BoB's 'Round Whidbey Race Report
Race Report - by Joe Geck, from BoB #59746
Beautiful weather was the forecast for the race. BoB was up at Cornet Bay early and rafted next to Stargazer. Another great BBQ dinner put on by WINSA and Joe ate double amount to make up for the crew coming up Saturday morning. Chris, Brian and Jim showed up for breakfast on board and an early push off to the start line. Continuing the "tradition" we dropped through Canoe Pass and were happy to see the 4' standing waves were not a factor this year.
With a 9:00 start time we were watching the current to make sure we did not get pushed over early. Line was heavily favored for a port start, and except for Izarra, all got off clear. Wind was forecast for 10knt throughout the day and every now and then it actually passed through that velocity. We headed off shore to catch a wind line and soon found ourselves in second position with the B25 Shenanigans further in shore. By the time we got to Partridge Point we had beaten the tide change but fell into a wind hole. Circe had moved further outside of us but behind. An Alaska bound barge split the water between us and apparently split the wind too. Circe took off like a bullet in 20knts of wind while we all watched bug-eyed in disbelief wallowing in the doldrums. Finally we got he wind and were back in the hunt but now we were looking at Circe's transom!
Joe went below to cry in his pillow and Jim took over the helm. By the time Joe came back up BoB had moved through the first great equalizer and into first position again just north of Double Bluff. After Jim relinquished the tiller, we slowly worked our way to the back of the fleet while slogging around in light winds and cruddy chop. Moving around Scachet then Possession we recovered back to the middle of the fleet and stayed close to the Whidbey side. Boats further out were getting a little more wind, but the current negated any advantage.
By the time we hit the Clinton Ferry dock it was Shenanigans, Circe, Mistral, BoB and Mei Li in the front of the fleet. Try as we might we could not shake the loose cover Circe had on us even with the building wind. Sunset came about Sandy Point with a welcome steady breeze out of the North. We had made it through the worse of the big tides and were on course to finish before sun-up. However....
South of East Point the wind went to sleep along with Brian. Shenanigans, Circe and Mistral were on the Camano side and we were on the Whidbey side. Mei Li had dropped into the distance and we lost track of their nav lights. Everyone was hunting for the elusive breath of wind and we slowly gained over Shenanigans and Circe who both chose unwisely. It was a relief to not see Circe's transom light any longer, but now we had to stare at Mistral's LED blue light. Before Lowell Point everyone hit a big hole and stopped forward motion. Even the lying electronics said we were heading the wrong direction and the "Steve ETA" was saying upwards of 45 hours to finish line (Chris figured out the new wind gauge and has accepted it into our boating family! The new mast head light was a boon too!) One good thing about Mistral is that it takes a bit more air to get moving in the water and we were able to pull under her and cross into lead position. Our destiny was now in our hands. Cover. Cover. Cover.
Shenanigans had recovered and stayed wide of East Point which parked both Circe and Mistral. We could see their bright nav light coming across the bay as the wind was finally waking up. Near the Whidbey side Chris called out for whale watch as we could hear the breathing. Apparently Shenanigans was able to capitalize on the whale breath as they picked us off and pulled into lead position. Choice we had to make was to stick to them or cover Circe who we could see moving again. With a grudge-match-beer bet on the line, we chose to cover Circe. Shenanigans found the wind line and was off at a relatively embarrassing speed. Sun was coming up and wind was going down again but Joe just had to get on the radio and announce to the RC that we were within 5 miles to finish. Gave him a little chuckle to be the first to call in and mess with the boats held back by current and no wind. Assuming the wind held we were hoping to finish by 6 am.
Shenanigans found the wind coming off the west bluff and we expected them to finish just after sunrise, but the winds decided to go back to sleep. The next several hours saw us wandering around the bay trying to find wind and Shenanigans doing the current loop-the-loop within a few hundred yards of finish line. Fresh from a light breakfast Chris headed way up to help the current push us to the line. Nice idea, but hardly any wind. Chris and the crew worked and worked all the way into the shallows and followed the 8' depth line to the finish line - well maybe a few times it was reading in the 6 foot range! Circe had now pulled back into striking distance and Shenanigans was able to overcome the current and make a push through the finish line. Jim overruled Joe's funk and got the spinnaker up for the 10th time and we finished a couple hundred yards ahead of Circe! Wahoo!
A quick clean-up, a celebratory beer and congratulations all around were in order. Jim and Brian got off at the fuel dock and Joe and Chris turned noses south to Everett. Right at the Oak Harbor entrance we got to see the rest of the fleet finish in just a few minutes of each other as the entire bay had finally filled with air and spinnakers. With corrections, results were Shenanigans, Mei Li, BoB and then Circe.
We'll be back next year!
