Saturday, July 5, 2014

Schematic Completes the 2014 Newport to Bermuda Race

After sailing about 1800 miles, Schematic is back in her slip in Annapolis.  She went from Annapolis to Newport, RI, did the Newport to Bermuda Race then sailed back to Annapolis safely ahead of Hurricane Arthur.

The 2014 Newport to Bermuda Race was a tough and grueling one with light winds and foul current. We went too far East trying to take advantage of a warm eddy, but got caught with no wind, then could not get far enough west and fought 4 knots of Gulf Stream Current that was going North.  We fought back in light air and found some favorable current to get to the front of our Class, but then went too far west and wound up in the middle. We took 9 (out of 15) in Class and 18 (out of 96) in Fleet - a respectable finish given the tough conditions.

We had some set backs too; Wally our Navigator got very sick on the delivery up and could not race.  Our electronics were marginal at best.  We did not have all the full range of instruments available in the cockpit, there were conflicts with new equipment installed and The Expedition navigation software was not intuitive and a real challenge - it was a real headache.  Chris Burd our rock star bow man was injured - fortunately not seriously. This trip saw more use of the first aid kit than any race that I can remember. Stomach pain, muscle bruises, and bacterial eye infection.

The crew was awesome - On short notice we replaced Wally with Tripp Burd - Chris's brother; he blended well with the rest of the crew and did an excellent job on the bow and trimming sails - he had the best hat. Chris, never missed a beat,  switched to the back of the boat and was awesome driving in light air. Brad Cole stepped up and helped in Wally's absence and contributed to the brain trust in the aft guard and did a great job with much of the boat prep. Greg Leinweber did an amazing job on sail trim and keeping the bow of the boat in ready for action. Warren Dahlstrom and David Banks did an amazing job with the food - we ate like kings. David also gets bonus points for taking care of the first aid kit and keeping all healthy and in action. Conner Fox did an outstanding job scrambling for lines, sails and taking most of the photographs.

The boat did an excellent job - I don't think it could have been in better shape  - nothing was left to chance - nothing was lost or broken - a rare occurrence when racing offshore.It moved well in the light air

We had a great time. It was a lot of work and there are a lot of great stories to tell.

Results:
Schematic was in The St. Davids Lighthouse Division; Class2 
2014 Newport to Bermuda Race Results  

Final Race Analysis and Summary

Photos:
2014 Newport to Bermuda Race - Schematic Photos1

2014 Newport to Bermuda Race - Schematic Photos2

The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club and Bermuda

Return Trip Photos

Videos:
Schematic YouTube Channel







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