Winter Newsletter 2003

Contents

• Regatta Report from Worlds in India.
• Local Regatta Report
• OK Winter Sailing Schedule
• OK related info
• Gear for sale

In March & April of this year, the 2003 OK Dinghy World Championships were held, for the first time, in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Goa in India. Six Kiwis were there for New Zealand, and I was one of them.

I didnít win the 2003 OK Worlds in India, but I did come 2^nd which, so far, is the highlight of my yachting career. While it might seem a bit much to write an extensive report on an event that I didnít actually win, I think it is worthwhile for two reasons. Firstly, because of the amazing experience that is India, and secondly, there are lessons to be learnt about performing under pressure and succeeding despite difficult and uncomfortable conditions, which can be applied to all kinds of situations. Plus, I got pretty sick on the way home, and was housebound for a couple of weeks, the final week imposed by my employers who, because of the SARS scare, forbade me from returning to work until after Easter. So I have had some time to write this!

Acknowledgments

Before going further I want to thank those who made the trip possible for me and for whom this report is really written. In particular, I want to thank my two personal sponsors: my employers Minter Ellison Rudd Watts and the New Zealand International Yachting Trust. I wasnít planning on going to India until I won the NZ OK Nationals in January of this year, and these two organizations were quick to step up and give me full support so that I could make the Worlds only 2 months later.

To the partners and marketing team at Minters, my major sponsors who took a chance on me in a sport not enjoying the best atmosphere in New Zealand immediately after our 5-0 loss of the Americaís Cup in February, I am eternally grateful. This high-powered law firm has shown a human side and loyalty to me, and I value that enormously and will do my best to repay it.

My other sponsor was the New Zealand International Yachting Trust, and their support, provided without hesitation at the eleventh hour, made the difference between a solid attempt at competing in the Worlds, and a really serious shot at a medal. As much as their generous financial support, the boost to my confidence from having faith put in me by the trustees - who are all successful figures both in yachting and in the community - was huge. Those trustees are: John Street (Chairman), John Lusk, Ralph Roberts, Peter Lester, Don Sinclair-Brown, John Sinclair-Brown, Bevan Woolley, Royden Hindle, Rod Slater and Simon Gundry. Although he is no longer an active trustee, I also note and am appreciative of Sir Tom Clarkeís instrumental role in forming the trust. I would finally like to particularly thank Ralph Roberts for his advice and support over the years. It has made such a difference to all of us in the OKs and we are eternally grateful to him.

Our off-the-water team gear was provided at a very reasonable cost by Line 7, who have provided this service to the NZ OK team a number of times in the past and always ensure that we are the best dressed team at the Worlds. I hope the relationship with Line 7 can continue on into the future.

Finally, the Kiwis who I traveled and sailed with were great. Greg Wilcox (winner of the last OK Worlds in Napier, New Zealand in January 2002), who made my fast sails and has taught me so much about racing OKs, was as always a huge help. He and his Wellingtonian training mates Paul Rhodes (who took silver in Napier) and Joe Porebski, who were also in the team, are legends of the NZ OK fleet and are brilliant to be on tour with. Off the water, we are all grateful to Paul who took charge of the mammoth task of dealing with Indian Customs and the shipping people so that we could get our boats delivered from the port at Goa, and then shipped back to New Zealand afterwards. The other members of the Kiwi team, Rob Coutts and John Gillespie were great to have along and performed well for their country.

India

Many people have asked: "How was India?" and thatís a pretty difficult question to answer. There is just so much to it: the mix of old and new, madness and wisdom, wealth and poverty; the beauty, the bureaucracy, the heat. It is an incredible place, but you have to go there to know what itís like. I canít think of a place less like New Zealand. Holding a yachting regatta there provided the perfect opportunity to experience something truly different.

Getting to Goa

Our first sight of India was flying low over the hills in the approach to Mumbai (formerly Bombay as named by the British). Those hills were pretty strange looking - as we got closer it became clear why. They were covered, every inch of them, with dusty brown and grey shacks. These shacks, thousands of them, would be considered uninhabitable in New Zealand, yet here they were, so close they were touching, some built on top of others. We flew so close we could see people on the roofs and in the few dusty streets between. They were dressed in rags. These slums continue right up to a large wall, topped with barbed wire and broken glass, running along one side of the airport runway. To someone coming from New Zealand it is pretty shocking. Anyway, that was my first sight of India. Mumbai airport is huge, a great big concrete structure which must have been impressive once but is now crumbling and dilapidated. We were welcomed at the airport and taken to a cafeteria for a welcome breakfast of curry and tea ñ the sort of crazy combination that is so common there. My first curry breakfast but it certainly wasnít to be my last.

We caught our connecting flight to Goa and got through customs after a brief argument with the customs inspector about Gregís special bag containing sails and rudders ñ he felt that as they were such unusual items we should be paying duty. It was not to be the first time that we were unable to make a local understand (a) what a yacht race is, and (b) why anyone would want to travel halfway round the world to sail little boats round three buoys in their harbour. I also had some brief problems when they put my bag under the x-ray: my spare fittings and ropes looked like some kind of bomb-making kit. However, they clearly decided they couldnít be bothered trying again to understand about sailing (having just heard it all from Greg) so just waved me through when I tried to explain.

Then we caught a taxi ñ it was a 30 minute ride to our resort ñ and had our first experience of Indian traffic, which is insane. The lanes, where they are marked, mean nothing. Traffic usually runs about three wide on each side, and there is an awful lot of braking, accelerating, horn tooting, and wild passing, but no stopping, and all you can do is sit back and enjoy the ride ñ if you canít do that, shut your eyes and think of home. The most common vehicles were motor bikes, tuk-tuks (three wheeled rickshaw type things), tiny taxi-vans, and the 1950s design cars which are still produced new there. The traffic system does work though and we figured out there are two reasons for this: noone ever stops (so there are none of the traffic jams that we get from the stop-start style of western driving), and none of the cars can go very fast so accidents are simply less likely and less damaging than they are in New Zealand.

Once we got used to the traffic, the taxi ride was an early opportunity to see Goa. Again the poverty was striking ñ everywhere there are shacks, under the trees, on the beaches, on the banks of rivers. It is so extensive that you quickly realize that to constantly draw comparisons with New Zealand is futile. It just isnít the same, and the "norms" that we are used to simply donít apply.

We eventually arrived at our resort after driving through Paniji, the closest town, and were reminded of the enormous gap between the "haves" and the "have-nots" in India. Cidade de Goa, the resort and venue for the OK Worlds, was a beautiful place with sweeping lawns, nice restaurants, shops, tailors, swimming pool, private beach and basically everything you could possibly want. Most of us later agreed that, where possible, hosting a big yachting event at a resort with its own beach is a great option.

For our first night in India we caught a taxi to Dona Paula, a little cluster of buildings on the northern point of the harbour in which Cidade de Goa is located. It has a lookout surveying the racecourse, and a decent little restaurant. So we sat down to our first Indian dinner, and had a vegetarian curry as we were pretty nervous at this stage about getting sick ñ everyoneís biggest fear about India. Actually, as the trip went on we became less and less concerned about the food but remained extremely careful about the water ñ only drinking bottled water, never having ice in drinks, examining our glasses before using them etc. As it turned out, of the whole 6-man kiwi team only one of us had any real stomach problems the entire time we were there. After dinner we went back to Cidade, and I turned on the TV in my room to see that the US had just given Saddam Hussein 48 hours to get out of Iraq. In hindsight we were completely sheltered and safe from it all, but at the time it was a bit worrying to think that some distance away to the west, on the same piece of land, war was about to start.

Acclimatisation and Boat Procurement

The first thing we discovered the next morning was that the container in which our boats were packed had not yet been released from the shipping port at Masgamar de Goa, but we were assured that we would have them very soon. Colonel Sanjay Sahni of the Indian Army was assisting with that side of things. Colonel Sahni and another Indian Army officer Major Milin were a great help to us throughout our time in India, and these guys also had some interesting perspectives to share as they are normally based in Kashmir and have real experience of war. Both became good friends of the Kiwis and we are very grateful to them for all their help during our time there.

It turned out that we werenít to have our boats for three more days, and we spent the next two touring around Goa in taxis ñ you could have a taxi for a whole day for around $30. My main memory of those two days was the "hippy market", a market at Anjuna Beach where all kinds of things were available for tourists to buy. That was interesting, and we had to learn how to haggle ñ something most of us were never particularly tough about as the prices were never that high to begin with, and the people selling the goods looked as if they could do with the money. I also had my first encounter with beggars. As we got out of the taxi at the market, a very small, thin girl (she must have been about 5 or 6) came up and silently pointed at her mouth. She wasnít the only one; there were a great many more around the market that day and it was really quite upsetting. Throughout the trip we came across beggars at various times, and where there were only one or two we would give them some money, but otherwise you just have to walk on or get mobbed. It was an aspect of India that I donít think any of us got used to.

On the morning of 20 March we had a phone call from Colonel Sahni advising that we would have to go to the shipping port and sign some papers, and our boats would then be released ñ Major Milin would accompany us and it "should not take long". What an understatement. To cut a very long story short, we spent 10 hours at the shipping port dealing with Indian beauracracy, which has to be experienced to be believed. Paul Rhodes was an absolute hero, dealing with the whole thing on behalf of the Kiwis while Greg and I sat outside various offices waiting. Paul signed approximately 30 forms, dealt with at least 20 different officials and by the end of it was laughing - it was that or go stark raving mad. Our boats were finally released that evening, and despite promises that they would arrive at Cidade that night, the truck driver decided to stop and sleep in his truck and so arrived early the next morning.

Indian Nationals

21 March was the first day of the Indian Nationals, in which we were welcome to take part but were deemed "non-competitive" which meant we would not be able to win or have our position counted. This regatta also doubled as the Indian selection trials for the Worlds. It was a hard day for the Kiwi team: we unpacked the container in the morning which is always a hot exhausting task under any circumstances ñ in India it is hell. We then attended the opening ceremony, which was very formal with speeches given by the high-ranking military personnel running the event (two Colonels and a Major General), followed by tea and cucumber sandwiches on the lawn, and then a press conference. It was interesting to learn that sailing in India is mainly encouraged, at this stage, by the military forces. The entire Indian team (except for their champion Nitin Mongia, a stockbroker from Mumbai) are in the military.

In the afternoon we sailed two races and found the conditions very difficult. From one point of view, they were great: we had a sea breeze more or less every single day, with nice waves. However looks can be deceiving. The heat affects everything. The wind is softer than it looks, because the heat means it isnít very dense. For the same reason, the water is "softer" and the boats therefore behave differently in it. They feel sluggish upwind and difficult to get moving downwind. Thirdly, the heat affected our sailing ñ physically it is exhausting to sail two races in that heat and humidity, and mentally the effect was obvious as you would find yourself struggling to make simple tactical decisions. By comparison the Indians looked comfortable and fresh and it was clear that we would have to learn to deal with the heat if we were to perform well. The other weird aspect of sailing there was the water ñ brown, smelly and warm. Getting splashed in the face was pretty unpleasant at first and I tried not to think too much about what might be in the water. We were all careful not to swallow any of it, and I formed the habit of wiping my lips constantly on the sleeve of my top ñ totally pointless but I couldnít help myself.

On that first day, the Indian Nitin Mongia won both races, and the other Kiwis filled the next four spots: I was 2^nd twice, Greg had a 3^rd & 4^th, Paul was 4^th & 5^th, and Joe was 6^th & 3rd. After pulling my boat up the beach at the end of that first day, I almost fainted from heat and exhaustion. We soon figured out that water was the key. During the Worlds I was drinking 3 to 4 litres of water (mixed with electrolyte) while out racing each day, and would go through 2 to 3 litres in the morning before heading out. One of the very best things about sailing in India was that soldiers were assigned to help us get our boats in and out of the water each day- it would have been a nightmare without them.

On Day 2 of the Indian Nationals, Nitin had two more victories. He was clearly in incredible form, and none of us could touch him for pure boatspeed. This was a real surprise, as in the previous OK Worlds in Napier 2002 he had finished a credible 18^th but never really threatened the front of the fleet. I had a 2^nd and a 4^th, Paul Rhodes was 3^rd & 2^nd, Joe was 4^th & 3^rd and Greg was 5^th twice. The four of us Kiwis were virtually identical in terms of speed and performance at that stage. The other Kiwis, Rob Coutts and John Gillespie were not going quite so well - John is new to the class, and Rob (who is a very well-known, experienced and skilled helmsman) had been extremely sick on his second day in India, and had in fact spent the day in an Indian hospital on morphine. He showed a lot of toughness to recover and perform brilliantly in the Worlds two weeks later.

Day 3 of the Indian Nationals was interesting racing. Nitin won race 5 with Paul 2^nd, Joe 3^rd and Greg 4^th while I was 5th. In race 6, the Kiwis struck, with Joe stopping Nitinís run and having a victory, while Paul was 2^nd, Nitin 3^rd, I was 4^th and Greg had gear problems and didnít finish. Joe sailed really well all day and was looking very dangerous. At this stage I was a bit concerned: I was really struggling downwind in these hot conditions, and for some reason seemed to be lacking pace and height upwind as well. There was certainly a lot to learn about sailing in this place before the Worlds commenced. To take my mind off my sailing woes, that night I had my first real Indian Vindaloo for dinner ñ I was pouring with sweat and drinking plenty by the end of it, but I was determined not to be defeated so ordered vindaloo twice more during the trip and by the end of the third attempt could eat the whole thing without too much trouble.

On Day 4 of the Indian Nationals we sailed the last race, and Nitin won his 6^th race of the regatta to be overall winner by a huge margin. Paul, Joe and Greg took the 2^nd to 4^th spots, and Rob Coutts started to show some form, gaining a 5^th while I was 6^th.

The final top 6 placings in the Indian Nationals were: Nitin Mongia, Paul Rhodes, Joe Porebski, Ben Morrison, Greg Wilcox, Rob Coutts. So the Kiwis were looking strong, but we really had barely touched Nitin out there and none of us had seen anyone win 6 races in an OK regatta before. I was making too many mistakes, trying to compensate for the boatspeed problems that I hadnít yet solved and taking a few too many risks. Still, 4^th was by far the best result I had had in a pre-Worlds regatta. My goal was always a top-5 finish in the Worlds, though I really wanted a medal. So it was not a time for despondency as the Indian Nationals really didnít mean anything to us except as an opportunity to prepare for the Worlds, which would begin in 6 days. And the Kiwis knew we could make improvements to our sailing by then. Further, it was important not to get too concerned about the result in the Indian Nationals. It seems to be very important to keep your priorities straight at this stage of the build-up, because a big mental and emotional effort is always needed to get a good result in any big regatta ñ so I was determined to save my real focus for the main event. The biggest area of development for me this season has been in relation to the mental aspect of regatta sailing, and before the Worlds I discussed it with Greg and Paul a lot - they came 1^st and 2^nd in the previous OK Worlds in Napier in 2002. I also learnt a lot from John Bertrandís 1985 book Born to Win about Australia IIís victory in the 1983 Americaís Cup which deals really well with the psychological approach needed for difficult challenges.

The night after the Indian Nationals finished we had a celebratory dinner with Nitin and his fulltime coach and Star class skipper Lt Commander Mahesh Ramachandran at a great restaurant called Martinís Corner which specializes in Goan seafood dishes. The food was great, and the drink was too ñ except for the Fenni. This is an extremely strong spirit made from cashew nuts, which smells like kerosene and tastes worse. Still, it relaxed everyone and we had a great night.

Preparation

The day after the Indian Nationals finished, a group of Kiwis, Germans and one Swede went to see Indiaís highest waterfall, the Dudsagar Falls, which are really spectacular. About three-quarters of the way up, a railway line crosses the Falls ñ yet another reminder of the former colonial presence in India. We swam in the huge pool at the bottom of the falls, which was cold as the water comes from such a height ñ this was a real treat after a week of non-stop heat.

On the way back to Cidade, we stopped at Old Goa, a World Heritage Site because of the huge Catholic churches built by the Portuguese Colonials who ran Goa from around 1600. These were truly amazing, and made of the same handmade bricks that most buildings in Goa seem to use as their base material (except of course for the shacks made from palm leaves and blue plastic sheets). After that, we visited a Hindu temple: the temple of Sheba, god of anger. That was very interesting, and like no church I had seen before. We were asked to contribute donations though, so I guess there are some aspects common to most churches!

While we are on the subject of churches, it is worth a word about religion as it is such an important part of life in India. The Catholic influence has remained strong in Goa, and it is the predominant religion there, with most of the taxi drivers having their rosary beads wrapped around the rearview mirror so that there is no doubt what their religion is. The Hindu ones have tiny shrines dedicated to their favourite god on the dashboard, again making their religion clear. One day while we were there the biggest Hindu festival of the year was on, and all the local Hindus were charging around covered in bright paint and putting more paint on everyone they saw ñ Greg, Paul and I were in Paniji at the time and got painted. The only Muslims we came across in Goa were from the North of India, owned carpet shops and were clearly wealthy. They exploit the Kashmir villagers and have them all making carpets non-stop. The best carpets, which I have to say are stunning, are made by little girls as they have delicate fingers - an average 6x4 carpet would take 2 years to make, and its maker would probably see a few dollars for it.

After the day off, it was into serious preparation for the Worlds. I spent the morning of 26 March working on my boat, fitting my new rudder and placing the big Minter Ellison Rudd Watts stickers on the sides of the hull. In the afternoon I went training with Paul, Joe and Greg who all gave me a hiding ñ I was still struggling with upwind and downwind speed, and wondering what to tell everyone at home! The Englishman Nick Craig, European Champion and already 2^nd and 3^rd in the world, was yet to arrive and the Swede and Germans were unknown quantities but bound to be competitive.

On March 27 we went training again, and I was getting closer to the other Kiwis. I had a list of technique-related things that needed improving so I was dealing with them one at a time and hoping to get them all resolved before the Worlds. With a few things to think about, for the first time I didn't join the usual party of dinner-goers, but just had room service and an early night.

On the third day of training I real improvement, finally keeping up and even beating the other Kiwis at times ñ we were now all very close for speed and had learnt a lot about sailing in tropical conditions. The biggest lesson I learnt about sailing fast and high in those conditions is this: use minimal rudder. Both upwind and downwind, it was necessary to keep the helm as neutral as possible, not using the rudder to power through or around difficult waves as we sometimes do in the denser waters of home, but using the trim or heel of the boat to carve left or right. It was very easy to oversteer, causing the boat to stall and feel dead in the water.

The next day, March 29, was Measurement and Registration for the Worlds, and while that was perhaps a little loose in some respects, the Indians did a very good first-time job and it went largely without a hitch. It is a huge task, as every boat has to have its hull, mast, boom, sail and foils measured together with spares of everything but the hull. All my equipment measured fine. After measurement, I worked on my boat. I wet&dry sanded my centerboard, rudder and entire hull, finishing by washing the whole lot with fresh water and dishwashing liquid. The benefit of all this is probably more psychological than anything but itís essential to peace of mind when in a big regatta. Some of the guys went training in the afternoon, but I opted to rest up. I had solved my speed problems by now and was more concerned to be fresh when the Worlds started two days from then. My third Vindaloo for dinner, and crushed it - I was ready!

Worlds Practice Race & Opening Ceremony

On 30 March the Invitation Race of the 2003 OK Worlds was held in yet another sea breeze. This time the wind was quite fresh, gusting up to 20 knots, providing exciting rides downwind and hard work upwind. I took it pretty quietly, not wanting to use too much energy, as Races 1 & 2 of the Worlds were the next day. Paul, flying as only he can do in a real breeze and in the lead at the finish, didnít go through the line after an incident between him and Greg in which he knew he had been in the wrong. So Greg won the Invitation Race (and the Sven Lehn Memorial Trophy), Joe was 2^nd and I was 3^rd. Nick and Nitin pulled out after the first triangle, opting to save their energy.

That evening, a great opening ceremony for the Worlds was held at Cidade. We were all seated in the open air before a raised dais, at which were seated the two Colonels, the Major General and some OKDIA (International OK Dinghy Association) officers (our own Joe Porebski, Southern Hemisphere Vice President among them). We were then asked to stand for the arrival by chauffeur-driven car of Governor Kidar Nath Sahani, Governor of Goa, who gave a speech and officially opened the Worlds. After several speeches we all adjourned once more to the lawn where it was tea and food, of course with the classic cucumber sandwiches, and a group photo of all the competitors together with the Governor and the Worlds officials. After that we all had an early night in preparation for Races 1 & 2 the next day.

Race 1

Race 1 of the worlds was a moderate sea-breeze with oscillating shifts ñ nothing new for Goa, but difficult as you could never tell which side of the course would be favoured by the sporadic lines of breeze that sweeping across the course. Everyone was pretty jumpy, and the first start was recalled after half the fleet started early. On the second attempt the race started smoothly, and the first beat was very close ñ Nitin was first around the top mark, followed very closely by Paul with Nick Craig 3^rd, Soenke Behrens of Germany 4^th and I was 5^th.

Halfway down the first reach, the pressure got to Soenke and he capsized, allowing me to get into 4^th. Meanwhile, Nick passed Paul and he and Nitin cleared away a little down the second reach, while Paul and I were also able to extend out from those behind us in the shifting breeze. From there, Nitin and Nick were engaged in a close battle all the way to the finish while I chased hard but was unable to pass Paul who has good speed and makes few mistakes. Nitin crossed the line 1^st, followed by Nick Craig, Paul and then me. Joe crossed the line 5^th, Greg crossed 7^th, and Rob 8^th. Unfortunately, Paul was then in for a nasty shock as he had been deemed "OCS" (On Course Side), or over the starting line early, and disqualified from Race 1. For this to happen in the first race of a World Championship, where you only get to discard one race from your series, is devastating. If Paul was to be in with a shot at a medal he now had to have a great finish in every race for the remainder of the regatta. Paul swore he wasnít over the starting line early - he was so adamant that he found a witness and protested the decision of the race committee. He argued (and his witness testified) that not only wasnít he early, he in fact had a poor start and was several seconds late! Why the committee deemed him OCS we will never know, but Paulís protest was thrown out later that evening so that the disqualification stood.

Race 2

Race 2 was held immediately after the finish of Race 1, with a short break of about 30 minutes. Everyone was so keyed up there were 4 general recalls before the Principal Race Officer raised the black flag ñ this means that anyone over the starting line within one minute of the start will be disqualified, end of story. Finally we got off to a clean start and once again it was a match race between Nitin and Nick, sailing the shifts all the way up the beats and showing great speed downwind. Nick initiated a furious tacking duel with Nitin up the last beat, and made some gains through superior boat-handling, but couldnít pass the Indian and Nitin was 1st again, with Nick 2^nd. Joe sailed a very good race and was 3^rd the whole way round the track. I didnít have a great first beat and was about 8^th around the first mark but managed to get into 5^th by the final beat and pass the Australian James McAllister just before the finish to be 4^th again and end the first day 3^rd overall. Greg was 6^th, Rob was 7^th and Paul was 9^th, clearly suffering after the disappointment of Race 1.

It was clear after Day 1 of the Worlds that Nitin and Nick were very fast ñ they had similar hulls, masts and sails and seemed to have an edge over the rest of the fleet. They were about the same speed as the Kiwis, but upwind seemed able to outpoint us (sail closer to the wind) at will - a huge weapon in yacht racing. Nitin and Nick were clearly going to have a hard tussle. Also, while the press and the officials were all watching Nitin, Nick, Greg and Paul closely, noone was taking much notice of me and in hindsight I think this really helped me. Nick was warned on Day 1 by one of the Indian jury members to be careful about excess body movement (which can be used, illegally, to gain extra speed) ñ and I can guarantee that Nick wasnít the only one using his body to good effect! Given those factors, and Paulís OCS, I made a conscious decision to keep out of the limelight and stay out of trouble on and off the water. My plan for the regatta was to remain calm, not make any stupid mistakes due to nerves, and just sail the races one part at a time when the pressure was on. One thing I did during the Worlds to combat nerves was to leave my watch timer running on a 5 minute cycle after the start in each race - whenever I got nervous Iíd look at it and just try to sail really well until the end of the current cycle, be that 4 minutes 30, 1 minute, or whatever. It really worked and was a valuable lesson in dealing with pressure fleet racing ñ do each small thing well and the big picture, which you canít immediately control anyway, will take care of itself. Of course at the beginning of race and each leg it was necessary to assess and review the situation and formulate a plan, but that seemed to flow naturally if Iíd done all the little things well.

Protests

Day 1 didnít end without controversy ñ as well as Paulís protest about his OCS, both Greg and Nick protested Nitin for alleged offences in Race 2. Nick contended that Nitin had hit the first mark and refused to acknowledge as such or do the required penalty turn. Paul was a witness in Nickís protest, testifying that he very clearly saw Nitin hitting the mark. Greg also lodged a separate and unrelated protest against Nitin for hitting the bottom mark, however Greg had no witness. Gregís protest was, justifiably, thrown out for a lack of evidence. However, Nick seemed to have a clearcut case and usually a clear allegation of such an offence supported by a witness would result in a disqualification.

Towards the end of a lengthy hearing, the two Indian members on the international jury testified that they had also seen the incident and did not believe Nitin had touched the mark. Further, they disregarded Paulís evidence on the basis that, had he really believed Nitin had touched the mark, he would have protested himself. And finally, Nitinís claim that he had not heard Nick hailing "protest!" (despite half the fleet hearing Nickís furious shouting until halfway down the reach) was accepted. Nickís protest was thrown out and Nitinís victory in Race 2 stood. I only mention this incident because it seemed so unnecessary - Nitin was sailing brilliantly, he didn't need this kind of thing and if he did hit the mark, he should have done his penalty turn. The whole affair was a bit disappointing and it also highlighted the importance of only having one jury member from each country ñ I am not questioning the jury's impartiality in this case but the situation should never be created where that is even a possibility.

Race 3

Day 2 of the Worlds dawned, as usual, hot and sunny. The sea breeze filled in a little earlier than usual, and by the time we headed out for Race 3 (only one race was to be sailed that day) it was getting quite windy. The wind ended up rising to about 18-20 knots during the race, and it was a real test for me, being lighter than many of the frontrunners. Nitin sailed a great first beat and led for the first triangle, Nick was second and Greg and I were 3^rd and 4^th by the bottom mark. We were really flying downwind, helped by the heavier breeze and bigger waves. I passed about 5 boats to leeward on the first reach, surfing and loving it. Down the second reach I caught up to Greg, and we really took time out of the front two, clearing off from those behind us and looking very competitive. Up the second beat to windward, Nick and Nitin were once again grappling for the lead and doing a lot of tacks up the center-left of the course. I felt that the wind was shifting right, following the sun, so I headed out on port tack with Greg above me but not as far right. My shift came and I decided to take the gain and consolidate, tacking in a nice line of breeze and heading back to the center of the course. I soon found that not only had I passed Greg, but also Nick and very nearly Nitin as well who was now on port tack and converging with me. Instead of engaging Nitin at that point, I went behind his stern and continued on my starboard tack further out to the left. This was a mistake ñ I should have tacked next to Nitin, gone with him and protected the righthand side. Meanwhile, Greg had gone further right, got himself briefly into the lead and was 2^nd around the top mark behind Nitin, whom we had both let off the hook. I was 3^rd and remained there until the final beat where Nick powered past me in the freshening breeze. Behind me now was Paul, and in 18-20 knots he gets his 95kg out over the side and is pretty much unstoppable. I managed to just stay in front of him and finish 4^th. Itís the best Iíve done in a fresh breeze against that kind of competition, and I was still 3^rd overall so things were on track. With Paul finishing 5^th, Joe was 6^th and Rob finished 13^th.

Race 4

Day 3 was a light sea breeze, 6-8 knots and closer to the conditions weíd had in the NZ Nationals. We had two races back-to-back - 6.5 hours on the water, in extreme heat. By the dayís end all of us, including the Indians, were exhausted and dehydrated. Decision-making is difficult under those conditions, and drinking plenty of water is crucially important.

Nitin led race 4 from start to finish, sailing the shifts and pressure lines very well. Rudiger Prinz of Germany, the 72kg light weather specialist, came into his own and also sailed well to take 2^nd while Paul was 3^rd. I had really good pace downwind, and was 2^nd at the bottom mark each time, but wasnít quite consistent enough up the beats and ended up 4^th. Nick Craig wasnít so effective in the lighter airs and was 5^th so I was pleased to know I had an edge on him in some areas. Upwind we were probably still about the same (he went a bit higher and I went a bit faster), but downwind I was really taking time out of him. Rob sailed well to take 6^th and Joe and Greg were back a little but still in the top 10 with 9^th and 10^th respectively.

Race 5

Race 5 was very similar to Race 4: light airs, the wind oscillating very regularly, and pressure lines coming down the course which had to be found if you were to be competitive. Once again, Nitin led the whole way though it was a close race. At the first mark Nick was 2^nd, Paul was 3^rd and I was 4^th. Up the middle beat, Paul sailed very well to take the lead, followed by Nitin, Nick and I. However Nitin showed his surprising downwind pace to pass Paul, and from there led to the finish. With about 200m to go, the front 4 were locked in a close race, with Nitin covering everyone in the centre of the course. I was 4^th with quite a gap to 5^th, so took a gamble and headed left to the layline where I thought some pressure might arrive. Paul in the meantime was attacking Nickís 2^nd position and nobody covered me. As I got close to the layline, my hunch paid off and I tacked into a good lefthand shift, gaining pressure at the same time. That took me past Nick and Paul, and saw me finish in 2^nd, just crossing Paul who finished 3^rd. Nick had a 4^th which took me to within 2 points of him overall - the silver was now a possibility. Rob, steadily improving, had a 5^th, Greg was 6^th and Joe was 12^th.

So, after 5 races, Nitin had 5 wins and very nearly the title. We calculated that all he needed was one more finish in the top 6 and he wouldnít need to sail the last race. 5 wins is an incredible record and none of the competitors had ever seen such dominance at an OK Worlds. I was getting a better handle on the conditions by this stage: the shifts and pressure lines were arriving very regularly though not necessarily together. My strategy for the upwind legs became this: keep clear air, wait for the inevitable shift and tack when I could have a shift + pressure + clear air. I watched carefully for where the pressure was, where the boats around me were, and stuck to my plan. It was essential in those conditions to follow that basic formula, and those who didnít just got further and further behind.

Race 6

Day 4 was another light day, sunny and hot as always. Nick and I started in the centre of the line and headed right; initially we looked very strong and looked to be leading the fleet. However, about halfway up the first beat Nitin and Rob Coutts, having gone left, gained a huge shift and were 1^st and 2^nd around the first mark, followed by Nick in 3^rd. I was about 7^th at this point.

The places didnít change much down the reaches in these light airs, except that Nick managed to get past Rob to go round the bottom mark in 2^nd. I was in the middle of a real scrap with Paul, Greg, Joe, the Swede Hans Elkjaer and a couple of the Indians. The bottom mark-rounding turned into a total mess, with a whole group of us arriving at the same time in very little wind, everyone shouting and arguing about who had right-of-way, and the whole scene being an example of people making bad decisions and getting emotional under pressure. I stayed out of the verbal confrontation, but probably wasnít nearly aggressive enough and went around the bottom mark on the outside of 3 boats. Looking up the track, I could see that the leading pack(who were now well ahead of the group I was in) were closely racing each other and headed for the left once more.

I sensed some pressure out to the right and decided to work my way up that side of the course. There were no clouds and the sun was headed that way, and there were no boats out there messing up the wind ñ in any case I now had 4 boats immediately to the left of me blocking any attempt I might have made to get over to that side. I decided to trust my instincts and head out to the right, though with the proviso that when I got shift + pressure, I would tack. I sailed quite low and free and just went as fast as I could for that righthand shift that I thought was coming. Again, it paid off and I sailed into some good pressure that also had shifted a good 10 degrees to the right. I tacked onto this line and rode it right across the fleet to slip into 4^th spot at the top mark.

Going into the flat run, Rob Coutts was leading, having sailed the shifts brilliantly up the left, followed by Nick in 2^nd and the Indian Ram Kumar Singh was 3^rd. I was 4^th with Nitin directly behind me. I immediately jibed onto port, again looking for the righthand breeze that had helped me so much a few minutes earlier, and found it, going past Singh and sliding closer to Nick. Near the bottom of the run I caught a few waves and passed Nick to leeward, almost catching Rob and going around the bottom mark in 2^nd. Up the last beat I attacked Robís position, taking every shift I could and eventually breaking his cover. I crossed in front of him about 100m out from the finish and rode a nice pressure line all the way to the line to have my first win in a Worlds race and take the Kiel Clock for winner of Race 6. Stoked! Behind me Rob finished 2^nd, and then there was a huge shout from Nitin as he crossed in 3^rd to take the World OK title for 2003. All the spectators went berserk too, especially Nitinís coach. Nick finished 4^th, Joe was 5^th, Greg was 7^th and Paul was 9^th. I was now 2^nd overall with my worst race (and discard) so far being a 4^th. No matter what happened the next day I was assured of at least 3^rd overall. Nick now had to be 1^st or 2^nd in the final race to beat me, assuming I was worse than 4^th. So things werenít looking too bad at all.

Race 7

So, going into the last race, Nitin had already won, I was 2^nd, Nick was 3^rd, Greg was 4^th, Rob was 5^th, Paul was 7^th and Joe was 8^th. There was about 3 points from 4^th to 7^th at that stage, so plenty was riding on the last day. I was quite nervous about the last race, more so than at any other time in the regatta, and had an early night.

Race 7 was the lightest race of the event. I had an absolutely awful start ñ I was thinking about where Nick was on the line instead of just sailing my own race: the total opposite of my plan for the day. I was about 10^th around the first mark after managing to pass a few boats near the end of the leg. Nick, meanwhile, was sailing well and coming 3^rd. Rudiger Prinz, again showing his devastating skill and speed in really light airs, was out to a huge lead followed by Rob Coutts who is also very good in light wind. These two simply extended throughout the whole race and finished 1^st and 2^nd. In the meantime I had somehow managed to convince myself that if Nick came 3^rd he would beat me ñ itís funny what nerves can do to powers of reasoning. Coming into the final beat, I was 6^th, while Nick was still 3^rd just ahead of Greg. I got into 5^th and remained there until the finish. Meanwhile, Greg sailed a great leg and when I saw him cross in front of Nick just 50m from the finish I let out a big "Woohoo!!!!" (Gautama Dutta in 6^th place later told me he heard from quite a way behind). I had achieved my goal: a medal and never outside the top 5. The sail home after the last race was the best part of the whole trip.

In the end, the top 10 of the 2003 OK World Championships panned out like this:

1^st: Nitin Mongia (IND)

2^nd: Ben Morrison (NZL)

3^rd: Nick Craig (GBR)

4^th: Rob Coutts (NZL)

5^th: Rudiger Prinz (GER)

6^th: Greg Wilcox (NZL)

7^th: Joe Porebski (NZL)

8^th: Paul Rhodes (NZL)

9^th: Hans Elkjaer (SWE)

10^th: James McAllister (AUS)

After the last race the Kiwis had no time to lose. After a quick swim, we grabbed some fresh bottles of water, dismantled out boats and got them ready to be packed in the shipping container for the trip home. We then began the awful task of packing six 13 foot boats in a single 20 foot shipping container which is 6ft off the ground on the back of a truck, in 35 degree heat with unbelievable humidity. Halfway through this hellish job, we had to run to our rooms, shower, and go to the prizegiving, held at an even glitzier resort than Cidade.

Presiding over the prizegiving and presenting the prizes was the head of the Indian Navy - it was an honour to meet such an important person and flattering for us to have our sport and our class taken so seriously. In a very generous speech he praised the skill of the foreign competitors and thanked us for coming and exposing the Indian team to some high-level racing from which they had learnt a lot. He graciously didnít discuss Nitinís clinical demolition of such "highly skilled sailors"! We then all received our prizes. The three I value the most are my silver medal, the Kiel Clock for winner of Race 6, and the OKDIA tie, presented to those finishing in the top 10 at a Worlds. I have wanted one of those ties ever since my first Worlds at the age of 17, where despite the best advice that Ralph Roberts could give me I finished 3^rd-to-last.

After the prizegiving it was back to Cidade, into our filthy shorts and t-shirts and back into the container to load our boats. What a nightmare this job is. I just canít describe how hot, humid and basically unbearable it is to carry out after a dayís hard racing in India. When we finally finished at 8.30pm, it was back into the pool, then a cold shower, then straight to the extremely impressive prizegiving dinner, where the dehydrated and hungry Kiwis filled their stomachs with wine and rum&cokes. Quite frankly, the rest of the night is a bit hazy, although I know we all had a great time. There was a limbo contest at some point, and we threw a lot of people in the pool ñ beyond that Iím not too sure.

Aftermath

Greg, Paul and I spent the next two days recovering at Baga Beach, about 30 minutes drive north of Panaji, staying at Ronil Beach Resort. We just lounged around on the beach, had a few beers, went swimming and got henna tattoos of OK symbols round our upper left arms. We looked pretty tough too, I can tell you. After that we had the 2-day trip home.

With a 12-hour stopover in Mumbai on our way home, Nitin and his lovely wife Dipta (who live in Mumbai) entertained us. We spent a few hours at the Royal Bombay Yacht Club ñ an amazing place, it is a huge 5 storey building in the middle of Bombay, built by the British in about 1840 and frequented by Mumbaiís elite. Nitinís father is currently commodore. We were made very welcome ñ one thing we really enjoyed about India was the immense respect they have for small boat helmsmen, something you donít see so much at home, with so many great sailors and the focus on big boats. We then went out for dinner and a brief stint at a chic Mumbai nightclub. So it was a very well-rounded experience of India - we saw the poverty, which is so rife throughout the country, but also met high ranking politicians, got to know powerful persons in the Indian military and finished our time mixing with Mumbaiís wealthy social elite.

After that it was the usual post-Worlds depressing trip home ñ a series of flights, stops in Hydrabad, Singapore and finally arriving in Auckland to face two weeks with the flu and some quarantine time due to the SARS scare.

In conclusion, the 2003 OK Worlds in India was an amazing experience. To all the OK sailors from the around the world: get yourselves together and get qualified for the Worlds are at Parkstone Yacht Club, Poole, England. Competition for spots in the NZL team will be tougher than ever and we do not plan on coming home without the title. Start preparing now because the best mental approach in the world is useless without fitness, the right equipment and plenty of practice.

Not so long ago I was approached by one of the 5.9 boys to see if the OKís would like to join them for a regatta of Westhaven. I thought it was a great idea and rallied around trying to get numbers for the event. I saw it as an opportunity to kick start the winter season in the OKís and to gather a bit of momentum to take us into the summer with new carbon masts. The night before the regatta started, the Auckland OK fleet attended a dinner that had been organized by Phil. This occasion saw a good turn out, with 23 people showing up. A good time was had by all.

Saturday was a busy morning with boats being picked up from Wakatere and transported to Westhaven. 6 OKís managed to turn up for the days racing, though some were a little later than others. We managed to get 5 races in with a Southwest breeze ranging form 8 ñ 15 knots. The big wind shifts saw big gains and losses throughout the fleet, but racing still managed to stay tight.

Sunday morning racing was called off due to lack of wind (and interest)

So all in all this was a pretty good start to the winter for the Auckland fleet. We hope the keep the numbers up through the winter.

Results

Line   

1st            1        Russell Wood            5 points

2            372       Mark Perrow            7

3            466       Ben Morrison           10

4            484       Mike Inwood            17

5            511       Alec Mcwhinne        19

6            493       Mile Addy            26

7             436 John Gillespie DNS

8             501 Matt Stenchmen DNS

Handicap

1st        1           Russell Wood            6 points

2           466       Ben Morrison            8

3           372       Mark Perrow             12.5

4           484       Mike Inwood 13.5

5           511       Alec Mcwhinne  15

6           493       Miles Addy 26

	Event	*(1) Date	Start Time
	Fresh Water Champs Lake Pupuke	17/18 May 2003	10.00am
	Takapuna Boating Club Opening Regatta	31 May/2 June 2003	1.00pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	8 June 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	22 June 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	6 July 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	20 July 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	3 August 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	17 August 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	31 August 2003	1.30pm
	Wakatere Boating Club	14 September 2003	1.30pm
	Winchamps Murrays Bay Boating Club	27/28 September 2003
	Opening Day Wakatere Boating Club	5 October 2003	1.30pm (then weekly at Wakatere Boating Club at 1.30pm two races per afternoon)
	North Island Turangi Champs	6/7 December 2003
	New Year Regatta Napier Sailing Club	1-4 January 2004
	National Championships Worser Bay Boating Club	6-8 February 2003

*(1) Dates could be subject to change.

*(2) Series of short races for training and rig development.

 

Race Official will be Dave Bush.

OK Related Information

Interesting reading

The Australian OK Dinghy Association website has a brilliant page about the history of OK sailing within Australia and New Zealand. This Chronicle was compiled by Bill Tyler and features many of the top OK sailors to come out of New Zealand and Australia. Did you know that Ocean racing was one of the first international events held for the OK Dinghy?

Here is the address where you can read all about this and more. It's well worth a look.

www.ok.yachting.org.au

Worlds

Parkstone, England

July 24th - 30th 2004.

Venue
Parkstone Yacht Club, Poole, England from July 24th ñ 30th 2004. Main Ferry ports are Harwich, Dover, Ramsgate, Newcastle, Portsmouth, Southampton, Poole.

Racing
will be in Poole Bay, an open expanse of water outside Poole harbour. One of the best sailing locations in Britain. 10 to 15 knots of wind, one metre waves, sunshine and temperatures in the low 20s.

Organising Authority
Parkstone Yacht club in association with the GBR OK Class Association.

Information
is posted regularly on the OKDIA (www.okdia.org) and Parkstone Y.C (www.parkstoneyc.co.uk) web sites.

Entries
Entry forms are available from the secretary of each OK National Class secretary. They need to be returned by competitors to their Class secretary by April 1st 2004 and sent together to PYC by May 1st 2004.

The entry fee is likely to be in the region of £130.

Accommodation:
Camping is available free, courtesy of Poole Borough Council, 10 minutes walk away from the clubhouse. Details of local hotels and bed & Breakfast are available of the PYC website.

Provisional Social Programme ñ much of which will be included in the entry fee:
Welcome Reception party; hog roast; prize giving supper.
Good quality food and drinks are available in Parkstone Yacht club.

The Local Area:
Parkstone is located between Poole and Bournemouth ñ both attractive holiday destinations. The beaches are excellent for families. 5 miles away is the Isle of Purbeck with some stunning cliffs and scenery, not to mention the local pubs.

It is hoped to introduce a lay day into the programme to allow full advantage to be taken of the local area.

Parkstone Yacht Club, Pearce Avenue,
Poole, Dorset, BH14 8EH, UK.

Tel: 01202 743610
Fax: 01202 716394
E-mail: office@parkstoneyc.co.uk

Gear For Sale

Masts

C-Tech are now into full production of carbon masts. They can be made to you specific requirements at a very low cost.

Ring Alex Vailings at C-Tech to talk to him about requirements

C-Tech

Ph (09) 810 8406

Mob 021 671 118

Or look up www.c-tech.co.nz

Foils

Russell Wood is now in the process of building foils. Designed on computer using low drag NACA foil section and cutout on a CNC router.

Rudders

-light weight

-strong/stiff

-cnc cut

-laminated gudgeons (optional)

-carbon tiller (optional)

Centerboards

-lightweight

-stiff/strong

-cnc cut

-flex control

-made to fit your boat

Sails

Fyfe Sails

Ph 528 1335

Fax 528 1683

Web www.fyfesails.co.nz

Port Nicholson Sails

(0)4 384-3554 (Tel / Fax)

Greg 021 274-3888

Web www.portnicholsonsails.co.nz

North Sails

Web www.nz.northsails.com

Boats

Word has it that a few guys might want to sell their boats or some gear.

Alec Mcwhinne

Ph 027 210 3735

Jason Herbert

Phone Russell Wood for details 021 759 754

Ian Neely

Phone Russell Wood for details 021 759 754