Day 1 Friday May 14th – St Francis Yacht Club Sees Wild Conditions For Formula Action
The St Francis Yacht Club Friday Night Windsurfing Series again saw wild conditions for all 5 races sailed this past Friday May 14th. With some sailors on 9.0m2 and others on 10.7m2 no one was on the right sail all the time.
With gusts rolling in at 25mph+ and lulls in the 8mph range it made for some challenging conditions. Did I mention the ever building flood tide that was working against the sailors the whole night? Calling lay-lines and staying out of the big holes was going to be the key to success.
Sailing on the same 9.0m2 sail that took him to 5 bullets in 5 races in the April 30thcontest Seth Besse (USA-64)(pictured above) today showed he was in fact a mere mortal. No doubt he would have preferred his 10.0m2 as a more optimal choice on the night a couple of tactical errors left him deeper in the fleet than he is accustomed to being. Taking full advantage this was Steve Bodner (USA-4), Chris Radkowski (US 18, Eric Christianson (44) and Tom Purcell (US-13) all of whom beat Seth in at least one race with Bodner and Christianson taking bullets in races. Bodner winning races 2 and 5 and Christianson winning race 3.
Tom Purcell announced his formal arrival at the top of the fleet with this performance two short years after getting back in to racing. As I have mentioned in previous articles the local fleet has seen a resurgence of growth and is happy to see Tom back in to racing. Tom had previously raced back in the days of the Lechner Class and is now truly enjoying Formula racing and it’s showing in his continuously improving performance since he returned.
Also back to racing was Arden Anderson. Arden is a proven speed and slalom sailor but has decided to join in the Formula action this year. Given his skills in the other disciplines it is certain we will soon see Arden pushing his way towards to top of the fleet.
The racing this Friday night was extremely tight on the short course that makes up the Friday night series with each race lasting about 10-12 minutes for the top sailors. In fact multiple places were decided by tie breaker.
That included the decision of who would be second with both Bodner and Radkowski tied at 8 points it was Bodner who prevailed, by virtue of the 2 bullets he scored on the night, and he took second place with Radkowski in third place. Fourth and Fifth place on the night were also decided by tiebreaker. With Eric Christianson, a previous series champion, locked up with Tom Purcell at 17 points apiece it was Christianson who took the tie breaker by virtue of his first place result in race 3.
A notable performance was turned in by Jack Lundquist (J6), one of the new junior racers who is showing he is a quick study. Given the crazy conditions just finishing a race before the next one starts can be a serious achievement and Jack finished all 5! And not just finishing was Jack (pictured at left) as pushing seasoned veterans in race 3 and was in striking distance of his dad, Weyman, in race 4. Formula success is not something that happens overnight but Jack has shown he has what takes and look for him to be on the podium in the years to come.
Also sailing beyond her years was again Marion Lepert (USA-143). Race 5 had to be the single best performance I have seen Marion sail and I should know because I had a front row seat. In fact both Marion(pictured at right) and I were leading Seth after rounding the leeward mark. Marion was on her 9.1 and I was on a 9.8! Marion called the perfect lay line on the windward mark that left many of the veterans double and triple tacking to make it. She then proceeded to sail a perfect reaching leg and downwind leg. I was barely able to overtake her on the downwind portion and was giving it my all to do so. Marion unfortunately decided to cover me as we went to the left side of the course while Seth tacked early on both us and was able to make the finish line ahead of us. And yes I did beat Marion but only by the narrowest of margins.
Some more words and the full results
http://www.waterhound.com/wild-conditions-for-friday-night-formula-windsurfing-racing.html
Day 2 Saturday May 15th – Cal Cup Number 2 Berkeley California Gets Near Perfect Formula Racing
The call went out over the wire the day before the race as is the tradition with Cal Cup to ensure optimal wind for racing; “Pebble Carpet, Berkeley”. And a good call it was from the experienced Cal Cup Race Committee. Pictured is Xavier Ferlet who posted a perfect 5 bullets scoring line to win the day.
Having seen a marine layer over San Francisco’s Golden Gate that Friday morningbefore racing it made Berkeley a practically skunk proof location for Formula Racing. Many of the racers were still aching a bit from having raced in 5 solid races, with winds between 20-30mph, the day before at the St. Francis Yacht Club’s Friday Night Series.
However the Cal Cup team races a level above the more ‘beer can’ style Friday Night series and with the USWA Formula National & North American Championships just around the corner this July 20-24th racing in Cal Cup is the best place to see where you are in your program.
The racers needed to be prepared this day as 3 of the top Kiters in the Bay Area joined in the racing. While an individual racer or two had shown up in the past this was an official invite from the Cal Cup team for the kiters to join the formula boards on the line. Top Racer Chip Wasson, of Ultra Nectar had his Ozone Kite and Mikes Lab Kite board ready to go and was joined by Andrew Koch and Kevin Richards. With a huge span of spectra lines from board to kite the 3 kiteboarders were very respectful on the starting line and in general very cautious when in the crowds but have clearly shown that Kiteboards have come a long way in their performance on the course.
With the perfect weather of 15-22 mph of wind and top racers like, Steve Sylvester(S3), Eric Christianson (44) and Steve Bodner (USA) in attendance you knew this would be a hotly contested affair. This day however, was not to be one for the locals to shine in. Fresh from his dominant performance in the Elvstrom Zellerbach Xavier Ferlet (GBR-451) again made the trek from Southern California and again dominated the local fleet including all the kiters.
Ferlet was able to find his speed straight from the starting line and left little to doubt in any of the 5 races sailed bulleting them all. At times Bodner was pressing him and even found himself ahead of Ferlet, for a short while, and only in one race but that was only due to a mistake made by Ferlet. One he quickly corrected to keep his pristine 1-1-1-1-1 scoring line intact. Bodner too sailed well all day long but was missing that extra speed and angle to overtake Ferlet, but his 2-2-2-2-2 scoring line is impressive nonetheless considering the talent in this fleet. That all second place scoring line however was in his ‘division’ as on this day the Kiteboarders were on the course. Although not part of the official Formula scoring, Wasson was regularly at the top of the fleet. And although his official scoring line in the new “k” division was a perfect 5 first places it is his unofficial fleet scores 3,5,4,2,3 that are most impressive. Only Ferlet was able to beat him race 4! Showing the versatility of his kiteboard racing equipment Wasson was also boosting huge airs to entertain the fleet in between races.
The Cal-Cup is not all about the top guns and part of what makes this series so special is the tremendous effort Jane Morson and Mike Percey,put in to cultivating the Junior Fleet. And an impressive crop of juniors has been germinating of late. Saba Fazelli (US 696) again sailed supremely well after impressing all with his win in his Cal Cup debut in the series first event but this time ran in to upcoming sailor Jack Lundquisst. Junior Female sailor, Marion Lepert (USA 143) continues to press towards the top of the fleet as well. Much to the men’s fleet chagrin as it is their fleet she is charging towards the top of. One competitior in the previous nights St FYC Friday Night Series was quoted as saying. “ I used to come home and tell my wife darn that Marion beat me in one race and now come home and say Yahoo I beat Marion in one race”. Consider this notice for any who show up to race in San Francisco Bay. Lepert is now sailing with the big boys. As mentioned above Jack Lunquidst also had a fantastic day scoring a win in the days final race which turned out to be the deciding factor in a tie breaker over Fazelli for second place on the day. Jacks dad, Weyman, was the division B winner but we wonder if beating dad in that final race and breaking up dad’s perfect scoring line on the day got him in to any trouble with pops. #;>)
I have vivid memories of my first formula racing experience. Just making the weather mark was a massive achievement in my first few regattas. As a testament to the quality of junior racers coming up through this program Charlie Lundquist was able complete 3 full races – in 20 knots of wind – in his first regatta! Nice work Charlie! With such a talented crop of Junior’s rising through the ranks the veterans had better stay on their game.
Competitors were again profuse in their thanks for the professionalism exhibited by the race committee all day long and even more gratitude was showered on the Volunteers, Like Chenda Herstus & Rachel Herrmann, that make Cal Cup possible. Thanks and see you at the next Cal Cup June 5th. Location to be announced on June 4th depending on the wind!
What no gear? Well Cal Cup is a no excuse racing series and even provides a lending library of formula gear to get you out on the water. Contact info@calcupevents.com
More information on www.waterhound.com
Thanks as always for all you do to support the sport!
—
David Wells
