Taco Night?

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

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

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

Full Moon (center) shortly after launching the Equalizer.

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

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

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

That Reindeer Was Smoking a Joint!

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

Daniel at his usual post.

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

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

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

Ian and Rebecca enjoy racing thrills.

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

The Mirror Ball is All

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

Ignitor scored the Black Duck!

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

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

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

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

Solstice Race

The third start fleet heads for the AGC buoy.

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

James and the Giant Jib.

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

Troy and Daniel balance the boat.

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

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

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

Watch out for floating distractions...

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

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Randy enjoys the smooth ride past Gasworks.

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

Full Moon "finishes" just ahead of Ignitor.

Windy Pirates

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

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

Uh-oh! Giant Beneteau sneaks up to leeward.

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

Aaandd the Beneteau gets past... for now!

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

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

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

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

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

Randy enjoys the sun as we head south.

Damp Jammies

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

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

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

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

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

Crazy Wigs!

Rainbow wigs rule!

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

Katharina likes this racing stuff.

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

Daniel at his usual post.

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

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

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

Sails Up at Last!

COVID-19 has definitely had an impact on sailing and racing this summer. We’re not likely to see a Duck Dodge this year. Poor Full Moon has only been out of the marina a few times since March and even then mainly just to exercise the outboard.

I took a day off yesterday, though, to go sailing with my sons. We ventured out onto Lake Washington so we could buzz by a friend’s house (well away from their dock, of course) and there was actually a decent breeze north of Sand Point. I’m glad we headed out there as Lake Union was quite the zoo when we got back. If there had been a Duck Dodge, it would have terrifying to try to sail through all the traffic!

Sorry not to have photos but the Mountain was Out, the sky was blue, the sun was warm, and the beverages were ice cold. A great time was had by all!

Full Moon Dog II

The wind was a bit light during the prestart...

Full Moon crew Randy “Cornbread” Olsen, Michael “Chili” Medina, Rolf “Ice Boat” Van Houten, and John “Kraken” Mengedoht jumped ship again for the Rum Run, sailing aboard the Shilshole-based Ranger 26 Moon Dog rather than take Full Moon through the locks. Moon Dog has trashed sails, apart from the rarely used spinnaker, and a less than slippery bottom so we knew we would be uncompetitive but that was completely okay!

Moon Dog is on the right, flying the One Good Sail.

After a somewhat leisurely downwind start in light air, the One Good Sail was hoisted and Moon Dog actually passed a couple of boats while holding steady with some others. This didn’t last, though, and things got much worse when the spinnaker take-down took a little too long, leaving Moon Dog farther south of the West Point buoy than desirable and creating a few white-knuckle moments for Michael at the helm. By the time Moon Dog was pointed back north, we were either dead last or close to it.

Moon Dog battled Cricket for a while until the bigger boat pulled ahead for good.

Upwind, Moon Dog is especially slow and, even though the wind was building, it seemed to take forever to reach the Meadow Point buoy, the flooding current not helping with that. Once around, it was time for a lively close reach across the Sound, the wind rising into the 20 knot range. This was too much for the genoa and, given the challenges of swapping sails on the roller-furler, we elected just to roll up some of the sail to make it smaller. This made things manageable but it was still a wild ride!

Moon Dog is near the right end of the raft-up.

By the time Moon Dog arrived at the finish, the Committee Boat had pulled up anchor to join the raft-up in Port Madison. Moon Dog quickly dropped (or rolled) sails and headed for the raft-up as well, enjoying some respite from the wind and the warmth of the sun. After a late lunch and some HBRs, it was time to head back. The wind was, if anything, even stronger and the genoa was more than sufficient all by itself to propel Moon Dog to hull speed and beyond for a nice romp back to Shilshole.

Two cruise ships came through on the return trip to Shilshole.

Fabulous Finale

Judy and Dave enjoying the sunshine.

The crew voted to just race for a single lap for the final Duck Dodge (Martini Night aboard Full Moon) and, since finishing wouldn’t matter, we opted to go in first start, though we didn’t inform the Race Committee! Crew Randy “Mike’s Mike’s” Olsen, Michael “Beer Beer” Medina, Marcelle “Boom Boom” Van Houten, Dave “Pour Pour” Pulsifer, Judy “Clink Clink” Tiffany, Amy “Click Click” Stokes, and skipper John “Olive Olive” Mengedoht zoomed across the starting line with the Big Boys, though with little hope of keeping up the pace for long.

Marcelle also likes that sun!

However, it was very nice sailing in a less crowded portion of the lake and Full Moon hung in there at the back of the fleet for the first upwind leg to the Freeway buoy and past Gasworks to the Aurora buoy. The Equalizer went up quickly and provided excellent speed on the broad reach to the AGC buoy, helping keep Full Moon ahead of the fastest second-start boats.

Michael and Dave enjoy the "second lap."

After a clean drop of the spinnaker, the “final” leg upwind went well, though a speedy Etchells managed to zip past. Just for fun, we tooted our own air horn as we crossed the line for the first lap, celebrating our early “finish.”

John and Randy also enjoy the "second lap."

After dropping the jib and preparing the usual Martini Night libations, Full Moon mostly continued sailing the racecourse, though with a careful eye to avoid getting in the way of anybody still racing. The wind began to fade, especially near the AGC buoy, and it was fun to observe the mashup of barely moving boats without having to be somewhere in the middle of it.

The city looks gorgeous in the setting sun.

All in all, it was another great summer of racing with mostly sunny evenings and mostly decent wind. Full Moon did skip four races due to skipper conflicts so maybe we just missed any sub-par weather! Not that it matters much but Full Moon’s average finish was tenth, not bad considering the competition.

The Beer Grab

Island Boys preparing to serve hundreds of thirsty racers.

The plan was to attempt a port tack start somewhere between the pin and middle of the start line but traffic slowed things way down and Full Moon ended up with a relatively poor start for the Tropical Night Duck Dodge. Worse, our old rival Ignitor was ahead and, even loaded up with lots of people, perfectly positioned to provide “dirty” air for much of the first leg. Full Moon crew Michael “Grab ‘Em From The Top” Medina, Marcelle “Rose” Van Houten, Chad “Dry Drop” Harnish, Daniel “Basher” Mengedoht, Troy “Ouch!” Charlesworth, and skipper John “To The Beach” Mengedoht persevered, of course, passing Ignitor to leeward before rounding the Freeway buoy, and were able to lay the Aurora buoy with just one tack near Gasworks.

Full Moon (just right of the Space Needle) will be ahead of all these boats before reaching the AGC buoy.

With the pole up and ready to go, the Equalizer zipped right up and proved its worth as Full Moon picked off several boats on the long reach to the AGC buoy. A conservative drop made for a tidy rounding and Full Moon zoomed off toward the infamous Tropical Night “island,” snagging multiple cups of beer while passing at nearly five knots!

Michael, Chad, and Marcelle demonstrate their beer-grabbing technique.

Completing the first lap upwind, the fleet had spread out quite a bit, Full Moon enjoying relatively clear air to the Freeway buoy. The second lap was then very similar to the first, though the “island” was predictably out of beer the second time around (not that we didn’t have our own supply). In the end, Full Moon finished about eighth, which was awesome given the start. Meanwhile, it was yet another gorgeous evening on the lake, the nearly full moon putting on a nice show rising up over Capitol Hill.

Full Moon in post-race mode, enjoying the sunset.

Convergence Zone

Daniel and Randy enjoy the pre-start sunshine.

The wind was decent out of the northwest and the skies clear for the start of the Toga Night Duck Dodge. Full Moon crew Randy “Ice Ice Baby” Olsen, Katie “Early Riser” Freels, Adam “Liferaft Wipeout” Michalak, Daniel “1969” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Invisible Toga” Mengedoht went with a conservative starboard tack start but were prevented from tacking in a timely way by boats immediately behind and also on starboard.

Full Moon leads Scat to the start line (at the right) but was a bit too far to leeward to tack in front of Necessary Evil or Amarillo.

The first leg was a close reach to the Freeway buoy followed by an upwind course to Gasworks before tacking. A few boats were then able to just lay the Aurora buoy, though most boats needed a couple of tacks, including Full Moon.

Katie likes this upwind stuff!

The Equalizer went up smoothly after rounding and Full Moon gained on a few boats. The wind then went very light on approach to the AGC buoy. Full Moon dropped the Equalizer a bit too early in hopes that the genoa would be better than collapsing and filling the spinnaker.

Chasing Amarillo after the first rounding of the AGC buoy (once the wind filled in).

The yellow Moore 24 Amarillo squeezed just inside Full Moon at the buoy (we could have shut them out but it’s not worth it) and then began the struggle to keep moving and find more wind. Eventually enough wind filled in from the north, providing a tight reach to the Freeway buoy and a couple of tacks to reach the Aurora buoy.

The final leg to the finish. Hard to believe we kept moving!

Once again, the Equalizer was launched and Full Moon took off. Sure enough, though, the wind was very light again approaching the AGC buoy and Full Moon started lapping some of the third start fleet! Momentum was enough to get around the buoy and then the challenge was both to “find” the wind and pick our way through boats going very slowly in opposite directions. Eventually some wind filled in from the SE (odd direction) before returning to the NW. Though well out of contention for a top three finish, Full Moon managed to beat not only Amarillo but also the T-bird Barbaree (mostly through luck being in the right place at the right time).

Another gorgeous evening on Lake Union.

Jungle Boogie

Ignitor earned the Black Duck for best theme participation.

The wind was nearly nonexistent before the start of the Welcome to the Jungle Duck Dodge but it miraculously started filling in just as the first start boats began their runs to the line. Full Moon crew Randy “Pole Position” Olsen, Chris “The Boot” Grange, Spencer “Pink Cookies” Grange, Tina “Basil Mint” Hein, Daniel “Tarantino” Mengedoht, and skipper John “Grey Poupon” Mengedoht managed a good start near the Committee Boat, though being farther west might have reduced the number of tacks needed to reach the Freeway buoy.

Nice to see another Santana 525 (Flying Burrito), though it races in third start.

After an easy rounding, it was a tight reach past Gasworks in a straight shot to the Aurora buoy. With the pole already up, it was then time to deploy the Equalizer, which went up smoothly. Unfortunately, a gybe set would have been a much better choice (though it would have meant moving the jib across later before hoisting it). Once gybed and pointed the right direction, the Equalizer performed its usual magic, Full Moon passing some boats and leaving others behind. Gybing back coincided with a wind shift for a nice broad reach to the AGC buoy where Full Moon rounded just outside of speedy Selchie (Thunderbird) and just ahead of a white T-bird, though well behind race leader Scat. Decent tactics and “strategery” (and a little luck) enabled Full Moon to be ahead of both ‘birds on the final leg to the finish (it was a one-lap race), a rare victory over Selchie.

Santa's Helpers

Full Moon heading for the line (4th from left).

Full Moon crew Chuck “Bubbles” Weldy, Dave “Vitamin R” Pulsifer, Judy “Gay Bar” Tiffany, Daniel “Trapped” Mengedoht and skipper John “Rudolf” Mengedoht were a little late to the starting line for the Christmas in July Duck Dodge, struggling in very light air. Once moving, the wind remained light all the way to the AGC buoy and got worse as boats attempted sailing downwind after rounding. Complicating matters greatly, the wind began to shift and fill from the north, bringing the entire third start fleet at an opposing angle and with right of way (starboard tack). The few boats with spinnakers up were now in a pickle and maneuvering for everyone was challenging, though we didn’t hear any actual collisions.

Daniel contemplates all the boats behind us.

Farther north, the wind picked up even more and Full Moon was soon flying along at hull speed to the Freeway buoy. Full Moon opted to head for Gasworks rather than tack immediately but the breeze dropped closer to shore and this didn’t pay off. A couple of tacks were needed to round the Aurora buoy and then it was time to try out our former “cabin boy” on the foredeck. It took awhile to get everything ready for hoisting but the Equalizer went up and was soon pulling hard on a beam reach all the way to the AGC buoy.

There were lots of close passes in opposite directions, many worse than this!

The drop went fine and Full Moon returned upwind for a straight shot to the Freeway buoy. Staying a bit farther from Gasworks than on the first lap proved wise. For the final leg, with nobody near enough to pass or pass us, we took it easy on the foredeck crew and used the genoa, which actually pulled quite well. In the end, it was another great evening on the lake and a good time was had by all.

It's always a good time on Full Moon!