Tihansky Named USNA Foundation Fall Coach of the Year

 
Jahn Tihansky was named the USNA Foundation's Fall Coach of the Year.


Jahn Tihansky was named the USNA Foundation’s Fall Coach of the Year.

After one of its finest seasons in school history, Jahn Tihansky was named the United States Naval Academy Foundation’s 2012 Fall Sports Coach of the Year, it was announced late last week.

Only sports that have championship seasons in the fall are eligible and the award is decided on by the United States Naval Academy Foundation.

The squad, under the leadership of Tihansky, won the Kennedy Cup in November, which is intercollegiate sailing’s Big Boat National Championship. Taking five of the seven contested races, Navy ended up winning the Kennedy Cup National Big Boat Championship, and with the victory, the squad earned the right to represent the United States at the Student Yachting World Cup in France in 2013. Sailing for the Naval Academy were skipper Steve Jaenke, Charlie Johnson, Sam Ross, Kelsey Ragsdale, Sean Brown, Andy Beeler, Roscoe Thomas and Ethan Madison.

The Kennedy Cup was the school’s 15th crown and second straight.

The team also claimed the 2012 McMillan Cup for the 17th time and second time in the last three years. The McMillan Cup is an intercollegiate large yacht racing event for New England and Middle Atlantic States.

It marks the first time since 2007 that Navy has won both the Kennedy Cup and McMillan Cup in the same year.

NOTICE OF RACE – THURSDAY NIGHT RACING

P1100894
J/80’s race downwind, under spinnakers and the setting sun, towards another exciting leeward mark.

J World Annapolis’ Thursday Night Racing Series is back!  Join us nearly every Thursday from May 9 to August 29 for the best one design weeknight racing in the world!  Four one design classes, including J/22’s, J/24’s, J/80’s and the hot new J/70’s,  will clash on the waters of the Annapolis Harbor and Chesapeake Bay.

Thursday Night Racing is open to all J World Alumni aboard our five J/80’s.  The boats are skippered by our highly skilled coaching staff and alumni crew.  No racing experience necessary!  Also joining us on the water are privately owned J/22’s, J/24’s, J/80’s and J/70’s.  To registered your boat please complete and email the Thursday Night Registration Form.  You can also download the  2013 THURSDAY NIGHT RACING NOTICE OF RACE.  Soon you will find all race documents including the NOR, sailing instructions (released May 1, 2013), amendments, course diagrams and RESULTS  available in the Thursday Night Racing section of the J World Annapolis website.

J/80’s reach from the windward mark to the offset. A strong spring current had the entire fleet over standing the layline.

Last year saw nearly 60 boats battling for position on any given Thursday.  This year we hope to see more than 80 boats racing each and every week and making Thursday Night Racing the best weeknight one design racing around.  Stay tuned for more information about Thursday Night Racing including fleet and racing circle assignments, sailing instructions and more!

We initially conceived our Thursday Night series to provide a fun and low pressure racing environment suitable for all level of racers. Although we keep scores on a weekly basis, the only awards are at the end of the season. As such, it’s an ideal format for you to bring along friends or new recruits and introduce them to your passion.

We are looking forward to another fantastic racing season and hope you and your team will be able to join us. It is our goal to hold as many as three races per class each evening weather/wind permitting.

DSC_1824
Leading into the windward mark can be the highlight of any racing team’s summer. With short courses and multiple races a night – everyone has a chance to be a hero!

Entry is open to any member of the J/22, J/24, J/70 or J/80 U.S. Class Associations who is also a member of their respective Annapolis area fleet. No fleet membership is required for J/80 participants.

The 2013 season will be divided into two separate series; the first series starts May 9 and ends June 27.   The second series will begin July 11 and ends August 29. There are a total of eight evenings of racing scheduled for each series.

The warning signal for the first race each week will be no earlier than 1830 hrs. The race committee will attempt to run as many races as allowable by daylight and/or weather conditions. Races will be held in the Severn River in the vicinity of the entrance to Back Creek.  Race results will be posted on the website by Friday morning.

 

 

Spring Refresher Series – Sail Controls

Basic Sail Controls By Koralina Pior

There are plenty of lines on a boat and none of them are useless. Knowing what to pull and when can save you hassle and stress. Today we’re discussing the in’s and out’s of your basic sail controls.

When it comes to remembering all your options for sail controls I like the acronym:

Our Boats Can Happily Sail The British-Virgins

Translation:

Outhaul, Backstay, Cunningham, Halyards, Sheets, Traveler, Boom-Vang

I’ve included this image to help us identify and locate each sail control:

boat-1
Original Art Work By Koralina Pior of Basic Sail Controls on a small keelboat.

Let’s start from the beginning

Outhaul- The Outhaul is attached to the clew (aft corner) of the mainsail then runs through the boom and comes out of the boom about a third of the way back from the mast.

  • Function: The Outhaul affects the depth of the sail (draft). When tightened it flattens the bottom third of the sail and makes the boat easier to handle in building breeze.

Backstay- The Backstay is connected to the top of the mast and runs back to the stern of the vessel. A line runs along the backstay which tensions the backstay.

  • Function: When the Backstay is tensioned the mast bows forward and flattens the middle and top of the sail. This causes a dramatic reduction in draft which de-powers the boat and makes it easier to steer and control the boat in a fresh breeze.

Cunningham- The Cunningham is attached just above the tack (forward corner) of the mainsail. It generally runs down to a block attached to the mast just above the deck.

  • Function: The Cunningham can be used to get more luff (leading edge of sail) tension; used in conjunction with the Outhaul and Backstay is moves the draft forward and completes the depowering of the mainsail.

Halyard- The Halyard is attached to the head (top) of the sail and is used to raise sails to the top of the mast.

  • Function: The Halyard affects luff tension and draft position. A  loose halyard will create a sail with more draft which is great for a light breeze. As the breeze builds a tighter halyard will give you more luff tension and help give a flatter sail shape (when used in conjunction with the “OBC”s it helps alleviate weather helm).

Sheets- Specifically the Mainsheet is attached to the boom and changes the angle the sail has to the wind (angle of attack).

  • Function: By changing the angle of attack the speed of the boat can be affected. When the sheets are properly trimmed, the boat is at its greatest efficiency. If we over trim or ease the sails the efficiency will rapidly decrease. Easing the sails upwind, will cause the sails to luff and slow the boat down. Over trimming the sails downwind will stall flow and cause the boat to slow down.

Traveler- The traveler is generally located towards the stern in the cockpit relatively close to the driver position. The mainsheet block is connected to the travel car which travels from one side of the boat to the other.

  • Function: The Traveler changes the sheeting angle of the Mainsheet. The Traveler is primarily used when going upwind. It is used to bring the boom to center-line on a close haul. It can also be used to depower the boat in a heavy breeze. When feeling over powered the traveler can be “dropped” to the leeward side of the boat to create a luff bubble on the leading edge of the mainsail and effectively reduce its sail area by as much as 25%.

Boom-Vang- The Boom-Vang is connected the boom and runs down to the base of the mast.

  • Function- The Boom-Vang is primarily used downwind to control leech (trailing edge of sail) tension. It also prevents to boom from rising up into air. If it’s windy and turning downwind is difficult, easing the Boom-Vang before heading down will make it much easier. Just remember to put a little tension back on the Boom-Vang once you’ve turned down to the desired course.

When it’s windy and controlling the boat is becoming difficult just remember your OBC’s: Outhaul, Backstay, Cunningham. J World Annapolis Head Coach, Dave Manhiemmer, uses the simple phrase: “The windier it blows the tighter it goes” to help you remember what to do with your OBC’s when it gets breezy.

Skip to toolbar