Ready to Roll in Buffalo. Still.

MikeThumbB

Here's what I learned yesterday, a nearly windless practice day at the J/22 North American Championship in Buffalo: 

1. A line of manmade bubbles guards the entrance to the harbor of the Buffalo YC. Apparently, the bubble screen keep silt from building up in the basin. I'd never heard of such a thing. When we first sailed across the barrier, we weren't sure what to expect, whether the boat would be swallowed up, Bermuda Triangle-style, or what. 

2. It's always funny when somebody falls in the water. Especially when it's your skipper, showing off his roll-tack skills in three knots of breeze. 

3. With our new Quantum jib, it helps to move the leads back a little farther than usual. It takes some of the fatness out of the sail and keeps the leech from hooking so much. 

Okay, off to the first day of racing. 

For more about the J/22 NAs, check out SW's Finish Line Forum.