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Sail-World.com : Fisher's View: Probably the best race so far . . .
Fisher's View: Probably the best race so far . . .
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With the threat of elimination, TeamOrigin and Artemis pulled out the most exciting race of the regatta. The advantage swung between the boats, first to the British and then to the Swedish team. Wind shifts and variable current added to the strategies while match racing tactics were seen in profusion, particularly on the first lap.
The start was Ainslie’s; he came in to the pin end on port tack and was able to cross clear ahead of Artemis – just. Protest flags bristled and the umpires waved green flags in reply.
Then it was all TeamOrigin with Ben Ainslie and Iain Percy combining their talents to perfection, using the power of the right to keep Terry Hutchinson and Paul Cayard bounced off to the left and forcing two extra tacks for the Swedish boat to round the first mark with a couple of boats’ length lead.
Downwind, TeamOrigin was able to keep the pursuing boat at bay and rounded the leeward gate holding the same seven second lead. It was on the next beat that the strategies changed. Both Cayard and Percy opted to look for the shifts in the breeze to gain advantage and big splits appeared between the two boats.
While this is fine for the attacking boat, it doesn’t make sense for the leading boat to allow the pursuing boat a 350 metre separation. Huge gains and losses can be made with a ten degree shift, and that was indeed the case. Artemis went from behind to the front in the last third of the second beat to round the mark 28 seconds in front.
Any attempt to close that lead might have been an impossibility, but in the spinnaker hoist a ray of hope opened for the British. A tear appeared in the foot of Artemis’ sail. It was, however, in a lightly loaded are of the sail and fortunately for the Swedish team, it held so that Artemis cruised to a 30-second victory.
The difference in the body language on the two boats told all. Elevated arms and shoulders marked the team that was going through to the semi-final, and slumped heads on the team that has been eliminated from the competition told a different tale. Match racing can be cruel.
by Bob Fisher
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http://www.sail-world.com/index.cfm?nid=67566
1:56 AM Thu 18 Mar 2010 GMT
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