One of the races we won
Well here we are... At the
2008 Audi Sunshine Coast Queensland Match Racing Championships racing off the beautiful beaches of eroded Mooloolaba.
Today was a great learning experience. I learnt to put on more sunscreen, drink more water, and not get involved with pre-start tussles!
It all started in Race 1 of Flight 1. We were assigned to starboard to start at the boat end. Before we even knew it, a penalty was thrown at us. Ah... We entered the box too early! Did we? Yes...? Are you sure? Indeed. Oh crap. What a way to start!
The first race resulted in us completing a penalty turn which we did on the finish line. "The best place to do your penalty is at the finish line. Get ahead, then do the turn," advised the professional. Ok, yeah, right, well you have to get in the lead for that to work don't you! Not to worry, that was our first race - plenty of time to come back.
The breeze was light - light all day, with only a few minor bursts providing some relief to the cramped up crew sitting forward.
Ok, the 2nd Flight is here, what's our plan of attack? "Let's try to not get a penalty this time shall we?" Hmmm, I'll do my best...
Bang.
Whistle.
Blue flag.
Blue flag?????
Blue flag.
Oh crap. That's us. Another penalty!!! You've GOT to be kidding me.
Right. How are we going to handle this one? What did the pro say? Do it at the finish line? Well there is a chance we won't get in front, so why don't we just do it now...? Done. Sailing upwind, we bear away and do our penalty. Excellent. Now let's just sail fast. No problem, just give me about 3 more knots to increase the strength to 6 knots!
The SB3's being used in the regatta are equally matched to the extreme. The guys getting the boats ready did a superb job and no one can complain that one boat is faster than another. It really does come down to crew work, and experience. Our crew work is great, our experience of the rules... Not so good!
Our race in the 3rd Flight was also a shocker. The finishing positions were close, but our bow didn't go over the line first.
Three loses... Three races to go. I started thinking that I should have taken up tennis.
After a sip of water, a couple of snakes and half a muesli bar, the head was back in shape and was ready to go.
"We are going to HUNT these guys. This is our race. GRRRRRR!!!!!!" We were ready.
Control was gained right from the start (apparently that makes winning the race just a little bit easier), and off the line with speed we were looking famous. In other words, we were three boat lengths in front, but felt good. Around the top mark we shot off with speed with the kite up and headed towards what little breeze there was. Our opponents gybed and went the other way...
Hmmm... should we let them get away?
Hmmm... no idea!
After much back and forth we ended up underneath them and just heated it up.
PROTEST!!! Fly the Y flag!!!
We waited...
We waited some more...
Then the whistle goes. FINALLY!!!! We have inflicted a penalty on another boat! What an exciting moment!!!
When we sailed across the finish line in first place our confidence was back and we were ready for another win.
The second last race was again a close one but luckily a little easier than the others. We cruised over the finish line (in about 5 knots) and finished in front for the second time. It would be our last time...
The last race. The final flight. Our aim, to win. A win still wouldn't get us through to the top round and quarter finals, but it would ingrain confidence in our minimal match racing abilities!
We started off well, inflicting a penalty on the other team, and managed to drift over the line in the lead. When I say drift, I really do mean drift. There was nothing. Only just enough to propel a little way forward. Our decision to tack when we did pretty much ended our day. We tacked onto port, and due to the very minimal amount of pressure, there just wasn't enough to push over the bow of our opponent, meaning we had to tack back resulting in our stern giving their bow a bit of a touch up. Penalty my team. Oh crap crap crap...
Then the worst happened... a 30 degree wind shift, and not in our favour. We went from being even, to a minute behind. The course became that of a soilder's, and although we attempted to protest the committee for not canning the race, we were doomed to finish in second, or last place in that race. Oh well...
We finished the day with 2 wins (and 4 loses, but we won't focus on that), and learnt a great deal about this Match Racing game. Be confident at the start, don't be nervous, don't be afraid to hunt and sail to the best of your ability.
Our regatta isn't over - now we race for the bottom half of the positions, and although there is no hope of taking home the silverware, there is still hope to secure the lucky door prize win!
The photos attached were captured by Ben Calder -
www.supanova.net.au
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