Faces covered with sun protection and masts bouncing around on a 20-knot breeze. ‘Normal conditions’, is what most teams call it, ‘just normal’. No special preparations are taken. ‘I am more worried about the competition of the big ladies in this race’, says Dutch Laser Radial sailor Irena Doets.
It’s Irena’s first World Cup, but she is not the only one. There are more countries that have sent their first-time Regatta teams out this year. Newcomers look around focusing on gear. Preparations or not, this is a day where we can expect some broken equipment. The Sailing Center service trailer is ready to help deliver spare gear.
Pim from the service trailer tells that some Finn boats might not start their races today, because the strong wind will cause damage to their lightweight dinghy. Hungarian Gaszton Pel will start his Finn race later on anyway. ‘I hope knots will drop during the day’ he says relaxing on a bench ready to support his colleagues leaving the harbor.
So far only the Star races have been postponed.
