Different Day, Different Boat
Written by Hannah Stodel | 12 April 2010
The National Ranker in Weymouth this weekend sadly couldn't’t raise enough interest to secure a Sonar Class start within the Championship, so rather than let the opportunity to race get away, we decided to step into the Skud 18 class.
John and I were to pair up and Steve was to step into a boat and crew for up and coming Paralympic sailor, Alex Hoveden. John and I were able to get out onto the water a couple days before the event to familiarise ourselves with the boat, doing some one on one boat speed tuning with Niki Birrell and Alex Rickham, the current Skud World Champions.
Although the Skud and the Sonar are classed as keelboats, they have very different attributes and are configured very differently to each other. The Skud is approximately 500 kg lighter, it has a lifting keel, dual rudders, and both helm and crew sit forwards facing which place difficulties on communication in heavy airs. The Skud also has an A-symmetric spinnaker, whereas the sonar relies on a jib and whisker pole for sailing downwind. All of these different features would take a bit of getting used for all of us!
The main focus of the weekend was to take some of the training exercises we have done in the sonar over the last couple of months and implement them in Skud. Primarily pre- start routine, correct strategy selection and also racing under pressure. The event would be sailed over 6 races with a discard coming in if all races were sailed.
The Skud’s and the 2.4mR's (the single handed Paralympic class) would be sailing inside Portland Harbour with the RSX's joining them on Saturday. High pressure over the UK brought light winds to the first day of racing. The first warning signal on the Saturday was due to sound at 10.55 however a postponement was flown and racing did not get under way till after 13:00.
The general trend of the day was being able to find and sail in the bands of pressure over the race-course. The quickest way to the mark was to get over to the right-hand side of the course where the pressure was coming from. On the first race John and I did this, and managed to get past Niki and Alex then covering them tightly all the way round to win the first race! Niki and Alex managed to bounce back from that and win the next two races to go in overnight at the top of the leader-board.
The second day brought an initial strong breeze but dropped to leave perfect sailing conditions once again. The story of the day was getting off the start line and picking the right shifts and working the middle to right-hand side of the course. John and I again fought out the top spot against Niki and Alex. With both crews winning one race each it all came down to the final race as to who would take the top honours. Both started well off the line, and with matching pace upwind, there was nothing really splitting the two boats. However Niki and Alex had to slow to avoid a starboard-tack boat, which enabled us to squeeze ahead, however more decisively it enabled Mike and Lucy to grab a second, which secured us the win on count-back.
Alex Hoveden and Steve sailed the first part of the day well, however with a couple of tactical mistakes and lapses in boat handling, sadly cost them 3rd place and a medal. The event has been a worthwhile experience for all of us. John and I proved we can step into a new boat and be competitive from the off. We are keen to do more Skud sailing at future events, it has enabled us to get some more close racing and training time on the water. Also the change of pace has been quite nice, and it has pointed out some weaknesses but also some strengths, that once we are back in the Sonar, we can put into practice, and hopefully improve!
Hannah