Notes

• TR Qualifier this weekend, no other events
• TD Districts is the following weekend (at Gibson I)

Practice

• We will practice starting today (read below)
• Start with normups
• and then will to TR practice starts…. and if the wind is good will let the game go to the weather marks (will make the beat very short placing a premium on control at the start (this assumes we will have decent wind)

 

BOAT/GATEKEEPER                       “Control & Choice”              

•         Always take lowest boat number (we don’t do this anymore)
•         Cerebral
•         Disciplined. Practice using the committee boat as a blocker and an advantage against your opponent. 2 main theories on a square line: 1) chase your opponent early so you can then have room to own the boat end, or 2) lead very late and slow, so he’s behind you, making him late for the start. The block/shadow of the committee boat presents both a challenge and opportunity. Don’t hesitate to sail around the committee boat with 1 minute left or even 40 seconds if there’s good wind.
•         Protects the right. Winning the right usually means winning the beat
•         Makes winning and losing calls if need be: Communicates the situation. Has the best view of TR just after start and therefore can control and communicates the best
•         Unless your start is a dominant one, often your “right” advantage is lost over time (usually a leeward/ahead boat will squeeze out and lee bow you). So, make sure when you HAVE an advantage you USE it and don’t sacrifice speed for a deteriorating position unless you’re sure it’s helping your teammates
•         Has choice of tacking on any of opposition
•         Recognize and call out an obvious breakaway 1-2

 

MIDDLE/QB                    “Ferocious”                                                

•         Always take middle boat number
•         Figure out line size (short, long), favored end, etc. Make sure this is part of the discussion. Determine and discuss how our team should set up on the line.
•         Study the whole course and know it’s asymmetries, and therefore where it can be exploited
•         Unpredictable
•         Fast, furious, aggressive
•         Works with Pin and Gate to sort out starting line line-up (single, double or animal burger). Sometimes it’s effective on a square line to to double-burger.  As long as you can hold your height, this can be a good way to asphyxiate 2 opponents. Requires some windward distance from your man.
•         Has ability to change gears, and will out fleet race most on race course
•         Communication synthesizer, link.
•         Recognize and call out an obvious breakaway 1-2

 

PIN                                   “Speed, distance & Timing machine”                 

•         Always take highest boat number
•         skipper/crew must work very hard at pinching while keeping flow, and also work extremely hard on a high pointing-speed mode (when you have your opponent to leeward after the start).
•         Critical to understand line-up (single, double or animal burger) and make space if need be for a teammate, or not for an opponent
•         Works diligently on time/distance
•         With a good start, go FAST, then pinch up on opponent if on leeward hip almost always. Pinching is a absolute MUST and must be done aggressively and effectively. If you are chasing, work either to 1) push opponent over early (this is usually absolutely no good if you are also over early), or 2) push early then stop, gaining weather advantage to be able to control opponent and NOT allow them to tack and cross, ever.
•         Willing to reassess and duck and go right if necessary
•         Must possess excellent timing and acceleration

420
1			OUT
2			Gabriel Sardi
3			CC Carey
4			Brooke Perchinsky
5	Charlotte Stites	Isla Norrington
6	Emory McAllister	Char Wilkin
7	Tali Gaver	Georgia Knoepfle
8	Gaetan Ismael	Margot McGeagh
9	Grace Crespin	Elle Maddox
10	Colin Schwab	Ellie Lawrence
11	Will Tweed	Bella Ford
12	Ashton Perkins	Parker Lefever
			Coach Boat
FJ			Farrah Maddox
1	Annie Sitzmann	Annabelle Ulak	Eliza Brenia
2	Alex Baker	Ana Fishback
3	Harrison Szot	Charlotte MacDonald
4	Will Mohler	Hudson Grow	OUT
5	Antoine Ismael	Lila Knoepfle
6	Chris Hanson	Kai Davids

General Starting Rules of Thumb

•         Assess line size. The bigger the line, the more we (can) fleet race (find favored end)
•         Starting directly next to a teammate can be dangerous: don’t slow each other down. If you double-burger each other, make sure there’s room for both
•         We always look for a fleet race option advantage (favored end, favored side of the course) when deciding how/where to start
•         We seek to know each of our teammates strengths, tendencies, and weaknesses, and build that into our starting strategy
•         Maximize leeward space & minimize windward space from opponents. Always look to pinch off opponents

 Employ last minute “Tack away” in even/boat favored lines.

o  light air starts: be moving. clear air is harder to get and covering more damaging

o  heavy air: work to be off line in free position. strategize to minimize tacks

 

•       We begin with a rigid starting system (in the fall), comprised of a Gatekeeper, QB, and Pin (see position duties below). We work toward and end up with a fluid, dynamic system in the spring. We work to be our best, and most unpredictable, in the spring
•         Our primary starting goal is to have our 3 boats moving at full speed on the line at GO
•         If you’re controlling an opponent, only tack off if your teammate really needs help
•       Consider coming up with team words for communication. Plan this out!