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C Scow 2003 News Sail Information || C Scow News || C Scow Tuning Guide || Contact C Scow Experts || Order
Interview by Eric Hood
You had a great victory this past season beating 57 other teamsfor the ILYA Championship victory. If you could name 5 key ingredients that made this campaign successful then what would they be? Fred - That's a good question! The number one ingredient is patience. We concentrated on being patient on the starting line, on the first upwind leg, and then during the remainder of the race. Without patience, you tend to make quick decisions that don't pay off.The second key was changing my sail. I bought a new light-air North sail that gave me better speed downwind in light air. We were able to hang with competitors that carried less crew weight better than in the past. Thirdly, I adjusted my boom pulley position so that the mast rotated less. This came from a combination of feeling a bit slow upwind and noticing where the top sailors positioned their blocks.Fourth, a great crew! My regular crew has sailed with me for eightyears and really knows how to change gears. This is very important since I can keep my head out of the boat while looking up the course for breeze. Fifth. Great coaching from David Koch on the last day. Before the races on the last day David (a two-time ILYA Champion) talked to me about course position, protecting the lead, and most importantly,remaining confident in my boat speed and aggressive on the course. These tips were very handy during the last two races that decided the regatta. We know you and your team have worked hard to get where you are today. Sails are a important part of the program. What influenced you the most in choosing the North I-1 Light Medium mainsail? Fred - The biggest influence in my decision to purchase the North I-1 Light Medium mainsail was the performance of other competitors using the same sail. On Pewaukee Lake, Doug Mills (V-800), Bruce Conley (V-16), and JJ Hausman (V-181) were incredibly fast in light air - all using the North I-1. There were also many on the regatta circuit using the sail who finished consistently well in light air using the North. After two years of getting run down from behind, I decided it was time to give the I-1 a try. It was well worth the money! Tell us about sailing on Pewaukee Lake and being part of that large scow organization? It must be exciting. Fred - Pewaukee Yacht Club is an amazing organization. Fully run by volunteers (except for a fantastic club manager!) our scow classes continue to prosper year after year. In 2003 we had 12 A Scows, 28 EScows, 20 C Scows, 26 MC Scows, 25 M Scows (up from 8 only a few yearsago!), 17 X Scows, 16 Lasers (not scows but they race every Wednesday evening in the summer), and best of all, over 50 kids in our Optimist program. Club members, both sailors and non-sailors, participate on our judging teams that run every race and help out during regattas. Volunteerism really shows during any regatta hosted on Pewaukee Lake. Members are always available to do whatever is necessary and donate much of the delicious food that brings sailors from around the country back to PYC again and again.Sailing on Pewaukee Lake against the many talented sailors here has made the difference in terms of being competitive at regattas. Every fleet has regatta champions and the C fleet in particular is loaded with three National champions, two inland champions, the 2003 National points champion, and with others who finish high at regatta after regatta. There is also ample opportunity to crew in other fleets - I have sailed many A Scow and E Scow races as crew. Believe me, you need lots of time on the water to figure out how the shifty winds onPewaukee Lake tend to operate. You have been a dedicated C Scow Class member for a long time.You obviously love the C Scow Class. Please tell us what draws you toand keeps you so interested in the C Scow Class? Fred -There are many reasons the C Scow has kept me coming back year afteryear. I really appreciate how the ILYA and NCSSA manage the class, train great race committee members, and put on fantastic events with the cooperation of the host club volunteers. This network of sailors, judges, builders, sailmakers, and club members is the very heart of our sport. Without it, our sport would not prosper as it does and might not even exist. Next is the high level of competition. The C Fleet enjoys the participation of veteran talented sailors such as Andy Burdick, Gordy Bowers, Kent Haeger, Mark Prange, David Koch, Jack Strothman, and Jerry Huse - still sailing C Scows after more than 50 years! We also have great young sailors like Sam Rogers, Augie Barkow,Cam McNeill, Brian Brickler, and Erick Youngquist. Just finishing in the top 10 of any major regatta is an accomplishment when racing against this array of skilled tacticians. You also have to like theboat. Driving a C Scow is not the easiest thing to do (downwind, Lake Winnebago, 30+ mph breeze, wow!) but once you figure it out, it's like sailing a big laser and way more fun. Lastly, I enjoy the other folks I race against. You make friends from all over the country that last alifetime.
Fred -- Promotion is probably the most important thing anyone in our class cando to keep the sport and fleet growing. The heart of the class definitely exists within the local clubs. Not everyone at a club will sail at regattas so keeping the home lake sailing fun and competitive is paramount. Lake Nagawicka has a very enthusiastic fleet with more than 20 boats on the line for almost every race. The top sailors must take the time to work with the young sailors and those who typically don't finish well. You have to bewilling to divulge your "secrets" on boat tuning, starting, picking shifts,etc. so that the quality of the entire fleet improves. That way, all sailors stay interested and those that go to regattas do better because of the tough competition on the home lake. Sailors must also be imvolved in the administration of the home club and get on the race committee for other fleets racing on the lake. If you don't give back and help the club's non-sailors get involved, it will be difficult to maintain a top-notch club program. Pewaukee Yacht Club is very good at this as are many other ILYA clubs. Another great way to promote sailing in your local area is to go to regattas held on other local lakes. By participating in this manner you help build interest on another lake, help that club financially, and improve the numbers at that regatta so that when the regatta is reported by the organizing bodies, other sailors will see that there was interest in the event and perhaps that will sway them to go the next year or attend other regattas in the area. I typically attend 7-10 regattas a year
and try especially hard to attend those in my area. Regattas also give
experience sailing against
new talent
and teach
you how to sail in bigger fleets which is very advantageous when competing
at the ILYA Championship or NCSSA National Championship. I encourage
all C Fleet
sailors to get involved at the local, ILYA, and National level. It's
the best way to keep our awesome sport growing! Thank You Fred for this great talk! For more information about the fastest C Scow sails, contact the North C Scow Experts!
Report by Eric Hood Let the good times roll. That was the theme for the weekend at Lake Lotawana and this great fall classic regatta for C Scows this year. Great winds, great racing, fantastic parties and food were the order for three days this past week at the Missouri Yacht Club. The regatta kicked off with big winds on Friday and no practice races so the group got straight into the big Friday night benefit party. Friday night saw big donations of gifts from many companies and individuals to benefit the American Cancer Society. $1100 was raised with the selling of $1 tickets. Dave Cooley did a great job as the MC for the event. I think everyone their won something for this great benefit party given by the sailors. Saturday saw a big northwest front move through. Temps were right at 70 degrees with the breeze bouncing around between 12 & 18 m.p.h.. The direction was perfect on this long and narrow lake for some great racing. For those of you who have not been to Lotawana it is a T shaped lake. The long part of the T is a little over a mile long north and south. The top of the T runs east and west being just under a mile long. Permanent buoys were used except the start and finish lines. PRO Paula Martin and her crew gave us three very good long races in the big breeze. With the high hills on each side of this lake that only averages a couple of hundred yards in width it made for quick shifts and quick tacks during every beat. Great gains and losses could be made quickly both upwind and downwind. Lots of leaders and lots of passing during these three races on Saturday. About half the teams went with three and the other half with two. About half went with their big sails and the other half went with medium heavy sail designs. It was a fun mix of crews and sails and made for some great race exchanges on the course. Charlie Helms from White Bear, MN. really sailed well on Saturday winning the first two races and finishing seventh in the third race. This score put him in third by the end of the first day. Zack Clayton had a great day with a 4-2-1 and he was leading the pack of 35 C Scows at the end of Saturdays racing. E.Hood and Beth Jacobs along with a first time sailor Tracy Morin sailing I-45 finished with a 2-4-2 leaving them in second at the end of day 1. Other teams with good days were local ace Eddie Robison sailing the famous MO4 to a 5-3-3. Howard Chamberlin looked strong after the first race with a third place finish but had a tough second race that dropped him back in the standings. Dave Cooley sailing a newer boat than years past had all top ten finishes. The father son battles between the Cooley’s and Chamberlin families were fun to watch. Scott Tillema had two out of three very good races even though he was sailing with old equipment and sails. Chris LaBorde was looking tough early after two top finishes but had an unfortunate race breaking down in race 3. Sunday saw the battle royal shaping up with only four points separating Clayton, Hood/Jacobs, Helms and local C Scow Ace Eddie Robison. The rest of the top ten was up for grabs also. The big winds were back and on Sunday it was even windier than Saturday but the same exact direction with the same courses. Long and demanding. With the lake only being a couple of hundred yards wide east to west the starting lines ran the entire width of the lake. Starts were a premium. Of the top four only Charlie Helms got off the line with Eddie Robison have a pretty good start. Clayton and Hood/Jacobs were in deep trouble off the leeward end being trapped on sea-room issues by the rest of the fleet. It looked like the Helms team was going to run away with it quickly. The rich get richer quickly on courses like we had this week which varied between W3&1/2s and W4&1/2s. Some tough racing in the first two legs though put the top four all within range of each other and saw all four in top ten. Hood/Jacobs who literally broke their third crew on day one flew in the famous “Deuce Coop” Randy Cooper from Lake Winnebago (eight miles away). I do not know if the Deuces wife liked that 7am wakeup call to duty on Sunday (Sorry Mary). Anyway, Team I-45 kicked it into overdrive and worked through the fleet while the other three caught a few bad breaks here and there. A great race between Team I-45 and Greg Clagett for the rest of the race went down to the last lap when Team I-45 caught some good breaks and broke it open for the win. In the end the win went to Hood/Jacobs/Tracy M and the Deuce Coop. Eddie Robison was the top Lotawana boat finishing fourth. The kids beat their dads with Austin Chamberlin finishing ninth and Howard Chamberlin tenth. Dave Cooley beat dad Bob finishing sixth and seventh respectively. The Roswell team KC 111 had the most points for the weekend but they sailed all four races and never quit. Hats off to Team KC111 for sticking it out. Jack Schwindler and his women had a very good last race finishing 8th on Sunday. Many thanks to Kelly and Mark Pfefferkorn along with Sonny Trefz for putting a great regatta together. Again, hats off to Paula Martin and her team for running very good races this past week. Missouri Yacht Club is truly a diamond in the rough. Food and parties are always awesome. Put it down on your calendar for next year. Same time, same place. Until next year.
Report by Andy Burdick The C Scow Blue Chip is a very famous regatta. This championship started
back in 1960. It is based on the best of the best in C boat racing.
Through the regatta season you get recognized if you have a good event.
You get invited to the Blue Chip. Only 25 boats are invited and it
is a real honor to be in attendance. For more information about the fastest C Scow sails, contact the North C Scow Experts!
Report by Andy Burdick Fred Miller Dominates Inland C Fleet Madison, Wisconsin and the Mendota Yacht Club celebrated its 100 years of scow sailing at this years Big Inland ILYA Championship. Fred Miller of Pewaukee Wisconsin won the C Inland Championship for 2003. Fred used exclusively North Sails. "These sails helped me win the event - for sure! I will be your best salesman". Certainly, Miller is excited to have a North Sail on his C boat. Miller had to beat the best of the best to win this event. Many past Inland Champions were present and nipping on his heels but he held them off!!! Great Job Fred! Thanks for choosing North Sails - We are psyched you won!
Report by Andy Burdick Peter Keck from Lake Beulah, Wisconsin won the last race by a country
mile and won the regatta overall with a solid race record. Sam Rogers
was second. These two battled right down to the final heat where Keck
showed his overall top speed in clutch time. Keck uses North Sails
exclusively on his C boat!
Report by Andy Burdick
Cedar Lake, Indiana 2003 Icebreaker Report Cedar Lake Yacht Club in Indiana always puts on a top notch event. If you have never been to this regatta you must go! You will be back every year. Chris Craig was nice enough to give a brief run down of the racing / results of the championship. Chris asked if I could give a synopsis of what we did to go fast in this regatta. Hopefully, some of these tips will help you with your early spring C scow racing. Saturday: Race Number One - The starting line was port favored so
we started 3/4 o the way down the line with the anticipation of tacking
early onto port. This was our initial game plan. The key after the start and the key to the rest of the regatta was sailing a lift - all the time - No matter where you were on the lake, what the competition was doing, you had to sail a lift. Too many times people sailed headed or knocked tacks to a certain area on the lake (because it was good for them before) thinking they had to be there. Many times this drove people back in the pack or they at least lost valuable distance. You had to sail lifts, be patient for the next shift and take it when it came. That was the secret to success at Cedar this weekend. The V-45 won race number one by sailing lifts only, staying in solid breeze downwind and then doing the following with their sail controls - When it was just 2 of us we had the traveller at the deck edge (not quite all the down). We had maximum Cunningham and a lot of vang so that I could vang sheet (ease when the boat heeled). We never let the boat overheel. If your lowside rail is in the water you are overheeled. You have to feather the boat into the wind but most importantly you need a lot of vang on so it was easy to ease your mainsheet in the blasts. We eased our main out up to 2 feet sometimes just to keep the boat from overheeling. When the wind comes up like that with just 2 on the boat another trick
we like to use is raise our boards up 3" for the upwind legs.
You can simply move your car back on the newer boats or you can just
pull them up with your board lines being continuous. This allows the
boat to steer much easier (reduces helm) and it allows the boat to
free up / plane upwind. You don't have to fight your steering as much.
We did this the second the wind was above 10mph. Race two brought nice breeze and a very tight race with about 9 boats.
Mark Hetzler sailed a great first beat to lead much of the race. We
were fortunate on one downwind leg to get some special breeze and get
around some boats and then go on to win. Sunday: On the final day we had bigger breeze. Some gusts maybe even up to
20. We had some really fun rides downwind! Steve Schmidt and Mark Prange
set the pace the entire race. Joe Schaub closed the gap at the very
end and almost beat Steve out for the bullet! See you at some of the upcoming regattas. Andy Burdick V-45
Report by Eric Hood A great turnout of 96 scows from around the country made the trip to Rush Creek Yacht Club this year. Rush Creek Yacht Club is located on Lake Ray Hubbard just northeast of the DFW metroplex. It was the 40th Anniversary for the event. Regatta Chairman John Bates and his team pulled out all of the stops to make it a great event both on the water and off the water. The classes represented at this year’s event were of course the original Black Tie class the C Scow, the newest class the I-20, the largest class the MC and the A Scows made their return to Rush Creek. It was really great to see this exciting high-tech class return to Texas waters. Some new features to the event this year were spectator boats. Even though RCYC is one of the nicer clubs on the circuit with its pool, restaurant, bar, large shower/bathrooms, great hoists ect., ect.. being stuck on shore during racing for the heavy air crew members has always been tough. Many thanks to the RCYC group for making this great change and improvement to the regatta. The MC Scow class had 41 boats, the C Scows had 34, the I-20s had 13, E Scows had 4 and the A Scows also brought 4 boats to Texas. I have seen the weather averages at Rush Creek for the last 10 years
and have sailed there myself since the 70s. Usually in the spring you
expect nice 10-15 mph winds on normal spring days and occasionally
it gets a little windy :-o . I arrived early to deliver some new boats,
tons of sails and of course to sneak in one quick round of golf with
RCYC Commodore Charlie Lind. During the early part of the week leading
into the event we saw winds between 20-35 mph. Here is what we had
for the three days and it was rare to say the least. Weather is weather
and you have to roll with the punches. With that in mind we had some unusual race conditions. Two courses were set up with the I-20s and MCs sailing at the dam area so that if good Texas spring winds came along we would still be in flat water. The Cs, Es and As were more out in the main body of this large lake. The Cs, Es and As completed two races on Friday. The MCs and I-20s sailed two races but race two was abandoned when the race shortened on the downwind 4th leg became too confusing when about 25 boats crossed the finish line at the same exact moment. Saturday we had no racing. Socially it was great though as the weather was warm. Volleyball games, Frisbee action, poolside and just lounging around with friends were the order of the day. I know it was good for the sailors also to have time with the groups from Melges, North and Quantum also. PRO Brad Davis and his two teams posted an 8:30 start for Sunday to try and make up some races. Two races were held for all classes in light persistently shifting winds. The MC Class saw another tie for first this year but with different skippers. In fact their were only four points between 1st through fourth. Six boats of the 41 skippers survived all of the unusual conditions and deserve their positions for hard fought races. Some called it the Texas Crush and three local sailors from RCYC took the top three spots. Congratulations to Greg Gust for winning the tie-breaker with Dr. Jack Kern. Scott Slocum finished third, Doug Kern winner of the last race finished fourth. Lewis Conger from this year’s National Championship Regatta Club - Shreveport finished fifth. He could be tough on his home lake. Danny Ziegler from Windycrest really sailed a nice event finishing sixth. Other winners included Complete results are posted at www.rcyc.org and www.mcscow.org Again, many thanks to Thanks for the gracious Texas hospitality that everyone at the Rush
Creek Yacht Club always affords all of us that attend this great ,
now classic regatta.
Report by Andy Burdick Great Sailing, Great Growth in C Scow Class Down South Lake Eustis Yacht Club hosted the annual C Midwinter National Championship. Nearly 20 boats participated in the 6 race championship. Boats from Kansas City, Wisconsin, New York, Georgia and other venues it is clear to see that the C scow class is strong and growing. Friday was the first day of racing. We had two competitive races in winds ranging from 8-14mph. The course favored the right side as the cool front moved through the Eustis area as we were racing. Protecting this side of the course was key upwind and of course downwind. Andy Burdick won both races on this day featuring excellent boat speed. He and his crew Charlie Harrison from Lake Geneva weighed 360lbs. together. So, in the breeze the traveller was virtually max down, the cunningham was cranked and the vang was virtually maxed out. Vang sheeting in the breeze allowed the boat to stay "on its feet" and not over heel. Zak Clayton sailed well to have two seconds and Jeff Annis from Augusta, Ga. sailed very well to have 2 thirds in the racing this day. Saturday's racing started off a bit shifty and puzzling on the first beat. Big shifts allowed the sailors on the edges to gain big leverage on the boats in the middle. Smiley Freytag who purchased a boat just for this event was out on the right looking strong. Chris Craig was on the left looking very strong. Both sides actually paid on the first beat. The middle did not. Craig opened up a big lead on the fleet along with Greg Whipple. Both boats are from the Detroit, Mi. area. Burdick who rounded the top mark in 10th after being stuck in the middle of the race course got in a tacking duel with Craig up the last beat but Craig held him off by doing good tacks, sailing fast. Burdick was second and Clayton came way back to get 3rd. JP Mull from White Lake, Mi won the final race
on Saturday. A big
shift came in from the left and Mull along with Alex Schaefer dialed
in the
breeze and 35 degrees to round 1,2 and go on to dominate the race.
Greg Whipple was third and Jeff Annis was 4th in this race. Sunday saw the worst of the cold front. 47 degrees and rain. The judging team called the days racing off as the forecast was poor. The overall results are as follows. The 2004 event will be at Lake Eustis as well. The goal is to have over 30 boats racing!
For more information on C Scow sails, contact the North C Scow experts.
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1 I-45 Eric Hood 2 4 2 1 9
2nd Zak Clayton Pewaukee, WI.
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