Elise did not have a great start - we started 5 min late (improvement over last year when we started 20 min late)...so we were last of the Express 27s to start. And we're racing one-design in the ditch run, so not great.
Opa! was also a little behind at the start and we have some cool photos of the boat. They made a fabulous recovery, sticking to Elise's rear for most of the race thereafter
Nat and Jack on the short downwind portion of the race. The race started with light wind, heavy flood current and downwind. It slowly moved to a reach and once we got to the fresher water part of the delta, the wind moved to our nose. It continued to be light for a while, and then within a matter of seconds ramped up to 25 knots gusting 30, forcing us to move down to the #3. With a crew of 4, and everyone on the rail, we managed to keep Elise flat and fast without taking a reef which would have considerably slowed down the boat. This was achieved mainly through main trim and weight on the rail. We had about 10 degrees of heel on average (10 to 15 would be ideal) and we were flying at about 6.40 knots through the water in about 25 knots and we went up to 6.7 knots in 27 to 28 knots of wind. With the biggest puffs, our heel angle definitely increased, or we had to significantly play the main and backstay to stay her fast. They happened so quickly that it was hard to keep up with them and stay competitive.
Nat's pullups are starting to pay off because actively trimming the main was definitely key to boat speed in these conditions and there is quite a bit of pressure on the sail, so it is tiring to pull it back in after each gust.
Magic stayed ahead the whole time, although we were slowly closing in. After our start, we started to catch up boats. Expressway, Light'n'up, Peaches. We stayed kind of in the Channel for good current but not so far out that we were losing out on distance. Not sure where the rat went, but it looks like he was well ahead (as usual :))
Not sure if it is Dianne or Great White. We were in a duel with Dianne, having mostly caught up to them through painstaking sail trim and current plays - as well as tactical tacks.
Peaches
Roger at work (it does hurt to look up in the rain!) and it is very wet to have to sit on the low side in light winds and rain...the boom keeps dripping on you!
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