Friday, September 19, 2008

ACI Match Cup Day Two


With the Bora mountain wind settled down, Split was transformed into a tranquil bay with dicey winds that caused some delays. The race committee only managed to get 4 flights away before the breeze completely shut off at 4.30 this afternoon, putting pressure on them tomorrow to get through the big format.

We started the day with a tough match against the Kiwi team, Blackmatch Racing to finish off the first round robin. Our start was almost textbook, coming off the line with pace in a strong lee bow position which forced Minoprio to tack off. We pushed out to a distant left pressure which never came, giving Minoprio the upper hand. We rounded the top mark on his tail, and kept the game close downwind. After nailing the bottom mark rounding, we split tacked off to the right. This time we came out with the upper hand, and finished just in front to end the round on 7 wins and 2 losses.

So far the second round has run smoothly, winning 3 races straight. However after the second match our pitman had to sit out due to a head injury. We were forced to sail with a local star crew who happened to be out sailing at the time. This put the pressure on the four of us to pick up our game and fill in for our lost man, and it showed with a lot of mistakes being made around the course. However we managed to keep a tight lead into the finish line and ended the day with 4 wins from 4 races.

A special thanks to Line7, Harken and the Royal Perth Yacht Club for their support.

Kinley Fowler
MirskyRacingTeam

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