July 23 will go down as a day to remember for the Opti sailors at this year's
2012 World's. Team Bermuda arrived at the venue around 8:30 am in anticipation
of a 10:30 am start. However, they did not get out on the water until closer
to 11:00 am and then the wait. It was over two hours before the first race got
started and then there were no other races for the day. As a result, the
coaches, parents, as well as country officials were understandably upset at
the way the day had unfolded especially since there was a point during the
morning were the fifth race could have been sailed, the fifth race was a
carryover from the previous day's racing when only one fleet was able to
complete their racing. For some sailors, they did not get to sail one race on
the 23 Jully 2012 despite being on the water all day.
Recap of 23 July 2012
Antonio started his race fast and sailed from the right side of the course
trying to keep pace with the fleet. He experienced a wind shift from the left
and from that point on he did not have an opportunity to get back to the right
side. He finished the race in 41st position.
Makai was not able to start on the first row and as a result he lost a few
boats right at the start. However, later in the race Makai was able to pick-up
another wind shift from the right which allowed him to catch a few boats
thereby placing him in 26th at the finish.
Chase did not get to sail.
Peter started at the pin end and continued to sail on the left side of the
course. Peter had a few good opportunities to catch and pass boats which he
did. Peter rounded the top mark in the top twenty and was going well. During
the last up wind Peter lost a few boats but was able to finish a creditable
top twenty.
Rory also started at the pin end of the course and was sailing well. He
rounded the top and windward mark in 8th place. Unfortunately for Rory, he
experienced a wind shift from the left which did not swing back and caused him
to lose a lot of boats. Rory ended the race in 29th position.
July 24, 2012
Tuesday ushered in a new waive of thinking. The Race Committee had heard the
feedback and had experienced the frustration of the coaches at the coaches
meeting that was held this morning. Clearly, a change was needed and a change
was had as the IODA race officer, with the agreement of the local Race
Officer, took control of the situation and ran the days races. A new strategy
was employed whereby the sailors would not be sent out until the R/C had set
the line and the Windward mark. This change in process met with overwhelming
support from the participants and supporters.
By end of today's racing, the R/C had ran two complete rounds of racings in
similar conditions as was experienced yesterday.
Antonio stared the day knowing he had to do something to improve his overall
position. As a result Antonio got off to a good start in race 6 but soon lost
the line as his boat speed was not enough to keep pace with the rest of the
fleet. He was playing the shifts but with the lack of boat speed it was not
enough to get him back in the race. He ended race 6 in 47. In race 7 it was
much the same for Antonio as he was trying everything he could to keep up. His
start was good but his boat speed was not there and soon lost the fleet. He
sailed as best as he could, but the smaller as well as lighter sailors were
just too hard to pull back. He finished in 37th position.
In Makai first race, he fell from the line early in the race and was not able
to recover. He played a few wind shifts but as the race progressed his options
were quickly running out . In the end Makai had to settle for 38th. In Makai's
second race he got off to a good start and was sailing with the fleet. He
rounded the top mark in the top half of the fleet. He continued to do good but
lost a few boats on the last up wind ending up in 23rd.
Chase started his first race at the Race Committee boat. Chase was able to
read the shifts and was doing well. At the top mark he was in the top 15 and
then he picked-up a few boats on the second up wind and ended in 12th. In
Chase's second race Chase was in a good position at the start and was sailing
with the fleet. He was doing well until the second up wind which he played too
much to the right and as a result Chase lost a lot of boats and ended up in
42nd position.
In Peter's first race Peter did not get off to a good start. He started at the
Race Committee boat, which had paid off for him during his previous two races,
but this time he fell back early. Peter played a few shifts but could not
catch the fleet and ended up in 48th. In Peter's second race he continued his
pattern and started at the Race Committee boat. He decided to go way right and
was doing Ok until he experienced a wind shift from the left and unfortunately
he was not able to recover. Peter ended the race in 39th.
In Rory's first race he started in the middle of the start line but fell
behind right from the start. Nonetheless, after his first tack he was able to
catch up and pass boats. Rory played the left and was able to round the mark
in the top 15. In his last up wind, Rory lost a few boats and ended in 20th.
In his second start Rory started close to the pin. He experienced a right wind
shift and was struggling to catch the fleet until the last few minutes of the
up wind. Rory rounded the top mark in 20th position a placement he was able to
maintain for the reminder of the race.
Tomorrow marks the last day of racing and the R/C is going to try and get in
two more races before the close of day. In an effort to ensure this happens,
an amendment to the Sailing Instructions has been made to extend racing until
4:00 pm.
Despite the challenges of the past week of racing, the team remains in high
spirits and have been good sportsmen. They are ready to finish the regatta on
a high note as all of them have expressed the desire to fight to the bitter
end. Today's update will be the last update from the Dominican Republic. I
hope the comments and colour has provided you with a bit more than what you
would have been able to see on the tracking. The comments are a combination of
coach Martin Jenkins and Anthony.
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