Back in Race 2 on the 8th May we set our No1 heavy genoa and reefed the main and wondered if we might have been faster with the No 3 jib and full main. Well today we tried this combination and while it was more comfortable it is hard to say that it was quicker. The breeze today rarely went above 15 knots while back in Race 2 it was closer to 19 knots. The fleet also set more conservative gear today so comparisons are difficult. Downwind we were marginally faster and rounded behind Hitchhike after a downwind duel with Allegro who was carrying her big rig. Crosshaven was just behind so the situation was very similar to 8th May. On the work back we went too close to Steele Point and had trouble changing gears in the wind shadow of the point. Larrikin slipped through by sailing wider and coming back on a lift. Fortunately we went further and came back on a big lift too to recover this ground. From Rose Bay we had more trouble shifting gears so it took a while to ease the halyards for the reach to Point Piper. From Point Piper we could not get the jib to fly to windward so had a slow run around the Island. Larrikin was just behind and did not get caught to leeward of Hasta la Vista so she was able to tack to the mark at the appropriate time and come out in front. Leeward also made up ground on this short work. Now we had Larrikin to windward and Leeward coming through in between. Leeward, to windward, prevailed over Passion X by 2 seconds but we beat them by 3 seconds on handicap.
We were 11th for the day.
Our handicap has increased since the second race but by going through the time differences I feel our time was a minute slower relative to Allegro, Crosshaven, Rainbow and Larrikin but we were relatively faster compared to Crackerjack, Krakatoa and Trim.
Today was clearly quieter than Race 2 which accounts for our minute over Crackerjack and our traffic problems could have been worth a minute but perhaps we could have carried the No 1 Heavy for a marginally better result.
Some things did work well. The reaching lines for the No 3 Jib go under the safety lines and outside the shrouds so that improved the sail shape considerably. Sheeting the jib one hole back on the tracks improved the mid air performance and I would be happy to try sheeting one hole more back in a real blow.
We were thankful for the 15 knots we had today especially after the abandoned race on Sunday with practically no wind at all.
No wind for us on Sunday