Quantum Sails - WCsailing

Numbers Sailing Part 2

2011-11-08T16:01:00.000-05:00

Instruments (wind info, speed info, location info, targets, polars, history info) Sailing Communication (tacking, jibing, starting, waves, wind, navigation, performance) Charts (sail charts, rig charts, water charts, tune charts) Weather and Current (history, now & future, routing) The Sailor (height, weight, strength, endurance) The Results Numbers That Matter (Instruments) The boat size will

Number Sailing

2011-10-26T07:33:00.004-04:00

Is racing sailboats a science or an art? It seems for so many years the successful sailors had an inner ability to make boats sail fast and go the proper way. Dennis Conner and Buddy Melges are just to name a couple, they are great examples of sailors that could win by trusting their gut instinct. Success today is a combination of science (numbers) and art (trusting inner instincts). In

Sail High and Sail Fast

2011-10-21T09:46:00.002-04:00

There are no better words to hear during the upwind leg than, "we are higher and we are faster.” There are no better words to hear during the upwind leg than, "We are higher and we are faster". The combination of sailing higher and faster than the closest competitor is so powerful. Every team off the starting line is trying their hardest to sail high and fast to open up opportunities

VSPARS: The Secret Weapon of Winning Boats

2011-10-10T11:34:00.000-04:00

No one can deny that the behavior of your sails can be the determining factor in winning or losing. But how can you know what is really going on with your sails. VSPARS is changing the way teams are looking at their sails. In an article in the Sea Horse Magazine written by Quantum Racing navigator Kevin Hall, he recaps racing while using the innovative tool, VSPARS. “Our fourth upwind

Complete Symmetry for Racing Success

2011-04-15T08:05:00.002-04:00

By Wally Cross Racing sailboats successfully is a combination of good boat speed, solid boat handling and safe decisions. Good boat speed will make anyone look smart and making sure everything in your boat is symmetrical will help you sail fast. All boats are not created equal and for sure all one design boats are not the same. Symmetry starts from the bottom up to the top of the mast. Start

2010 Rolex Swan 45 World Champion Crowned

2010-09-21T07:15:00.003-04:00

Blue Nights owner/helm Tea Ekengren was clearly pleased with their second place overall, she said, "We have been working very hard all week and we've been on a bit of a learning curve. But the last three days have been just perfect for us. With the light winds we've been sailing very patiently, trying to place ourselves in the best spot for the new wind and we succeeded at this. "That was

Port Huron Mackinac Race 2010

2010-07-09T16:22:00.000-04:00

We are just two weeks away from the start of the Port Huron to Mackinac Race. I want to share my check list to help you get prepared for the race. The good news is you have already completed the hard part by entering your boat and organizing your crew. In the days leading up to the race start thinking about the following: Weather for the race (sites I use) http://www.sailflow.com/

Balance

2009-11-29T07:05:00.008-05:00

Artists make decisions using the right side of their brain while engineers tend to be more left-brain thinkers. I believe it is a balance between left and right that allow us to make the best decisions while racing sailboats. Three regattas last summer ended badly for me because I changed my decision making methods from right-brain thinking to left. In all three events, on the days leading up to

Quantum wins first ever Audi Melges20 US Nationals

2009-08-25T06:35:00.001-04:00

This past weekend in Holland, MI the Melges 20 Class held their very first US National Championships at the Macatawa Bay Yacht Club. 15 boats were on the starting line, including 2 of the top boats from Italy and one from Canada. Quantum sails came out on top finishing 1,2,4 ! Congratulations to Eric Wynsma and his SUPERFLY crew of Wally Cross and J.P. This exciting boat is taking off around the

Quantum Sails Dominates the Sail Newport Regatta

2009-07-15T07:57:00.001-04:00

It's a Zoo!

2009-06-24T09:50:00.000-04:00

Wally,Thanks for spending a little time with us on Its A Zoo a couple of weeks ago. Since your visit and instruction. We Took, First in class for the Bluepoint race - and actually had best correct time for the entire fleet. We also won the Spring series with 2 firsts, and 2 seconds. unheard of for our boat. We where always in the top 4 but never this consistant. I cant wait till MAC to see how

The Complete Package

2009-06-04T07:45:00.003-04:00

2009-06-01T13:33:00.000-04:00

Subject: Nat JHi Phil,Thank you for having me on your boat this last event. I truly enjoyed sailing with you and the crew on Natalie J. Thanks for putting up with Bora and myself while steering, I thought you were great. Not an easy boat to sail at all. I partially liked how you treated your dad. I can only hope my sons will be that nice some day. I also think your boat is the best one on

Melges 20 Update

2009-04-08T06:45:00.001-04:00

By Wally CrossScott Nixon, Doug Stewart, Andrew Scott and I spent the day sailing the Melges 20 to look at our new sails and to learn more about the boat. Our sails are close and we will continue to work on details to make them perfect. I learned allot about the boat and have a list of ideas to consider.We will work together to determine how good some of the ideas are, but for now we have a list

Starting Options

2009-03-19T19:51:00.001-04:00

In the perfect world, each time we left the dock to start a race, we would comfortably maneuver through the fleet and with 20 seconds to go, we would all find our spot on the line and cleanly cross as the gun sounded. Unfortunately, it is not a perfect world and all the best plans can change on your final tack.In offshore one-design classes, the definition of a good start is to be on the line and

Alpha One 180 Thank You's

2009-03-11T21:24:00.000-04:00

Alpha One 180 - Wrap Up

2009-03-11T21:18:00.002-04:00

Alpha One is a team with a good working system. It is the goal to mark, measure and record all adjustments so eventually the boat will have a check list to reference. There were so many wonderful experiences this weekend, but when I sat in the jump seat and watch the pilots go through a detail check list prior to taking off, I thought that is exactly what we should be doing every time at the dock

Alpha One 180

2009-03-11T19:57:00.003-04:00

ObjectiveConfidence to sail in the Melges 32 fleet in all conditions ProcessA system for sailing that will include: Pre-Boat Call Information A specific Boat Call Time and Responsibilities Dock Out-Specific Jobs Pre-Start Drills Starting 1st leg, 2nd leg, 3rd leg, 4th leg, finish The motor in – crew discussion and clean up Docking – clean up – read for tomorrow De-brief – the day and

The Zone

2009-02-05T07:02:00.011-05:00

In many levels of professional sports, the term “In the Zone” comes in to play. Michael Jordan would say that when he was in the zone, the basket seemed larger. Time Magazine describes the zone as a magical place.“Elite athletes talk a lot about being in the zone, that magical place where mind and body work in perfect synch and movements seem to flow without conscious effort. Major-league

2008 Port Huron to Mac Race

2008-11-18T13:43:00.003-05:00

Wally,As time passes, the wonderful memory of a fabulous race is embedded in our minds.This email is to thank you for putting the whole program together. You didn't miss a detail.Your efforts, time, and expertise were well appreciated. It was a very special time for Jerry and it meant a lot to all of us to see him so ecstatic!Thanks over and over again,Elyse Schostak

VMG vs VMC - Buoy Racing

2008-10-28T20:17:00.006-04:00

We have heard these two terms now for over 25 years that gives us a guideline when sailing a race around the buoys, Velocity Made Good (VMG) and sailing offshore, Velocity Made good to Course (VMC).Polar Diagram (VMC)VMC or velocity made good to Course is commonly used when sailing offshore. The idea is to maximize your boat speed to next mark. Most boats will have a polar diagram that takes the

Celeritas NYYC Clinc

2008-10-14T12:22:00.004-04:00

By Wally Cross - 10/11/2008I went to Newport and did a clinic on a Swan 42. It was a big success. Here is the outline I created and the comments by Dave Doucett of what he learned from the clinic.1st Practice WeekendGoals:· Develop a team attitude· Establish a base for good boat handling· Start a system for Celeritas, the three circles of communication (speed, mechanics, information) · Picture

The Beneteau 36.7

2008-09-30T13:19:00.002-04:00

by Wally Cross As the last race ended at the 2007 North Americans in Buffalo I decided that 2008 would be different. The Beneteau 36.7 is what sailing needed, a great offshore one design class that is also a good cruising boat at a good price. I knew Quantum had to design and build sails that would work in a wide range of conditions that would last a long time. I got very lucky to work with

Copa del Rey Audi Mapfre

2008-08-05T06:02:00.009-04:00

Between the 26th and the 2nd of August the 27th Copa del Rey Audi Mapfre took place. Having great sailing conditions, and a great sea breeze ever day around 13:00, generated great sailing days during the whole week. With a total of 110 boatsin the fleet, Quantum had boats on most of the podiums. ORC 570:1st Dufour 44 ICARO: Full Quantum Membrane inventory; Skipper

Comfort and Colors

2008-06-26T21:20:00.001-04:00

The Beneteau 36.7 offers all the comfort of a cruising yacht and the speed of a high performance race boat.The Beneteau 36.7 one design class is expanding all over the Great Lakes with numbers over twenty boats in most of the local markets. It is one of the only boats I think I could sleep in during a postponement. The one design action is very close and usually the better teams win.It seems many

Moderation Makes for an Easier Final day at the 2008 Sperry Top-Sider Detroit NOOD

2008-06-02T17:57:00.003-04:00

Sue and Dave Grassley own a Beneteau 36.7 named Sho-Was-Cae-Mette, which is a name taken from the Potawatomi tribe of Native Americans who, according to Wikipedia are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire." Sho-Was-Cae-Mette means lightning on the water, according

Tune your Rig for Wind, Water and Competition

2008-05-06T06:29:00.000-04:00

I just returned from the Farr 40 Worlds and after 10 days of sailing I learned many lessons about tuning the rig for different wind and water conditions and the different competitors.Each day was a new wind direction and water condition and only the competitors stayed the same. The regatta started out with an offshore North Westerly direction and slowly clocked during the week and ended up out of

Sailing System 2008

2008-03-19T18:46:00.003-04:00

The older I get the more I appreciate sailing on boats that have a working sailing system. I was sailing in Scarlino Italy a few weeks ago sailing on a Swan 45 named Blue Nights. The boat has a mixed crew of Americans and Finish sailors. It became more than obvious we had to establish a system soon or it was going to be a disaster.A good system has to start early in the day and end at the

The Little Things that Make a Big Difference

2008-02-12T06:40:00.000-05:00

Key West 2008 was a five day regatta with two days off. Typically Key West offers a steady week of sailing spread out over five days, yet this year produced too much wind on Monday to race and too little on Wednesday. On the day of too little wind I walked the docks looking for the not so obvious ideas that help boats sail faster. The Melges 24’s and 32’s not only race close on the water it was

GULARI/HOLZMAN TEAM TRIUMPH OVER KING'S DAY REGATTA | M24 ATLANTIC COAST CHAMPIONSHIP

2007-11-20T08:12:00.000-05:00

©2007 JOY U.S. Melges 24 Class Association18 NOVEMBER 2007 • Bora Gulari at the helm for Chuck Holzman on Flyer played his trumph card today as they took the Melges 24 King's Day Atlantic Coast Championship title by one point. "This is great," said Holzman. "We come down here every year and we have such a great time, we really enjoy it. The race committee had a very challenging job this year.

Rig Tuning Questions (Speed & Smarts)

2007-10-26T18:58:00.000-04:00

1. Describe your tuning priorities when you sail your boat for the first time during the season, or when you jump into somebody else’s boat for the first time ever. Is there a particular philosophy or method that you follow?If the boat is a one design I always try to do some homework prior to the first sail. I will research which sailmaker is having success in the class and read over their tuning

Third Time's a Charm

2007-10-25T06:18:00.000-04:00

I feel very fortunate to be a member team Heartbreaker and finally win the Canada’s Cup after three attempts. The Canada’s Cup has been apart of my sailing life before I even knew how to sail.Even though this event started in 1896, well before my time, I recall the challenge from the Cleveland Yacht Club against the mighty Manitou from the RCYC. In the late 60’s Manitou was magnificent with a

21st Canada's Cup - Winner's Speech

2007-10-16T19:54:00.001-04:00

Video by Alan Block - blocksail.com

Worlds Debrief

2007-09-17T18:07:00.000-04:00

From: Matt CiesickiSent: Monday, September 17, 2007 6:18 AMTo: 'Wally Cross'Subject: RE: Worlds DebriefGood feedback. Sounds like you had some disagreement on ‘modes’…we did, too.We had a hell of a time with down wind boatspeed in the first couple of regattas…I was starting to loose confidence in myself - and the new sails. We could go as fast as anyone around us (but not faster), but could not

Farr 40 2007 Worlds - Warpath

2007-09-06T18:26:00.000-04:00

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to sail with you and you’re father. I have always heard how good it was and now I can truly appreciate how calm you run Warpath. I do not have a single complaint sailing on Warpath, other than the cold, wet weather. The sailing and living experience was at the best I have experienced. Each day I would record ideas that did work and after the event I feel

The Summer of Extremes

2007-08-27T19:09:00.000-04:00

For me the summer of 2007 has been one of extremes…Few will argue that our weather is changing and this summer produced some of the fastest and slowest races that I’ve ever experienced.Just shortly after sailing a very light regatta in Alicanti, Spain on Windquest I traveled to a very rainy Cowes England to sail the Swan 45 Worlds on Vixen. During the thirteen days that I was there, we had eleven

Windquest, From the Main

2007-06-21T12:27:00.001-04:00

The Transpac 52 class has taken another step in quality and quantity with twenty three competitive 52’s racing in Alicante, Spain. We are so lucky to experience not only the best level of racing but also the finest owner in the world.Doug DeVos is not only capable of winning, he is willing to supply the proper pieces of the sailing puzzle to give his boat and team the best possible chance for

Detroit NOOD on Legend,Beneteau 36.7

2007-06-07T17:52:00.000-04:00

I raced my first event in the Beneteau 36.7 fleet on Legend with Dave and Dan Shriner. The boat was well prepared and after a couple days of sailing we now have a good understanding on how to make it go. The two days of sailing were light and it took time to sort out on how to make the boat sail faster. I have a good rig setting now and will develop a AP genoa before the North Americans. We

FW: Capri

2007-05-25T19:54:00.000-04:00

From: WB-SAILS John Winquist [mailto:john@wb-sails.fi]Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 9:26 AMTo: Wally Cross; Eero LehtinenCc: Tea Ekengren-SaurénSubject: Re: CapriGreat notes on steering Wally. You seem to have the ability to address in words what most or us can only at best feel. It's a bit like riding a bicycle. Easy when you know how to, but how do you expain it in words to someone who does not

Capri - May 16 - 19,2007

2007-05-25T19:46:00.000-04:00

May 16-19, Sailing Swan 45’s in Capri, Italy on Vixen. Just a four race regatta in shifty conditions, yet still fun. This was our training regatta prior to the Worlds Championship in Cowes England and pleased with our 2nd place finish against 18 boats,The big change for our boat was to design a mainsail that would work in the light to moderate winds. In Sardinia and Scarlino we were very fast in

2007-04-26T15:07:00.000-04:00

From: Wally CrossTo: 'Alan Field'Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2007 3:57 PMSubject: Melges Sailing Hi Alan,Thank you for the opportunity to sail with you and your team in San Fran. It is wonderful to see how competitive you are now after being in the class such a short period. In many ways you are a top five team and with the original crew you should be one of the boats to beat in Santa Cruz. It

Melges 24 - New Way 2007

2007-04-25T06:12:00.000-04:00

Wally CrossApril 21-22, 2007I sailed a two day Melges 24 regatta with Alan Field in San Francisco. We had the opportunity to sail against the Pegasus team and learned a lot about the boat. We tested many different rig settings and sailing techniques. This class is getting close to the worlds so the best guys were there testing their new sails.Base rig setting is 20 on the loose gauge for the caps

Acura Miami 2007 - Sailing on Windquest

2007-03-13T13:18:00.000-04:00

Hi John,I truly enjoyed sailing with you and the team on Windquest. I believe the boat and the owner are special. Meeting and sailing with Doug was a treat and Windquest is a very good boat based on we sail her well. The boat is so fast in breeze and I tend to think the stability might be too high and the smaller bulb could be good in the lighter breeze. My observations are:1) We need to get the

MRW - Day 1

2007-03-07T06:18:00.000-05:00

by Wally CrossI am always amazed how early the boats start practicing before regattas. Miami Race Week starts on Thursday morning, yet more than half of the boats have been practicing since this past weekend. I just completed our second day on Windquest and have enjoyed every minute. Sailing with Doug DeVos and his team is like being in a sailing history class. Most of his team has sailed on all

Some rig advice

2007-02-27T14:13:00.000-05:00

Hey WallyI have just been signed on to sail on board Storm the RP 44 for the Culebra regatta next weekend. They have been having issues a little bit with rig set up and I have been asked by the crew boss to provide some guidance on that front. So I am wondering if I can take a base kind of setting some where between a Farr 40 and the Swan 45. Does this make sense? I guess I would tend to be

Vixen, Scarlino Italy

2007-02-18T23:14:00.000-05:00

Feb. 9-11thSailing on Vixen was a pleasure with a perfectly prepared boat. The instruments work well and starting is much easier with the use of Deckman. Reggie does a nice job providing information for the tactician. I recommend using this tool as much as physically possible.I would like to see the inhaul adjustment work individually from either side. The Hydraulics seemed to be working on the

Strictly Sailing 2007

2007-02-05T20:57:00.000-05:00

The Strictly show in Chicago is like a shot of summer sailing in the middle of a cold winter day. New boats and gear are the talk for the long weekend. I really enjoy looking at the new and existing one design boats at the show:* Melges 32 - Twenty boats on the starting line in Key West 2007, anamazing start to this new class. A great boat built by a successful company will guarantee great

2007 Key West Race Week

2007-01-21T18:38:00.000-05:00

Image by Tim WilksEvent: Key West 1/12/07 – 1/19/07Boat: RamrodOwner: Rod JabinDear Rod,Thank you for the opportunity to sail with you and the Ramrod team. I love the attitude of all the crew and know your next event will be a success. The boat is perfectly prepared and maintained. The core team is solid and with small improvements your Farr 40 program will be one of the best.I know it is hard