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Test for Tasars
By AB Jessica Barr
Volume 49, No. 15, August 23, 2007 |
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WATERWORLD: SGT Ross MacDonald from 37SQN and forr’ard hand AB Jessica Barr prepare to round the up-wind mark during the 2007 Tasar World Championships in Thailand.
Photo courtesy of AB Jessica Barr |
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Defence Force sailors have proved once again that they are a force to be reckoned with on the international sailing scene.
In early July, five members of the ADF Sailing Association (ADFSA) travelled to Phuket, Thailand, for the 2007 Tasar World Championships off Cape Panwa from July 2-11.
The ADFSA team competed against a field of 58 boats representing Australia, Canada, Great Britain, Japan, the Netherlands, South Africa, Thailand and the USA and finished in 23rd, 27th and 43rd positions.
The ADFSA crews consisted of former world Tasar champion CDRE Rick Longbottom and his daughter Carmen (23rd place), LSMT Darryl Bentley and MIDN Andrew Foulkes (27th), and Air Force SGT Ross MacDonald and ABCIS Jessica Barr (43rd).
The championship comprised nine races over five days in 15-25 knot winds.
Sailors also had to overcome strong tides, tough wave patterns and a monsoonal squall – all in the 30-plus degree tropical heat and high Thai humidity.
The land-locked launching area also caused its own challenges. 180-degree wind-shifts meant boats could suddenly find themselves heading in unexpected directions.
Winds ranged from 8-15 knots for the July 4 invitation race, shifting right throughout the race.
CDRE Longbottom turned in a highly-competitive 10th, with LS Bentley and MIDN Foulkes two minutes astern in 15th and SGT MacDonald and AB Barr about two minutes behind them in 37th.
In the July 5’s two competitive races, the first enjoyed 12-16 knot winds, easing to 10-12 knots for the second.
The next day’s racing was sailed in similar conditions, with strengths up to 15-18 knots but a new challenge presented itself in the form of a strong current with the rising tide.
Boats that took the tides and current into account and used them to advantage came home soonest.
Any sailors settling into lassitude in the near-champagne conditions quickly found themselves jolted into the reality of unpredictable sailing weather over July 6 and 7.
Just before the start of the fifth race, the winds strengthened to 25-30 knots, as a squall descended on the fleet and “made life interesting”, to quote some.
On July 7, the fleet launched in near perfect conditions but 20 minutes later, crews were looking at near-survival conditions as a 37-knot monsoon (that’s a full Force 8) with driving, heavy rains descended upon them, along with a complete white-out that took out all visibility. |
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