GBCA Discussion Forum

Received an email, but nothing on the notice board.  About to head down there.

Very surprised at the call. 

I'm slow and I don't understand.  I realize this isn't a GBCA race, but this still seems like the best place to ask the question.

There seems to be PHRF-Heavy, PHRF-sport  boat, and PHRF-Spin.  Isn't a PHRF-Spin boat either Heavy or sport boat?  Why 3 classes? 

Also, how does a Santa Cruz 50 fit into the heavy class and the J/105 into the sport boat class.  Running the numbers roughly for both and using the PHRF GB sport boat rules, it looks the SC 50 should be in sport boat and the J/105 in heavy.  What am I missing? 

Any more information on this weekend?  What time is the start on Saturday?  NOR?  Registration? 

Color me interested.

Wondering if it is also suitable for putting up a mast on a keel stepped trailer sailor?  We are bringing our boat down from Austin the first weekend in August and the idea is to drysail the boat out of Seabrook using their hoist, but I haven't actually confirmed that is a good idea.  Starting that process now. 

Am I correct that Harvest Moon doesn't require a liferaft?

Either way, we are looking to rent, borrow, but not steal a 4 man valise liferaft for Harvest Moon and the week after.  It's really needed for the week after HM as we need it for a qualifier sail that must be 400 miles and 100 miles offshore, so it will be incorporated into the HM return to Seabrook.

Any suggestions? 

I see the date and heard the Commodore make mention of it last night, but didn't catch the details. From where to where?  Cat III requirements like Harvest Moon, or? 

Sounds like fun, regardless.

Our new boat, a Schumacher 28, is on it's way to Texas today.  It will spend a few weeks in our driveway in Austin getting a little love and a fixed sprit, then we'll bring her down to Seabrook for the winter.  Looking forward to getting back out on the Bay. 

My wife & I raced our J/120 in HMR last year and had a blast.  We just finished racing that same J/120 double-handed in Pacific Cup from SF to Hawaii.  Great experience, but now we are boatless in Texas and looking to crew on other peoples boats.  We are interested in crewing for HMR 2014, and funny as it may sound we'd be fine crewing on different boats.  We have a lot of miles, but we are far from rockstars and always looking to learn more.  We could probably be available for a Rum Race 7 or 8 beforehand if that helped.  If we get to be choosy we'd really like to ride on a sprit boat (ala J/120). 

Thanks.

Justin & Chris

What are my options for launching using a hoist in the area?  Would need to use the hoist to step the mast too.
Not necessarily dry-sailing, although that would be fine, but wondering about a place to get a boat off a trailer and in the water a few times a year.

Is there a hoist in Port A. Or CC?  Thinking Harvest Moon.

Sorry if this is a na?ve question, I just haven't been around Galveston Bay to know better.  Will the oil spill eventually impact the waters that we typically sail, east of Clear Lake?  I have no concept of how far widespread the spill will become.  We had plans to go sailing to this coming weekend.  Don't worry or dumb idea?

So I just received my 2014 rating.  Our largest headsail is now only 120% LP instead of the typical 150% LP for our boat.  Also, our largest spinnaker is now 1400 sq. ft. instead of the standard 1650 sq. ft.  Given those too "significant" sail reductions, I was surprised my rating changed exactly 0.  So, does that mean that I can still run my 150% genoa and big spinnaker even though they are not listed as the max sail areas on my rating certificate? 

We have to get new insurance that covers short-handed ocean crossings and reasonably they require a full survey.  Any recommendations for someone in the Seabrook area?

Thanks.

We are hauling our J/120 soon to put her on a truck to head west.  Before she goes on the truck I need to touch up the bottom paint on the bottom of the keel and futz with the wiring in the mast.  I "thought" I was going to do that conveniently at Seabrook Shipyard, but obviously I am wrong about that.  Is there somewhere nearby I can do these simple things myself and that I can get to with a 7' draft?

Thanks.

I put together a video summary of our race on Saturday.  If you've ever wondered what goes on during a double-handed race with a spinnaker on a J/120 now's your chance.  If you thought sailing involved a lot of sitting around, take a look. 

Kudos to Commodore Scott Lacy for the many great photos.  I added a few to the video. 

http://www.svshearwater.com/?p=1330

Looking for recommendations for someone to paint (Awlgrip or similar) the topsides of Shearwater.  I tried contacting a couple of companies I've found locally, but didn't get any responses, so maybe I should go the route of recommendations instead.  I've seen some bright shiny hulls on some of the older boats around, so I know some of you have done this. 

Thanks,

Justin

Chris & I are racing Pacific Cup Double-Handed next summer on Shearwater.  We need a "real" emergency rudder before then.  Does anyone have suggestions of someone local that has the skills and know how to build a quality custom setup.  It seems a cassette type rudder is the preferred method nowadays.  I've gotten some quotes from people in the SF Bay Area, but if possible I'd prefer to do business closer to home. 

Thanks!

Hola,

I have a 16' foot carbon whisker pole that we use on our J/120 when cruising offshore.  Thing is that's not an appropriate piece of gear for PHRF racing a J Boat.  With Harvest Moon coming up, I'm looking for a place to store the whisker pole for a month or so.  We live in Austin and drive a small car, so transporting it back to Austin isn't very practical.  Does anyone have room in their garage near Seabrook for a whisker pole for a month or so?  Of course, happy to drop it off wherever this special place might be. 

We will be in Seabrook the weekend of October 12-13 and Wednesday October 16th. 

Thanks in advance!

Just curious, so I know what to expect.  I tried emailing PHRFGB, but didn't get a response.  I recall "meeting" someone on the water last weekend from a Ranger 26, that said they were on the PHRF committee, but I don't know who that person actually was. 

I mailed in my application a week ago last Tuesday, so I should expect to have a rating by???

Just to be clear, I'm not in a rush to get it, nor panicking about it, just curious... 

Hi all,

We are new to GB and GBCA and the Texas Coast for that matter.  Does anyone have any recommendations for where to keep the boat the night before Harvest Moon in Galveston for a 7' draft?  Galveston Yacht Basin seems like the obvious choice, but I've never been to any of the options.

Suggestions?

Thanks,

Justin