The 55-boat 2018 MC Midwinter Championship came down to a three way tie requiring multi-level tie breaking protocol in order to crown Bill Draheim and crew Mary Anne Hopper as the 2018 winner, with Scott Harestad and Rob Seidelmenn in second and third, respectively. The three-day regatta had everything: winds near class limits (both high and low), along with big shifts and waves.

Click to read Bill Draheim’s summary of the regatta, first published on Sailing ScuttleButt.

Bill’s Key Points:

• Get comfortable in the boat at the high end of the wind range and have the fitness to tack, gybe, and change gears.  Practice in these conditions.
• Take a crew in high wind if you’re a smaller sailor.
• In very light breeze, stand up and look a mile or more past the weather mark, or to the shore to see where the next breeze is coming from.
• Downwind, use other boats and dark water as telltales for the oncoming breeze.  Connect the dots between areas of higher velocity.
• Don’t be overconfident about the wind before the start, since it can change quickly.  Work hard to sniff out the next shift right up to the one minute gun.
• Sail conservatively: don’t leverage yourself too far to an end, and don’t tack away from a big lift to cross the course.

Sailing with Crew in the MC Scow: Matt Fisher Comments
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