Frustration for Bermuda pair

by Laurie Fullerton - the Royal Gazette on 10 Oct 2009 Bermuda's own Paula Lewin Crews in Group Two and Blythe Walker in Group Three endured a frustrating opening day of the King Edward VII Gold Cup match racing.

Hindered by light air and postponements, racing among the 24 teams placed in three groups began in a breeze that went from a light five to seven knots to nearly a whisper.

And while Group One finished their four scheduled matches, Lewin Crews and her team were dealt a difficult hand in their first race in Group Two when the wind petered out at the start. As the day ended, they were only able to complete one race in which Lewin Crews lost to World Match Tour number one ranked Adam Minoprio.

The Bermudian and her all-female crew lost most of their momentum as they were heading for the start line in increasingly light air. Minoprio took full advantage of the stalled conditions and powered ahead in what little air they could find. And by the time they reached the first mark, they were well ahead.

'You get dealt what you are get dealt but the first race didn't really offer quality racing,' said Lewin Crews. 'We experienced big shifts with very little wind prior to our race and when it gets that light at the start we didn't have anything to work with.'

Minoprio agreed that 'the breeze had died in the pre-start when Paula was making her pre-start turn and that was unfortunate for her. We made sure since it was so shifty and light that we covered her and stayed ahead.
'We were able to keep that momentum going even though the breeze was quickly fading.'

Lewin and her team's race day began at 12 noon and by 5 p.m. they had still only finished the one race.
Mentally, that wait can be taxing on a competitor.

'You start to get momentum and get going and then it stops,' said team-mate Lisa Neasham. 'The race committee have done the best they can with the conditions but no one likes to sit around and wait.'

The day of racing was officially cancelled at 5 p.m. leaving the event organisers with a lot of racing to complete today when winds are expected to build.

Lewin noted that 'as much as you hate to miss a day of racing, we are still at the start of the regatta so they have time to make it up on the other end. It is better than going out there and not being able to do a quality race.'
Fellow Bermudian Walker and his crew were sent home without ever getting on the water.

'I had more of a day at the office than a day on the race course but I kept dashing down here to find out what was going on,' Walker said. 'It is frustrating but that is the nature of sailing.'

Article supplied by Talbot Wilson.