We had a nice coastal race today in light to moderate conditions. We started in the middle of the line with a clear lane. However we missed a couple of puffs on the beat and rounded on Stig’s tail in 4th place. We bore away to a kite in 8-9 knots of breeze. It was a straight shot all the way to some rocks where we gybed and quickly went to the FRO. The change was smooth and controlled. We then reached to another mark with the FRO and jib on stand-by. About 3 minutes from the mark, the call came for a jib change. It was a bit rushed but we got it up in time. We furled, got the FRO down and settled in for a long upwind beat. The beat saw us get close to shore and too close for the Shockwave guys. They hit a rock at full speed upwind which resulted in the lifelines breaking and sending most of the crew in the water. All the crew members were ok, and after lots of work tonight, they expect to be racing tomorrow.
Once we got to the top of the course, we set to a kite at a very high angle. With a lee shore, we kept the jib up in case we couldn’t hold the kite. After that, we enjoyed a few minutes of VMG sailing before reaching again with the jib. Not to worry, the jib reaching didn’t last too long, we were soon back to the FRO. So up with the FRO and as soon as that was settled, we started setting up the next kite. After a few minutes, the kite went up, FRO furled and down and run into the finish.
The boat handling was relatively smooth with no major issues, a nice change from that horrendous race in Palma. On days like this, the guys working downstairs are working overtime. Mickey and Jesse kept getting sails thrown at them and we kept calling for more sails. As a bowman, it’s nice to have the next sail ready to go when you go for the set up. So nice work guys!
Tomorrow we are into windward leeward racing. The boat has been swapped into its inshore mode.
Stay tuned,
Doogie
Regata Copa del Rey Audi-Mapfre: Palma Done and Dusted
Well, the Copa del Rey is over and done with. We did not get the result we were looking for. We felt that, across the board, we could have sailed better. We struggled in many areas during the regatta and now it is time to sit down and get the issues sorted. We have 1 month before we all reconvene in Sardinia for the Maxi Worlds.
The list is long. We have boat handling to work on, speed in certain conditions to sort out, string system to improve, sails to build…
Pirate and the boys have lots of work to get the boat ready for the next event. They are still in Palma and will be there for a while longer to start hammering out the list.
The team is looking forward to getting to Sardinia to redeem ourselves and sail stronger.
Doogie
Bella Mente Racing
Regata Copa del Rey Audi-Mapfre: Race day 5
We sailed 2 more races today in more than expected breeze. In the first race we struggled a little to get in position for the start and started about 5 seconds back. We worked our way to the left side of the course and had a close encounter with Shockwave. The breeze built to 18-19 knots by the time we got to the top mark and we were off at full speed on the run. We rounded the top right behind Stig and ahead of Ran. By the time we got to the bottom mark, Ran was even with us. We finally had a good string drop and quickly got the kite downstairs. We held our position for the rest of the race. We finished 3rd.
For the second race, the breeze started backing off and we were seeing 12-15 knots. We got a decent start on the right side of the line after being too close to the line for the last 30 seconds. We had decent boat handling with some good sets and good drops but we still finished 3rd.
So, overall, a better day than yesterday but we are definitely happier with more breeze. Tomorrow will be our last day of racing.
Doogie
Regata Copa del Rey Audi-Mapfre: LIght air race day
Light air was the motto of the day. Our first race was sailed in 7-9 knots. We had an average start in the middle of the line but a little too far back.
We worked the left side of the course but ended up getting rolled to windward by Stig on the port layline. After that, we had to sail in their gas all the way to the top mark. Painful. We had a decent set and seemed to go average on the run. We struggled to gain any positions for the rest of the race.
The second race we got a nice start at the pin. We worked our way to the left again but found ourselves getting rolled by Stig on the port layline. Same movie… Again, we struggled to gain any positions for the rest of the race. On the upside, our boat handling was more crisp and we cleaned a few things up. Our light air sets have made an improvement, although we still feel that there are some more gains to be had there. We definitely struggled for speed all day in the light air. Our boat is moded for a bit more breeze and it showed today. So now our challenge is to squeeze some better performance out of the boat in the light.
2 more races tomorrow.
Doogie
Regata Copa del Rey Audi-Mapfre: Coastal Race Day
Today was a rough one. We had one coastal race, which we had a rough time with.
We ended up quite close to the start line and struggled to burn the time off. We had an ok beat and managed to stay in contention by the time we got to the top mark. At the bottom of the first run, we rounded the leeward mark at the same time as Shockwave but had a small problem getting the jib on the lock. The issue was quickly resolved and about 5 seconds after going around the mark we were trimmed on and going upwind. Back up to the top again but this time to a rock about 35 minutes away. The fleet got to the right of us and had better pressure and shift coming into the top. We had a decent run but still not good enough to get us to the top of the fleet. We rounded the leeward mark and headed back to a different weather mark. The next leg was 125 true wind angle which meant Code 0 time. The set up went well and we hoisted about a minute from the top. We tacked and went for deploy and from then on, it was a disaster. A mis-communication and some other issues resulted the in the sail not fully deployed. So we had to quickly go to the kite. Kite up, then struggled to get the Code 0 down. We sailed with the A2 for a while until it was time to get the jib up and kite down. We started the drop with the string, but the high angle and some other problems resulted in the sail catching water and over the side it went. We had to cut the halyard, kite sheet, and tack line. We reached into the finish pretty bummed out and frustrated with ourselves.
Before dinner we all sat down and went through the issues and seem to have them sorted. So now onto the next day and 2 more windward leeward races tomorrow.
Doogie
Regata Copa del Rey Audi-Mapfre: Race Day 2
Tonight’s update will be a bit short due to a power outage in the hotel.
Another 2 races were sailed today in 12-18 knots of breeze. A bit more pressure helped us out and gave us some more comfort downwind.
We had a decent start in the first race and had a good first beat. We swapped jibs on the run as the breeze built from 12 to 15 knots. It was nice getting the boat on a plane and doing the runs at 17 knots. Ran still got the best of us in the race and we finished second.
For the second race, we wanted to work our way to the right side but where held out to the port layline by Highland Fling and Ran. We rounded just behind Fling and Ran with tack sets. A problem with the take down system prevented us from using the string line at the leeward mark and we rounded at the same time as Shockwave. So not a great run for us. We gained back nicely on the next beat and run but still finished 3rd.
So overall, we had a better day but still feel like there are some large improvements to make. Our boat handling needs some work and we still have to sort a few things out.
Tomorrow will be a coastal race so there will be some focus on boat handling.
Doogie
