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So much goes into preparing for a big regatta: finding reliable crew, boat repairs and maintenance, practice, time, money. But often it’s the simplest things that make or break a great day on the racecourse, as I learned recently at St. Augustine Race Week.
Normally I’m on the race committee boat for this event, snapping away on my Nikon. But as a change of pace, I signed up to crew on a friend’s Beneteau 361. Georges and Erna had recently purchased the boat, christening her Paloma, and entered the cruiser, non-spin class.
As the date approached, we spent time practicing, getting to know the nuances of the boat and gelling as a team. Georges did a great job organizing the crew and soliciting suggestions for improving our chances of winning some hardware. The crew trained rigorously, going through every point of sail, grinding winches, taking turns at the helm, and carefully reading the notice of race instructions until we were ready. And off we went to the Old City.
Day one greeted everyone with cold, blustery winds and large, unruly waves that frequently washed the deck. Heading through the Bridge of Lions we put a reef in the main, confident that we’d planned for every contingency and that we would come through with a solid performance.
Boy, were we wrong. But it wasn’t for the reasons you might think…
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