MAX EBB almost always stuck with the wrong jib up.” “A fair rating credit for no spinnaker,” noted Lee’s professor, “is going to be a little more difficult.” “Don’t forget the cushions,” I reminded Lee, who was taking all this down. “Right — you want to require that all berth cushions stay in place, and maybe think about requiring water and fuel tanks at least half full.” “Should we regress all the way back to the CCA rule and require a 7’ 11” hard dinghy?” asked the professor. “If that’s what the fleet wants,” I said. “Maybe tie it to size — require at least an inflatable on any boat over 35 feet, and some kind of dinghy with an outboard or a sailing rig on any boat over 40 feet.” “There’s another problem if we mix it up with real racers,” said the former racer. “How can we be competitive for the season if we miss a race or two?” “Throw-outs!” I said. “That doesn’t help. You still need to show up for every race if you want your best finishes to be the ones that count. I might not want to do all 10 races, especially the ones that start and finish on
the other side of the Bay.” “Simple,” answered Lee. “Before the season starts, declare which of the races you want to count. Maybe, like, 6 or 7 out of 10. Then you could do a light season and still have as good a chance as
"All they do is drink with the same crowd at another club." someone who raced all of them. I mean, you could still totally sail in all the races if you wanted to but only the six you chose in advance would count toward your season score.” No one could see anything wrong with this scheme, so our host poured us all another glass of cheap wine, added some chips and dip to the offerings on the table, and the conversation moved back to the kind of dinghies that various sizes
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of boats should be required to bring to the parties. “Why in the world should we require dinghies on board,” asked our skipper, “when the fleet is always going to be dockside at the finish venue?” “You haven’t cruised with kids in a long time, have you?” chuckled the professor.
W
e didn’t hear the answer because there was a knock and a voice informing us that the yacht club's bar was now open. A major exodus followed. “I’ll never understand these club cruises,” Lee said when we were the only ones left in the cabin. “All they do is drink at some other yacht club bar with the same crowd they could be drinking with back at their own club.” “I guess getting here was half the fun,” I suggested. “But if this destination racing thing takes off, we can increase that to at least three-quarters.” — max ebb
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