September 28 – 29, 2019
Race Details
The Commodore’s Cup will be held this Saturday and Sunday, starting at 11am. This is our annual voyage down the St. Croix to the city of Prescott! The race event is open to all boats who are currently registered with SCSC. Cruisers are very welcome to sail with us and join the party after racing on Saturday evening.
Saturday:
There will be two starts, with the Division 3 & 5 sequence beginning at 11am.
The sequence for Division 1 will begin around 11:20am.
This is all weather dependent – if there are any significant changes, the R/C will email everyone Friday evening, and by VHF starting at 10:00 Saturday morning.
Saturday Evening:
The Prescott City Council has reserved the city docks for us! This event coincides with a Cruise, and beverages and food will be available after racing at the Hollister Mansion, hosted by the crew and friends of Salacia (see previous messages). Your boats are permitted to stay at the city docks overnight.
The docks in Prescott are between the highway bridge and the railroad trestle. When you are ready to dock, call the “Prescott Highway Bridge” on VHF 14 (or 16) to request an opening of the Highway bridge ONLY. Please buddy up with other sailboats so we don’t need to open the bridge too many times.
Sunday:
There will be one sequence for all boats. Warning signal will be at 11am, just north of the Prescott Highway Bridge. We will race to Hudson, or wherever the R/C sets the finish line (if the race is slow).
Other notes:
On both days, the finish line may be shortened or the races cancelled if the winds and weather are unfavorable for racing. The Race Committee intends to have everyone ashore by 5 or 6pm.
You may declare non-spinnaker prior to the first race (must apply to both days).
There will be many new crews, boats, and skippers attending the races this year – thank you for coming! This is one of the most spectacular events our club has to offer. Here are a couple tips to make your adventure more fun:
- There are numerous shallow areas along the route. Take a look at this chart and note the shallow areas off of Afton, Black Bass Bar, Afton State Park, and the south side of the Kinnicknnic channel. The Committee Boat can pull you off if you become grounded, but then you’re DSQ’d!
https://www.waterwayguide.com/explorer?latitude=44.84637637001192&longitude=-92.73988723754883&zoom=12
(choose the “Navionics” layer from the layers button at the lower-left)
The river is quite high this year so groundings are unlikely, but you can never be too careful.
All racers should familiarize themselves with the provisions of Section 18 of the SCSC Sailing Instructions regarding procedures relating to the passage of slow no wake areas. You are required to record time spent in the slow no wake areas and you are required to leave slow no wake areas in the same order as you entered them. 15 minutes max per zone. You must inform the Race Committee of your times at your finish, or on the dock immediately following the race. If the no-wake marks are missing, use the channel markers (green cans and red nuns).
Should you elect to retire from racing on either day, ensure that you notify the Race Committee or have somebody notify the Race Committee on your behalf. The Race Committee will be monitoring VHF Channel 72, or can be reached by phone.
If the wind forecast looks light, there might be some amount of motoring – please make sure to top off your fuel tanks!