Saturday, January 24, 2009

Miami OCR

I am back in Miami to compete in the Miami Olympic Classes Regatta. It is an ISAF Grade 1 event and part of the World Cup circuit. Racing runs Monday January 26th to Friday the 30th with the medal race on the 31st. Results are available here

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January 30, 2009
Today was the last day of series racing. With a cold front forecasted to hit in the afternoon the wind was shifty, but persistently going right. I had a poor start, but quickly found a lane and was looking good up the middle of the course. At the top, both sides came in and I rounded in the mid 20s. I lost distance to the leaders, but not many boats when the wind went right on the second beat. I sailed a quick run and passed some boats to finish 25. I finished 29th overall in the regatta. I would have liked to have been higher, but I did not sail well enough on the lighter days, and I had problems getting off the line well. I am down to Clearwater in two weeks for the Laser Midwinter's East regatta.
Weather: 20 degrees, cloudy, SW-W, 8-14 knots

January 29, 2009
Today we sailed in a light wind from the southeast. I had trouble getting off the line the whole day. There were not many passing lanes in the light air and I had a tough time coming back. In the first race I finished 46. In the second race the wind was up a bit. I had a slightly better start, but lost my lane soon and was behind at the first windward. I sailed a good run, but had a poor leeward rounding and was behind again. I passed a couple of boats on the final run but it was only enough for a 37.
Weather: 28 degrees, sunny, SE, 4-8 knots

January 28, 2009
When we first got out on the water today there was a decent breeze, but it came down quickly. I had a poor start in the first race and played the wrong side on the first beat and was well behind the leaders. The wind died down completely on the downwind, and by 5 minutes into the second beat the race was called. After waiting for half an hour, new wind came in and another race was started. I had a better start but got bounced around badly in traffic and was again behind after the first beat. I was able to pass a few boats throughout the race, but it was still only enough to finish 38. I am now in 23rd overall. Racing continues tomorrow, and the RC can now give us 3 races to make up for the lost races today.
Weather: 28 degrees, sunny, SE, 4-6 knots

January 27, 2009
Today was the second day of racing. In the first race I had a poor start, but was able to get clear. I had a similar situation at the windward mark as in the first race yesterday and lost some boats and rounded around 20. I passed boats on the first run, but made some stupid mistakes and finished 22. In the second race I was again forced to tack out after start, but again found a clear lane. I sailed quickly downwind and finished 20. In the final race of the day I had a poor start and never got a good lane. I wasn't as quick as I would have liked downwind and finished 30th. Three races are scheduled for tomorrow.
Weather: 26 degrees, sunny, ESE, 8-14 knots

January 26, 2009
Today was the first day of racing. In the first race I had a good start and held a clear lane out to the left side and hooked into pressure. I missed the last shift coming into the mark, and was low on the layline so I lost a lot of boats. I managed to hit the mark as well, and was forced low to spin and lost more on the reach. I stayed even on the run, but sailed a great second beat and finished 19th. In the second race I didn't have a great start but was able to tack and get a clear lane quickly. I rounded the first windward in the top 20, and sailed a pretty good run. Again I had a quick second beat passing several boats. I passed another couple of boats downwind and finished 7th. After two races I am in 11th overall.
Weather: 26 degrees, sunny, E, 8-12 knots

January 25, 2009
I only went out for a 30 minute session today to do a couple of tacks and to make sure everything was in order. Racing starts with two races scheduled for tomorrow.
Weather: 25 degrees, sunny, E, 5 knots

January 24, 2009
Today started off with short races off rabbit starts. The group got bigger and bigger as other international sailors joined. I had good speed, particularly downwind. When the group got too big the Ontario and Nova Scotia sailors broke off. We did some starting practice and another couple of races. Tomorrow I will have a shorter session.
Weather: 24 degrees, sunny, E, 6 knots

January 23, 2009
Today was my first day back in Miami after the training over Christmas. I only had time for a short sail, but it was good to get back in the boat.
Weather: 22 degrees, sunny, NE, 6-8 knots