Marc- We drove up and stayed in South Burlington Friday night for an early start. Sue, Stephanie and I enjoyed the RSYC breakfast at 8 a.m. A cold front came through overnight with a few showers and wind gusts and a huge temperature shift. The summer southwest wind was replaced by the crisp cool northwest wind. We loaded up the Lucy III and left the dinghy (this was a race right). We came over the start line at our given time of 10:03 and sailed closehauled for the New York shore near Split Rock. Our first tack was a good one with a clean shot heading up the middle of the Lake past Converse Bay and Sloop Island. We even raised our mizzen sail as the winds were lower in this area. As we approached Quaker Smith Point the wind intensity increased with gusts up to 35 knots and heavier waves. I went forward and took down the mainsail. As I looked back I noticed that the mizzen sail had split right up the middle (Stephanie has volunteered to do the repair sewing). The winds shifted more to the North requiring a tack. As we went to tack I noticed that we could not release the genoa sheet that was twisted over itself several times on the winch. Nasty business as we could not relieve the pressure even after taking off the snatch block. It was at this point that we started the engine and headed up and untangled the mess. Success and yet we were now disqualified for the race. We bounced around a lot before reaching the Southern entrance of the Burlington Breakwater at 1:35. We came in to check out the Burlington Community Boathouse for any available slips but none were to be found. Jeff, the Burlington Ferry Dock Marina Dockmaster, was waiting for us as we approached the marina. He quickly found us a slip and helped us dock for the night with other RSYC sailors nearby.
After visiting some boat friends, we took the bus up to Church Street for some shopping. I particularly enjoyed the Outdoor Exchange filled with outdoor gear for the adventurer. Next stop was cocktails and appetizers aboard Abigail, Alan and Diane’s great Cruiser extraordinaire. We had a great view of the Grace Potter Concert at the Waterfront Park from her upper deck. The music and the light show were fun. Dinner at the Ice House near the waterfront was good as well. The RSYC gang were a pleasure to be with. It is great to discuss sailing plans and even a boat purchase. We returned to Abilgail for some after dinner chocolates (Lake Champlain chocolates) before returning to the Lucy III for the night. I switched off the air conditioner and turned on the heater for this night that dropped to about 40 degrees F.
Marc- Sunday morning breakfast for Sue and I at the dock. The wind was still blowing out of the Northwest at 10 to 15 knots and it felt much cooler than Saturday. We departed the dock at 7:10 and raised the main and genoa and were off to the South. Lucy III had a close reach until Shelburne Point and then a reach the remaining stretch to Thompson’s Point. Our Northwest wind shifted to west and diminished considerably past the Charlotte ferry. Sue did much of the steering today. Our dinghy and mooring were waiting where we had left them. John and Mindy came over on Coquina as they were leaving for a daysail with guests Mary, George and George, Sr. They appeared to be heading for Barn Rock Harbor… I designed a new tangle of lines to keep the seagulls off of our bimini top. My last attempt of putting Hedwig, our plastic owl, above the bimini only partially worked. I would stay away from these lines if I were a bird looking for an easy landing spot. The dinghy needed some reinflating after with these cooler temperatures (only in the 50’s by midday). We brought home two of our folding bikes for some maintenance. The chains are getting a bit rusty and the tires are getting cracked a bit. Next season it may be better to cover them up on deck with a tarp along the lifelines.
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