Long Harbour Race Report
Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024
by Martin Herbert aboard the Kay D
Absolute flat calm greeted the sailors at the skippers meeting, but for some reason optimism prevailed and it was decided to try the Long Harbour Race. There were two caveats: first, if no one made the Welbury spar mark by 12:30 the course would be shortened to Welbury and home; second: the dastardly Horda Shoals mark was eliminated in both directions.
By start time, a little southeaster had sprung up and the fleet was away. Sorcery X led the way to the favoured lee end of the line, with Ogopogo giving chase and the Kay D on her hip. At the gun, Kay D tacked onto port to clear her wind and heard the crackle of new sail cloth signalling that Ogopogo was doing the same. That would mean death by asphyxiation as Ogopogo rolled over the top of us. A loud hail of, “Starboard!” from Invictus called for immediate action. I looked under the boom and saw that we would cross about 5’ ahead so returned with the hail, “Hold your course”. The longer Ogopogo, however, was forced to tack back and we could breathe again. Slowly the big boats ground us down and, still not out of the harbour, we were behind them all. At this point I heard the noise of engines and looked back to see a big powerboat charging for my bow. His solution to not understanding the rules of the road was to gun it and cross my bow very close. The waves from “Pier Pressure” crashed over my side decks, filling the boat 4 inches deep before the waves from in front slammed me to a stop. Thank you, “Pier Pressure”.
Greg and Holly led the fleet out, followed by Shingebiss, Ogopogo, Steller J and Invictus. The leaders tacked over at the Sisters and headed for Scott Point into less and less wind. By the time we got to the mouth of the harbour things were looking grim. I had sailed my way over to the Saltspring shore and found some wind and also a tidal boost, and was able to work past Invictus, who was further offshore. There was a tantalizing line of wind on the horizon and a series of lifts kept us pinned to the shore. We both eventually tacked and went through a huge angle, pointing back to the Sisters. I couldn’t take it and tacked back for the illusive wind, but now found two other Flying Fifteens closer to shore giving me the gears that I had just given to Vern. I close reached down to them to get back into the favourable stream, barely staying ahead. Finally…the header and the wind and I was able to tack back and head for Scott Point.
In the far far distance I saw Ogopogo’s spinnaker and thought for a moment a “shortened course” but when I looked again there was no Ogopogo. They had disappeared into Long Harbour and the full race was still on. Sorcery X and Shingebiss soon followed, then Steller J, Kay D and Invictus. We were no match for Invictus and her beautiful kite and, when Larissa Fry turned the big boat in a perfect gybe with Vern and crew on the foredeck, they streaked away.
Clamshell Island was a land mine for some of us, and aboard the Kay D the GPS dropped to 0.0 for a moment while the FF fleet got bigger and bigger. We could feel them breathing down our necks when a gust at last filled in, hitting the Kay D first and giving Vern the opportunity to pass me for the third time. The wind was perfect and the beat out of Long Harbour one of the best on record. The beam spinnaker reach to the Sisters was also lots of fun. The wind held to the finish. All in all, a fascinating race with lots of challenges.
Club Handicap Results
| Club | Finish | Corrected | Rating for | |||
| Rating | Boat | Skipper | Time | Time | Place | Next Race |
| 185 | KAY D | Herbert | 13:31:05 | 02:46:57 | 1 | 176 |
| 68 | SORCERY X | Slakov | 13:01:09 | 02:47:05 | 2 | 62 |
| 205 | BLUEBIRD | Mr Ree | 13:37:59 | 02:48:32 | 3 | 205 |
| 101 | SHINGEBISS | Keating | 13:13:40 | 02:51:19 | 4 | 98 |
| 14 | OGOPOGO | Faget | 12:51:45 | 02:52:33 | 5 | 17 |
| 205 | ROBYN HOOD | Oakes | 13:43:50 | 02:53:47 | 6 | 205 |
| 132 | INVICTUS | Lhotzky | 13:26:12 | 02:55:40 | 7 | 138 |
| 117 | STELLER J | Leitch | 13:22:50 | 02:56:22 | 8 | 126 |
PHRFBC Results
| PHRFBC | Finish | Corrected | |||
| Rating | Boat | Skipper | Time | Time | Place |
| 99 | OGOPOGO | Faget | 12:51:45 | 02:28:51 | 1 |
| 92 | SORCERY X | Slakov | 13:01:09 | 02:40:32 | 2 |
| 205 | KAY D | Herbert | 13:31:05 | 02:42:21 | 3 |
| 162 | STELLER J (NFS) | Leitch | 13:22:50 | 02:44:43 | 4 |
| 205 | BLUEBIRD | Mr Ree | 13:37:59 | 02:48:32 | 5 |
| 205 | ROBYN HOOD | Oakes | 13:43:50 | 02:53:47 | 6 |
| 84 | SHINGEBISS | Keating | 13:13:40 | 02:56:08 | 7 |
| 117 | INVICTUS | Lhotzky | 13:26:12 | 02:59:48 | 8 |
