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Race Report Happy/Sad From Andy Horton/Brad Nichol at the Bacardi Cup. The best feeling in yacht racing is getting the gun at the finish line and looking back to see 90 boats behind you on a perfect day for sailing. After a difficult day yesterday we took the time to recheck our whole rig to be sure we were set up correctly. We were the first boat out to the course to warm up and felt good. We started the race about one third of the way down the line from the committee boat with the intention of heading right (offshore) where there was more wind. We knew the left would be strong all day but there was more pressure to the right until you got clear of Key Biscayne. Once we stepped out into the pressure we fought our way back to the left and worked to win our side. We made it to the weather mark first with Mark Reynolds and John Dane close behind out of the right side. Downwind we worked hard to stay in the pressure and picked the right gate so we could clear the fleet quickly upwind and get left on the course where we thought there was more wind. The left paid big and we put distance on Reynolds and Dane as Marc Pickel from Germany moved into second. On the second run it was a simple game of defense to stay between our competitors and the finish. We sailed a great race and crossed the line first with 90 boats behind us. The worst feeling in sailing is when you sail a perfect race, cross the line first and do not hear a gun. We were called over the line at the start and disqualified under the "Black Flag" rule. We were absolutely stunned. We attended a redress hearing and the race committee played an audiotape that had someone reading our sail number aloud two seconds before the start. We were unsuccessful in our redress bid as a result. We know we sailed a great race and are encouraged by our performance, even if we do not have the low number next to our name on the results to show for it. Tomorrow (Tuesday) looks to be another perfect day for racing on Biscayne Bay with sunny skies and 10-20 knot wind out of the northwest. The only thing to do is to go out and sail another great race tomorrow but this time, stay behind the line at the start. Andy & Brad 03/07/06 |