RS700 Fleet - Articles
Peter Shaw’s experience at the 2007 Nationals
“Having started sailing the RS 700 some 18 months ago, my club rep. from Carsington Richard Allen applied some gentle pressure to continue to develop my racing skills by suggesting an outing to the Nationals and I succumbed. Prior to the event during discussion with some of our ‘club veterans’ much advice was offered on start line tactics and some were even bold enough to suggest probable final positions in the overall results. Filled with this confidence, I ventured onto the water at Torbay looking for a reasonable result for the first days racing. 10 knots of breeze from the southwest – ideal conditions. The rather arrogant expectation was for some sailors to be excellent, the majority Ok and the rest a bit average. When the fleet gathered for the first race it was evident that this was not the case, almost without exception, every boat was bolt upright with helms fully wiring, not crashing and burning as previously experienced at home. The start line was nothing like I had expected either – ‘Gaps always open about 2/3rds down the line and so always start on starboard’, there were no gaps for me! However few competitors indicated any irritation at the incompetence I displayed – obviously everyone is acutely aware of the vagaries of the single-handed high performance boats.The races came and went, the conditions varied from 4 knots on the second day to a final 22 knots recorded on the last day. For ‘Pond’ sailors the sea state added another exciting dimension. Being a new boy to the RS circuit I was apprehensive. This apprehension was totally misplaced, the atmosphere both on and off the water was extremely encouraging and the event proved to be most enjoyable and educational. The social in the evenings was measured, allowing for reflection on the days activities, however several of the more adventurous (Hunstanton contingent) couldn’t resist clubbing the night away.
If you are considering a venture onto the RS circuit, but are holding back due to apprehension or inexperience, I would suggest reconsideration. The support offered at these Nationals was second to none, with a buddy system designed to assist those with less knowledge offering advice on rig set-up and race planning. I didn’t achieve the result I had hoped for, but was more than happy with 43rd. The whole experience has developed my enthusiasm for the competitive aspect of the RS circuit and already I am planning to get to Garda next year..”