[Sonar] New SAils WYC Sonar fleet #5

[tbrown9163 at comcast.net]

Steve:

Always nice to hear from you.   Good luck on the house in the Adirondacks.   I do miss New England,   especially this time of year.   

I'm sure you're right about the chutes.   I think they just break down over time.  Also I've noticed that when the sun is behind the chute that when it ages,  there are lots more visible microholes.  I also think,  not sure about this,  that they shrink over time, whether they are used or not.  Perhaps its the heat that does it.    As I said in my earlier email,  I think its time to retire the 384 as my main runner and go with something new.  I will miss the measurement sticker that says Cowes England however!

We're continuing to grow as a Sonar fleet here in Wayzata.   Also,  we learned of a new fairly close (geographically)  match racing group of 8 Sonars at Sheboygan WI which we hope will result in some exchange of racing opportunities along with our traditional next door fleet,  Lake Geneva.

Too bad about Ike and Galveston.  But I did hear from Charles Milby that the boats are ok,  but the dock  (that amazingly long dock!) got messed up pretty badly.  You'll probably hear more about that than I would.  I believe that our local Marty Fossen will be down at the relocated Kirby Cup in St. Pete soon.   There is a core of us here that still want to pursue team racing.

We also had a new 3 day regatta here named Star of the North which we had two crews  (one brought their boat) from what I'm sure could be at least in North America as the northernmost Sonar fleet on Lake Winnipeg.   When I looked on Google Earth where this fleet of 3 Sonar's is,  it is stunning.   The roads north essentially end at the marina and there is primarily taiga north of there.   They are on a similar latitude as James Bay of Hudson's Bay...probably about 600 miles north of MSP.    I'm not sure if they are recognized as a fleet yet but there is a very active Sonar fleet on Lake Winnipeg...who would have guessed.

I think I speak for the Wayzata Sonar fleet,  that we still do appreciate you and Melissa coming a few years ago and always have open doors if opportunity leads itself to come back.

--
Thomas M. Brown
"Maximizing Business by Minimizing Surprises"
~~~~~~~_/) ~ _/)~~~~~~

 -------------- Original message ----------------------
From: "Steve Shepstone" <steve at wkdoors.com>
> Hi Tom,
> 
> I've noticed that as spinnakers get older they tear easier.  I'm not sure if
> it's the ultraviolet light or getting stuffed into the lazarette so often
> that breaks down the cloth, but it definitely changes over time.  When I get
> a tear, I always get the sail to a sailmaker and get a permanent patch
> stitched on.  I'll trust the ripstop for the weekend, but not for the
> summer.  After a while, it's like having an old car.  The maintenance costs
> more than getting a new one.
> 
> This year, we're building a house in the Adirondacks, so I've done minimal
> sailing.  Most of my sailing has been team racing in other people's boats,
> so I haven't bought any new sails.  Normally, when we're sailing a lot, we
> buy a new jib every year and alternate between a new main and a new running
> spinnaker every year.  About once every 5 years we'll buy a reaching
> spinnaker.  The reaching spinnaker doesn't get much use, so they last a long
> time.  We use old sails for club racing, somewhat used sails for regattas,
> and the new sails for major championships.  If I remember correctly, the
> class allows you to buy two jibs, a main, and one or two spinnakers every
> year.  We couldn't afford that before the stock market went over the cliff.
> By using older sails for the lower level events, we've been able to be
> competitive without spending the big bucks.
> 
> Steve
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: tbrown9163 at comcast.net [mailto:tbrown9163 at comcast.net] 
> Sent: Thursday, October 23, 2008 7:09 PM
> To: chris_fittipaldi at yahoo.com; Sonar List WYC; steve at wkdoors.com
> Cc: Chris Fittipaldi; jgraves at 1099convey.com
> Subject: Re: [Sonar] New SAils WYC Sonar fleet #5
> 
> Chris
> 
> I'm in for a new chute.
> 
> After about half a dozen pole poke holes and other snaggy rips,  especially
> when we were in a clear 2nd last weekend and tossed it on the downwind
> leg.... its time.
> 
> Looking up at my chute and seeing all of the ripstop tape on it, its amazing
> the similarities to an aging spinnaker can be to a Hollywood facelift.
> Except in this case we just buy a new one!
> 
> This was the chute that I bought from Steve Shepstone had delivered from his
> personal delivery service (Melissa)  from his Cowes England Sonar World's
> victory.   Don't worry,  you guys will still see it when the wind is over
> 20knts. I'll still confuse Blake and Jered with what number to put down!
> 
> I'm including the main Sonar list in this response to get the snowball for
> the order rolling.
> 
> --
> Thomas M. Brown
> "Maximizing Business by Minimizing Surprises"
> ~~~~~~~_/) ~ _/)~~~~~~
> 
>  -------------- Original message ----------------------
> From: Chris Fittipaldi <chris_fittipaldi at yahoo.com>
> > All,
> >  
> > North Sails has a 15% off sale on new sails. I am putting together an 
> > order to see if we can get a bigger discount. In previous years, the 
> > magic number was 10 sails or greater could get us additonal discount
> ...possibly.
> >  
> > Let me know as I will be speaking to Andy of North Sails in the morning...
> >  
> > Meanwhile,   warm sailing to all
> >  
> > Chris
> >  
> >  
> > 
> > 
> >       
> 
> 
> 
>