Sailing Blog
W.W.C.S.D – Day 2 of Bacardi Cup »
March 11, 2011
After the storms passed on day 1, cooler temps and a stiff westerly breeze were left in its wake and for the 26 Audi Melges 20s headed out to the racecourse it was a nice ride down to the starting area in puffs gusting into the low twenties. With 4 races planned, we did our best to keep each other pumped up knowing it would be a long day, and we also channeled some inspiration from a person who in recent weeks has proved he can stare down any opponent or challenge and make it crumble. What would Charlie Sheen do with 4 races in 20-25 kts?
“The only thing I’m addicted to is winning. Alcoholics anonymous success rate is 5%, my success rate is 100%.”
“I’m an F18. I am battle-tested bayonets, bro.”
“The Nike slogan doesn’t say, ‘Just Try It.’ Oh, ok, ‘Just Try It.’ No, ‘Just Do It,’ man.”
Ok…While we were not exactly sure what some of these quotes mean and we would not trade places with Charlie Sheen for any amount of money, we could not argue that over the past few weeks he has really “sent it” hard, and we would need to do the same to have a successful day 2.
It wasn’t long before PRO Bruce Gollison’s goal of having 4 races quickly vanished as the Melges24 fleet starting in front of us had 4 general recalls and finally got off after an hour of time wasted. Not only was there a lot of breeze, but the wind was shifting between 20-30 degrees which made it very important to get in phase immediately after the start. Up to this point we had been very inconsistent in our sailing in the previous 2 regattas, and there seemed to be a good vibe on our boat that we were going to really be hungry to execute a complete day…Charlie Sheen style.
In each race today, we managed to start clean and punch into the front group playing the middle of the course which was key to staying in phase and managing risk with the rest of the fleet to either side of us. It was not uncommon to see boats on both sides of the course on huge angles and it was very easy to get lost in what was happening around us and not paying attention to our own breeze. It was difficult to stay on the lifted tack, but whenever our compass numbers started to dip into an unfavorable number, we were very quick to tack and stay with the shift. Setting at the mark and getting up on a plane quickly was again at a premium, and getting around the bottom mark without ending up your side was also key to doing well. At days end, we managed a 5, 3, 4 and while this wasnt enough to win the day, it was enough to get us into 2nd overall and was probably the most consistent day we have had to date on the M and M. We can feel good about our effort today, but with two races remaining there is still a lot of work to do and we will need to be at our best on Day 3 to maintain our position or have any shot at taking the 3rd Winter Series title. Overall, a very fun day of Melges 20 racing with lots of position changes and great rides downwind.
No Comments »
No comments yet.
TrackBack URL