Shields #1 5/28

The first time on a Shield.

The weather had been bitingly cold the Tuesday night before my first Wednesday night shields racing with Fleet 9, and so I came prepared. Too prepared, as it turned out, as I stripped layers off and stowed them in other people's bags as we rigged the boat. The night was turning out to be mild, with the ESE breeze dropping to a gentle caress.

We rowed out to the mooring, rigged the boat, and headed out.

I have spent time on Bahamian Smacks and Herreshoff S boat, but it was my first time on a Shield. As we sailed around pre-race I got a lesson on how to run a symmetrical kite and all things pole. We did one set, two gybes, and one douse, and they deemed me ready to go.

I panicked when I got handed the watch pre-start, and deferred it to someone else. One of the reason's I am so keen to race with this fleet is all of my experience is big boat racing, and generally my awareness is focused inward on the boat. I want to learn how to focus outward, how to judge what is going on in the fleet, and sail tactically against other boats. And my watch skills are embarrassingly under developed. There was enough new stuff coming at me I didn't want to also button mash to no avail.

My roommate Willem and I were filling in for a team that was mostly out of town, so there were only four of us on a boat that usually runs with five. I did a lot of keeping my mouth shut and listening and learning the dynamic, both on my boat and on the course.

We had a decent start second from the boat, and should have stuck to the right side of the course for longer--we were in the opposing flood current, but the wind was clean and there were no boats. #33, who stuck to that side, made out well, whereas we ended up back in the middle, got shut down by a few headers, and ended up pinching and wind shadowed trying to make lay to the windward mark. The winning move was a gybe set, to not get trapped against goat island, but both times we set and then did a quick gybe. The first time as I reset the pole I didn't unclip the old sheet before moving the pole to the mast, which lead to a collapsed and fouled kite until we got it sorted.

Our other mark roundings were chaotic if not quite the clusterfuck that the first one was. We did gain ground on our first downwind run, but lost it again on legs four and five. We finished as a slightly sheepish second to last, and cracked beers for our downwind debrief back to the mooring.

Learning moment: sheet must come out of the pole before hooking the pole to the mast!