Recap – Windjammers Regatta 2020

Another year has gone by and it is time for the Green Bay windjammer’s Regatta.
Attempts were made to stick to the start time Saturday but the wind did not want to play.
After an hour of floating out to the course area (or not floating toward it), the wind seemed to be stabilizing from the NE. The forecast was for SW wind in the lower bay and NE wind 20-30 miles north of our location with a dead spot between. Well that was a close forecast because as the course was being decided…the wind dropped and filled in from the SW.
The first race was started in 4-8 mph wind. I had some used/new…or is it new/used sails up and they felt good. More speed than I am use to on a Tornado in the light air. Some wind shifts we tacked on and made it to top mark in the lead. Joe was close behind on the his I20, but saw some dust on his spinnaker as they was pulling it out, so they decided to wash all the sails. We managed to extend our lead.
It was nice to see a few new High Performance sailors on the water at this regatta. Several fresh boats/crew. Sorry I don’t know all your names. Matt, Mike, Erin, and 3 Yaesos. Some younger sailors (12-14) out also. Great to see.
As the day progressed the wind filled in. It was a perfect day for the fleet to test the ability to hit the shifts, and the varying wind speeds. From 6 mph to 12 mph most of the day.
As the 4th race was about to start the wind picked up to the most of the day. Some gust were in the mid teens I would think. As there was no consistent high wind the water stayed fairly flat.  The start was on, with a nice 12 mph wind going. A bit up the course on starboard, I said to my crew “where’s the mark” , while looking around to the right to spot the windward mark, then realized that as the wind picked up at the race was start, it had also shifted almost exactly 45 degrees. Many were surprised at how far it had shifted. Some were unfortunate to have sailed on port/right, at or shortly after the start. The 45 degree shift meant we were heading directly at the windward mark even a bit high. Weren’t much for decisions to be made. Round the mark and pull the chute up. It was the best wind of the weekend and a 1 lap race. Soren, my crew, even got to trap downwind. We were able to pass a few boats but nowhere near enough time to get any meaningful gap. The wind was still up and down although stronger than the rest of the day. As the racing was delayed in the AM, that would be the last race of the day.
The wind would not play Sunday morning so racing was called off.
A great meal after – Thanks to everyone for the great event and work put in.

Martin Malcheski