Laser Training
Today was Laser training day. The wind was not strong enough so it seemed quite bad. We arrived early at the club, rigged the boats and were told about rigging and sail setting. We had a drink hoping that the wind would pick up and then we went out.
We did some practice starts and I did quite well on two of them. On a couple of them I didn’t do that good but some of the blame was on the wind. I was on my way to the line when the wind would die down. On the other hand I shouldn’t be that far off the line with such low wind. I was quite happy overall, because I am getting there, I think.
We did a practice race too in a very short triangular course. I didn’t do that great with the low wind, but they were filming the whole thing so we saw ourselves later in the video and we could see improvement/effect to any change. What I really understood from the whole thing, is that I have to sit forward in the boat. Especially in low wind conditions.
The other thing I was told was about the run. It’s better to run by the lee in a Laser. This means that the wind doesn’t come directly behind you but slightly from the side where the sail is. That makes the boat more unstable than usual and more prone to capsizing. I need to work more on this and make sure I know exactly what to do in order to prevent a capsize.
Since the wind was very strong we watched a DVD called “Higher & Faster; Startline”. It has some really interesting tips for starting. These things might be common knowledge between seasoned sailors, but for a beginner like me it’s new stuff. I cannot say that I am going to apply them straight away, but slowly I can start trying and applying them one by one on the club races. I still feel though that I need to work on more basic things. These tips are an idea to show what you can do. For example, now I am more comfortable to bring the boat almost head to wind just before the start line and wait there until the gun. I also saw a very nice starting technique that accelerates the boat.
We wrapped up the day and I took home with me a couple of DVDs I borrowed from Steve. They are the “Boat Whisperer” series by Steve Cockerill. I watched them at home the same evening together with the “Higher & Faster” and I can say that they are really, really good. If you are a Laser racer and you don’t have them, go get them now! I will have to go and buy them at some point. All three are available from Rooster Sailing (check the links section on the right).
Note: I am not affiliated with Rooster Sailing in any way, shape, or form and my recommendation is purely genuine and impartial and hasn’t been affected by Rooster Sailing in any way. Actually I haven’t bought those DVDs myself, yet, but I am planning to do so as soon as I reach the point that I will need the information presented in them.