Tropical Storm Hermine

[Jim Walsh]

I just want to wish all our members in the Florida Panhandle good luck. Hermine is just shy of hurricane stregnth but a tropical storm is a tropical storm. We may very well be dealing with a similar situation in southern New England on Monday. Stay safe.

[mgphl52]

Thanks, Jim!

I just had a good "wet Wednesday" fun race with my sail club. Once back at the dock, I reset lines for extended high water and lashed the mainsail with the main sheet. Hoping for a quick "Hello; Good-bye" from this storm but we never really know.

[Sea Hunt Video]

Mike:

I am sure you have this website but just as a precaution:

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at4.sh ... l#contents

It looks like Hermine is now projected to make landfall around or just south of Panama City this evening & Friday morning possibly as a Category 1 hurricane. As I am sure you know NOAA/NHC has become very good at predicting storm paths. They are still developing their skills at projecting storm strength.

Stay safe Mike and Toni

[mgphl52]

Thanks, Roberto!
We've been keeping an eye on it for several days. After a nice Wednesday night fun race, I reset KAYLA's lines for storm surge and wrapped her main sail. Now it's just wait & see...

[jen1722terry]

Our very best wishes for all our members who are in the storms path. Our boats are sturdy, though, so we expect all will come through just fine.

Be safe, all of you

Jenn and Terry

[Keith]

My recommendation in a heavy blow is to strip all sails and even remove the boom.Wwe had a 27 hunter last summer the didn't have the head sail furred tightly in a 40 m/h Norester and it opened up and dragged her onto the marsh and shredded the headsail. The key is to remove as much windage as possible.

To late for you folks in the south but mid atlantic to NE food for thought!!

Keith

[mgphl52]

My recommendation in a heavy blow is to strip all sails and even remove the boom.Wwe had a 27 hunter last summer the didn't have the head sail furred tightly in a 40 m/h Norester and it opened up and dragged her onto the marsh and shredded the headsail. The key is to remove as much windage as possible.

To late for you folks in the south but mid atlantic to NE food for thought!!

Keith

Very true... but being a bit on the lazy side as well as having been thru a bunch of 'canes here in the last 20 years, I usually wait till it's a cat 2 or above before stripping sails. Unless, of course, I might be out of town...

PS: KAYLA will be sailing tomorrow and most of the weekend! Hermine was just a practice event, here at least...

[Sea Hunt Video]

Our brothers and sisters along the coast in Virginia, Delaware, Maryland, NJ, NY, Conn., RI, Mass., etc. are going to get a sustained pounding for the next few days.

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/storm_graphics/ ... _NL_sm.gif

Jim W., you were kind enough to wish us Floridians "good luck" last week when TS/H Hermine was affecting northern Floridians. Your post was also prescient as you foretold your fate this week.

I share Keith's view of removing ALL sailcloth, canvas, Biminis, etc. I have seen the bad results of those who think they can secure the Genoa by wrapping a bunch of line around the sail. Once it opens up (and it will), the destruction of the sail, the rigging, etc., is an inevitable result.

We wish all of you well.

I have been following weather systems intently since 24 August 1992 when Hurricane Andrew blew away my home (literally). I have tried to study as much as I can yet remain an amateur. Hermine has been a real challenge for the hurricane experts. It has been "a system" now for more than 2 weeks. It may well remain as a TS through at least Thursday of next week when it affects Neil G., Joe M. and many others along the Mass. coastline. Montana is looking better and better every day

[Jim Walsh]

Appears to be veering away from us, yay!

[David Morton]

Appears to be veering away from us, yay!

The interesting thing to me is that NOAA is still predicting only 2-4 ft seas in Casco Bay, in spite of 5-9 ft seas just off the coast, for the next week! Would have thought Hermine would have kicked up a little more swell than that locally. My experience with seas forecasting for Casco Bay is not without surprises, though. Casco Bay is big, and my east end of it and outside of the islands is not as protected as down by the Portland headland. Hard to know what to expect around here.

David

[mgphl52]

PS: KAYLA will be sailing tomorrow and most of the weekend! Hermine was just a practice event, here at least...

Or not... spent most of yesterday tracking down a wiring issue with tach & temp gauge. Once fixed, weather turned not so nice. Today is even worse as it's rained all morning and sucked any breeze away... such is life and so it goes...
But this is still much better than fighting a 'cane!

Hope all others up the coast fare as well as we did.

[Keith]

I enjoyed a wonderful sail on Nantucket sound yesterday. 25 kts gusting 35 kts (I only saw 32 kts) and 6-8 ft seas. Had a double reefed main, no staysail and about 50% of the 115 yankee out. The helm was well balanced and was able to simple lock the wheel and sail for miles with out touching the wheel. Had an average speed over the ground of 6.8 kts and a max speed of 9.8 kts. Surfing a 10,000 lb board is awesome!!!! Cape Dory weather for sure!!!!

Today the wind is less (18 kts) but raining like crazy right now. Glad the storm turned NE.

Hope everyone faired well!

Keith

[jen1722terry]

Weird storm, in that it, this morning, the prediction was for her to turn back to the west before again turning to northeast. Jenn's parents have a home on the south side of Martha's Vineyard and are paying close attention. Our 31 is tucked in well in Northeast Harbor, ME until it passes. If we didn't have to visit our NH condo for some business chores, we'd be over there sailing those puffy winds.



Terry

[Sea Hunt Video]

Not even the high priced fancy weather computers can figure out with any degree of confidence where Hermine is going to go next.

https://icons.wunderground.com/data/ima ... l_zoom.gif

[Jim Walsh]

I've found that Bermuda Weather Service has been pretty accurate with major storms.
http://www.weather.bm/maps/bwsWTNT24.jpg?201695232415