Thanks to Jim and Dan for putting on a great day of racing. I had pretty low expectations driving to the marina, but the breeze ended up being way better than expected. Checked SailFlow afterward and it showed a pretty consistent 8 knots out of the south. I didn’t notice any major shifts, so with the short 15-minute races there really weren’t gains to be made playing the shifts.

My plan for the day was simple: start at the boat, which seemed consistently favored, and prioritize clear air above everything else. If I wasn’t bow-out on the boats around me, I tacked out immediately. I’ve noticed a lot of sailors sit in bad air far too long. To me, clean air is the most important thing.

One thing that hurt me more than once was not being fully prepared before the windward mark. I’ve gotten better at blowing my vannd cunningham before the three-boat circle, but I lost boats/positions on at least two roundings because my mainsheet didn’t run free because of tangles or wraps around my ankles. Lesson learned: get the boat sorted before you round.

Downwind, I sailed inside as much as possible. After the clinic Steen and James put on, I added a mark on my mainsheet for when the boom is perpendicular to the boat. Dead downwind or by the lee, I set the boom to that mark or about three feet farther out. For the first time, I felt like I had decent downwind boat speed.

The leeward mark was absolutely the critical moment each race. Coming in from the inside on starboard, the key was to make a clean, tactical rounding that either matched or improved on the boat in front. With the boat end favored, the only play was to sail all the way to layline and then tack. Tacking early basically guaranteed you wouldn’t catch the boat ahead since it forced an extra tack (I tried and it hurt). I also noticed many people rounding too tight and then sailing too low and too slow afterward. Sailing just a touch wide and rolling into a clean, powered-up exit made a noticeable difference. I also threw my vang handle over the port gunwale before the rounding so that after the gybe it was already positioned for a quick adjustment.

All in all, a great day on the water!