Day #3: Pain!

Arnoud Hummel (NED) and Scott Ferguson (USA) after a long day!
Both are roughly 6'2" and 185lbs.

Today was a lay day and I (the Sherpa) was a bit busy to write about yesterday…but here we go. To start, I asked Scott to give me one word to describe yesterday, he said, 'pain.'

Yesterday was a one-sided grind. The left was the way to go all day and if you could avoid overstanding the weather mark, you were in good shape. Yesterday was  the classic San Francisco conditions - 18-21 knots with some big puffs!

According to Scott, this regatta is all about execution. ‘I made plenty of mistakes both tactical and equipment-wise but the bottom line, is that you have to keep applying the pressure. You just have to keep pushing and whatever happens, it happens. It’s anyone’s game now.  All the guys are good….I execute very well in the starts and in my positioning but I think that my speed in the big breeze is slightly weaker than the two guys ahead of me. I just work to stay positive.  It’s pretty easy to get psyched out and think that the guy next to you is better. That is where applying the pressure comes in. Don’t let ‘em know and force them to make the mistakes first.’

For Scott, ‘Shifty in light-medium air would be my wish but, it is San Francisco and you’ve got to work with what you’ve got. I am good in all conditions…just not “great” in one.’

Tomorrow, we are scheduled to start 1 hour earlier so, possibly lighter breeze with an ebb tide which means that downwind speed will be at a premium and the need to avoid an OCS, imperative!

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