any chances on missing a race. Likewise, the loyal Full Moon crew wasn't about to miss a beautiful sunny afternoon on the water, racing or not. So score one for the race committee and we'll be really ready next Sunday!
Goosebump, January 14, 2001
Lake Union Speed Demons
In the first sailboat race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Lisa "Spinnaker" Berenson, Anneka "Telltales" O'Connell, Randy "Clockwise" Olsen, Barry "The Juror" Shuman, and skipper John "Rusty" Mengedoht enjoyed the panorama of many boats ahead at the start. Starting nearly last is not normally a recipe for success but, tacking away from the fleet into undisturbed wind, Full Moon managed to pass at least six boats before the first buoy to move into sixth place. Having demonstrated some measure of skill upwind, the spinnaker then went up with a major twist, allowing the leaders to relax somewhat. Let's just call the first lap a "practice lap."
Still, Full Moon is not slow and with old rival Shogun ahead it was time for knuckling down. Halfway through the second lap, Shogun was within range and several 40 footers were wallowing in our wake. The second spinnaker hoist was perfection, Shogun was toast, and behold, Full Moon was in third place, rapidly closing on Audacious (captained by Suzanne Lusnia's husband Mackenzie Skene). Turning upwind, much larger Audacious managed to widen the gap and they finished second to perennial speedster Scat. Full Moon retained third, easily holding off Shogun (fourth) and Shoot The Moon (fifth).
Goosebump, January 21, 2001
Wizards In The Mist
The second sailboat race of the Goosebump series featured continuous drizzle and extremely light wind. Full Moon crew Chris "Saturated Shoes" Beza, Paul "Soggy Buns" Myers, Anneka "Fog Vision" O'Connell, Art "Rock The Boat" Teller, and skipper John "Sponge Gloves" Mengedoht managed a nearly perfect start, leading the race for most of the first leg. However, always-speedy Scat gained bit by bit and rounded the first buoy ahead to take the lead. Meanwhile another speedster, Goose N' Duck, was creeping up from behind.
Rounding the second buoy, Full Moon was still second but the wind soon dropped even more, leaving the water like black glass. Somehow still ghosting down the lake, Goose N' Duck continued to pursue Full Moon while the entire rest of the fleet was stuck, unmoving, at the second buoy. Goose N' Duck eventually oozed by, halfway to the final buoy, though Full Moon did close the gap somewhat toward the finish to take a very respectable third. Some forty minutes later, the rest of the fleet finally made it to the finish with old rivals Shogun taking fifth.
Goosebump, January 28, 2001
Doldrum Decisions
The start of the third sailboat race of the Goosebump series began with extremely light wind (again!). Full Moon crew Pam "Hot Cider" Hunt, Vivian "Wind Repellent" Ledesma, Randy "Raspberry Frango" Olsen, Barry "Chest Hair" Shuman, and skipper John "Tight Squeeze" Mengedoht were well positioned for the start with clear air and right of way. Unfortunately, several boats on the opposite tack ignored the right of way issues, forcing Full Moon to tack to avoid collision. This left Full Moon in dead air to leeward of nearly the entire fleet.
Full Moon clawed past five or six boats before the first buoy but then the wind began to fill in from behind, bringing the last place boats up into the middle of the fleet. The resulting buoy rounding was more than a little crowded but Full Moon squeezed inside the 40 foot Shoot The Moon and was off to pursue the leaders. At the second buoy, Full Moon had picked of a few more boats and managed to pass even more on the long upwind leg to the third buoy. After a perfect spinnaker set and short downwind run, Full Moon rounded the fourth buoy and headed for the finish line to place sixth, holding off the 45 foot Zephyr (seventh) and Shoot The Moon (eighth). Old rivals Shogun finished ninth. Given the fluky wind and disadvantaged start, this was a terrific comeback, celebrated with a round of hot beverages before returning to the dock.
Goosebump, February 4, 2001
Wind, And Plenty of It
Be careful what you wish for. After three races with very light wind, the fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump series began with a solid 25 knots. Anneka "Hurricane" O'Connell and John "Typhoon" Mengedoht had their hands full with no other crew aboard Full Moon and, struggling with hoisting the sails, were nearly last at the start. At least Full Moon MADE the start - arch-rivals on Ignitor came out, checked out the wind, and went right back to the dock!
The larger boats had the advantage in such strong winds but, once going, Full Moon managed to pass a few all the same. After two quick laps of Lake Union, Full Moon placed tenth out of fifteen boats. Old rivals Shogun were the only boat to dare try a spinnaker, finishing sixth for their trouble.
Goosebump, February 11, 2001
A Perfect Day
The sky was blue, the sun was warm, the wind was a beautiful 15 knots and Full Moon was perfectly positioned at the start of the fifth Goosebump sailboat race, pinning most of the fleet to leeward. Full Moon crew Paul "Soggy Sock" Myers, Anneka "Grinder" O'Connell, Randy "Rail Rider" Olsen, Karl "Boom Stopper" Schmidt, and skipper John "Speeeed" Mengedoht proceeded to operate like a well-oiled machine which, considering the crew is different for every race, is pretty amazing!
The only downside to 15 knot breezes when your boat is 25 feet long is that 45 foot boats are simply faster. By the first buoy, the big boys were already past. So, too, was the hot custom 25 footer, Scat, though not by much. As the race progressed through two laps, Scat tried in vain to catch the three big boats while pulling a bit farther ahead of Full Moon. Full Moon, in turn, left all the other boats farther and farther behind. The positions remained the same to the finish, with Scat in fourth and Full Moon an excellent fifth.
Goosebump, February 18, 2001
Last Dance
The sixth and final sailboat race of the Goosebump series served up a little welcome sunshine, along with light winds. Full Moon crew Cynthia "Chocolate Fudge" Faw, Ed "Maple Nut" Sweetnam, Ian "Mini Me" Mengedoht, and skipper John "Mojo" Mengedoht were third across the starting line and kept that position for much of the first leg until passed by a 45-footer and a blazingly fast Synergy 1000. For the first lap, Full Moon remained solidly in fifth while the Synergy took over the lead.
Lurking behind Full Moon and slowly gaining on the second lap was old rival Shogun with arch-rival Ignitor next in line. Full Moon held off Shogun until the downwind leg (a Shogun strength) when Shogun slipped by into fifth. Full Moon closed the gap toward the finish but had to settle for sixth place. Ignitor fell farther back and finished seventh, minutes behind Full Moon.
Duck Dodge, May 15, 2001
Silver Lining
Braving "Spring Storm 2001" for the first Duck Dodge sailboat race of the season on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Anneka "Mainsail Shower" O'Connell, Randy "Fingers" Olsen, Paul "Sponge" Myers, Art "Rusty" Teller, and skipper John "Wet Head" Mengedoht were rewarded with a steady downpour and surprisingly light winds. After a well-timed start, Full Moon was in third place for the first upwind leg and gaining rapidly on arch-rival Ignitor. By the second buoy Full Moon overlapped Ignitor's transom and on the downwind run Full Moon pulled ahead under spinnaker while closing the gap on Scat in first place. Scat held position on the final upwind leg to finish first in the short one-lap race while Ignitor fell farther and farther behind to take a distant third. The Silver Duck award to Full Moon for second place more than made up for the wet weather, especially when combined with victory over Ignitor.
Duck Dodge, May 22, 2001
Bronze Me, Baby!
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series offered up May weather at its very best – sunny skies with a nice, steady breeze out of the north. Full Moon crew Chris "Handi-Wipes" Beza, Vivian "Obnoxious Shoes" Ledesma, Debra "Tasty Treats" Ricard, Barry "Bowrider" Shuman, and skipper John "Speed" Mengedoht gambled on a port tack start (which means you must yield to boats coming on the opposite tack) and lost the gamble, starting mid-fleet.
Unfazed, Full Moon set off upwind, picking off at least three boats to pull into seventh place while dodging a tug and barge near the windward mark. Blasting off downwind under spinnaker, Full Moon went a little farther off the Westlake shore, found stronger wind, and blew by three more boats including old rival Shogun. Unlike all the other boats, Shogun kept their spinnaker up for the next leg, using it to good advantage to pull back ahead but Full Moon squeaked inside at the buoy for the final leg to windward and the finish.
Again finding better wind toward the middle of the lake, while avoiding the crowd on the Eastlake shore, Full Moon passed one last boat, taking third place by a wide margin for the Bronze Duck. Shogun fell back to place ninth. Arch-rival Ignitor failed to show up, no doubt embarrassed by their loss to Full Moon last week. Perennial speedster Scat again took the Gold Duck with the equally quick Olson 25 Dreams in second.
Anthony’s, June 1, Duck Dodge, June 5, 2001
Full Moon Double Header
Forgoing the third Duck Dodge race last week, Full Moon crew Paul "Light Beer" Meyers, Randy "Pasta" Olsen, Debra "Dark Beer" Ricard, Barry "Bag Boy" Shuman, and skipper John "GPS" Mengedoht headed out on Lake Washington for the first sailboat race of the Anthony's Homeport Summer Series. With wind rising to well over 20 knots (some boats registered over 30), Full Moon had a good start off Kirkland and held her own with the big boats bashing through the chop to Hunt's Point. Rounding the buoy, few boats hoisted spinnakers and Cap'n John decided not to risk the 1978 vintage chute on Full Moon. This proved a wise choice as boats with spinnakers had a lot of trouble in the strong wind and Full Moon was able to rocket along with just a small jib and full mainsail.
At the downwind buoy off Sand Point, Full Moon was still in sight of the leaders and arch-rival Ignitor was well behind. Heading back to Kirkland and the finish, Ignitor was in hot pursuit but to no avail, finishing 55 seconds behind. With handicaps applied (Anthony's uses the PHRF system), Full Moon finished a solid fourth, followed by Ignitor in fifth and Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia's husband) in seventh.
Returning to Lake Union for the fourth Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Vivian "Vino Fino" Ledesma, Anneka "Hot Lips" O'Connell, Karl "Dry" Schmidt, Art "Krackel" Teller, and skipper John "Sugar" Mengedoht were well positioned for the start when the race committee sounded the horn a full minute early. This gave a huge advantage to boats closer to the starting line. Fortunately, Full Moon found better wind and no traffic toward the Westlake side and passed five or six boats by the first buoy to round in third place!
Heading up the lake under spinnaker, Full Moon passed Scat for second and by the end of the lap had passed Dreams for first. Unfortunately, Dreams retook the lead upwind. Back under spinnaker, Scat caught up to Full Moon at the downwind buoy and all three boats were in close contention at the final buoy. Dreams held on up the last leg for the win while Scat faded and Full Moon easily took the Silver Duck for the second time in three races. Arch-rival Ignitor had to settle for fourth place with old rival Shogun just behind in fifth.
Duck Dodge, June 12, 2001
The Equalizer
When Full Moon races in the Duck Dodge, she is pitted against several boats that, in theory at least, are much faster. For the fifth sailboat race of the series, Full Moon had a partial equalizer – a spinnaker some 45% larger than standard. Crew Lisa "Red Line" Berenson, Amy "Chips Ahoy" Henderson, Barry "Size Matters" Shuman, Art "Big Pole" Teller, and skipper John "Low Side" Mengedoht had a perfect start in light wind and led the fleet until the wind filled in from behind. Rounding the second buoy, up went the Equalizer and Full Moon regained the lead, though perennial rocket ships Scat and Dreams were close behind.
For the better part of four legs, Full Moon held on to the lead. However, toward the end of the last downwind run the wind died and the race was up for grabs. Wind arrived first for Scat and then Dreams leaving Full Moon third for the Bronze Duck at the finish line. Arch-rival Ignitor placed sixth and old rival Shogun gave up in the light wind. It was a thrilling race for all hands, the Equalizer proved its worth, and Full Moon has two seconds and two thirds in four races - our best record ever!
Duck Dodge, June 19, 2001
Pajama Party
The sixth Duck Dodge sailboat race was Pajama Night and Full Moon crew Brenda "Rookie" Barnes, Chris "Pasties" Beza, Anneka "Old Habits" O'Connell, Barry "Wet Jammies" Shuman, and skipper John "Nightshirt" Mengedoht came well dressed for a sleepover. Full Moon had an excellent start in decent wind but a few boats closer to the Westlake end of the line had an edge for the first leg. The first lap saw the fleet slowly spreading out but few position changes.
On the second lap, Full Moon gained substantially under the Big Spinnaker, closing rapidly on supposedly faster Scat and Dreams while traditional rivals faded. On the final leg, it appeared Full Moon might be in contention for a Bronze Duck but two even faster boats had already finished and Full Moon was sixth, just behind Scat. Arch-rival Ignitor finished over five minutes later in eleventh with old rival Shogun in thirteenth out of about twenty boats. The weather was perfect, the Coronas were ice cold, and the finish was thrilling. We couldn’t ask for more!
Anthony’s, June 29, Duck Dodge, July 3, 2001
Friday Fun And The Black Duck
Full Moon crew Paul "Pedal Power" Myers, Anneka "Kit Kat" O'Connell, Randy "Both Ways" Olsen, Art "Higher Pole" Teller, Grace "Giggles" Teller, and skipper John "Bumper Boats" Mengedoht skipped the Duck Dodge last week to do another Anthony's sailboat race on Friday. After a good start off Kirkland, Full Moon did well to windward, keeping up with many larger boats. Rounding the Sand Point buoy, the spinnaker went up beautifully, glowing brightly in the evening sun.
After lowering the spinnaker and clearing the buoy at Hunt's Point it was back to Kirkland for an uneventful finish. Up in the bar at Anthony's (following a suitable delay while the racers had a round or two) the results were posted: Full Moon finished fifth out of eleven boats, squeaking by Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband) on corrected time. Arch-rival Ignitor, no doubt dreading another defeat, failed to show up for the race.
Returning to Lake Union for the Stars and Stripes Duck Dodge on July 3, Full Moon crew Carolyn "Got It Wet" Jones, Mike "Hard Lemonade" Jones, Art "Three Times!" Teller, Grace "Near Miss" Teller, and skipper John "Downwind Demon" Mengedoht were well prepared for the theme with appropriate clothing and boat decorations. This earned the coveted Black Duck award, our first of the year.
After a well-timed start at, unfortunately, the disadvantaged end of the starting line, Full Moon was in the upper third of the fleet for the first leg. Using the Equalizer (Full Moon's giant new spinnaker) for the first downwind leg, Full Moon blew by old rival Shogun and arch-rival Ignitor. For the next several legs, Full Moon continued to pull away from Ignitor and others, passing another boat or two as well. At the end of two and half laps, the race ended under spinnaker with Full Moon fifth just behind Dreams and a well-sailed Ranger 26. Ignitor finished eighth and Shogun was too far back to tell.
Anthony’s, July 27, Duck Dodge July 31, 2001
Full Moon Returns
After a few weeks off, Full Moon crew Amy "Outa Practice" Henderson, Barry "Wet Pole" Shuman, Paul "Moon" Myers, Anneka "Rollin' a Fatty" O'Connell, and skipper John "High Side" Mengedoht headed out to Lake Washington for Anthony's Race No. 8. After a good start in a tightly packed fleet, Full Moon tacked away into clear wind and cruised to the first buoy at Hunt's Point. Downwind under spinnaker, Full Moon was able to catch some waves, surfing to over 7 knots and gaining a bit on the "faster" boats. After a clean spinnaker drop at Sand Point, it was back to Kirkland on a close reach in building winds for the finish. With handicaps applied, Full Moon finished a very respectable fourth with Audacious sixth and arch-rival Ignitor a no-show.
Back to Lake Union for the Prom Night Duck Dodge, it was time for crew cross-dressing with Christy "Flasher" Bates, Amy "Shrimping" Henderson, Barry "Prom Queen" Shuman, Amy "Black Tie" Pearson, and skipper John "Barbara Bush" Mengedoht. Full Moon was late to the starting line and struggled in light wind surrounded by other boats. Once in clear air it was a different story but by then the damage was done and the lead boats were out of reach. Two laps later, Full Moon finished 12th out of 25 boats with old rival Shogun in 6th and arch-rival Ignitor 8th. A great time was had by all and the "girls" received numerous wolf whistles.
Duck Dodge August 7, 2001
Tropicana
The twelfth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Tropical Night and, as is usual, one of the race marks was a floating "island" dispensing cold beer to thirsty racers. Full Moon crew Pam "Pina Colada" Hunt, Anneka "Speed Knot" O'Connell, Randy "Death Roll" Olsen, and skipper John "Use 'em All" Mengedoht were well equipped with grass skirts and plastic leis. After a solid start in 15-knot winds, Full Moon sailed well to the first buoy and, forgoing a spinnaker, lost very little ground downwind, even with a change of jibs on this leg. Back upwind, Full Moon had a boat blocking the beer supply at the “island” but managed to pass perennial speedster Scat shortly thereafter. With winds dropping back to 10 knots, up went the Equalizer (very large spinnaker) for the second downwind run. This proved a poor choice as the wind rapidly built back up, leaving Full Moon seriously overpowered. The ensuing struggle to lower the spinnaker cost a few places, including allowing Scat to sneak by. Upwind to the island again, Full Moon handily scored several beers and, speeding to the finish, managed to outsail Scat to the line for seventh place. Arch-rival Ignitor could do no better than twelfth and old rival Shogun sixteenth out of over twenty boats. It was a gorgeous evening on the lake, refreshing to have good wind, and the pina coladas were very tasty!
Anthony’s, August 17, Duck Dodge August 21, 2001
Shogun Scores!
Skipping the Duck Dodge last week, Full Moon crew Chris “Ice Man” Beza, Anneka “Ben & Jerry’s” O’Connell, Grace “Ocean Motion” Teller, Art “Wild Hair” Teller, and skipper John “Mega-Phone” Mengedoht headed to Kirkland for Anthony’s Race #11. Full Moon had a decent start and sailed well to Hunt’s Point in light winds out of the southwest. After rounding the buoy, nearly all boats hoisted spinnakers but the wind was slowly shifting northward and Full Moon’s ancient spinnaker was ill suited to the wind angle. After a slow mile watching other boats pull ahead, the spinnaker came down. Shortly thereafter the wind swung around to the north and Full Moon picked up speed. Unfortunately, the wind shift came too late for Full Moon as the race committee had moved the finish line to the Sand Point buoy and there was not enough time for a comeback. Full Moon finished seventh with Audacious eighth and Ignitor once again a no-show.
Full Moon returned to Lake Union for the Toga Night Duck Dodge but a constant shower discouraged all but a few from wearing soggy bed sheets. Full Moon crew Carolyn "Wet" Jones, Mike "Zipper" Jones, Randy "Goretex" Olsen, David "Sponge" Zeitlin, and skipper John "Mainsail Shower" Mengedoht hit the starting line with excellent position to windward and led the fleet until speedy Scat slipped inside at the first buoy. After hoisting the spinnaker and then gybing around the second buoy, old rivals Shogun snuck up from behind and, with excellent spinnaker work, oozed ahead. After a clean spinnaker drop at the final buoy, Full Moon gained rapidly on Shogun while holding off a theoretically faster J24. Unfortunately, Shogun had too much of a lead, finishing second behind Scat while Full Moon easily dispatched the J24 for the Bronze Duck.
Duck Dodge August 28, 2001
Moon Dance
The 15th Duck Dodge sailboat race began with a nice breeze and Full Moon crew Debra "Halyards" Ricard, Amy "Got It Wet" Stokes, Art "Congested Cow" Teller, and skipper John "In vs. Out" Mengedoht had a better than average start at the favored end of the line. Unfortunately, the race committee set a long 2 1/2 lap course and, naturally, the nice breeze soon faded. Worse, while Full Moon passed a boat or two on many legs (there were nine legs, three with spinnaker), old rival Shogun always seemed to find better wind.
Heading up the final long upwind leg, night having fully descended, Shogun remained just out of reach while Full Moon slowly pulled away from three supposedly faster boats. Lights appeared to port revealing Goose N' Duck and Scat heading for the finish but it was impossible to tell how many boats might remain ahead. Rounding the final buoy, up went the Equalizer in the moonlight for the downwind run to the finish. Ghosting along with nary a ripple on the water, a horn sounded from the committee boat – Shogun had taken third place, defeating Full Moon for only the third time all summer. Finally, nearly three hours after the start, Full Moon crossed the line in fourth. Many boats, including arch-rival Ignitor, failed to finish at all.
Duck Dodge September 4, 2001
Martini Night!
The final Duck Dodge sailboat race is always Martini Night aboard Full Moon and crew Amy "Buoy Dancer" Henderson, Pam "Stirred, Not Shaken" Hunt, Randy "Cosmopolitan" Olsen, Barry "Head Banger" Shuman, and skipper John "Inches" Mengedoht were well prepared for a floating party. The Race Committee opted for flag signals rather than the usual air horn, leaving most of the sailors confused and unsure of the starting time. Nevertheless, after some very close quarters maneuvering, Full Moon managed a good start on the left end of the line.
Unfortunately, the right side paid huge dividends for the first leg and Full Moon fell well behind the leaders. Hoisting the Equalizer for the downwind run, however, Full Moon was soon back in the hunt, passing old rivals Shogun among others. Turning back upwind, Full Moon stayed right, which was again the place to be. Unfortunately, nearing the upwind buoy on a collision course, arch-rival Ignitor refused to yield right of way. The resulting crash tack to avoid collision allowed Shogun to slip by. Back under spinnaker, Full Moon closed the gap to Shogun but couldn't quite get by, finishing mere feet behind in eighth place.
Duck Dodge Rum Run October 27, 2001
Adventure in Endurance
The Duck Dodge Committee offers the Rum Run sailboat race out on the Sound the last Saturday before Halloween. Full Moon crew Paul “Strapless” Myers, Anneka “The Mummy” O’Connell, and skipper John “GPS” Mengedoht made the voyage, in a steady rain, out through the locks to Shilshole to pick up Art “Auto-Inflate” Teller and Barry “Body Floss” Shuman. With light wind out of the north and an opposing current, the race got a very slow start off Shilshole, heading for Spring Beach (north of Carkeek Park). As the boats oozed forward a bored crewmember on a large boat broke out a saxophone and played two solos only to be matched by a trumpet player on another boat. We didn’t know we were supposed to bring instruments!
Pacesetter Scat stayed close to shore but Full Moon found slightly better wind farther out and pulled into the lead, at one point nearly passing the lead boats from the first start. As predicted, the wind slowly clocked around to the south and spinnakers began popping up in the drizzle. Rounding the buoy, Scat had regained the lead but Full Moon was substantially ahead of rivals Ignitor and Shogun as the fleet headed southwest across the Sound toward the finish line in Port Madison.
As fate would have it, Full Moon sailed into a “hole” in the wind in the middle of the Sound which Ignitor missed, sailing well north of the direct course to the finish. The doldrums erased any advantage Full Moon had gained and brought many boats into close proximity. After over 4 ½ hours of patient attention to wind and sails, Full Moon crossed the finish line in fifth, less than a minute after Ignitor crossed in third. Shogun was eighth a few minutes later. Disappointment with fifth place, after holding second for most of the race, was offset by a gift from the Race Committee. Apparently, when Full Moon placed second in a previous Rum Run, the Committee had run out of Silver Duck awards and they had been saving one for us ever since!
Goosebump January 20, 2002
Winter Fun for Full Moon
Full Moon returned to sailboat racing action Sunday for the second of six Goosebump races on Lake Union. With winds gusting to over 25 knots, Full Moon crew Anneka “Systems Engineer” O’Connell, Randy “Reefer” Olsen, Paul “Muscles” Myers, Barry “Halyard” Shuman, Ian “Gatorade” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Round-Up” Mengedoht paused to put a necessary reef in the mainsail just before the start, crossing the line next to last. By the first buoy, however, Full Moon had advanced to fifth place, there to remain for the better part of two laps, hanging on in the howling wind.
On the next to last leg, Full Moon dropped briefly to sixth behind arch-rival Ignitor. Approaching the final buoy, Scat, Lulu, and Ignitor were side by side with Full Moon right on their transoms, and Full Moon managed to squeak inside them all to round the buoy. Blasting upwind to the finish line, Scat held onto third but the battle was on with Ignitor, Full Moon being ahead but Ignitor in better position to windward to cross the line. Approaching the line, Full Moon had just enough room to tack in front of Ignitor to beat them by five seconds – a great victory given that the conditions favored the longer and heavier boat.
Goosebump January 27, 2002
Snow Job
Oh, the weather outside is frightful,
The crew is so delightful,
The Committee Boat didn’t show,
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!
The Race Committee failed to show up for the third Goosebump race but the crew of Shoot The Moon suggested a course and starting time which all boats agreed to. Full Moon crew Anneka “Chute Stuffer” O’Connell, Paul “Grab It” Myers, Art “Sheets” Teller, and skipper John “Three Hands” Mengedoht had a good start but picked the wrong side of the lake for the first leg, falling to fourth place. Flying back downwind with the giant Equalizer, Full Moon gained rapidly on all but 40 foot Shoot The Moon.
Heading upwind again, Full Moon soon picked off arch-rival Ignitor and American Promise in light snow and hail. By this time, the wind had become much stronger and Full Moon flew the standard spinnaker for the second downwind run. American Promise managed to catch up at the last buoy but Full Moon turned on the speed to the finish to hold onto second place. Ignitor finished fourth, several minutes later.
Goosebump Febuary 17, 2002
Goosebump Finale
After a few weeks off, Full Moon returned to action for the final sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union. Crew Elisa “Rookie” Pittner, Anneka “Spinnaker” O’Connell, Paul “Grinder” Myers, and skipper John “Too Easy” Mengedoht had a good start in the middle of the line and rounded the first buoy fourth, right on the stern of a San Juan 24. Full Moon quickly passed the San Juan, leaving only giant Shoot The Moon and speedy Scat to contend with.
At the second buoy, Full Moon jibed and quickly set The Equalizer, our huge spinnaker. Pulling steadily away from the rest of the fleet, Full Moon reeled in Shoot The Moon which, inexplicably, was flying only one sail. By the third buoy, Full Moon was dancing on Shoot The Moon’s transom but could not pass the forty-footer. The final leg to the finish saw no change with Full Moon crossing the line less than a minute behind Shoot The Moon to take third. Over five minutes later, the rest of the fleet began to cross the line with old rival Shogun stealing fifth from arch-rival Ignitor in the last fifty yards.
Duck Dodge May 14, 2002
Full Moon Returns
Full Moon returned to sailboat racing action Tuesday for the first Duck Dodge on Lake Union. Crew Anneka “Winch Wench” O’Connell, Art “Line Dancer” Teller, Paul “Curly Fries” Myers, and skipper John “Port Tack” Mengedoht had a good start in blustery conditions, then battled successfully with bigger boats on the first upwind leg. As the fleet spread out around the course Full Moon lost ground to a few faster boats while pulling away from everyone else.
Rounding the buoy for the second spinnaker run, Full Moon hoisted The Equalizer and began to reel in a speedy J24 and the Olson 25 Dreams. At the end of the run, Full Moon had just passed Dreams and held the inside position at the buoy. Heading back upwind, Full Moon held off Dreams but couldn’t quite catch the J24, finishing fifth out of about 20 boats. Old rival Shogun placed seventh and arch-rival Ignitor was a no-show.
Duck Dodge May 21, 2002
Red Shoes For Speed
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series began with a drizzle and light to nonexistent wind. Full Moon crew Shannon “Red Shoes” Knepper, Barry “Power Pole” Shuman, and skipper John “The Professor” Mengedoht had a relatively pathetic tenth place start but quickly found the groove and began to pick off the competition. By the first buoy, Full Moon had played the scraps of wind to climb to fifth and by the second buoy was solidly third and contending for the lead.
At the end of the downwind leg, Full Moon was dead even with the second place boat but was forced to round the buoy on the outside. This proved decisive and Full Moon had to settle for third place and the Bronze Duck. Arch-rival Ignitor placed fifth several minutes later and old rival Shogun failed to finish.
Duck Dodge May 28, 2002
Silver Lining
The third sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series began with the forecast drizzle and moderate winds. Full Moon crew Anneka “The Apprentice” O’Connell, Lisa “Rookie” Crane, Jay “Biker” Tarner, Barry “Giant Pole” Shuman, Ian “Yoda” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Loaded” Mengedoht enjoyed an excellent start and were not far behind the theoretically much-faster CF 27 Dangerous When Wet at the first buoy. Turning downwind after the second buoy, Full Moon hoisted The Equalizer and closed the gap but could not quite catch up.
Sailing upwind onto the second lap, Dangerous When Wet pulled out ahead as expected but once again Full Moon made up the difference under spinnaker. Heading toward the downwind buoy, the wind dropped, allowing arch-rival Ignitor to close up within 50 yards. However, Full Moon had also nearly caught Dangerous When Wet. Rounding the buoy and heading for the finish, Dangerous When Wet was able to pull ahead again to take first but Full Moon easily held off Ignitor to take the Silver Duck. Old rival Shogun finished sixth, several long minutes later.
Anthony’s Race June 7, 2002
John And The Giant Jib
Full Moon headed for the big lake last Friday for the first Anthony’s Homeport race. Crew Anneka “Whip It” O’Connell, Debra “I’ll Pull Anything” Ricard, Paul “Crack” Myers, Art “Hung Jury” Teller, and skipper John “Michael Jackson” Mengedoht had an excellent start off Kirkland but opted to follow the east shore rather than stay with the fleet toward the middle of the lake. This proved unwise, allowing most boats to pull substantially ahead.
Rounding the Hunt’s Point buoy, the spinnakers went up and Full Moon began to gain but the wind began to shift to the north and a wind angle not normally appropriate for spinnakers. With the new wind direction promising a downwind run to the finish, most boats, including Full Moon, opted to try and fly their spinnakers like giant jibs until rounding the buoy. Unfortunately, after rounding, the wind then shifted back south and the spinnakers were finally retired. Ultimately, the distance lost on the first leg could not be overcome and Full Moon hit the finish line seventh with arch-rival Ignitor a minute ahead in fifth.
Duck Dodge June 11, 2002
Stuck In The Middle
Returning to Lake Union for the Pirate Night Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Anneka “Chains” O’Connell, Chris “Wet Spot” Beza, Art “Shoot ‘Em Off” Teller, Ian “Short Squirt” Mengedoht, and John “Bandana” Mengedoht had a very poor start, near the back of the fleet. While able to make substantial gains upwind and especially downwind under spinnaker, the lead boats remained out of reach and Full Moon had to settle for ninth out of twenty-two boats.
However, arch-rival Ignitor was even farther behind in tenth and old rival Shogun brought up the rear in twenty-second so all was not lost. In addition, Chris Beza had just passed the architectural licensing exam and had brought some excellent champagne to celebrate. Congratulations, Chris!
Anthony’s Race June 21, 2002
Chopped!
Full Moon headed for Lake Washington again for the 3rd sailboat race of the Anthony’s series. Crew Amy “The Boom” Pearson, Randy “Not Up Enough” Olson, Pam “Nine Knots” Hunt, and skipper John “What Rating?” Mengedoht had a good start off Kirkland on a warm, sunny evening that, unfortunately, brought out scads of speeding power boats, stirring the lake to very steep, closely spaced waves. Full Moon, being light weight and wide in the beam, slows significantly pounding through the chop and was soon trailing the fleet.
The downwind leg brought no relief as the waves rocked the boat heavily fore and aft, alternately filling and dumping wind from the spinnaker, though Full Moon did gain a little. In the end, Full Moon simply could not overcome the conditions and finished dead last, though all aboard enjoyed the beautiful evening on the water.
Duck Dodge June 24, 2002
Start Two and One Half
Returning to Lake Union for the Duck Dodge, Full Moon crew Anneka “Limbo” O’Connell, Shannon “Cleat Me” Knepper, Doug “Mega Shoe” Schoemaker, James “Mini Shoe” Schoemaker, Randy “Brady Bunch” Olson, and skipper John “Casual Start” Mengedoht, along with crews of many other boats, suffered from confusion in the starting signals and crossed the line fully three minutes late (or was that two minutes early?). Even for Full Moon, this was a serious handicap but all was not yet lost.
Upwind and down through two laps, Full Moon passed after boat and, on the second downwind leg, old rival Shogun fell behind, though arch-rival Ignitor remained out of reach (both rivals having started right on time). At the finish, Full Moon was tenth out of over twenty boats with Ignitor ahead in seventh and Shogun twelfth.
Duck Dodge July 2, 2002
Stars and Stripes
With flags and pennants flying, Full Moon crew Carolyn “Mad Dog” Jones, Mike “Hard Lemonade” Jones, Gina “Mom” Gerber, Steve “Holdin’ On” Klem, Art “Giggles” Teller, Grace “Green Line” Teller, and skipper John “Flag Face” Mengedoht had a good start in a huge fleet of boats for the Stars and Stripes Duck Dodge. With two and one-half laps of a large rectangular course, it was a long race and the crew got a workout with three spinnaker hoists and drops.
While handily beating rivals Ignitor and Shogun, the fleet included many boats that are just plain faster than Full Moon and, with no formal handicap system, eighth place was the best that could be achieved. Shogun finished tenth and Ignitor appeared to be nearly last.
Anthony’s Race July 19, 2002
Fun In The Sun
After taking a week off, Full Moon returned to Lake Washington last Friday for Anthony’s Race Six. Crew Chris “Shutterbug” Beza, Kari “Bowline” Einset, Art “Rodeo” Teller, Vivian “Stinky Shoes” Ledesma, Pete “Not Up Yet” Simatovich, and skipper John “Pole Up, Pole Down” Mengedoht had a good start in light wind. The upwind leg to Sand Point in a strengthening breeze was uneventful until nearing the buoy when a 40-footer passed to windward, stealing Full Moon’s wind and forcing two extra short tacks.
Once under spinnaker, Full Moon took off, moving into third place and battling a hot Melges 24 near the downwind buoy at Hunt’s Point. On the close-reach romp to the finish line Full Moon held steady in third, our highest finish ever in the Anthony’s series. Rivals Shogun and Ignitor were no-shows.
Duck Dodge July 23, 2002
Graduation Day
Ian “Mini-Me” Mengedoht and friends Sean “Muscles” and Charlotte “Chatterbox” Dennis (ages 7 and 8) recently completed two weeks of sailing lessons and, as a graduation treat, crewed with parents Dean “Shoulder Bolder” and Kathy “Drink Holder” Dennis and skipper John “Patience” Mengedoht in this week’s Duck Dodge. After a good start on the crowded lake, Full Moon did the first lap without spinnaker, allowing a few boats past, while rivals Ignitor and Shogun tried to catch up.
On the second lap, the spinnaker was deployed, though not without difficulties, and Ignitor slipped by. At the downwind buoy Ignitor led by 30 yards but the Full Moon crew played the wind shifts to perfection to the finish line, beating Ignitor by a full minute to take tenth. Shogun remained far behind and out of contention.
Anthony’s Race July 26, 2002
Ignitor Trounced!
Full Moon crew Anneka “She Can Handle It” O’Connell, Sean “Rookie” O’Connell, Paul “Beermeister” Myers, and skipper John “Mr. Squeeze” Mengedoht had an excellent start for the Anthony’s Race No. 7, sneaking between the starting buoy and a 35 footer named Aolius. On the first upwind leg to Hunt’s Point, Full Moon, Aolius and Thatuna, a Thunderbird, slowly pulled far ahead of arch-rival Ignitor and the rest of the fleet. The margin remained the same if not greater downwind under spinnaker to Sand Point.
Turning back south on a close reach to the finish off Kirkland, Full Moon battled Aolius, finishing 10 seconds ahead but losing out on handicap to place third. Ignitor managed to finish fourth but was over 12 minutes behind Full Moon!
Duck Dodge July 30, 2002
Jammie Time
Back on Lake Union, Full Moon crew Anneka “Big Rig” O’Connell, Art “Wet Down Below” Teller, Pam “Can You Hear Me Now?” Hamlin, Steve “Shrimper” Petherick, and skipper John “Woodie” Mengedoht had their jammies on, despite the iffy weather, for the Pajama Night Duck Dodge. Full Moon had a very good start and was soon mixing it up with an usually wide variety of boats upwind, the bigger boats having an advantage in the relatively strong breeze.
Sailing around the course, the wind proved fickle, changing direction frequently in wild swings and occasionally dropping to nearly zero. Nevertheless, Full Moon continued to do well with excellent crew work, staying ahead of arch-rival Ignitor and old rival Shogun. Ignitor gained a bit on the second lap to make things interesting but could not catch up. Full Moon finished well ahead in fifth with Ignitor seventh and Shogun eighth.
Anthony’s Race August 16, 2002
Chopped Again
After taking a week off, Full Moon returned to action for Anthony’s Race No. 10. With a decent start in light winds, crew Vivian “Easy Roundings” Ledesma, Pete “Spiderman” Simatovich, Art “Dirty Sheets” Teller, Grace “Sleepyhead” Teller, and skipper John “Black Sheets” Mengedoht soon fell behind the leaders in the dreaded Lake Washington chop.
Rounding the first buoy at Sand Point, Full Moon was fifth and, with the wind slowing fading, remained in fifth on the run down to Hunt’s Point and back to the finish line off Kirkland. Arch-rival Ignitor finished well ahead in fourth.
Duck Dodge August 20, 2002
Prom Night Drifter
Full Moon crew Anneka “Side Slits” O’Connell, Shannon “Sequins In Seattle” Knepper, Randy “Burn Baby Burn” Olsen, Pam “Funseeker” Hunt, and skipper John “Yuk, Yuk” Mengedoht were well-dressed under the mirror ball for the Prom Night Duck Dodge. With light to non-existent wind, the starting line was a mass of drifting boats and Full Moon did well to avoid a pile-up at the Committee Boat.
Arch-rival Ignitor found some wind early and pulled ahead to the first buoy but Full Moon slowly reeled them in down the length of the lake to move just ahead at the second buoy. Unfortunately, Ignitor was able to sneak back just inside at the third buoy and regain the lead.
The finish line was a repeat of the start with perhaps twenty boats drifting slowly across the line. Full Moon managed a respectable fifth with Ignitor about 40 feet ahead to take fourth.
Anthony’s Race August 30, 2002
Motor Madness
Full Moon crew Anneka “Rubber Band” O’Connell, Paul “Poser” Myers, Doug “Six Wraps” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “Ben & Jerry’s” Schoemaker, and skipper John “Low Side” Mengedoht voyaged to Kirkland for the final Anthony’s sailboat race of the summer. Full Moon had a decent start in light winds but lost ground to many boats upwind to Hunt’s Point. Rounding the buoy, the wind shifted to the northwest, making the next long leg to Sand Point a tight reach – conditions which allowed Full Moon to gain back a bit.
At Sand Point, the spinnakers went up and Full Moon slowly reeled in and passed arch-rival Ignitor as the wind began to fade out in the dusk. Eventually, the wind died altogether leaving 30 boats adrift about 300 yards from the finish line. Apparently tiring of the wait in the dark and hoping to be first to the bar, Ignitor fired up their engine and began to motor toward the shore. As fate would have it, however, the wind filled in at last and Ignitor killed the motor to head for the finish line – ahead of Full Moon! In the end, Full Moon was fifth while Ignitor should have fessed up and widthdrawn, but didn't!
Duck Dodge September 3, 2002
Last Call
The last race of summer is always Martini Night aboard Full Moon and crew Amy “Gloveless” Pearson, Shannon “Big Olive” Knepper, Art “bARTender” Teller, and skipper John “Now, Please” Mengedoht happily maintained this fine tradition. After a good start in decent wind, Full Moon performed well, losing ground only to a few faster boats and handily dispatching a theoretically faster J24.
Rounding the first buoy, the spinnaker went up and Full Moon took off, easily distancing the bulk of the fleet, though not gaining quite enough on the leaders. At the end of the short one-lap race, Full Moon placed a well-earned fifth. Arch-rival Ignitor and old rival Shogun were no-shows.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Old Stories 1999-2000
Goosebump, January 10, 1999
Fun In The Sun
After a two-month break, Full Moon resumed sailboat racing Sunday in the first of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union. After a relatively poor start near the back of the fleet, crew Cynthia “Zip It Up” Faw, Randy “Slow Hands” Olsen, Ed “Windvane” Sweetnam, Art “Munchies” Teller, and skipper John “Better Late Than Never” Mengedoht turned up the heat, passing boats on three of four upwind and reaching legs. Unfortunately, our spinnaker work was less stellar. Full Moon lost one position during the spinnaker hoist and nearly lost another when the spinnaker briefly acted as a sea anchor at the leeward mark.
At the end of the short, one lap race, Full Moon placed seventh right behind arch-rival Shogun. All things considered (there is one start for all sizes of boats and no handicapping system), this was a very good finish. With surprisingly fine weather and good wind, it was a fun race and a great afternoon on the water.
Goosebump, January 17 and 24, 1999
Full Moon Strikes Back!
The second race of the Goosebump Series, January 17, featured pouring rain and virtually no wind. Would-be Full Moon crew Chris Beza, Kari Einset, Barry Shuman, Art Teller, and skipper John Mengedoht, while prepared for stormy weather, elected to skip the race rather than sit in the rain going nowhere.
The third race, January 24, brought welcome sunshine and light, shifty winds. With the wind direction allowing only a narrow lane to cross the starting line on starboard tack, the start was ugly. Full Moon began the race in next to last place after several tacks to clear the line. Crew Amy “Tales” Bradford, Tina “Nails” Negri, Randy “Goretex” Olsen, Barry “Spinnaker” Shuman, and skipper John “D*L” Mengedoht then began blowing by the competition, passing as many as ten boats on the first leg.
The second leg, also upwind, saw Full Moon gain on normally much-faster boats Whodat and Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband with Amy Bradford’s fiancé as one of the crew). On the downwind leg, Full Moon eased past Audacious under spinnaker and finally passed Whodat at the buoy.
With two more upwind legs, Full Moon held on to place sixth, a full two minutes ahead of Audacious (who had also passed Whodat). Arch-rival Shogun could do no better than fourteenth. With the top five boats all much bigger and/or rating much faster, this was an excellent finish for Full Moon.
Goosebump, January 31, 1999
Wild Ride
The fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union was the windiest yet with strong gusts and sustained winds over twenty knots. Full Moon crew Anneka “Soaked” O’Connell, Doug “Does This Thing Tip Over?” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “What Does This Do?” Schoemaker, Art “The Perfect Perch” Teller, and skipper John “No Mr. Bill!” Mengedoht managed to hit the starting line in fourth place.
With a small jib and double-reefed mainsail, the boat still exceeded 40 degrees of heel in the gusts. Blasting around the course, Full Moon held position or gained a bit until gear failure (broken mainsheet block) on the second running leg allowed three boats to pass. After temporary repairs under way, Full Moon suffered a knock-down during a gybe with water filling the bottom of the cockpit!
Undaunted, we managed to pass back a Catalina 25 on the last leg to place sixth. With the first five boats ranging from 35 to 40 feet, this was a strong finish for much smaller Full Moon, especially in such overpowering winds. Arch-rival Shogun failed to show, no doubt preferring the Super Bowl pre-game show over the agony of another defeat.
Goosebump, February 7, 1999
Windy, Wet and Wild
The fifth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union had strong winds (again over twenty knots) with the bonus of ample rain. Full Moon crew Chris “Rookie” Beza, Art “Bungie” Teller, and skipper John “Battens” Mengedoht nailed the start but the Committee Boat’s horn failed to sound and we rounded back to make sure we hadn’t been over the line early (we hadn’t). That left Full Moon in sixth place with arch-rival Shogun dead ahead.
With double-reefed mainsail and small jib, Full Moon out-sailed Shogun on the first leg to take over fifth place and set out to pass Amigos for fourth. As luck would have it, Amigos quit the race with gear failure on the first downwind leg (blown sail, we think). Full Moon held off Shogun for the remaining six legs but could not overtake the much bigger (33’ to 40’) boats ahead, finishing in fourth place behind Audacious.
Duck Dodge, May 18, 1999
Duck Dodge Series Begins
The first sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series on Seattle’s Lake Union began with high hopes as Full Moon closed on the starting line, timing the start with near perfection. Unfortunately, position is equally important as timing and, with several larger boats to windward, Full Moon had to claw out of a large wind shadow.
Ace crew Barry “Let It Go!” Shuman, Randy “Let It Go?” Olsen, Amy “Cookie Mom” Bradford, Art “Boom Stopper” Teller, and skipper John “Crazy Ivan” Mengedoht worked hard to catch the leaders but, with a short, one-lap race and good, steady wind, it was not to be. Full Moon did very well to finish eighth, hot on the heels of much larger Whodat. Arch-rival Shogun had an outstanding start and took third place. (We’ll get ‘em next week!) As always, a good time was had by all.
Duck Dodge, May 25, 1999
Take That, Whodat!
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series was Headgear Night. Full Moon crew Christy “Daisy” Bates, “Annakin” O’Connell, Karl “Big Kiss” Schmidt, Barry “Pole Control” Shuman, and skipper John “Dark Helmet” Mengedoht came well prepared for the theme, earning the coveted Black Duck for the effort. Unfortunately, “Dark Helmet” left the spinnaker sheets at home so Full Moon had to make do without a spinnaker.
Nevertheless, after an excellent start, Full Moon left arch-rival Shogun in her wake and engaged in a two-lap battle with much bigger boats Whodat and Amigos. Both boats were faster downwind but could not manage to stay ahead of Full Moon upwind. At the last buoy before the finish, Full Moon trailed, but an exhilarating tacking battle saw Full Moon beat Amigos across the line by inches for sixth place with Whodat several boat lengths back in eighth. Shogun finished far behind, in tenth place.
Duck Dodge, June 1, 1999
Whodat Strikes Back!
The third Duck Dodge sailboat race on June 1 offered cool temperatures, shifty winds, and a “bracing” rain shower. Full Moon crew Christy “Goretex” Bates, Karen “Storm Chaser” Oshiro, Barry “Pit King” Shuman, Art “The Knot” Teller, and skipper John “Mainsheet” Mengedoht had a good start, clear ahead of arch-rival Shogun. Once again, a two-lap battle developed with much-larger Whodat. The last spinnaker run saw Whodat ahead at the last buoy and, though clearly faster upwind, Full Moon could not quite make up the difference to the finish line. Whodat took fourth, Full Moon fifth, and Shogun sixth but a good ten minutes behind.
Duck Dodge, June 8, 1999
Water Bugs!
The fourth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on June 8, was Y2K Night. Full Moon’s crew came decked out in giant yellow antennae and eye-glasses formed to say “2000” while the boat sported the temporary new name Non-Compliant and a banner proclaiming “Watch out for Millenium Bugs!” This effort brought us yet another coveted Black Duck for theme participation. After a good start in the eighteen boat fleet, Full Moon crew Susan “Left Bug” Belancin, Shari “Right Bug” Murata, Vickie “Boss Bug” Mengedoht (all from Nordstrom’s Y2K Team), plus Art “Fast Bug” Teller, and skipper John “Bad Bug” Mengedoht set out to catch arch-rival Shogun. After two laps in variable winds, Shogun held onto their lead while Full Moon battled 38-foot Thin Air from the first start (five minutes before our start). Shogun finished sixth, Full Moon seventh, and occasional-rival Whodat crossed the line in eighth.
Duck Dodge, June 15, 1999
Shogun Disqualified!
The fifth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series on Lake Union featured big wind shifts and warm temperatures (at last!). Full Moon’s arch-rival Shogun was over the starting line way too early and failed to return for a restart, earning the big DSQ. Full Moon had a more leisurely start, a bit late to the line but well positioned to windward of the 20-boat fleet. Full Moon crew Tom “Starboard!” Bowen, Pam “Goosebumps” Hunt, Randy “Baked Lays” Olsen, Deborah “Porta-Party” Simpson, and skipper John “Fritos!” Mengedoht played the wind shifts and, with excellent spinnaker work, stayed close to the front of the fleet. Thirty-three foot Whodat, theoretically much faster, struggled to keep ahead of Full Moon, eventually eking out a small lead at the finish to take fifth. Full Moon followed in sixth, and Shogun took what would have been eighth had they not been disqualified.
Duck Dodge, June 29, 1999
Story is missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, July 6, 1999
Wild, Windy, Weirdness!
The eighth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pirate Night and Full Moon arrived well prepared with pirate décor. With a forecast of 10 knot winds, though, nobody had prepared for winds that built to over 20 knots! Pre-start maneuvering was two larger boats in a major t-bone collision, one boat losing their mast. With crew Art “Arrhhhh, Matey!” Teller, “Hurricane” Grace Teller, Randy “Shoeless” Olsen, and skipper John “Slip Knot” Mengedoht, Full Moon had a conservative start, skirting the drifting wreckage. With our own decks often awash, we saw a Hobie 21 turned turtle and a small boat nearly sink after capsizing. There was another dismasting and reports of a sailboat smashing into a houseboat so the Harbor Patrol had a busy evening! After two laps of carnage, Full Moon crossed the line in tenth place, happy to simply finish (nine of twenty-one boats retired from the race). Our larger and heavier arch-rival Shogun placed seventh.
Duck Dodge, July 27, 1999
Story is missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, August 3, 1999
Gold Duck!
The 11th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series nearly didn’t happen for Full Moon. Fortunately, the amazing thundershowers took a breather and Full Moon crew Karen “Lightning” Oshiro, Deborah “Shocking” Simpson, Art “Thor” Teller, Grace “Sparky” Teller, and skipper John “Flash” Mengedoht headed out into extremely light winds on Lake Union.
Nailing the start on port tack, Full Moon ghosted by occasional rival Scat and never looked back. Approaching the layline to the first buoy, Full Moon crossed ahead of arch-rival Shogun and then tacked to steal their wind. Rounding the buoy solidly in first place, Full Moon carefully played the light winds under spinnaker while Scat and Shogun battled each other for second. The last upwind leg saw Full Moon extend her lead to finish over three minutes ahead of second-place Shogun. As they say in the beer commercials, it just doesn’t get any better than that!
Duck Dodge, August 10, 17, & 31 1999
Stories are missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, September 7, 1999
Martini Madness!
The final sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series is always Martini and Cigar Night aboard Full Moon and the crew was well prepared to enjoy this one-boat theme. After a mid-fleet start in strong winds, Full Moon crew Amy “Aroma-Therapy” Henderson, Tina “Mini-Cubans” Negri, Steve “Bogart” Negri, Randy “Cosmopolitan” Olsen, Barry “Bloody” Shuman, Deborah “Buoy Dancer” Simpson, Art “Stogie” Teller, Marcia “Lil’ Missy” Wellman, and skipper John “Lemon Twist” Mengedoht put all the bodies on the high side and passed a few boats upwind. Downwind, the weight of four extra crew was telling, allowing one boat to slip by.
At the end of the short one-lap race, arch-rival Shogun managed to place sixth with Full Moon two spots back in eighth. However, Race Committee member Chris Beza pointed out that Shogun was over early at the start and disqualified -- so we’ll claim seventh place and another victory over our rival!
After the race, with glasses refilled and cigars lit, Full Moon continued the floating party, savoring the last summer race evening and stopping by Gasworks for the traditional Buoy Dance (ask Deborah!). To recap the season, Full Moon earned one Gold Duck, two Silver Ducks, and two Black Ducks for theme participation. Full Moon was 10-3 against Shogun and 7-6 against occasional rival Whodat. As always, a good time was had by all.
Goosebump, January 9, 2000
January Sun!
Full Moon returned to racing action in the first sailboat race of the Goosebump Series, Sunday, January 9. While prepared for rain, crew members Chris “Golf Widow” Beza, Kari “Power Puff” Einset, Anneka “Gear Girl” O’Connell, Barry “Individually Wrapped” Shuman, and skipper John “Too Busy To Drink” Mengedoht enjoyed some rare sunshine, which took the edge off the wind chill. Nailing the start with occasional rival Scat, Full Moon was slowly passed by the big boats in the strong gusty winds but held her own through two laps of Lake Union. At the finish, Audacious (Yamaha 33, skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband) took third and Full Moon placed sixth - an excellent finish in this one-start, no handicaps race.
Goosebump, January 16, 2000
Lake Union Blowout!
The forecast for the second sailboat race of the Goosebump series was for extremely high winds and Full Moon crew Gina “Goretex” Gerber, Anneka “Gear Tester” O’Connell, Randy “Gizmo” Olsen, Art “Wind Speed” Teller, Grace “Hurricane” Teller, and skipper John “Typhoon Tycoon” Mengedoht were prepared for wind and rain. Heading out for the 1:00pm start, the building winds had already whipped Lake Union to frothy whitecaps. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), the Race Committee Boat was nowhere to be seen as the race was canceled by the Seattle Harbor Patrol. Full Moon took a leisurely spin around the lake using the “iron sail” before retiring to the dock, ready to race another day. As a footnote, the weather station at West Point (western tip of Magnolia) recorded peak winds of 52 knots at 1:00pm.
Goosebump, January 23, 2000
Solar Wind
The third sailboat race of the Goosebump series featured “brisk” northerly winds and a nearly cloudless blue sky. Full Moon crew Lisa “Rail Beef” Berenson, Donn “Line Master” Oshiro, Karen “Sheet Queen” Oshiro, Art “Redemption” Teller, and skipper John “Round-up” Mengedoht hit the starting line a few seconds late but obtained better wind for the first leg to keep up with the competition. Predictably, the largest boats pulled steadily ahead through two laps, though Full Moon gained at times under spinnaker. Full Moon finished a solid seventh, beating all boats her size or less and a few bigger boats as well. Meanwhile, Suzanne Lusnia and her baby daughter helped husband/father Mackie Skene crew Audacious to another excellent third place finish.
Goosebump, January 30, 2000
Sorry, Shogun! (Not Really)
The fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union provided nearly ideal sailing conditions if you’re not too picky about sunshine and temperature. Full Moon crew Pam “Takedown” Hunt, Paul “Rookie” Myers, Anneka “Grinder” O’Connell, Randy “Digital” Olsen, Art “Lotto” Teller, and skipper John “Mainsheet” Mengedoht hit the starting line in a lot of traffic with arch-rival Shogun ahead and Audacious just to leeward. After a tack or two, the fleet opened up a bit and Full Moon began to gain on Shogun, passing her before the first buoy. With nearly flawless spinnaker work on the first downwind run, 25 foot Full Moon passed 33 foot Audacious (with Suzanne Lusnia’s husband at the helm and only two crew!) and 38 foot Thin Air while working hard to stay ahead of a speedy Olson 30 and that pesky Shogun. The Olson pulled ahead on the next upwind leg but nobody else could get by, try as they might. Full Moon finished sixth behind four all-out racing boats and a very fast 45 footer with Shogun following in seventh and Audacious eighth. After the race, Shogun continued around the buoys, no doubt feeling they needed the practice.
Goosebump, February 6, 2000
Slow Boat to China
The fifth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union began as a drifting contest with literally no measurable wind. Nevertheless, Full Moon crew Anneka “Winch Wench” O’Connell, Barry “Beer Timing” Shuman, Art “Bubbles” Teller, and skipper John “Puff Daddy” Mengedoht managed to float ahead of all boats but one at the start. After an interminable downwind run to the first buoy and a barely faster upwind leg, Full Moon was still solidly in second place and reeling in the leader. The wind filled in a bit on the next leg and the four (yes, four!) hot new 33’ Synergy 1000 race boats began to show their stuff along with the 40’ racer Shoot The Moon, pulling ahead of Full Moon. The fourth place Synergy then retired (from boredom?), moving Full Moon into fifth behind Shoot The Moon. Nobody gained during the last two legs, though occasional rival Whodat tried unsuccessfully to steal the wind from behind on the downwind run to the finish. Usually speedy Scat finished ninth and arch-rival Shogun came in twelfth.
Goosebump, February 13, 2000
Sailor’s Delight
The sixth and final sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union drew a large fleet of boats to enjoy the sunny weather. Full Moon crew Chris “Kodak Moment” Beza, Kari “Telltales” Einset (Chris’s wife), Randy “Digimon” Olsen, Barry “Drafty” Shuman, and skipper John “Red Line” Mengedoht had a well-timed start but suffered from disturbed wind off adjacent boats. As the bigger boats inevitably pulled ahead in the moderate breeze, Full Moon was able to tack into clear wind and, joy of joys, cross (barely) in front of arch-rival Shogun.
Through two full laps around Lake Union, Shogun struggled mightily to close the gap, hoping their slightly bigger boat and much bigger spinnaker would provide an edge. Countering with excellent crew work and solid tactics (not to mention modesty), Full Moon slowly widened the lead all the way to a very satisfying tenth place finish, the boats ahead all being much larger and/or inherently faster (there is no handicapping in the Goosebump races).
Duck Dodge, May 16, 2000
Full Moon Starts Summer Season
The first sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on Lake Union was planned to be a no-show for Full Moon but with wife Vickie's encouragement, skipper John "Sleep Deprived" Mengedoht was given an evening off from diaper duty. With crew Anneka "Speed Queen" O'Connell, Barry "Spinnaker" Shuman, and first-time racer Ian "Magnetic Powers" Mengedoht, Full Moon hit the starting line a bit late but immediately began overtaking competitors upwind in light air.
Rounding the first buoy just ahead of arch-rival Shogun, Full Moon engaged in battle under spinnaker with both Shogun and much-larger Great Expectations with all three boats lined up abreast approaching the downwind mark. Shogun took advantage of their inside position to round ahead but the battle was far from over. With winds shifting and building, Full Moon passed Shogun upwind while fending off the speedy J-24 Beagle and leaving Great Expectations far behind. Rounding the upwind mark with Beagle, Full Moon shot ahead for a while but both Beagle and Shogun are faster downwind in a breeze and the three boats converged at the downwind mark with Beagle just ahead of Full Moon. Both boats pulled away from Shogun upwind to the finish with Beagle taking fifth, Full Moon in sixth, and Shogun a distant seventh. The close action made for a great start to the Duck Dodge and a great first race for young Ian.
Duck Dodge, May 23, 2000
Shogun Falls Again!
The start of the second Duck Dodge sailboat race was mildly confused as the starting horn was running about two minutes early (there are multiple starts spaced five minutes apart). Skipper John "Sleep Deprived" Mengedoht managed to get Full Moon across the line with the first half of the 20 boat fleet and, with crew Christy "Dot Com" Bates, Karen "Nutter Butter" Oshiro, Donn "Grinder" Oshiro, and Art "Body Heat" Teller, Full Moon set out after the leaders.
While arch-rival Shogun was very fast under spinnaker, Full Moon was unstoppable upwind, passing even much-larger Whodat and gaining consistently on the eventual third place finisher Dreams. After two laps of great crew work and solid tactics, Full Moon finished an excellent fifth place just behind a very well-sailed Ranger 28, with Whodat in sixth and Shogun crossing seventh but disqualified for hitting a buoy and failing to circle back around it.
Duck Dodge, May 30, 2000
Black Duck!
The third sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on Lake Union was Historic Couples Night. Full Moon crew Pam “Starbuck” Hunt, Anneka “Queequeg” O’Connell, Randy “Ishmael” Olsen, Barry “Moby” Shuman, and skipper John “Ahab” Mengedoht renamed the boat Pequod for the evening and, with appropriate props, dressed the part of Captain Ahab and Moby Dick in a creative interpretation of the theme.
After a good start in fourth place, Full Moon was blanketed under spinnaker by the 38 footer Thin Air on the first downwind leg, which allowed several boats to pass. Undaunted, Full Moon gave chase upwind, mixing it up with arch-rival Shogun. At the final upwind mark, Shogun was passed for good and Full Moon set her sites on occasional rival Ignitor. All the way up the lake under spinnaker, the gap narrowed and, at the final leeward mark, Full Moon was within a few boatlengths of Ignitor’s transom. With better upwind speed and solid tactics, Full Moon surged ahead for an excellent fifth place finish with Ignitor sixth and Shogun a distant seventh.
To cap the evening fun, the Duck Dodge Race Committee bestowed the coveted Black Duck award to the Full Moon crew for best theme performance.
Duck Dodge, June 6, 2000
Comeback Kids
Despite a carefully planned starting strategy, the fourth Duck Dodge sailboat race began with Full Moon near the back of the fleet. With arch-rival Shogun far ahead and the ample wind favoring the larger boats, Full Moon crew Amy “Boom Boom” Henderson, Randy “The Bachelor” Olsen, Art “Jibe Master” Teller, and skipper John “Pinball Wizard” Mengedoht faced a serious challenge.
However, excellent tacking, perfect spinnaker handling, and a little help from the wind brought Full Moon past several boats on the first lap, making up half the distance to Shogun in only three legs. When occasional rival Ignitor snagged the downwind buoy with their rudder, Full Moon took advantage of the ensuing confusion to pass a few more.
On the second lap, Full Moon used upwind speed to full advantage, slowly reeling in much larger Whodat and our arch-rival. Squeezing inside Whodat at the upwind buoy, Shogun was dead ahead! All the way back down the lake, spinnakers flying, Full Moon rode Shogun’s transom, while working to hold off Whodat. At the final downwind buoy, Shogun remained barely ahead, but Full Moon was better rounding the buoy and surged past. Holding position to the finish, Full Moon managed an amazing fourth place with Shogun a few feet behind in fifth and Whodat vanquished to sixth.
Duck Dodge, June 13, 2000
Shogun’s Revenge
The fifth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Super Hero Night and the Full Moon crew came well prepared. Full Moon transformed into the Bat Boat, complete with large bat wings and jet exhaust. Aboard were Gina “Catwoman” Gerber, Anneka “Batgirl” O’Connell, Ian “Batman” Mengedoht, Paul “Robin, The Boy Wonder” Myers, Art “The Penguin” Teller, and skipper John “The Joker” Mengedoht in full costume.
After a very good start, Full Moon was in contention for the lead. However, arch-rival Shogun, after a perfect start, took off under spinnaker on the downwind leg, pulling away from the pack. Unable to legally use the jet thruster, Full Moon nevertheless built a lead on the theoretically speedier Olson 25 Dreams while struggling to catch the much-larger Tartan 33, Whodat.
After two laps of good racing, the positions remained the same. Shogun took the Gold Duck for first place, gaining some revenge for four straight losses to Full Moon. Whodat placed third, Full Moon fourth, and Dreams a distant fifth. Best of all, however, Full Moon earned the highly coveted Black Duck for theme participation. It was a gorgeous evening on the water and great fun, as always.
Duck Dodge, June 20, 2000
The Need For Speed
Sporting a brand new large “Genoa” jib, Full Moon was expected to be a bit faster for the sixth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series. However, even with a fast boat, a good start is critical and that was not to be. Starting toward the back of the fleet, Full Moon crew Lisa “Winch Wench” Berenson, Randy “Muffin” Olsen, Art “Boat Slave” Teller, Ian “Chips Ahoy” Mengedoht, and skipper John “It’s Definitely Faster” Mengedoht put the pedal to the metal and quickly proved the value of the new sail. Upwind and downwind through a lap and a half, Full Moon passed boat after boat, easily dispatching arch-rival Shogun upwind.
On the last downwind leg, Full Moon was fifth and closing on the leaders. With occasional rival Ignitor battling a large Hunter 34 (Full Moon is only 25 feet), it looked like Full Moon might pass both under spinnaker but Ignitor found some speed and stayed ahead. Rounding the final buoy, third or even second appeared possible but the gap was just a bit too much. Ignitor took third with Full Moon seconds behind in fourth. Shogun finished considerably later in eighth place.
Duck Dodge, June 27, 2000
Soooo Close!
The seventh sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Dead Celebrity Night and Full Moon appeared as the S. S. Minnow, complete with "holes" in the bow and crew Amy "Ginger" Henderson, Ian "Gilligan" Mengedoht, Tina "Mary Ann" Negri, Art "Thurston Howell" Teller, and skipper John "The Skipper" Mengedoht. After a relatively good start in light winds, Full Moon began the usual game of advancing through the fleet.
Midway through the second lap, Full Moon attained fifth place and then surged into third. However, toward the end of the last spinnaker run the wind died and then filled from behind, allowing occasional rival Ignitor and Zoomie Island to pass. Rounding the final buoy before the finish, Full Moon was back to fifth. With a good turn of upwind speed, Full Moon passed Zoomie Island. Converging with, Ignitor at the finish line, Full Moon remained a mere two feet behind and so it was Ignitor third (for the Bronze Duck) and Full Moon just barely fourth (no Duck). Arch-rival Shogun was never in the hunt, finishing toward the back of the fleet.
Duck Dodge, July 11, 2000
Dead Ducks Tell No Tales
The eighth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pirate Night. Full Moon crew Anneka "Whips and Chains" O'Connell, Steve "Margarita" Mikkelsen, Paul "Captain Morgan" Myers, Barry "Cabin Boy" Shuman, skipper John "Graybeard" Mengedoht, and special guest Blondie "Airhead" Plastique were dressed to kill and armed to the teeth while the boat sported a huge pirate flag, a stuffed parrot, and little skulls on the lifelines.
The fleet bunched together in a tight mass for the start with Full Moon somewhere in the middle. Arch-rival Shogun was early across the line, earning a DSQ since they continued sailing without a restart. With wind shifting wildly and often fading out entirely, luck seemed to be as important as sailing skill. However, Full Moon (with crew fueled by Mikkelsen Margaritas) did well in the lightest winds, ghosting along while other boats stalled completely.
After two laps around the lake, Full Moon finished a very decent sixth, close behind the fast Olson 25 Dreams. Rivals Ignitor and Whodat were much farther back, as was Shogun, despite their early start. Capping the evening, Full Moon was awarded yet another highly coveted Black Duck for excellent theme interpretation.
Duck Dodge, July 25, 2000
Drat That Whodat!
The ninth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Prom Night. Full Moon crew Christy "Date-a-Bates" Bates, Anneka "Balloons" O'Connell, Amy "Prom Queen" Pearson, "Princess" Grace Teller, Art "Boat Buster" Teller, and skipper John "Whee-Knee" Mengedoht were prepared with a nice array of prom wear while the boat sported balloons and a mirror ball. After a good clean start and short windward leg, Full Moon was, for once, solidly in second place and held this position for quite some time until finally being passed by the much faster CF27 Goose N' Duck at the end of the second upwind leg.
With Full Moon in third and burning up the lake under spinnaker on the second lap, two boats were now slowly gaining from behind - the Olson 25 Dreams and much larger Tartan 33 Whodat. Rounding the last buoy before the finish, the wind had faded and Dreams had closed to within 30 feet with Whodat right behind them. Full Moon was forced into a tactical duel with theoretically faster Dreams while Whodat took a wider angle to the wind, trading some distance for stronger wind in the middle of the lake. Unfortunately, it paid off for them - barely - as Whodat crossed in front of Full Moon with two feet to spare and then tacked to make the finish line, stealing 3rd place from Full Moon by less than 10 feet. Dreams took 5th, still 25 feet behind Full Moon, with traditional rivals Ignitor and Shogun placing 6th and 7th several minutes later. It was a beautiful evening on the water and a great introduction to sailing for rookie Amy Pearson.
Duck Dodge, August 1, 2000
Ignitor Ignites Trouble
The tenth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series, August 1, had the best weather yet with warm breezes and sunny skies. Full Moon crew Lisa “Grinder” Berenson, Pam “Green Line” Hunt, Amy “Mommy” Henderson, Julie “Rookie” Henderson, Randy “Fearless Foredeck” Olsen, and skipper John “Starboard!” Mengedoht had the start in the bag until occasional rival Ignitor, crossing on port tack, failed to yield right of way, nearly causing a major collision. The ensuing emergency tack lost time and position for Full Moon but saved the fiberglass.
Making gains to windward on the first leg, Full Moon again encountered Ignitor and again was forced to maneuver to avoid collision despite holding the right of way. Enough was enough and Full Moon did what she does best, pulling ahead and passing boat after boat, upwind and downwind, until the leaders were in range. While gaining on the 3rd and 4th place boats right up to the finish, Full Moon had to settle for 5th which, given the shaky start, was a good effort. Ignitor fell back to 8th and other rivals Whodat and Shogun could do no better than 10th and 13th. Close calls or not, it was a beautiful evening and great fun as usual aboard the good ship Full Moon.
Duck Dodge, August 8, 2000
Lost in the Aurora Triangle
The eleventh sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Tropical Night and Lake Union was full of sailors with grass skirts and coconut bras. Fueled with rum and fruit juice, Full Moon crew Tina “Ice Bag” Negri, Karen “Hula Girl” Oshiro, Donn “Whacker” Oshiro, Barry “Coconuts” Shuman, and skipper John “Powerboat Killer” Mengedoht timed the start with near perfection and began battling for the lead upwind. Toward the end of the first lap, Full Moon had lost a bit of ground downwind, rounding the floating “island” mark solidly in fourth place (pausing briefly for a touch and go to snag free beers dispensed from the “island”).
After holding position and gaining distance up the lake, disaster struck at the Aurora buoy as the (empty) spinnaker bag went for a swim. Circling back to rescue the bag (it eventually sank!) cost many minutes and allowed a number of boats to pass, including our traditional rivals. Shogun placed 7th followed by Ignitor, Whodat, and Full Moon in the middle of the fleet. While not our best finish, the drinks and pupus were tasty, the breezes balmy, and the view of downtown was exquisite in the fading light.
Duck Dodge, August 15, 2000
Crunch Time
The 12th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pajama Night and the Full Moon crew sported night shirts, flannel jammies, assorted tee-shirt/boxer combinations and two Teddies (bears, that is). Hitting the starting line toward the front of the fleet, crew Christy "Rail Rider" Bates, Amy "Wet PJs" Henderson, Randy "Third Date" Olsen, Barry "Survivor" Shuman, and skipper John "Wood Polish" Mengedoht played the wind skillfully up the first leg and rounded the first buoy in second place.
With excellent crew work in the ample wind, Full Moon held off all comers through three more legs until much larger Whodat squeaked by on the short upwind leg around Gasworks Park. Spinnakers flying back down the lake, Full Moon stayed close to Whodat with speedy Scat very slowly gaining from behind. Rounding the final buoy, a grating crunch was heard from ahead. Whodat had collided with Scat, who had yet to round the buoy! After asking if help was needed, Full Moon sailed on by, screaming up to the finish in second place and winning the highly prized Silver Duck sticker. Scat and Whodat eventually followed (both with minor damage) with arch-rival Shogun in 6th and occasional rival Ignitor 9th.
Duck Dodge, August 22, 2000
Parade Laps
Full Moon had an excellent start for the 13th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series. Unfortunately, several other boats also had excellent starts and, unlike last week, at the first buoy Full Moon was in seventh place. Crew Chris “This Is Great!” Beza, Gina “Birthday Girl” Gerber, Amy “Winch Wench” Stokes (Art’s wife), Art “Ballast Boy” Teller, Grace “I Can Do It” Teller, and skipper John “Octopus” Mengedoht did their best but could only reel in one competitor downwind under spinnaker on the first lap.
With fairly consistent wind and the boats spread out a bit, there was little in the way of tactical battles and most of the fleet simply held their position through two laps around the lake. Fully enjoying the beautiful evening on the water, Full Moon crossed the finish line in 6th place with occasional rival Ignitor ahead in 4th and arch-rival Shogun way back in 18th place.
Duck Dodge, August 29, 2000
Sunny Summer Sailing?
The fourteenth (and next to last!) sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Toga Night and the lake was full of damp Romans in soggy togas over rain jackets. Starting in the middle of the fleet, Full Moon crew "Tacking Queens" Amy Pearson and Karen Oshiro, Art "Shorts" Teller, Ian "Man Of Bronze" Mengedoht, and skipper John "We Got 'Em" Mengedoht worked up to seventh place near the first upwind buoy in shifty wind. Passing two more boats at the buoy, Full Moon was in fifth.
Sailing back down the lake under spinnaker, Full Moon continued to gain on the leaders, picking off the 27 footer Deception. At the downwind mark, the gap had closed considerably and at the last buoy Full Moon had caught up to Dirty Bird (26 foot Thunderbird) and Bridget (San Juan 30) but had to round the buoy outside them both. Tacking to the finish line, Bridget was just out of reach but Dirty Bird wasn't fast enough and Full Moon took third for the treasured Bronze Duck. Occasional rival Ignitor came in sixth while arch-rival Shogun was a no-show.
Duck Dodge, September 5, 2000
Olive or Twist
Shaken, not stirred. Vokda, not Gin. The last (fifteenth) sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series is traditionally Martini Night aboard Full Moon and this year was no exception. After the first round was served, crew Tina "Groove Thing" Negri, Randy "Zima" Olsen, Art "Big Sky" Teller, and skipper John "Racing Slime" Mengedoht nailed the start and proceeded down the lake in light winds. Unfortunately, several boats proved a bit faster upwind and Full Moon rounded the first buoy in sixth place, though still close to the front of the fleet.
Under spinnaker for the next two legs, Full Moon gained slightly but not enough to catch anyone. Rounding the final buoy of the short one-lap race, it looked for a time that fifth might be obtained but it was not to be and Full Moon crossed the line sixth in fading light. Arch-rival Shogun failed to show up and has been dethroned for only beating Full Moon twice this year. Newly crowned arch-rival Ignitor sailed very well and finished a solid third for the Bronze Duck (we’re still 10-5 for the year against them, however).
After the race, Full Moon joined the growing raft of boats at the center of the lake. One highlight of the evening proved to be the neighboring 27 footer with a blender fashioned from a gas powered weed-eater. Sailors are a creative lot, if a bit crazy.
Duck Dodge Rum Run, October 28, 2000
Rum Run Fun
Full Moon ventured out into the Sound Saturday for the annual Duck Dodge Rum Run sailboat race. Crew Anneka "Spray Shield" O'Connell, Tim "Merit Badge" Williams, Art "Dayquil" Teller, Gina "Gotta Go" Gerber" and skipper John "Surf City" Mengedoht had a perfect start off Shilshole in winds gusting over 25 knots and Full Moon held the lead for the better part of a mile. Unfortunately, the race committee had seen fit to include a number of much larger boats in the same start and the 35 to 42 footers slowly caught and passed Full Moon before the first buoy off West Point.
Undaunted, Full Moon maintained top speed reaching across the Sound to Skiff Point on Bainbridge Island, leaving traditional rivals Ignitor, Scat, etc. far behind. Heading north toward Port Madison, the strong wind and waves worked in harmony to provide surfing conditions with Full Moon blasting up to 9.6 knots at one point. Even this, though, was not enough to overtake the big boats and Full Moon had to settle for sixth place. Regardless, it was an exhilarating sail and the Full Moon crew had a blast, especially enjoying the sunshine that replaced the forecast rain showers.
Fun In The Sun
After a two-month break, Full Moon resumed sailboat racing Sunday in the first of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union. After a relatively poor start near the back of the fleet, crew Cynthia “Zip It Up” Faw, Randy “Slow Hands” Olsen, Ed “Windvane” Sweetnam, Art “Munchies” Teller, and skipper John “Better Late Than Never” Mengedoht turned up the heat, passing boats on three of four upwind and reaching legs. Unfortunately, our spinnaker work was less stellar. Full Moon lost one position during the spinnaker hoist and nearly lost another when the spinnaker briefly acted as a sea anchor at the leeward mark.
At the end of the short, one lap race, Full Moon placed seventh right behind arch-rival Shogun. All things considered (there is one start for all sizes of boats and no handicapping system), this was a very good finish. With surprisingly fine weather and good wind, it was a fun race and a great afternoon on the water.
Goosebump, January 17 and 24, 1999
Full Moon Strikes Back!
The second race of the Goosebump Series, January 17, featured pouring rain and virtually no wind. Would-be Full Moon crew Chris Beza, Kari Einset, Barry Shuman, Art Teller, and skipper John Mengedoht, while prepared for stormy weather, elected to skip the race rather than sit in the rain going nowhere.
The third race, January 24, brought welcome sunshine and light, shifty winds. With the wind direction allowing only a narrow lane to cross the starting line on starboard tack, the start was ugly. Full Moon began the race in next to last place after several tacks to clear the line. Crew Amy “Tales” Bradford, Tina “Nails” Negri, Randy “Goretex” Olsen, Barry “Spinnaker” Shuman, and skipper John “D*L” Mengedoht then began blowing by the competition, passing as many as ten boats on the first leg.
The second leg, also upwind, saw Full Moon gain on normally much-faster boats Whodat and Audacious (skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband with Amy Bradford’s fiancé as one of the crew). On the downwind leg, Full Moon eased past Audacious under spinnaker and finally passed Whodat at the buoy.
With two more upwind legs, Full Moon held on to place sixth, a full two minutes ahead of Audacious (who had also passed Whodat). Arch-rival Shogun could do no better than fourteenth. With the top five boats all much bigger and/or rating much faster, this was an excellent finish for Full Moon.
Goosebump, January 31, 1999
Wild Ride
The fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union was the windiest yet with strong gusts and sustained winds over twenty knots. Full Moon crew Anneka “Soaked” O’Connell, Doug “Does This Thing Tip Over?” Schoemaker, Jeffrey “What Does This Do?” Schoemaker, Art “The Perfect Perch” Teller, and skipper John “No Mr. Bill!” Mengedoht managed to hit the starting line in fourth place.
With a small jib and double-reefed mainsail, the boat still exceeded 40 degrees of heel in the gusts. Blasting around the course, Full Moon held position or gained a bit until gear failure (broken mainsheet block) on the second running leg allowed three boats to pass. After temporary repairs under way, Full Moon suffered a knock-down during a gybe with water filling the bottom of the cockpit!
Undaunted, we managed to pass back a Catalina 25 on the last leg to place sixth. With the first five boats ranging from 35 to 40 feet, this was a strong finish for much smaller Full Moon, especially in such overpowering winds. Arch-rival Shogun failed to show, no doubt preferring the Super Bowl pre-game show over the agony of another defeat.
Goosebump, February 7, 1999
Windy, Wet and Wild
The fifth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union had strong winds (again over twenty knots) with the bonus of ample rain. Full Moon crew Chris “Rookie” Beza, Art “Bungie” Teller, and skipper John “Battens” Mengedoht nailed the start but the Committee Boat’s horn failed to sound and we rounded back to make sure we hadn’t been over the line early (we hadn’t). That left Full Moon in sixth place with arch-rival Shogun dead ahead.
With double-reefed mainsail and small jib, Full Moon out-sailed Shogun on the first leg to take over fifth place and set out to pass Amigos for fourth. As luck would have it, Amigos quit the race with gear failure on the first downwind leg (blown sail, we think). Full Moon held off Shogun for the remaining six legs but could not overtake the much bigger (33’ to 40’) boats ahead, finishing in fourth place behind Audacious.
Duck Dodge, May 18, 1999
Duck Dodge Series Begins
The first sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series on Seattle’s Lake Union began with high hopes as Full Moon closed on the starting line, timing the start with near perfection. Unfortunately, position is equally important as timing and, with several larger boats to windward, Full Moon had to claw out of a large wind shadow.
Ace crew Barry “Let It Go!” Shuman, Randy “Let It Go?” Olsen, Amy “Cookie Mom” Bradford, Art “Boom Stopper” Teller, and skipper John “Crazy Ivan” Mengedoht worked hard to catch the leaders but, with a short, one-lap race and good, steady wind, it was not to be. Full Moon did very well to finish eighth, hot on the heels of much larger Whodat. Arch-rival Shogun had an outstanding start and took third place. (We’ll get ‘em next week!) As always, a good time was had by all.
Duck Dodge, May 25, 1999
Take That, Whodat!
The second sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series was Headgear Night. Full Moon crew Christy “Daisy” Bates, “Annakin” O’Connell, Karl “Big Kiss” Schmidt, Barry “Pole Control” Shuman, and skipper John “Dark Helmet” Mengedoht came well prepared for the theme, earning the coveted Black Duck for the effort. Unfortunately, “Dark Helmet” left the spinnaker sheets at home so Full Moon had to make do without a spinnaker.
Nevertheless, after an excellent start, Full Moon left arch-rival Shogun in her wake and engaged in a two-lap battle with much bigger boats Whodat and Amigos. Both boats were faster downwind but could not manage to stay ahead of Full Moon upwind. At the last buoy before the finish, Full Moon trailed, but an exhilarating tacking battle saw Full Moon beat Amigos across the line by inches for sixth place with Whodat several boat lengths back in eighth. Shogun finished far behind, in tenth place.
Duck Dodge, June 1, 1999
Whodat Strikes Back!
The third Duck Dodge sailboat race on June 1 offered cool temperatures, shifty winds, and a “bracing” rain shower. Full Moon crew Christy “Goretex” Bates, Karen “Storm Chaser” Oshiro, Barry “Pit King” Shuman, Art “The Knot” Teller, and skipper John “Mainsheet” Mengedoht had a good start, clear ahead of arch-rival Shogun. Once again, a two-lap battle developed with much-larger Whodat. The last spinnaker run saw Whodat ahead at the last buoy and, though clearly faster upwind, Full Moon could not quite make up the difference to the finish line. Whodat took fourth, Full Moon fifth, and Shogun sixth but a good ten minutes behind.
Duck Dodge, June 8, 1999
Water Bugs!
The fourth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on June 8, was Y2K Night. Full Moon’s crew came decked out in giant yellow antennae and eye-glasses formed to say “2000” while the boat sported the temporary new name Non-Compliant and a banner proclaiming “Watch out for Millenium Bugs!” This effort brought us yet another coveted Black Duck for theme participation. After a good start in the eighteen boat fleet, Full Moon crew Susan “Left Bug” Belancin, Shari “Right Bug” Murata, Vickie “Boss Bug” Mengedoht (all from Nordstrom’s Y2K Team), plus Art “Fast Bug” Teller, and skipper John “Bad Bug” Mengedoht set out to catch arch-rival Shogun. After two laps in variable winds, Shogun held onto their lead while Full Moon battled 38-foot Thin Air from the first start (five minutes before our start). Shogun finished sixth, Full Moon seventh, and occasional-rival Whodat crossed the line in eighth.
Duck Dodge, June 15, 1999
Shogun Disqualified!
The fifth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series on Lake Union featured big wind shifts and warm temperatures (at last!). Full Moon’s arch-rival Shogun was over the starting line way too early and failed to return for a restart, earning the big DSQ. Full Moon had a more leisurely start, a bit late to the line but well positioned to windward of the 20-boat fleet. Full Moon crew Tom “Starboard!” Bowen, Pam “Goosebumps” Hunt, Randy “Baked Lays” Olsen, Deborah “Porta-Party” Simpson, and skipper John “Fritos!” Mengedoht played the wind shifts and, with excellent spinnaker work, stayed close to the front of the fleet. Thirty-three foot Whodat, theoretically much faster, struggled to keep ahead of Full Moon, eventually eking out a small lead at the finish to take fifth. Full Moon followed in sixth, and Shogun took what would have been eighth had they not been disqualified.
Duck Dodge, June 29, 1999
Story is missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, July 6, 1999
Wild, Windy, Weirdness!
The eighth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pirate Night and Full Moon arrived well prepared with pirate décor. With a forecast of 10 knot winds, though, nobody had prepared for winds that built to over 20 knots! Pre-start maneuvering was two larger boats in a major t-bone collision, one boat losing their mast. With crew Art “Arrhhhh, Matey!” Teller, “Hurricane” Grace Teller, Randy “Shoeless” Olsen, and skipper John “Slip Knot” Mengedoht, Full Moon had a conservative start, skirting the drifting wreckage. With our own decks often awash, we saw a Hobie 21 turned turtle and a small boat nearly sink after capsizing. There was another dismasting and reports of a sailboat smashing into a houseboat so the Harbor Patrol had a busy evening! After two laps of carnage, Full Moon crossed the line in tenth place, happy to simply finish (nine of twenty-one boats retired from the race). Our larger and heavier arch-rival Shogun placed seventh.
Duck Dodge, July 27, 1999
Story is missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, August 3, 1999
Gold Duck!
The 11th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series nearly didn’t happen for Full Moon. Fortunately, the amazing thundershowers took a breather and Full Moon crew Karen “Lightning” Oshiro, Deborah “Shocking” Simpson, Art “Thor” Teller, Grace “Sparky” Teller, and skipper John “Flash” Mengedoht headed out into extremely light winds on Lake Union.
Nailing the start on port tack, Full Moon ghosted by occasional rival Scat and never looked back. Approaching the layline to the first buoy, Full Moon crossed ahead of arch-rival Shogun and then tacked to steal their wind. Rounding the buoy solidly in first place, Full Moon carefully played the light winds under spinnaker while Scat and Shogun battled each other for second. The last upwind leg saw Full Moon extend her lead to finish over three minutes ahead of second-place Shogun. As they say in the beer commercials, it just doesn’t get any better than that!
Duck Dodge, August 10, 17, & 31 1999
Stories are missing (sorry!)
Duck Dodge, September 7, 1999
Martini Madness!
The final sailboat race of the Duck Dodge Series is always Martini and Cigar Night aboard Full Moon and the crew was well prepared to enjoy this one-boat theme. After a mid-fleet start in strong winds, Full Moon crew Amy “Aroma-Therapy” Henderson, Tina “Mini-Cubans” Negri, Steve “Bogart” Negri, Randy “Cosmopolitan” Olsen, Barry “Bloody” Shuman, Deborah “Buoy Dancer” Simpson, Art “Stogie” Teller, Marcia “Lil’ Missy” Wellman, and skipper John “Lemon Twist” Mengedoht put all the bodies on the high side and passed a few boats upwind. Downwind, the weight of four extra crew was telling, allowing one boat to slip by.
At the end of the short one-lap race, arch-rival Shogun managed to place sixth with Full Moon two spots back in eighth. However, Race Committee member Chris Beza pointed out that Shogun was over early at the start and disqualified -- so we’ll claim seventh place and another victory over our rival!
After the race, with glasses refilled and cigars lit, Full Moon continued the floating party, savoring the last summer race evening and stopping by Gasworks for the traditional Buoy Dance (ask Deborah!). To recap the season, Full Moon earned one Gold Duck, two Silver Ducks, and two Black Ducks for theme participation. Full Moon was 10-3 against Shogun and 7-6 against occasional rival Whodat. As always, a good time was had by all.
Goosebump, January 9, 2000
January Sun!
Full Moon returned to racing action in the first sailboat race of the Goosebump Series, Sunday, January 9. While prepared for rain, crew members Chris “Golf Widow” Beza, Kari “Power Puff” Einset, Anneka “Gear Girl” O’Connell, Barry “Individually Wrapped” Shuman, and skipper John “Too Busy To Drink” Mengedoht enjoyed some rare sunshine, which took the edge off the wind chill. Nailing the start with occasional rival Scat, Full Moon was slowly passed by the big boats in the strong gusty winds but held her own through two laps of Lake Union. At the finish, Audacious (Yamaha 33, skippered by Suzanne Lusnia’s husband) took third and Full Moon placed sixth - an excellent finish in this one-start, no handicaps race.
Goosebump, January 16, 2000
Lake Union Blowout!
The forecast for the second sailboat race of the Goosebump series was for extremely high winds and Full Moon crew Gina “Goretex” Gerber, Anneka “Gear Tester” O’Connell, Randy “Gizmo” Olsen, Art “Wind Speed” Teller, Grace “Hurricane” Teller, and skipper John “Typhoon Tycoon” Mengedoht were prepared for wind and rain. Heading out for the 1:00pm start, the building winds had already whipped Lake Union to frothy whitecaps. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), the Race Committee Boat was nowhere to be seen as the race was canceled by the Seattle Harbor Patrol. Full Moon took a leisurely spin around the lake using the “iron sail” before retiring to the dock, ready to race another day. As a footnote, the weather station at West Point (western tip of Magnolia) recorded peak winds of 52 knots at 1:00pm.
Goosebump, January 23, 2000
Solar Wind
The third sailboat race of the Goosebump series featured “brisk” northerly winds and a nearly cloudless blue sky. Full Moon crew Lisa “Rail Beef” Berenson, Donn “Line Master” Oshiro, Karen “Sheet Queen” Oshiro, Art “Redemption” Teller, and skipper John “Round-up” Mengedoht hit the starting line a few seconds late but obtained better wind for the first leg to keep up with the competition. Predictably, the largest boats pulled steadily ahead through two laps, though Full Moon gained at times under spinnaker. Full Moon finished a solid seventh, beating all boats her size or less and a few bigger boats as well. Meanwhile, Suzanne Lusnia and her baby daughter helped husband/father Mackie Skene crew Audacious to another excellent third place finish.
Goosebump, January 30, 2000
Sorry, Shogun! (Not Really)
The fourth sailboat race of the Goosebump series on Lake Union provided nearly ideal sailing conditions if you’re not too picky about sunshine and temperature. Full Moon crew Pam “Takedown” Hunt, Paul “Rookie” Myers, Anneka “Grinder” O’Connell, Randy “Digital” Olsen, Art “Lotto” Teller, and skipper John “Mainsheet” Mengedoht hit the starting line in a lot of traffic with arch-rival Shogun ahead and Audacious just to leeward. After a tack or two, the fleet opened up a bit and Full Moon began to gain on Shogun, passing her before the first buoy. With nearly flawless spinnaker work on the first downwind run, 25 foot Full Moon passed 33 foot Audacious (with Suzanne Lusnia’s husband at the helm and only two crew!) and 38 foot Thin Air while working hard to stay ahead of a speedy Olson 30 and that pesky Shogun. The Olson pulled ahead on the next upwind leg but nobody else could get by, try as they might. Full Moon finished sixth behind four all-out racing boats and a very fast 45 footer with Shogun following in seventh and Audacious eighth. After the race, Shogun continued around the buoys, no doubt feeling they needed the practice.
Goosebump, February 6, 2000
Slow Boat to China
The fifth sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union began as a drifting contest with literally no measurable wind. Nevertheless, Full Moon crew Anneka “Winch Wench” O’Connell, Barry “Beer Timing” Shuman, Art “Bubbles” Teller, and skipper John “Puff Daddy” Mengedoht managed to float ahead of all boats but one at the start. After an interminable downwind run to the first buoy and a barely faster upwind leg, Full Moon was still solidly in second place and reeling in the leader. The wind filled in a bit on the next leg and the four (yes, four!) hot new 33’ Synergy 1000 race boats began to show their stuff along with the 40’ racer Shoot The Moon, pulling ahead of Full Moon. The fourth place Synergy then retired (from boredom?), moving Full Moon into fifth behind Shoot The Moon. Nobody gained during the last two legs, though occasional rival Whodat tried unsuccessfully to steal the wind from behind on the downwind run to the finish. Usually speedy Scat finished ninth and arch-rival Shogun came in twelfth.
Goosebump, February 13, 2000
Sailor’s Delight
The sixth and final sailboat race of the Goosebump Series on Lake Union drew a large fleet of boats to enjoy the sunny weather. Full Moon crew Chris “Kodak Moment” Beza, Kari “Telltales” Einset (Chris’s wife), Randy “Digimon” Olsen, Barry “Drafty” Shuman, and skipper John “Red Line” Mengedoht had a well-timed start but suffered from disturbed wind off adjacent boats. As the bigger boats inevitably pulled ahead in the moderate breeze, Full Moon was able to tack into clear wind and, joy of joys, cross (barely) in front of arch-rival Shogun.
Through two full laps around Lake Union, Shogun struggled mightily to close the gap, hoping their slightly bigger boat and much bigger spinnaker would provide an edge. Countering with excellent crew work and solid tactics (not to mention modesty), Full Moon slowly widened the lead all the way to a very satisfying tenth place finish, the boats ahead all being much larger and/or inherently faster (there is no handicapping in the Goosebump races).
Duck Dodge, May 16, 2000
Full Moon Starts Summer Season
The first sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on Lake Union was planned to be a no-show for Full Moon but with wife Vickie's encouragement, skipper John "Sleep Deprived" Mengedoht was given an evening off from diaper duty. With crew Anneka "Speed Queen" O'Connell, Barry "Spinnaker" Shuman, and first-time racer Ian "Magnetic Powers" Mengedoht, Full Moon hit the starting line a bit late but immediately began overtaking competitors upwind in light air.
Rounding the first buoy just ahead of arch-rival Shogun, Full Moon engaged in battle under spinnaker with both Shogun and much-larger Great Expectations with all three boats lined up abreast approaching the downwind mark. Shogun took advantage of their inside position to round ahead but the battle was far from over. With winds shifting and building, Full Moon passed Shogun upwind while fending off the speedy J-24 Beagle and leaving Great Expectations far behind. Rounding the upwind mark with Beagle, Full Moon shot ahead for a while but both Beagle and Shogun are faster downwind in a breeze and the three boats converged at the downwind mark with Beagle just ahead of Full Moon. Both boats pulled away from Shogun upwind to the finish with Beagle taking fifth, Full Moon in sixth, and Shogun a distant seventh. The close action made for a great start to the Duck Dodge and a great first race for young Ian.
Duck Dodge, May 23, 2000
Shogun Falls Again!
The start of the second Duck Dodge sailboat race was mildly confused as the starting horn was running about two minutes early (there are multiple starts spaced five minutes apart). Skipper John "Sleep Deprived" Mengedoht managed to get Full Moon across the line with the first half of the 20 boat fleet and, with crew Christy "Dot Com" Bates, Karen "Nutter Butter" Oshiro, Donn "Grinder" Oshiro, and Art "Body Heat" Teller, Full Moon set out after the leaders.
While arch-rival Shogun was very fast under spinnaker, Full Moon was unstoppable upwind, passing even much-larger Whodat and gaining consistently on the eventual third place finisher Dreams. After two laps of great crew work and solid tactics, Full Moon finished an excellent fifth place just behind a very well-sailed Ranger 28, with Whodat in sixth and Shogun crossing seventh but disqualified for hitting a buoy and failing to circle back around it.
Duck Dodge, May 30, 2000
Black Duck!
The third sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series on Lake Union was Historic Couples Night. Full Moon crew Pam “Starbuck” Hunt, Anneka “Queequeg” O’Connell, Randy “Ishmael” Olsen, Barry “Moby” Shuman, and skipper John “Ahab” Mengedoht renamed the boat Pequod for the evening and, with appropriate props, dressed the part of Captain Ahab and Moby Dick in a creative interpretation of the theme.
After a good start in fourth place, Full Moon was blanketed under spinnaker by the 38 footer Thin Air on the first downwind leg, which allowed several boats to pass. Undaunted, Full Moon gave chase upwind, mixing it up with arch-rival Shogun. At the final upwind mark, Shogun was passed for good and Full Moon set her sites on occasional rival Ignitor. All the way up the lake under spinnaker, the gap narrowed and, at the final leeward mark, Full Moon was within a few boatlengths of Ignitor’s transom. With better upwind speed and solid tactics, Full Moon surged ahead for an excellent fifth place finish with Ignitor sixth and Shogun a distant seventh.
To cap the evening fun, the Duck Dodge Race Committee bestowed the coveted Black Duck award to the Full Moon crew for best theme performance.
Duck Dodge, June 6, 2000
Comeback Kids
Despite a carefully planned starting strategy, the fourth Duck Dodge sailboat race began with Full Moon near the back of the fleet. With arch-rival Shogun far ahead and the ample wind favoring the larger boats, Full Moon crew Amy “Boom Boom” Henderson, Randy “The Bachelor” Olsen, Art “Jibe Master” Teller, and skipper John “Pinball Wizard” Mengedoht faced a serious challenge.
However, excellent tacking, perfect spinnaker handling, and a little help from the wind brought Full Moon past several boats on the first lap, making up half the distance to Shogun in only three legs. When occasional rival Ignitor snagged the downwind buoy with their rudder, Full Moon took advantage of the ensuing confusion to pass a few more.
On the second lap, Full Moon used upwind speed to full advantage, slowly reeling in much larger Whodat and our arch-rival. Squeezing inside Whodat at the upwind buoy, Shogun was dead ahead! All the way back down the lake, spinnakers flying, Full Moon rode Shogun’s transom, while working to hold off Whodat. At the final downwind buoy, Shogun remained barely ahead, but Full Moon was better rounding the buoy and surged past. Holding position to the finish, Full Moon managed an amazing fourth place with Shogun a few feet behind in fifth and Whodat vanquished to sixth.
Duck Dodge, June 13, 2000
Shogun’s Revenge
The fifth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Super Hero Night and the Full Moon crew came well prepared. Full Moon transformed into the Bat Boat, complete with large bat wings and jet exhaust. Aboard were Gina “Catwoman” Gerber, Anneka “Batgirl” O’Connell, Ian “Batman” Mengedoht, Paul “Robin, The Boy Wonder” Myers, Art “The Penguin” Teller, and skipper John “The Joker” Mengedoht in full costume.
After a very good start, Full Moon was in contention for the lead. However, arch-rival Shogun, after a perfect start, took off under spinnaker on the downwind leg, pulling away from the pack. Unable to legally use the jet thruster, Full Moon nevertheless built a lead on the theoretically speedier Olson 25 Dreams while struggling to catch the much-larger Tartan 33, Whodat.
After two laps of good racing, the positions remained the same. Shogun took the Gold Duck for first place, gaining some revenge for four straight losses to Full Moon. Whodat placed third, Full Moon fourth, and Dreams a distant fifth. Best of all, however, Full Moon earned the highly coveted Black Duck for theme participation. It was a gorgeous evening on the water and great fun, as always.
Duck Dodge, June 20, 2000
The Need For Speed
Sporting a brand new large “Genoa” jib, Full Moon was expected to be a bit faster for the sixth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series. However, even with a fast boat, a good start is critical and that was not to be. Starting toward the back of the fleet, Full Moon crew Lisa “Winch Wench” Berenson, Randy “Muffin” Olsen, Art “Boat Slave” Teller, Ian “Chips Ahoy” Mengedoht, and skipper John “It’s Definitely Faster” Mengedoht put the pedal to the metal and quickly proved the value of the new sail. Upwind and downwind through a lap and a half, Full Moon passed boat after boat, easily dispatching arch-rival Shogun upwind.
On the last downwind leg, Full Moon was fifth and closing on the leaders. With occasional rival Ignitor battling a large Hunter 34 (Full Moon is only 25 feet), it looked like Full Moon might pass both under spinnaker but Ignitor found some speed and stayed ahead. Rounding the final buoy, third or even second appeared possible but the gap was just a bit too much. Ignitor took third with Full Moon seconds behind in fourth. Shogun finished considerably later in eighth place.
Duck Dodge, June 27, 2000
Soooo Close!
The seventh sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Dead Celebrity Night and Full Moon appeared as the S. S. Minnow, complete with "holes" in the bow and crew Amy "Ginger" Henderson, Ian "Gilligan" Mengedoht, Tina "Mary Ann" Negri, Art "Thurston Howell" Teller, and skipper John "The Skipper" Mengedoht. After a relatively good start in light winds, Full Moon began the usual game of advancing through the fleet.
Midway through the second lap, Full Moon attained fifth place and then surged into third. However, toward the end of the last spinnaker run the wind died and then filled from behind, allowing occasional rival Ignitor and Zoomie Island to pass. Rounding the final buoy before the finish, Full Moon was back to fifth. With a good turn of upwind speed, Full Moon passed Zoomie Island. Converging with, Ignitor at the finish line, Full Moon remained a mere two feet behind and so it was Ignitor third (for the Bronze Duck) and Full Moon just barely fourth (no Duck). Arch-rival Shogun was never in the hunt, finishing toward the back of the fleet.
Duck Dodge, July 11, 2000
Dead Ducks Tell No Tales
The eighth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pirate Night. Full Moon crew Anneka "Whips and Chains" O'Connell, Steve "Margarita" Mikkelsen, Paul "Captain Morgan" Myers, Barry "Cabin Boy" Shuman, skipper John "Graybeard" Mengedoht, and special guest Blondie "Airhead" Plastique were dressed to kill and armed to the teeth while the boat sported a huge pirate flag, a stuffed parrot, and little skulls on the lifelines.
The fleet bunched together in a tight mass for the start with Full Moon somewhere in the middle. Arch-rival Shogun was early across the line, earning a DSQ since they continued sailing without a restart. With wind shifting wildly and often fading out entirely, luck seemed to be as important as sailing skill. However, Full Moon (with crew fueled by Mikkelsen Margaritas) did well in the lightest winds, ghosting along while other boats stalled completely.
After two laps around the lake, Full Moon finished a very decent sixth, close behind the fast Olson 25 Dreams. Rivals Ignitor and Whodat were much farther back, as was Shogun, despite their early start. Capping the evening, Full Moon was awarded yet another highly coveted Black Duck for excellent theme interpretation.
Duck Dodge, July 25, 2000
Drat That Whodat!
The ninth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Prom Night. Full Moon crew Christy "Date-a-Bates" Bates, Anneka "Balloons" O'Connell, Amy "Prom Queen" Pearson, "Princess" Grace Teller, Art "Boat Buster" Teller, and skipper John "Whee-Knee" Mengedoht were prepared with a nice array of prom wear while the boat sported balloons and a mirror ball. After a good clean start and short windward leg, Full Moon was, for once, solidly in second place and held this position for quite some time until finally being passed by the much faster CF27 Goose N' Duck at the end of the second upwind leg.
With Full Moon in third and burning up the lake under spinnaker on the second lap, two boats were now slowly gaining from behind - the Olson 25 Dreams and much larger Tartan 33 Whodat. Rounding the last buoy before the finish, the wind had faded and Dreams had closed to within 30 feet with Whodat right behind them. Full Moon was forced into a tactical duel with theoretically faster Dreams while Whodat took a wider angle to the wind, trading some distance for stronger wind in the middle of the lake. Unfortunately, it paid off for them - barely - as Whodat crossed in front of Full Moon with two feet to spare and then tacked to make the finish line, stealing 3rd place from Full Moon by less than 10 feet. Dreams took 5th, still 25 feet behind Full Moon, with traditional rivals Ignitor and Shogun placing 6th and 7th several minutes later. It was a beautiful evening on the water and a great introduction to sailing for rookie Amy Pearson.
Duck Dodge, August 1, 2000
Ignitor Ignites Trouble
The tenth sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series, August 1, had the best weather yet with warm breezes and sunny skies. Full Moon crew Lisa “Grinder” Berenson, Pam “Green Line” Hunt, Amy “Mommy” Henderson, Julie “Rookie” Henderson, Randy “Fearless Foredeck” Olsen, and skipper John “Starboard!” Mengedoht had the start in the bag until occasional rival Ignitor, crossing on port tack, failed to yield right of way, nearly causing a major collision. The ensuing emergency tack lost time and position for Full Moon but saved the fiberglass.
Making gains to windward on the first leg, Full Moon again encountered Ignitor and again was forced to maneuver to avoid collision despite holding the right of way. Enough was enough and Full Moon did what she does best, pulling ahead and passing boat after boat, upwind and downwind, until the leaders were in range. While gaining on the 3rd and 4th place boats right up to the finish, Full Moon had to settle for 5th which, given the shaky start, was a good effort. Ignitor fell back to 8th and other rivals Whodat and Shogun could do no better than 10th and 13th. Close calls or not, it was a beautiful evening and great fun as usual aboard the good ship Full Moon.
Duck Dodge, August 8, 2000
Lost in the Aurora Triangle
The eleventh sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Tropical Night and Lake Union was full of sailors with grass skirts and coconut bras. Fueled with rum and fruit juice, Full Moon crew Tina “Ice Bag” Negri, Karen “Hula Girl” Oshiro, Donn “Whacker” Oshiro, Barry “Coconuts” Shuman, and skipper John “Powerboat Killer” Mengedoht timed the start with near perfection and began battling for the lead upwind. Toward the end of the first lap, Full Moon had lost a bit of ground downwind, rounding the floating “island” mark solidly in fourth place (pausing briefly for a touch and go to snag free beers dispensed from the “island”).
After holding position and gaining distance up the lake, disaster struck at the Aurora buoy as the (empty) spinnaker bag went for a swim. Circling back to rescue the bag (it eventually sank!) cost many minutes and allowed a number of boats to pass, including our traditional rivals. Shogun placed 7th followed by Ignitor, Whodat, and Full Moon in the middle of the fleet. While not our best finish, the drinks and pupus were tasty, the breezes balmy, and the view of downtown was exquisite in the fading light.
Duck Dodge, August 15, 2000
Crunch Time
The 12th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Pajama Night and the Full Moon crew sported night shirts, flannel jammies, assorted tee-shirt/boxer combinations and two Teddies (bears, that is). Hitting the starting line toward the front of the fleet, crew Christy "Rail Rider" Bates, Amy "Wet PJs" Henderson, Randy "Third Date" Olsen, Barry "Survivor" Shuman, and skipper John "Wood Polish" Mengedoht played the wind skillfully up the first leg and rounded the first buoy in second place.
With excellent crew work in the ample wind, Full Moon held off all comers through three more legs until much larger Whodat squeaked by on the short upwind leg around Gasworks Park. Spinnakers flying back down the lake, Full Moon stayed close to Whodat with speedy Scat very slowly gaining from behind. Rounding the final buoy, a grating crunch was heard from ahead. Whodat had collided with Scat, who had yet to round the buoy! After asking if help was needed, Full Moon sailed on by, screaming up to the finish in second place and winning the highly prized Silver Duck sticker. Scat and Whodat eventually followed (both with minor damage) with arch-rival Shogun in 6th and occasional rival Ignitor 9th.
Duck Dodge, August 22, 2000
Parade Laps
Full Moon had an excellent start for the 13th sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series. Unfortunately, several other boats also had excellent starts and, unlike last week, at the first buoy Full Moon was in seventh place. Crew Chris “This Is Great!” Beza, Gina “Birthday Girl” Gerber, Amy “Winch Wench” Stokes (Art’s wife), Art “Ballast Boy” Teller, Grace “I Can Do It” Teller, and skipper John “Octopus” Mengedoht did their best but could only reel in one competitor downwind under spinnaker on the first lap.
With fairly consistent wind and the boats spread out a bit, there was little in the way of tactical battles and most of the fleet simply held their position through two laps around the lake. Fully enjoying the beautiful evening on the water, Full Moon crossed the finish line in 6th place with occasional rival Ignitor ahead in 4th and arch-rival Shogun way back in 18th place.
Duck Dodge, August 29, 2000
Sunny Summer Sailing?
The fourteenth (and next to last!) sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series was Toga Night and the lake was full of damp Romans in soggy togas over rain jackets. Starting in the middle of the fleet, Full Moon crew "Tacking Queens" Amy Pearson and Karen Oshiro, Art "Shorts" Teller, Ian "Man Of Bronze" Mengedoht, and skipper John "We Got 'Em" Mengedoht worked up to seventh place near the first upwind buoy in shifty wind. Passing two more boats at the buoy, Full Moon was in fifth.
Sailing back down the lake under spinnaker, Full Moon continued to gain on the leaders, picking off the 27 footer Deception. At the downwind mark, the gap had closed considerably and at the last buoy Full Moon had caught up to Dirty Bird (26 foot Thunderbird) and Bridget (San Juan 30) but had to round the buoy outside them both. Tacking to the finish line, Bridget was just out of reach but Dirty Bird wasn't fast enough and Full Moon took third for the treasured Bronze Duck. Occasional rival Ignitor came in sixth while arch-rival Shogun was a no-show.
Duck Dodge, September 5, 2000
Olive or Twist
Shaken, not stirred. Vokda, not Gin. The last (fifteenth) sailboat race of the Duck Dodge series is traditionally Martini Night aboard Full Moon and this year was no exception. After the first round was served, crew Tina "Groove Thing" Negri, Randy "Zima" Olsen, Art "Big Sky" Teller, and skipper John "Racing Slime" Mengedoht nailed the start and proceeded down the lake in light winds. Unfortunately, several boats proved a bit faster upwind and Full Moon rounded the first buoy in sixth place, though still close to the front of the fleet.
Under spinnaker for the next two legs, Full Moon gained slightly but not enough to catch anyone. Rounding the final buoy of the short one-lap race, it looked for a time that fifth might be obtained but it was not to be and Full Moon crossed the line sixth in fading light. Arch-rival Shogun failed to show up and has been dethroned for only beating Full Moon twice this year. Newly crowned arch-rival Ignitor sailed very well and finished a solid third for the Bronze Duck (we’re still 10-5 for the year against them, however).
After the race, Full Moon joined the growing raft of boats at the center of the lake. One highlight of the evening proved to be the neighboring 27 footer with a blender fashioned from a gas powered weed-eater. Sailors are a creative lot, if a bit crazy.
Duck Dodge Rum Run, October 28, 2000
Rum Run Fun
Full Moon ventured out into the Sound Saturday for the annual Duck Dodge Rum Run sailboat race. Crew Anneka "Spray Shield" O'Connell, Tim "Merit Badge" Williams, Art "Dayquil" Teller, Gina "Gotta Go" Gerber" and skipper John "Surf City" Mengedoht had a perfect start off Shilshole in winds gusting over 25 knots and Full Moon held the lead for the better part of a mile. Unfortunately, the race committee had seen fit to include a number of much larger boats in the same start and the 35 to 42 footers slowly caught and passed Full Moon before the first buoy off West Point.
Undaunted, Full Moon maintained top speed reaching across the Sound to Skiff Point on Bainbridge Island, leaving traditional rivals Ignitor, Scat, etc. far behind. Heading north toward Port Madison, the strong wind and waves worked in harmony to provide surfing conditions with Full Moon blasting up to 9.6 knots at one point. Even this, though, was not enough to overtake the big boats and Full Moon had to settle for sixth place. Regardless, it was an exhilarating sail and the Full Moon crew had a blast, especially enjoying the sunshine that replaced the forecast rain showers.
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