Long Beach or Bust!

We made it! My wife Keely and I made the long journey down to Long Beach. We made a slight detour to stop off at our old college stomping grounds in San Luis Obispo for some dinner at Firestones Bar and Grill. The best place for tri-tip sandwiches and fries in the world!

Saturday: 5-10 knots of breeze, 75 degrees and very choppy water. The first race had a steep learning curve to it. I struggled to get in a groove and found my self at the back of the pack, I finished 13th out of 16 boats. Second race I was able to find a rhythm to the chop and I finished the race in 5th, within boat lengths of the leaders. The third and forth race I struggled again as the chop increased and the wind decreased. I finished 12th in the 3rd race, and I ended up in 9th in the 4th race.

Sunday: 5-10 knots of breeze, 70 degrees and very choppy water. The whole day I was plagued by bad starts. As well as bad starts I still could not consistently stay in a groove up wind. The only thing that I had going for me the whole weekend was my downwind speed. I was consistently passing 3-5 boats on every downwind leg. By the last race I finally figured the place out and was able to hang with the pack, it was a little to late... My finishes for the day were an 11th, 10th and 11th.


Overall it was a tough weekend of racing for me. I struggled to find a groove upwind in the chop. My downwind speed was amazing, and my starts were terrible. I finished the event in 11th place out of 16 boats. Even though my results were not what I was expecting, the weekend was an overall success. I went to this regatta with the intention of getting two days of solid practice in before Mid-Winters West, and that was exactly what I got. I learned a ton from those guys down there, and hopefully it will pay off this weekend at Mid-Winters West!