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Brought my new boat back from Windsport on the roof of the car yesterday and it was as fast as the old one. so hope when water is added it will be even faster.
PS
As I have been told I get to the Travlers open's to early I waited around to 0800 before calling to pick it up, but still think I was a bit early as Brian was in the shower.
Oh gawd - I suppose this means I've got to get some MARTINI - SHAKEN NOT STIRRED as well as the beer, amongst the prizes at Beaver TT for next week !
MONEYPENNY - Get those bacon sarnies ordered pronto !!
But it was a relatively lucky break in the first race that paid off. On the last lap I was 6th on the water (5th on handicap), and decided to tack very late onto port after the first mark as it looked stronger breeze there. I was never going to make the next mark without a further pair of tacks (like everyone else in front), but the shifty wind strengthened and backed when I was around 400m from the 2nd mark, lifting me well above the new layline. I luffed back up to a beat as the shift was likely not to last. About 50m from the mark the wind dropped and veered beyond its earlier direction. But I pinched the 2nd mark and 4 places!!! on the water (3 on handicap) on that one leg!!! Robin (Sport Mode) got past me on the next leg (now almost a broad reach rather than a very broad reach/run), but not by enough for me not to finish 2nd on handicap.
In the 2nd race I made the right choice (port, and an obvious decision!) at the start. I rounded outside Steve Sawford at the windward mark on the first lap, pulled away from him on the next very broad reach/run, and then further away on the reach to the P mark. Thereafter I concentrated on boatspeed AND on trying to be where it looked to be windiest on the beat AND on tacking on the shifts. I think that most others lost ground by not spotting the opportunities on the beat.
Some ideas about how to get a good result on a shifty variable F2-3 day....
