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Results of day 1 and day 2 Wednesday 28th of July
After two days of sailing the beautiful Lake Como in Italy, it is time for a first impression of life and sailing over here in Gravedona. Some first Italian Lessons... - Grazie - quickest way to get a "Prego"
- Prego - ??? you're welcome?
- Draaien, draaien!! PROTEST!!! Way to apparently not impress Italian crews (7143, next time on starboard you will be protested).
- Cinqecento gramme - way to get 100g of salami... pronounciation??
- Ein bier bitte - way to end up in a long discussion with a Swill-Italian restaurant holder about whether I would be allowed to have a beer (instead of a wine). Eventually even a second, larger one (!) could be ordered! Grazie.
- Driving - just join the Italian pace and volume
- Walking - just join the Italian pace
- Sailing - join the Italian tack and pace (little bit faster if possible), exceed the Italian volume (sorry Pierpaolo)!
- Food - just join. Though Spaghetti XXL can be really too much...
- Wine - quality and quantity do not always go hand in hand, apparently.
- Breakfast - SkiffDorm is unsurpassed!
- Wind - why exactly could it not be ordered?
In short, we're just having a perfect time in Italy. We hope for continuation of the good racing, the food, the weather!
Cheers,
team Klaver and Visser
Thursday 29th of July Some early birds went for a swim this morning or just stood on the lake side, watching the mountains on the other side in different shades of grey and various layers of clouds. There is some rumbling in the air, and the doubtful look on the face of one of the members of Jury does not make us more optimistic."Probably no races today, if the weather is like this...". We keep a little hope in our sailor's hearts and continue our breakfast with a splendid view that triggers the real holiday feeling. Soon enough the discussion is back to sailing again: "How come you can sail so fast this year?" "Well, I bought this new wetsuit and it has the word 'energy' written on the leg; that's the whole secret! Shall I get a permanent marker to write it on your suit too?" While joking around and even playing badminton because of the lack of wind, something slowly changes and the wind picks up. "This is only the wind before the rain, and if it rains on lake Como, the wind dies," is the remark of Pierpaolo. Nevertheless, half an hour later it is decided that we'll give it a try and suddenly there is action everywhere. When all the sailors are awake again and the boats are halfway to the racing area, the wind decides to surprise us and shift 180 degrees within 20 minutes. Rather funny when you can hoist the spinnaker while going in the same direction as where you first sailed upwind! The Jury moves the buoys and blows the first 5 minute sign. Ha! We're racing! Or so we thought.... Apparently some people didn't shower this morning and they now get a chance -be it obligatory- to still do so. The cold rain makes us wonder what the Italians promised when they said we could sail in a shorty for sure.... Another major windshift after the start causes the helmsmen to steer in the wrong direction and the Jury to call off the match. The thunder is getting closer and we have to get ashore. A confusing day for weather and sailors, but at least we could enjoy pasta and play some football together! Team Okidee Friday 30th of July As usual, the boats were on the water somewhere after one o'clock, and as usual there was a lot of warming up in the sun and wishing for wind while floating around the starting vessel. Jessica, the American helmswoman, was sunbathing in her bikini, some Dutch students started to sing songs and German Ralph opened a bottle of beer. Based on the previous days, we predicted that the wind would be switched on at three, and -lo and behold- it arrived exactly on time! Because it was still quite light weather, an important choice had to be made at the start: which side of the lake do we think has the most wind and hence the best chance to arrive at the windward mark first? Not that it mattered too much, because struggling with spinnaker sheets and getting into conflicts around the downwind mark could still set you back a few positions. It was funny, though, to see people snuggle up real close together in the front of the boat, hoping that the new division of body weight would benefit the boat speed. After two good races we were towed back to AVAL to see the result list; in several parts the rankings are still exciting, with teams differing only a few points. Even the first three places are yet to be decided! However, this evening there is no competition amongst the teams, as everyone is invited for a barbecue at the skiff sailing club in Dongo. A long table is waiting for us under a sky that was left yellow-pink-purple by the sun that has already set behind the mountains surrounding lake Como. Bottles of wine and water invite us to sit and drink together and there is enough to eat for everyone (and delicious Italian pasta for the vegetarians). The candles on the table are lit, glasses are filled for a second time, the music changes to a more danceable beat and the stars blink and wink at us... Saturday 31st of July
The last day of racing, and the teams who had been praying for stronger wind all week looked very happy! The sky was blue, the sun heated up the mountains in the north and the thermal wind made her entrance from the south. The Jury aimed for 4 races to catch up on the schema and warned us to be at the start on time, because today they wouldn't wait. By the time the first five minute sign sounded, the wine of last evening was gone from head and muscles. Concentration and strength were required now!
Bouncing on the waves and hanging out on the tips of your toes can be very tiresome, even if the races took only three quarters of an hour, so by the fourth race the concentration and strength had dropped substantially. However, we suddenly realised that this was the last day of our holiday; the last day of enjoying the summer weather and the luxury of rolling out of your bed straight into a boat. No worries about work or studies, about what to wear or where to go today... just put on a wetsuit, look at the tell tales and go to the next mark... And don't forget to keep the spinnaker up after the last finish, just to have a last bit of fun on lake Como.
The prize-giving ceremony was held at the lake, with all the national flags in the background. "... and in third place in the European Championship Laser Two is... me and Mara!" translated Pierpaolo, and -recognising the funny situation- the rest laughed and applauded. Team Caravaggi-Monzini had sailed very well and Pierpaolo could announce himself three times: third place international, best team of the host country and first place in the national championship. Well done! Climbed up from the 5th place last year was team De Lachende Hark: Sytze Harkema and Carmen Gerlach. They too looked very happy and satisfied with the result and the silver medal (and rightly so! Applause!). Although everyone thought Lisa Buddemeier and Matthias Düwel had the best chance after attaining the second place in previous championships, they had to show their best this week. But now they are officially the best Laser Two sailors of Europe! Congratulations!
All that is left is to apply some of the first Italian lessons above: 'mille grazie' (many thanks) to the Jury, the organisers, the competitors and of course 'la cucina' (the kitchen) for the wonderful pasta and fruit that awaited us every day when we got off the water, and the buffet the last day. "What a splendid week!" I thought, while feeling the last rays of sun touch my face and hearing the contented voices of old and new friends around me. Will I see you next year in Travemunde?
Okidee! |