200th Post - Future Contemplations

How does one celebrate 200 posts? Well, I don't know how others do it, but I'm not really going to do much. It doesn't feel much different than my 199th post or even my 37th post. (Please don't go searching for my 37th post to find out which one that is; I just picked a random number).

I remember that it was about this time that I expected to be living on a boat and getting ready to set sail around the world but that, sadly, has not occurred yet. While that is a bit of a downer, on the upside, I am already signed onto a crew for the Annapolis to Bermuda race for this summer. That has me pretty excited! I haven't done any offshore racing and this is probably a more sensible way to be introduced to it than just setting off around the world.

Although, looking at some of my more popular posts, I realize that 5 out of my top 6 were about some terrible but hilarious movies. I've been thinking that maybe I should start a blog on all the terrible movies I've seen....Start a companion blog to my film director friend Dan Gvozen's movie blog, Grind My Reels. He reviews decent movies and gives a pretty in-depth analysis. Mine would be surface-level commentary on loveable but crappy B films. Hmm... It's certainly something to think about.

While I contemplate that, please enjoy a great song with B movie attention-grabbing visuals:

Dammit Irene!

Dear Skipper,

First, thank you for your support of CRAB through your entry in the Boatyard Bar & Grill Regatta to Benefit CRAB/Battle of the Chesapeake. 

We are sorry to tell you that after careful consideration and waiting as long as possible to make this determination, we have decided that attempting to conduct the on-water portion of this event would be unwise in light of the impending arrival of our unwanted guest, Irene. While we probably would have been able to start a very nice race, the current forecasts indicate that we would have been unlikely to be able to finish it safely. With several marinas in Annapolis already calling for the evacuation of their wet slips, we believe that you should be able to take the time you would have spent racing with us to secure your home, boat, and other property.

By the end of the day, we expect everyone to be ready for a great party. We've moved the festivities indoors at Eastport Yacht Club, where we'll still have the same great band, food, and drink, but a little less watered-down and windblown. 

Thanks again for your entry and support of CRAB. We're disappointed, too, but we hope to see you at the party.

-- EYC RC/Registration

Discouraged Yet Hopeful

I know Irene is going to be really intense and totally flood the crap out of my area but I still really want to go racing this weekend. It's Battle of the Chesapeake and I could really use more sea time before law school starts burying me in work. They haven't called the race yet so there is still hope......

America's Cup Uncovered - Episode 1

The below video is awesome. Plain and simple.

You get some behind-the-scenes footage of the America's Cup meetings, some sweet racing footage, get to know the Skipper of Oracle Racing, James Spithill, and you get more of an in-depth look at Team Emirates NZ. The video plays like a TV show but is far more interesting than anything you were planning on watching.

Give it a look see and tell me you didn't watch the whole thing:



PS: The AC World Series starts in 5 days...

Hace Calor!

So can we all agree that this weekend was ridiculously hot?

Yes? Ok good.

As counter-intuitive as it sounds, I spent most of my weekend outside. 

Saturday, I hung-out poolside like a dehydrated lounge lizard. The coldest the pool got was lukewarm, which was why, after about 30 mins, I opted to stay in the shade and pray for the occasional breeze.

Sunday was more interesting with a racing practice on Mazel Tov, the J/120 I'm racing on for the Governor's Cup. It was my first time with an asymmetrical spinnaker and let me tell you; boats with a bowsprit are soooooooooo much easier to gybe than symmetrical spinnakers with the pole. Hauling up and dousing are about the same but the gybe is relatively nice and easy which is good, since with an asymmetrical spin, you can't go dead downwind, which means you end up gybing quite a bit more.

The crew, aside from myself and the other foredeck guy, are older but seem to be quite a bit of fun so far.

I came back from practice dehydrated again but fixed that after about 3 more liters of water (3 Nalgenes) 

Next weekend is the Great Bay Race and then the weekend after that is the Governor's Cup. I'll try to take some more pictures so I can share with my scurvy readership. 

Coast Guard Foundation Cup

So in addition to the Wednesday Night races I've done for the past few seasons, I also recently got the opportunity to sail in some distance races this season.

Thank goodness for the Spinsheets Crew Listings is all I can say!

The first distance race I signed up for this season is the Coast Guard Foundation Cup which is coming up in two weeks. Its a 24-30 hr race to benefit:

"enlisted Coast Guard members, provide financial support for college to families of Coast Guard members lost in the line of duty, and offer relief for Coast Guard families who have lost possessions in natural disasters...".

Anyway, I'm looking forward to it.
If you're in the Annapolis area, I think they're still looking for more participants so feel free to check it out on their site, the events page and the NOR.

Speaking of Racing...

I have recently signed up for a bunch of races for this upcoming season!

I'm pretty stoked since Tango Too, the boat I sail with on Wednesdays, only does a few races here and there; mostly due to lack of crew.  Now I'll get to do some more intense, and longer races.

So far, I've signed up to crew in the Coast Guard Cup, the Governors Cup, Annapolis to Solomons Race, and the Screwpile.

The Coast Guard Cup is supposed to be 80 nautical miles (nm) depending on the forecast and is scheduled to be around 24-30 hours of straight sailing. It'll definitely be the longest race I'll have ever been a part of. That'll be another notch on the ole sailing belt.

The Governor's Cup goes from Annapolis down to St. Mary's and as an Asst. Harbor Master (in Annapolis), I got to talk to a bunch of people who sailed it and most of them had a pretty good time. Except the year when it was almost dead-downwind without the wind part. A bunch of boats grabbed moorings on their way back up the Bay and bitched about the sun and lack of wind. Fingers crossed, that doesn't happen this year.

The Annapolis to Solomons Race is pretty similar to the Governor's Cup (course wise) except its a little bit shorter, finishing at Solomons Island instead of St. Mary's.

I don't know much about the Screwpile but I've always heard its a bunch of fun from the people that have sailed it. It takes place in Southern MD but I think it'll be worth the drive.

Side note: I also got into law school and tonight is Poker Night so things have been going alright lately...

Back on the Water; Back on Blog!

So I've been absent for a few weeks. I don't really have a reason except that there wasn't much to write about and I've been lazy.

However, last night I FINALLY got to out for a Wednesday night sail. It had been far too long.

To kick things off, we (the Captain and crew of Tango Too) weren't sure that there was even going to be a race. Lack of wind, not enough boats...etc. However enough boats eventually showed up that we were able to race. The wind was so slight tho, I was sure they would call it off before we started. Maybe I just went out expecting the race, for some reason, not to happen. Almost two months without racing will do that to you. [sigh].

Anyway, RC (race committee) made it a short, 4 mark course. We didn't start great which was a killer in this nothing air and we proceeded to drift for the next 45 mins.

We fiddled with the spinnaker; nothing.
We put down the spinnaker and took out the headsail; nothing.
Our knot meter kept a steady 0.00 - I know, awesome right?

Granted, the tide was coming in and we were making some headway; I could see it using the shore as a reference point; just not enough.

So we did what all racers (or at least the ones I sail with) do when the wind is dead and you're just drifting; we broke out the beer.

Suddenly, we get a little puff.
We drink some more.

More air...
We finish our beers.

We're moving at just shy of 3 knots past all the boats that left us behind at the start!

RC had decided to call the race at the first mark so we ended up finishing somewhere in the middle (we needed more beers on hand next time since the wind caught up to everyone else once we hit the middle) which was good for us. Still have to see how we do considering PHRF times tho...

It felt so good to finally be out on the water again; it still shocks me how much I miss it when I haven't been out in a while. Last night also makes my 199th day out on the water according to my logbook of seatime I've been keeping for my Captain's licence. I'm going to have to celebrate my 200th day with a sail and party soon.

Annapolis Race Week is coming up as well. Labor Day weekend can't come soon enough. We did OK last year but I'm hoping we can edge up a bit even though it feels like we haven't been out nearly as much (its probably about the same though minus a race to Oxford).

In other news, I'm flying back down to New Orleans and I'm looking forward to not to being in a sketchy hotel this time. Instead of ordering pizza delivery and hoping I don't get stabbed, this time I thought I might go out and try some local favorites.  I'm thinking House of Blues and visiting Cafe Du Monde.

Any suggestions?

Linstead Pursuit Race of 2010

View Linstead Cup Race 2010 in a larger map


Sailed in the Linstead Cup Pursuit Race last Saturday. It was hot as hell out and muggy to boot. 


It was a typical sailing race. We all got there mostly on time, our battery was dead so we had to race around to find a different one that would power the instruments. The first alternate we tried was almost dead and only had enough juice to make the instruments whine like crazy. The second one held up after we cleaned the connection. We didn't get the best start because the wind never holds up away from the line like it does AT the line so we were a bit behind there. The good thing was we didn't go aground like two other boats and our boat did a few years back so that was good.


We came in not quite middle of the pack but the boat we were sailing on was built for lighter winds (so my Captain tells me). Overall I think we did ok but it took too long to get the spinnaker up (my fault) because we had to switch which side we put it up on (Captain is never at fault - see previous fault) although there were too many hands trying to help which merely complicated things. Other than that, I would say we really held our own. 


Good crew, good race, cold beer - hard to beat that on a Saturday.

My First Post

Hey all. 


Welcome to Captain's Black's Sea Chronicles. I've laid out a bit of what you're going to get by reading/following these chronicles to let you know where all of this is headed and also, to keep me focused.


What You're Going to Get: This is basically going to be about me and my sailing adventures. 


That includes my continuing work towards my captain's license, my weekend outings out on the Chesapeake and connected waterways, possibly some Wednesday & Sunday night races (if I can work out some type of deal at work to leave early on Wednesdays), repair/general work notes, maybe a bit about shipping, sailing related thoughts and musings, my inevitable attempts to buy a boat, prep work for my circumnavigation and eventually the log entries of my circumnavigation. 


I have a lot to do so there is no time like now, the beginning of sailing season 2010, to get started.