British crews keep in contention amid tricky conditions at Para Worlds

by RYA on 25 May 2016 Day two of the Para World Sailing Championships served up a stark light wind contrast to the big breeze of the opening day in Medemblik, the Netherlands, with British crews keeping in contention amid challenging conditions.

The physical test of Tuesday’s windy first day turned into more of a cerebral one on Wednesday (25 May) with light and shifty winds across the Ijsselmeer providing an on-water snakes and ladders contest.

A solid day for Alexandra Rickham and Niki Birrell in the SKUD fleet saw them end their day in overall second, with a fifth place and a third from their two races keeping them in touch.

“It was quite light and shifty and the pressure differences across the course were quite large,” Birrell explained. “The key was to try and make some good decisions and try to link up the pressure and the shifts but that was easier said than done.”

Although the duo enjoyed a good day relative to some of their rivals, the Paralympic bronze medallists rued a few missed opportunities to close up the points.

“There were definitely a lot of mistakes in the first race, which was a bit of a shame as we’d done a good job up the first beat,” Birrell continued. Then we made a couple of mistakes down the first run which made the race harder than it needed to be.

“We ended up finishing fifth which was a bit of shame and a bit unnecessary. In the second race we did well, we had some good boat speed and made some good decisions. It should have been a much more comfortable second than it was, but in the end happy to get a second and we’ll live to fight another day with those two scores.”

The Polish pairing of Monika Gibes and Piotr Cichocki lead the SKUD standings after four races, and are currently four points ahead of the British duo.

“We’re still in control at the moment, we’ll see what tomorrow brings, try and make some better decisions and hopefully the result will look after itself,” Birrell concluded.

In the Sonar event, John Robertson, Hannah Stodel and Steve Thomas ended their second day in overall second place, adding two seventh places to their scorecard today amid testing conditions in which most boats struggled for consistency.

“The first race we were reasonably OK with, the second race we weren’t,” helmsman Robertson recalled.

“The start wasn’t fantastic from my perspective so it kind of put us on the back foot. Even though the guys did a cracking job to get us back up there, we could have been further forward in the numbers. So, disappointing, but the scores were the same which is kind of strange.”

“Upwind and down we’re pretty quick and are always moving forward but obviously if I can put us in the right place on the startline then that can put us on the front foot from the start and extend. That’s the plan tomorrow.”

Elsewhere in the Sonar fleet, Craig Wood, Steve Palmer and Liam Cattermole picked up two 11th places from their two races to see them in 11th overall.

In the 2.4mR class, Helena Lucas bounced back from a disappointing opening day beset with equipment challenges to improve her overnight position to fifth.

The Paralympic champion posted a second in the first of Wednesday’s two races but admitted to being frustrated with her second race of the day where she crossed 11th

“What probably nailed me in that second start was not [having] a great start, so on the first beat I was scrabbling with everybody else to try and find a clear lane. In this fleet it’s just key to get off the startline as then it gives you a headstart,” Lucas explained, while also finding some positives to draw from her regatta so far.

“Today as the racing went on I managed to find a second gear and got the boat going pretty well up the beats. Also I made some good tactical calls and made my own decisions. When I made my own decisions and stuck to my guns that seemed to work quite well.”

She continued: “There are six races to go – you can’t focus on the result or the outcome, you’ve just got to keep chipping away and taking each day as it comes, each race as it comes, focus on the processes and just use it all as a really good learning experience ready for Rio.”

2.4mR Open World Champion Megan Pascoe is currently in overall seventh, with British Sailing Team Podium Potential talents Will Street, John Brooker and Carol Dugdale in 12th, 16th and 19th places respectively.

Racing at the Para World Sailing Championships runs through until Saturday 28 May, with two races scheduled per day for each of the three classes.