The strain is beginning to show, and our competitors have stopped going out for a sail after the final race of the day.
This is not surprising, as we have been racing in over 20 kts for the past five days and the 21 races now completed are beginning to take a toll on the competitors.
That does not sound optimistic at all, but it should. So, what can we say about the event so far?
First of all, it is really close. This is definitely a nail-biter with the top 5 just a couple of points apart and Steve Allen (AUS) leading by just one point ahead of Maciej Rutkowski (POL).
Secondly, the locals know what they are doing. Maciej Rutkowski, Wojtek Brzozowski and Przemysław Miarczyński, although coming from completely different windsurfing backgrounds, PWA, Formula Windsurfing and Olympic windsurfing respectfully are all very much in it, comfortably sitting in the top 5.
Thirdly, it has progressed. Both the skills and equipment are almost incomparable to what we had just 12 months ago. Last year in Puck wind over 20 kts terrified anyone on the foil. Today youth sailors comfortably finish the races in time, when the wind readings hit 30 kts.
Don’t let this small summary fool you. If conditions allow, we will have another 5 races tomorrow and another discard. It is no longer going to be so windy and the leaders will need to show off some light wind skills in order to maintain their positions or progress in the rankings. We start at 10:00 with the skippers’ meeting at 9:00. A nail-biter It is.
