Ten days to go until the Spiral Nationals. Chris and I have been training every couple of days, doing boat work on the off days to make sure we don’t burn out. We did the sprints last Sunday, where I came 3rd out of the Spirals and 9th in the division, then 1st in the Spirals and 1st in the division. My focus was much better in the second race. Getting used to skippering and being on a single-hander again. Need to bottle that zone! I am hoping to slide into the top 5 at Spirals, but we will have to see what happens.
It was windy last Tuesday, there were many capsizes between Chris and I as we tested the limits downwind, trying a few new things and really pushing the gybing angles. It is much easier to race when you are clear on your boundaries! We sailed Friday, half in West Basin in a 15 knot Nor’wester, and half in Central Basin in a 4 to 15 knot breeze to practice, at times in the lighter air. Important preparation for a Lake Macquarie venue, and also coincidentally for this Sunday’s race, which was quite light at times. I sailed exceptionally well upwind, but lost a lot of ground on the downwinds. I was attempting to practice sailing the downwinds how I would on a “normal” race track. There were some weird shifts going on yesterday. I got hammered for it, but hopefully on a steadier race track my training will pay off. Regardless, it is always great to practice and know that you are moving forward. At the end of the day, it is time on the water that will get you to your goals! There are lots of other factors – but my addiction to training stems from my need to know that I am always improving, in everything that I do.
Mel and Craig Davidson took California Times for a sail yesterday with our rig and their sails, to see what she (Tiger hull) feels like compared to their Moondance hull and our CST versus their Sea Tech mast. They looked great on the boat until Davo decided to backflip out of her, right next to me… very similar to a certain Topper video. I only wish I had the camera rolling! I have added some pics to the NS14 gallery.
As for what is next, I am thinking about doing the Laser states on the Radial for a bit of fun following the Spirals – and just getting a measure on how I have gone since SIRS in 2009… It would be a great opportunity for a training exercise. This will depend on a few logistical things! Be awesome to sail with Krystal and spend some time with Razzle (LB) too! (Happy Birthday to both for this week!) Hopefully some news on this very soon!
Back to the now, this week we will do a few sessions, before heading north to Lake Macquarie in one week’s time. Loving the training, or the racing without consequences, and also planning my next adventures!
Below is a video of our sailing over this summer on the Spirals 863 and 867, for a bit of a laugh leading into the Spiral Nationals. The Spiral after all is a stepping stone in my phases to reaching a much more major goal!
Hope you enjoy the window into our training and your own training over this week and always! Bring it on!
