The Form
Herman has been bugging me for my tips on the JJ Giltinan since he started the tipping competition last week.
So here goes.
Euan, no need to read further…
I haven’t really worked out who’s going to win. In the end, the JJ comes down to who can string together a set of good scores. Nobody is way out in front this time around.
So who are the contenders?
Fiat - Cocko, Linksy & Nath. 2006 JJ Champions. They’ve had good form in their new boat. They cover the wind range pretty well. They’re fit, they’ve been there before, they’re putting in the effort.
Gotta Love It 7 - Seve, Rob & Sam. Plenty of $. Plenty of preparation. Fast. They’re quick in all conditions. They’ve got their gear sorted. They’re new on the scene together, but they’ve been around the track a few times. They’ve put the time in at the gym and on the water. I think they’ll be close in the end, but they’ll make a few mistakes that will cost them.
Macquarie Real Estate - Micah, Jack & Drew. Newly-crowned Australian Champions. They’ve put in a huge amount of effort over the last few seasons, and are putting it all together in their new boat. They’re very fast. But they just weighed in 6kgs underweight, and 50mm wide apparently - so the fixes could slow them down. Again consistency might be an issue. They haven’t finished the last few races.
Rag & Famish - John, Ferris & Riss. Experienced. They’ve been at the top for close to a decade. They’re finding the right form at the right time. But with all that experience comes age.
Asko - Hugh, Paul & Niall. Perpetual JJ bridesmaids are struggling this season. They’re fast, no doubt about that. The usual tricky February Easterlies are some of Asko’s best.
Pegasus Racing - Howie, Fritz & Trent. Winners in Garda and San Fran. Heavy. If it blows, they’ll be be loving it. With the beast on board you’d have to love heavy airs. They’ve really struggled the last few races in light winds though, so that could be their achillies.
CST SailBattens - The Kiwis. They were quick in a blow last time around, and they did a horizon job on the fleet in light winds today. There’s plenty of speculation around the park about their non-standard foils. So that’s going to be very very interesting.
Ssangyong Yandoo - Woody, Nod, Bauchop. Winners of the State Championship, Runners-up (by a few boatlengths) of the Australian Championship. Woody has been there before. They’re experienced, they’re fast, they’re pretty consistent. They’ve won plenty this season. It could be Woody’s year.
Who else could be up the front?
Club Marine - Euan, Me & Cam. What can I say. We’re there to win. Euan won in 2005. Cam won the 12′ Inters. Euan won the 14s. We’re a new team, but we’re putting things together at the right time. We’re getting quicker with each tuning session. If it’s light, we’re off. If it’s windy… well… it was windier earlier in the season.
But seriously.
Whoever sails consistently, avoids crashes, doesn’t get DSQd, doesn’t capsize, doesn’t break, pics the shifts and goes fast… will be there at the end.
And in the end, the last race will decide the winner.
So here’s my tips:
Club Marine
Fiat
Gotta Love It 7
Ssangyong Yandoo
Macquarie Real Estate
February 12th, 2007 at 5:41 pm
There is a rumour that Euan will be shaving his head as well as his legs to reduce windage. Is this true and do you think it will help your performance? As crew do you have to shave your legs also? If so were do you stop? At the knees? Upper Thighs? It must be hard to “draw the line” so to speak.
February 13th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
apparently club marine will have some new technology come race 1 saturday…. http://www.shredda.com/development.htm