Wow. I can't believe I finally won the day! I'd first like to thank God, and my Mom...... Anyway, there was nothing fancy about doing it. Last week, I asked Nabeel how to overcome the fact that I'd start off well, then finish badly. He told me to make a mental note about what's going on when I lose places. I knew it was happening around marks, so this past Sunday, I got to the racecourse with plenty of time to sail the entire course and get an idea of what the wind was doing at each mark. I also did circles around the windward mark to get used to the air and find the best place to do turns if I foul someone up there. I did race committee the 2nd race and talked with Eric about how and when he finds the fastest course after he goes around the mark. I was also watching what other people were doing and where they were going around the course. This prepared me for race #3. In the 3rd race, I sailed "Stinger" instead of my own boat. This re-enforced my confidence in my rig and helped me decide that I am going faster on my own boat because of various purchases and the condition of my sail. I didn't finish well in that race (7th?), but I knew I had the course and conditions down pat. Instead of trying to squeeze in on starboard on the line, I knew the line wasn't square to the wind, so if I could get clear air, I could make up for having a slow start when everyone else is fighting for air. I came in on port below everyone, found a hole and sailed fast to the line. The couple of times I was forced to tack in the hole I found, I only did it if I was sure I could tack back over on port when I wanted to. Coming in 2nd meant that I could follow the leader and know I was on the right course, and I only had to look at the rest of the fleet to figure out of anyone was going to pass me and how they were going to do it. The biggest reason I had a good Sunday was because Nabeel, Frank, Lars, and Eric were having off days. I warned you that if you made a mistake, I'd be right there to beat you. Looking forward to the rest of the season. |
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