Day 3 of Cowes Week 2024

July 30, 2024

Today was Day 3 of Cowes Week 2024. Until now we have sailed very well, however results were rather disappointing due to several reasons, amongst them avoiding a tanker on Day 2. So we all set out with a clear objective: to win! The conditions were perfect, with a steady 10-12 knots breeze from the ESE and bright sunshine. 

We started at the RYS line to the east. The tide was just before slack, making it difficult to find the optimal strategy for the first 4,4nm beat to Mother Bank.

Our start was lower on the line than we wanted, being close to the pin end and 4 boat lengths below the line at the gun. We quickly set ourselves for a tack and on port tack we sailed behind most of our  Class towards the Cowes breakwater. This was a good call as the tide already turned east close to the island. We kept our focus, sailed well and executed some good tacks, allowing us to climb back into the top 5 on the water during the first beat. By the time we rounded the first mark we were in fourth place, with only Zarafa (HOD 35), Arcus and Le Basculer (both Archambault 35) ahead of us.

Our downwind leg against the tide went smoothly, thanks to well-executed gybes and good trimming. We made a very late spinnaker drop, which gave us a significant advantage and kept us in a strong position. Well done Joost and Floris on the foredeck.

We managed to stay close to the front pack during the second beat, trimming the Genoa well on the slightly decreasing  wind. 

The following downwind and upwind leg followed where we kept trimming to the slowly decreasing wind. We slightly overstayed our last upwind mark (Kemps Quay) but managed to minimize our loss. The final run against the tide back to Cowes, approximately 4-5 nautical miles via East Bramble and South Bramble, proved to be critical. Remembering lessons from the previous day, we hugged the northern shore to maximize tidal relief. This strategy paid off as we caught up with the Archambault boats and closed in on Zarafa, bringing our first win within reach.

Continuing along the northern shore and Bramble Bank, we gained distance on our competitors. A tight reach on the No.1 spinnaker brought us to Gurnard, where we again executed a seamless drop. What followed was a final 0,5nm beat to the finish at the RYS line, securing our first win in Cowes Week 2024!

Well done, we had a great day on the water. We started with a clear plan and executed it well. The atmosphere onboard was good and competitive. 1 race won, 4 to go. Let’s keep this momentum going!