IOM Upgrades this week

As a result of the upgrades highlighted in the previous post, I got to sail in a perfect breeze of 4-9mph at Emsworth which was a real boat speed test. The boat was much better, accelerating crisply out of each tack and able to hold a lane of the start line. Being able to fine tune the sheeting was a joy. The only negative observation was the bow was still slightly too far out of the water so I will try moving the fin forward a degree. If that creates weather helm again I will restore the fin angle and move the ballast forward.

Someone asked why I did not use the standard Alioth settings and blades. The answer is, if you want to rake the masts to get the booms parallel to the deck you have to start fiddling with the fin and bulb to maintain balance. It is an iterative process and as I chose to use a Craig Smith fin and had to work out how that fits. Everything should be sorted within the next week or so as I refine the balance.

Someone asked for a picture of the deck so here it is.