Carinthia Web Log: CYC Mac - Just like Lake St. Clair

From left to right: Fred Rozelle, Steve Rozelle, Fred Kreger, Nancy Caldwell, Pete "Camper" Peterson, Mike Henk, Dale Marshal, Harald Kolter

The CYC Mac had 9 J120s sailing. We started with 16 knots of air out of the southwest. We chose to start on the right side of the course. Of course Hot Ticket was just to our left. We almost started early so we kept the sprit in to prevent it. HT immediately put up her .6 spinnaker where it took us a little longer.

Jayhawker behind Flyin Irish...little did we know how much we would be looking at them

Steve Rozelle trimming the spinnaker...again looking at the stern of Hot Ticket

Gorgeous Lake Michigan Sunrise

About 35 miles farther up the course the wind started to peter out. The bulk of the fleet was on rhumb line where we were a couple of miles to the east. Fortunately the wind started to fill in from the right and we were one of the first to receive it. Another 16 miles up the course the wind died and rotated another 180 degrees. Later that night we were see 16 knots to the north by northwest. By daybreak we were crossing tacks with Flyin' Irish and Jayhawker by Ludington.

We sailed to the Michigan shore to get the onshore winds. With the northwest gradient we got a lift and more pressure. Jayhawker and Flyin Irish had the same idea.

We had good luck tacking to weather. We seemed to be able to point higher and a little faster than the other two J120s. By staying in shore we managed to maintain a higher point and with a little more pressure went faster than the boats out in the lake with a onshore breeze after 2pm. After tacking around Sturgeon Point it was a reach up the Michigan coast. The real question to us was how was Hot Ticket doing. She was probably 10 miles west and a tad a little farther south.

Going to weather off of Sturgeon Point at dawn

Sleeping Bear Dunes

Dale Marshal

Fred R. and skipper discussing strategy over dinner

This was Fred Kreger's 100th Mackinac. He rode the rail just like everyone else.

Approaching the Manitou Passage we were ahead of Jayhawker and Flyin Irish by at least a couple of miles. Since we were approaching from the west of the islands a decision to be made was to go inside or outside the islands. I ran an optimum path on the laptop and it suggested going through the passage. Fred and I agreed that if we ran on the outside it could get sticky if the wind changed. We sailed through the passage and the other two J120s followed us. Still we knew Hot Ticket was coming in from the west and would probably go outside the islands. If everything worked they could of got a rung up on us.

Course through the Manitou Islands

Coming out of the Manitou's the wind again went to bed. Our competition came screaming up to us and at different times they passed us. Fred had enough sense to put up the .5 oz drifter spinnaker and we were one of the first boats to come out of the hole.

Just south of South Fox Island the wind went to bed allowing Jayhawker and Flyin Irish to nearly pass us. Fortunately after putting up the drifter we were one of the first to sail out of the wind hole.

Ile Aux Galets Shoal just south of Grave Reef

Flyin Irish got a little ahead of us but sailed more easterly of course with Jayhawker following. We were on a northeast course. The wind started out of the southeast and the wind was forecasted to go more southwest. That enabled us to get leverage on both of them when we got to the Graves Reef Light. Also Hot Ticket was unable to press their separate lane to their advantage.

Approaching Graves Reef Light

At Graves Reef it was a question of staying ahead of our competition. Past buoy #3 at the west end of the Mackinac Straights it was our goal was to stay between the finish and the others. We did manage it although as the wind moderated Flyin Irish managed to catch up a little.

Camper in charge

Flyin Irish under the Mackinac Bridge

Flyin Irish never was out of sight since Ludington.
The white spinnaker behind her is Jayhawker

Fred Rozelle under the Mackinac Bridge

As we got closer to the finish we saw that out of desperation Flyin Irish and Jayhawker started to jibe farther out from the rhumb line. We did finish first in class with the Detroit boats taking 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place. It had to be frustrating for the other J120s to watch us take it away. Amazingly it turned out to be a longer version of the same boats beating each other up on Lake St. Clair.