A Double win at the Keighley TT finally

I have been out in the doldrums a bit lately. Not qualifying for the worlds, a period of recovery after that, disappointment with my speed at the latest M ranking, a lot of gardening and decorating to catch up in the house after the worlds preparations and a new boat to understand. So it was a pleasure to see that the sailing skills are still there at the latest one design DF event.

It was the first cold weather I have experienced this summer. The mornings on the moors at Bingley were 13 degrees and I even put the heating on in the van first thing. Maybe the Fleetwood team would say that was a summer temperature and it was no suprise Mr Priestley turned up in shorts and T shirt. It was only after lunch when the fleeces would come off and normal summer temperatures resumed at 20 degrees. Remember down south we have average temperatures in the high 20's dropping to late teens ovenight.

After the usual socialising and testing which rig to use, racing got underway on Saturday for the DF 65 Fleet with 33 boats on the start line and armed with A+ rigs which we kept all day. It sounds a big fleet but busy starts work well on this size of boat. The wind was really shifty and if you took one or other side of the beat you could be a hero or zero several times on one beat depending on the wind at the time. So the trick was to navigate the wind patterns. I did not get it right all the time but did more than most.

What I did get right was the set up of the rig. There is nothing sophisticated in setting up and tuning the rig. In essence what I do is set the mast rake on the A+ rig by moving the step one notch forward from the back. Then attach the backstay and forestay and apply enough tension so that the jib luff is fully straight in the conditions of the day and there is a little bit of luff curve to match the mainsail. I then sheet fully in and set the main boom 10mm off centre and the jib boom end just over the edge of the deck. I then set about 20mm of jib leech twist and then look at the boat from behind to set the main twist to be similar to the jib leech twist. Then I put the boat on the water and see how it sails. If the boat heads up into wind I would ease the kicker or sheet the main out a fraction. If the boat bears away from the wind, I would tighten the kicker and maybe sheet the jib out a little. That setup normally gives me good speed and height to windward. Obviously if conditions change I will alter the setup slightly to adapt to the conditions. E.G. larger waves, increase twist and sheet out a fraction.

After a night in the pub with some of the competitors, we were greeted with similar conditions on Sunday for the DF95 TT with the occassional brief gusts swirling across the reservoir making spectacular spiral patterns, knocking anyone flat in there way.

My morning proved to be frustrating. Often I could lead around the top mark on to be rolled over on the run, or lead at the leeward mark only to catch the wrong side of a shift and end up finishing second or third. The wind was so shifty and it was very hard to be consistent. After lunch I got my act together and posted a few wins. I was particularly pleased with my starting.

The boat setup is almost exactly as described for the DF65 above.

What I like about the DF fleet is they are polite and quiet on the bank. There is no shouting or chatter you get in the ranking classes. Yes you have people learning and sometimes get in the way, but everyone has to start somewhere and they must be encouraged and the odd errant contact forgiven.

So overall a good weekend and my confidence in my ability to get round the course is much improved. Now I have to prove I have got it properly together for the DF95 Nationals and IOM Ranking events in August.

On Sunday I spent a useful 4 hours racing against Craig Richards. Running downwind in breeze under B rig with the 2 boats no more than a boatlength apart and yards from the shoreling does wonders for developing you steering skills and upwind there were enough shifts to keep us on your toes. Add in some glorious sunshine and you have a perfect day for training and tuning.