Build up to the Double Handed Offshore Worlds
Cap 30 nationals
The Sun Fast 30 One Design is a fairly new class of yacht which is offering affordable racing with in easy to sail one design 30 foot boats. The class National Champs is the last event of the sun fast 30 championship hosted by Cherbourg Yacht Club, however the boats will be the class of yacht used for the 2025 Double Handed Offshore World Championships, in which I have been selected to represent New Zealand.The Class Nationals was a great opportunity to sail the boats for the first time and also with my co-skipper for the worlds Megan Thomson!
Our event kicked off on Thursday with one inshore race in strong wind conditions. Not only was it our first time sailing in double handed or our first time sailing a sun fast 30.. It was blowing a solid 22-27 knots on the race course to make it even more challenging. We managed to get around the course with no major issues and quickly learned how we should perform manoeuvres and sail around a course that would usually require a full team of sailors. 7th place was our first race result and we were stoked with that result. Even beating some boats that are fully crewed.
Next up was the 24hr offshore race.
A completely different forecast with light to medium winds and a few transitions in the wind. This 120 nautical mile course wasn’t just about making the boat go fast but making the correct navigation decisions.
The first half of the race went great, a short upwind heading west out of Cherbourg we soon rounded the first waypoint mid pack and hoisted the kite to sail downwind. Fighting the current down past Cherbourg were we started the race, we found ourselves at one point leading the pack. A few hours later the wind got lighter and trickier to make decisions. Lead changes were often occurring.
Next the wind shifted from the west to the north and we found ourselves on the wrong side of the shift as we had been sucked around the coast from the current. We had gone from hero to zero and we went from the hunted to the hunter..
As dark fell we were sailing upwind and heading towards our next turning mark. A clear sky and full moon was making our lives easy as we rounded the next mark. Sailing downwind we were jostling with a few boats at the back of the pack, trying to make any gains where we could. Two mark rounding and another upwind later we were in the same position in the fleet hoisting the spinnaker once again and heading back west towards Cherbourg for what would be the long downwind ride home.
About 3am the wind started to increase ranging from 15-17 knots. Pushing through the night to catch up to some of the boats in front we managed to find a mode and made a tactical decision that no one else had made. Sunrise came around and we were sliding downwind nicely and converged just behind a pack of 3 boats. Our move had paid off and we were in striking distance.
Playing a few more moves when all boats were fighting a strong current we made our move and managed to overtake all 3 boats within an hour. Next was keeping it simple and sailing to the finish.
We crossed the line 23 hours after our departure and finished in 6th place out of a fleet of 13. A solid result four our first double handed offshore race.
Last day
Our last race of the regatta was on Sunday, A two hour coastal course with many mark rounding’s and many manoeuvres. This was definitely our hardest day as the wind was strong and shifty. A few handling errors with sails around the course making our lives extra difficult. Again we managed to get around the course and finished the race in 7th.
All in all, a really good few days of racing and as a team we now feel better prepared for the offshore worlds. We made some solid improvements throughout the regatta and took away some learnings that will be incredibly useful in the up and coming World Champs!
As we go to represent not only ourselves but our country at this world champs we are excited to put our best foot forward and give it our all. There will be some solid competition and after sailing around the Solent recently I know the race course will provide its own challenges!
We say “Bring on the worlds”