British Virgin Islands, Team LMSA / Fleet 29 wrap-up

Andy sent this in this morning from the BVI’s. -wb-

 

Sorry for the lapse of info, we have been out of wifi range for a few days.

 

Day 3:

We are still within 2 points of first despite the dingy debacle.  Today we have the longest race across the entire length of the BVIs on the north side.  The wind was to be E or NE and held at 12 to 15 for most of the day.  We started well and were near the lead until a jib sheet found it’s way under the hull as we were approaching a reef leaving Virgin Gourda Sound.  We spent a few tense moments but cleared the mess and got into the outside course in 4th place.  Fisk went to work and within 5 miles we had scratched out a small lead.  The overall leader, Seattle, was on our hip for the next 7 miles as we pulled ourselves well ahead of the others.  By the time we could see the RC boat it was a match race.  We were 5 lengths windward and 7 lengths ahead on a beam reach making 8 kn, where else would you choose to be with 2 miles to go?  Seattle had been trying to sail through our lee for hours with no luck.  We then sailed into a hole, sat still for 20 minutes and watched as boats leeward and windward sailed nicely ahead.  Seattle took first and Annapolis nosed us out for second.  That was tough to take but we wouldn’t have done anything different, just bad luck.

 

Day 4:

We are now tied for second with San Fran and Seattle only reachable with a meltdown.  A port reach start, a parade around the west end of Tortola and the notoriously difficult Thatch cut lay ahead.  Instead of causing a 6 boat pile up at the start as we had the opporunity to do, Fisk took the high road but let 5 boats get ahead from the line.  Our difficult job ahead was clear.  We sailed the parade through the shifty wind and water currents of Thatch Cut but still were back in 5th.  Once through the cut the race changed to a beat in 18 to 20 and 8 foot rollers.  Fisk was working hard, but on a beat he will allways do well.  We choose to go left as the others stayed right.  We steadily made up ground untill we picked off 4th and had a real shot at San Fran in third.  Closing in on the finish we caught a deck cleat with the jib sheet and our moment was lost, so close.  We ended up losing 4th at the line by a nose.  We thought that we had held third overall but later found that the dingy race had bitten again and we had moved to 4th by a fraction of a point.

We are all proud of Fisk and our crew, we could have gotten it all.

See you Friday,
Andy