We left the marina in a nice NNE breeze and sailed to H. Once there, we hardened up and sailed upwind to find out which side of the course was better. We preferred the east side of the river for wind, even though there was more favorable current in the middle.
We thought the line was right side favored, but it turned out to be pretty even. We found this out by winning the right side of the line and then looking to our left and seeing Ladies Choice shoot out from the other side in a nice position. The leg up to D was tough as the wind was getting lighter and shiftier. We were neck and neck with a couple boats, but got a nice shift at the mark that allowed us to round first.
As the next leg dragged on, two boats got up next to us on either side by bringing the wind to us and then blocking our air. This happened to me at a HRYRA regatta once and I went crazy. This time I was a little less crazy, but still rolled in the jib for an aggressive luff against the windward boat. This gave us some breathing room and clear air. The leeward boat took in their whisker pole early and that slowed them enough to allow us to round the mark (24) first.
The last upwind leg was in a dying breeze, but the current was helping. We barely held on for a win by a one second corrected margin. It was a tough race and we had a lot of fun with the tight competition. After the race, we were not paying attention when the southerly rolled up the river. It was quite a quick change. There was no dead spot. The wind simply went from NNE to south in a moment.
The southerly was nice, so we continued sailing until after sunset. Many other boats stayed out sailing as well and it was a nice sight to see. The river was once again filled with sail on a Wednesday night and we were all moving well.
Here is a shot of Mad Mad Hatter:
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