Sam Davies Diary - Pt 3

Sam tells how she completed her first solo Mini race.

I have now finished all my qualification miles for the Mini Transat Race in September. This means that I should now be one of the 25 'Proto' (one-off) Minis that will get an entry for the race. 55 is not many places for a race that is becoming increasingly popular. Of that limit, 25 are reserved for one-design ('series') boats (Pogo, Coco and Super Calin) and five are left for 'wild cards' such as foreign entries that cannot travel to compete in the qualifying races.

I have also just made another big step in my project – my first solo race (pictured right). I came ninth in the Select 6.5 in Pornichet. There were 60 boats in total. I was pleased with this result, as my aim to be in the top ten was achieved, whilst at the same time I was also sailing cautiously as the main priority was to finish the race and qualify for the Transat - the 'real' race.

The Select 6.5 was a tough one. I was right to be anxious at the start – it was a gusty 18-20 knots. There were 60 Minis careering around pre-start with only half the fleet being hand steered as many people were making final adjustments to sails, reefs etc. Two boats had a big crash which put them out of the race before even starting. My aim was to stay out of trouble and I did. I was late on the line, but at the right end and in clear air so by the top mark I was mid-fleet.

The idea of solo Mini sailing usually makes one think of being all alone, with hundreds of miles to sail, no land in sight, and few or no boats around. This is what it is like 90% of the time, but at the start the race committee and sponsors like to make a show and send us around a small course before heading off to sea. A great idea, and lots of fun, but I need some boat handling practise. Sailing a 1.5 mile beat in 20 knots, with 60 other boats while working the runners, dagger-boards, canting keel, lifting rudders etc. every time you tack leaves you pretty exhausted before you even get offshore!

Another problem is, what to wear? There was a freezing cold north-easterly wind, and it was also very wet. With the kind of course we had at the start you get pretty hot. It is almost impossible to get changed in a Mini, and you lose places if you put the pilot on in the first few hours as everyone is jostling for positions and hand steering. I opted for being too hot at the start and then at least I was warm enough after that. One guy I know did the opposite, but in the middle of getting more clothes on (as he was just in thermals) his pilot went into 'random mode' and decided to crash gybe which took half an hour to sort out - still in thermals. He spent the rest of the race wet!

As I settled into the race I started passing people until I reached about tenth place. The breeze built, we had a ten mile beat followed by a ten mile fast two-sail reach, then into the longer legs of the race. The gusty wind meant that I had to put reefs in and out several times. Each time I changed tack or gybe I also had to stack everything inside. Even steering is a pretty energetic job. I really didn’t know how much I could push myself and for how long (as it was my first race.) Your adrenaline seems to provide a lot of extra power and also reduces the amount of sleep you need - when I am racing solo I surprise myself with how little rest I need. This race was probably the maximum amount of time that I could push for the whole race with almost no sleep and hand steering the whole time – but before the race I would have never believed that I could sustain that. This is a constant learning curve for me.

It was a great sense of achievement when I finished. Finding the line was hard in the dark, with the bright lights of La Baule behind, and no-one else to help and agree or disagree over where it is. It took one sailor an hour to find the line. As soon as I crossed the finish there was a Zodiac alongside and someone jumped on board to help me sail in to the dock. I then saw that there were only eight other boats in so I knew I had done OK. I then emptied the water from inside the boat, grabbed my sleeping bag from the car and slept for seven hours.

I enjoyed my race on board Aberdeen Asset Management. I learnt heaps, as usual; on sail trim, on how Aberdeen reacts to various sails in various conditions. I also had some much-needed solo boat handling practice. I also learnt about myself and how much I can push before I reach limits, both physically and mentally.

Now I have a few days rest before I return to Pornichet to deliver Aberdeen to La Rochelle for the next race – the Mini Pavois to St Quay, via Portsmouth, which starts on the 19 May. The delivery trip will be extremely useful as I have several things I want to try out with sail settings, and systems that I need to do when I am not racing, and I can get more practice miles in too.