the 2007 North Bay
Wayfarer Weekend Mon 2 July: Don Rumble Memorial Series Race 5.2 photos by Julia Schonborn |
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Despite an evidently
over-vanged main (note excessive mast bend and mainsail
wrinkles) Marc
and Al begin to pull away from Dwight and Pat who appear
to have less
wind but have in turn pulled away from Dave and Carol.
Note how Al
continues to stick close to the rhumb line while
defending the left
side.
... |
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Note how John and
Dolores (2nd from
left) have found
themselves a nice lane of clear air and continue to make
inroads. In
these conditions where we're doing hull speed even
straight downwind,
there is little to be gained by sailing too far off the
rhumb line
unless the wind is strong enough to permit planing by
sailing a few
degrees higher. Our fleet is doing a good job here of
sticking to the
rhumb line. - click here
for full-size pic
... |
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The close battle continues
as
the boats pass the RC boat: (l to r)
Andrew, Geoff, John, Sue ... |
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Steph and Sue in full
concentration mode as they zip past. ... |
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Ah! John Simmonds has the Rusty Scupper
spinnaker much better
trimmed here, as he and Fred fight off John and Dolores. ... |
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And close behind them are
Michael and Pat. While comfortable, Michael's position is too far aft for these winds and will slow him down by making the transom drag. ... |
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A lovely view: the fleet
nearing the leeward mark with the shore as a backdrop. I
can't
recommend being where Dave Hansman is (under the 9657
boom): that
position would make me far too nervous, having to cut
through all those
wind shadows plus the fear that a few of these boats
might end up with
buoy room!! - click here
for full-size pic
... |
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Doreen suffers bravely. ... |
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Beat #2: Al has rounded
ahead
of Dwight and his #1 priority here is to pinch up and
make sure he is
to windward and ahead rather than to leeward and further
ahead. Again,
the windward/ahead position protects against
shift-related disasters,
and it also lets the boat ahead come out of a tack to
cover, still
windward/ahead.
... |
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Note how John (7351) has
made
his move: a fine rounding has left him in clear air with
the option to
tack. Everybody seems to like port tack though? And yet
their sailing
angle would suggest that starboard tack is currently the
favoured one?
Marc and I have an excuse: we really have to "follow
Dwight from in
front" - any other course of action would be foolhardy,
if not
conceited! (l to r) Fred,
Geoff,
Michael, John
... |
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Lemmings off a cliff??!!
Still
not a soul is trying starboard!! (l
to r) Ross Jamieson, Andrew, Henry, Jason ... |
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Aah! Someone finally tries
starboard tack!! ... |
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And don't Andrew and
Michele
look great!!? ... |
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The final run: perfect trim
for SHADES ... |
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A nearly flawless second
beat
has seen Al (above)
and Marc
increase their lead considerably over ... ... |
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... Dwight and Pat as the
two
leading boats ... ... |
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... pass the RC boat. ... |
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Al and Marc continue to
sail
"down with the puffs" even though the leeward mark (r) is not far away. ... |
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After sailing a fine beat
to
hold 3rd place, Dave and Carol (282) continue to hold off
John and
Dolores (7351) as they ... ... |
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... pass the RC boat. If
Dave
and Carol can hold 3rd ahead of John and Dolores (7351)
the two teams
will end up tied for series 3rd, and the Hansmans will
win the
tie-breaker by virtue of having won race 3. But again,
Dave has not
defended the left. And now it's likely too late, since
they probably
can't gybe to port and cross John without fouling him.
This is why Marc
and I discuss any upcoming run as we approach the
windward mark. We
then round knowing exactly what we want to do - which,
90% of the time
- is to defend the left. I don't know how John finally
got past Dave
and ended up 3rd in both the race and the series, but
here, he is
certainly well placed to control Dave until he gets an
overlap and the
crucial inside edge at the mark!!
... |
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And Sue and Steph are ... ... |
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... still within
striking
distance of a 3rd-place finish that might well give them
series 3rd.
Ah, the beauty of defending the left side: note how
John's position to
the left of Dave, controls the latter who can't gybe
until John chooses
to let him. Don't you hate it when that happens? Marc
and I most
certainly do!!!
... |
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Fred and John on their way
to a
fine 6th that will leave them with Most
Improved honours for the series. ... |
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Not far behind are five
others: (l to r)
Dave R, Jason, Tony,
Michael, Henry? ... |
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Kim and Dave roll on by. |
next photo page return to North Bay 2007 index page |