Quantum Toledo

2008-06-24T15:43:00.001-04:00

2008-03-18T09:51:00.002-04:00

San Diego NOOD - Brian Janney

This past weekend I sailed with Ian Trotter on his J/24. This is the second time I've sailed on Ian's boat the first time we got second in the J-fest. This time we won. On board we had Ray Cooke, our bowman from Blue Blazes. Mike Monastra from Blue Blazes was our Spinnaker Trimmer. Sandra Sherman was in the pit. I was trimming upwind and calling tactics. (Mike, Ray and I just got finished racing the San Diego to PV Race on Blue Blazes).

The J/24's only sailed Saturday and Sunday. We were on the South Course along with the Etchells, J/105, J/80, and Catalina 38's. Saturday was about 15-18 knots of wind with about 8-10 foot swells. This made for some really challenging conditions. In the first race we didn't have the best start and rounded the first weather mark in 3rd. By the leeward gate we were in 2nd but right behind 1st. Up the beat Ian did a great job going fast and getting us into first. On the run the second place boat Geraldine, who is known as the top boat in San Diego, did a round down we were happy until the same wave that got them flipped us. After 30 seconds we gybed back and took off. I think we gained on that little move. For the first race we were 2 steps above our base and still had the Genoa up.

In the second race we went up another step on the rig an changed to the jib. This was a wise move as the genoa was not slower but the jib made it easier to steer over the larger swells. We led for the whole race and never looked back.

In the 3rd race we thought it got lighter and changed back to the genoa for the first beat. That was a mistake we were over powered and had to change to the jib during the run. The first place boat stayed with the jib and we walked away from them during the beat.

On Sunday the wind was much lighter (10-13 knots). Our goal was to finish in the first race in the top 3, we got second and secured the regatta. For the first race of the day we were 1 step above base and the boat felt bound up so for the last race we went 1 step below base and our speed and point were the best in the fleet. We had a great team; everyone got along and worked hard to come back when we were behind.

2008-03-17T16:59:00.002-04:00

The Florida Yacht Club
34th Annual Orange Peel
March 14-16, 2008
FINAL RESULTS
Series Summary
Pl	Sail	Skipper	From	1	2	3	4	5	Tot
1	3985	Paul Abdullah	Jacksonville, FL	1	3	1	7	4	16
2	1049	Skip Dieball	Toledo, OH	9	6	7	2	8	32
3	3969	Mike Ingham	Rochester, NY	2	4	2	32\*1	1	41
4	3809	Vlastimil Kunc		10	1	12	14	5	42
5	3976	Greg Griffin	Jacksonville, FL	33	8	4	3	3	51
6	3997	Scott Griffin	Taylors, SC	6	5	6	21	19	57
7	3911	Pierce Barden	Wilmington, NC	4	7	24	10	18	63
8	3979	Michael Gillian	Glen Ellyn, IL	12	22	19	13\ZFP	2	68
9	3709	Dennis Griffin	Green Cove Springs, FL	8	11	13	17	26	75
10	4008	Scott McCormack	Atlanta, GA	14	10	23	23	16	86
11	3980	Michael Lenkeit	Flowery Branch, GA	7	42\OCS	5	8	25	87
12	3741	Gavin McCormack	Atlanta, GA	15	13	28	15	17	88
13	1	Chris Klotz	St. Petersburg, FL	22	42\DNF	3	9	15	91
14	3579	David Van Cleef	Newport, RI	5	26	8	42\OCS	10	91
15	3883	David Reddaway	Suwanee, GA	19	25	15	4	29	92
16	3397	Ben France	Newport News, VA	20	42\DNF	9	13	9	93
17	3878	Doc Gates	Pittsford, NY	18	16	11	24	24	93
18	3975	Mike Ross	Acworth, GA	11	23	10	11	42\DNF	97
19	3849	Erik Goethert	Belmont, MA	16	9	26\ZFP	42\OCS	6	99
20	3868	Matis Heinrich		27	14	22	1	42\OCS	106
21	779	Kevin Bradley		25	42\DNF	16	6	20	109
22	386	John Norton	Chapel Hill, NC	35	21	17	30\ZFP	7	110
23	2724	Jim Kincaid	Nederland, TX	29	12	14	34\ZFP	23	112
24	4007	Loy Vaughan	Birmingham, AL	3	2	26	42\OCS	42\OCS	115
25	1329	Scott Latham	Coatesville, PA	17	42\DNF	20	25	11	115
26	3759	Brian Swingly	New London, CT	13	20	33	28	22	116
27	3672	Scott Harris	Atlanta, GA	21	42\DNF	21	19	21	124
28	3680	Brian Anderson		26	18	29	41\ZFP	14	128
29	1915	Peter Bream, Sr.	Jacksonville, FL	36	42\DNF	27	18	12	135
30	3745	Lincoln Baxter	Charlotte, NC	24	17	32	20	42\DNC	135
31	3898	Peter Hale	Stevensville, MD	28	42\DNF	25	30	13	138
32	2991	Bradley Stookey	Jacksonville, FL	30	19	34	27	31	141
33	3999	Doug Fisher	Springboro, OH	34	15	35	42\OCS	32	158
34	3983	Jason Hubbard		31	42\DNF	36	31	27	167
35	3998	Jim Roberts	Acworth, GA	23	42\DNF	30	32	42\DNC	169
36	2450	Don Read	Asheville, NC	40	24	40	36	30	170
37	2177	Dale Newnham	Marietta, GA	38	42\DNF	37	20\ZFP	34	171
38	3912	William Harris	Annandale, VA	32	42\DNF	39	35	28	176
39	3818	Jack Mahaney	Iizella, GA	37	42\DNS	31	29	42\DNC	181
40	3461	Ken Obst	Melborne, FL	39	42\DNF	38	34	33	186
41	2472	Michael Bozeman	Green Cove Springs, FL	42\DNC	42\DNF	42\DNS	42\DNC	35	203

*1 = ZFP+ZFP

R.C.Chair: Tim Monahan & Will Newton
Jury Chair: Henry Mullen
Scorekeeper: Ron Curtis
17 Mar, '08, 10:32
St. Pete Scorer

2008-03-09T11:26:00.003-04:00

Thistle Midwinters East 2008
by: Skip Dieball

The St. Petersburg Yacht Club is the winter-time home to Thistlers from all over the USA. Many of us use this time to reacquaint ourselves with our fellow sailors, but more importantly, we use this time to reacquaint ourselves with our love of sailing. The timing is perfect, weather (generally) is beautiful and creates an "event" that is full of memories for years to come.

The 2008 edition of the Thistle Midwinters East provided challenges for all sailors as the wind didn't exactly cooperate all week. When it did, it provided some great racing.

After five races, Greg Griffin, Karl Felger and Dave Decamp won. They picked up a great finish in the final race, which was sailed in a building breeze which eventually exceeded 25 knots. Second Place went to Brent Barbehenn, Chris Murphy and Jess Murphy. Third place was Mike Inham, Dave Hansen and Ann Hansen. Complete results: http://www.spyc.org/club/scripts/view/view_clubannouncement.asp?pg=PR&GRP=5564&AID=40032&NS=PR&APP=58

The final race took its toll on many boats. Nearly 12 masts were damaged or broke and a hand full of boats capsized.

Socially, the MWE event is in a category of its own. For those that haven't been, SPYC is right in downtown St. Pete and is flanked by many bars and restaurants. The typical routine finds the crowd starting at the famed SPYC bar and finishing at Mastry's, which incidentally was named by Maxim Magazine as one of the 10 best dive bars!

Another rite of passage is the pre-banquet gathering at Wet Willies in the Bay Walk. A few years ago it was just a group of friends enjoying a slushy drink. Now, nearly half the fleet gets their happy hour on there and it is another opportunity to swap stories and reflect on a great week of sailing.

The MWE is the first leg of the Thistle Southern Circuit. The 2nd is the upcoming Orange Peel Regatta in Jacksonville. With over 50 boats last year and nearly 25 boats qualifying a teammate in the overall scoring of the So. Circuirt, the "OP" as it has been coined, provides those of us with a hunger for sailing in the south one last opportunity before heading to the still frigid north.

2008-02-20T09:16:00.001-05:00

The Melges24 QUANTUM RACING team helmed by Terry Hutchinson used the standard Quantum Melges 24 FUSION M upwind sails and the R1 and R2 spinnakers to win the 50 boat St. Pete NOOD regatta this past weekend.

Quantum sails were on quite a few of the top teams and turned a lot of heads with yet another great performance. The Quantum Racing Melges24 Team has now done three events including a win at the North East District Champs, a 3rd at the Atlantic Coast Champs and now another win at the St. Pete NOOD.

The 2008 Quantum Melges 24 sails are setting the standard in the class with the best technology and design. The downwind sails cover all the ranges and our R1 Reacher Asymmetrical is the fastest reacher in the class as tested last weekend. The St. Pete NOOD was sailed in mostly light conditions under 8 knots where the R1 is designed to perform. The sail is flatter and designed for the tighter angles the M24 sails in these conditions. In one race this sail enabled us to sail past 20+ boats in one leg!

2008-02-12T14:54:00.000-05:00

J24 Midwinters - Tuesday, Feb 12th (Day 3)
Day cut short by storms

We are back on shore after two races....Race 3 was started (under Black Flag) and abandoned when storms approached quickly. They didn't really "hit hard" but it was looking scary for a while. The radar has a lot of activity in the area.

Before the weather went bad, the wind went bad. It was really light and shifty and the fleet was really mixed up. Many in the top 5 had very bad races, and some of those same teams were glad to be abandoned to "stop the bleeding".

It is hard to tell who is on top now, but when the results are posted, I'll try to get them up on the blog.

Here are some pics of the madness today:

2008-02-12T09:35:00.000-05:00

J24 Midwinters - Davis Island Yacht Club
Feb 12, 2008
-Skip Dieball, Quantum Sails

The weather couldn't be better. Sunday's breeze was in the mid-teens and the group got 3 great races in. Doug Clark's team on Blind Squirrel was leading after Day 1.

They held their lead after another 4 races on Monday. Once again the story is the weather. 70s and sunny and great wind!!! 2nd place tie between Twins and Team Tarheel with Chris Snow's 5277 in 4th after a good Monday.

As I sit in the club to catch up on some work on Tuesday morning, the forecast is for some lighter winds and rain. The group is heading out and seem to have enough breeze to go straight downwind (not VMG), which is a good indication of more great sailing.

I'm heading off the dock and will hopefully post an update with scores tonight. There have been a number of protests, which is common for a group that races as tight as these guys.

Top 10:

Doug Clark 35pts
Chris Zaleski 39pts
Peter Bream 39pts
Chris Snow 63pts
Mark Hillman 64pts
Tony Parker 67pts
Jeff Johnstone 69pts
Stuart Challoner 70pts
Will Welles 75pts
Brian Smith 92pts.

2008-02-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Thistle Midwinters West - 2008

The Mission Bay Yacht Club was faced with some tough decisions after the 2007 event. The event wasn't growing, many were having a tough time with the timing (holidays). The gang at Fleet 13 decided to push the date back, tweak the venue with all ocean sailing and see how the masses would react. With nearly 40 boats this year, they've made the right call!

Paul Abdullah and I talked about going to MWW since last summer when Mike Polterak promised ocean sailing. It had been a few years since we drove out and seemed appropriate for us to make the trek again. As plans started to form, Ken Lane pulled the trigger and bought 3995 from me. He wanted to pick the boat up in San Diego....great! Then as we got closer Ken and I decided that he should sail his new prize. I was cool with that and then decided to run around in a motor boat and watch.

A few weeks later Scott McCormack, who attended the 1st Jacksonville training weekend in December, said that he had some interest in going to San Diego and that we could team up and sail his new boat, 4008. I was game and we put our plans together, which the end result was 3 boats heading from Jacksonville to San Diego.

Paul and I have fun when we travel and the trip out was no exception. Aside from some stiff headwinds that yielded about 8mpg, we made it with no issues and had fun catching up....all 36 hours!

The event itself was terrific. Weather couldn't have been better with sunny skies and temps in the 60s. The competition was incredible with many very good teams from all over the USA.

In the end, Paul Abdullah and his team of Nick Turney and Sarah Paisley won. They sailed a solid event and finished strong by winning the last race. Very impressive series by this team. Second place went to Greg Fisher sailing with Jeff Eiber and Joanne Fisher. Scott McCormack and I finished 3rd. We had a great time and though the wind was a bit more than we expected (we sailed 2-up), we hung in there and had fun!

Thanks to everyone at the MBYC. They bent over backwards to make sure we were taken care of and had fun. Free beer, hors devours, great meals, etc. If you are looking for a change of scenery (yes, all you in the east!), you should make the trip....it is worth it!

Photos by George Szabo.

2008-01-22T00:11:00.001-05:00

Jacksonville Training #1 - Saturday's Footage

2008-01-14T09:39:00.001-05:00

Hempstead Bay Sailing Club
Flying Scot Seminar
January 12, 2008
Long Island, NY

2008-01-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

WINTER CLASSIC, indeed!

This Blog generally contains information about sailing and the travels of the group from Quantum Toledo, but today I got some very cool pictures from my good friend Tom Starck. He and his brother Jim went to the Sabres/Penguins game OUTSIDE! I watched this game with amazement on television. They should do this more often!!!

2007-12-19T10:02:00.000-05:00

Jacksonville Training Weekend - December 16th

2007-12-18T09:09:00.001-05:00

Jacksonville Winter Training Series
December 2007

When we initially set up the Winter Training Series, the idea was to find a fun way to go sailing in the winter months. Our friends in Jacksonville offered up The Florida Yacht Club as our home base for a series of weekends starting in December 2006. Since that time, the training series has been a highly anticipated series!

The kick-off of the Winter 2007/2008 Series was this past weekend (Dec 15/16). We were a little nervous setting this up so close to the holidays, but it seemed like the only available weekend for the hosts & organizers. In hindsight, we couldn't have picked a better weekend from a weather standpoint.

A manageable group of nearly 30 sailors worked a rotation so that everyone could get some sailing in and participate in the drills set up in advance. If you wanted to match your speed and technique against some good sailors, this is the place as we had a number of champion-caliber participants in attendance.

In the past, we have set up these weekends so that on the Wednesday prior to the event we have a go/no-go call based on the weather. This past weekend's forecast wasn't ideal with winds forecasted to be light on Saturday and ultra-windy on Sunday. A few folks decided to not attend and unfortunately for them, that seemed to ensure that the weather was going to be perfect!!!! Thanks! ;-)

Saturday we had 7-12 knots and temperatures in the 80s. We all sailed in shorts and t-shirts and sailed until the sun went down. We all agreed that if we didn't sail on Sunday, the weekend would have been a success! It was a day that reminded us why we love this sport in the first place.

The drills were outlined in advance and were executed to near perfection. A few boats used the drills as opportunities to "explain" to crew the cause/effect of the maneuvers...truly a perfect time as opposed to the heat of the battle of a regatta.

Drill #1 - Straight line speed.

Drill #2 - Tack on the whistle.

Drill #3 - Gybe on the whistle.

Drill #4 - Skewed windward/leeward (to practice down-speed roundings i.e. gybe sets & tacking around the leeward mark)

Drill #5 - Traditional Windward/Leeward courses (4-5 laps)

BREAK FOR LUNCH

Drill #6 - Skewed windward/leeward (to practice port layline sets)

Drill #7 - Downwind sprint

Drill #8 - Upwind Speed Testing - Race to the dock

We all tried hard not to make a big deal out of the epic conditions that we experienced, but it was tough not to. Many comments ranging from "the weather couldn't have been nicer" to "this was a perfect day" were heard throughout the drysail park at FYC. The day however, was only 1/2 over as we went to Paul Abdullah's house to recap.

We started by reviewing some of the data captured by our VELOCITEK devices. It was interesting to see the different "styles" of upwind sailing and how they affected overall gains. It was also cool to hear feedback from those that used the VELOCITEK devices. They would try different sail trim, crew weight placement, etc. and they were able to see how it affected speed. Very cool learning tools!!!

We then watched the video from the day and looked closely at set up, maneuvers and sail shapes. Skip Dieball was able to explain some of the difference in the various sails that are available and educate the crowd on "things to watch for" when they are setting their boats up.

The video was then replaced by digital still shots enhancing the same conversations.

Dinner was served while we had our debrief and it was a very cool, casual evening. Special thanks to Paul Abdullah, Pete Frissell and Dave Van Cleef for spear-heading the food and libations!

While we had the PC & Projector up, Greg Griffin fired up the Weather Radar. It was interesting to see the frontal passages that extended from Tampa through the Carolinas. Lots of Green and Red made the outlook for Sunday grim. We devised a plan to check in at 8:30 AM, get breakfast and then rally to see what we should do. The option of leaving early for many northerners was enticing, but after Saturday's fun, we all still wanted to sail!

Upon arrival to FYC, the wind built bigtime! A few low, dark clouds brought wind and rain, but there was some clearing on the radar, so we decided to hold for a 1/2 hour and then make a decision. That move paid off as we devised a plan to sail from the cove to the leeward shore and back. The deal was that it was going to be in 18-22 knots! Clearly close to being out of the range of which we'd normally sail, but we were all game to have some fun.

Greg Griffin made sure that we were all on the same page. Everyone was to wear PFDs, not venture out without the group and everyone looks out for one another. We had a rescue boat, without which this would never had happened.

What was the motive? Fun, for sure....but also to use the GPS's to see what a Thistle can do in those conditions. How about averaging 13 knots and topping out just shy of 16 knots with spinnaker and flogging mainsail!!! Not bad in just 18-22 knots of wind! Oh yeah, we tested the speeds with just Jib & Main on a blast reach....11-13 knots.

What more can be said other than it was the ending of a nearly perfect weekend. Yes there was a capsize. Yes there was some minor damage. But it was totally worth it. We'll be talking about this for a long time.

Want to join in the fun? Mark your calendars for February 2/3. The Florida Yacht Club is one of the best sites for this kind of thing! Thank you FYC!!

Thanks too to the particpants: Paul Abdullah, Ben Mercer, Ashley Saylor, Mike Stark, Caiti Dust, Rick Rothebuhler, Greg Griffin, Josh Putnam, Nick Turney, Matias Heinrich, Becca Heinrich, Denny Griffin, Peter Frissell, Scott Frissell, Scott McCormick, John Fewell, Johnny Fewell, Skip Dieball, David Van Cleef, Emily Pulos, Patrick Wilson! A truly talented group of sailors making this a totally worthwhile event!

2007-11-16T14:19:00.001-05:00

Summer is OVER....

Wow, it has been a while since I've written to the "Q Toledo" Blog. It doesn't feel like it has been that long?!?

Over the next week I'm going to post stories from this past summer. The Quantum Toledo crew has been literally all over the world sailing, having fun and supporting our customers. Every weekend of every month we were somewhere sailing and/or supporting.

Even to this day, it is hard for me to think that the sailing season has come and gone....we'll post some cool stories and pictures from our travels in an effort to relive and prepare for another great season!

Skip Dieball

2007-07-26T22:28:00.000-04:00

All Work and No Play????

2007-07-02T12:33:00.000-04:00

Early Summer Report
Quantum Sails Toledo

THISTLE GREAT LAKES CHAMPIONSHIPS

John Lovett, with crew super crew Jeff Eiber and Kathleen Duckworth took home a victory at the 2007 Thistle Great Lakes this past weekend, held at the Vermilion Boat Club. Lovett, sailing woody #1055 (The Sled) won convincingly, beating out the second place finisher, Jack Finefrock, by 14 points. John took delivery of his new Quantum sails 2 weeks ago at the Lake Erie Thistle Districts and has been pleased with their performance ever
since.

SANDUSKY INTERLAKE REGATTA

Surge Vanderhorst from Hoover won a predominately light air event at Sandusky Sailing Club. Looking for redemption from a sub-par outing at Hoover the weekend before, Surge (sailing with wife Kathy) sailed an amazingly consistent series to win the event over Bryan Parker from Lorain.

INDIAN LAKE HIGHLANDER REGATTA

John Bauer, with a brother Steve and father Harold won the Indian Lake Highlander Regatta this past weekend. Using their Quantum sails for the first time, they edged out Ed Spengeman and Jamey Carey (powered by Quantum) in a regatta that came down to the last leg of the last race as all boats finished within boat lengths of each other. Steve, who bought the sails for
his father and brother as a gift, remarked that the sails "definitely performed well," and they "couldn’t be happier with the customer support." Congratulations to all competitors this past weekend. Without the strong support of these One Design class, spectacular sailing like this past
weekend would not be possible.

CLEVELAND RACE WEEK - ONE DESIGN

Nick Turney from Quantum Toledo delivered a large number of new sails to the CRW-OD event on June 23/24. Among the sails were many new T10 sails. The feedback has been incredible. Our latest shapes are the standard in the sport with Chris Carroll having won the NAs last year, Ted Pinkerton wining Detroit NOOD this spring and now with Chuck Simon & Bill Buckels, the Cleveland Race Week regatta.

The report from Team I-Ball's co-owner, Scott Irwin, was that many were using CRW as a tune up for the NAs. If the results were any indication, the Quantum T10 sails are the shapes to have over all conditions!

In other action at CRW, Quantum customer Chris Carroll piloted his J22 to an impressive win taking the largest class w/27 boats (Chris won by 10 points!). Additionally, Marion Zaugg won the Jet 14 division of CRW. Marion has been working with Quantum Toledo for a few months on our latest Jet designs. Congrats to both Chris and Marion for a great weekend!

FLYING SCOT NORTH AMERICANS

Travis Weislander & Ernie Dieball won 2 of the 6 races at the incredibly large FS North Americans and finished an impressive 6th out of over 100 entries. Quantum has been in the FS class for many years, but we've overhauled the designs and they sails look great and are fast. Look for Quantum Toledo to be even more active the FS class in the days to come!

LIGHTNING OHIO DISTRICTS

Team Git R Dun consisting of Ryan Ruhlman, Nick Turney and Matty Schon won the Ohio Districts this past weekend with impressive scores over a variety of conditions. Using the event as a practice for the World Championship in Greece this team is peaking at the right time! Congrats to Ryan & team for a great event and for their continued support of Quantum Sails!

MORE THISTLE REGATTAS

It is always great to get feedback from customers, particularly those that spend time racing at the club level and then venture off or participate in a competitive holiday series. George Allen from Berlin Yacht Club finished 2nd at Pymatuning's 4th of July Regatta this past weekend! In a series that featured many of the class's best, George showed great consistency finishing only behind Quantum Customer Kyle Finefrock. Congrats George!

John Church from Hoover sent us a great note from this weekend's Hoover Holiday Series. John finished 2nd to Steve Lavendar and mentioned, "I am happy to report sailing to 2nd place behind Steve Lavender at the Hoover Holiday Series races this past weekend using my Quantum main and jib. We started out slowly in very light shifty wind on Saturday with a 5-3-3 out of seven Thistles (Thistle fleet also had RC duty). Conditions improved to largely 8-15 on Sunday and we sailed a consistent 2-2-2, edging Howard Hill (who won the last race) for 2nd overall by a point." Congrats to John!

There is still plenty of racing before our crazy summer of championships starts. Quantum Toledo Representatives plan to be at Jr. Bay, Interlake Nationals, Highlander Nationals, Thistle Nationals, T10 North Americans, Jet 14 Nationals and Lightning North Americans all before an intense fall of clinics and coaching leading up to the US Olympic Trials.

Stay tuned for the latest!

2007-06-18T11:35:00.000-04:00

2007-06-18T11:17:00.000-04:00

2007 Finn Nationals - Gull Lake, Michigan

The weekend was wonderful with the exception of the wind...which was pretty non-existant throughout the Midwest. But this is Pleasantville, USA and you don't necessarily need the wind in order to have fun.

Jon Vandermolen and his team at GLYC did a great job of making sure everything that he could take care of was handled with precision, including the fully stocked bar they set up to greet the sailors upon arrival of Saturday's racing!

In the end, Andy Casey won the Nationals showing amazing consistency in very trying winds. Second went to Geoff Ewenson, with Don Jesberg 3rd, Andy Kern 4th and Tad Springer 5th. Winning 2 of the 4 races was Darrell Peck who had to carry a DNF from race 2.

I am sure the Finn sailors will be back. The hospitality of Jon and his team have made this event legendary!

2007-06-14T11:14:00.000-04:00

Finn US Nationals
Gull Lake, Michigan
Skip Dieball

Pleasantville, USA....that's what Gull Lake is!! It is always great to come back and see our friends from Star sailing and what a treat to have them host the Finn Nationals!

I'm back coaching Geoff Ewenson. He's been jet-setting all over the world sailing his Finn and doing great. We are hoping that he continues progress here at Gull Lake as he eyes up the Olympic Trials in October.

The racing starts tomorrow and runs through Sunday. Today is a practice day and I hope to post some observations, but the wind is incredibly light (none), so we are waiting to see what happens.

Stay tuned for stories....at least we'll report shore-side antics.

2007-06-14T10:47:00.000-04:00

Lake Erie Districts - 2007
Cleveland Yachting Club

The Lake Erie District as some really cool spots to sail, CYC being one of them. Situated on a small island in the middle of the Rocky River, it is easy to get in/out to Lake Erie for some great sailing.

For the Quantum Team, this years event provided the perfect "test" to getting 1049 up to speed and we used every opportunity to tune and fine-tune.

The racing on Saturday started out perfect. Nice waves, nice wind and a good "open water" speed test with small-ish wind shifts. Throughout the day, however, the breeze tapered off and the light and lump set in.

Kyle Finefrock was on fire. He didn't make many mistakes and took advantage of some good opportunities and capitalized. Kyle had Ben Mercer and Sarah Paisley on board to help him....they sailed great! Ernie Dieball made his LE District debut in 3995 with Mike Stark and Rick Rothenbuhler and finished an impressive 2nd. Their speed was a good benchmark for my team (Karl Felger and Ryanne Gallangher) to test 1049.

We had our ups and downs, but used this great event to learn. And learn we did.

We found out that we were on pace when the wind was up and mast loaded. When the wind died down below 10 knots, we felt good on port tack, but really bad on starboard tack. As the day progressed our observations were heightened.

We got back on to the dock with a 6, 17, 10, which wasn't what we had planned on. The 17 was due mainly to a main halyard problem at the start (main was down in the boat at the gun!) and the 10 was probably better than we deserved due to the misfortunes of many rounding the wrong mark.

Once on shore, we check all settings. Our rake was spot on with the tuning numbers, but we noticed that the boom was much higher. So we raked back 2". We measured diamonds and found that one side was much tighter than the other....odd because when I tuned the mast in the comfort of the sail loft, it seemed symmetric. So, we popped off all the diamonds and the mast was bent slightly in a reverse "C". This all correlated with our on-the-water observations. Fortunately for us CYC has a few trees that have been used for many-a-mast. It took us 10 minutes to get it straight, tuned and back on the boat.

Interestingly too, we found that our mast step was higher in one corner than the other, forcing the mast to "load" differently from one tack to the other. We filed the mast step and got it right.

Sunday brought great speed and better scores for 1049. Still not perfect, but again great opportunities to test, tune and experiment against many of the best sailors in the class.

We had an amazing weekend of fun and learning at CYC. Thanks to them and to the LE District sailors for their hard work in making Districts a good time.

2007-06-07T16:46:00.000-04:00

Thistle 1049

June 2nd marked the end of Project #1, which is Thistle 1049. I sailed it in the Cattail Regatta at Jolly Roger Sailing Club and the boat set up really nice. To help, my brother sailed 3995 in the same event. We had a bit of time to do some straight lining and the boats were pretty equal, which made me happy. Happier still, Karl Felger and I won the Cattail with a 1,1,2. Successful first outing.

This coming weekend is the Lake Erie Districts. I hope to be able to produce some "sailing" pictures to round out this Blog.

2007-06-05T08:16:00.000-04:00

"We all need the Clowns to make us smile..."

Bruce Goldsmith

1936-2007

2007-06-04T16:25:00.000-04:00

Bruce Goldsmith
1936-2007

Sailors all over the world lost a friend yesterday with the Passing of Bruce Goldsmith. How do you describe the indescribable? Somehow, "You had to be there" comes closest.

Bruce won World Championships, North American Championships, National Championships and 2 Pan American Games Gold medals. He was second in the 1972 Olympic Trials to Buddy Melges.

His legend far exceeds the time he spent in sailing alone. But in a sport where sailors spend many an evening around boat parks discussing the greatest ever, Bruce stands in a very small group.

Those who have a heavy heart today, might want to train your mind's eye and fill in the blank:
Bruce is:___________

Two-time Lightning World Champion.
1960 Thistle Class National Champion.
Winning the Soling practice race at the 1972 Olympics by 5 minutes.
Late.
Missing a third crew.
Almost a leg ahead.
Sailing another blue boat called Snoopy.
Winning a North American title while not considering pouring out the case of beer someone hid under his foredeck.
Crossing the fleet on Port from the pin.
Setting up the model boat races.
Giving away 9 used jibs on the lawn.
Reinforcing a broken mast with a butter knife.
Winning another Pan American Games Medal.
Launched.

Yesterday, I tried to describe Bruce to my wife, who isn't an active sailor. I told her that you could take the 5 best sailors in the world in any era, put them on a starting line and he could (after leaving his boat in the water the three previous nights) beat any of them. She said, "Wow…and you were friends with him?" I paused awhile, considering how terrible simply changing one word from 'are' feels right now. "We all were" I said.

We all were.

Because he encouraged us. He hung out with us. He helped us get faster. He asked us to come along. He came along when we asked him. He finished in front of us but he made sure we never felt beaten.

He was the Bruin.

And today is just the first day of the forever when he'll be remembered.

by: Bill Faude

2007-05-18T09:14:00.000-04:00

You Can Go Home Again

This past weekend I had the pleasure of coaching in a Clinic held by Berlin Yacht Club. Berlin is located on a small lake in Eastern Ohio about an hour south of Cleveland. They club consisted of a varying assortment of members that range anywhere in age and sailing aptitude. While they’ve had their share of national champions sail out of the club, Berlin’s strongest membership comes from beginning to intermediate sailors. This weekend was geared towards getting the most out of each individual sailor and begin to prepare them for the great summer season that is at hand.

Sailing boats that would make Sandy Douglass proud (Highlanders, Thistles and Flying Scots) the Clinic consisted of 9 boats and numerous crews and skippers. I had the opportunity of both video taping, instructing and sailing with some great individuals. On Saturday with winds in the 20 knot range, we focused on starts and their importance in sailboat racing. We preformed over 15 starts and came away some valuable lessons as each sailor improved their skill set vastly.

--Try to develop a plan early
--Don’t be afraid to be close to the line
--Speed off the line is paramount
--Getting a start that allows you to implement your game plan is critical

Sunday was quite calmer breeze wise and we worked out our downwind approach. We focused on sets, douses, gybes and crew work. Once again getting great video and instruction was key as we were able to dissect each individuals work on a specific boat and point out what they needed to work on; and more importantly what they were doing properly. As with Saturday each sailor came away with some important keys to downwind sailing.

--Develop a game plan (see a theme?)
--Communication amongst crew members is critical
--Speed (i.e. sailing in pressure) is king

This past weekend was a brainchild of Harold Bauer and Team. It couldn’t have been pulled off without the help to the Finefrock family (though we missed Jesse), the Diffley’s, Rick Banning, Ben Chauffeur, Ben Craig, and world famous Sarah Paisley. Also, as always the kitchen crew was fantastic and is a major reason for such a great turn out.

I cannot stress enough how important club functions and your support are. Sailing is a sport we can ill afford not to pledge our support to, especially at the local club level. Event like these are a positive sign for a strong future.

Karl D. Felger
Quantum Sail Design Group
Toledo, OH 43611

2007-04-26T08:16:00.000-04:00

Thistle Jibs - Skip Dieball

Lately there has been a lot of talk about Thistle Jibs, their longevity and potential solutions to what many feel is a problem.

For starters, let me take you through what we've learned in the past 20 months being affiliated with Quantum Sails. In the fall of 2005 we started to analyze cloth that could be used in all Thistle Sails. Most cloth available for One Design applications comes in a variety of "finishes" both in resin and in weave. We knew we wanted a durable cloth for the jib as it gets bent around the forestay, crushed into the bow tank, jabbed by spreaders, etc. The Dimension/Polyant line of Square Weave HTP Plus cloth has been known for its ability to perform and withstand punishment.

Initially we built sails out of 165, which is 3.8 oz. The cloth is very nice, but we found (as you will see in the pictures below) that it broke down early, which went against one of our primary goals. We briefly tested 180, which is 4.2oz and it clearly performed as good and held up well. At the 2006 MWE we delivered all jibs in the 180 flavor. To this day we still offer this cloth in our jib and we are happy with the balance between durability and performance (sailmakers call it price/performance). Greg Griffin talks about his impression of how durable our sails were in the January Insite News on Destination One Design:

http://www.destinationonedesign.com/community/get_article.aspx?article=4e970382-305c-49ee-a4a0-e430a3ce772b

Through our testing in Jacksonville this winter, we have built a variety of jibs out of slightly different cloth from Contender (Polykote). It is amazing stuff, if you never had to bend it around the mast. We use "PK" in our Lightning, Scot, Highlander sails and it works great. The primary difference between the Thistle and these boats.....decks and somewhat less overlap (LP) on the headsail.

Now in April 2007 the question has been placed to the class via List Serve. What should we do with our jib durability issues? Of course that question brought on a lot of generalizations from folks that suggested that sailmakers don't care, they don't sail because "they know" what sailing does to the sails, we are concerned only about making a profit. Let me try to help set the record straight....we care immensely! If we at Quantum are viewed as the "durability" experts, or if our sails are seen as the durable option, that puts us at a HUGE competitive advantage. It is a great motivator and those involved in our product development know that this is always a top consideration.

Back to the List Serve. I enjoy listening to "ideas" on various topics. The problem is that too many times ideas get shot down. Sometimes its logic, but many times it is just a stalwart that suggests "its always been this way", which I can truly appreciate history and legacy, but we also can't squelch those trying to help by making suggestions.

One such suggestion was whether the class, which has an acquisition limit, should allow a 2nd jib. I think it is an potential solution to the current problem, assuming the class does nothing with its rules. A jib is about $450 retail, but, as was pointed out, the sails will be worth more in the very vibrant 2nd hand market.

Another suggestion, which Greg Fisher and I talk about often, is split weighting the cloth. By that the sailmakers would be free to place some different styles and weights in the problem areas (which you can see in the pictures below). The problem, it isn't allowed by the class.

Another suggestion is to address the corner detailing. This is allowed (to a certain degree) and something we have done in our 2007 sails. The clew corners are much bigger to cover the problem areas. Another reinforcement point could be a spreader patch....

In order for the class and sailmakers to conquer this problem, there has to be recognition that there is a problem. I truly believe the lack of a deck, low spreaders and the LP (overlap) of the sail AND no minimum weight point to the fact that there is a problem.

Solutions?

-Specify a minimum weight of 4.0oz
-Allow split weight
-Loosen up on the corner detailing

Check out these pictures and notes below....they show the exact problem area and the above solutions could address this problem....
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2005 Quantum Thistle Jib (165sq HTP). This sail has approximately 250 sailing hours on it.

These four pictures show one of our first 2005 series jibs that has been retired to practice. Notice that there will be a common theme of where these sails breakdown and it is about 2' above the clew (ironically where the sail makes its transition from the deck grating to the bow tank area).

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2006 Test Jib - 180sq with standard corner detailing. The weight difference of this jib vs. the above pics is 3.8oz to 4.2oz. The sail has about 50 sailing hours on it.

Though it has a smaller corner, the initial breakdown is evident in the #2 seam, just behind the window detailing. This is the area that gets worked into the grating if the jib is pushed down into the bow. This is also where the sail "hinges" if it is backwinded or "boxed".

Greg Griffin reported that he got 16 regattas = 70 races out of his 2006 jib sailing throughout the Southeast.

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Test 07 - This sail is identical to the sail above in that it is built out of 180sq. The difference is the corner detailing. This sail has approximately the same number of hours (50) as the sail above.

Notice the transition point between the sail and the corner detailing. It is easy to see where the Thistle Jib breaks down initially.

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3995's 2007 Jib. Built out of 180sq and larger corner detailing. This sail is the result of the above testing. This jib has MWE & Orange Peel which equates to about 56 hours +/- in some of the toughest conditions. Proof Positive?

The corner transition is not as pronounced and although this sail doesn't have a full season, I am very confident that we'll be doing battle with this sail throughout the summer of 2007!