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ONBOARD CARD 02 - Offshore / First Night

Phase: Block Island to ~34°N, first full offshore passage segment Typical elapsed time: Race start +12h to +30h

UNFAMILIAR BOAT NOTES - READ THIS FIRST

This crew is racing Lupo Di Mare together for the first time. The following protocols are adjusted for that reality.

1. The first night offshore on this boat is also the first night offshore on this boat - keep the sail plan conservative after dark. At nightfall, if there is any doubt about whether the current sail is right, choose the smaller one. Fatigue is already beginning to accumulate, deck familiarity is still being built, and the risk/reward of chasing half a knot by flying a bigger sail at night on an unfamiliar boat does not pay. Sail what you know you can handle, not what the polar says.

2. Watch handoffs must explicitly transfer situational awareness. Handing off a watch with "all good, your turn" is not sufficient for this crew. Every handoff requires a verbal brief covering: current TWS and TWA, what the boat is currently doing relative to target, the next potential decision point or maneuver, and any concerns from the outgoing watch. Write it in the log as well. This is not optional - it is how a new crew maintains continuity at night.

3. Do NOT hoist or douse a kite at night unless it has been practiced multiple times in daylight. If an asymmetric was not drilled at least twice in race week, it does not fly after dark during this race. The speed gain from flying an A1-1 at night instead of sailing J1/Code 65 does not offset the risk of a halyard wrap, a broach, or a fouled douse on an unfamiliar boat in the dark offshore. Accept the speed loss and wait for daylight.

4. Boat speed below polar target is expected for this crew - benchmark improvement, not polars. This crew is new to the boat. Sailing at 85–90% of polar VMG is a normal outcome for race week 1 on an unfamiliar J/122e. Do not make drastic sail changes or crew changes chasing numbers that assume full familiarity. The benchmark is: are we improving watch over watch? Are the tacks and gybes getting cleaner? That is the right performance measure for this race.

5. Call all hands for any maneuver that is not a straightforward upwind tack in the first 24 hours. A kite hoist, a kite douse, a headsail peel, a reef, or any gybe - these all require all hands on deck for the first 24h on this boat. Do not attempt them with a short watch. Brief everyone before starting, assign roles explicitly, and execute slowly. Speed comes with repetition.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE

Maintain polar target speeds, manage crew fatigue through the first night, execute the pre-race routing strategy, and confirm or update the Gulf Stream crossing plan before you are committed to it.

DATA TO CHECK

Every 3–6 hours: - Actual wind speed and direction vs pre-race forecast: is the model holding? - Boat speed vs polar target: are you within 8% of target? If not, why? - Current: GPS/log delta - are you seeing any current sets from the continental shelf edge?

At ~36h: - Reassess the Gulf Stream entry plan based on observed vs forecast - Is the Stream north wall where it was predicted? (use pre-loaded SST overlay if available) - Is the crossing window still the same? - Does the routing strategy need revision?

Watch handoff discipline: - Every handoff: brief the incoming watch on wind trend, boat speed target, and any upcoming decision points - Log every sail change with UTC time and reason

TRIM / SAIL IMPLICATIONS

Key offshore trim principle: Optimize for VMG, not just boat speed. At night, resist the temptation to go fast on an angle that doesn't optimize VMG. One degree of heading makes less difference than one kt of VMG.

Condition Priority
Night, <10 kts Conservative sail - do NOT chase marginal gains with kite in the dark unless crew is fresh
Night, squall risk Already in conservative sail - no kite at night in Gulf Stream region
Day, steady 12–20 kts Optimize aggressively; this is the window for maximum performance
Building breeze Downsize before you are overpowered, not after
Fading breeze Upsize before you lose pace, but not so early you create a needless peeling session

RED FLAGS

  • Boat speed averaging more than 10% below polar target for >3 hours: check bottom (fouling?), check sails (blown or badly set?), check rig (anything loose?)
  • Wind angle that makes the current routing strategy non-viable: notify navigator
  • Any crew health issue (serious sea sickness, fatigue beyond normal, injury): assess watch strength immediately; you may need to simplify the sail plan for the next 12h

DECISION THRESHOLD

At T+24h (approximately at night or early morning day 2): Confirm or revise the Gulf Stream entry plan. This is the last chance to make a significant routing adjustment before Stream commitment. Ask: - Is the forecast-to-actual match good enough to trust the stream crossing plan? - Are the boats on the other side of the fleet (east or west) faster or slower than expected? - Does anything about the current weather pattern suggest a different stream crossing latitude is better?

If the answer to all three is "no change," proceed. If any answer suggests a change, brief the skipper now.

WHO GETS WOKEN UP

  • Navigator: any wind shift >20° lasting >1h, any unexpected current set
  • Skipper: major route revision, or forecast degradation suggesting worse conditions than planned

PRE-RACE RESEARCH - NOT race-period routing advice