GBCA Discussion Forum

Are we still issuing membership cards for Senior members?
Char-les

If you finish far enough in the rear each race, Hi Point/Low point don't make no difference!   

Quote from: Tye Dyed Gary on May 09, 2018, 09:18:01 AM
  I like the change in course, and see it as an interesting challenge.   I, just think the marks should be designated under GBCA's system vs a different clubs.

I haven't been here all that long, but somewhere, sometime, someplace, it was labled "K" Mark.  Refered to it as K-Mart, or the giraffe.

Bee is right!
That idiot motor/sailed right through the finish line with five or six 105's coming through.  I mean about 20 feet in front of the committee boat.  He had it in full reverse and still almost hit Stinger, and he was hollering about "commercial vessel" etc.

Maybe his lines will accidently chafe and break some blustery night.

Quote from: Christopher on March 22, 2018, 06:36:46 AM
Hard to be a photographer on a competitors boat in a race that limits crew to single or double handed.

Good point!

Quote from: ShakenNotStirred on February 14, 2018, 01:37:59 PM
For those that may not have heard, I'm saddened to report that Betsie Morlan lost her brave battle with cancer. She passed away at home in her sleep early Sunday morning.
Per her wishes, there will be no funeral. A celebration of life is planned for March 31st, details forthcoming.
Chris requests no flowers or anything, but if you want to do something in Betsie's memory, consider a donation to the American Cancer Society.
Betsie was one of a kind, and will be dearly missed by many (now that's an understatement!).
Fair winds, Betsie.

Sad news

PAOLA,
I am interested in your motor.

Call me,
Charles
281-795-2911
Catalina 22 Half Fast

Big barge with cranes out towards H Mark.  Wonder if it is being removed.

From Charlie Daniels, my friend and fellow sailor up at Lake Belton Yacht Club,

"Any Vets who need grants for home repairs cost over what the insurance would pay; have then contact the PenFed Foundation for aid."

Spread the word.

Twin lead, heavy duty genoa cars.
Fit 1" track. 
Retail, $170.00 each.
Both for $200.00
Charles
cbroaddus@comcast.net
281-795-2911

"BUMP"

Quote from: DarinK on January 19, 2017, 12:01:52 PM
As you may have noticed, I have been aggressively suggesting people record their finish times for the Icicle Series.  I would like to give some reasoning as to why.

Some background.  We needed a system to help with Club Handicap.  It was a bit of a mess, and there were many manual steps required each week to keep the wheels running.  I can't imagine the number of hours that Bob spent keeping that machine going.  Hats off to you Bob! 

I can tell you, with Bob's absence, nobody was excited about taking charge of that hot mess.  I took it, knowing full well that I would be able to invest some time in rebuilding it, and it would be easier to run in the long run.  As of now, we have a system that I'm proud of, and I believe the Club guys find it a good solution too.

The other part of the job is scoring the other classes.  In a perfect world, it is a simplistic, self-regulated system.  In practice, I've seen the shit show that occurs when something goes wrong.  I'll let Bob and Dees tell their greatest hits, but I've seen a leader not come by the clubhouse till after the party.  I've seen multiple, varying results from the same class.  I've seen missing boats in results.  I've seen no results submitted, then pieced together with scratches of paper by each of the next 5 competitors.

You can guess who gets to run around trying to fix this.  During a Rum Race, it is exponentially worse because there are more people and they are 2x as drunk.  So fleet captain is madly running around trying to figure out scores.. sending people to the office, asking skippers to come to the office.  Looking at GPS logs, raceQs, until the roar of the Rumless becomes overpowering and fleet captain throws up his arms and just goes with what he has.

Side note - at this point, someone might mention that these Races are just fun, easy going Saturday cruises.  I would like you to tell that to the drunk skipper who loses the a little bottle of rum because of a scoring issue.  A race is a race, and just because you aren't trying doesn't mean everyone else isn't.  There are competitors out there, and I don't blame them.

The second problem we have is data.  Or lack thereof.  How many boats participate in each class?  How many skippers are GBCA members?  What is the delta between club and the other classes?  How any boats show up during a series?  We have no idea.  I come from a marketing data background, and it is a little odd that we can't quantify who are "customers" are.

So.  I would like to use the Club system for all classes, the handicap portion obviously only for Club.  In addition to helping with the above problems, it also gives us consistent scoring and timely results.  The later is great for resolving "bad data" issues.  Also, if we can optimize this, we could get away from having first place sit around for the next 4 boats, which is a real drag even if you get a bottle of rum for your efforts.

Is this a perfect system?  Nope.

Here are all the problems I can think of and how I am trying to mitigate them:

People will fat-finger results.  Especially on a phone.
- Early results allows people to pipe up early and help alleviate some of this. 
- We will add a "boat ahead" and "boat behind" optional field to the results.  Also, I will add an "estimated" finish asterisk to results if we need to change someone's results.
- RaceQs fixes this.  I know not everyone will run it, but it does solve the verification issue. 

Some people don't have a smartphone or carry one on the boat
- Upload your results at the dock
- We will have a tablet available at the clubhouse for people to upload then

People will use finish times to affect their rating
- PHRFGB doesn't care if we post finish times.  Boat owners will get data however they can, and only PHRFGB can distinguish what is relevant.

Icicle/Rum is an easy race.  You are adding "hassle"
- First, we are trying to streamline the process as best we can to reduce "hassle."  See below for how to enter results
- Don't do it.  Go our for your cruise and don't upload your time.  Enjoy your cruise, but you won't be scored.

It is inefficient for ALL boats to have to upload times rather than the leader
- If we can get away from having the leader wait, I'm not sure that is true.  If you are in Club on a slow day, you might have to wait 30 minutes.
- This assumes that result scoring will be easy.  If you believe this, I have a board position for you next year.  You can take the club back to pen and paper.
- Again, we have multiple streamlines in place to make uploading the results easy, and it should take no more than a minute

I am unable to calculate a finish time
- You found a way to get to the start on time. 
- Club has been doing it for years.  I'm sure you can figure it out.

How do I upload results?
http://racing.gbca.org

The first time you use this page, you must fill the whole thing out.  It is a pain, but I believe all the information is needed.

The second time you come to the page, assuming you have cookies enabled, all the information should load, and you will only need to input your finish time.  If you should have cleared your cookies OR you are on another device, if you type in the email address provided previously, and all your information will load.

Again, if using the same phone, all but the first time entering data, you will only need to input your finish time.  All data should already be filled out based on your previous input.

The page is "mobile ready" so it should format well for either phones, tablets, or desktops.  On the phone, it should show BIG calculator type numbers when inputting your finish time.  This should help with fat-fingering the results.

We will have a tablet at the merchandise table to help people people enter finish times.  If it is your first time, please see Beverly.

Improvements
The board has suggested some improvements, and I'm evaluating/working on them. 

One suggestion is to have the "lookup" done by boat name and sail number.  Then, besides the first entry, anyone can score finish times.  This gets a bit tricky, because there isn't a good way to regulate who is making the changes.  With the email address as a "key," it makes regulation a bit easier, but harder for someone, like a crew member, to upload results on the skipper's behalf.

Another idea is to include an optional "boat ahead" and "boat behind" fields with the finish time.  I'm split on this idea.  What if the person behind you didn't want to score themselves?  It also adds more "hassle," which... heaven forbid.


Feedback

I don't plan to modify the SIs.  Yes, you can refuse to use this system.  The first place boat must continue to record times, and we will accept the first place sheet, and you don't need to do anything more.  However, if you upload your time.  It makes my life easier.

I do plan to vote to change the SIs for the Rum Races and require finish times.  I don't know yet about the first boat taking positions yet.  It seems like we should be able to get away from it, but the board is definitely on the fence about it.  Verification is definitely useful.

I apologize for the wall of text.  There are many points to consider.

Last, I value your feedback.  Please let me know what you think.  Though, if you are vehemently against this whole concept, I have an exciting board position available for you.

Quote from: 01parrothead01 on January 11, 2017, 06:50:33 PM
Wattsup - did you ever get any official info on SOS-TEX?  I recently joined GBCA specifically w/ SOS-TEX in mind.  Like you, I have only found the by-laws.  I sent an email to the general GBCA mailbox, but no response so far.

Bee - I tried the link you posted, but it's not working for me.

Does anyone have current information?

I'm hoping the group is still active because we really want to try to make all of the races for the annual series.

Unfortunaly, the SOS organizers are no longer active, and GBCA does not have any information on the group.  We have only had two or three participants in the SOS class in  GBCA races over the last couple of years, so I'm not sure who to steer you towards. 
We will continue to look for information and will let you know if we find anything.
Charles
Vice Commodore, GBCA

Quote from: shawn on January 04, 2017, 02:43:52 PM
I see 48 degrees and N10 -20 MPH for this Saturday.

That's why it's called the Icicle Series!

Harken small boat traveler car.  C22-J22-J24 etc.
Fits 7/8" / 22mm track
Brand new, never used.
Retail $124.00  On sale $60.00
Charles  281-795-2911  cbroaddus@comcast.net

Chili Chase Skipper Meeting tonight at 7:00 PM followed by GBCA annual meeting. 
All members are urged to attend.  Snacks will be served.