Flying High on Fuzzy Lifting Drinks

Martin950

It wast the last day of racing, and our team aboard the Farr 30 Barking Mad had a comfortable, 9-point lead. The bad news was that there would be three races, giving our competition plenty of opportunities to pass us in the standings. It was time to change strategy: stay close to the second-place boat.

Race 1
We finally had a good start, with Turbo Duck close to leeward. Based on the forecast of a shifting right trend throughout the day, we wanted to go right. After a little shift, Turbo Duck beat us to the windward mark, leading the fleet. We followed them around the course, unable to catch them before the finish. Our lead was down to 8 points.

Race 2
Same strategy: stay close to Turbo Duck, protect the right. When the gun went off, we had ourselves another good start. We tacked on Turbo Duck up the entire first leg, pushing them back in the fleet. We did a nice job executing our strategy. Around the first mark we were second, with Turbo Duck deep in the fleet. Perfect. "No flyers and stay close" was the motto. Once we crossed the line, I quickly calculated the scores, and that's when it happened—not only did I get to call tactics on Barking Mad, but, what's more, we won! I felt like Charlie, of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" fame, did when he and  Grandpa drank the Fizzy Lifting Drink. Flying high and enjoying the moment.

Race 3
The big question was whether or not to sail the last race. With no throwouts in our fleet, we'd have to add in the DNS score of 10 to our overall total, which would give us a 1-point victory. I was hoping I'd figured the finishes correctly when totaling the scores. After a quick discussion, we decided there was no reason not to sail the last race, and off we went like Charlie in the glass elevator. No pressure. We knew we had the win, and we could simply enjoy the last race of the regatta.