Quantum Toledo

2008-06-24T15:43:00.001-04:00

2008-03-18T09:51:00.002-04:00

San Diego NOOD - Brian Janney

This past weekend I sailed with Ian Trotter on his J/24. This is the second time I've sailed on Ian's boat the first time we got second in the J-fest. This time we won. On board we had Ray Cooke, our bowman from Blue Blazes. Mike Monastra from Blue Blazes was our Spinnaker Trimmer. Sandra Sherman was in the pit. I was trimming upwind and calling tactics. (Mike, Ray and I just got finished racing the San Diego to PV Race on Blue Blazes).

The J/24's only sailed Saturday and Sunday. We were on the South Course along with the Etchells, J/105, J/80, and Catalina 38's. Saturday was about 15-18 knots of wind with about 8-10 foot swells. This made for some really challenging conditions. In the first race we didn't have the best start and rounded the first weather mark in 3rd. By the leeward gate we were in 2nd but right behind 1st. Up the beat Ian did a great job going fast and getting us into first. On the run the second place boat Geraldine, who is known as the top boat in San Diego, did a round down we were happy until the same wave that got them flipped us. After 30 seconds we gybed back and took off. I think we gained on that little move. For the first race we were 2 steps above our base and still had the Genoa up.

In the second race we went up another step on the rig an changed to the jib. This was a wise move as the genoa was not slower but the jib made it easier to steer over the larger swells. We led for the whole race and never looked back.

In the 3rd race we thought it got lighter and changed back to the genoa for the first beat. That was a mistake we were over powered and had to change to the jib during the run. The first place boat stayed with the jib and we walked away from them during the beat.

On Sunday the wind was much lighter (10-13 knots). Our goal was to finish in the first race in the top 3, we got second and secured the regatta. For the first race of the day we were 1 step above base and the boat felt bound up so for the last race we went 1 step below base and our speed and point were the best in the fleet. We had a great team; everyone got along and worked hard to come back when we were behind.

2008-03-17T16:59:00.002-04:00

The Florida Yacht Club
34th Annual Orange Peel
March 14-16, 2008
FINAL RESULTS
Series Summary
Pl	Sail	Skipper	From	1	2	3	4	5	Tot
1	3985	Paul Abdullah	Jacksonville, FL	1	3	1	7	4	16
2	1049	Skip Dieball	Toledo, OH	9	6	7	2	8	32
3	3969	Mike Ingham	Rochester, NY	2	4	2	32\*1	1	41
4	3809	Vlastimil Kunc		10	1	12	14	5	42
5	3976	Greg Griffin	Jacksonville, FL	33	8	4	3	3	51
6	3997	Scott Griffin	Taylors, SC	6	5	6	21	19	57
7	3911	Pierce Barden	Wilmington, NC	4	7	24	10	18	63
8	3979	Michael Gillian	Glen Ellyn, IL	12	22	19	13\ZFP	2	68
9	3709	Dennis Griffin	Green Cove Springs, FL	8	11	13	17	26	75
10	4008	Scott McCormack	Atlanta, GA	14	10	23	23	16	86
11	3980	Michael Lenkeit	Flowery Branch, GA	7	42\OCS	5	8	25	87
12	3741	Gavin McCormack	Atlanta, GA	15	13	28	15	17	88
13	1	Chris Klotz	St. Petersburg, FL	22	42\DNF	3	9	15	91
14	3579	David Van Cleef	Newport, RI	5	26	8	42\OCS	10	91
15	3883	David Reddaway	Suwanee, GA	19	25	15	4	29	92
16	3397	Ben France	Newport News, VA	20	42\DNF	9	13	9	93
17	3878	Doc Gates	Pittsford, NY	18	16	11	24	24	93
18	3975	Mike Ross	Acworth, GA	11	23	10	11	42\DNF	97
19	3849	Erik Goethert	Belmont, MA	16	9	26\ZFP	42\OCS	6	99
20	3868	Matis Heinrich		27	14	22	1	42\OCS	106
21	779	Kevin Bradley		25	42\DNF	16	6	20	109
22	386	John Norton	Chapel Hill, NC	35	21	17	30\ZFP	7	110
23	2724	Jim Kincaid	Nederland, TX	29	12	14	34\ZFP	23	112
24	4007	Loy Vaughan	Birmingham, AL	3	2	26	42\OCS	42\OCS	115
25	1329	Scott Latham	Coatesville, PA	17	42\DNF	20	25	11	115
26	3759	Brian Swingly	New London, CT	13	20	33	28	22	116
27	3672	Scott Harris	Atlanta, GA	21	42\DNF	21	19	21	124
28	3680	Brian Anderson		26	18	29	41\ZFP	14	128
29	1915	Peter Bream, Sr.	Jacksonville, FL	36	42\DNF	27	18	12	135
30	3745	Lincoln Baxter	Charlotte, NC	24	17	32	20	42\DNC	135
31	3898	Peter Hale	Stevensville, MD	28	42\DNF	25	30	13	138
32	2991	Bradley Stookey	Jacksonville, FL	30	19	34	27	31	141
33	3999	Doug Fisher	Springboro, OH	34	15	35	42\OCS	32	158
34	3983	Jason Hubbard		31	42\DNF	36	31	27	167
35	3998	Jim Roberts	Acworth, GA	23	42\DNF	30	32	42\DNC	169
36	2450	Don Read	Asheville, NC	40	24	40	36	30	170
37	2177	Dale Newnham	Marietta, GA	38	42\DNF	37	20\ZFP	34	171
38	3912	William Harris	Annandale, VA	32	42\DNF	39	35	28	176
39	3818	Jack Mahaney	Iizella, GA	37	42\DNS	31	29	42\DNC	181
40	3461	Ken Obst	Melborne, FL	39	42\DNF	38	34	33	186
41	2472	Michael Bozeman	Green Cove Springs, FL	42\DNC	42\DNF	42\DNS	42\DNC	35	203

*1 = ZFP+ZFP

R.C.Chair: Tim Monahan & Will Newton
Jury Chair: Henry Mullen
Scorekeeper: Ron Curtis
17 Mar, '08, 10:32
St. Pete Scorer

2008-03-09T11:26:00.003-04:00

Thistle Midwinters East 2008
by: Skip Dieball

The St. Petersburg Yacht Club is the winter-time home to Thistlers from all over the USA. Many of us use this time to reacquaint ourselves with our fellow sailors, but more importantly, we use this time to reacquaint ourselves with our love of sailing. The timing is perfect, weather (generally) is beautiful and creates an "event" that is full of memories for years to come.

The 2008 edition of the Thistle Midwinters East provided challenges for all sailors as the wind didn't exactly cooperate all week. When it did, it provided some great racing.

After five races, Greg Griffin, Karl Felger and Dave Decamp won. They picked up a great finish in the final race, which was sailed in a building breeze which eventually exceeded 25 knots. Second Place went to Brent Barbehenn, Chris Murphy and Jess Murphy. Third place was Mike Inham, Dave Hansen and Ann Hansen. Complete results: http://www.spyc.org/club/scripts/view/view_clubannouncement.asp?pg=PR&GRP=5564&AID=40032&NS=PR&APP=58

The final race took its toll on many boats. Nearly 12 masts were damaged or broke and a hand full of boats capsized.

Socially, the MWE event is in a category of its own. For those that haven't been, SPYC is right in downtown St. Pete and is flanked by many bars and restaurants. The typical routine finds the crowd starting at the famed SPYC bar and finishing at Mastry's, which incidentally was named by Maxim Magazine as one of the 10 best dive bars!

Another rite of passage is the pre-banquet gathering at Wet Willies in the Bay Walk. A few years ago it was just a group of friends enjoying a slushy drink. Now, nearly half the fleet gets their happy hour on there and it is another opportunity to swap stories and reflect on a great week of sailing.

The MWE is the first leg of the Thistle Southern Circuit. The 2nd is the upcoming Orange Peel Regatta in Jacksonville. With over 50 boats last year and nearly 25 boats qualifying a teammate in the overall scoring of the So. Circuirt, the "OP" as it has been coined, provides those of us with a hunger for sailing in the south one last opportunity before heading to the still frigid north.

2008-02-20T09:16:00.001-05:00

The Melges24 QUANTUM RACING team helmed by Terry Hutchinson used the standard Quantum Melges 24 FUSION M upwind sails and the R1 and R2 spinnakers to win the 50 boat St. Pete NOOD regatta this past weekend.

Quantum sails were on quite a few of the top teams and turned a lot of heads with yet another great performance. The Quantum Racing Melges24 Team has now done three events including a win at the North East District Champs, a 3rd at the Atlantic Coast Champs and now another win at the St. Pete NOOD.

The 2008 Quantum Melges 24 sails are setting the standard in the class with the best technology and design. The downwind sails cover all the ranges and our R1 Reacher Asymmetrical is the fastest reacher in the class as tested last weekend. The St. Pete NOOD was sailed in mostly light conditions under 8 knots where the R1 is designed to perform. The sail is flatter and designed for the tighter angles the M24 sails in these conditions. In one race this sail enabled us to sail past 20+ boats in one leg!

2008-02-12T14:54:00.000-05:00

J24 Midwinters - Tuesday, Feb 12th (Day 3)
Day cut short by storms

We are back on shore after two races....Race 3 was started (under Black Flag) and abandoned when storms approached quickly. They didn't really "hit hard" but it was looking scary for a while. The radar has a lot of activity in the area.

Before the weather went bad, the wind went bad. It was really light and shifty and the fleet was really mixed up. Many in the top 5 had very bad races, and some of those same teams were glad to be abandoned to "stop the bleeding".

It is hard to tell who is on top now, but when the results are posted, I'll try to get them up on the blog.

Here are some pics of the madness today:

2008-02-12T09:35:00.000-05:00

J24 Midwinters - Davis Island Yacht Club
Feb 12, 2008
-Skip Dieball, Quantum Sails

The weather couldn't be better. Sunday's breeze was in the mid-teens and the group got 3 great races in. Doug Clark's team on Blind Squirrel was leading after Day 1.

They held their lead after another 4 races on Monday. Once again the story is the weather. 70s and sunny and great wind!!! 2nd place tie between Twins and Team Tarheel with Chris Snow's 5277 in 4th after a good Monday.

As I sit in the club to catch up on some work on Tuesday morning, the forecast is for some lighter winds and rain. The group is heading out and seem to have enough breeze to go straight downwind (not VMG), which is a good indication of more great sailing.

I'm heading off the dock and will hopefully post an update with scores tonight. There have been a number of protests, which is common for a group that races as tight as these guys.

Top 10:

Doug Clark 35pts
Chris Zaleski 39pts
Peter Bream 39pts
Chris Snow 63pts
Mark Hillman 64pts
Tony Parker 67pts
Jeff Johnstone 69pts
Stuart Challoner 70pts
Will Welles 75pts
Brian Smith 92pts.

2008-02-12T09:00:00.000-05:00

Thistle Midwinters West - 2008

The Mission Bay Yacht Club was faced with some tough decisions after the 2007 event. The event wasn't growing, many were having a tough time with the timing (holidays). The gang at Fleet 13 decided to push the date back, tweak the venue with all ocean sailing and see how the masses would react. With nearly 40 boats this year, they've made the right call!

Paul Abdullah and I talked about going to MWW since last summer when Mike Polterak promised ocean sailing. It had been a few years since we drove out and seemed appropriate for us to make the trek again. As plans started to form, Ken Lane pulled the trigger and bought 3995 from me. He wanted to pick the boat up in San Diego....great! Then as we got closer Ken and I decided that he should sail his new prize. I was cool with that and then decided to run around in a motor boat and watch.

A few weeks later Scott McCormack, who attended the 1st Jacksonville training weekend in December, said that he had some interest in going to San Diego and that we could team up and sail his new boat, 4008. I was game and we put our plans together, which the end result was 3 boats heading from Jacksonville to San Diego.

Paul and I have fun when we travel and the trip out was no exception. Aside from some stiff headwinds that yielded about 8mpg, we made it with no issues and had fun catching up....all 36 hours!

The event itself was terrific. Weather couldn't have been better with sunny skies and temps in the 60s. The competition was incredible with many very good teams from all over the USA.

In the end, Paul Abdullah and his team of Nick Turney and Sarah Paisley won. They sailed a solid event and finished strong by winning the last race. Very impressive series by this team. Second place went to Greg Fisher sailing with Jeff Eiber and Joanne Fisher. Scott McCormack and I finished 3rd. We had a great time and though the wind was a bit more than we expected (we sailed 2-up), we hung in there and had fun!

Thanks to everyone at the MBYC. They bent over backwards to make sure we were taken care of and had fun. Free beer, hors devours, great meals, etc. If you are looking for a change of scenery (yes, all you in the east!), you should make the trip....it is worth it!

Photos by George Szabo.

2008-01-22T00:11:00.001-05:00

Jacksonville Training #1 - Saturday's Footage

2008-01-14T09:39:00.001-05:00

Hempstead Bay Sailing Club
Flying Scot Seminar
January 12, 2008
Long Island, NY

2008-01-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

WINTER CLASSIC, indeed!

This Blog generally contains information about sailing and the travels of the group from Quantum Toledo, but today I got some very cool pictures from my good friend Tom Starck. He and his brother Jim went to the Sabres/Penguins game OUTSIDE! I watched this game with amazement on television. They should do this more often!!!

2007-12-19T10:02:00.000-05:00

Jacksonville Training Weekend - December 16th

2007-12-18T09:09:00.001-05:00

Jacksonville Winter Training Series
December 2007

When we initially set up the Winter Training Series, the idea was to find a fun way to go sailing in the winter months. Our friends in Jacksonville offered up The Florida Yacht Club as our home base for a series of weekends starting in December 2006. Since that time, the training series has been a highly anticipated series!

The kick-off of the Winter 2007/2008 Series was this past weekend (Dec 15/16). We were a little nervous setting this up so close to the holidays, but it seemed like the only available weekend for the hosts & organizers. In hindsight, we couldn't have picked a better weekend from a weather standpoint.

A manageable group of nearly 30 sailors worked a rotation so that everyone could get some sailing in and participate in the drills set up in advance. If you wanted to match your speed and technique against some good sailors, this is the place as we had a number of champion-caliber participants in attendance.

In the past, we have set up these weekends so that on the Wednesday prior to the event we have a go/no-go call based on the weather. This past weekend's forecast wasn't ideal with winds forecasted to be light on Saturday and ultra-windy on Sunday. A few folks decided to not attend and unfortunately for them, that seemed to ensure that the weather was going to be perfect!!!! Thanks! ;-)

Saturday we had 7-12 knots and temperatures in the 80s. We all sailed in shorts and t-shirts and sailed until the sun went down. We all agreed that if we didn't sail on Sunday, the weekend would have been a success! It was a day that reminded us why we love this sport in the first place.

The drills were outlined in advance and were executed to near perfection. A few boats used the drills as opportunities to "explain" to crew the cause/effect of the maneuvers...truly a perfect time as opposed to the heat of the battle of a regatta.

Drill #1 - Straight line speed.

Drill #2 - Tack on the whistle.

Drill #3 - Gybe on the whistle.

Drill #4 - Skewed windward/leeward (to practice down-speed roundings i.e. gybe sets & tacking around the leeward mark)

Drill #5 - Traditional Windward/Leeward courses (4-5 laps)

BREAK FOR LUNCH

Drill #6 - Skewed windward/leeward (to practice port layline sets)

Drill #7 - Downwind sprint

Drill #8 - Upwind Speed Testing - Race to the dock

We all tried hard not to make a big deal out of the epic conditions that we experienced, but it was tough not to. Many comments ranging from "the weather couldn't have been nicer" to "this was a perfect day" were heard throughout the drysail park at FYC. The day however, was only 1/2 over as we went to Paul Abdullah's house to recap.

We started by reviewing some of the data captured by our VELOCITEK devices. It was interesting to see the different "styles" of upwind sailing and how they affected overall gains. It was also cool to hear feedback from those that used the VELOCITEK devices. They would try different sail trim, crew weight placement, etc. and they were able to see how it affected speed. Very cool learning tools!!!

We then watched the video from the day and looked closely at set up, maneuvers and sail shapes. Skip Dieball was able to explain some of the difference in the various sails that are available and educate the crowd on "things to watch for" when they are setting their boats up.

The video was then replaced by digital still shots enhancing the same conversations.

Dinner was served while we had our debrief and it was a very cool, casual evening. Special thanks to Paul Abdullah, Pete Frissell and Dave Van Cleef for spear-heading the food and libations!

While we had the PC & Projector up, Greg Griffin fired up the Weather Radar. It was interesting to see the frontal passages that extended from Tampa through the Carolinas. Lots of Green and Red made the outlook for Sunday grim. We devised a plan to check in at 8:30 AM, get breakfast and then rally to see what we should do. The option of leaving early for many northerners was enticing, but after Saturday's fun, we all still wanted to sail!

Upon arrival to FYC, the wind built bigtime! A few low, dark clouds brought wind and rain, but there was some clearing on the radar, so we decided to hold for a 1/2 hour and then make a decision. That move paid off as we devised a plan to sail from the cove to the leeward shore and back. The deal was that it was going to be in 18-22 knots! Clearly close to being out of the range of which we'd normally sail, but we were all game to have some fun.

Greg Griffin made sure that we were all on the same page. Everyone was to wear PFDs, not venture out without the group and everyone looks out for one another. We had a rescue boat, without which this would never had happened.

What was the motive? Fun, for sure....but also to use the GPS's to see what a Thistle can do in those conditions. How about averaging 13 knots and topping out just shy of 16 knots with spinnaker and flogging mainsail!!! Not bad in just 18-22 knots of wind! Oh yeah, we tested the speeds with just Jib & Main on a blast reach....11-13 knots.

What more can be said other than it was the ending of a nearly perfect weekend. Yes there was a capsize. Yes there was some minor damage. But it was totally worth it. We'll be talking about this for a long time.

Want to join in the fun? Mark your calendars for February 2/3. The Florida Yacht Club is one of the best sites for this kind of thing! Thank you FYC!!

Thanks too to the particpants: Paul Abdullah, Ben Mercer, Ashley Saylor, Mike Stark, Caiti Dust, Rick Rothebuhler, Greg Griffin, Josh Putnam, Nick Turney, Matias Heinrich, Becca Heinrich, Denny Griffin, Peter Frissell, Scott Frissell, Scott McCormick, John Fewell, Johnny Fewell, Skip Dieball, David Van Cleef, Emily Pulos, Patrick Wilson! A truly talented group of sailors making this a totally worthwhile event!

2007-11-16T14:19:00.001-05:00

Summer is OVER....

Wow, it has been a while since I've written to the "Q Toledo" Blog. It doesn't feel like it has been that long?!?

Over the next week I'm going to post stories from this past summer. The Quantum Toledo crew has been literally all over the world sailing, having fun and supporting our customers. Every weekend of every month we were somewhere sailing and/or supporting.

Even to this day, it is hard for me to think that the sailing season has come and gone....we'll post some cool stories and pictures from our travels in an effort to relive and prepare for another great season!

Skip Dieball

2007-07-26T22:28:00.000-04:00

All Work and No Play????

2007-07-02T12:33:00.000-04:00

Early Summer Report
Quantum Sails Toledo

THISTLE GREAT LAKES CHAMPIONSHIPS

John Lovett, with crew super crew Jeff Eiber and Kathleen Duckworth took home a victory at the 2007 Thistle Great Lakes this past weekend, held at the Vermilion Boat Club. Lovett, sailing woody #1055 (The Sled) won convincingly, beating out the second place finisher, Jack Finefrock, by 14 points. John took delivery of his new Quantum sails 2 weeks ago at the Lake Erie Thistle Districts and has been pleased with their performance ever
since.

SANDUSKY INTERLAKE REGATTA

Surge Vanderhorst from Hoover won a predominately light air event at Sandusky Sailing Club. Looking for redemption from a sub-par outing at Hoover the weekend before, Surge (sailing with wife Kathy) sailed an amazingly consistent series to win the event over Bryan Parker from Lorain.

INDIAN LAKE HIGHLANDER REGATTA

John Bauer, with a brother Steve and father Harold won the Indian Lake Highlander Regatta this past weekend. Using their Quantum sails for the first time, they edged out Ed Spengeman and Jamey Carey (powered by Quantum) in a regatta that came down to the last leg of the last race as all boats finished within boat lengths of each other. Steve, who bought the sails for
his father and brother as a gift, remarked that the sails "definitely performed well," and they "couldn’t be happier with the customer support." Congratulations to all competitors this past weekend. Without the strong support of these One Design class, spectacular sailing like this past
weekend would not be possible.

CLEVELAND RACE WEEK - ONE DESIGN

Nick Turney from Quantum Toledo delivered a large number of new sails to the CRW-OD event on June 23/24. Among the sails were many new T10 sails. The feedback has been incredible. Our latest shapes are the standard in the sport with Chris Carroll having won the NAs last year, Ted Pinkerton wining Detroit NOOD this spring and now with Chuck Simon & Bill Buckels, the Cleveland Race Week regatta.

The report from Team I-Ball's co-owner, Scott Irwin, was that many were using CRW as a tune up for the NAs. If the results were any indication, the Quantum T10 sails are the shapes to have over all conditions!

In other action at CRW, Quantum customer Chris Carroll piloted his J22 to an impressive win taking the largest class w/27 boats (Chris won by 10 points!). Additionally, Marion Zaugg won the Jet 14 division of CRW. Marion has been working with Quantum Toledo for a few months on our latest Jet designs. Congrats to both Chris and Marion for a great weekend!

FLYING SCOT NORTH AMERICANS

Travis Weislander & Ernie Dieball won 2 of the 6 races at the incredibly large FS North Americans and finished an impressive 6th out of over 100 entries. Quantum has been in the FS class for many years, but we've overhauled the designs and they sails look great and are fast. Look for Quantum Toledo to be even more active the FS class in the days to come!

LIGHTNING OHIO DISTRICTS

Team Git R Dun consisting of Ryan Ruhlman, Nick Turney and Matty Schon won the Ohio Districts this past weekend with impressive scores over a variety of conditions. Using the event as a practice for the World Championship in Greece this team is peaking at the right time! Congrats to Ryan & team for a great event and for their continued support of Quantum Sails!

MORE THISTLE REGATTAS

It is always great to get feedback from customers, particularly those that spend time racing at the club level and then venture off or participate in a competitive holiday series. George Allen from Berlin Yacht Club finished 2nd at Pymatuning's 4th of July Regatta this past weekend! In a series that featured many of the class's best, George showed great consistency finishing only behind Quantum Customer Kyle Finefrock. Congrats George!

John Church from Hoover sent us a great note from this weekend's Hoover Holiday Series. John finished 2nd to Steve Lavendar and mentioned, "I am happy to report sailing to 2nd place behind Steve Lavender at the Hoover Holiday Series races this past weekend using my Quantum main and jib. We started out slowly in very light shifty wind on Saturday with a 5-3-3 out of seven Thistles (Thistle fleet also had RC duty). Conditions improved to largely 8-15 on Sunday and we sailed a consistent 2-2-2, edging Howard Hill (who won the last race) for 2nd overall by a point." Congrats to John!

There is still plenty of racing before our crazy summer of championships starts. Quantum Toledo Representatives plan to be at Jr. Bay, Interlake Nationals, Highlander Nationals, Thistle Nationals, T10 North Americans, Jet 14 Nationals and Lightning North Americans all before an intense fall of clinics and coaching leading up to the US Olympic Trials.

Stay tuned for the latest!

2007-06-18T11:35:00.000-04:00

2007-06-18T11:17:00.000-04:00

2007 Finn Nationals - Gull Lake, Michigan

The weekend was wonderful with the exception of the wind...which was pretty non-existant throughout the Midwest. But this is Pleasantville, USA and you don't necessarily need the wind in order to have fun.

Jon Vandermolen and his team at GLYC did a great job of making sure everything that he could take care of was handled with precision, including the fully stocked bar they set up to greet the sailors upon arrival of Saturday's racing!

In the end, Andy Casey won the Nationals showing amazing consistency in very trying winds. Second went to Geoff Ewenson, with Don Jesberg 3rd, Andy Kern 4th and Tad Springer 5th. Winning 2 of the 4 races was Darrell Peck who had to carry a DNF from race 2.

I am sure the Finn sailors will be back. The hospitality of Jon and his team have made this event legendary!

2007-06-14T11:14:00.000-04:00

Finn US Nationals
Gull Lake, Michigan
Skip Dieball

Pleasantville, USA....that's what Gull Lake is!! It is always great to come back and see our friends from Star sailing and what a treat to have them host the Finn Nationals!

I'm back coaching Geoff Ewenson. He's been jet-setting all over the world sailing his Finn and doing great. We are hoping that he continues progress here at Gull Lake as he eyes up the Olympic Trials in October.

The racing starts tomorrow and runs through Sunday. Today is a practice day and I hope to post some observations, but the wind is incredibly light (none), so we are waiting to see what happens.

Stay tuned for stories....at least we'll report shore-side antics.

2007-06-14T10:47:00.000-04:00

Lake Erie Districts - 2007
Cleveland Yachting Club

The Lake Erie District as some really cool spots to sail, CYC being one of them. Situated on a small island in the middle of the Rocky River, it is easy to get in/out to Lake Erie for some great sailing.

For the Quantum Team, this years event provided the perfect "test" to getting 1049 up to speed and we used every opportunity to tune and fine-tune.

The racing on Saturday started out perfect. Nice waves, nice wind and a good "open water" speed test with small-ish wind shifts. Throughout the day, however, the breeze tapered off and the light and lump set in.

Kyle Finefrock was on fire. He didn't make many mistakes and took advantage of some good opportunities and capitalized. Kyle had Ben Mercer and Sarah Paisley on board to help him....they sailed great! Ernie Dieball made his LE District debut in 3995 with Mike Stark and Rick Rothenbuhler and finished an impressive 2nd. Their speed was a good benchmark for my team (Karl Felger and Ryanne Gallangher) to test 1049.

We had our ups and downs, but used this great event to learn. And learn we did.

We found out that we were on pace when the wind was up and mast loaded. When the wind died down below 10 knots, we felt good on port tack, but really bad on starboard tack. As the day progressed our observations were heightened.

We got back on to the dock with a 6, 17, 10, which wasn't what we had planned on. The 17 was due mainly to a main halyard problem at the start (main was down in the boat at the gun!) and the 10 was probably better than we deserved due to the misfortunes of many rounding the wrong mark.

Once on shore, we check all settings. Our rake was spot on with the tuning numbers, but we noticed that the boom was much higher. So we raked back 2". We measured diamonds and found that one side was much tighter than the other....odd because when I tuned the mast in the comfort of the sail loft, it seemed symmetric. So, we popped off all the diamonds and the mast was bent slightly in a reverse "C". This all correlated with our on-the-water observations. Fortunately for us CYC has a few trees that have been used for many-a-mast. It took us 10 minutes to get it straight, tuned and back on the boat.

Interestingly too, we found that our mast step was higher in one corner than the other, forcing the mast to "load" differently from one tack to the other. We filed the mast step and got it right.

Sunday brought great speed and better scores for 1049. Still not perfect, but again great opportunities to test, tune and experiment against many of the best sailors in the class.

We had an amazing weekend of fun and learning at CYC. Thanks to them and to the LE District sailors for their hard work in making Districts a good time.

2007-06-07T16:46:00.000-04:00

Thistle 1049

June 2nd marked the end of Project #1, which is Thistle 1049. I sailed it in the Cattail Regatta at Jolly Roger Sailing Club and the boat set up really nice. To help, my brother sailed 3995 in the same event. We had a bit of time to do some straight lining and the boats were pretty equal, which made me happy. Happier still, Karl Felger and I won the Cattail with a 1,1,2. Successful first outing.

This coming weekend is the Lake Erie Districts. I hope to be able to produce some "sailing" pictures to round out this Blog.

2007-06-05T08:16:00.000-04:00

"We all need the Clowns to make us smile..."

Bruce Goldsmith

1936-2007

2007-06-04T16:25:00.000-04:00

Bruce Goldsmith
1936-2007

Sailors all over the world lost a friend yesterday with the Passing of Bruce Goldsmith. How do you describe the indescribable? Somehow, "You had to be there" comes closest.

Bruce won World Championships, North American Championships, National Championships and 2 Pan American Games Gold medals. He was second in the 1972 Olympic Trials to Buddy Melges.

His legend far exceeds the time he spent in sailing alone. But in a sport where sailors spend many an evening around boat parks discussing the greatest ever, Bruce stands in a very small group.

Those who have a heavy heart today, might want to train your mind's eye and fill in the blank:
Bruce is:___________

Two-time Lightning World Champion.
1960 Thistle Class National Champion.
Winning the Soling practice race at the 1972 Olympics by 5 minutes.
Late.
Missing a third crew.
Almost a leg ahead.
Sailing another blue boat called Snoopy.
Winning a North American title while not considering pouring out the case of beer someone hid under his foredeck.
Crossing the fleet on Port from the pin.
Setting up the model boat races.
Giving away 9 used jibs on the lawn.
Reinforcing a broken mast with a butter knife.
Winning another Pan American Games Medal.
Launched.

Yesterday, I tried to describe Bruce to my wife, who isn't an active sailor. I told her that you could take the 5 best sailors in the world in any era, put them on a starting line and he could (after leaving his boat in the water the three previous nights) beat any of them. She said, "Wow…and you were friends with him?" I paused awhile, considering how terrible simply changing one word from 'are' feels right now. "We all were" I said.

We all were.

Because he encouraged us. He hung out with us. He helped us get faster. He asked us to come along. He came along when we asked him. He finished in front of us but he made sure we never felt beaten.

He was the Bruin.

And today is just the first day of the forever when he'll be remembered.

by: Bill Faude

2007-05-18T09:14:00.000-04:00

You Can Go Home Again

This past weekend I had the pleasure of coaching in a Clinic held by Berlin Yacht Club. Berlin is located on a small lake in Eastern Ohio about an hour south of Cleveland. They club consisted of a varying assortment of members that range anywhere in age and sailing aptitude. While they’ve had their share of national champions sail out of the club, Berlin’s strongest membership comes from beginning to intermediate sailors. This weekend was geared towards getting the most out of each individual sailor and begin to prepare them for the great summer season that is at hand.

Sailing boats that would make Sandy Douglass proud (Highlanders, Thistles and Flying Scots) the Clinic consisted of 9 boats and numerous crews and skippers. I had the opportunity of both video taping, instructing and sailing with some great individuals. On Saturday with winds in the 20 knot range, we focused on starts and their importance in sailboat racing. We preformed over 15 starts and came away some valuable lessons as each sailor improved their skill set vastly.

--Try to develop a plan early
--Don’t be afraid to be close to the line
--Speed off the line is paramount
--Getting a start that allows you to implement your game plan is critical

Sunday was quite calmer breeze wise and we worked out our downwind approach. We focused on sets, douses, gybes and crew work. Once again getting great video and instruction was key as we were able to dissect each individuals work on a specific boat and point out what they needed to work on; and more importantly what they were doing properly. As with Saturday each sailor came away with some important keys to downwind sailing.

--Develop a game plan (see a theme?)
--Communication amongst crew members is critical
--Speed (i.e. sailing in pressure) is king

This past weekend was a brainchild of Harold Bauer and Team. It couldn’t have been pulled off without the help to the Finefrock family (though we missed Jesse), the Diffley’s, Rick Banning, Ben Chauffeur, Ben Craig, and world famous Sarah Paisley. Also, as always the kitchen crew was fantastic and is a major reason for such a great turn out.

I cannot stress enough how important club functions and your support are. Sailing is a sport we can ill afford not to pledge our support to, especially at the local club level. Event like these are a positive sign for a strong future.

Karl D. Felger
Quantum Sail Design Group
Toledo, OH 43611

2007-04-26T08:16:00.000-04:00

Thistle Jibs - Skip Dieball

Lately there has been a lot of talk about Thistle Jibs, their longevity and potential solutions to what many feel is a problem.

For starters, let me take you through what we've learned in the past 20 months being affiliated with Quantum Sails. In the fall of 2005 we started to analyze cloth that could be used in all Thistle Sails. Most cloth available for One Design applications comes in a variety of "finishes" both in resin and in weave. We knew we wanted a durable cloth for the jib as it gets bent around the forestay, crushed into the bow tank, jabbed by spreaders, etc. The Dimension/Polyant line of Square Weave HTP Plus cloth has been known for its ability to perform and withstand punishment.

Initially we built sails out of 165, which is 3.8 oz. The cloth is very nice, but we found (as you will see in the pictures below) that it broke down early, which went against one of our primary goals. We briefly tested 180, which is 4.2oz and it clearly performed as good and held up well. At the 2006 MWE we delivered all jibs in the 180 flavor. To this day we still offer this cloth in our jib and we are happy with the balance between durability and performance (sailmakers call it price/performance). Greg Griffin talks about his impression of how durable our sails were in the January Insite News on Destination One Design:

http://www.destinationonedesign.com/community/get_article.aspx?article=4e970382-305c-49ee-a4a0-e430a3ce772b

Through our testing in Jacksonville this winter, we have built a variety of jibs out of slightly different cloth from Contender (Polykote). It is amazing stuff, if you never had to bend it around the mast. We use "PK" in our Lightning, Scot, Highlander sails and it works great. The primary difference between the Thistle and these boats.....decks and somewhat less overlap (LP) on the headsail.

Now in April 2007 the question has been placed to the class via List Serve. What should we do with our jib durability issues? Of course that question brought on a lot of generalizations from folks that suggested that sailmakers don't care, they don't sail because "they know" what sailing does to the sails, we are concerned only about making a profit. Let me try to help set the record straight....we care immensely! If we at Quantum are viewed as the "durability" experts, or if our sails are seen as the durable option, that puts us at a HUGE competitive advantage. It is a great motivator and those involved in our product development know that this is always a top consideration.

Back to the List Serve. I enjoy listening to "ideas" on various topics. The problem is that too many times ideas get shot down. Sometimes its logic, but many times it is just a stalwart that suggests "its always been this way", which I can truly appreciate history and legacy, but we also can't squelch those trying to help by making suggestions.

One such suggestion was whether the class, which has an acquisition limit, should allow a 2nd jib. I think it is an potential solution to the current problem, assuming the class does nothing with its rules. A jib is about $450 retail, but, as was pointed out, the sails will be worth more in the very vibrant 2nd hand market.

Another suggestion, which Greg Fisher and I talk about often, is split weighting the cloth. By that the sailmakers would be free to place some different styles and weights in the problem areas (which you can see in the pictures below). The problem, it isn't allowed by the class.

Another suggestion is to address the corner detailing. This is allowed (to a certain degree) and something we have done in our 2007 sails. The clew corners are much bigger to cover the problem areas. Another reinforcement point could be a spreader patch....

In order for the class and sailmakers to conquer this problem, there has to be recognition that there is a problem. I truly believe the lack of a deck, low spreaders and the LP (overlap) of the sail AND no minimum weight point to the fact that there is a problem.

Solutions?

-Specify a minimum weight of 4.0oz
-Allow split weight
-Loosen up on the corner detailing

Check out these pictures and notes below....they show the exact problem area and the above solutions could address this problem....
****************************************

2005 Quantum Thistle Jib (165sq HTP). This sail has approximately 250 sailing hours on it.

These four pictures show one of our first 2005 series jibs that has been retired to practice. Notice that there will be a common theme of where these sails breakdown and it is about 2' above the clew (ironically where the sail makes its transition from the deck grating to the bow tank area).

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2006 Test Jib - 180sq with standard corner detailing. The weight difference of this jib vs. the above pics is 3.8oz to 4.2oz. The sail has about 50 sailing hours on it.

Though it has a smaller corner, the initial breakdown is evident in the #2 seam, just behind the window detailing. This is the area that gets worked into the grating if the jib is pushed down into the bow. This is also where the sail "hinges" if it is backwinded or "boxed".

Greg Griffin reported that he got 16 regattas = 70 races out of his 2006 jib sailing throughout the Southeast.

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Test 07 - This sail is identical to the sail above in that it is built out of 180sq. The difference is the corner detailing. This sail has approximately the same number of hours (50) as the sail above.

Notice the transition point between the sail and the corner detailing. It is easy to see where the Thistle Jib breaks down initially.

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3995's 2007 Jib. Built out of 180sq and larger corner detailing. This sail is the result of the above testing. This jib has MWE & Orange Peel which equates to about 56 hours +/- in some of the toughest conditions. Proof Positive?

The corner transition is not as pronounced and although this sail doesn't have a full season, I am very confident that we'll be doing battle with this sail throughout the summer of 2007!

2007-04-23T12:05:00.000-04:00

Sailors Are Responsible People.

Located in Athens, Ohio the Ohio University Sailing Team hosted the 4th Annual BYOB@OHIO Regatta. Battling big breeze, volatile wind shifts and the bitter cold; 6 teams competed at Lake Snowden, just outside campus.

A small clinic held by Karl Felger of Quantum Sails Toledo was scheduled for Friday where a feel teams were to participate in on the water drills covering maneuvering and boat handling, “chalk talks” discussing strategy vs. tactics, and general discussions on boat/sail maintenance and running a good regatta/team. Unfortunately due to unseasonable weather teams were delayed in arriving. Rest assured that while unable to execute the on the water activities there were still some lively discussions on all things sailboat racing.

Saturday morning we awoke to a pancake breakfast hosted by Caroline Sundman. The first race was delayed until 10:45 in hopes that the wind would subside and the temperatures would rise (it was 27 degrees when we woke up) This unfortunately did not happen… as we sailed through two snow squalls. Four races were completed and racing was called for the day due to numerous capsizes, an eminent snow storm, and a desire to remain alive. Saturday evening we were treated to good food and tasty beverages at Lucky’s Sports Tavern and BW3’s. After dinner some sailors retired back to their provided housing, while others stayed uptown to check out the night life and support Athen’s local businesses (if you knew OU is the #6 party school in the country you’ll catch my drift.)

Sunday morning was an exact duplicate of Saturday. Bitter cold temperatures and volatile conditions provided for some exciting racing. Four more races were sailed Sunday morning before the cutoff time of 12:30. Ohio State ended up winning the regatta by one point. They were followed by Miami University (Ohio), Wittenberg College, Owens Community College, Ohio University and Denison. The top 4 teams were separated by a total of 4 points when it was all said and done.

Prizes for the top three teams were provided by Quantum Sails Toledo, along with a give-aways. OU Sailing Team Commodore, Kyle Gifford was quoted as saying “thanks to all the teams that showed up and made this a great regatta and a special thanks to OU Alumni Karl Felger and Quantum Sails for all of their support. We can’t wait until next year!”

Karl D. Felger
Quantum Sails Design Group
Toledo, OH

*Photos by Caroline Sundman

2007-03-20T11:22:00.000-04:00

Thistle 1049 - Getting Closer!

While I was down south playing at all the fun regattas in Florida, The King (Denny Dieball) was putting his talented hands to hard work on my wooden Thistle project(s)!

The Interior (w/exception of Grates & Twart) is DONE! The rails, seats and trunk were all done "bright" and came out great. 1049 had a painted interior and the plan all along was to keep it painted, which saves time and keeps the boat sealed and solid. Check out some of the pics from the progress.

2007-03-20T10:56:00.000-04:00

Spring Wrap-Up

It seems that this winter just breezed by. The travels, friends made and friendships rekindled has made this one of the best winters in memory.

We essentially set up our "southern hub" of Quantum Sails in Jacksonville. In early December we towed our Thistle and a bunch of test sails for a weekend of learning. It worked and we have a solid grasp on our 2008 model changes and look forward to doing more testing through the spring and summer.

During the testing weekend, Greg Griffin, Paul Abdullah, Matias Heinrich and I had an idea of hosting a training weekend doing a bunch of drills in order to get on the water and get better in the Thistle. The idea was simple enough and in the end we held two Training Weekends at The Florida Yacht Club in Jacksonville.

The first Training Weekend (Feb 3-4) we had nearly 15 boats. It was fun and we got a lot accomplished. We did a number of downwind drills, which really produced some flying rust, but in the end everyone was better polished. Mock racing and reaching drills rounded out the weekend and many won some great prizes.

The second Training Weekend (Feb 17-18) had a few less boats, mainly due to the conflicting St. Pete NOOD regatta. The intensity of the training remained high and we did some different drills and worked on starting. We had great feedback from both events and it truly set the stage for an annual Training Weekend in '08.

In between all the Thistle Sailing, we towed our Lightning (Quantum Racing) down to Miami for the Orange Bowl. The event was lightly attended, but proved to provide us some great practice for the Midwinters in March...more on that later.

March saw nearly everyone from the Quantum Toledo loft somewhere in Florida. Thistle Midwinters, Interlake Midwinters, Flying Scot Midwinters, Lightning Southern Circuit and Thistle Southern Circuit (Orange Peel) were all on our hit list and Quantum Customers posted some amazing scores....check it out:

Thistle Midwinters 2,4,5,6,10*,12*,14*
Interlake Midwinters 1,4,5*,9,10,12
Flying Scot Midwinters 6
Lightning Savannah 4,7
Lightning Miami 1,13,20,23
Lightning St. Pete 9,10
Thistle Orange Peel 1,4,5,6,9*,11

For only being in the game for 18 months with Quantum, we are quite proud of the above scores. But we are careful not to get all caught up in the "results game" the way others do. We like to focus on the middle-tier sailors in helping them get better. Proof positive in that at the Thistle Midwinters our customers finished 1,3 in the "B" division. Truly we are proud of this feat!

Back to reality and the very volatile spring weather in Ohio. All of our tans will quickly fade, but the memories will be with us for a long time. We are looking forward to capitalizing on our spring success as we continue to build championship caliber sails right here in Toledo, Ohio!

Cheers,

Skip Dieball
Owner, Quantum Sails Toledo & Quantum Sails Cleveland

2007-03-06T14:01:00.000-05:00

Thistle MWE 2007 - Karl Felger

Some would say that Quantum One Design is “bringin’ it” in the Thistle Class. Following up a Nationals in which Quantum Sails had 5 boats in the Top 10, this year’s Thistle Midwinters East provided 4 boats in the Top 6 finishers with Paul Abdullah, Greg Griffin, Scott Griffin and Skip Dieball finishing 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th, respectively.

Quantum Sails One Design would also like to congratulate Quantum customer George Allen (3853) on winning the B Fleet in his first visit ever to Thistle MWE. George was excited with the ease of set up, customer support and camaraderie he receive with his new sails. It’s all worth while when you see that ear to ear smile of a fellow sailor.

Joe McCorkell and Matias Heinrich continued their surge to the front of the fleet with strong finishing performances while current US Sailing Sailor of the Week and Quantum Representative Greg Griffin showed us all how it was done as the breeze built late in the week with a 2nd-1st-1st to finish the regatta.

On a special note, Quantum Sails would also like to congratulate Elmer Richards of Thistle 3954 (Elmer’s Glue II) on attending his 50th consecutive Midwinters Regatta. The Thistle Class honored Elmer with a special tribute on Wednesday evening with numerous friends, family and fellow sailors in attendance.

On behalf of the entire Thistle Class and the Quantum Sail Design Group we would like to thank Carole Bardes and her incredible support staff of the St Petersburg Yacht Club for hosting another fantastic and well run regatta.

1st Greg Fisher
2nd Paul Abdullah (Powered by Quantum Sails)
3rd Robby Brown
4th Greg Griffin (Powered by Quantum Sails)
5th Scott Griffin (Powered by Quantum Sails)

6th Skip Dieball (Powered by Quantum Sails)

*Photo courtesy of Sailing World

2007-02-12T14:38:00.000-05:00

Thistle 1049 - Taking form....

Although this winter has been quite busy for the gang at Quantum Toledo, one team member has been hard at work getting the Wood Thistle Project closer to completion.

The first boat to go through "The King's" shrine is 1049. It is a D&M Kit boat from years ago and has changed hands many times since its glory days in the early 80s when it was a staple at the front of the fleet. Still solid and still fair, 1049 is going through the transformation of upgraded rails, grates, thwarts & CB Cap. When done, it will look very nice and will sport a new paint job, rigging and overall look.

1049 has a sister in this trasformation proceedure. Thistle 1234 will be following 1049 within the coming weeks to get similar upgrades and enhancements.

Stay Tuned!!!!

2007-02-06T08:49:00.000-05:00

Thistle Training Weekend – February 2-4th, 2007
By: Karl D. Felger

The guys and gals of Quantum Sails Toledo (QST) descended upon Jacksonville, FL this past weekend in a effort to escape the extreme cold of the North (Negative 8 degrees in Ohio), get some much needed practice in, and enjoy the company of good friends. Our 16 hour trek down in the Magic Bus (a.k.a. the QST van) was highlighted by stops in Athens, OH to pick up crew, and the Middle of Nowhereville, WV because of extreme weather conditions.

We arrived unscathed and as a result, Thistle Training Weekend #1 was a huge success. Of the nine boats that were on the water six sported Quantum Sails including many new test sails, as we’re always gearing towards the future. A good majority of sailors arrived Friday night, and since we're no stranger to the barbeque, we headed over to BW3's for some chicken wings and debauchery. It was all good in the hood until Quantum Team Playa Craig “Horseshack” showed up and Nick and I simultaneously proclaimed "SHOTS!" Needless to say, we have super fun time with super fun people as the party continued back at the Griffen estate.

Saturday we awoke to gray skies, but bearably warm weather. Skip Dieball and Greg Griffin of Quantum Sails, along with help from numerous volunteers, ran an excellent training session. The main emphasis was on eliminating mistakes, maneuvering and boat handling. Many of the drills were highlighted by close encounters and exciting race situations. One of the most intense drills of the day was the downwind sprints; where 2 boats raced down side-by-side lanes drag race style. Awards, provided by Quantum Sails Toledo, we handed out for each drill and consisted of Yellowtail Wine and Colt 45 (works every time). Saturday night we headed back to the Griffin estate for delicious bowls of chili and corn bread. Oh, and we ate more chicken wings (bringing my streak up to 5 days in a row).

A major part of this trip was spent in the QST Magic Bus. Stay tuned true believers and I’m sure you'll hear and see plenty more of the Magic Bus as it is our favored form of transportation. Since traveling is always half the battle in sailboat racing, we emphasis making the trip as fun and as safe as possible. Follow these few steps and traveling no longer becomes a chore, but a welcome part of the regatta experience.

1. Make sure to have enough drivers/passengers. Put an emphasis on NOT DRIVING WHILE TIRED. A rotation is always key, even if it's every hour or two.
2. Get a laptop or portable DVD player. Watching DVD's while driving makes the trip go rather smoothly and seem faster. Also, when choosing a DVD to watching pick something that is enjoyable to listen to, so the driver can remain involved and not put you in the ditch. (We choose season 1 and 2 of "Entourage")
3. Travel with fun people.
4. Don't drive recklessly. Getting there half an hour early is not worth the risk.
5. Don't skimp on the chicken wings!

This is how a 16 hour drive to Jacksonville/St. Pete every weekend in February is just another day at the office.

“There is no substitute for speed!”

Karl D. Felger
Quantum Sail Design Group
5556 Edgewater Dr.Toledo, OH 43611 USA
+1-419-729-4777 (Office - Toledo)
+1-419-309-7470 (Cell)
kfelger@quantumsails.com
http://www.quantumsails.com/

2007-02-05T14:12:00.000-05:00

Big Fun @ Jacksonville Training, Feb 3-4

2007-01-23T19:47:00.000-05:00

Light & Shite Miami OCR Day 2- Skip Dieball

Miami OCR produced some very tough conditions today. After being postponed on land for about an hour, the RC sent out all fleets. It seemed like a very bold move as there really wasn't much wind on the Bay.....and it turned out to give the RC fits as they remained postponed throughout much of the late morning.

The Finn/470 course managed to get underway at about 2:30pm.....it was an incredibly long day. The 470 women and the Finns got in 2 races, while the 470 men only got in one.

Geoff is hanging tough. A bad opening race yielded to a very respectable 2nd race. After all the shuffling, he's in the same spot as yesterday 11th out of 48ish.

Until tomorrow....

2007-01-22T21:01:00.000-05:00

Miami OCR - Day 1 Skip Dieball

After spending the weekend in New Orleans at the US Sailing Symposiums, I arrived late Sunday to Miami, which made for an early first day of the OCR.

I'm working again with Geoff Ewenson, who turned in a decent day with a 14,11. The Finn group that traveled to Miami this year make up many of the top 25 spots in the ISAF rankings. For that reason, the entire make up of the US Sailing Team selection points will be interesting to watch as the week progresses. The top Finnster after combining Pre-Trials, Miami OCR & Ft. Lauderdale will go to the Olympic Test Event in China, and the top three guys will go to the combinded World Championships in Portugal later this year.

It was an interesting day as a front moved out but we still had a significant cloud cover. These clouds produced some steady winds, albeit with some oscillations.

Here are some shots from today:

2007-01-22T20:37:00.000-05:00

San Diego - Training/Thistle MWW

The days leading up to the 2007 Thistle Midwinters West were spent with a lot of learning! Not only were there a few teams out there early to shake the rust, but the annual pre-event Clinic was a success. Both Greg Fisher and I spent the afternoon working with nearly half the entrants in honing their set up and boat handling.

I also had some time spent with my friend Pete Bellin and his team as they prepare for a full-blown sailing schedule for 2007. Their team made huge gains through the 2 days spent! We are looking forward to getting back together later this spring to check the progress.

2007-01-11T14:02:00.000-05:00

Roll Tacking - Skip Dieball

This past summer I was giving a clinic at Put-In-Bay for the Jr. Racers and we talked at length about Roll Tacking. The Jr. scene is generally coached up by College Sailors, so many times I'll notice that teams try to violently roll the boat through the tacks. Although the spirit is good, many times the execution is not good and sometimes counter productive.

In order to execute good Roll Tacks, we have to understand what it is we are trying to accomplish. In most sailing (outside of College Sailing), the goal of a good maneuver is to minimize the "pain" of losing speed. Tacks and maneuvers related to tacks (720s, leeward mark roundings) are sometimes the most painful in terms of "down speed" maneuvers. So as we've evolved in sailing, so has our attention to these maneuvers.

The first thing I try to communicate to folks is that you have to be smooth in executing all maneuvers. In order to be smooth, you have to be coordinated with yourself and your teammates. In this article you will see that Steve Frazier (Univ. of Rhode Island) and Jesse Shedden (Florida State U.) execute a great roll tack in the Interlake.

It didn't take Steve and Jesse long to make smooth Roll Tacks, but it did take a bit of coordination to get there. Let's analyze their maneuver.....

A successful Roll Tack starts on the front end. You've got to make certain that everyone is ready and that the driver has communicated his/her intentions of tacking. Once everyone is ready, the driver then scans the water to find a "flat spot" in which to start (and finish) the maneuver. If you try to pull off any tack or gybe in the presence of waves, it could be counter-productive.

Once you are satisfied that you can get through the water without the waves knocking you around, start off by communicating that you are turning the boat. On my boat, I simply count to coordinate the facets of the tack. The initial turn is "1", followed by "2" when you are in the eye of the wind and "3" when you want to roll the boat through the tack.

Here you see Steve and Jesse in their "1" stage. Notice that there are no violent motions with either the tiller of crew weight. The Interlake (and most boats) will naturally want to turn into the wind, so the job of the driver is to maintain a nice pace through the tack and the coordinated crew work.

Still in the "1" phase, you'll see that both Steve and Jesse are now moving their weight inboard so that the boat maintains a nice pace through the tack. If they didn't move in, Steve would have needed to use more tiller/rudder to turn the boat, which causes the boat to slow down slightly.

As they move into the "2" phase (into the eye of the wind), you'll see that they haven't moved drastically one way or the other. The boat still has a nice pace and Steve still has control over the turn of the boat. Many times (especially in Interlakes) I'll see the driver stand up or the crew lean against the boom. This might be needed in some boats that have a tough time turning, but in most dinghies (especially Interlakes), the boat will turn on its own.

Now fulling into the "2" phase, you'll notice that both Steve and Jesse are moving their weight to the rail. This, coupled with the position of the tiller/rudder helps get the boat through the eye of the wind faster and gives you the heel you need to gain leverage through the "3" phase. Notice that the mainsail is still tight (you gain energy off the tight leech) and the jib is "boxed" or backwinded. This helps pull the bow through the eye of the wind.

Now the guys are through the eye of the wind and the boat has the proper leverage for them to cross through and exit the tack with hopefully the same speed as you entered the tack. Note that the tiller has never really been "forced" hard to the side.

The "3" phase is the quickest of the four phases. This is where not only will you slide your weight out, but you'll then cross over to the other side as the boat is turning to its "exit" course.

The 4th phase below is the final phase and here you see both Steve and Jesse on the new weather rail and the boat exiting the tack with great speed (evident by the flow off the rudder). You'll notice that Jesse has his arm above his head finishing the trimming of the jib. On 1407, the jib is 2:1 with a pulley off the clew. Jesse can make his life easier by always monitoring the "lazy sheet" and making sure it isn't too loose. If that lazy sheet is ready for the tack, the amount of sheet to pull will be substantially less.

As you can see there are many facets to the Roll Tack. What is important, and what I keep telling folks at clinics and seminars, is to be smooth with the maneuver. If you are like me and don't have the agility of a 20-something College Sailor, then scale it back, but always stay coordinated. Your boatspeed won't suffer if you concentrate and coordinate.

2007-01-11T10:43:00.000-05:00

Bringing old Thistles back to life....by Skip Dieball

This winter Ernie Dieball and I hit the road for New England to lay claim to a couple of old, wood Thistles in search of a new home. The idea was that we could put in a little effort and with any luck, find some new fleet members and enhance Fleet 37, our home fleet.

The trip out there and back is a story in itself packed with Monster Energy Drink hallucinations, bad hotels, New England Patriots traffic, locking keys in vehicles, etc. We made it back to Toledo in about 36 hours with 2 boats.

My dad (known by thousands as just Denny, AKA The King), a highly talented boatbuilder (retired), has been keeping busy with projects to keep my mom happy, but I could tell he needed his boat fix. He's been there, done that with all things plastic and fiberglass. I presented him with a deviation in wood boats. His only reservation was with "brightwork", which I assured him I had neither the time nor the talent to keep up with over the years. The 2 boats are/were/will be painted interior & exterior and all bigtime mods had already been made (glassed bottoms, beefed up chainplate areas, etc.).

So, I will attempt to update this blog with the boat's progress. I am truly amazed how quickly The King has gotten one of them ready for new wood and interior paint. The other is not far behind and our goal of having these things ready for June 1st launch is laughable at this point....should be more like April 1st.

Check out some of the progress:

2007-01-10T11:08:00.000-05:00

MIAMI ORANGE BOWL

The Orange Bowl is famous for being a Youth Regatta in Miami between the holidays. What a lot of people don't know is that out of Coconut Grove Sailing Club there is an adult version of the Orange Bowl sailed in Lightnings and Lasers. Over the years the Lightning division has been up over 30 boats, but attendance has slipped the past few years. This year it hit an all-time low with only 5 boats. Team Quantum Racing was one of the boats and our goals were outside of the actual regatta as we wanted to get in some great sailing and test some new sail designs and fabrics.

The boat was already down in FLA from the previous Jax/Clearwater/FLL trip. Thanks to buddy Sponge and his wife Kylie for looking after our machine for a few weeks. Our plan was to get the boat back to Sponge's place, but an unfortunate collision (yep, we wrecked in a 5 boat fleet) forced us to tow the boat back North....but that's another story.

The racing proved to be great. Our scores aside (we won all but 2 of the 8 races) we learned a lot and we are grateful that the other 4 boats were all strong Blue Fleeters (NAs top division). Our sails looked great and we had height/speed when we needed it.

Team Quantum Racing for the Orange Bowl was Skip Dieball, Mike Stark, Karl Felger. Here's a pic of the champs:

Here's a view from our host's great home:

2007-01-10T10:47:00.000-05:00

It has been a busy winter. After the trip to the Star NAs, I spent a little time at home, then went back down to Florida.

The first stop was in Jacksonville where we (Greg, Paul, Matias, John, Fezz) tested out our newest Thistle designs. The main and jib looked great and we have a few more enhancements to address to make these things ready for battle. It is a fun process and working with these guys has been great. We formulated a plan to do some Winter Training in Jacksonville in Feb, so look for reports from the road.

Here are some pics of the testing

After the time in Jacksonville I motored down the road to Clearwater where I caught up with Geoff Ewenson at the Finn coaches regatta. It was a fun trip and one that will no doubt be relived again through other fleets. The participants had fun getting coached up all weekend and the drills that were implemented were great! Here's some action:

After the week in Clearwater I trucked on down to Ft. Lauderdale to spend some time with my North Cape friend, Anna Tunnicliffe. She had a good group of training partners together and I went out and took some video and stills. Here's some of the action:

2006-11-17T21:09:00.000-05:00

Star NAs
Friday - Miami, FL

It was a rather long day today. The wind was light and was very shifty, therefore we were postponed. Then an attempt or two at a start, then an actual race….only to be abandoned.

When we actually got underway, it was only blowing 5-6 knots. There were spots of wind where we’d actually have to lean out, but for the most part, it was on the cockpit floor upwind and sitting on the bow downwind.

The good news is that we had a great race. We were 3rd around every mark and ended the race in 3rd. We battled the Brazilians (Scheidt/Prada) for most of the last beat. They jumped us by tacking at the bottom mark. We got them back right at the finish (actually nosing them out). The last beat I was over the side and Mark sat in, which sounds weird, but is quite fast.

The 3rd & getting a throwout moved us up to 8th. We are only 6 points out of 5th. There were a number of boats OCS and many are requesting redress, so who knows. Also, most of the general recalls were under “z” flag, yet there were not 20% penalties. So all results are subject to change. It looked like there was going to be a long night in the room.

One race tomorrow….

SD

2006-11-17T21:08:00.000-05:00

Star NAs
Thursday - Miami, FL

Today was pretty interesting. The wind was 15ish for 90% of the day. We struggled a little because we are a bit lighter than max (quite a bit) so we were in “higher” mode where the bigger teams could foot and send it. It made a difference in the choppy stuff.

Our first race was in the 30s. Not very good, but we were as good as the teens and as bad as the 40s. Not hard to fall, but extremely hard to climb.

The 2nd race we were in the 20s at the top and ended the run in the top 5. Not sure why, but everyone gybed and we were nearly fetching the bottom marks with a bear away rounding. Worked for us and for NZL (Pepper), who went from the 20s to 2nd.

About ½ way up the last beat a big growling cloud worked its way from south to north. It was big and black. With it was a thunderstorm and squall. I’ll bet the winds were in the upper 20s at the top mark. We gybed. I didn’t ruin the mast with the backstays! And whoa man!!! We had a major ride!! The wind got up to 30 and we were ripping down the bay. It was super fun! We couldn’t see 100 feet ahead, so we did the inverse compass number/navigation and the RC boat was right there. We lost a few on the previous beat and watched George Szabo shred the fleet downwind (he’s the only one we lost). George went from 18th to 8th (maybe?!). Pretty impressive to watch him sail the boat in that stuff. They sailed through Horton’s leeward side (ours too!). We did all we could to keep the boat on a plane, but lost some of the pressure as the storm passed. Lots of lightning and lots of very loud thunder!!!

Tomorrow calls for less wind.

2006-11-16T07:22:00.000-05:00

Star NAs - Wednesday
Miami

If every day could be this nice…..80s, 12-16 knots, sunshine. Biscayne Bay is the best on days like this.

The racing is extremely difficult. There are so many gold stars on sails and I think I heard that 23 countries are represented. Both Coral Reef and US Sailing Center are PACKED with boats (85 total, I think). Talk about a race to the hoist….there were boats being hauled for about 2 hours.

Mark and I had a decent day. We sailed a solid 1st race and finished ~10th. The 2nd race we rounded the top in the top 5, bottom in 2nd and then got caught on the left when the right came in…lost a few. On the run we suspect that we might have had some weeds because we had been fast all day downwind and we were a touch off the pace…..lanes are very tight as well. Finished the 2nd race ~10th as well.

2006-11-14T21:33:00.000-05:00

Star NAs - Tuesday
Miami - Coral Reef Yacht Club

Today was measurement and practice day. The conditions for sailing improved through the afternoon. By 1:PM, we hit the water for some practice.

We had a nice sail in 5-7 knots and worked out some kinks (on my end!). We're looking forward to tomorrow. Racing starts at 11:AM and there are two on the schedule.

We are Bow #39 and USA-8239. Most of the coverage can be found at www.starclass.org.

SD

2006-10-22T00:22:00.000-04:00

Finn Pre-Trials : Friday Racing Postponed due to no wind.....check out the Committee boat from the Newport Harbor YC. Very nice, but as with all the competitors, waiting for wind!!!!

USA-11 (The Speed Instrument)

Racing started on Saturday. The wind peaked at about 6 knots, but averaged in the 3 range. It was tough day for everyone involved. The US Olympic Committee wanted to pick a light-air venue to replicate the China site....I think they got what they asked for!!!

2006-10-20T02:25:00.000-04:00

We had great conditions today for our final day of training before the Pre-Trials event starts.....the day started with a decent measurement process. It was brief, painless, etc. Geoff and I decided that after a few errands, we'd check the conditions by going to the beach side of the peninsula and there we found near white-cap conditions. Having "seen this movie before" we were expecting the wind to be near nothing by the time our tow got to the sailing area, but what we found was a nice 8-10 knot breeze. We checked one last sail/tune combination and we were satisfied that we explored all variables and had a very solid understanding of the equipment and set-up.

Tomorrow marks the start of the Pre-Trials. Seven races scheduled over 3 days. Given the wind conditions, it'll be surprising if all races are sailed (on schedule).

2006-10-19T00:14:00.000-04:00

Finn Pre-Trials Training (Day 2 - Wednesday)

On thing I've noticed about this place is that the wind is all over the place and rarely blows hard. Yesterday we had a whapping 7 knots. Today we had "Santa Anna" winds for 1/2 the day. We got very excited to hit the water and by the time we got out to the Ocean, it dropped down to 6 knots and then down to 3.8 knots before we pulled the plug. Tomorrow is measurement day, the racing starts on Friday.

2006-10-18T01:45:00.000-04:00

Finn Pre Trials Training

2006-10-18T01:43:00.000-04:00

Finn Pre-Trials Training

Geoff Ewenson

2006-10-10T14:06:00.000-04:00

2006 Snowball Regatta - Buckeye Lake, Ohio

October 7-8, 2006

This Much Fun Should Be Illegal, Karl Felger

The weekend of October 7-8, 2006 will forever hold a special place in our hearts and minds… well at least the parts we can remember. Buckeye Lake Yacht Club is a quant little yacht club with big history and bright future. They owe a large part of that to one man, George Fisher. Many of us know George as that old guy that still goes out and kicks our butts. Even more of us know George as a great teacher, friend and ambassador to the sport of sailing. This past weekend at Buckeye Lake we all gathered to celebrate his birthday, and life.
Over 45 boats in various classes sailed out of BLYC Saturday to clear skies and decent breeze. The battle in the lightning class would be heated from the start. Skipper D, Krazy Karl (a dubious due no doubt) along with the lovely Ryanne Gallagher got off to a good start but the birthday boy himself was doing the best to show us that he hadn’t lost his touch. With 40 degrees shifts and large differences in pressure, gains and losses were magnified. Leading at the top mark was the highly talented and no so bad to look at Team Probst. Following close behind was Skipper D and Team with the fleet hot on their heels. This would be a precursor to the rest of the regatta as the co-leaders at the cocktail party, Skipper D and Super Dave (Starck), would not win any of the three races that day but remained models of consistency.
The evening’s festivities were highlighted by many fun, dangerous and rum-induced antics. First, there was Ryanne locking the keys in the van, followed by Skipper D succeeding to climb and fall off of a fence in one swoop. Many applause go out to the World Famous ( I mean notorious) Trailer Trash Band for supplying the music for the evening. Hopefully by their next appearance they will be able to perform “Rocky Top,” a crowd favorite. More rum was had, and more debauchery was made. There was dancing, rum, Skipper D carrying around grown men like they were toys, and… .more rum.
We awoke Sunday morning prepped and ready for another great day of racing. Some of us were even still wearing our sailing clothes from the day before. Unfortunately Mother Nature didn’t agree, as the breeze was almost nonexistent. After a delay, races were finally cancelled for the day and trophies were awarded. Fending off Super Dave late into the night and even after being besieged by Super Dave’s singing talents, Skipper D held on to win the Lightning Class in stunning fashion… leading at the cocktail party.
Awards were, uh… awarded, and much applause was received. Finally we all took a moment to give thanks to George Fisher. The Man, the Myth, the Legend. For pretty soon he’ll probably be kicking our butts on the race course once again.

Results (Lightning)
1. Skip Dieball (powered by Quantum)

2. Super Dave Starck

3. Rob Ruhlman

2006-10-10T14:04:00.000-04:00

2006 Kentucky Bluegrass Regatta, Louisville, KY.

I got back from Louisville last night where I sailed in the famous Bluegrass Highlander Regatta this past weekend. My friends from Louisville, Erin and Ed Spengeman, started talking to me about this event during the Highlander Nationals in July. I was placed on their email list and would get a weekly reminder about when the dates were and directions how to get there. I had sailed there once before and had a great time. There is usually a theme involved, and this year it was the Jimmy Buffett Bluegrass Regatta…make sure that you bring your grass skirt and Hawaiian shirt!! At one point I was told Jimmy was scheduled to attend, it was later confirmed that he could not make it. I am not sure if this was to help me decide to go or not, but screw Jimmy, I am going anyway!!

My girlfriend Jacqueline and I got a late start out of Toledo on Friday and arrived at the LSC around 1:30AM!! A bit later than I wanted to arrive, but there were quite a few Highlander sailors still up playing some sort of Bean Bag Toss game, right next to the keg. We joined some familiar faces and caught up on some old times. The Bauer brothers (John and Steve) were still going strong, as were Jason Hubbard, Barret Rhoades, Eric Milliman, Justin Busbey and a guy named Rob. There were a few others that I did not recognize…but noticed a face I have not seen in a few years. It was Jess Gerry, who came in from SoCal to race with Ed and Erin!! It was cool to see him again and I think the clock was edging towards 3am when we retired to our tents!!

With a later start, you have plenty of time to get breakfast and get your boat together. My team, Steve Bauer and Liz Bauer ;-), were up and ready and had the boat ½ together before I got to it! The breeze started out light in the morning, but filled in nicely for a 1pm start. When launching the boat, you need to hang on. The current was moving, between 3-4 knots!! We sailed out for a few practice tacks and gybes since we had not been in a boat together. It was amazing how slow you went upwind and how fast you went downwind. The breeze was out of the N-NE with a few right shifts to be taken advantage of. Louisville has tall hills (floodplain) and current relief was tough to come by since there was not a lot of breeze along the shore. And…your crew needs to keep an eye towards the Indiana side of the river as this is the channel where barge traffic frequently passed by!!!!!

The first two races were tricky as the breeze and current kept the right side of the course mostly favored. Many lead changes came and went, but Jason Hubbard and John Bauer were the race winners. The third race was a bit challenging as we managed to get around the windward mark just ahead of Jason. After a quick gybe inside of him, we pulled away for a nice lead. Holding the rum line, I wanted to make sure that we can take any breeze down that we could and stay below the mark. Well, the wind shut down ½ way down the leg when I called for a gybe to get back across the river and BELOW the mark. The chute collapsed and we were charging downwind, sideways, towards the leeward mark. I called for chute down and jib up so that we could try to go upwind and still cross the river and get BELOW the mark. That did not work either as we zoomed right by the leeward mark, on the wrong side. Jason, seeing the struggles we had, tried the same thing, only to just miss the leeward mark also, on the wrong side.

Kevin Hughes, Joe Collins, John Bauer and Charlie Brehob and Adam Probst managed to come in with some breeze and barely make it around while Jason and I traded tacks, ducked each other to unwind ourselves and get around the leeward mark the correct way. Neal Deaves and Norris Bourdow had no clue what we were doing as we tried to stay out of their way as they rounded. Finally, we managed to get a bit more breeze and make around with Jason right behind us. We played the left side as there was more breeze. Somehow, and I am not sure how, we battled back to 5th and felt fortunate as it could have been a lot worse.

We got the boats out of the water and packed them up for the night. As Steve and I walked up the stairs to the club, we talked about the different ways we could have handled the situation…but settled on there was not much we could have done; it is time for a cocktail!! Getting to the top of the stairs was the remedy that we needed as we were greeted to Jimmy Buffet music, an open bar and countless munchies. Right after we got off the water!!!

The dinner was great, along with a live solo guitarist and we traded war stories with other boats that had similar struggles that we did. Erin Spengeman organized an awesome Buffett Jeopardy. It was great to end the day with sailing friends and a relaxing atmosphere.
Sunday awoke to no breeze and the current still ripping. The RC made the correct choice and called the racing for the day. We tore the boats apart and had a very nice trophy ceremony. Winning the tie breaker, congrats go to Joe Collins for mastering the conditions. We were 2nd with John Bauer coming in a point behind us. 4th was Neal Deaves and Adam Probst 5th.
Many thanks go to the RC team and all of the volunteers of LSC for making the ’06 Bluegrass very memorable. But I need to thank Erin and Ed for inviting and reminding me that I needed to come. They did an amazing job of organizing and making sure everyone had a good time. I plan on being back next year, ready to challenge the mighty Ohio again!!

Ernie Dieball

2006-10-05T15:03:00.000-04:00

St. Petes '06

2006-10-04T13:06:00.000-04:00

Hoosier Regatta 2006

2006-10-04T13:03:00.000-04:00

2006 Hoosier Lightning Regatta

This past weekend four members of the Quantum Loft in Toledo had the pleasure of attending the 2006 Hoosier Regatta at Lake Wawasee. The Slickster (Nick Turner), Skipper D (Skip Dieball), Big Ern (Ernie Dieball) and myself, Krazy Karl Felger descended upon Syracuse, Indiana with one goal in mind… to share some good times and racing with our wonderful friends and family. Upon arriving on Friday night we were greeted to cold drinks and warm smiles. This carried over onto Saturday morning as the competitors were scurrying around removing covers and stepping masts.

Saturday consisted of 3 races held in almost every wind range possible with quite volatile directions. On any given beat you could go from being up 30 degrees with all sailors hiking hard to being down 15 with two on the low side. This only added to the competitive nature of the racing and kept the fleet on its toes. Skipper D, with crew Krazy Karl Felger and Mike Rush managed to pull off three bullets in these trying yet exciting conditions, with Bill Faude and crew right on their heels.

At the dock we were greeted to hot-buttered rum, which got us properly lubricated for an eventful evening. After a delicious and filling dinner we decided to head to the local watering hole to enjoy some fine spirits and college football. Team Quantum Sails Toledo highly recommends the Frog Tavern, just three minutes from the yacht club. It features live cover bands, cheap drinks, plenty of TV’s to enjoy the college football season and Swedish exchange students (though, I had to check their ID’s to make sure). After plenty of shenanigans we departed the Frog Tavern for a stout night cap at the Wawasee Yacht Club, thanks to George Sipel and team.

Waking up Sunday morning to light and variable winds only aided the fact that some of us were still seeing double. Skipper D and Krazy Karl managed to find their long lost crew and after many lead changes, sail changes and tense moments were able to hold off Team Faude for the victory. Special thanks go out to Jeff Schmahl for putting together such a wonderful event. We encourage everyone to attend next year’s Hoosier Regatta.

I agree with Bill Faude in that it’s “The finest fall Lightning regatta in which you’ll ever be lucky to sail.” It truly is…

Results:
1. Team Dieball (powered by Quantum)
2. Team Faude (powered by Quantum)
3. Team Sipel (partial Quantum inventory)
4. Team Probst
5. Team McCree

2006-10-02T15:44:00.000-04:00

Interlake Ad Fall 2006

2006-10-02T15:43:00.000-04:00

Thistle Ad Fall 2006

2006-10-02T15:37:00.000-04:00