METS

Following a week-long trip to the Bavaria factory in Germany, I hopped on a plane for Amsterdam, bound for the Marine Equipments Trade Show (or METS, as it’s commonly referred).

I arrived in the afternoon, and spent the first evening having a look around the downtown area. This was my first time in Amsterdam, and I wasn’t really sure what to expect from the city. A couple of things became apparent; the majority of the locals use bikes as their primary mode of transportation, and there are canals which parallel almost every street. One wrong step and you’re either run over by a bicycle or swimming in the canal.

The METS is a 3-day long event which showcases over 1200 of the world’s marine industry suppliers – ranging from keel manufacturers to mast manufacturers, and everything in between. The trade show occupies eleven large halls in the RAI convention center, and the suppliers are arranged by country, rather than by product. This unique nationality arrangement makes advanced planning a necessity in order to avoid spending your day doubling back on your path as you work through the list of suppliers.

My schedule had me attending only the first two days of the show, although in hindsight I probably should have stayed for the full three days. About two weeks before the show, FYD sent an email out to our entire distribution list, letting people know I would be attending METS and would be available for meetings during my visit. Response to the mailer was surprisingly big and within days I had plenty of people contacting me to organize meetings. By the time the show started, I had meetings scheduled with suppliers, existing clients, potential clients, and old friends. In fact, my schedule became so full that I had very little time to see other suppliers I wasn’t already set up to meet with. The show was a great atmosphere for serious working meetings. Next year, I’ll have to go all three days and plan my route a bit better to make the most of this great show.

Chris Cochran

Bavaria – Project kick-off meeting

I’ve just returned from another trip to Germany. This was my fourth trip to Bavaria this year and sixth in two years! This time I traveled with Patrick Shaughnessy and Chris Cochran to attend a kick-off meeting for yet another project for Bavaria yacht builders in Giebelstadt. This will be our fourth project with them after completing the flagship 55, then the 32 and a 45. The 45 will have its first show in Dusseldorf this coming January. Chris stayed on a few days to help with the final touches on the 45.

Those previous three projects are the “cornerstone” projects which have defined the styling and features for the entire line-up. Now we begin work on our first “derivative” of those three. For our kick-off meeting we assembled some preliminary design ideas and benchmark information of comparable designs from Bavaria’s competitors. The meeting was attended by Bavaria’s Sales, Marketing, in-house design team, as well as Tom Allemeier and Tommy Forsgren from BMW’s Design Works USA. Bavaria’s Klaus Hammen led the discussion which narrowed down the product specifications based on everyone’s input. By the end of an all day meeting we had a well defined direction for the product as well as a schedule by which all teams will work together. This of course was followed by the obligatory group dinner at a traditional Bavarian restaurant featuring my favorite Schweinebraten and Weissbier. Thanks Klaus!

When launched in the early to middle part of next year we will have completed four boats in two years for Bavaria. Considering our level of detail work has been greater for this client than most others, this has constituted a colossal effort from our team. But the exciting thing is that we have had the opportunity to see not just one boat take shape from our designs but soon it will be an entire fleet of related designs - that is quite satisfying.


With each of these projects the coordination becomes smoother and work becomes even more enjoyable. By now we all understand each other’s roles and the cooperation gets better all the time. Since I’ll be the project management lead on this new project I’m hoping it goes at least as well as the last one which Chris led!

Keith Carew

ROMA 2 wins GP42 Global Cup

Congratulations to Filippo Faruffini’s team onboard ROMA 2 (design #640) who have just won the 2009 GP42 Global Cup. The team managed to put together a very consistent average of 2.25 across 12 races to finish 6 points clear of their nearest rival.

The regatta which was predominantly sailed in moderate conditions showcased the well rounded performance of this FYD product. Farr Yacht Design played a large supporting role in the ROMA program for the 2009 season. After the 2008 season an in-depth analysis of the boat’s performance led to FYD recommended hull and appendage modifications in order to improve the boat’s light air performance. I sailed with the sailing team myself as part of the crew for 4 regattas during the 2009 Medcup. Late in the season FYD also supported several boat modifications including a change to the rudder geometry.

Certainly this victory is a well deserved result for the team that finished only 1 point out of the overall 2009 Medcup lead. Congratulations again to Filippo, Paolo Cian, and the rest of the ROMA 2 team.

Design 640 (ROMA 2 and NEAR MISS) was inspired by my 2007 season of sailing with the ROMA 1 team and led to a combination of CFD research and design work that produced these 2 sister-ships. Ongoing CFD development this year at FYD indicates that significant fertile ground exists for further GP42 development. Anyone interesting in fielding a dominant GP42 effort for the 2010 season should contact FYD to talk about the GP42 focused development work we have planned for this winter.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Bavaria – What a Yard!

I’ve just returned from a visit to the Bavaria factory in Germany, where prototyping for the new Cruiser 45 is in full-swing. What an exciting time to be at a boat yard! During the four days I was just at the factory, hull #1 was laminated, a plywood mock-up of the structural grid was installed, and the interior mock-up was just starting to get put into place. As Farr Yacht Design’s internal project manager for the 45, it was a very rewarding experience to be on-site as the design begins the transition from drawings/models to an actual, full-size yacht.

Farr Yacht Design has been working with Bavaria for about 18 months now, and in that relatively short time we’ve already seen the launch of two brand new models of our design. The Cruiser 55, launched in May 2009, serves as the flagship of Bavaria’s new cruising line of sailboats. This was quickly followed by the launch of the Cruiser 32 in August, capping the opposite end of the range for the new cruising line. The Cruiser 45, due to launch in January 2010, blends elements of the two previous models to form the cornerstone model in the middle of the range.

The high speed development of new production models requires close collaboration between an experienced and resourceful boat builder and a design group capable of assembling detailed high quality design information on a tight time line. This is certainly an accurate description of FYD’s relationship with Bavaria. FYD supplies Bavaria full design and engineering services. Our scope of work includes detailed 2D construction drawings and complete 3D geometry of the hull, deck, internal structure, appendages, and associated custom parts. While most of our design work is performed in the office, a significant amount of time is dedicated to working in the factory, side by side with Bavaria’s builders and production engineers. This close collaboration is what allows FYD and Bavaria to share design and production ideas, with the common goal of achieving a well-engineered, economical, production-friendly yacht.

Chris Cochran

Race day 3 at the Medcup Murcia in Cartagena

Today was moving day for us on the Roma. As a team we needed to decide if we were going to continue to slide after a bad day 2 or if we were going to come back swinging. The team was down early on the boat cleaning up after our CODE RED day yesterday. The navigator was still working frantically trying to get the new computer working. The mood in the team was focused but happy I think that the work list was almost cleaned up.

We headed out on time and got a nice beat in and a run back to the starting area. The windspeed was around 8-10 knots and the sea state was surprisingly calm given the state we left it in the day before. Even if the sea state was calmed it was certainly disproportionate for the wind speed. I’ve always felt that we have an advantage in a sloppy sea way relative to the newer boats so I was pretty confident heading into the race.

We started race 3 reasonable well but couldn’t really get anything going upwind. At one stage we were certainly last near the top of the beat. We rounded the top mark 4th and headed off down the run to grind a few boats down. We had a good boat on boat battle with Puerto Calero and rolled them. We rounded the leeward mark 2nd but coughed up a position on the beat near the top. Down the run we passed Puerto Calero again in a nice boat on boat battle to finish up 2nd. I think maybe we passed those guys 3 times…

Race 4 started off reasonable well but still only got us to the top mark in 3rd. We gained a spot on the run and then benefited from a massive shift on the second beat. The shift moved us up to first where we managed to stay through to the finish.

The breeze was back up into the mid 20’s for race 4 and the waves were back as well. We started well but didn’t have a great upwind mode going and gave up a few positions to round the top mark 4th. Our run went much better than the other breezy day and we were right in the thick of things. We were set up to round the right gate but had a last minute change to left and rounded inside the whole pack. That rounding pushed us right up to 2nd. We couldn’t get to Madrid but we were able to hold onto our 2nd to the finish.

So 2,1,2 for the day which when combined with Puerto Calero’s day gave us a 2 point lead going into the final day. A few repairs to work on overnight and more computer work for the navigator. Hopefully tomorrow he will have the Deckman back up so that we can run full instrumentation. Let’s see how we handle the lead on the last day.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Race day 2 at the Medcup Murcia in Cartagena

CODE RED. It all happened on the Roma today.

The race committee got us of the docks on time today. The fleet moved out of the harbor quickly and everyone got into some practice with the eager anticipation of some racing in nice fresh conditions. The first thing you notice outside the harbor area is the absolutely square waves. I can honestly say I’ve never sailed in such a peculiar wave shape and pattern. Any way we got a nice beat in and a run in maybe 18 knots. All pretty uneventful.

By the time race 1 started the breeze was up over 20 and the waves were even uglier. We won the boat end of the line and forced our friends on Puerto Calero to tack away. Not a bad way to start off. We did cover PC on the right but they had just enough separation to get bow forward on us and eventually cross us. We found ourselves mid fleet at the top mark, and really didn’t do anything spectacular to change that over the course of the race. We did start to have a bit of excitement in the breeze however. At the leeward mark my spinnaker halyard jammer failed. I managed to save the spinnaker though because I had a safety wrap over the pit winch. On the second run we blew up our A3 in a broach. Although we got an A2 up we just lost too much down the second run. We finished in 4th place which wasn’t really what we had in mind.

As I mentioned the other day, the time between races is where the full panic really gets started. This particular time between races was quite spectacular. We got pretty far away from the starting area while we were packing jibs, and spinnakers, and bailing out a huge amount of water below. We eventually found ourselves almost on a breakwater. In the hurry to start the engine, we wrapped the starboard afterguy around the prop. We had to work pretty hard with main only and eventually a tow from our rib as well to get clear of the shore. Next we went main down and tried to keep the boat stationary so that Pablo the boat captain could try to clear the prop. Prop cleared we went main back up, jib up, and bailing and packing like crazy off to the starting area.

In our blind panic to get to the start of race 2 we cooked up an incredible Vanderbilt start and absolutely nailed the boat end of the line at the gun. Puerto Calero was again forced to tack away, and we went about covering them. A quarter of the way up the beat Paolo Cian says were on fire. We all agree, going very well. No really a fire. Sure enough smoke was pouring out of the boat. Pablo went back into action to empty a few extinguishers into the engine box. Fire out. We rounded the top mark 1st and with Puerto Calero back mid fleet things were well in hand. Breeze was up to 25+ and the ride down wind was spectacular. Unfortunately we went through a few waves with the hatch open and really started to fill the boat with water. Once it starts it just gets worse and worse. We coughed up 1st place at the end of the run with a bad layline call and early drop. We have great boatspeed up wind though and pulled back into the lead. The second run was really fresh and we were really full of water. I would guess maybe water was 50mm over the floorboards. Maybe a ton of water? We were nose heavy and absolutely underwater. After 2 big pitchpoles into broaches that could only be ended by lowering the kite we decided to drop the spinnaker. From first to 4th. A disaster.

Back on the dock we licked our wounds a bit and went over the boat carefully. The fire had created a big mess and destroyed the boat computer. The water was everywhere. Maybe a ton was a pessimistic estimate. The team installed bilge pumps over the night and we limber holed the structure. Mathais the navigator worked up a new computer to replace the boat computer. The good news I guess was that the boat came through fine structurally. It is really remarkable to come through without any boat problems especially considering that we are by far the lightest of the GP42’s in terms of construction. The knowledge that the boat can take the pounding, the great upwind speed, and the bilge pump plan have us optimistic about tomorrow.

We’ll see how we go on day 3. Maybe the forecast will be a bit lighter, maybe the waves will be a bit smaller. Something more civilized maybe???

Patrick Shaughnessy

Race day 1 at the Medcup Murcia in Cartagena

Still nothing. The race committee held us ashore until 2pm. We went out and did a bit of sailing around in unstable conditions. The committee did eventually try to start several 52 races but abandoned each of them just before the start. In the 42 fleet we never even got into a sequence. Even so I think everyone is happy because they would rather have less good races than more bad races.

Tomorrows forecast has plenty of pressure late in the day. It looks like we’ll head out and probably try to get in 3 races. When the committee tries to rattle of 3 races it makes for tense times between the races. Usually you have at least 1 jib to pack, 2 spinnakers to wool and pack, a guy up the rig windspotting, people eating, etc. On the Roma we haven’t always been so disciplined in our management of the time between races so we’ll need to be on our toes today.

Outside the races I’ve had some time to catch up on correspondence, and to continue work on our latest version of FYD's Volvo Ocean Race proposal. We have some good tricks up our sleeves for the next Volvo race so the team is pretty excited. Stand by.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Practice race day at the Medcup Murcia in Cartagena

We were held onshore for quite a few hours waiting for some breeze to establish. The wait onshore was a blessing for the Roma team as it gave us a few precious hours to wrap up all the little lingering jobs and repairs to our self inflicted wounds. Funny how things always seem to work out. Now we have everything fixed and ready. I just hope that our lost day of real practice sailing yesterday doesn’t come back to haunt us. Paolo Cian has worked hard to inform the crew of all the little changes which should add up to an advantage for team Roma. The changes combined with a few new sails should do the trick. We are equal on points for the Medcup trophy going into this event so we need to work hard to push into the lead.

After a few hours onshore a little something started to establish and the Roma was the first boat to jump off the dock. The slow building wind allowed us to rattle through our spinnaker inventory for another quick check on each kite. Code 1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5 all up, down, and packed again. We also got a nice long beat in with our new medium jib.

By the time we got back to the race course area storm clouds were brewing. Out came the mystery bag of foul weather gear and the search for each person’s size gear started frantically. After we got all the gear sorted we just had enough time for main down in advance of some bigger breeze.

In the end the first storm was more huff than puff. It rolled away and the wind behind it looked good enough for some racing so the committee started a sequence for the 52’s only to abandon it just before the start. We made good use of the starting line for some time on distance drills and then set off on a bit of a beat. Unfortunately another storm started to set up and some lightening added to the excitement that eventually killed any further attempt at racing.

We motored in with the fleet in heavy rain and set about emptying the boat for a freeboard measurement check. When we were just about finished emptying the boat the measurer decided to postpone the check until tomorrow morning. Everything back in. After it was all back in the boat we took our soggy selfs into the tent. After a quick beer in the tent the rain eased a bit we made it back to the hotel via one of the Medcups beautiful Audi Q7 VIP shuttles.

Tomorrow should be the start of real racing, as the GP42 practice race was lost in the bad weather. The forecast is for a very light day with a late seabreeze. Looks like another long day tomorrow.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Medcup Murcia at Cartahegna Practice day

Today was my first day on site in Cartahegna Spain with the Roma GP42 team. The team has really bitten off quite a bit in their attempt to win the Medcup. Not all of the areas of focus are ones that I would have chosen but I’m doing my best to support the team in this last event.

We started off today working on the boat in the yard finishing off several jobs and giving the boat a quick wet sand. As is usually the case in the yard the hours ticked by and we got into the water quite late. The first thing I noticed as we motored out was that there seemed to be plenty of breeze for a “light air” venue. Sure enough 18-20 knots TWS built into 20+ with a nice short wave pattern. We looked a few new sails, and had a great run back into the harbor area.

Unfortunately we have a few self inflicted wounds resulting from last minute projects that really shouldn’t have been on our docket anyway. We also have a dead engine which made maneuvering into the harbor difficult. Long night ahead I’m afraid.

Tomorrow we have our practice race which should be good fun. Hopefully we start off fresh again with everything fixed. We’ll have to see about the weather at our “light air” venue.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Launching speech for the new Bavaria Cruiser 32

My name is Patrick Shaughnessy, and I am the President of Farr Yacht Design, although today I represent the combined design group which has produced the new Bavaria Cruiser 32.

Fresh from the completion of Bavaria’s new flagship, the Cruiser 55, we were tasked as a team with producing a boat at the opposite end of the line to replace the popular 31 Cruiser model. With the 55 as a true flagship we needed to demonstrate flexibility and innovation, and with an entry model like the 32 we needed to strengthen the already strong cost position of the boat and to demonstrate a bookend for the clear Cruiser line styling logic.

A 32ft boat is a difficult design challenge. The interior layout of a boat in this competitive size range has been very well defined by the market place. We challenged ourselves to find places where innovation can happen when a specific product has already been so well targeted. What we found is that exterior living spaces weren’t working quite as well as the interior living spaces in this class. Many of the great ideas we developed on the 55 can still apply to a much smaller boat. We have produced a hull shape which allows great interior volume and next we needed to wisely use the deck space that comes from such a large planform area. The cockpit area now comfortably seats the same number of people the boat can sleep, and more. The cockpit space is closed and secure to protect a young family, but can fully open to be an inviting passage to the sea so that we can truly enjoy the places we spend the time to sail to. With a shallow draft keel option at 1.5 meters we should be able to get pretty close to these nice places. Certainly as a person with a young family I can say that this enormous swim platform is an area where my family will spend a great amount of time. And as an owner I would be happy to have a 32 foot boat where my whole family can sit side by side with our feet in the water.

An entry boat for a range has a strong likelihood of attracting novice sailors and for that reason we have a strong want to produce a boat which can inspire confidence. In order to create a manageable boat we’ve produced a sailplan which ensures that reefing isn’t required until wind speeds exceed 20kts. We also recognize that a true cruising boat should sail at heel angles of less than 20 degrees below 15kts true wind speed. Even with those conservative choices a SA/Disp ratio of 4.18 ensures that the boat will have competitive performance in class. We’ve carefully monitored the boat throughout the design and build process to result in keel weights producing a ballast ratio increase of 12-25% over the previous 31 Cruiser. We have also targeted and achieved both an AVS number of 125 degrees and CE cat A.

The new Bavaria Cruiser 32 is a boat which manages its compromises very well. It combines modern styling and aesthetics with a good level of performance and the demanding safety levels we require for all Farr Yacht Design products. With all of those things in one place it’s very easy to see why this boat has already attracted a nomination for yacht of the year.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Go the Doll!!!

Congratulations to Michael Hiatt and his team aboard the Living Doll, Farr Yacht Design’s design #642. Michael and his team have won Audi’s Hamilton Island Race Week IRC Grand Prix division 1, and they’ve done it with a comfortable margin to spare. Their run away win in Hamilton Island comes right on the heels of their previous IRC win at the Meridien Marinas Airlie Beach Race Week. Both of the Doll’s victories were contested by Ray Roberts and his team on Evolution Racing, a Cookson 50, FYD’s design #541.

The Living Doll is one of Farr yacht Design’s latest IRC specific grand Prix designs and we are pleased to see it add to our extensive record of significant IRC results. Farr Yacht Design’s design #642, is a 55 foot IRC racing design with 2 boats constructed to the design. Our project goal with design 642 was to design a boat that could race in the same class as IRC optimized TP52’s while being faster with a relatively better handicap. The 55 foot length produces the desired performance leap and moderate increases in displacement, draft and sail area limit the increase in handicap. The hull was developed using the knowledge gained from our recent extensive CFD research on Volvo 70s and GP42s. A unique feature with a large impact on the hull design is the twin rudder steering arrangement. The twin rudders generate much less stern up force allowing the bow to be finer forward for less drag in waves and chop. Because the stern lifts less at high speeds the effective sailing length can be maximized over more of the speed range without incurring handling problems in extreme conditions. Ease of handling in reaching and running conditions was a prime driver in our design process as we worked to ensure that this boat can be just as dynamic as the smaller and marginally lighter TP52’s that it will compete against.

Congratulations again to Michael and his team aboard the Living Doll. We look forward to many more victories from the Doll, and also to the upcoming launch of the second 642 currently nearing completion in Turkey.

Contact Farr Yacht Design to see how we can help your team produce IRC victories. Our IRC optimization services have produced an unparalleled list of significant results. Our specific targeted IRC custom design work is a clear extension of that optimization work and will ensure that your next custom boat project achieves the success that you deserve.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Day 4 from the Medcup Portugal in Portimao

Wow! day 4 was a tough one. The forecast was for a light unstable breeze on day 4 but the committee took us out in search of suitable racing breeze. We started our pre-race practice in about 6-8 knots and put in some upwind work, a set, and some downwind work. The committee started a sequence in breeze that was now up to around 12 knots and was combined with a sloppy swell.

We started race 6 slow and probably a half boat length back off of the line. In that position we were in a tough sandwich between Airis to Leeward, and Endesa and Puerto Calero to windward. After trying to hold our lane in a drag to the left we finally had to tack out and take some sterns. The rest of the beat was like watching a bad movie as we continued to sail backwards out of contention for the race, and the regatta. We rounded the topmark last, and remained last down the run and around the leeward mark.

On the second beat we were set up left of the fleet and benefited from a 10 degree shift and some pressure right at the top of the beat which allowed us to leapfrog 3 boats and to round 2nd. Is this a miracle comeback in the making? It was certainly looking that way because Airis was running 3rd ahead of Endesa which would have given us the Portimao trophy. We did our part to finish second behind Puerto Calero, but Airis couldn’t stay in front of Endessa so we watch our miracle slip away.

In the end we finished the Portimao regatta equal on points with Endesa but lost on the countback, so 2nd place for the Roma in Portimao. We also ended up in a tie with Puerto Calero for the Medcup series, but again we lose the countback, and end up listed as 2nd. The tie in the Medcup standings certainly sets up the next regatta in Cartagena as the battle royal.

The sailing is very close amongst the top 3 boats and we will need to be on our toes to pull out the win. The mods we completed at FYD for Roma have certainly resulting in a more all around boat than in the previous season. If we can consistently start well we should be able to win the Medcup. Certainly our upwind speed is superior, and our maneuvers are good. Downwind we have to work hard to defend. Mentally we need to toughen up a bit as well in order to secure the win.

Next for me is a long travel day on Monday, followed by a short week in the office. Next weekend I’m off to a show in Amsterdam for the launch of the new Bavaria Cruiser 32 designed by FYD. Stand by for an update regarding the launch of our newest production boat design.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Day 3 at the Medcup Portugal in Portimao

No racing on day 3. In fact, we had no sailing at all on day 3. What we had instead was plenty of waiting inshore inside the air-conditioned tent. The race committee patiently waited for a stable wind suitable for racing, but after our long wait there just wasn’t anything to work with.

So it was in the tent where we spent the day. These days are pretty valuable because a whole top end slice of our industry is stationary in the same place with time to kill. So meetings, and chats fill up everyone’s day.

The forecast is light again for day 4 so there is a good chance that we will have no more racing. That would be a shame because I think we can build on our Medcup lead and potentially win the regatta here in Portimao as well. For sure what we don’t want however is a race in light unstable wind that turns into a lottery. So stand by, we’ll see what happens.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Day 2 at the Medcup Portugal in Portimao

Day 2 was a good big picture day for us on the Roma. I say that because although we are still 1 point out of first for the regatta, we’ve moved back into the Medcup lead by 1 point. So a positive day when viewed in terms of overall goals.

The fleet was held inshore for a while waiting for the breeze to build today. Once the AP was lowered we were one of the first boats off the dock and eager to get into some practice sailing. Before our warning we were able to accomplish a good amount of upwind work, a set, a nice downwind session, and also some time on distance work. Our practice was in a slowly building breeze of 10-12 knots.

Race 4 was started in 12-14 knots, and we had a good start which we were able to extend slightly into a 1st place position at the top mark. The wind built into the run and was now up to 15-17 which is right about where the effort level gets big. At the bottom of the run we were set up for a right hand “kiwi” drop and had a last minute change to an “easy” left. Only the easy part didn’t quite happen because Endessa snuck in for room at the left mark which added plenty of excitement between the two Latin tempered teams. The boats were quite close and protest flags flew. After the rounding we were able to force them off our hip and re-establish a lead which we held onto for the remainder of the race. Puerto Calero had a bad 5th place race, and so the point swing for the Medcup was starting.

The between race “grande casino” was again time short, as the 52’s were off on a coastal race. Our workload was reduced slightly because we re-used the same A2 on both runs. All cleaned up we were ready for race 5 with plenty of time to spare.

Race 5 started in 14-16 knots and built to near 18. We had an OK start and did fine on the beat to end up second at the topmark. We we’re a bit divided in our attention between battling with Endessa for the race lead, and covering Puerto Calero for the Medcup lead. In the end we gave up a position on the 1st run, and another on the 2nd beat. In our battle to cover Puerto Calero we also drew their anger when they perceived that we tacked too close on a leebow however the on the water jury decided no penalty was due. We kept our cover on Puerto Calero to finish ahead of them in 4th place. A disappointing waste of opportunity to build a lead in the big battle but a point gained never the less on our main rival for the Medcup.

No protests were heard onshore so the races counted as the finished which is always the best way for our sport to work. The on the water judge is a big help to resolve the majority of the protest opportunities before they reach land. I think this also helps to keep the shore more a friendly place where we all can relax a bit.

For me, many of the maneuvers were quite tight timing wise so I had plenty on. With my fingers taped together after the dislocation yesterday I was at a bit of a disadvantage in grip on my left hand, but the pain was low in the heat of the battle. All good fun.

Light forecast for days 3, and 4 so hopefully we will get to test some of FYD’s promising light air improvement work.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Day 1 from the Medcup Portugal in Portimao

We were the first boat out sailing on day 1. We spent plenty of time sailing up and down in a very light but slowly building breeze. These are the conditions that we worked hard to improve at FYD. The changes seem to be quite good and I don’t think we lack for pace in the light. The race start was postponed a bit as the breeze stabilized enough for racing. We finally got into our sequence about an hour later than planned in a 15 knot plus wind.

We had a good start to race 1 and established a 1 or 2 boat length lead that we carried around legs 1, 2, and 3. Unfortunately the team on Puerto Calero passed us on the final run with some nice surfing. Bummer to have the race end that way after leading for 80% of the race.

Between races is full on action as you need to be pack and wool multiple spinnakers, flake headsails, rig tune, and race debrief and plan. The breeze was up a bit going into race 2 and we were pretty pressed to be ready in time for the start.
Race 2’s start saw us pushing Airis up toward the line but we were just a tad too far behind them to force their position such that they would be OCS. We ended up directly on their transom across the line and were forced to tack away to right immediately. We reached the topmark in 3rd and stayed that way until the 2nd beat where we forced a penalty on Puerto Calero in order to pass them. The altercation was tacking too close and the on the water jury penalized them immediately. Their turns put us in second, where we stayed until the finish.

The between race action was even a bit more frenzied after race 2 because the TP52’s were done for the day. Because of that our time between races was even shorter. After the full clean up we only just hoisted the jib 3 minutes before the start. Our starting position was penalized for sure as we limped off the line much slower that the boats around us. We managed to keep our heads however and turn the race into a 2nd. The breeze was up in the 3rd race to around 24 knots so we saw some nice downwind action, routinely sailing 17-20 knots is always fun.

My day was hard but fun. We were already aware that our team would be weighed at the end of the day so food and water had been very scarce during the day. Big breeze without food and water is always hard. My job on the boat as a pitman includes grinding during the hoists and gybes so there is plenty of fast paced action with and occasional rest upwind. Afterwards I was definitely dehydrated and tired. I also managed to dislocate my index finger on my left hand which makes gripping quite painful. Anyway after some food, water, and ice we’re off to do it again.

Forecast for day 2 is for a competing breeze to lighten and die around 1-2. The building breeze should be a bit later today than yesterday so maybe we won’t quite get into the solid big breeze we saw yesterday. Stand by for an update from day 2.

Patrick Shaughnessy

Practice race day from the Medcup Portugal in Portimao

Today was a good solid practice day for us on the GP42 Roma 2. We were able to sail for a bit pre-race in a light but building breeze with some of our old sails. It’s always nice to start out slowly in light breeze. The actual practice race started in around 9 knots. For sure we were a bit disadvantaged in those light conditions using our old practice sails so it was nice to be mixing it up with the top boats. The wind built to around 15 knots mid race which suited us a bit better. We had a really nice little tacking duel with Islas Canarias Puerto Calero out near the right lay line which saw us gain slowly each time but without enough runway to make anything solid out of it. The bottom of the first run included some close action with Caser-Endesa around the left gate mark where we pushed for room and forced them off to the right. Probably on a race day this would have gone to the protest room. The rest of the race was pretty uneventful. We finished a boat length behind Puerto Calero, and one ahead of Caser-Endesa .

Overall we feel pretty good about the day. We feel like we’ll be strong when we get into our race sails tomorrow, and we have plenty of small things to work through which is always good. The boat work list was very short so all in all a good day on the water.

Tomorrow, race day 1 for us, should have a similar building wind speed during the day although it could pack a bit more punch. Stay tuned for Day 1 results. Fingers crossed.

Patrick Shaughnessy