Course 7
Every week so far has been windy, with another wind warning in force - giving us 20-25 knots across the course. This course took us down to Rough Rock and back via Resolution and Bayswater.The Crew
John (Skipper), Ian, Nicola, and Tim.The Start
We got away from the marina just after 5:30, with Ian having to make a run for it :-) We really didn't doubt that he would be there on time. Tim managed to find us, and this week Dave decided that an RFP was more important than sailing - go figure. So we headed up the harbour and practiced a few tacks with the new crew arrangement. The wind was strong, but with the amount of southerly in it, going under the Auckland Harbour Bridge we were almost becalmed behind the bridge piers. That made us a bit slow to start - so playing catchup.Progress
This was the night to try a few things, and the first thing was out-board sheeting of the genoa. That seemed to work quite well with us doing early 8's and catching the group a little. After Torpedo buoy was Rough Rock, and straight downwind, so time for the pole and the goose-winged sails. After a little altercation with the stays the pole was up and we were trucking down the channel towards the mark. The second idea was to partly furl the headsail at the mark, and thereby have a better arrangement for upwind to Resolution. That did not go well, and the sail ended up with a loose balloon of sail in the middle. We couldn't hold a decent course so opted to tack. That in itself wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as there was still a little tide running, and while the others were being taken sideways with leeway and tide, we were progressing against the tide (high+4.5hrs) and when we crossed the channel the tide effect would be minimal. That was the theory. That course had us lose touch with the others, and when we came back we had slipped a little, still rounding before the last boat, but losing out to the rest of the fleet.Don't furl the headsail - it has no shape and causes even more problems than being 'No.1' size.
The Result
Yeah a bit disappointing, but a beautiful evening none-the-less. The skipper needed a beer on the last leg - purely for medicinal purposes you understand, and we were back in the light. All the tacking calls were good with marks hit (i.e. no extra tacks required).
And when we got back to the marina and tidied up, we were treated to pickled onions and cheese on crackers, with a cold beverage to accompany it - thank you Nicola! It was nice to have something to eat afterwards.
mmmm beer :)
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