the 2008 Pumpkin Regatta
Fanshawe YC * London, ON * October 4-5
Race 3.04
photos by Bob Steer, Steve Currie and Paul Chesman
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Another short tack to starboard for Sue as she got headed on port. Quick action on these brief shifts is often essential if one is to ...
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... make the most of these narrow streaks of different wind. And different it is here as can be seen above
where Sue (4677) and Jens (7663) are sailing at considerably less than the usual 90° to each other.
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The same is true for Sue and Al, and it will be a close shave for Al who just manages to clear ...
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... Sue. The latter still has a nice starboard lift but is getting so near the Race Hut beach that she decides to ...
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... tack and ...
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... follow Al who is more more less on ...
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... the port lay line to #6. Besides, there is Jens to consider: we want to put our lead, such as it is, between him and #6
and not off to one side or the other - just in case Jens gets a juicy shift like ...
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... this one ...
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... here. If we had put all of our lead towards the Race Hut shore, we would now be that whole lead's worth to leeward of Jens!!
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Luckily for us, both Sue (4677) and ...
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... I (3854) had played it by the book, and did not lose much, even when Jens (7663) got the great shift.
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Artistically framed by foreground branches are (l to r) Jeff Eames, John de Boer, Richard King (on the 2nd Y run) and Roger Shepherd.
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Two more views of the running Y-Flyer 2794 ...
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... with Richard and Colin.
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Further out, we have ...
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... Pierre Dignard, once again relying on fine spinnaker work from his crew, Parker Cudney, to save his bacon,
as Dignard and King fight for the Y-Flyer lead.
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Dwight and Pat get a glorious starboard lift on the far side, but for some reason that I can't explain,
the boats that went left (Al, Sue and Jens) always seemed to end up gaining over those who went right (i.e. nearer the east shore).
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Jeff and Vera take advantage of a nice port lift, and now we will get ...
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... vintage Fanshawe: Roger (7700) and Mike enjoy major lifts on opposite tacks at the same time!
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More or less the same situation for Len (6732) and Dave here.
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Not nearly as good a port-tack angle for John and Dolores here. Other things being equal, the key thing is to make distance up the lake and not across it. Given that the left side has been favoured today, staying on this tack may be doubly wrong.
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Len now has a nice little starboard lift, onto which ...
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... Dave has also tacked.
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