K Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile -----Original Message----- From: "Phil Agur" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: Fri, 14 Nov 2008 11:27:27 To: <[email protected]> Subject: RE: catalina27-talk: Target speeds Tim, So why not go with a VMG gauge? Polars are good to let you know when you're dogging it but it's a big complication on a small boat. Even the maxi sleds had a hard time keeping focus on polars over the course of a long race. When Pyewackett shattered Merlin's 20 year Trans Pac record they did so by implementing a polar performance data logger that stored the absolute maximum achieved for a given condition and a nag program that ran 24/7 and sounded the alarm they fell below par. The boat wasn't new nor was the crew and navigator but the software the navigator wrote was. Maybe a very savvy full time navigator or tactician could do this by manually but it wouldn't be a part time task. Pyewackett ran 3 HP notebooks to navigate, manage polar data acquisition, and nag relentlessly. Of course my own pet peeve is how many skippers use the hull speed calculation for a cold molded wooden hull on there fiberglass boat thereby lowering their hull speed expectation significantly. Phil Agur s/v Wing Tip Secretary, C270 LE #184 IC27/270A MMSI 366901790 www.catalina27.org Vessel Doc# 1039809 -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of tim ford Sent: Friday, November 14, 2008 11:03 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: catalina27-talk: Target speeds IMO, you are smart to do this. I never did with the C27, but I got polars for my next boat and lived by them (and the compass) We had the opposite problem, it was too seductive to crack off and gain another 3/4 kn of boatspeed, which absolutely killed out VMG. I think 90% of handicap racing is making the boat go as close to 100% optimum speed as close to 100% of the time as possible. Having targets and constantly trying to sail to them is vital toward getting to that mythical 100/100 quotient....something only Terry Hutchinson seems capable of doing, these days.... tf Port Huron Freecycle wrote: > > > It could be on the order of a polar chart, or it could be a simple as > a listing of target hull speeds based on angle and wind speeds. I'm > looking for the best speeds for racing, so that I can get the most out > of "Liebchen". I don't want to point too high, as to reduce my VMG, so > that I'm hurting more than helping. >
