Course: A3
Sails: EP Sails 169LPgenoa and Interrupt main. EP Sails spinnaker. Backstay at 2.
Started at the boat, reasonably well timed and a length below the line. Able to power up the boat and arrive at the line with building speed and close-hauled. Started immediately above Rinn Duin and ahead of a Cal 25. Argo late to the start. The Cal 25 was chose to tack away onto port soon after the start. Better speed and point than Rinn Duin, gradually opened a lead and gained to windward on her.
Five boards to windward to reach the turn mark, Mark "E". At times, Argo had better speed and point, but most of the time we were well matched in both, despite using the Interrupt (practice) main rather than the Pandora racing main. For three of the boards, we stayed about four lengths ahead and two above Argo. Tactical error in the timing of the last tack onto starboard for the run into the turning mark...overstood, and then drove somewhat poorly on this short board. As a result, Argo was able to round ahead of us by a length or two.
Argo chose to run hotter angles downwind for about 80% of the run to the nun "R8", while we sailed about one point high of the mark. Tactical error in setting the kite on starboard and then gybing to port after the set. This was the easy choice, as it is our standard (everytime?) manuever, but we should have gybed to port and then set. As a result of this choice we sailed for about 0.1nm on starboard, not directly to the mark on port and lost ground to Argo. A of a mess on the set. Turned the boat too fast relative to the gybe from starboard to port, resulting in the kite getting sucked in the foretriangle; headed down and maintained so that the kite could, and was, unfouled easily and quickly. At one point the pole tip was pointed back well with the mast end (not connected) pointed forwards. Oh my!
Ran downwind faster than Argo. Argo had developed a lead of some six lengths ahead and six to windward by the time we gybed to port and settled onto course for the downwind mark. Slowly caught to the Argo arriving even and one length to leeward about 200 yards from the downwind mark. Decided to sail up, a hotter angle, and try to force Argo away from the mark, perhaps even into a situation where they would have to gybe to make the mark while we would not. A tactical error, we lost speed in this manuever and ended up rounding the mark about half a length behind Argo. Rolled out the genoa halfway then doused the kite about two lengths from the mark to allow a bit more time for each evolution.
Argo was slow to douse and harden up onto a course of "SC1". We were able to turn inside Argo and take the windward position on the reach to "SC1" with Constance about three lengths to windward and even. Wind lightened considerably about halfway to "SC1". We remained high while Argo decided to take the low road towards Pussers.
Argo choice of sailing low to Pussers paid off quite well. They remained in stronger breeze and were able to move well ahead and win the race while we slowly floundered in the lee of the apartments upstream from SSA. Another tactical error. See video 11:39 regarding high road vs low road.
Despite four tactical errors, Constance was in the race till "SC1". That last tactical error ended our bid to win the night.
Finishing order: 247, 262, 272. Did not compete: 158, 550.
T2P.tv video. Alberg 30 footage at 6:07 for 30 seconds. Shot of Argo in the background at 6:29 and Constance at 6:33...angle exaggerates the distance between the two boats. Rinn Duin at 6:37 with White Cap in the foreground. Same repeated as the video focuses on Ronin.
GPX formatted track Distance: 6.03, estimated average speed: 3.9kts, estimated duration: 1:32