Charles River-like conditions today with wind from the northwest, 4-16 knots, with very large shift and holes. Starting again was critical; getting a jump on the line and holding your lane almost always meant a top 3 or 4 finish, and sailing in bad air on the correct tack was necessary if you had to, to stay in phase with a very fickle wind.
Aggressive boat handling and re-assessment at the starting line made the difference for the winning team today.
Downwind sailing was good, although packs of boats tended to slow themselves down, while boats that got free and could sail lower almost always gained. Still some boats over-standing downwind; work with your competition to sail as low as possible and try to keep your options open; it’s not always possible but it makes a difference.
Avoid foul trouble at the first weather mark and gain when others get into it.
7 of the nine boats had top-three finishes; tight sailing magnified any and all mistakes.
Boat 1 DSQ for a weather mark tacking inside 2-boatlengths, otherwise they would have won race day by one point without winning any races. As you can see from the results, getting a 6 or a 7 didn’t mean you were out of it. This is exactly what will happen this weekend.