Bissell Racing

Nassau, Bahamas
April 9-12
 Report by Dave Hughes

Capping his win at the Bacardi Cup earlier in the week, Brian Bissell won the 2008 Tag Heuer Snipe Winter Championship in top form.Going into the final day of racing it was do-or-die for Bissell in the eight-race series.  Snipe master Peter Commettee led overnight, meaning Brian had to put two points on Peter and win a race to ensure the tie-breaker.  Off the first start of Race #7, match racing pursued and Bissell won the start in the middle with Commettee struggling at the boat.  General recall.  The second go-around only intensified. Bissell commanded off the start and led around the track with Peter close behind.  Attempts to slow Peter enough to allow for a boat to squeeze between Brian and Peter did not work.  Still behind in the standings, Brian had to win the Race #8 with Peter 2nd, or place anywhere with a boat between he and Peter. The third place boat was out of the picture. In the end, the final was a near image of the first race of the day.  Brian led around the track with Peter 2nd in a tacking duel that launched the two boats from the fleet.  The win put Brian over the top by 1/2 point under the Snipe class bonus for race wins. Italian Enrico Solerio — who finished 2nd in the Bacardi Cup — took third overall.  A fantastic coat-and-tie awards banquet concluded the regatta and presented the winning crew with their own Tag Heuers.Brian used the AP-4 main and BR-1D+ jib with DeFazio-style tuning on a Sidewinder Gold mast, proving very quick in all conditions.  

Special thank you to Henry Filter for use of his van and helping transport the North Sails Snipe, Peter Commette for storing the boat at his house, Connie Commette for sorting out logistics, Gonzo Diaz for lending us his top-cover and helping us with Nassau shipping, Augie Diaz for lending us his trailer, Dick Bobenz for organizing the Clearwater mid-winters, Ernesto Rodriguez for unloading the Worlds container from Portugal, Jerry Thompson for his overall guidance, Shane the “Life Coach” for showing us Nassau in top fashion, Mark, Tressa and Rebecca Piekarz for absolutely wonderful housing in Nassau, Jimmy and Laurie Lowe for organizing the Nassau event, Robert Dunkley for the use of his Olympic Games sport coat for the awards dinner, Mark Dunkley for local know-how, the Stout family for all their help with Team Blue, David and Susan Odell for answering all our Snipe class questions, the legendary Earl Elms for excellent race committee and good humor, Thad and Annie Inge for being such great hosts in Miami, the team at North Sails One Design, and Kimmer Popoff for…well, pretty much everything!

I was asked by a journalist of our local Annapolis Sailing Magazine “The Spinsheet,”… “What’s up with your hat?”  This was my response…

The only real story behind the hat is that I really hate cold weather.  I found the hat at Eastern Mountain Sports when I was in search of the warmest hat I could possibly find even if it looked dorky and perhaps even girly.    

I grew up in Newport Beach, CA and have never gotten used to the cold.  When I got out of college sailing, I swore that I’d never sail a cold weather regatta again.  But, when I heard how many fun people were coming to town for the IC Midwinters I knew it was going to be an event that shouldn’t be missed.  The local Annapolis IC fleet was very accommodating in helping me find a boat to use and I called up my go-to-guy Matt Schubert to see if he and his wife Lori would be my B division team.  I used up all of my beginners luck in Saturday’s racing because Sunday didn’t go as well for us.  I was joking around at the awards ceremony that I tried my hardest to screw things up, but Matt and Lori just wouldn’t let it happen as they won B division by 13 points putting us in 2^nd overall.   

The fun factor was the reason I did this event and I wasn’t disappointed.  After racing on Saturday, all the competitors enjoyed dinner and a keg inside SSA by the nice warm fire.  The highlight of the dinner party came when two long tables were pushed together to accommodate a game of “flip-cup.”  The last pitcher of the keg was used for a new spin on an old game….no hands flip-cup.  Try drinking a beer and flipping the empty cup end over end without using your hands…what a mess!  The group then proceeded to the Rockfish and then on to Pussers. 

The cold temperatures were definitely the hardest on the crews.  When you’re skippering, you’re pretty active in the boat trimming the main and steering.  The crew’s only real job in the IC is to put the centerboard up and down.  My super crew, Alexis Rubin, couldn’t feel her hands, feet or face.  The regatta format is pretty cool in that you only sail a few races at a time.  It’s nice to be able to come in periodically to warm up by the fire. 

Danny Pletsch skippered the B division boat on the winning team and he still thinks he can run 20 MPH.  Results…

First of all, I was honored to be a member of such an awesome team.  As our fearless leader, Dr. Beeckman, put it “I love it when a plan comes together .”  It was incredible how smoothly things went (on the water) considering not a single one of us had ever sailed flying scots before and haven’t team raced together since I was in high school.  Since I am only intimately familiar with the crew work of my own crew, my hat goes off to Jack Hogan and Cryssa Byers for an unbelievable job.  However, from my point of view, it looked like the other crews Mandy, Matt, Alan and Tracey were rockstars too.
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The Regatta format began with a single round robin for all 9 teams.  Then they divided the teams up into the top 4 and bottom 5.  One more round robin was completed by both groups.  If there was more time, the top team from silver would have moved up and the bottom team from Gold would have moved down and another round robin would have been sailed. 

Unfortunately we ran out of time and the results were taken from the two previous round robins.  In the first round robin, our only two losses came from Southern YC and Bay Waveland YC; the two teams I had designated from the beginning as “regatta favorites.”  Our 6-2 record propelled us into the final four to be raced on Sunday. 

New York YC, Southern YC, Bay Waveland YC, and NHYC comprised the top group.  We had really close races with each team.  The two most exciting races came against the two teams we had lost to in the previous round.  In the Bay Waveland Race, all three of our boats fell behind early.  They rounded the first mark in a 1,2,3 combination to our 4,5,6.  By the leeward mark, we had converted to a 2,3,5, but one of their boats fouled Andy so hard that even after he spun a penalty circle, Andy was still in last.  In team racing, this is called a professional foul, and will add 10 pts to your teams score in the race.  We crossed the finishe line in a 2,4,5 but because they had a 10pt penalty, we won the race. 

In our final race against Southern, we had a 1,3,5 coming into the leeward mark.  A giant puff of wind caught their 2nd place boat off guard and wiped them out enabling our team to move into a solid 1,2 combination.  We crossed the finish line in a 1,2,6 thus putting us in a 3-way tie for first overall in the regatta.  The tie breaker came down to who beat who in the final race and since we went undefeated when it counted in the final round, we won the tie-breaker.

The Soiland Trophy was donated by NHYC to Southern YC to help replenish their trophy case after hurricane Katrina.  Robert Soiland was the first commodore of NHYC and won the cup in a distance race from Newport Beach to San Clemente Island.  It has now been rededicated to a yacht club challenge team race event.

Hey there race fans.  Sorry it has taken me awhile to write the final report for the Snipe World Championship, but it has been hard to formulate words to describe the experience.  It was tough to find something positive to write about the sailing, but after some time has gone by, it’s really not so bad afterall.

Preparing for a World Championship the right way means covering every detail and leaving nothing on the table.  Think of any possible excuse you might have for losing and take care of those things before the event happens.   I believe I did this and so I have no regrets.  Yeah, everything didn’t go my way and I think had there been more races I could have had a better result, but that’s sailing, that’s the sport we play.

By preparing for this event, I became a better sailor.  I know more about tuning, sail trim, and sail design than I ever knew before.  More specifically, I became a much better snipe sailor.  I feel like I really know this boat now which will help me help others as the Snipe rep for North Sails.

I have to give a huge shout out to Danny Pletsch, who I was able to rope into crewing for me, because he couldn’t think of an excuse fast enough when I asked him what he was doing during the month of September.  The Snipe PreWorlds was Danny’s second regatta and by the time the worlds rolled around, he was one of the best crews in the entire regatta.  This summer, he placed 11th at Sunfish Worlds, 8th at Snipe Worlds, and got 2nd at Team Race Worlds.  I was really lucky to have him in the front of my boat.  I think I was really lucky he didn’t strangle me a few times too.  By the way, he broke the 20 mph speed barrier on foot and he has video to prove it!

I’d like to thank everyone that supported my Snipe Campaign.  Without your generosity, we never would have made it to Portugal…North Sails for helping with some expenses and making me fast sails, Steve McManus for your generous support, Harry Legum at Annapolis Sailing Fitness helping me cross off fitness in the excuse column, Annapolis Yacht Club Sailing Foundation for your generous donation, Annapolis Performance Sailing for giving me a camouflage hat and a good discount on gear, Julie Bissell (my mom) for making my hotel reservations, Henry Filter for being my tuning partner and giving us rides in his rental car, Coach Pedro, the US Team and the Newport Harbor Yacht Club for their continued support.

 Last but not least, thank you, the reader, for tuning in and taking interest in my blog.  The amount of comments I have recieved from people about how they enjoyed following the action really surprised me.  There will be more to come. 

Two regattas are coming up, the Hinman this coming weekend and the J24 East Coast Champs the weekend after.  Talk to you soon.

To conclude a very frustrating regatta, we finished 10th in the last race that jumped us up from 18th overall to 8th.  My goal was top 10 so I’m pleased to have achieved it, but overall it wasn’t a great event.  I’ll write more of a report when I get back, but just wanted to fill everyone in.

Today was light air once again and no races were sailed.  We left the dock at 1pm and didn’t return till about 7pm.  Some starts were attempted but they were all general recalls.  The Z flag was up so there could have been some 20% penalties handed out.

Our hope of having a throwout was splashed today since the maximum number of races they can have in a day is 3 and we need 4 for a throwout.  They need 3 races to have this count as a regatta and the forecast looks dismal for tomorrow the final day.  I think there is a very good chance that this could be a nonevent.  I’ve never sailed anywhere for 5 days and not had at least one day with decent breeze. 

Not much else to report, but I’ll fill you in if anything happens tomorrow.

Day 2 of the Snipe Worlds was more of the same.  Very light wind and a dense fog.  After a long postponement, they finally started the race around 4pm in about 4 or 5 knots.  It is getting frustrating only having one race per day especially since we’d really like a throwout.  We need 4 more races in 2 days for that to happen.

The race for us went much better.  We started down at the favored pin end and had some initial troubles but we were able to tack, bob and weave through a couple starboard boats and find a lane going the way we wanted.  Hitting a few really nice shifts and connecting the dots with the pressure, we reached the windward mark in 3rd.

Danny did a great job telling me where to go on the downwind leg and we caught a boat to round the leeward gates in 2nd.  We and the first place Japanese boat extended from the fleet and turned it into a two boat race.  We took some chunks out of them upwind, but lost a little bit in our approach to the windward mark.  They tacked on us when we were on the layline, forcing us to do two tacks and overstand a little bit. 

We caught up a little bit on the final downwind and since we had some room to play around a little bit, we decided to round the opposite gate and split from them upwind.  Unfortunately, it didn’t pay off, but we managed to hold on for a 2nd place finish.

This jumped us up in the standings 21 places and we are now in 18th.  Still not great, but getting better. 

Peter Commette and Tomas also had great races.  Tomas and Enrique are leading the US Team with a 1,3 and are only one point out of first overall.¼/p>

To keep honest to the reporting I have to write about the painful day we had even though I’d rather not.  Only one race was completed in about 3 knots and we finished 39th overall.  ouch.  Not the way we wanted to start, but it happens and we’re moving on.  In six races there will be a throwout, but many people are having doubts they can get 5 races in the 3 days we have left of racing.  There is just no breeze and the forecast doesn’t look any better.

 Hey, Wha Happened?!?!  So, how did we manage a 39th?  Well, our pre race strategy turned out to be wrong, and our tactics could have been better.  Let me explain….

First off, our Portuguese coach (hired for his local knowledge) tells the whole team before the race to GO RIGHT, emphasizing with english phrases he knows like “for sure,” “absolutely,” and “without a doubt.”  Then we go upwind with our tuning partner Henry and the right payed off pretty well.  And last but not least, the wind was blowing from the same direction as the PreWorlds and it was a game of who could get to the right first.  With all these factors adding up, we decided to start near the committee boat and tack soon for the right.

Well, a big lefty ended up coming in and we had made some big sacrifices to get to the right.  It was a game of catch up from that point on and we actually caught about 15 boats to finish in 39th. 

Other American teams faired much better.  Tomas Hornos and Enrique Quintero won the race, very impressive for the youngsters.  Augie Diaz finished 7th, Jerry Thompson placed 8th and Peter Commette landed in 15th.  The rest of the team was back with me. 

Danny and I are down but not out and we still believe we can make something happen.  Hopefully I will have better news for ya’ll tomorrow.

Hurry up and wait, then go home.  This has been the theme of the last two days.  Yesterday, there was supposed to be a practice race and everyone was treating it as a trial run for the big dance. 

We all rushed down to the club, got our boat in racing form, and waited for them to hoist the “D” code flag which means you are allowed to leave the dock.  A fog rolled in that was so thick, the Race Committee couldn’t see 20 ft.   After waiting and waiting, they finally hoisted the AP over A which meant no racing for the day.  So we went home.

We came back to the Opening Ceremonies that started at 7pm.  The US Team decided to wear blazers and ties for a team uniform.  It was pretty cool.  Each country marched in lead by a local Portuguese opti sailor holding a sign displaying the country’s name.  The teams would march in, walk up on stage, and stand there for pictures while they played the national anthem and raised the country flag.

We woke up this morning and I looked out the window of our hotel.  It was breezy and there was no fog.  My hopes were up for a great day of racing.  However, as soon as we reached the shore line on our way to the club, the wind was blowing very light from the East.  We’ve seen the Easterly many mornings since we’ve been here, only to see it die around noon or one and switch around to the North. 

The first race was scheduled for noon, so they let us leave the dock at 11.  Henry Filter, Peter Commette, Danny and I were the first ones out.  The Easterly, sure enough, died and actually filled in from the South, a direction we haven’t seen yet.  Henry and I are tuning partners, so we promptly got together and did a 3 minute split tacks upwind to check the course.  I went right, Henry went left.  When we came back across, we were way ahead.  So Danny and I start to form our strategy and going right seems to be the way to go. 

Right before the five minute gun, our coach comes speeding up to us and says in broken english with a cigarrette in his mouth that he thinks it will definately be a left favored first beat.  Danny and I look at eachother and decide to trust what we saw during our split tacks.  It wasn’t an easy decision though because our coach is from Portugal and was hired for his local knowledge. 

Well, as luck would have it, we had no other option but to go right after a horrendous start.  I totally choked the start and I could tell that Danny wanted to strangle me, but we kept our cool and found a lane to go right.  When we tacked back we were crossing the entire fleet aside from a couple boats that went right with us.

We were about to round the windward mark in about 4th when they decided to abandon the race.  Not sure exactly why, but maybe they saw me go from a 5th row start to about 4th overall and decided it wasn’t fair.  Oh well.  I should also mention that our tuning partner was about to round the windward mark 3rd.  Way to go Henry!  We’re both the lone rangers on the US team using North Sails and we both felt super fast today.

So our speed is good, luck is good, starts bad.  I think it was nerves, but I have it out of my system now. 

We drifted around for the rest of the day and they finally called it around 5pm.  So hurry up and wait, then go home.  Worlds will hopefully start tomorrow and we are more than ready.  Thanks for tuning in.