Crazy Laser racing in Hyeres

by Andrew Campbell on 25 Apr 2008 Andrew Campbell's report from SOD Hyeres.

'One hundred eighty degree shifts and puffy conditions made a mixing bowl of the Bay of Hyeres. Most of the fleets were able to get at least one race off in the dying westerly Mistral giving its last gasps from yesterday's blowout. The offshore 8-15 knots provided puffy racing and made for some big ups and bigger downs on the scorecard for many of the regatta players.

'On the Laser course we started a second race in the westerly and got through three legs of the trapezoid course before a 180 degree windshift and temporary glass-off force the race committee to abandon racing and postpone for about an hour. Luckily behind the failed westerly a fresh easterly breeze filled across our course and lasted long enough to get not only our second Gold race off but also a second Radial Gold as well as two races for each the Radial Silver and Laser Silver and Bronze.

'My first start was a painful one. After a couple decent practice starts that turned out to be general recalls, my third was not a charm and I was pinballed up the middle left of the racecourse and rounded in the range of about 40th. I know it is a common thread in my material, but as one of my buddies from the fleet would put it: 'Gold fleet is the juice!'

'When the final series at any Grade 1 event, World or Continental championships on the Laser circuit comes along it is commonly revered as some of the closest, most difficult and most chaotic racing in the world. Minor mistakes put me in 38th in the race overlapped into the finish with the two-time defending World Champion. Gold fleet is indeed 'the juice.'

'That's probably the best way to describe the power and the mayhem involved with 55 boats starting absurdly close to the line and all arriving to a mark nearly a mile away 12 minutes later all within less than a minute. Then every mark from that point forward, regardless of the windstrength, the mark roundings will be overcrowded and hot with road rage, egos, collisions and speed. So many fouls occur through the races it would boggle most people's minds, but where the fleet lacks civility it retains a clear level of efficiency of getting around the course quickly.

'My second race was a heck of a lot better getting out to the middle right and rounding the first windward mark with the two time Champ again (my buddy Tommy Slingsby from Australia) in tenth place. We battled it out and were nearly overlapped at each mark rounding the rest of the race. We skipped past a couple boats here and there and I was able to pick him off on another sailor on the last run and take 7th across the line.

Full results at: http://sof.ffvoile.net/results/laser.htm

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