The Fleet 9 blog has been quiet for the last month, but there’s been plenty of action on the water, with 21 boats now registered and having completed at least one race each. June 19th—Peter Siegl’s Hawk (245) picked up the pace as the spring series went along and won the finale after scoring a second [...]
Last week, Fleet 9's foggy racing ended early with the race committee signaling code flag N (November) over A (Alpha), sending the fleet home in mid-race for safety reasons. On the next Wednesday night, after one general recall, principal race officer Robin Wallace flew code flag U (Uniform) at the preparatory signal, which sent the fleet [...]
The 8- to 10-knot northeasterly breeze on Wednesday night was supposed to shift right, and that's what it did on the first beat. Yet the boats that stayed left gained either due to better current or a pressure advantage, probably both. For those who were over early or bailed out quickly from the heavily favored windward [...]
This was one of those nights where you couldn't flinch, said Peter Shope, who was steering 74. Particularly in the second race, a short double-lap sprint with .6-mile legs, the racing was so tight that the smallest error could cost you half of the 15-boat fleet. Few boats were able to record consistent finishes on the [...]
We were greeted with a flat calm for yesterday's evening race, and even the most optimistic had low expectations of running a race. But we climbed on our boats and sat on the moorings just in case, and suddenly about 1700 the southerly popped over Newport Neck and filled out through Brenton Cove. The race was [...]
We don't remember the last time 121 started the first race of the season, but with fresh-painted topsides, it was a good look for Dave Bush-Brown and crew last night during Fleet 9's Wednesday night opener. Ted Slee's mighty Maverick (33) punched out ahead of the fleet on the tricky little Rose Island dogleg that Dr. [...]
Notes from the fleet officers: The 2019 Spring Series Begins The Spring Series begins this week after a long and well needed winter rest. We'll see you South of the Bridge on Wednesday. Make sure to monitor VHF 79a or 0079 for details per the SI's. Warning Signal is at 5:35pm - Rendezvous In The Vicinity of Rose Island. Post [...]
The North Sails team will open the doors of its Portsmouth loft on Wednesday, March 20, at 6pm, to host a tuneup seminar for Shields and other racers. We'll hear from world and national champions in the J/24, J/70, J/22 and, of course, the Shields class—Will Welles, Tim Healy, Mike Marshall, and Tim Dawson. Aboard 254 [...]
