New Sponsors: Paraloc, Ronstan, Magic Marine, Murrays, Hall Spars, and H20 Audio

We have begun our sponsorship quest for the Tybee and with that has come the donation of many products that will help us tremenously in our quest.
All these companies have treated us very well... please check out their websites by clicking the logos on the right of our blog.

Paraloc Swiss Rope:
Paraloc has donated new line to outfit our whole boat and more! This line is really cool stuff! Throughout the line, the cover is stiched to the core to prevent slippage or wear. R&W Rope, of New Bedford, MA is the U.S. Distributor and really has gone out of their way to outfit our boat with all the proper lines. They even gave us a spool of NovaTec shockcord... we are confident to say this is the best shockcord!

Ronstan:
We can't thank Ronstan enough for how much they are helping us out! They gave us everything we asked for! From their amazing wetsuits and gloves (which already were our favorites) to their new Orbit Series blocks for our spinnaker. They also gave us their new Racing Trapeze Harness which we are excited to try out. All of this will make us and our hardware fully capable of withstanding anything mother nature can throw at us!

Magic Marine:

Magic Marine also has provided us with gear that will make it much more comfortable for us to compete in our upcoming endevours. We are well aware of the reputation of Magic Marine gear and expect it to be perfectly suited for this type of sailing.

Murrays Marine:
As always, Murrays came through for us... they provided us with excellent deals on Barz Goggles, storage bags, and etc. I personally am excited for the Barz as last year by eyes had a tough time in reaction to the salt concentration of the water in the Keys. Steve Murray has treated me extremely well ever since my days sailing Hobie 16s... he and his company are a true supporter of the sport!

Hall Spars and Rigging:
Hall Spars in Bristol, RI has been nice enough to extend us a substantial discount on rigging and lines. This was extremely helpful as we were in dire need of new standing rigging. Hall made us some really fine rigging and in only a couple days! In addition to custom rigging services, they also splicing, and much more! These guys really know there stuff! I think we can trust the guys who built the mast for the BMWOracle DoG boat to build our rigging!

H20Audio:
H20 Audio was nice enough to contribute their waterproof armbands and headsets for our Ipods. While this might seem a bit odd, we are Team Adrenalin and what better way to add to our adrenalin than to listen to some "pump me up" music?!

24th Annual Key Largo Steeplechase

Tomorrow night, Team Adrenalin flies down to Fort Lauderdale, Florida to compete in the the 2008 Key Largo Steeplechase. This will mark the second time our team has sailed this race.
This race is run with a low key demeanor, however it is not forgotten that it is indeed an extreme endurance race. Race committee, legendary Rick White recommends that only experienced catamaran sailors participate. Racing over 110 miles on a 20 foot catamaran is no easy task no matter how you look at it. Over the years, teams have endured various conditions, from gail force winds to calm conditions. Either can be equally as tolling on sailors. High winds test sailors and boats, while calm conditions can lead to a long day on the water possibly even a finish after dark.
This race is a true gem of catamaran sailing, it is the favorite event of the year for many competitors. Where else can you race in the clear blue waters of the jet stream on day and the mangroves of the Florida Everglades the next?
We are extremely excited about this year's race. We hope that we can use our experience last year to improve our results this year. This is a race that you really need to be familiarized with the course to do well!
Stay tuned for updates over and after the weekend on Adrenalinsailing.com!
Also, checkout Catsailor.com for updates from the race organizers.

Late wrap up of Nacra North Americans

Well we made it all the way out to Michigan for Nacra North Americans. 

I apologize for not updating the blog while we were there... for all of those who have been to Caseville, MI, which is likely nobody, you would have known we would not have had internet access.  There was NOTHING there, this included internet access, I think there was spot in the corner of the booth in one bar the the town that if you sat in exactly the right spot you might pick up a weak signal but that was it.  

It was quite the trip, about 28 hours round trip.

The sailing conditions at this event were great.  Almost every race we were double trapezing.  

We had our ups and downs throughout the week.  We did very well in light to moderate air which included leading 2 races.  However, we the lightest team there at exactly minimum weight and had a tough time keeping the boat going fast in the heavy stuff.

We ended up 10th but we learned a lot!  It was great to hold our own with guys who have been on the boat for years in our first Nacra North Americans.

I think the highlight of our week was the last race, when we were over early and Kirk Newkirk was nice enough to yell to us about 2 minutes after the start that we were over so we turned around and went back to restart.  We decided to sail the hardest we had all week and try to catch back up to the fleet with a few minute late start.  We ended up at the windward mark ahead of two boats and right on the tails of the lead pack.  This felt really amazing as it confirmed that we had improved our boatspeed over the course of the week.

Going to the Nacra North Americans was much more about sailing for us.  It was a great opportunity to pick the brains of great sailors such as Nigel Pitt, Alex Shafer, Captain Kirk Newkirk, and etc.  These guys are all awesome as they are more than willing to help out and offer their advice, this is what sailing is all about!  

We can't wait until next year's NA's in Fort Walton Beach, FL.

We're in for the 2009 Tybee 500

Adventure Online TV - Tybee 500 Catamaran Highlights 2006

Well after lots of consideration... we have decided that we are officially going to compete in the 2009 Tybee 500, to be held in May.  The Tybee 500 is a  500 mile race from Key Largo, FL to Tybee Island, GA in 6 days.  We will sail a Nacra 20 catamaran which is extremely fast but also very physically demanding.  This is the premier small boat endurance distance sailing race in the world. 

This race takes a lot of time, commitment, planning, financing, and preparation.  We have decided 7 months ahead of time that we are going to compete so that we can make sure we are 110% fully prepared to take whatever this race can throw at us.

We still need help though!  Anyway you can help, whether it be monetary donations, product donations, or etc. we would greatly appreciate it!

Please email us at TeamAdrenalin@AdrenalinSailing.com for more information.

We have a sponsorship proposal and other material to give you a better understanding of what we are looking for.

Stay tuned for periodic updates on our progress.

Nacra North Americans here we come!!!

This has been quite the week for me! Working all day Monday and Tuesday packing up all the boats and etc. at the junior sailing program that I headed this summer. Wednesday was spent moving out of my apartment (i'm moving back to CT for a little bit) and finishing up Thursday then driving home to CT. I was so busy I had to skip the last night of team racing V15s Tuesday night and PHRF racing Wednesday night! Friday (today) was spent working on the boat from 9AM-9PM and running a few errands for parts and etc.But the good news is that this hectic week is all over and tomorrow morning at 6AM we are leaving for Caseville, MI for the Nacra North American Championships where we will be competeting in the Nacra 20 class. My crew for this event is Sean McQuilken, who I have sailed with quite a bit and work well with. It's a 13ish hour drive to Caseville so we'll be arriving tomorrow (Saturday) night. Since I got all the boat work out of the way today we are planning on practicing all day on Sunday. Racing takes place Monday through Thursday. This is my first Nacra North Americans so we are shooting for a modest goal of being competitive by being consistent and sailing smart.Stay tuned for updates.... i'll be trying to update this blog daily. If you have any questions about whats going on shoot me an email at Todd.Riccardi@gmail.com and i'll get back to you asap.Since this is the first time i've released this blog address to the public I wanted to make you all aware that we do have a team name in the works to replace "Nacra 20 #642 sailing campaign" but it is staying top secret until our Tybee plans are firmed up for next year.

2008 New England 100

Photo courtesy of Bill Vining

The New England 100 is a approximately 100 mile race, over the course of 2 days, which starts at Quonset Point in North Kingston, RI and finishes at the same point. There are 5 race course options that included sailing around the islands of Rhode Island.

Talk about an amazing weekend! Started off light (practically no breeze) both mornings and just past the Jamestown bridge the trust Newport seabreeze graced us with it's presence and led to double trapping in a steady 15-18.

The days were almost identical... upwind out the West passage, around the tip of Beavertail, down through the East passage, flying through Newport Harbor with the spinnakers up, passing through the Lighting class North American Championships', the N.Y.Y.C. team race, several other regattas, and the armada of boats anchored off Fort Adams listening to the Jazz Festival. It's really and awesome place to sail and a great place to give our boats publicity!

Mike and I led from the start on Saturday, but got sucked into a black hole by the Jamestown bridge and got passed by half the fleet. We managed to escape and find some wind and hang with the rest of the fleet and catch back up to the leaders. Unfortunatley as the day progressed, Mike and I were a bit off pace and let Chris Titcomb and Joe Valente get a good lead on us. We still however were a while ahead of the first F-18s. After rounding the North tip of prudence we tried to make up ground on Chris and Joe by sailing along the shore and out of the ripping current... it seemed to be working. By this time it was beautiful sailing, 18 knots double trapped, we were loving life. Our game plan of sailing along the shore included lots of tacking.. well one tack we slipped up and somehow we went into a tack without either of us holding the mainsheet... as I crossed the boat I looked back and saw it was too late, the mainsheet was cleated in tight and we were going over. After flipping we tried to right the boat as fast as possible as we noticed the current was really pushing us back towards the F-18s and they were coming fast! It ended up taking about 10 minutes to right the boat because the current kept pushing the bows out of the wind! It was really frustrating. We righted the boat and got sailing, rounded the South tip of Prudence and ripped on a screaming reach (top speed of 20.4 mph) to Quonset Point finishing 3rd overall but not so well on corrected as the F-18s were right behind us. We figure we lost around 15 minutes in our little ordeal.

The 2nd day featured much of the same course, we were able to lead off the start just as the day before and hold it this time all the way until the Newport bridge. Chris Titcomb was right on our heels so we had our work cut out to beat him overall, but looking back at the 3rd place boat, Joe, we saw we had around a 20 minute lead! Perfect! We had to beat him by around 15 to beat him overall. At the bridge Chris and ourselves split tacks and did our own thing. Once we convereged again several miles later Chris had taken a 5 minute lead. We were sailing nicely just flying a hull with the spinnaker up, headed towards the bell buoy just South of the Mount Hope brdige we were supposed to round. Suddenly, we noticed a rather large obstruction, a GIANT tanker headed directly towards our mark and in the path we needed to sail. By jibing inside it we were able to stay clear and eventually passed it and rounded the mark just ahead of it then got the heck out of its way! At the bell buoy, Chris still had around a 5 minute lead. We had a feeling we could catch him... but as we turned around we noticed the hole rest of the fleet had cut our lead to only about 5 minutes as the seabreeze had built to about 20 and they were coming downwind much faster than we did! Going up the bay, we again split tacks, Chris went right, we went left, hugging the shore to get current relief and take the nice lifts we were finding on this shore. By the time we convereged again at the South tip of Prudence Island we were in the lead again! We rounded Prudence and just like the day before had a screaming reach to Quonset, our lead over Chris grew from 100 feet to about 500 feet and we took line honors for the day. However, the rest of the fleet finished only 6 minutes after us, putting us in not such a good position overall. Now if only we could have the 15 minutes back from the capsize on Saturday.

All and all we had a blast... we could not have asked for better sailing conditions and competition. This was probably one of the best weekends of racing i've had in a long time!

2008 Statue Race

Our favorite race of the year turned out to be a little bit of a letdown this year!  It was light wind and we ended up turning around only 5 miles away from the Statue of Liberty.  However, this was my 7th year participating in the race and my first time not finishing.  I know plenty of people who it took several tries to complete this race so I am still content with my record.

We woke up to ZERO wind!  It was a pretty dreary sight and all we could do was pray for the breeze to fill.

After a postponement flag was put at 10:00AM they lowered it and announced they planned to start us.  

Taken off guard as there was still no wind, we scrambled around to get the boat in the water and out in time for the start.  It turned out all our rushing was for nothing as we got out with plenty of time before the sequence.  

At the start we noticed a bunch of boats starting at the pin end and we were about mid-line.   We figured our game plan would be that with a few seconds to go we would launch the spinnaker and go for a clear lane above everyone else.  It worked like a charm!  At 5 seconds we were sailing at about 4 knots (in what felt like no wind!) as everyone else sat jumbled up at the pin.  At GO we were still moving as everyone else sat still watching us roll them in dismay.  We got a good lead off the start but somehow a couple boats managed find more wind and sneak by us for the lead.  After rounding the first mark of the race we were in 4th with a good lead on all but one of the 20's.

As the wind came and went for the next couple hours we would accelerate away from the pack, catching the leaders, then we would slow, and so on.  As we were still only seeing winds peaking at about 5 I felt I would be more comfortable not having my harness on.  This was the first time in my life I have ever sailed in a race without my harness on!  Suddenly, like hitting a wall, the wind increased to 12-15 and we were single trapezed with the spinnaker!  But it wasn't enough!  Our VMG angle was way off to make the bridge!  We watched Team Velocity coming on strong double trapezed with a much better angle.  Knowing I needed to get on the wire too, I handed Brendan the helm and scurried around the trampoline trying to get my harness on!  Once I got it on we were double trapezed for about 5 minutes before the wind died back down.  While it lasted, the wind had allowed us to make substantial gains on the leaders.  We were now contesting the Capricorn about half a mile to leeward of us for the lead.   It appeared we were pulling into the lead, as the race committee drove by to cheer us on.  We had decent breeze and were going faster than all boats to leeward.  Suddenly Brendan said with a nervous tone "Todd... look over your shoulder... theirs a giant tugboat and barge!"  I turned around and saw the monstrosity.  I knew this was going to be a problem.  Traditionally, out of the two of us I tend to be much less cautious when it comes to encounters with commercial traffic.  I tend to put us in risky situations in favor for not disrupting our race.  Brendan wanted to jibe away but I told him it would set us back way too much.  I was hoping we could cross the tug, but I secretly knew in the back of my mind that there was no way this was going to happen.

I told Brendan to relax and focus on the spinnaker I would worry about the impending encounter with the tug.  For a couple minutes I continued on course to what looked like we might (big emphasis on MIGHT) cross the bow.  I was slightly nervous but tried to concentrate on the task at hand.  Next thing I knew I heard a few loud airhorns and realized the tug was thinking the same thing I was, we were on a collision course.  Now my mindset went to getting the heck out of it's way but not damage our race.  I turned the boat downwind more and ran on a low reach alongside the tug.  We were keeping pace with it so I hoped we could keep it from passing us.  No such luck, it soon passed us and we got stuck in it's lee.   Still not wanting to jibe back, we sailed slowly for a few minutes and watched the boats to leeward catch up and pass us.

We neared the Verazzanno and converged with the boats that had been to leeward with us including Team Velocity and Team Accelerated Chaos.   The 3 of us sailed side by side, dueling it out for a while, fighting the currents and trying to make it to the bridge.  The Capricorn was the only boat ahead of us and as they crossed under at 2 hours and 47 minutes!  The cutoff time for the first boat making the bridge is 3 hours!  We knew that having taken so long to reach the bridge it was going to be a long race!  We had hoped the Capricorn would turn around but since they didn't and none of us wanted to give up we kept sailing.  We ended up crossing under the bridge at 2 hours and 58 minutes!  We continued to sail up towards the Statue, it was in sight!  As we jibed back and forth across the river with a boatspeed of about 5 knots our GPS was indicating that the Statue was 5.3 miles away and it would take us another hour and a half to reach it.  We were so close!  But the wind kept shutting down and soon we were averaging 2-3 knots, at that rate it was looking like 2.5 hours to the Statue.  Running the numbers through our head we figured we would not return to Sandy Hook til 10PM.  In our hurry leaving the beach, I had forgotten our flashlight.  The thought of sailing in New York harbor without a flashlight did not appeal to me.  Apparently Team Accelerated Chaos was thinking the same thing, they dropped their spinnaker and turned around.  We soon followed suit.  We were astonished when we saw that several boats opted not to turn around.  We informed some of them what our GPS was telling us, as they did not have one, they seemed to debate turning around but as we sailed back towards the beach, they kept sailing towards the Statue.  At that point we could do nothing but wish them luck and think we were making the better decision.  As we sailed back, Team Accelerated Chaos, Team Velocity, Team Moose-Burd, Flash Gordon and several others all joined us.  Apparently, we weren't the only ones who were happy with our decision.

About 30 minutes after turning around the wind filled and we were soon averaging 13-14 knots.  I could not help but wonder if the wind had filled past the bridge.  Brendan and I were disappointed but overall knew that we had made the correct decision, cautioning on the side of error.  It was 4th of July weekend and we had no intention to spend a whole night out on the water!

After returning to the beach we indulged in some hot dogs, hamburgers, and beer, a true 4th of July style beach BBQ.  We derigged the boat and around 8PM as we were pulling out of the parking lot we saw the first boats coming in.  I looked at Brendan and said "Oh well!... We had a blast either way!"

Despite the sailing conditions the Statue of Liberty Race once again did not disappoint and I will be back again next year, hopefully looking for the win!

2007 Tradewinds Regatta

Joe and I on final approach to the windward mark.
Bret and James, just before they capsized and Bret put a human shaped hole in the mainsail.
Bret and James on Wednesday, our training day prior to the regatta.

The screaming reach in the first race.  Team Key Sailing about to capsize.

My two weeks in Tampa went well, Angela and I did lots of awesome sailing, we were joined by my friends Tyler and Morgan from Connecticut to do some intense training as they get ready for the Tybee 500.

While in Tampa Angela and I participated in a short 30 mile distance race which developed into a blind sail in the fog, weathering out a massive thunderstorm on an abandoned island, and then abandoning the race and sailing back to the beach.  Out of the original 13 boats Tyler and Morgan were the only die-hards to complete the course.  Ourselves and another Nacra 20 did come close as the island we weathered the storm on was the turning point of the course, we failed to circumnavigate it though as we sailed past it in the dense fog.

After two weeks at Angela's I was ready to go to Islamorada (one of the Florida keys) and sail in the Tradewinds Regatta.

Little did I know however, that all this time spent in Florida waiting for this regatta, and I would not even complete a single race.

My friend Joe from my college sailing team joined me for this regatta as Brendon could not make it.  

We spent Wednesday and  Friday training with my friends Bret and James from New Jersey.  We had some amazing conditions and beautiful weather!  Thursday we chose to take a day trip to Key West.  Joe and James had never been, while Bret and I have made it a tradition to go every year during this regatta.  We had an amazing night on Duval Street which ended a little later than planned followed by James driving us back to Islamorada.

Finally Saturday morning came, we got out on the water and did a few nice double trapeze upwind beats and spinnaker runs.  As it was blowing around 20mph and gusting to the high 20's.  We did everything we could do to de-power the boat but it just wasn't enough, at this point I informed Joe that we were going to have our hands full.

Now for race one:  We had a decent start and as we approached the first windward mark we witnessed our first capsize.  We blew by the overturned boat and assessed our mid-fleet situation.   This assessment didn't last long as we were hit by some strong gusts and were double trapezing on screaming reach hitting speeds into the mid to high 20's.  The scene in front of us can be seen in the picture above as Team Key Sailing flipped in front of us.  At this point 2 boats out of 14 were down.  At the jibe mark, right in front of us, Team Key Sailing 2 capsized as well.  Thankfully, we jibed successfully, I thought that if we made it to the leeward mark still upright we would be golden.  As we approached the layline for the leeward mark, we turned into the jibe when I saw a boat go over behind us, realizing there was likely a strong gust coming our way I tried to prepare but it was too late.  Over we went!  Another boat in front of us went over from the same gust.  By the first leeward mark 6 boats had been blown over.

We righted the boat, sailed back around the course only to flip in the same spot and in the same manner as the first time!  After righting the boat this time Joe and I were exhausted.  We decided to slowly sail up to the starting area and wait for the next race.  We were still ahead of some boats, but I was pretty confused as to who as we had spent so much time on the side.  I figured we would cut our losses and go all out in the next race.  A minute after making this decision, we were sailing upwind, both on the trampoline and pinching up into the wind to de-power when a wind gust blew us over again!  I managed to climb onto the top hull as it flipped, I sat on top of the hull, 9 feet up in the air, half trying to comprehend what had just happened and half contemplating how I was going to jump down without hitting the boat and at the same time not getting separated from the boat that was drifting/ sailing on its side way faster than I could have swam.  Before jumping down I looked for Joe.  He had been thrown about 30 feet away and was trying to swim back to the boat.  Seeing a Hobie 16 nearby I waved them down and pointed to Joe.  I told Joe to save his energy and grab  ride rather than trying to swim.  He was given a ride back to our boat where he informed me he was "legally blind" as he had broken his glasses.  We made decision then and there that after righting the boat we were going in 1, because we were exhausted, 2 because his glasses were broken, 3, because a batten in the mainsail was broken.  We righted the boat, but nothing was going right for us, so why would it be that easy?  The tiller bar was flipped over causing one of the rudders to be pointed straight, so no matter how hard I tried to point the boat into the wind, it was not happening.  Joe and I dragged from the back of the boat by the chicken lines, trying to head the boat up, for over 5 minutes, as the boat sailed off to God knows where.  Had the boat flipped again I am not sure we would have had the energy to right it again for a while.  We finally miraculously got back on the boat and had the most cautious sail in possible.

We arrived to the beach to find Bret had been thrown through his mainsail during a capsize and could not find a replacement.  Many other boats were on the beach for broken parts such as, ripped sails, broken booms, etc.  One boat even split it's bow open!  Others had felt the conditions were too much for them and returned to the beach.  Many people did not complete the first race.  9 of the Nacra 20's either didn't finish the first race or came in after they finished the first race.  Few boats remained racing in what many called "survival" conditions.

Sunday we woke up, saw the forecast was for winds 35+, looked outside, noticed the trees blowing in the wind were indicating this was true, and decided to have a nice long breakfast and then go de-rig the boat.  We arrived at the regatta site to find everyone else de-rigging, we had made the right call!  Races had been called off, so we de-rigged as sand blew around us, stinging as it hit our skin, it was that windy!  Awards were given, we said our good-byes, and finished derigging.

We got on the road to Fort Lauderdale to Brets grandparents where we would rest for a few hours before beginning our trek back to the frozen north.

Another great annual sailing trip to Florida over, I was excited to return home for the first time in a month!  Now as I write this I wish i was back in sunny Florida sailing again!  I guess I will have to wait until next year!  I can't wait!  Everyone should try to participate in these regattas sometime in their sailing careers.  

Next possible regatta on the schedule... Spring Fever Regatta in Hartwell, GA over Easter Weekend.  Then we will have a busy summer schedule with regattas throughout the northeast as well as the Nacra North American Championships in Michigan in late August.

Please stay tuned for updates!  I still plan to tell the story of our 3,000+ mile round trip drive from Rhode Island to Florida and back.

Vanguard 15 Midwinters

Lindsay and I about to round the windward mark.
 One of the starts.   Photos courtesy of Sarrahhh

I returned back to Florida on December 26th.  From Jamie's house I drove down to Miami and relaxed in Coconut Grove with some of my friends who were there for the Orange Bowl Regatta.  

On the 28th, my friend Lindsay and I drove up to Jensen Beach, FL for the 2007  Vanguard 15 Midwinters.  57 of the nation's top college sailors descended upon Jensen Beach to compete in this event.  Lindsay and myself competed in the fleet racing part of the regatta.  We finished in a disappointing 51st.  We raced the best we could but we could only muster a 29th as our best finish.  There were many other talented sailors who finished near us and we were mixing it up with the best sailors in the fleet in several races.  We just could not manage to stay in a good position.  This was likely due to my lack of experience in big fleets and that Lindsay and I had never sailed together before.

We had lots of fun and sailed the best we could.  That is all that matters! Right?

I chartered my boat out for the team racing section and hung out with a large contingent of my college  sailing team that came down for the event.

After the event I took off for Tampa to spend the next 2 weeks with my friend Angela until the Tradewinds Regatta.

Better late than never! 2007 Steeplechase: long distance catamaran regatta in the FL keys

Skipper, Todd Riccardi practicing the day before the Steeplechase
Crew:  Brendon Scanlon, practicing the day before the Steeplechase
Us sailing through Cardfish sound to Angelfish Creek which leads to the ocean.
Leading our new friends from North Carolina.
Awesome silhouette shot of us through our sail. Shots courtesy of Sailseries.com

Well, 4 months after the event... here are some pictures and the story from the Steeplechase which was held December 8th and 9th, 2007... a 110 mile distance race in 2 days on small 20 foot long "beachcats".  The course took us around several of the northern Keys including, Key Largo, Islamorada, and Mattecumbe.  For this race I teamed up with my friend Brendon on a Nacra 20.  Out of a field of 17 talented teams, ourselves and another boat were the only rookies to participate.  

I probably should tell you about our drive down in my friend Mike's 1996 Suburban with a Vanguard 15 on the roof and 2 Nacra 20's  on a trailer behind it, the 40-50 mph crosswinds, snow, and etc. we experienced as we drove through the night the first night from Rhode Island, but then what would I have to write about later.  Also soon to come, maybe in another 4 months, will be a posting about Vanguard 15 midwinters and the Tradewinds Regatta.

Okay back to the Steeplechase...

Day one: We had high hopes after being the 4th boat to the first significant waypoint on our GPS, the card sound bridge.  My hopes soon diminished when I had difficulty pointing as high as our competitors.  I want to blame it on our old and blown out jib but I shouldn't make excuses. 

The first day day is approximately 65 miles.  Most of this leg was a screaming, double trapeze spinnaker reach.  Once our 2 easily accessible water bottles were empty I thought I would be fine until the finish.  This is when I learned one of the most important rules of distance racing, drinking tons of water!  BEFORE, during, and after sailing!  One bottle certainly is not enough, especially when racing with temperatures in the mid 80's and the subtropical sun beaming down on you.  So needless to say, I began to suffer signs of dehydration and sunstroke.  From his position on the trapeze, Brendon could not make out what I was attempting to say, but he presumed it was just because of all the splashing water and etc.  After some time he noticed me slouching a bit and came in off the trapeze to check on me.  At this point I was on the verge of passing out.  I was refusing to slow down as we had been on the heels of several veteran teams.

Realizing my situation Brendon scolded me, diminishing my self pride (which is exactly what I needed) and dove for the drybag containing the rest of our water.  I drank some but soon that was gone too and I was still suffering.  Boats began creeping up from behind and passing us. 

At last we spotted the candy cane building which was the landmark to tell us we were nearing the finish.  We took a few jibes inland to make sure we didn't overstand the finish.  These last few jibes were the most difficult boat maneuvering of my life!  We finally saw the finish and began screaming towards the beach full speed, spinnaker up, daggerboards most of the way down and etc.  It was then that I realized we were quickly approaching mudflats and there was NO alternative route to the finish line.  I managed to yell to Brendon to pull the boards up and drop the spinnaker.  Immediately after completing that both rudders kicked up.  I held on with every ounce of energy I had left (which wasn't much) as our boat and rudder skimmed through only a few inches of water.   We came to a halt 2 feet from the finish line, I immediately sprawled out on the trampoline to rest.  I was so excited to rest that I forgot that we had no finished!  Rick White and several other sailors were yelling at me with encouragement to drag the boat through the finish.  As soon as we did that I retreated to dry land to attempted to get rested and hydrated.  

Believe me, I learned a huge lesson!  This will not happen to me again!

Day two:

I woke up to being reminded that we only had to sail 45 miles today.  Great I thought, we did 65 in 4 hours the day before, the winds blowing around 20, should be a breeze.  When we got to the beach I realized the short sail to the channel 5 bridge would be the only downwind sailing we would do all day.  The rest of the day would include beating upwind, avoiding sandbars,and sailing through mangroves.  I suddenly realized it might not be as easy as I had thought back at the hotel.  The situation became dyer when I realized the waters we had packed in the car had disappeared!  The day before was echoing in my head... but we had came so far to not finish the race!  After rigging I sprinted around to several teams that had dropped out and scrounged up 4 water bottles.  While that was not as much as I would have liked, beggers can't be chosers.  I had the bottles in my hand and then hear the announcement that we only had a minute until the start!  I sprinted to the boat, threw the water in the trampoline pocket and we pushed off, literally as the starting gun blew.  Still winded from my sprint, I now had to fight the rudders as I could not lock them down for about half a mile because of shallow water.  Finally getting them locked down we got up to full speed, went under the bridge and began our upwind adventure through the Everglade National forest.

We started off with about 5 Nacra 20's behind us after going under the bridge.  Throughout the course of the day some of them slowly passed us, again due to us not being able to point as high as them.  We also lost some boats where their experience with the race navigation paid off.  We truly experienced what the Steeplechase is all about by skidding over sandbars at full speed, sailing through narrow cuts through mangroves, and etc.  Brendon and I took the experience from the day before and fed each other water bottles throughout the day.  We entered the last mangrove right on the heels of Mike and Frank, veteran distance racers with many Steeplechases between the 2 of them.  We thought we might be able to catch them, we paddled our hearts out through the mangroves but in dismay watched their sail above the top of the mangroves moving much faster than ours.  We exited the mangroves with them nearly out of sight.

We finished day 2 in 10th but combined with our time from day ones fiasco we dropped to 11th.  We were infact the last place boat to complete the race, 6 boats out of the original 17 dropped out.  I am confident we would have done better had we not had those issues.  However, it was our first Steeplechase and we know it was a feat just to finish it.  

Brendon and I left happy with how we did, drove up to Jamie Livingston's house who graciously let me keep the car and trailer there while I flew back to Rhode Island until I returned later in December.

*Please note I did not proofread this, it is past midnight and I have to wake up for a 7AM sailing team workout.  Hopefully i'll get to the proofread and editing later.  Hope you enjoyed!

**Note:  A few items were placed on my wish list after this regatta.  

#1:  Camelback!  Had I had one I never would have suffered from dehydration during this event.

#2: New jib sail!  Our pointing ability suffered from a blown out jib.  The draft has moved way back in the sail and no longer works effectively  for upwind pointing.

#3:  A new spinnaker!  We were fairly concerned our spinnaker was going to rip to shreds during this regatta, it's pretty stretched out and has many small tears, this is not fast.