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2018 Governor's Cup Race

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Steve Milby
Past Commodore

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USA
5851 Posts

Initially Posted - 07/30/2018 : 07:48:25

The Gov. Cup race is next weekend. I'll be crewing on a late model Jeanneau 33. The skipper and his wife are both very experienced racers on racing dinghies and small keelboats. This is the first keelboat they have owned. They crew for me frequently on my Cal 25, and are easily my most skilled crew. The boat has a fractional rig. It has a big mainsail, and only needs a small jib to help drive it. That makes it very easy to tack, because the small jib doesn't snag on the rigging during a tack, and you can snap the much shorter jib sheets in to closehauled before the jib loads up. Last fall he and I had an opportunity to sail the boat in 30 kt winds, and it was actually easy to tack. The boat is well equipped with full instrumentation, including radar and AIS.

The Gov. Cup is just under 70 miles, from Annapolis to St. Mary's College, inside the Potomac River. It starts in the late afternoon and usually ends shortly after the sun rises, at least for the faster boats. The Gov. Cup favors bigger boats, and the Jeanneau 33 has the slowest rating in it's racing class, but it's fast and nimble, and the young owners won their first middle distance race with it. The Gov. Cup tests not only sailing skills, but also navigational skill, night sailing skill and the ability to find the shortest, fastest route to the finish line.

It has been nearly 15 years since I have been on a Gov. Cup winner. With these young owners, this boat could be the "smallest dog in the fight with the biggest heart," and in any case, this should be great fun!

Steve Milby J/24 "Captiva Wind"
previously C&C 35, Cal 25, C25 TR/FK, C22
Past Commodore

Edited by - Steve Milby on 07/30/2018 07:51:05

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

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USA
5851 Posts

Response Posted - 08/01/2018 : 19:05:41

Darn! The Gov. Cup has been cancelled. We have had a series of flash floods and the Bay is rife with floating debris flushed into the Bay, including logs, tree stumps, tires mounted on steel wheels, etc. In 15 years I've never seen so much debris in the Bay. We sailed out the Severn and toward the Bay bridge last Sunday, and were constantly avoiding floating debris. It's hard to imagine that a boat could sail nearly 70 NM through that much debris at night and not hit something big enough to damage the boat. Consequently, cancelling the race was the only reasonable decision. Too bad.

Steve Milby J/24 "Captiva Wind"
previously C&C 35, Cal 25, C25 TR/FK, C22
Past Commodore

Derek Crawford
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3312 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2018 : 08:05:35

Why don't they just postpone it for a month or two to give the debris a chance to clear. (We have a similar problem on Canyon Lake every time that it floods - but it's not 70 miles long!)

Derek Crawford
Chief Measurer C25-250 2008
Previous owner of "This Side UP"
1981 C-25 TR/FK #2262 Used to have an '89 C22 #9483, "Downsized"
San Antonio, Texas

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

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USA
5851 Posts

Response Posted - 08/02/2018 : 08:33:12

quote:
Originally posted by Derek Crawford

Why don't they just postpone it for a month or two to give the debris a chance to clear. (We have a similar problem on Canyon Lake every time that it floods - but it's not 70 miles long!)

I don't know Derek. My guess is that there is so much racing happening every weekend around Annapolis that it's hard to find another open 2 or 3 day weekend. Club racing is not scheduled on the weekend of the Gov. Cup, because all the most avid racers on the Bay race in the Gov. Cup.

Before the start of each season, the clubs submit their proposed schedules and they collectively try to avoid conflicting with each other.

Incidentally, the entry fee is $120. per yacht and it's not refundable if the race is cancelled. The organizers incur substantial costs that don't go away when the event is cancelled, so the racers have to accept that risk. The risk is slight, because I've never seen it cancelled before.

Steve Milby J/24 "Captiva Wind"
previously C&C 35, Cal 25, C25 TR/FK, C22
Past Commodore

Edited by - Steve Milby on 08/02/2018 08:35:20

Derek Crawford
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3312 Posts

Response Posted - 08/03/2018 : 19:00:40

Ouch!

Derek Crawford
Chief Measurer C25-250 2008
Previous owner of "This Side UP"
1981 C-25 TR/FK #2262 Used to have an '89 C22 #9483, "Downsized"
San Antonio, Texas

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Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.