Today I enjoyed an invitation to Taikata Sailing Club in Te Atatu, where I was sorted out with a very tidy frostbite to sail, thanks to Keith and Doug.
The one race took around 92 minutes for the fastest boat, and the spread was around 15 minutes.
I'd like to report that I had cleaned up, however this was not to be the case, and I was struggling mid-fleet.
The race started off with a long beat in very light conditions, and although I was close to the front off the start, I couldn't really come to grips with the layout and tuning of the boat, and slowly slipped back from the leaders, unable to point as high, or foot as fast. At one point, I found myself very near the back of the fleet.
Fortunately the wind started to build as we approached the top mark for the first time, and I was able to settle into a routine for tacking, and get some performance happening. At the top, I was battling to avoid being tail-end charlie.
The next leg was a long run, and I was able to make up a lot of ground, opening up a healthy gap on the other back markers, and closing up on the bunch ahead. Rounding the bottom, there was open water between the front bunch, which I was almost up with, and the chasing bunch.
Sailing back upwind, I was again struggling for pace, and although I was hanging on, I again lost ground to the boats nearby.
Another short run and beat, and I had lost a little more ground. As we turned to head for home, I was safely in 7th place, well behind the front bunch and safely clear of the trailing group. With a long run back to the finish, Sub-Zero once again showed very good downwind pace, and I was able to close up to the four boats ahead, gradually gaining little by little.
Sadly for me, however, there was simply not enough race-course to get ahead, and although it was fairly close, I had to settle for 7th at the finish.
All in all, it was great to be out on the water, and I'm hoping to be invited back fairly soon. I'd like to drop a few more inches of rake in, to suit my sailing style, and wish for a little more breeze.
Thanks again to Keith, Doug, and Taikata SC for a great day on the water!
Showing posts with label Frostbite. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Frostbite. Show all posts
Sunday, May 27, 2012
Friday, April 13, 2012
Decent exposure
After the moderate success of the Regatta, I managed to get a full report in Yachts And Yachting, possibly the best sailing mag on the planet.
It's basically the two blog posts, stuck together and edited to make sense.
View it here...
http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/162518/Manukau-Regatta-in-Auckland
And yes, I'm proud of my achievements!
It's basically the two blog posts, stuck together and edited to make sense.
View it here...
http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/162518/Manukau-Regatta-in-Auckland
And yes, I'm proud of my achievements!
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Another great day at Weymouth
Another great days fun racing was had by all at WYC today.
A small but quality fleet of seven boats fronted to start the first race, in 20+ degrees, flat water, and fresh 12-15 knot winds.
We had a couple of Sunbursts, a Paper Tiger cat, and one each of Starling, Topper, Frostbite, and NZ Moth. On paper it should have been an easy win for Pete in the cat, followed by Rob in the moth, and then it would be anyone's guess to pick the finishing order, as all the rest of the fleet share the same handicap.
In practise it was a different story, as a windward-leeward course was set, to minimise the cat's advantage.
In the first race, Keith in the frostbite and Murray in the sunburst took advantage of some race-rust on the part of the other competitors, and got a jump right off the startline. Rob took a quick dip a second after crossing the start, as the moth tried to shed it's rider. The others all had to play catch-up from then on.
Around the first mark, Keith had a small lead over Murray, with Angela in the Starling up in third, and Gina in the Topper close behind in fourth. With a big downwind leg ahead, it looked like the battle of the girls was about to get interesting, but as Gina gybed, the kicking strap tore out of the mast, so her race was done. Rob in the Sunburst and Pete in the PT were next, followed by Rob in the Moth.
For the rest of the race, the order didn't really change, except for Pete finding the gas pedal, and pulling through to third place, just ahead of Angela.
In the second race, the start was much more hotly contested,with Rob K, Angela, Murray, and Keith all crossing the line right on the gun. Murray got his nose in front just before the top mark, and had a big battle with Keith, and Rob, to hold on to the lead. Angela couldn't quite keep up with these three in the conditions, but stayed pretty close. The moth grew its wings in this one, and although Murray did his best, Rob flew past, and got into second, as Keith just got the win.
A third race was started, but no official results were recorded. On the water, it was the PT just heading off the Frostbite, with the Sunburst and Moth close behind. Rob L, in the other sunburst, and Angela in the Starling both had involuntary dips courtesy of a windy flat run.
After the sailing, everyone was smiling ear to ear, and vowed to return.
Things are looking up, with the fleet slowly building in size, and beautiful sailing conditions. Come on down and join the fun - you can even get a fizzy drink and choccy bar afterward!
A small but quality fleet of seven boats fronted to start the first race, in 20+ degrees, flat water, and fresh 12-15 knot winds.
We had a couple of Sunbursts, a Paper Tiger cat, and one each of Starling, Topper, Frostbite, and NZ Moth. On paper it should have been an easy win for Pete in the cat, followed by Rob in the moth, and then it would be anyone's guess to pick the finishing order, as all the rest of the fleet share the same handicap.
In practise it was a different story, as a windward-leeward course was set, to minimise the cat's advantage.
In the first race, Keith in the frostbite and Murray in the sunburst took advantage of some race-rust on the part of the other competitors, and got a jump right off the startline. Rob took a quick dip a second after crossing the start, as the moth tried to shed it's rider. The others all had to play catch-up from then on.
Around the first mark, Keith had a small lead over Murray, with Angela in the Starling up in third, and Gina in the Topper close behind in fourth. With a big downwind leg ahead, it looked like the battle of the girls was about to get interesting, but as Gina gybed, the kicking strap tore out of the mast, so her race was done. Rob in the Sunburst and Pete in the PT were next, followed by Rob in the Moth.
For the rest of the race, the order didn't really change, except for Pete finding the gas pedal, and pulling through to third place, just ahead of Angela.
In the second race, the start was much more hotly contested,with Rob K, Angela, Murray, and Keith all crossing the line right on the gun. Murray got his nose in front just before the top mark, and had a big battle with Keith, and Rob, to hold on to the lead. Angela couldn't quite keep up with these three in the conditions, but stayed pretty close. The moth grew its wings in this one, and although Murray did his best, Rob flew past, and got into second, as Keith just got the win.
A third race was started, but no official results were recorded. On the water, it was the PT just heading off the Frostbite, with the Sunburst and Moth close behind. Rob L, in the other sunburst, and Angela in the Starling both had involuntary dips courtesy of a windy flat run.
After the sailing, everyone was smiling ear to ear, and vowed to return.
Things are looking up, with the fleet slowly building in size, and beautiful sailing conditions. Come on down and join the fun - you can even get a fizzy drink and choccy bar afterward!
Rob's Moth in action.
Well, it happened!
Here it is, proof that you can have serious fun on a budget!
Here it is, proof that you can have serious fun on a budget!
Although sometimes it can go wrong too!
No Problem tho, here he is challenging for the lead in the second race....
Which he finished in second!
Go to the Weymouth YC website, go to teams, and check out all of todays Dinghy Sailing photos.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Today's fun at Weymouth
A small but keen fleet assembled today to join in the new years racing.
We had sunbursts, a starling, a topper, and a visiting frostbite.
As all these boats are similar speeds, a simple triangle course was laid, with a gate start.
In the first race, Keith in the Frostbite had a great start and first beat, closely followed by the two Sunbursts. He held onto the lead for the first lap, with Aaron and Ashley in the first Sunburst slowly closing the gap. Around half way up the second beat, Aaron and Ashley's traveller tore out of the boat, and their race was done. Keith turned back briefly to offer assistance, only to allow Rob and Pete to snatch the lead. They held the lead for most of the race then, but lost it on the last beat, allowing Keith through for the win.
Aaron came back out in the topper for the second race, with the same course. This time Rob and Pete got the best start, followed by Keith. Aaron, and Codie (in a starling) were slightly off the line. Aaron was almost right next to Keith when Keith had a knot failure, and lost control of his mainsheet. On a favourable shift, Aaron got to the top mark first, just ahead of Rob and Pete. This race then became a procession, with no overtaking at all.
After the racing was finished, Aaron and Rob had a couple of short sprint races, each getting one victory.
The second half of the season if off to a great start, with a lot of interest from prospective new members, and both Pete and Keith have interested friends, so things are looking up! Come on down and join the fun - the program is on our website ( link at top of the page) or check in here on a friday and most of our events will be listed.
We had sunbursts, a starling, a topper, and a visiting frostbite.
As all these boats are similar speeds, a simple triangle course was laid, with a gate start.
In the first race, Keith in the Frostbite had a great start and first beat, closely followed by the two Sunbursts. He held onto the lead for the first lap, with Aaron and Ashley in the first Sunburst slowly closing the gap. Around half way up the second beat, Aaron and Ashley's traveller tore out of the boat, and their race was done. Keith turned back briefly to offer assistance, only to allow Rob and Pete to snatch the lead. They held the lead for most of the race then, but lost it on the last beat, allowing Keith through for the win.
Aaron came back out in the topper for the second race, with the same course. This time Rob and Pete got the best start, followed by Keith. Aaron, and Codie (in a starling) were slightly off the line. Aaron was almost right next to Keith when Keith had a knot failure, and lost control of his mainsheet. On a favourable shift, Aaron got to the top mark first, just ahead of Rob and Pete. This race then became a procession, with no overtaking at all.
After the racing was finished, Aaron and Rob had a couple of short sprint races, each getting one victory.
The second half of the season if off to a great start, with a lot of interest from prospective new members, and both Pete and Keith have interested friends, so things are looking up! Come on down and join the fun - the program is on our website ( link at top of the page) or check in here on a friday and most of our events will be listed.
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