I was in my first boat race today. Signed up spur of the moment, not 12 hours prior. Does anybody have any experience racing against mono hauls? There were a bunch of lasers, a sunfish, and a Hobie 16. We got 2nd and twice 3rd. I blame the wind though with less about 5 mph of wind the boom and mainsheet would just pull my main flat. The interesting part i wonder about is the scoring. I got 7th out of 9 factoring the handicaps and the sunfish that was as far as 3-4 min back on a 15 min course got 1st over all. Handicaps aside it was a close race for the win. I was anywhere from 1st to 5th with lots of passing. Very exciting! and Ill be back out there every Sunday I can.

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Nacra 6.0 NA
Ogden Dunes, IN
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Kevin I am allso new to the Portsmith and any type of racing, I used to always get on the boat and just go out and go fast. We raced the mayors cup in Platsburg NY two weeks ago and Charity cup in mayfield this last weekend, It is exciting and challenging to mix with all the different types of boats, I am still trying to learn technique and rules, and strategies. I have a h21se that has a pretty low portsmith number 69.3 so I have to actualy beat most of the other boats by a ways in order to place really high. we did win one race, and place 3rd in another which put us in 13th place overall this last weekend out of 25 boats. we still have lots to learn, but I am haveing a blast sailing with my daughters,
Ted

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Ted
Hobie 21SE Feral Cat
Upstate NY lake sailing
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Quote

The interesting part i wonder about is the scoring. I got 7th out of 9 factoring the handicaps and the sunfish that was as far as 3-4 min back on a 15 min course got 1st over all.

You have a much faster boat than the Sunfish, so he gets a "headstart" so to speak.
The way it works is most of the common boats have been racing for quite a while, & Portsmouth ratings are derived from race data. They know fairly accurately how fast a given type of boat is. The faster boats have a lower Portsmouth number, & cannot just be first across the finish line. They have to win, by several minutes, in order to actually take first place.
This allows the guy in the Sunfish to have a fair chance. Say the race consisted of yourself, & 4 other Hobies. If he is a better sailor, reads the current/tides better, picks the better strategy, gets the best start position, trims sails better etc, then he gets the actual "win", even though he could be the last to cross the finish line. All the other boats are faster, & with the same skill level of skippers, the Sunfish could never win.
It's sort of like the golf system, or think of go-carts. If everyone had 20 hp engines, & you had only 12, you would have a very difficult time being competitive. The handicap tries to level the playing field so that the best sailor wins.
Last weekend I was out in my 5.7,with 3 three adults on board & another fellow from further down the lake came out solo in his Hobie 16. We raced along 100' apart for several miles. I yelled at him to pull up right behind me, he said he couldn't. I let out the sail a bit to allow him to come up to 10'. His Hobie has a PM of 76, my Nacra 72.6. I only had one on the wire, & carried quite a bit of extra weight with the 3 adults on board,(non sailors just sitting on the tramp) I could stay ahead of him, but just barely. He has many more years on Cats than myself, & sails them better. IF it were a race, even though I was slightly faster, he would get the win. My 5.7 is a bigger faster boat, so I have to give him a "time credit" or a headstart, then try to catch up.
http://offshore.ussailing.org/Portsmouth_Yardstick/Portsmouth_Yardstick_Home.htm
Here is the site that give Portsmouth numbers. There is a section that describes scoring too.
http://offshore.ussailing.org/Portsmouth_Yardstick/Tables_2010.htm



Edited by Edchris177 on Jul 25, 2011 - 06:55 AM.

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Hobie 18 Magnum
Dart 15
Mystere 6.0XL Sold Was a handful solo
Nacra 5.7
Nacra 5.0
Bombardier Invitation (Now officially DEAD)
Various other Dock cluttering WaterCrap
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Kevin- If you're ever interested, there is a group in Michigan called CRAM (www.cramsailing.com). They mostly sail A-Cat, F17, and F18 but also usually have 4-5 odd boats that sail Portsmouth. They sail at various locations throughout Michigan and sometimes support events in other nearby locations (Ohio, etc.) I just got back yesterday from a 3-day regatta at Caseville, MI (Saginaw bay side of the thumb) where we had an absolute ball. Some of the most adrenaline filled racing/sailing of my life (great double-trap wind and big waves). It felt like we were in the old Sunkist commercial. Surfing the downwind legs was simply spectacular.

I joined for the 1st time this year and have been sailing a few regattas.. I'm still on the steeper side of the learning curve but really enjoying it. The group is very patient and quick to help. Some of the F18 guys are highly ranked on the national level.

Anyway, it would be really cool to actually sail against another H18. The next event I plan to attend is in Muskegon on Aug 20 and 21st. I think I may have found a 3rd boat as well (at least on Sunday).



Edited by rehmbo on Jul 25, 2011 - 02:48 PM.

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Jeff R
'88 H18 "Jolly Mon"
'10 C2 USA1193
NE IN / SE MI
cramsailing.com
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What would i have to do to get in this race in Muskegon!?

secondly, let me see if i got this straight...

H18 portsmouth of 73.9
Sunfish portsmouth of 99.6

given the formula of: Elapsed time * 100 / portsmouth number = corrected time

30 min course Hobies by 3 min

H18 27 * 100 / 73.9 = 36.68
SF 30 * 100 / 99.6 = 30.12

sunfish wins by ~ 6 min

10 min course hobie wins by 3 min

Hobie 18 7 * 100 / 73.9 = 9.4
Sunfish 10 * 100 / 99.6 = 10.04

Hobie wins by almost a minute

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Nacra 6.0 NA
Ogden Dunes, IN
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