CHICKS AHOY!
Geoff Bonus
SUN 14 APRIL 2013
OK ladies. I am pressed by Nikki to provide some written feedback.
I tried to resist but she can be very persuasive. Written notes get really detailed really easily, and the notes below are no exception to this.
What we are doing at the moment is the basics of boat handling, and on the water I am keeping it simple and repetitive. When I see that we are handling the boat well, we step it up a gear and increase the pace of manoeuvres, but we still keep it simple.
There are a 100 little things that we could stop and I could talk about at any one moment, but that is not the way to get everybody dancing the same dance steps. So in this written feedback I will mention some of the 100 little things and give some more feedback on the session. I hope it is useful.
BOW
Barb: 200% improvement in 7 days. Upwind: think ahead at all times and know that you and the boat are ready for the next 2 manoeuvres, whatever they may be. Always work on the windward rail. Talk to the Pit, let them know what you are doing/can do/cannot do/need to do. Hit the rail at transitions. Speed out of a rounding is more important than a tidy bow. Clean up when you can but only when the boat is at pace. Get into the habit of looking up whenever you take a halyard in your hand and check that it is free, not twisted, will go up, will come down. Downwind: be smooth. A confident calm bow makes the whole boat fast as everybody relaxes. Sailing is much more fun on the bow when you don’t have 18 eyes burning holes in the back of your head. Develop habits that make gybes easy. After a bottom mark rounding tell the boat when we are clear to tack. If we are not clear, tell them with more urgency and remedy it.
MAST
Lia: Good combination with Barb. Upwind: be the boat. You are at the centre of effort for power (adjacent the mast/keel) AND placed at the widest part of the boat (B-max) so every move you make does more for boat trim than anybody else’s. Take the lead on crew weight movement. Feel the different modes of the boat and respond with weight appropriately ie in flat water down pressure, less than 7 knts, weight to leeward to induce 14 degrees angle of heel, keep the boat fast by roll tacks, crew cross together to be more effective, press the rail down to complete the take, keep pressing to build speed. 7-9 knts, weight up and hiking in gusts to keep constant angle of heel, weight in for the lulls, press the boat down in tacks to reduce rudder movement (rudder= handbrake, less rudder movement=faster tack exit speed), weight up and hiking after completing the tack and when boat “attitude” is correct, mid pressure, 9-13 knts, be smooth, cross the boat quickly but smoothly and together, “heads in one line” when hiking AND tacking, take it a little easy hiking so you can press the rail down with an increase in effort in a gust, up pressue, 13-30 knts, hike like crazy, fully projected from the rail at all times, head position is low, bunch up and reduce windage, legs can feel numb, cross boat rapidly in tacks, don’t get caught to leeward, did I mention hike like crazy? Downwind: think ahead at all times and know that you and the boat are ready for the next 2 manoeuvres, whatever they may be. Eyes on Barb at all times, stay on the rail but watch/back up/provide “Quality Assurance” at all times. Get the new brace for the bow after a gybe so we a ready to gybe again as soon as possible, flick the lazy sheet around the brace to prevent it falling below the beak, human pole via the lazy sheet whenever the brace is not made including out of gybes.
SEWER/FLOAT
Mandy: At sewer/float/kicker you are the go-for girl, sails, water bottles, battens, etc. Pre start: know where everything is, have kites placed so you know which is which (there will usually be 3), take instructions from the Pit and if in doubt ask, Upwind: be nimble, be smooth. Feel the different modes of the boat and respond with weight appropriately (see above in Lia’s notes for more details about this) Downwind: Understand the mechanics that are holding the spinnaker tack in space via topping lift/brace/kicker, the sail needs to be stable and not bounce around in waves so tension pulling the pole down is important, spinnaker pole horizontal at all times for maximum sail projection, big sail=fast, understand that movement of any ONE pole adjustment ie topping lift/brace/kicker will require the other TWO to be adjusted, so brace trimmer AND pit AND kicker trimmer have to work together at all times.
MID BOAT/GRIND
Cate: Welcome aboard! At mid boat grind you are the glue that holds the centre of the boat together and the back up for the pit position. Eyes on what is happening in the middle of the boat at all times. When the pit needs a third hand it is yours, particularly important at top mark roundings. Upwind: think ahead at all times and know that you and the boat are ready for the next 2 manoeuvres, whatever they may be. Always work on the windward rail. Feel the different modes of the boat and respond with weight appropriately (see above in Lia’s notes for more details about this) Downwind: always grind from above the cabin top winch, tag out when tired, back up the pit at the drop, hit the rail early at transitions.
PIT
Hayley: Good combination with Lia and Barb. Upwind: Upwind: be nimble, be smooth. Feel the different modes of the boat and respond with weight appropriately (see above in Lia’s notes for more details about this), think ahead at all times and know that you and the boat are ready for the next 2 manoeuvres, whatever they may be. Always work on the windward rail. Downwind: communicate with mast and bow, eyes forward at all times, be the “Spokesman” for the front of the boat to reduce chatter amongst the crew, work on the rate of drop for the topping lift in gybes to help the bow be smooth, mark halyards for consistent settings at hoists, spinnaker pole horizontal at all times for maximum sail projection, big sail=fast, understand that movement of any ONE pole adjustment ie topping lift/brace/kicker will require the other TWO to be adjusted, so brace trimmer AND pit AND kicker trimmer have to work together at all times.
TRIM
Nikki: Nice upwind trim and downwind trim in pressure. Upwind: wear knee pads for quicker and more confident movement around the cockpit, work on earlier trimmer ready calls at tacks (on a fast boat the tactician simply calls tack the boat and they go), eyes on the jib when grinding out of a tack, work on taking the new sheet earlier so the second trimmer can hit the rail, get comfortable with the seated trimming position so that eyes are on tell tales/trim stripes/boat speed in one cone of vision, provide feedback to helm in this order: firstly angle out of the tack, secondly speed to build to target, lastly percentage jib trim, when within 0.5-1.0 knt of target speed bang it in to 100% trim and hit the rail, find a language that you and the helm are comfortable with OUT OF TACKS re boat speed/mode/TWA, think aloud when required, give the helm feedback, keep the helm quiet. In down pressure stay down on the winch and trim constantly. Get used to using the in hauls to make effective sail shapes. Downwind: ask for help in shy to shy tacks to handle the metres of sheet required, work on earlier trimmer ready calls at gybes to give the tactician options and avoid telegraphing your moves to the opposition, try trimming from the cockpit. Call pressure in the spinnaker sheet for the helm, provide feedback on opportunities for angle change, find a positive language that you and the helm are comfortable with re boat speed/mode/TWA, think aloud when required, give the helm feedback, keep the helm quiet.
SECOND TRIM
Andrea: Great job on second trim.
Upwind: when tacking in pressure at the new sheet, body position with the sheet in hands needs to be compressed at the leeward winch and expanded to the new windward rail. Be tall. Hit the rail and set up the new sheet from a hiking position. (later, in big wind and waves, let the trimmer do their own set up... just hike, HIKE, HIKE. Call breeze from the rail in up pressure to help the helm/main combination to anticipate.
Downwind: stay on the brace at ALL times. The new brace can prepared by you at the “setup” call, or can be made for you by your friendly neighbourhood main sheet hand. Be aggressive at the completion stage of the gybe ie standing posture and crouched position over winch for explosive take up of brace when made. With great technique this can reduce need to grind by 75%. Understand that movement of any ONE pole adjustment ie topping lift/brace/kicker will require the other TWO to be adjusted, so brace trimmer AND pit AND kicker trimmer have to work together at all times.
MAINSHEET
Matilda: Nice upwind trim, especially in the up pressure...isn’t it a nice change to have some breeze to work with! Upwind: constant chat with helm on speed and attitude, constant eyes on boat speed to keep the boat accelerating, monitor the boat mode and ask yourself “what will the boat speed be in 5 seconds time?”, “How do I respond now?”, aggressive traveller down when required, speed build when required, boat flat to accelerate and traveller up as the boat gets to targets and comes hard on the breeze. Find a positive language that you and the helm are comfortable with re boat speed/mode/TWA, think aloud when required, give the helm feedback, keep the helm quiet. Call crew weight if it is not happening to your liking. Downwind: back up the brace trimmer out of gybes by grinding, set up new brace so trimmer can remain on station, eyes aft for feedback to helm re pressure on the race track aft.
HELM
Michelle: It’s the hardest job on the boat so it takes the most effort and concentration to do well. Relax, let the crew know you are calm and in control, feel the boat. Upwind: get in mode with the main sheet trimmer, small adjustments of the helm, keep the angle of heel constant, generally speak less than the mainsheet trimmer does as you want the result (speed and height) not a conversation, let them give you the feedback so you are both thinking the same way, encourage them to think aloud so that you form a good combination and get into the right mode more quickly, remember less helm = more boat speed. Trust the crew to setup and prepare for manoeuvres and let them get on with it. Things WILL go wrong, and when they do keep the boat fast/clean/safe while they fix it. The more often they fix things that have gone wrong the less frequently things will go wrong. Downwind: listen to the trimmer for feedback on sheet pressure as they will often feel it in the sheet before you feel it in the boat, find a positive language that you and the trimmer are comfortable with re boat speed/mode/TWA, accept feedback and filter out whatever is not relevant, keep quiet because when you are quite everybody else follows your lead, small helm movements, think about your weight movement in the gybe, at the “set up” call identify your gybe angle and find a target to aim at on your exit for correct TWA on the next gybe, encourage feedback from brace trimmer re target angles for the wind speed, encourage everybody all the time re boat mode, if you tell them when it feels really good and they get used to hearing it they will know when things are not right without you saying a word!
Nikki now Typing!
I just want to say to all of you that this is a dream come true for me, for many, many years I have tried to get inside Geoff's head and find a way to squeeze out all this information from him, I have also been the girl who never moved from a position as there was never any time to be trained.
Matilda and I were talking last night, this is one of those moments in life when you are out on the water, and it is the whole team that is adding to the experience.
It is also in the observation of our reactions and interactions that makes us a better tighter team, human and sailor.
I was blown away yesterday by every one, yet a very special shout out to Barb and Andrea, please do not think that I did not adore you all, yet what I saw was the strength and commitment of the human spirit, and Barb every time I I thought of you I would start singing I got knocked down then I get up again!!!! You are a super star.
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