What's up with the weather?

Koeketiene

Koeketiene

Well-Known Member
Joined
24 Sep 2003
Messages
18,433
Location
Le Roussillon (South of France)
www.sailblogs.com
What\'s up with the weather?

2006 has not been our year.

"New" boat in March - so the first opportunity to do some serious sailing was end of May Bank Holiday + an extra week leave (kids mid-term).
Crap weather all round F6-7 like it was going out of fashion. Sheltered from storms most of the time. Burham-Ostend-Ramsgate-Burnham

Three weeks in August - splendid July. The day we leave (Monday 31st July) airpressure takes a nosedive. Worst August in living memory. Sheltered from the storm.
Burnham-Ramsgate-Ostend-Levington. Not quite the Channel Islands - our intended destination.

This week - another midterm holiday. Had plenty of "overtime".
Arrive at Levington at llunchtime - just in time to observe a rescue operation. Our next door neighbour had broken her mooring. Very lumpy out there. Dinghy ride was an adventure. Forecast is sh*t.
Looks like we won't even get to Ostend or Ramsgate this week /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Don't know how your 2006 was, but I want a refund! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

Sorry to hear your sailing has been so awful...
I guess we were just lucky, end of May and start of June, south coast, Gosport to
Dartmouth, Salcombe,Brixham, Weymouth, on the nose to start with then it turned out nice.
Then a couple of weeks at the end of July where we went across to CH Isles and France.
Did have a cracking sail back from Cherbourg, around 7 knots all the way with
approx 25 knots of wind.

This last weekend I've come to realise that if we regularly sail in around 30 knots then we put a lot less sail out, boat still sails ok and can eventually buy much smaller sails, probably a third of the size... /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

Cor! and heres me thinking you bought a 'heavy displacement' boat to lap up these F6 & F7's! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

In fact for our holiday to CI's and France and then again coming back from Cherbourg in Sept had to motor, so little wind we did more motoring this year than ever before!
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

Know how you feel..... we've also had pretty bad weather. Every time we plan to spend some time on the boat it blows, I'm getting used to sailing in F5/6 but would love to relax and have a 'nice' sail in a F3, had never used my waterproofs untill this summer now they are looking worn out.......
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

I would not say lap up - but we would no doubt survive them without a problem.
90% of the time Guapa's crew is my eldest (15), my yougest (10) and me. I may think it's exhilerating at times, but it's most certainly not their idea of fun.

They will sail through it when it can't be avoided, not for fun. And I want to keep my crew. To me, the "family thing" is quite important!
The day I would need to post on SBC Crewing Opportunities Forum is the day I quit sailing (or buy a smaller one to sail singlehanded).
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

[ QUOTE ]
Don't know how your 2006 was, but I want a refund!

[/ QUOTE ]

Well maybe you need a proper seagoing boat? /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

The May Bank Holiday we also had a week. Ok we delayed going across Channel until Sunday but then had a good week around the Channel Islands, lots of sail and little motor.

Like you, we also started our main holiday, in our case from Poole, at the end of July, took a leg west to Dartmouth and waited a few days for a better wind angle for Southern Brittany, eventually did Dartmouth to Camaret (145 miles) in 21 hours despite arriving 2 hours before the tide in Chenal Du Four turned our way, so we went through with a foul tide. OK the winds gusted up to 30kts which wasn't forecast but what a sail! From then on we sailed as and when we wanted and where we wanted, no delays and lovely weather if cooler (only in the mid -high seventies) than usual.

Then weekend before last we wound up our season proper with a shirt sleeve sail across Channel, warm enough there for lunch in a pavement cafe, then a fast sail back (Cherbourg to Poole in 8 hours), lots of spray in easterly F6/7 and had to put up the sprayhood at sea for the 2nd time in 5 years but yeeeeehaaaah!

It is the luck of the draw I know but 2006 for us was pretty good. Maybe next year will be your year, fingers crossed.
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

What a contrast Will.
We launched on a lovely weekend before Easter, I haven't been rained on at all this year.
Only missed 3 weekends all year since April so far.
We had a calm motoring 2 week holiday to Belgium and back in July, and a super Burnham Week at the end of August, ending on the Sunday (non racing day) with F8 from the South while we sat drinking beer on the mooring.
Even going to the Laying Down Supper in Mersea was supposed to be rubbish weather, but all we got was 28 knots up the chuff, which lessedned to zero by the time we arrived.
Had to put the heating on for the first time this season, just to check it still worked.

Did you tread in something nasty, or just fail to purchase your Lucky Heather this year?

Jim
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

We had some great weekends but our main cruise had to be delayed from mid-July to mid-August. What dreadful timing on an otherwise stunning Summer. In two weeks we got from Brighton to Devon and back as planned, but mostly sat under pouring rain and low vis.

I reeved the third reef for the first time too after our third day-hop, as the conditions were too much to go into a night just double reefed, and I didn't fancy experimenting at dusk in a rising wind and an overpressed boat.

Choosing to beat up into the Solent instead of carrying on round St Catherines point in an offshore reaching wind was a rotten choice to have to make.
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

As to illustrate my point - from the Channel 4 News newsletter

Weather hits yacht race
=================

So to the glug, glug, glug of the great single-handed round-the-world yacht race with the indomitable Sir Rob Knox-Johnston trying it again 37 years after his trail-blazing first success.

Alas, less than 24 hours after the start, whoops, and Sir Robin and three of the other five remaining contenders turned turtle in the foulest of weather and he and they are heading for shore.

In his case with a very badly broken boat indeed.
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

Yep I had a really crap summer. I even missed a large chunk of the hot weather waiting for a new fuel tank. Whitsun week saw me crossing the Channel in an unforecast NW6-7. I started my summer hols on July 31st. I never sailed in anything less than a F5 and in no particular order:
1. My Furlex seized solid on the first week.
2. My mailsail reefing seized up on the third week.
3. I was towed in by a French lifeboat on the second week, after some shenanigans in an unforecast NW7.
4. By the time I got back I had a bilge full of ebgine oil and the batteries weren't charging to any great extent.
Apart from that it was a good holiday !!!!!!!!!!
Next year can't be any worse, can it ?????????
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

[ QUOTE ]

Did you tread in something nasty, or just fail to purchase your Lucky Heather this year?


[/ QUOTE ]

Must be something - as Sailorman comented in August: "If you didn't have bad luck, you'd have no luck at all!"
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

Its called 'the luck of the draw', Guapa!

I missed most of May and June due to a bad back which prevented me even getting aboard, but July gave me one of the best fortnights cruising weather for many years, and since then have almost caught up to my normal annual mileage logged.

I iknow the feeling though - in the sweat shop all week, in brillant sun, then down comes the ran as you approach the boat. You could blame global warming, but the reality for me is thats pretty well the way it always has been.

The weather has bever been as bad as it is today....
 
Re: What\'s up with the weather?

[ QUOTE ]
90% of the time Guapa's crew is my eldest (15), my yougest (10) and me. I may think it's exhilerating at times, but it's most certainly not their idea of fun.



[/ QUOTE ]

Quite agree, my 10 year old has been sailing with me since she was 6 weeks and up to this summer has loved it, but not once this year were we out in less than a 5 on the nose (often over tide & usually stronger than forecast).We have a boat that is built to fly to windward but it's pretty much done for Claire this year and we are having to coax her through some pretty bad panic attacks. Very frustrating when she was developing into a useful little sailor. We'll be easily recognisable next year, we'll be the boat heavily reefed in a gentle force 2 re-building juvenile confidence.

Anybody got any good ideas for restoring confidence in a badly shaken child?

Sharon
 
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