Year: 2020

The day started out blustery with 15 to 18 knots of breeze in a warm northerly.  5 boats competed in the 5th of a 6 part series in the Coconut Grove Sailing Club’s Miami Finn Fleet Fall Series regatta.

Race number 1 was on time at 1130am with Jack Jennings winning the race handily with the rest of the fleet a little flat-footed.  Jack had a great start and led the entire race.

Race number 2 was more interesting as all the boats were on the line in a tight start.  Later we learned that 3 of the 5 boats were over early.  Dave Martin seemed to have good upwind speed and rounded the weather mark ahead of Jack and he held the lead until the finish winning race number 2.  There were a few capsizes as there were squall lines that hit the racecourse occasionally but everyone finished.

Then the wind went light.  The 3rd race was started in under 5 knots of wind and all the boats were not in the starting area when the gun went off.  As the wind filled in it was Charles Heimler this time who escaped the giant wind hole first to lead the fleet by a giant margin and win race number 3 followed by Tom Bremen, our local sailmaker.

The last race of the day was held in roughly 12 knots of breeze with Jack and Dave trading the lead during the first beat with Dave leading at the weather mark only to be hunted down by Jack who rounded the leeward mark one boat length ahead.  Dave was hopeful of using his powers of mass to best Jack during the final beat but Jack covered him and maintained his lead and extended downwind to win race 4.

It was a fantastic day on the water and we are all looking forward to the final race of the Fall Series on December 12th.

Results: Finn FallSeries2020-11-21

Last weekend, SDYC hosted the Nov ODW and Finn Fall Classic with (14) Finns showing up on the starting line. Warm weather greeted the fleet for a super casual tow out to the race course (same course as the 2021 Finn Master North Americans will be held) enjoying ‘glass flat’ water but once offshore and the tow lines dropped, breeze began to fill in nicely. On Saturday, three races were run with the later two in the solid “O” Flag category w/ breeze in the 11-15knot range most of the later two races with the first race in the typical Coronado Roads breeze in the 8-11 knot range. In all three races, Rob Coutts and Mike Dorgan fought it out at the front, never not finishing next to each other going into the evening w/ Coutts leading by 1 point over Dorgan. Other competitors with great results included Michael Entwistle winning a race and a third in another along w/ James Buley finishing the day with a 3rd. After racing the Fleet was treated to an outside and ‘COVID Distancing’ outside parking lot entertainment by the distanced ‘FINN BAND” playing their assortment of fine after race tunes, second to none. Sunday morning greeted the fleet with more of the same warm, 75-degree sunny weather for the tow out to the race course and again on que, the sea breeze filled in but this time much stronger. All three races on Sunday were sailed with the Code O up, giving the fleet with anything left in the tank to pump freely downwind… With several Finn sailors not showing up on Sunday, including Coutts, it left the door open for the podium finishes. Joe Chinburg, enjoying the warm weather and out from Colorado delivering James Buley’s new Fantastic Finn, had a great 1st race winning the race w/ superior downwind speed… In the end, places 3rd-5th were all within 1 point of each other w/ Lee Hope just ahead to secure 3rd overall by finishing second in the last race. James Buley scoring a 7,8,3,2,3,3 ended up in second overall and First overall was secured by Mike Dorgan scoring a 3,1,2,3,1,1 for the win. Great weekend had by all! Thank you to the SDYC RC, the Finn Band and the photographers Vince Brun, Gary Adler, Mike Dorgan and Lisa Reiter for capturing the weekend!

17 competitors were not deterred by either COVID-19 outbreak or the hurricane Zeta, and despite the challenges,  the USA Finn National Championship proceeded. 15 boats were able to get on the starting line in light winds, with competitors coming from as far away as Oregon, Michigan, New Hampshire, Kansas, Massachusetts, and Florida. Given the political and humanitarian situation in the country, as well as the unusually active hurricane season on the Gulf Coast, USAFA declared the national championship a success.

Friday, the mirror-like surface of the Mobile Bay didn’t support any sailing, but a casual rocking outside of the harbor and a quick tow back.

Despite the favorable forecast, the race committee decided to not take any chances and give the first start at 9:25 am on Saturday. This decision allowed for three races and by the end of the last race, the wind dropped to a “whopping” three knots with some of the competitors drifting backwards on the finish line. Super shifty conditions with seven to nine knots of wind at the start of the day. The favorite side of the course shifted from left to right each of the upwind legs. Darrel Peck (USA 35), John F Dane (USA 69), and Rodion Mazin (USA 16) tied after the second race sailed a very close battle. Rodion leading the third race all the way to the finish got unlucky and drifted with the current past the finish line, losing the race to Darrel Peck, John Dane, and Michael Mark, who banged the left corner and placed third in the third race. This race was a lucky charm for Darrel who didn’t let go a sweet smell of victory and finished strong with another two bullets on Sunday.

Sunday, the wind shifted to the Easterly direction, with some mild chop, but still not enough pressure to hoist an “O” flag and allow free pumping downwind. In the fourth race, Rodion and Darrel started ahead of the fleet from the pin and led all the way to the windward mark. The left-hand side of the course was favorite, but the shifty easterly wind didn’t hold, shifting more to the right on the second beat. John F Dane, Chuck Rudinsky, John F Dane Senior, and Ernesto Burgeron chose the right-hand side and closed up on Darrell. John F tried to finish ahead of Darrel, but experience and plenty of light wind sailing in San Diego helped Darrel to hold his spot. The last race, a repeat of the fourth one, with most of the folks but Darrel making poor decisions on the racecourse. Darrel secured his 4^th U.S. Finn Champion title bringing the trophy back to Oregon.

As usual, thanks to the support of the Buccaneer Yacht Club, Commodore Jim “Doc” Hunter, and the Mobile Yacht Club, the small but friendly group of the Finn sailors was able to compete in a regatta putting aside politics and scare of the coronavirus for the good of the sport, comradery, and good sportsmanship.

The year 2020 did not make it easy to either run a regatta or an AGM. Nevertheless, we made sure that all the USAFA member’s votes were taken into account. This year we ran a vote via google forms. The process allowed everyone who couldn’t visit the National Championship to cast their vote. Congratulations to Peter Frissell, Rodion Mazin, Noel Miller, Michael Dorgan, and Will Libcke for reaffirmation or election in their respective position. The 2020 AGM summary can be found here.

For all questions or concerns please contact USAFA Secretary at secretary@finnusa.org

If you haven’t received the USAFA newsletters or member notifications from the USAFA Secretary, please check your spam box and make sure that finnsecretary@gmail.com is added to your trusted e-mail list.

San Diego, CA (September 14, 2020) Twenty-five Finn’s flocked to San Diego Yacht Club this weekend for two days of the 2020 Finn Pacific Coast Championship. Among those sailors were those new to the fleet, those known for the fleet, and many active, enthusiastic competitors excited to be out on the water in their single-handed boats. Seven races were sailed out in the Pacific Ocean on the popular course of Coronado Roads.

In first place was Charlie Buckingham with 12 points. In second place was Phil Ramming with 23 points. Taking third place was James Buley with 26 points.

Charlie Buckingham, coming to San Diego from Newport Harbor Yacht Club, credits his 11 point leading win to familiar winds and consistent sailing. “The conditions were very similar to Newport Harbor…no more than 10-12 knots at the most. The direction was really consistent as well, which made it easy to figure out. I’m new to the boat, so I kept my head down and tried to work with the controls. If it was a windy event, the results might have been really different!”

Also sailing this weekend was SDYC S/C Mike Dorgan…a typical “top-of-the-fleet” finisher. Dorgan has been essential in growing the Finn fleet in Southern California and is one known to always put the Finn first, however, this weekend his priorities were family and fleet members. Dorgan put this race second when son, Matt Dorgan, was seeing boat troubles and had to make his way back into the Club – at the cost of his scores. Not only did Dorgan forfeit some of Saturday’s racing for his son, but also was found assisting another sailor in the fleet who had capsized on Sunday.

“I was looking for Matt during the race and when I finished I didn’t see him, so I got worried and sailed in to look for him. It’s not everyday you have a chance to be a dad. On Sunday, one of the new guys in the fleet capsized sailing downwind. Jeff Johnson (Waterfront Director) and I sailed out to him, I dove in and helped flip it back up,” Dorgan explained.

“I’m the fleet organizer, running the regatta, and feel like I have a responsibility to members of the fleet and the boats we loan out. It’s been a lot of work, especially with Covid-19 going on, but we have a great thing going. The Finn fleet is growing and we’re having fun.”

A new sailor, David Balfour, recently joined the fleet and left Sunday night with the Fun Award – an award that Dorgan created for the half-fold of the fleet. “It’s always great when your last race is your best race, and that was the case for me,” Balfour started. “The last race saw lots of wind and hiking and getting some tips from my fellow competitors was also helpful.”

The Finn fleet is fortunate during the Covid-19 pandemic to be able to race in their socially-distanced, single-handed boats. However, the weekend didn’t look exactly like a typical Finn celebration. All pre and post racing socials were cancelled, and awards were given to the top finishers in a socially distanced setting.

“As more of the public is granted access to activities, likewise, sailing regattas are easing back…but still with a lot of austerity and cooperation from competitors while ashore. San Diego is still working through some unique crew restrictions from San Diego County for recreational boating that don’t appear anywhere else in California, but local sailors have largely complied. These singlehanded regattas are great that way. They’re safe, compliant and the competitors are all polite and thankful to be sailing,” expressed SDYC Waterfront Director Jeff Johnson.

“SDYC did a great job running the races as well as putting on the event in our current environment. It’s a lot of stress stepping up the plate like that to host an event and with so many of them being canceled, it was nice for the Club and the sailors alike to be able to have this regatta. Overall it was a success for everyone,” added Buckingham.

To view the results from the 2020 Finn Pacific Coast Championship, visit here.

Fantastic singlehanded weekend at the San Diego Yacht Club!  Seventeen Finns on the starting line, proper ashore COVID safety procedures, plenty of space, and off the charts unreal sailing. Henry Sprague took the lead on the first day and didn’t let go of the victory with nearly a perfect score of 7 points. Mike Dorgan only 4 points behind. Scott Griffith secured the third with 22 points.  The full report will be up by the end of the week. Results are available at https://sdyc.org/assets/results/results20/sdocr_res.htm

Photos by Mark Albertazzi

The registration is now open for the 2020 North-American Championship. Visit https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/21032 for more details!