Sailing Team Logbook 2000

7/9/00 - Team members are all having a busy summer. Some are actually sailing. Neal Donovan and Josh Mongeau are on the racing team and coaching at CYC. Meanwhile, Tommy Leach is busy teaching juniors the basics at Stone Horse YC in Harwich Port. Tom is Captaining the A-Racing Team and will skipper a Scot in the Cummings Cup eliminations up coming. He is looking forward to racing against his High School teammates soon. Coach Dickson is managing the Chatham YC this summer per usual and Coach Leach is back at Harbormastering on the Harwich waterfront.
6/5/00 - Alumni Day!  And our last practice of the year!  A perfect Northeast wind, 15 knots, made for good sailing, though it was cool - 50's - drysuits on the last day?!?  Sara Moore and Kristen Burnie came for the day and got some sailing in.  They took turns sailing with Bryan, our fast developing skipper.  Scott P is also developing fast, sailing wiht Jeremy today.  They were consistently winning the pin start and were first or second at the mark in all but one race.  They need to work a bit on reach speed and tactics.  Tom/Gina had a very good day, as  did Neal/Shauna.  Jamie/Ben won some races but were up and down - literally - pulling the only capsize of the day - managing to almost sink their craft.  It was great to have the alums around today - we plan to make this a more formal thing next year - perhaps and alumni team race against the team?  I can picture it now - Mike, Josh, and Pete, Scott skippering with Kristen, Sara, Alex, and Alicia crewing - maybe talk Annie Wright into it.  Others?  I expect they'll get their tails handed to them by next year's team.  Go ahead, prove me wrong - Monday, June 4, 2001 (tent.).

5/31/00 - The Future is Now!!  And the future is bright!  But not yet shiny or polished.  Today was our first race without the seniors - all sophomores and freshmen.  And it was in difficult conditions - inside the inner harbor at Edgartown (just south of the Chappy ferry), in an erratic Southerly with a cross current and a very short course.  In addition, we were sailing an MV team that has developed and improved a lot since we raced them in March (nearly won C&I).  The result was that we were overmatched, and lost 3-1.  Our sailors missed the on-the-water leadership of the captains especially, and had a hard time finding the comfortable balance between boatspeed, course tactics, and teamracing strategy - attention to one of these caused the others to suffer, which usually spells doom.  But this was a fabulous experience for us.  We can see the adjustments we will learn to make over the next couple years and how good we can become.  We also got to walk around Vineyard Haven a bit (free books and albums! and a turntable?) and enjoy our boatrides on a beautiful day. 

5/30/00 - Just a brief practice today as we tried to shake a little rust before tomorrow's race.  Four boats fleetracing - and the sailing was close and competative - Jamie/Ben, Tom/Bryan, Scott P/Shauna, Josh/Brooke.  Josh/Brooke put on an excellent rudderless sailing demonstration after their pintle busted.  We'll have a rudderless practice soon - I hope.

5/28/00 - Nantucket. Tommy Leach and Jamie Scarbrough came within one point of winning the Figawi High School Invitational, Sunday. Fleet racing in 420's. Trading the helm, Jaime racked up an impressive 1,2,3,4 score and Tommy steering scored as well 1,2,3. The event came down to the last race with Harwich leading with 12 points over Belmont Hill and St. John's Prep tied for second with 14. Jaime's 4th place nail biter finish came at the hands of being the middle of a port tacked fleet which had to break rank to avoid the Nantucket High crew crossing the pack on starboard at the line. Order of finish after seven races was: Belmont Hill, Harwich, St. John's Prep, Nantucket, Chatham, Martha's Vineyard, Sandwich. Awards were given at the Figawi awards ceremony under the tent. Each crew received an official Figawi High School Invitational fleece vest embalzoned with the new Figawi seal (showing a sailboat passing Brant Point Light House). Very sharp. Thanks go to Nantucket sailing coach Nick Judson for pulling together all the details of the race, from transportation to awards . 
5/26/00 - Sophomores Jamie Scarbrough and crew Bryan Knowles kept hopes alive for the Rough Riders second day of racing at MIT with best races of a 2nd and 3rd place finish and a ninth. Tommy Leach and Scott Pennfield did not fare as well laying a trail of 7's and a 17th in an over early race. The Charles was up to its flukey self and dished out its share of NW shifts and SW lulls frustrating competitors, leaving Harwich in eighth place (event won by BC High over Wellesley) in the State Fleet Racing Championship. All in all, it was a great learning experience in which we gleaned a lot of useful strategy and info for next year (hopefully we can avoid future pitfalls like don't ever count on the starting line being square, second row start doesn't work, take the first strong shift after the Prudential, don't count on other teams understanding a two boat length circle, if you get the boat moving...don't tack, be prepared to drive through lulls as they may not be shifts.) The team came away somewhat pleased with snipits of their day. Tommy and Jaime made great recovery after the leeward mark rounding.We left Boston at 4:40 PM as our bus driver showed us a unique way to get through Boston's Big Dig traffic and arrived at the Harwich HS at 7:00 PM (including a Big Mac Attack). What happened to Memorial Day, Friday traffic? 
Tom and Jamie will represent the team at the Nantucket Figawi High School Invitational in 420's at Nantucket Yacht Club on Sunday.
5/25/00 - A bullet from senior Josh Mongeau and freshman Gina Legge may be the placebo Harwich was looking for during the first day of racing at MIT. The State Fleet Championship in Tech Dinghies put the Rough Riders seventh place, well above middle after a bad start due to equipment problem for Mike O'Loughlin and sister Shauna in the first race (won by BC High). The wind built from the NW and by the second heat Mike faired better finishing 9th out of 20 teams. In the B Division, after resetting rig position and tension Josh and Gina chances at an additional first place finish evaporated, having rounded the weather and jibe marks well ahead of all competitors before the race committee postponed due to multiple capsizes and the entire fleet sent to the dock for storm jibs. Of course we felt robbed for our solid seamanship. The next start had Josh over early and dragging back to an 11th on the modified starboard course. Not to be disuaded Josh and Gina blitzed the next start 3 boats from the pin and carried out to the left side with great speed out distancing the entire fleet on all four legs of the course by 30 boat lengths. A phenomenal showing, Harwich, the only Cape & Island secondary school team entered, will go back at it again tomorrow with its sophomores. 
5/24/00 - In our best performance of the season, we pull off an upset 3-2 win over Barnstable, who had just returned from Team Racing Nationals in Norfolk, Va, where they finished eighth.  The races started in a light and fluky Southwesterly.  We held a tight 136 lead at the windward mark, and while positions changed in the light breeze we managed to hold the lead through most of the race and fend off Barnstables attemps to team race us back, finishing into a 126, with Mike/Tom and Josh/Scott pulling off the 1,2.  In the second race, the wind remained light and we held a close 135 at the windward mark, and while they teamraced us back to a losing position on the second reach, we were able to sail out of their cover in the last upwind to pull off a close 136.  The wind by the third race had settled on a WNW and achieved a moderate speed of 8-12, which held for the rest of the series.  We recovered from a bad start to keep it a close 156 at the windward mark and the positions traded frequently on the reaches as Jamie and Neal threw a couple fo good roadblock marktraps from the 1, but at the leeward mark we got two boats caught on the outside of the pinwheel, rounded in a 156, and couldn't find any lanes out, finishing in a 356.  In the fourth race, we again had a tough start, and fought to a close 345 at the windward mark which held despite some maneuvering throughout the race.  In the fifth race, we won the start and looked in good shape until a shift helped spring a boat of theirs who we had failed to cover.  We found ourselves in a close 156, much like the 3rd race.  Jamie/Neal again used a couple of marktraps to tighten the fleet which rounded in a pack at the leeward mark.  Barnstable held us in loose cover and it was hard to tell if we were in a 256, 246 or 245, but we began to find a couple clear lanes.  Then in the last 100 yards, Jamie/Neal pulled off an excellent passback of their third place boat as Josh/Scott and Mike/Tom both eluded covers and we crossed the line in a super tight 234 for the dramatic come-from-behind 5th race win.  Like our race last year at Dartmouth, we pulled off a great late-season win.  Definitely, one we'll remember.  Good luck at Mass States tomorrow and Friday!

5/23/00 - Beautiful breeze for practice - 10 knot easterly, though a little cool (50).  Today we focused on developing next year's skipper depth, perhaps the main element we risk losing with the graduation of this year's senior class - and depth is key to team development in having good competative practices.  Shauna O'Loughlin showed flashes of brilliance in winning one of the races and nearly some others.  Scott Penfield continues to develop also winning a race and nearly more, Ben Bachert sailing with him is becoming a better and better crew, with a good natural aggressiveness for the job.  Jeremy Armstrong also got a few races in as skipper, competing very well, sailing with Brooke Falvey who is also developing fast as a crew.  Star of the day went to Bryan Knowles, who won two races and showed consistent speed throughout the day.  Witht hese four, we will have seven returning skippers next year.  Let's hope they get to sail some this summer - and the time to start recruiting more crews is NOW!

5/22/00 - Team race at Nauset - without the seniors who were at Senior Activity Day.  Light Easterly - we won the first two races with Jamie/Bryan, Tom/Scott P, Neal/Brooke, and Shauna/Gina.  We dropped the third with Bryan/Jeremy, Scott P/Ben, and Shauna/Gina in - some fluky breezes.  Then took the fourth with Scott P/Ben providing the bullet, Tom/Gina, Neal/Jeremy also winning their pairs.  A good preview of next year's team.
5/20/00 - We co-hosted the second annual Cape and Islands Invitational and finished second in a very close regatta.  We sailed well and could have easily won with a couple breaks.  Mike, Tom, Jamie, Brian, Gina, and Shauna all sailed in A-division, while Josh, Scott P, and Tom sailed in B-division.  Scott H, Neal, Jeremy, and Ben also helped run the show.  Thank you to Ethan Owens and Cape Water Sports for helping prepare and repair the boats, and for the goods and free raffle!  Thanks to the Harwich Moms for the food!  For the full story visit: Cape and Islands Invite web page.

5/17/00 - Another beautiful day for sailing.  Light to moderate southerly.  We started off with some team races between the old folks and the young turks.  Coach Dickson even hopped in with the old folks.  And showed that he isn't all that good.  He and Bryan could claim to be the true fatty boys for the day.  Old age and treachery did trump youth and exuberance in the end, especially due to a cunning windward mark trap set by Mike and Shauna, which caught Jamie/Scott, Neal/Brooke by surprise as they made the fatal error of both overlapping with Mike, allowing Josh/Gina and Coach D/Bryan to surf into a 1-2.  The fleet remained close throughout the day.  No broken boats, no broken sailors.

5/16/00 - A nice practice day in a perfect moderate southerly.  Except that our motor boat is broken.  Then a tiller broke (easy on the sculling!), then a jib halyard wire broke, then Bryan broke.  As in he got smashed in the head by the boom, producing an impressive lump.  Battle Scar.  It might not have happened had he not been so determined to show off his skipper skills in tracking down Scott P.  Rookies!  A few more fleet races and we called it a day - much fixing to do for the C&I this weekend!

5/14/00 - What a great weekend in Maine at the Down East Invitational hosted by Geroge Stevens Academy (thank you Jim Modisette)!  We piled into the Harwich Rec Dept van at 12:30 on Friday and spent 6.5 hours en route to Blue Hill Maine.  After some great grub at Down East Pizza (we scared them a bit), we found and settled in with the Gullivers and the Reuters - two families of infinite good will and questionable judgment in allowing us into their homes.  (THANK YOU!)  We were back up at the crack of dawn to make the 9 AM report (first team there) at Maine Maritime Academy in Castine.  Things were slow getting going because of  the complications of sailing 17 brand new boats - 10 of which had never touched the water.  But races got going around noon.  Mike  and Gina  sailed out our first team A division and Jamie and Bryan did the same for the second team.  Both competed very well in a tough fleet in light conditions - not our favorite.  Jamie and Bryan averaging a 7 and Mike and Gina averaging an 8.  The story of the day for us came in B division where Josh and Scott P tore it up averaging a 4, meanwhile Neal and Shauna sailed well also, averaging a 7.  While we weren't winning either division, the up and down nature of the conditions and the teams led to a suprise at the end of the day, as we were munching on our burgers and (ahem) salads.  We were in first!  Well, by one point over St Sebastians and Yarmouth and two over Brewster.  Basically a tie.  Our second team was in sixth!  In all only 25 points separated the first 12 teams.  Wow.  After more excellent hospitality, we showed up at 9 on Sunday (again, the first team there), only to find no wind.  We rigged the boats and took them over to the float where we were all stationed for the weekend, but nothing came up.  After one false attempt (just before which Jamie and Brooke proved that 420's can flip in anything) at an A race and a lunch break, we got one started after a zephyr fooled us into thinking the SW was filling in.  It was a 45 minute drift that Jamie and  Ben were third in before being sucked back into a wall of sails, and in which Mike and Gina fought brilliantly up to fifth before an actual but localized puff took four boats past them in the last 50 feet.  Frustrating, but not a bad result.  Then after more waiting, they got a B race off just before the deadline, and Josh and Scott sailed patiently through another drifter and managed to come out in sixth, with Neal and Jeremy in tenth.  The final result for us was Third, which netted us a nice brass bell trophy for the HHS display case, while the second team finished Seventh.  Great job in a seventeen boat fleet, not in our conditions.  (We like WIND).  Josh and Scott continued to show their weeklong mastery by placing a close second in B division.  After another 6.5 hour ride home, we pulled in a little after 11 PM.  And (almost) all made it to school on time! 

5/10/00 - Raced at Tabor today in a flukey Easterly in Marion Harbor, after waiting for an hour for the thunder to stop rumbling, which limited our competition to three races due to time constraints.  We won a convincing first race (Mike/Tom, Josh/Scott, Jamie/Bryan), then came from a 2,5,6 back to win race 2 after both teams mysteriously tried to give away first at the end (Josh/Scott, Jamie/Shauna, Mike/Gina).  Then we lost a close 236 race in the third in which we didn't effectively team race out of it (Josh/Scott, Neal/Jeremy, Tom/Shauna).  A good win for us against a good team, and Coach Dickson made it back for the interviews.

5/9/00 - We worked on fleet racing speed and team racing in 15-18 knots of Southwest,  in preparation for Tabor Academy Wednesday and Maine this weekend.  All boats looked very strong and fast in handling the conditions, and pushed each other very hard.  Co-Captain Josh Mongeau and Scott Penfield had a stellar afternoon winning all the fleet practice races.  Hope he can hang on to this edge.  A busted shroud pin sent Scott H and Jeremy in early, preventing the Senior skippers from avenging their earlier drubbing at the hands of the underclassmen.
5/8/00 - Good afternoon of racing in a light Southeasterly after a passing thundershower. We tackled the Duxbury Dragons, a good team, newly established this year. Mike/Scott, Josh/Tom, Jamie/Bryan pulled out the first two races convincingly with good starts, good speed and boathandling. Tom/Ben, Neal/Shauna, Mike/Jeremy went in for the third race and also pulled out a win.  Shauna/Gina, Tom/Ben, Neal/Brooke sailed out the last race and lost after a close set up at the windward mark.
5/5/00 - Home rematch against a tough Dartmouth High team in 20-24 SW winds.  Mike/Scott; Josh/Tommy; Jaime/Bryan started.  In the first two races we were set up in tight winning positions when Dartmouth was able to team race us into a losing position and we couldn't quite manage a counterattack - both werwe 10-11 scores, as close as team races get.  In the third race we came back and controlled the race throughout.  In the fourth race we were behind, then team raced ourselves to a close position, then pulled it out by inches as Josh/Tom were able to edge their second boat by inches.  In the rubber race, we were in good position until we made a couple baot handling errors that set us back, Mike/Scott used a nice mark trap at the gybe mark to bring it back to a close race, but Dartmouth held us off for the victory.  Joe Mello of Dartmouth led his team to the close victory.  One of our hardedst fought races, and a remarkable display of seamanship and boathandling by both teams.
5/3/00 - Today's race rescheduled for tomorrow.  Which gave us one more day for team racing practice, in a shifty Southerly.  Many good team racing moves on display.  Individual races won by Neal & Brooke, Shauna & Adam, and Scott H. and Jeremy (almost).  Adam needs to learn more selective use of his bull horn.

5/2/00 - Another good day of team racing practice in a dying Northwesterly.  Some good moves by all sailors.  Except Coach Dickson who experimented with whether metal floats in water.  The answer is no, and his keys are now at the bottom of the bay. 

5/1/00 - Lots of breeze today - 15-20 knots form the South and gusting over.  We had a very solid practice team racing up at head of the bay.  Good tight racing, complete with traps and tight boat handling were displayed in the borderline conditions.  No collisions and no damage.  Noone flipped - oops, I forgot - Captain Mike and Neal flipped THREE times.  Maybe they just needed some Domino's.

4/29/00 - Harwich sailed a clean regatta (no protests). Our Team came up short in the 12 school New England fleet racing qualifiers sailed at HYC, landing a solid 6th. Scoring went Hingham (56),Milton Academy (64), Falmouth (67),Barnstable (67), Nantucket (74), Harwich (79), Dartmouth (84), St. Sebastians (88), Marblehead (108), Notre Dame (111), Martha's Vineyard (122), Lincoln Sudbury (153). Our team had some very good racing on the day which started off light and shifty from the Northeast and increased to 15-20 knot northerly in the afternoon. Finishes went as follows: Mike & Scott P. (3,12,5,5,4,5); Jaime & Tom (10,4); Josh & Tom (2,9); Jaime & Bryan (1,1,4) Tom & Adam (4). The protest room was busy hearing more than a dozen conflicts, none involving the saintly Rough Riders. The top four schools will compete against other New England qualifiers at MIT in Flying Juniors Sunday (4/30/00). Coach Leach said we got off track when we sailed into corners or sailed above laylines due to persistant shifts. Sometimes we had good Karma doing the same thing. It seemed Milton and Hingham with some crafty sailing, used the rhumb course tacking on the shifty headers and clearing air from boats ahead. Hindsight 20-20 we probably should have started lighter Tom with Scott or Adam in the morning and had Mike sail after the wind settled in. 
4/27/00 - Team race today Harwich goes 3-0 against Falmouth HS. Winds were light Southeasterly finally arriving on a glassy Bay as the Falmouth contingent pulled in at 4 PM. Talk about timing! Racing went 6-15, 9-12, 9-12. Our skippers went: Mike (Scott) 1,3,6; Jamie (Bryan) 2,1,2; Josh (Tommy) 3,5; Tommy (Neil) 1. Falmouth made very good attempts at foiling us at mark roundings but we worked through the challenges with overlaps and boat speed as the rest of the team cheered from the stake boat. We saw Sol today after nearly two weeks of overcast pukey weather. We head into our New England fleet racing qualifiers Saturday at Hyannis YC looking very solid 7-1-0 on the season. 
4/25/00 - The team toughed out rather brutal conditions today - 20 knots of Northeast breeze, 40 degrees and cloudy - for a mostly productive practice.  Good heavy air boathandling practice, and one practice race was held.  Everyone stayed upright, well, everyone but Tom and Bryan.  Only minor damage, except that some one was foolish enough to let Coach Dickson out on the water.  Remember Nietsche: "That which does not kill me makes me stronger."

4/24/00 - On the water again, after a spring break in which the Sophomore crew honed its surfing skills on the Outer Banks of NC.  Tom took a visit to the Naval Academy on his way down - future sailing recruit?  Today we had a perfect practice wind - 5-15 knots of shifty Northwesterly.  We sailed 5 practice fleet races on an extended course - preparing for New Englands this weekend.  The team refined some key fleet racing skills such as reading puffs, reach tactics, etc.  Still waiting for the new water pipe to be installed - don't use the toilets!!

4/13/00 - Harwich High lifted its record to 6-1 by sweeping a two-team event at Chatham Yacht Club yesterday. Harwich split its skippers on two starting lines against Sandwich and Chatham High Schools. Harwich Skippers swept the challengers 3-0, 3-0 in a 5-10 knots Northwesterly on Pleasant Bay. Mike O’Loughlin (Adam Lucas) , Josh Mongeau(Gina Legge), Shawna O’Loughlin (Scott Penfield) went 6-15, 6-15, 6-15 against Sandwich. Tom Leach (Ben Bachert), Jaime Scarbrough (Bryan Knowles), and Neil Donovan (Jeremy Armstrong) went 7-14, 6-15, 6-15 against Chatham. In a final all boat fleet, Harwich’s Scott Penfield (Shawna O'Loughlin) won the race against 12 boats with four Harwich boats following. 
4/11/00 - We race Bishop Stang of Dartmouth and looked very strong winning 3-2 with strong anchoring from skippers Mike O'Loughlin (crew Adam Lucas), Josh Mongeau (crew Scott Penfield) and Tommy Leach (crew Ben Bachert). Low point team scores were 6-15, 10-11, 9-12, 11-10, 11-10. Wind on the Bay was 10-15 kts and temps plummeted into the low 40's. Freshmen Neal and crew Jeremy banked two seconds in the 4th and 5th race. Shawna O'Loughlin and crew Gina Legge enjoyed close team action in race 4,5. 
4/10/00 - Team race against Dartmouth High School hands us our first loss (2-3)in this closely fought event in high winds at New Bedford YC. An extended capsize at the start of race one by Co-captain Mike O'Loughlin (w/ Tom Leach) started the Rough Riders on a rocky road. 
4/5/2000 - Another windy day.  We met down at the club and settled in for one of Coach Dickson's infamous "chalk talks". (Who couldn't use an afternoon nap?)  We talked about sail setting and boat handling in heavy air.  Then Coach Dickson and Bryan went out and demonstrated in 30+ knots of westerly.  All gybes were smooth, and the boat didn't disintegrate.  Scott P then put on a trapeze clinic.  No one appeared to be jealous of the Chtham kids on the water.

4/4/2000 - Practice cancelled due to a 25-30 knot Southwest wind and threat of heavy rain. 
4/3/2000 - Monday. Rafterball returns to the HHS Sailing team.  Early returns place Neal Donovan at the #1 ranking, but this will be challenged. Official Rafterball rules to be posted in the future. We had a good practice in 5-8 knots of Southwest wind - ran seven races on a very short course set by Coach Leach. Starting was the emphasis of the day and the team improved on its use of port approaches and leeward runways. We eventually did a couple of short team races, with the team of Jamie-Bryan/Tom-Scott P. proving dominant over Neal-Jeremy/Coach Dickson-Scott H. (egads!). Bryan is showing all signs of being a future skipper.  Study hard, Ben! Come back in one piece, Mike! (No moshing in season)

Good to see Chatham High Sailing Team is now on the water practicing alongside us as of today. Coach Greg Kelly has a rebuilding year ahead for his team after losing two excellent skippers to prep school and the exchange student program. He sees strength in a corps of promising Freshmen.


4/2/2000 - Sunday. Team looked very strong defeating Mount Desert, ME and Nantucket in a double team race. Combos of Mike-Tommy, Tommy-Ben, Jaime-Bryan, Josh-Scot, Mike-Adam, Neal-Shawna put up nearly complete combinations throughout the event with the only mishap, Adam's baptism by fire dunking after missing a grab on the jib sheet during a short tack in the third race against Maine. All crews were hiked to the max contending with 20 knot or better gusts, SW. The event became a test of seamanship skill. 

3/31/2000 - Friday. Light SW wind on Pleasant Bay 50°F and Sunny. Team practices 3 on 3 and looking very chipper. Preparation for Sunday three team race against Nantucket HS and Mount Desert HS (Maine) at CYC at 10 AM.

3/30/2000 - Thursday. Pay dirt! All that hard practice really paid off. We win our first Team Race 4-0 over the veteran Martha's Vineyard Team. Wind SW 10-15 kts. Harwich swept the series all but one race. Bullets went to Mike-Tommy, Tommy-Ben (2), Jamie-Bryan. Great showings from Josh-Scott and alternating crews Gina, and Adam. 

3/29/2000 - Wednesday. Our first race with Martha's Vineyard scheduled for today was postponed due to heavy westerly forcast. This will be resailed on Thursday. The good news of the day is Mr. Glen Fernandes of Arey's Pond Boat Yard, from the goodness of his heart, has successfully repaired the 90 Hp outboard on the Sailing Team Boat. This was a very nice gesture by Mr. Fernandes who hopes one day to see his little daughter sail on our team. 

3/27/2000 - Monday. Full complement of team racing six boats. Southwest and light air. Action very close with all boats trading places through the pics and mark traps. Starting line became skewed after 20 degree wind shift. Crews fleet and team racing were: Jeremy-Robbin; Tommy-Ben; Jaime-Bryan; Neal-Gina; Josh-Scott; Mike-Adam.

3/24/2000 - Friday. The end of an excellent week of practice. Bryan reported practice went well with enough crew for 4 boats plus 1 extra onboard the race patrol boat with coach Dickson. Wind was SE and light. Freshman Neal Donovan showed great boat speed in the four boat fleet with veteran skippers Jaime, Mike and Josh skippering. The girls all new to the 420 are catching on to the crewing thing. 

3/23/2000 - Thursday. Finally a break in the raw cold northerlies. the team sailed this on a sunny calm Pleasant Bay. Air temp 52.4 F° at 2:30PM. Wind easting at 3 kts. Enjoying the "balmy" light air the team worked on pass-back drills and starts. Finally Mr. Dickson got off a team race and sees the need to get the less mature skippers understanding the concepts of team racing and leveraging teammates through the fleet. Otherwise, the frosh have boat speed to burn. Tomorrow the hockey players on the team (4) are excused from practice with Coach Leach. Coach Dickson will be working on sailing fundamentals. Hopefully, it will be another Pleasant Day on Pleasant Bay.

3/22/2000 - Wednesday. wind Northeast at 21.1 Kts at 2:41PM temp 43°F. six boat and crews push off for an excellent 2nd practice. Scott H.-Scott P., Tom-Ben, Jaime-Pavel, Neil-Gina, Josh-Adam, Mike-Jeremy. The squad hasn't lost its edge. Four team races and close mark roundings and good recall of the rules, including mark traps, picks and right-of-ways. Mike and crew Brooks capsized in the chop, lost rudder, righted and recovered rudder from Jaime without worry. Team confidence seems strong and the new sailors already show promise as crew. 

3/21/2000 - Tuesday. Practice canceled due to strong easterly25kt gusts and chop 39°F. 

3/20/2000 - Wind 15Kts NE, air 45°F, cloudy. Water 40°F. We set up the boats, nearly entire team onboard including Brooke Falvey 1st Year Freshman ,Shawna O'Loughlin 1st Year Freshman ,Regina Legge 1st Year Freshman. Ukraine exchange student Pavel Federento missing, guess he missed his ride. 

No Harbormaster boat available so we use inflatable with Coach Leach's outboard to chase. Coach Dickson onboard. Five boats out on the water: 

Jaime-Scott P; Tommy-Bryan; Mike-Adam; Scott H.-Jeremy; Josh-Neal. We sail short I course two races with close mark rounding. Mike-Adam pull some water aboard in 1st race. Start of second race are barged by Jaime initiating a capsize by Scott H.-Jeremy. Same race at weather mark Mike-Adam capsize and mast in the mud. Both boats perform seaman-like recovery. Coach Dickson calls the practice.

3/18/2000 - Saturday 10 AM: wind NE and blowing stink, 25Kts, 40°F. 

The following students met up with coaches at CYC to haul our eight c420's from the basement storage of the yacht club and begin the process of clearing the cobwebs off the club. It looks like we have 11 strong boys (girls were the no show this morning) very willing and psyched to sail.Mike O'Loughlin (Co-Capt) 3rd Year Senior ,Josh Mongeau (Co-Capt) 3rd Year Senior ,Scott Hamilton 3rd Year Senior ,Pavel Federento 1st Year Senior ,Adam Lucas 1st Year Senior ,Tom Leach 2nd Year Sophomore ,Bryan Knowles 2nd Year Sophomore ,Scott Penfield 2nd Year Sophomore ,Jamie Scarbrough 2nd Year Sophomore ,Ben Bachert 1st Year Sophomore ,Neal Donovan 1st Year Freshman ,Jeremy Armstrong 1st Year Freshman. 

After we managed to drag the boats up to the hill by the tennis courts on Si-tech's and left dismasted. Coach Dickson sat down with the team and went over ground rules including school policies regarding alcohal infringement (required). Looking forward to a great season.