P I
T C H
T
he 2011 Pacific International Ton Championship (PITCH) hosted by
the Bellingham Yacht Club has once again provided Pacific Northwest sailors a holiday weekend complete with competitive racing and shore-side camaraderie. With a venue situated in beautiful Bellingham Bay, the gateway to the picturesque San Juan Islands and the breathtaking Mount Baker National Forest, PITCH is the ideal Labor Day weekend regatta. For 38 years PITCH has been a
mainstay of the Pacific Northwest competitive sailing season. Initiated in 1979, PITCH began as an IOR (International Offshore Rule) regatta. Considered a success from the beginning, the regatta was modified in the 80’s to included handicap divisions as the IOR lost favor to PHRF racing in the Pacific Northwest. Today, PITCH continues the tradition of offering two days of highly competitive PHRF and One- Design buoy racing. This year, 54 sailboats
comprised of six PHRF fleets and four One-Design fleets gathered with the promise of sunshine and breeze.
48° NORTH, OCTOBER 2011 PAGE 40
The largest fleet would be the “quarter ton” San Juan 24s with nine boats. In addition to the SJ 24s, other ton boats present included Charlie Macaulay’s one ton Absolutely and Walter Northfield’s quarter ton Bingo. The remaining One- Design fleets included Etchells and the IOR designed Santa Cruz 27. The P30 fleet, while opting to race PHRF, was awarded a One-Design P30 fleet trophy at the end of the weekend’s racing. The first day of racing was met with
light breeze and plentiful sunshine. The fleets practiced light air maneuvers as the winds built to a steady southwesterly. The BYC race committee worked
Top: San Juan 24s, “Magic Juan” and ”Renaissance” sail in beautiful Bellingham Bay, the gateway to the picturesque San Juan Islands and the breathtaking Mount Baker. Below: The crew of
“Renaissance” sailing hard and having fun at PITCH.
Next page top: A close start between “Extreme,” “Gardyloo” and “Flyer” in Class 2. Next page below: The very competitive Etchells class.
Photos by Jan Anderson.
diligently to keep the courses fair and true to the wind as the westerly breeze shifted throughout the day. Fleet four consisting of the nimble light wind machines like the Melges 24, Viper 640 and the Left Coast Dart would sail three races. The
remaining fleets would sail a challenging two races each. The new SC27 to the fleet, Troy Fields’ The Kraken, would be struck with misfortune as it lost its rig early in the day. The leaders with perfect scores after day one would be Stuart Burnell’s Tantivy, Mark Zollitsch’s Osprey, Absolutely, Ken Chin’s Olson 911 Kowloon, Chuck Tidrington’s SC27 Cookie Monster and Mick Corcoran’s Hotfoot 27 Blackfoot. The tactical calls that won Saturday
were clear starts, clear lanes of wind and identifying critical wind shifts. Being front row and first off the line assured favorable positioning and boat speed. Finding clear lanes of breeze for each leg of the races allowed for optimal boat speed throughout the day. Last but not least, identifying wind shifts and playing the lifts allowed for the ideal “velocity made good” (VMG) to the next mark. The second day of
racing was met with sunshine, warmth and a bay of glassy waters. Once out drifting on the bay, the fleet began forming islands of rafted boats as we all waited for the shore to heat
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