Navigating the waters of a new Olympic class
Written by Nicola Groves | 19 March 2014
We’ve been training in Palma for the upcoming ISAF World Cup event and have a few bumps and bruises but are really pleased with how everything is going.
It was the first time since Frances and I started sailing together again last summer we’ve sailed in waves like that and at times it was survival sailing, just trying to control the boat, not letting the boat control you.
There were a few pitch poles, where the front of the boat buries into a wave and flips you off the back, which left Frances hobbling around like an old lady!
But it was great fun and really important in remembering how to sail in those conditions as we sail a lot in breeze and flat water, but breeze and waves is something else, especially in a 49er.
You can’t let yourself be scared in those conditions. Even if you do get thrown off you just have to get back on the horse and take every little gain that comes from it. You learn masses as you focus so much on boat handling, and just getting round the course, there’s not much time to think about anything else.
Our number one job at the moment is giving our boat, Mabel, a bit of TLC after her mast snapped last week on the final day of our last training camp. We knew there was storm coming and we wanted to squeeze in a session before, so we launched in the dark at 7.30am. But just as we got to the shallow the squall hit, the boat peeled off the RIB and the mast hit the bottom. Poor Mabel!
Mabel’s one of two boats we own, the other is Lola and both are named after songs. Mabel after The Fratelli’s ‘Mistress Mabel’ and Lola after The Kinks song. Lola’s on her way back from Miami so we’ve got to get Mabel up and running again. The insurance company has been amazing thank goodness!
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