Category Archives: News

AUG. -ODOM & Soling 50 Points

Events, News, Sail, Uncategorized, , ,

Race Directors- Dennis Rogers & Gil Jansky

Tom Warren & Kim Robbins- course mark wrangling

San Diego Argonauts launched into August points races with full summer conditions. Our pond, located right on the edge of the marine layer shield and sunshine, benefits with prevailing NW sea breezes.  Today, our warm small waters event provided 3-13mph conditions. (gusto) FUN!

The topic of Ken Campbell’s racing rules clinic focused on leeward gate rounding. Thank you Ken for another informative discussion.

Five ODOM skippers were on the clock at noon, under the direction of Dennis Rogers. Generously heeling ODOMS began their six race series with all medium courses. Great sailing guys!

Eight Soling 50’s were on the course next to what Chris Staiger described as “one of craziest wind conditions he ever experienced with his Soling.” Boats heeled from a dramatic punch from the right, then appeared headed with little or no wind at all on the bow.  I must say, Chris handled it well!

Commodore Mark Hallberg was on site, taking notes and joined the “peanut gallery” for some great camaraderie. VC Bob Williams held the group together with his untethered support and good old fashioned hot dogs after the day of sailing. Thank you all that participated!

See you at the Pond!

July 2, 2022-Soling 50 & ODOM Points

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It looks like we have definitely overcome the May gray and June gloom syndromes as sailors were greeted by picture perfect summer weather, excellent winds and delightful pond conditions. Also a huge surprise, traffic and parking were quite tolerable for a holiday weekend!

A special thank you for the crew that helped make these races possible. “R” white striped referee RD Ken Campbell, Gil Jansky for left biased and drifty mark setting, Kim Robbins for mark retrieval and skiff clean-up and Bob Williams for post racing hot dog rewards.

CUMULATIVE

The first three ODOM races Gerry Wold was inadvertently affected by a rubber band handicap. During lunch break, Gerry discovered a rubber band wrapped around his keel bulb! Finger printing and DNA sampling are being conducted to determine if it was sabotage or a naturally occurring pond phenomenon? Non the less Gerry is still FAST!

CUMULATIVE

There is a lot to this thing we call sailing and its not just about winning a race, so I asked google:

What’s fun about sailing? What’s so great about sailing?

Answers:

Sailing is an invigorating sport that offers many rewards, not the least of which is that it’s simply so much fun. Imagine white sails billowing against a clear sky, the brisk feel of the breeze on your face, and the gentle motions of the boat as it cleanly slices through the water.

Some sailors gain a profound sense of oneness with their boat, the sea, and the wind. The boat becomes a self-contained universe, the process of sailing becomes all-consuming. Any sense of time changes and expands, small moments becoming more important. Sailing can be a meditative, reflective and engrossing experience.

Sail On

See You At The Pond!

JUNE Sail Division UPDATE

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It seems fitting that our June report would appear on the summer solstice with the surprising monsoon clouds pouring in from the east. Did someone just flip the summer switch?

I’ve been absent most the month but it appears lots of good vibes are happening on our pond. The following is an update thanks to the numerous contributions of club members.

Cultivating interest in our hobby is something all of us should be excited about. Sailing is challenging, engaging and fun. It also helps build and sustain our hobby and club. Here is an experience Ben Reeve had to share. It puts a smile on my face!

Hey Skippers,
Just a happy little story from today…
Sharing your controller with a visitor at the pond can be a very rewarding and heartfelt experience.  Today, between races, I overheard someone asking some questions of a skipper who had just taken his boat out of the water.  I had just finished a practice race and went over to offer my controller to the Mom, and her two kids.  They had driven by and stopped on their way to the airport to see what we were doing and were getting ready to leave back to Colorado.  
I handed my controller to Delaney who I found out actually had a little sailing knowledge sailing her very own 18’ day sailor on the lake in CO.  She took to the IOM very well, and here’s a photograph of how she felt about it.
As you can see, she’s all smiles and was having a fantastic time.  After a few moments of getting used to the controls she even started a race, with me coaching and did pretty well. Her brother Evan was on a DF95 shortly after this with another skipper handing over the controller.  Both were all smiles in no time.  They didn’t have much time, but after about 30mins we shook hands with Mom and Evan, and I got a little hug from Delaney for making her day.  It’s safe to say she is hooked on RC sailing! 
SO PLEASE – when someone asks questions, take a moment and share our joys and passion of the sport.  Pretty soon these two will be back, and you can bet they will be hard to beat!  
Wishing you all good winds! 
Ben 

SAILING POINTS FOR JUNE

A Note From our Vice Commodore of Sail, Bob Williams:

We have 15 more Pts Races this year and we NEED to fill the following schedule. If you volunteer for a particular date & you cannot make that date it is your responsibility to find a substitute & notify VCS Bob! It is obvious that sailors do not want to get the skiff out to set & pick up marks.If you are not comfortable about doing this , ask for assistance as I am sure others will help you!! If not, I will appoint you some help! Please email me your volunteer RD dates

Thank you, Bob!

July 2 -Sol50,ODOM , S/B

July 23 -DF95, IOM

Aug.6 -ODOM,Sol50,S/B

Aug.13 DF95 Fun Regatta

Aug.20- DF95,IOM

Sept.3 Sol50,ODOM, S/B

Sept.10- DF95,IOM

Oct. 1- ODOM,Sol50, S/B

Oct. 8- IOM Fun Regatta

Oct. 15-DF95,IOM

Nov.5- Sol50,ODOM, S/B

Nov.19-IOM,DF95

Dec.3- ODOM,Sol50,S/B

Dec.10-DF95,IOM

Dec.17-Holiday Lights

2022 Midseason Cumulative Points Update

Thanks to our score keeper, Ken Campbell, posted are cumulative points for active fleets in Sail Division. Club Points Regattas are conducted two Saturdays a month. This year we have skippers sailing DF95, IOM, SOLING 50 and ODOM class RC sailboats on Mission Bay Yacht Model Pond. If you are interested in joining the regatta activity, it’s not too late to get in on the fun.

DF95-2022-Championship-Standings-1Download
IOM-2022-Championship-Standings-1Download
Sol-50-2022-Championship-Standings-1Download
ODOM-2022-Championship-Standings-1Download

See You At the Pond, Gil

DF95 & IOM – April Points Races

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Partly cloudy and cool temperature day at the Pond. Winds mostly W & NW. Shifty and gusty day. With gusts reaching low teens, we had nine DF95s and five IOMs competing this Saturday.

Thank you Tom Warren and Jon Rogers for RD’ing the DF95s and IOMs and setting and clearing the course. And, thank you Bob Williams for running the BBQ and hot dogs post race! Thank you to everyone else who contributed in making this another beautiful day at the pond.

Before the races, we had a brief Racing Rules Clinic with Ken Campbell explaining the “Port vs. Starboard rules at the Windward Mark”.

The results and some select scenes for the DF95 and IOM races can be seen below.

ODOM and Soling 50- April Points

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Grey overcast. Temperature hovering around 60 degrees. Light 3-7 SW winds early. Shifting right slightly as the day progressed. These are the conditions our pond sailors experienced this Saturday. Not exactly ice fishing weather, but a warming hut may have been welcomed by a few crew members.

Ben Reeve, our volunteer RD for the ODOM Class, set a standard mark/course arrangement. Bens row boat etiquette is definitely improving! Steve Ross was scoring the slow motion action while Pat Nevitt monitored mark rounding’s. Ben passed the RD baton to Karim Baran, who managed the Soling 50 races. Thank You to all helpers.

Before the skippers meeting Ken Campbell reviewed barging at the starting line and ways to avoid getting trapped between the pin and other boats. Kerim Baran documented the seminar for the benefit of all.

BARGING and Thinking Ahead

We had six ODOMs and four Soling 50’s each making 6 appearances at the starting gate. Here are the results:

Videos from today’s Soling 50 races:

(All 6 races are captured in one video. The first 3 were shot from the sidelines, the last 3 from the drone.)

The peanut gallery is alive and well!

Don’t forget to order your hats and t-shirts! Bob Williams is eager to take your order.

SDA-Shirt-Hat-order-formDownload

A Closing note from Ben Reeve:

“In 2022 we’re all quite aware of basically everyone having a camera in there phone and I see many people taking pictures and would really love to see some of those photos shared with the membership.  Here I am providing some of the vintage photos I have taken recently.  Vintage in that I have used several cameras that are 40 to 100 years old recently at the pond.  These are unedited negatives scans straight from the camera. Enjoy and don’t forget to share your photos.” All contributions are welcome and appreciated!

Sooth Sailing, Gil

MAR19 IOM & DF95 Points

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March was an active month on our pond with three consecutive weekends of sailing events! Thank You, to all that participated!

The month wraps up with IOM and DF95 fleets, with a competitive day of sailing. Winds were  favorable all day and each fleet easy completed a series of six races.

Prior to racing and our skippers meeting Ken Campbell conducted a 10 minute discussion with the topics When do the Rules Apply and Proper Hailing. Hailing is a subject all skippers are aware of, but challenged to initiate, while engaged on the water. There were numerous questions and clarifications during this seminar. The challenge to all is taking the knowledge to the race course. Kerim documented the class:

When do the Rules Apply
Proper Hailing

Before the races, Commodore Mark Hallberg recognized volunteers by handing out cash awards to those who routinely contribute to club activities. This was a huge incentive to get involved with our club. Don’t spend your dividends all in one place!

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

IOM’s were on the course at noon, greeted by southwest winds in the 6-8mph range. Medium courses were the norm. As the day progressed and the IOM’s had a few races under their belt, winds shifted right for a little variation. Nice conditions!

The fleet of twelve DF95 started their series of six races with slightly freshening wind conditions and competitive racing. Chris Stager is back on the Argonauts sailing circuit with years of RC racing experience. It’s great to see the level of competition continue to grow!

At the end of the day Bob Williams, on his 80th Birthday, fired up the grill and served delicious hot dogs. Happy Birthday Bob.. Thank you for all you do!

IOM’s Video 1 of 16:  (Automatically continues to the next video, or click next arrow)

VOLUNTEERS MAKE THESE EVENTS POSSIBLE-SMOOTH-AND FUN!

THANK YOU TO ALL THAT CONTRIBUTED TODAY:

Bill Bridge – Skiff and Mark Prep

Ken Campbell – Rules Seminars & Points Scoring

Ben Reeve – Registration & Collections

Kerim Baran – IOM RD and Drone Video Documentarian

Gil Jansky – Course Marks / RD DF95 series

Commodore, Mark Hallberg – Assistant RD and Scoring

VC Sail, Bob Williams – Grill Master

Keith Sternal – Skiff Clean-Up

Smooth Sailing, Gil

MAR5 Sail Points

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Saturday brought out a handful of heavy weather sailors to our pond, as winds teased to small craft advisory levels! Ken Campbells statement, that was included with his sailing scores, pretty much says it all – “In my 20-plus years of racing at the pond, I don’t believe I’ve ever sailed here in winds as heavy as today.  I’d estimate it was blowing at least 18 knots, with gusts well above that.”

Just before skippers headed to the water for sailing action Ken Campbell held a Sailing Rules Clinic covering a number of issues that are common on the race course. Kerim Baran documented the seminar. Thank you Ken & Kerim!

Leeward boat rights at the Start Line 
Room to Tack at an Obstruction –
Port-starboard with multiple boats on Port 
Inside the Zone at the FInish Line
 Inside overlap when rounding a Mark
Soling Race #6. Captured in a series of 3 videos. 
Winds gusting over 20 knots. Check out Ty’s boat speed in Video #2 from 3:55 to 4:30.

Special thanks to Kerim Baran for navigating the drone in WIND!

NO B RIGS

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO RACE DIRECTOR TOM WARREN AND OTHERS THAT HELPED MAKE THIS EVENT POSSIBLE!

DF95 & IOM-February Points

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Twelve DF95 and five IOM Skippers closed out February points racing with delightful sailing conditions. Newbie RD Gil and seasoned score keeper Bill Bridge were the days event managers. 

The 95 fleet was on the course just after noon with a nice WNW breeze in the 6-8 mph range. As the afternoon progressed the wind range increased at the same time predictability decreased. Shifty and gusty! 95 skippers made the best of it with 6 fun races.

Our fleet of five IOM’s had their turn on the pond with winds continuing to pulse. Skippers experienced gusts and occasional speedy bow down conditions to light and variable drifty areas of water. Some refer to it as a  “crap shoot”! Observing the best skippers consistently score high in these conditions it appears there is more than just luck! Keep working.

After a fun day of sailing VC Bob Williams fired up our new grill that was generously donated by Steve Delva. Bob experimented with a new blackened hot dog recipe, that was not fully approved by Julia Child; but turned out to be wildly acknowledged by all attendees! Bob also presented beautiful hand made trophies to Bill Bridge, Ben Reeve and Gil Jansky for their recent volunteer efforts. Thank you Bob!

A fun day indeed.. Bring on March!

2022 IOM Midwinters Regatta- Final Day

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Sunday morning on the Mission Bay Model Yacht Pond found skippers is quiet contemplation and focused trimming and tuning for the final day of the IOM Midwinters Regatta in San Diego. The pond waters were still as skippers shared ideas and tuning techniques among their friends and competitors. This class has a truly a collaborative group of skippers, which continues to raise and inspire a higher level of sailing.

Sea breezes begin to freshen as Fred Rocha calls a 10:30 am Skippers Meeting. “C” fleet is on the course for a 10:45 am start and another perfect day of pond sailing!

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNERS!

Congratulation! Mark Gollison- 1st Place
Jess Atkinson- 2nd Place
Gary Boell- 3rd Place
George Pedrick- 4th Place
Christian Plaza- 5th Place
Gene Harris- FAIR PLAYER AWARD
Various segments from Races 15A, 16C, 16B, 18A

Special appreciation go to our dedicated IOM sailors that attended this years annual Midwinters Regatta in San Diego. Without your passionate interest and participation in this unique sport and hobby, our pond culture would not be the same. Good Luck in future regattas and see you next year!

This event was made possible by unconditional support from club volunteers: Kim Robbins, Bill Bridge, Ben Reeve, Commodore, Mark Hallberg, Dennis Rogers and Kerim Baran. Each one added a special contribution to make this a great event. VC of Sail, Bob Williams, has been a driving force to our club success.. NICE JOB!

Last but not least.. The man with all the energy and enthusiasm for our sailing addiction, Fred Rocha!! We could not do this without your genuine drive and passion! YOU ARE AMAZING.. Thank You!

SMOOTH SAILING, Gil

2022 IOM Midwinters Regatta-San Diego, Day 2

Events, News, Photos, Sail, Videos,

Our pond was greeted by a beautiful sunny morning, relaxing offshore flow and early prevailing NW breeze. Not to be argued with in the middle of February! Good sailing was abundant throughout the day with C fleet hitting the water at 11AM and A fleet ending the day while the sky was turning sunset orange. Thank you Fred Rocha for the tight rounds!

DAY 2 IOM MIDWINTERS-SCORES
ALL CLEAR

Special Thanks to Kerim Baran for spectacular drone footage.

segments from Races 7C, 7B, 7A, 8C. Captured in a series of 8 videos