WARNING!

DO NOT LOOK AT IF YOU CANNOT HANDLE ...

blue seas...

white sand....

big , puffy clouds,......

..oh yeas,..the 3 days of sailing was great,..avg 18 mph true,..go to,

http://www.caribbeanracing.com/cgi-...x_International_Regatta_2004&img=135


...see page 13 ,..plus a few cats are on each of the other 16 pages

1st - H 16 , Puerto Rico

2nd - I 20, St. Croix

3rd - P19mx, St. Thomas

4th - I 17,..St. Croix

5th - N 5.8, St. Croix

enjoy!

regards,

Bruce
St. Croix

Bruce,

Is it you on Page 9 ?

Not quite like sailing in the UK at present.....

Simon,
Yeah,..that is me on I-17 euro,..

..as you can see in the background,.a squall has just gone thru the race course,..so I was just 'sitting' on the boat as it wants to stand on its' stern.....the winds were a steady 18+/- all weekend...
... so in this squall it was 25+,..I believe shortly after this point I went on the tramp and just waited it out.,....winds were shifting all over.

regards,
Bruce
St. Croix

Why are you so cruel...... beautiful images!

...I know,...even though I have lived here 12 years,..sometimes the all-out beauty takes me back..

...the above link is definately calander quality stuff

regards,

Bruce

Brother Bruce, I am at once jealous, and grateful! Sounds like a wild time. I hope no one was hurt in the storm! It was in the sixties here in Boston Saturday. Today it snowed all day! Keep the pics and stories coming! How's Harper? Was he there on the FX? Maybe someday I'll make it down... Brian

Bruce,

In 18+ (and for sure in 25+) it's worth bringing up the plates even more - From the Pic it looks like you have around 9 to 12" of plate up - try more, the boat will then settle down and be much easier to drive over and thru the waves.....

Brian,
Harper had to have some unexpected surgery,..he is well, we had a 'beach-cat'get together at a taco place in town last Friday,...but Harper will be off the FX-1 for Regatta season,

...he is putting a spin on the FX-1,...so that is the next step here

regards,
Bruce

Simon,
I am about at 12 inches,..your are correct,....what do you suggest in 18mph?....if I can go faster,
I will do it!

regards,
Bruce

Bruce,

As you benefit from consistent wind I would think you want the plates up around 12-18 Inches in 18+ and maybe 24" in 25 and then only 6" in the water over that....

All I can suggest is some time on the water and experiment with what makes the boat drive without too much leeway – remember we have plates that were originally designed for the Inter 18 and 20 so they are too big !

The problem we will always have in gusty conditions is finding the right balance as it’s difficult for us to move them while sailing up wind. Last weekend I was sailing in a gusty F1 to F4 (with snow ) and had to make a compromise on plates - most of the way down most of the time. At times in the stronger wind I could really feel that the boat was tripping over the plates up wind, but with short course racing on our lake the overhead of coming in from the wire to lift the plate (IMO) was not worth it.

Bruce, Wish Harper well for me. I'll look forward to hearing about the FX with spinnaker!

hey Brian
thanks...I was in the hospital for a couple days..somehow a band of tissue strapped across my instestine and pinched it closed....it was pretty much an emergancy surgery....I was in the ER at 7pm and operated on at 9...not fun...it will be awhile before I get back on the boat....I'll put up some pix when I get the kite set up....thanks again

hopefully those pix will be of the boat and not your surgery!

Seriously though - glad to hear you are OK and hope you recover quickly.

Harper, Glad you are on the mend! Give yourself the time it takes to heal. In October of '84 I had a valve job, and while the symptoms included some brief stabbing pains, I was very lucky in not having much pain from the surgery. I took 3 months off from work. By the time I went back, my girlfriend had me in better shape than I've been in since!You've been through the most painful part, now is the challenge of being patient while you heal! All the best, Brian

thanks.,,,dont really think you want to see a pic of my scar,,maybe in a month or so I will get back out...