The GYA Handicap Committee will be hosting a series of webinars to introduce sailors to ORR-Ez and assist race committees with how to use the new ratings in their events.

All of the webinars will be recorded and will be posted here for those who cannot attend.

For Details visit the GYA Handicap Page: Handicap | Gulf Yachting Association (gya.org)

Let’s Talk Vipers | Latest Tuning & Trimming Tips – YouTube

To order bow numbers for your Viper, you will need to go through the Viper web site.  https://v6ca.wildapricot.org/event-3987541

BOW NUMBER MUST MATCH HULL NUMBER – not GYA sail number!!

There are 4 options:

1)   Order a set of black bow numbers (do this if you have a light color hull)
2)   Order a set of white bow numbers (if you have a dark hull)
3)   Order black bow numbers and state ID – light hull (if your state requires your viper to be registered)
4)   Order white bow numbers and state ID – dark hull

Decide which option is right for you, scroll to the bottom of the page, and click Register. (You aren’t actually registering for an event; you’ll be taken to the pages for ordering bow numbers.)

Also, when ordering was set up through the Viper site, it was geared toward one-boat owners. There are several clubs and/or individuals who have more than 1 boat so, unfortunately, you’ll need to separately go through the ordering process and submit payment for each boat.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.

Cathy Cromartie

VP South, Viper 640 Class
251-895-0993
cathy.cromartie@gmail.com

Please familiarize yourselves with this information:  https://www.viper640.org/class/sail-button-purchase-and-how-to-register-sails/ . There were several Vipers at the Jr. Lipton Challenge that did not have the proper sail registration buttons on their sails. This could potentially be an issue for this weekend’s Knost Regatta and Sir Thomas Lipton Challenge.

Shan Kirk
Commodore
Gulf Yachting Association

 

The Safety at Sea videos, produced by the Storm Trysail Foundation and narrated by Storm Trysail Club member Gary Jobson, vary in length and cover subjects from Man Overboard Recovery, safety equipment, understanding weather and more.

For a one-time fee of $40 US, you receive lifetime access to the full library to view over and over. You and your shipmates will be better prepared in the case of an emergency whether you’re racing or cruising, in coastal waters or off shore, under sail or power. And, as Storm Trysail adds more videos to its library, you will have access to the full collection.

The GYA ExCom and the Safety Advisory Committee encourages all GYA Clubs, Jr. Programs and individuals to purchase a subscription to the STF Safety At Sea videos. The videos are not intended to replace a Safety at Sea seminar such as the one being hosted at Pensacola Yacht Club in March. Anyone seeking Off Shore certification would need to attend a seminar. But, we recognize that there are many local/coastal sailors who are not seeking off-shore certification so will most likely never attend a seminar. We also recognize that sailing accidents can happen on a beer can race, a sanctioned event or just out cruising for the day.

The first ten videos cover:
 Practical Man Overboard Recovery (24 mins.)
 Understanding Weather (23 mins.)
 Understanding Offshore Weather (24 mins.)
 Flares and Pyrotechnic Devices (6 mins.)
 Storm Sails (12 mins.)
 Shipboard Firefighting Strategies (4 mins.)
 Fighting Shipboard Fires (7 mins.)
 Personal Safety Equipment (27 mins.)
 Cold water survival & Life Rafts (3 min.)
 Deploying a Life Raft (6 mins.)

$40 is a very small cost to pay if even just one life is saved because you watched the video and know how to recover a man overboard, or if one boat is saved because you know how to properly extinguish a blaze.

Payment may be made through PayPal. The GYA will reimburse any GYA club who purchases a subscription to the library. Simply purchase your subscription and send a copy of your receipt to sectreasurer@gya.org

Sailors can visit the link below and order their subscription to the Storm Trysail Foundation’s complete Safety-at-Sea Video Library.
https://stormtrysailfoundation.org/safety-videos

The Viper 640 Class Association
4051 E Desert Crest Dr.
Paradise Valley, AZ 85253

Viper 640 Crew Weight & Size Analysis
2015 North American Championship

 

January 25, 2016

 

During the GYA Board of Directors meeting earlier this month, the Viper 640 Class Association was asked to canvas sailors regarding the total crew weight they race with. To meet this objective, the Class sent an online survey to the 50+ boats that participated in the 2015 North American Championship regatta held at Larchmont Yacht Club from October 15-18, 2015. A total of 39 competitors responded to the questionnaire providing final standing, total crew weight, and crew headcount.

It should be noted that the conditions for the event ranged from 12-15 knot range the first day to winds in the higher teens with gusts in the low 20 knot range for the remaining days. Because the winds were from the north throughout the regatta, the sea state was relatively flat throughout (1-2 foot seas). That being said, for the most part, the personnel making up these crews are the same people most of the Viper owners sail with on a regular basis, so this data is applicable for most events.

The highlights are as follows:

Crew weight

• There is a wide range of crew weights that is competitive in the Viper 640.
• The average of all crew weights at the 2015 North Americans: 550 lbs.
• Crew weights ranged from a low of 490 (#10) to a high of 650 lbs. (a new Viper sailor finishing 48^th)
• The winning crew weighed-in at 610 lbs.
  • Of the nine respondents within the Top-10 finishers, the average crew weight was 568 lbs. Of note, only two of those crews weighed below 550. Range: 490-610
  • Of the 18 respondents within the Top- 20 finishers, the average crew weight was 550 lbs. Range: 490-610
• These weights are largely in keeping with the same survey conducted after the 2014 NAs in Long Beach, where there were also strong breezes and 2-3 foot seas. In that study of the Top 15 finishers, crew weights ranged from 510 to 590 lbs.

Crew size

• 33 of 39 boats sailed with crews comprised of three sailors
• Of the six 4-person crews, most were two men and two women, one was three women and a man
• There is no statistic that indicates one crew size is better than another as the third placed boat was sailed by two men and two women.

The following is the detailed data on a boat-by-boat basis:

If anyone has question on this data, please contact Viper 640 Class Administrator Ed “Buttons” Padin at epadin@padesta.com.