by Pam
More fishing off the finish line boat today. Except this time, we stopped to pick up a fish floating in the water. There were some attempts to revive it and send it on its way but he was too far gone. So he was tossed into the cooler and gutted with a sharp knife while the the boat was rocking and rolling and Brett Beyer (AUS) was crossing the finish line.
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| A rare sight ... Pablo Robago (MEX) and Brett Beyer (AUS) |
Oh yeah, Brett got beat today. Not by much and you won't see it in the scores because he wasn't beat by anyone in his fleet. Pablo Rabago (MEX), the first place Apprentice, using an old sail, gave Brett a good battle. They looked like they were having fun with each other. Even though they weren't racing each other, it was obvious that both wanted to beat the other. In the second race, Brett came back strong with a decisive finish with quite a distance between him and the closest competitor. It is clear that the only one in Brett's fleet who can beat him in this regatta is Brett himself. Let's hope he doesn't do that.
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| Brett Beyer (AUS) finishing with his 4th bullet |
And then there is Mark Bethwaite (AUS) with his fourth bullet, making it look even easier than Brett. Doug gave him a small amount of competition today and was in front of him for just a few seconds but Mark was able to pinch Doug off and then stretched his lead. Doug is suffering from sail envy. He says that Mark has never been able to point higher than him and it's always been Doug's secret weapon but with the new sail, Mark is pointing much higher. A quick pow wow with Brett after racing confirmed that Brett felt the same. I think this regatta may be the death of the old sail. Doug isn't counting himself out of this one just yet. Mark is rolling the dice each evening with the local Mexican cuisine and Doug thinks it just might slow him down a bit.
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| Mark Bethwaite (AUS) also finishing with his 4th bullet ... and the rare sight of other boats close enough to be in the photo |
Meanwhile, in the GM fleet, Gavin Dagley (AUS), using a new sail, has strung together some consistent races and is leading in the GGM fleet. This one is still a toss up but so far the Aussie's are dominating at this regatta.
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| Gavin Dagley (AUS) finishing in the lead today ... love the green gloves |
That's the beauty of strict one design. Every boat and every sail is the same.
ReplyDeleteSeems true enough for the Aussies. They can sail the hell out of whatever you give them. Doug has jokingly suggested that we need an Aussie handicap.
DeleteAfter this regatta, I think all will switch to the new sail. Mark and Doug were sailing beside each other. Doug couldn't point and Mark could so Doug was sailing wider angles but Mark seemed to think their VMG was the same. Doug disagreed.
It looks like two fleets will absolutely be won with the old sail and one will be won with the new sail and the other is up for grabs but it's looking like it will be a new sail too.
Hi Pam. Does that mean that the Apprentices are starting with the Masters?
ReplyDeleteHope you guys are having fun.
Yes. Masters and Apprentices are starting together. They had the GMs and GGMs starting together but after a GGM won the practice race the GGMs and GMs circulated a petition to split the GGMs into their own start. They made last minute scramble but accommodated the request.
DeleteWe're having a blast.
Oh man... I didn't go this year because I was under-enthused by the idea of 5 boats. That would have been a good one!
DeleteGood luck to Doug.