It's now the weekend before Thanksgiving and the fall sailing season is in the rear view mirror. The last few months have flown by at the speed of lightning as it's been a non-stop routine of working four or five days at my paying job and then hurrying down to the coast to prepare for a weekend race. Mix in a Georgia Tech Homecoming trip to ATL, a Baby Maggie Shower, a trip to Asheville, NC for a wedding reception, a tour of the Biltmore House, and the Captain and Admiral are spending the second weekend at home since July 4th!

I've had a couple weeks to reflect on our first sailing season aboard CaiLeigh Anna, and the experience has been a whirlwind of highs and lows. We were unable to conduct full sea trials after replacing the engine in August, so the Fall club races in actuality became our sea trials. We experienced electrical and fuel gremlins, which are not abnormal for a boat that has not been used in years. We just dealt with the problems one by one and forged ahead. Fortunately, the list of issues is now very short and I've developed a pretty good feel for the mechanical systems aboard the boat.

As early as the first race in September we realized that we could not be competitive with our small 125% Genoa Jib. This sail provides a lot of power in light air, which is typical during the Fall season along the Georgia coast. The 125% Genoa Jib is a great cruising and heavy air sail, but it is not a racing sail.

Through good luck and the misfortune of other boats we did manage to squeak out two third places finishes in the early races, and after four races CaiLeigh Anna was in a statistical tie for third place overall. In mid-October we competed in the FL/GA Ocean Challenge Race from St. Simon's Island to Fernandina Beach and realized just how much speed we were missing. Over the 25 mile coastal race we averaged between 1.5 and 2 miles per hour slower than the winning boat. This difference in speed is almost completely accountable to the small head sail since we know that the Catalina 34 has a relatively fast hull.

A good friend with a Catalina 355 gave me his original 135% "like new" Genoa, which was a little large for my Catalina 34, and I sent the sail to a sail loft in Jacksonville to be cut down for CaiLeigh Anna. Dimensionally this sail will be a 150% Genoa for my smaller boat, and should provide the extra speed we so desperately need to be competitive. Unfortunately it didn't arrive back in time to use during the last race of the season.

It's probably just as well that we were handicapped by the small headsail because it has given my crew and me time to learn the boat. I am so fortunate to have our good friends Joe and Pat as dedicated crew for our races. Last Fall, Pat and I won the under 30' cruising class on Roma, finished third in an offshore race, and Joe and I finished second in the Double Handed Race.

This was a new experience competing in the "big boat" class, and we will have to step up our game to be competitive, even with the new head sail. Sailboat racing is very much a mental game as well as a tactical exercise, and while we generally did very well at the start of the races we did make some blunders during a couple races.

The Catalina 34 enjoys a great reputation as a club racer so we are expecting many great racing seasons to come. I'm sure we will lose more races than we will win, but I just want to be competitive and mix it up with the race leaders as often as possible. We've owned CaiLeigh Anna for just a year and the first nine months were spent bringing her back to life. She may not be all the boat I dream of having, but she's all the boat I need and more.

Without a doubt the best part of owning CaiLeigh Anna is that Suze feels comfortable spending extended time aboard and she actually seems to enjoy the racing. This is something I could never say about her and Roma. Besides racing, we also expect to enjoy more cruising in the months and years ahead. We are already planning a spring trip to St. Augustine and a summer trip to Savannah and Hilton Head. For now, it's time to rest, enjoy the holidays, and get ready for a new little mate, Maggie Sue!