Race Area
Start
Quite solid pin end bias. Dunlett had the best start there, but Arete and Patakin overtook them soon after.
1st Upwind
The wind has decided to go the other way this time. Even though the number at the start was already a bit right. Boats going right got permanent shift and gained a lot. Is important to notice that due to the start line bias, the boats going right after a bad start mid line ended up ahead. With bad start, they were still equal to boats starting well at the RC. Boats that were behind at the left took the right shift, waiting for it to turn back, but it never did. So many ended up over the left layline, too. Axe went from being over the line to very solid 1st upwind rounding.
Wind directions. Note lots of boats over the left layline.
Top Mark
Much easier for the boats ahead. Getting crowded after. Some port tack boats jumping in very close to starboard ones.
1st Downwind
Stable wind direction. With the fleet still close together, gybe set take you back to the area of no wind. Boats disturb the wind a lot when close together and that area of wind shadow stays long. So gybeset boats could not gain much. The wind also possibly went a bit more right. Boats in the front extended. Good2Go did well by gybing once only. There was a group of boat mid fleet pushing each other very high after the top mark, losing a lot of distance.
The greenest paths in the left corner
Leeward Rounding
Boats at the right turn rounding their mark in different places. As if it was moving. Some ended up sailing way longer down and up again (Eurovoiles, Elvis).
2nd Upwind
More open course this time. Most of the fleet sailed through the middle. It looks like left side was still paying a bit more, with boats like Tyra and SolidFun gaining on the boats that rounded with them. There was a spot in the middle where boats slowed down and have lost. Boats on the right side ended up gaining at the 2nd part of the beat.
- Nice lift for boats going left after the gate
- An area of less wind, slowing down mid group
- Right side gaining at the top
2nd Downwind
Permanent left shift this time. The boats that went more right were gaining. Sirena was the fastest with the gybe set. Other good ones were Spika, jelvis, Sassy… all gybing earlier and approaching finish from the right. There was also some compression in the fleet with leading boats not doing that well.
Boats on starboard curving down as the wind goes left.
- Left shift was good for boats that were approaching the finish line from the right side
