LYC Big Boats Excel in 2009 Block Island Race
May 22-23, 2009
Stamford, CT
LYC’s offshore success continued in the 2009 Storm Trysail Block Island Race with three of the four LYC entrants ending up on the podium. Lora Ann won the IRC 35 division and finished second overall in IRC and Sweet Lorraine won the IRC 50 division. Mother Nature was very cooperative as a great southerly propelled the fleet out of the Sound and, after a light transitional period, dealt the fleet a hard easterly for an exhilarating downwind ride home.
Rich duMoulin’s Express 37 Lora Ann had an excellent race, winning the IRC 35 class and coming second overall in the IRC fleet behind the new R/P 75 Titan XV. Rich also took home the Commodore’s Grail Trophy for best performance by a IRC boat rating below 1.08, the George Lauder Trophy for best performance by a “vintage” (15 years or older) yacht, and the “Tuna” trophy, a cumulative trophy combining the Edlu and Block Island Races. According to duMoulin, negotiating the breeze transition was one of the keys to Lora Ann’s success: “Continuously adjusting sail trim, changing sails, and concentrating on steering makes a big difference particularly at night in variable conditions. We think that this provided us with the breakthrough in the early hours of Saturday morning when the wind went light near the Race.”
Sweet Lorraine after the start.
Mark Hansen’s J/145c Sweet Lorraine had a great race notching a win in the extremely competitive IRC 50 Class. Sweet Lorraine had an epic battle with Jimmy Sykes’ Santa Cruz 52 Bombardino, with the two boats eventually finishing just 45 seconds apart after 24 hours of racing. Tactician Kerry Klingler commented: “It was very challenging and rewarding sailing. We had Bombardino in sight virtually the entire race and this kept us extremely motivated.”
Tom Carroll also scored well with his J/133 Siren Song, winning line honors in the IRC 45 class and correcting to second place behind last year’s NORT Trophy winning J/44 Vamp. Siren Song is now off to Annapolis to contest the Annapolis-Newport Race in early June.
Michael McCormick came eighth in the double-handed class with his J/105 Gaucho.
Siren Song heads down the Sound.
Storm Trysail moved the start time a few hours earlier this year so the entire fleet was on its way east by 1500. With the water still cold, the southerly breeze was not quite touching down, providing a board-flat sea with 18-20 knots of wind at the masthead. John Baxter, who sailed on the R/P 55 Rima2, commented: “It was very unusual to have so much wind aloft with a glassy sea. It was the perfect condition for speed.” Running spinnakers made way for reachers as the breeze swung more ahead as evening approached. The fleet was fairly evenly divided on exiting the sound through the Gut or Race, with the faster boats tending towards the tide relief the Gut provided. Once out of the Sound, the breeze began its laborious transition to the east. Everybody would park at some point as the breeze came and went from various directions before finally settling in out of the east in the pre-dawn hours on Saturday. Lora Ann was becalmed at the Race and had an inglorious exit of the sound: “We were dragged out of Long Island Sound backwards by the current at 5 knots in the direction of Block Island.” said duMoulin.
Eventually the fluky air made way for a solid easterly. From then on it was all smiles as the wind built steadily to 20-25 knots and held all day to propel the entire fleet home before dark.
Titan XV garnered line honors at 8:30 Saturday morning followed 45 minutes later by the larger R/P 90 Rambler. Though Titan XV’s elapsed time was extremely fast it was still about an hour off the record time held by George Coumantaros’ legendary Boomerang. Titan XV’s strong finish held up to make her the overall winner under IRC.
While the maxi crews were enjoying breakfast ashore the rest of the fleet was still in the office enjoying the fresh easterly. duMoulin commented on the leg home: “The ride home from Block Island in the 22-25 knot easterly was fabulous, requiring great coordination between the spinnaker trimmer, grinder, and the helmsman to ride the big waves and maintain control. Lora Ann was breaking 13 knots on the big waves.” According to Klingler, tactical smarts were the key for Sweet Lorraine on the return leg: “Although Bombardino was faster in the downwind conditions we were able to hold her off by picking some good shifts on our run in, she only got past us as we approached the Cowes.”
Complete results are posted on the Storm Trysail Club’s website.
