Kona Class - or, What? No Pumping!

I was fortunate enough to escape frozen Denver and travel to Miami for the Alex Cavilglia Bluewater Regatta (hosted by Shake-A-Leg - http://www.shakealegmiami.org/). I haven't sailed since the end of October, my hands are soft and girly and my mom and my sister were going to race also - so we opted for "easy" and signed up for the Kona class. The Exocet Kona is a new, old-school longboard and for one-design racing you get a 7.4 if you weigh up to about 185lbs and a 9.0 (I think - maybe it's a 9.5) if you weigh more than that. "Easy" turned out to be only partially true! We chartered Konas, so we didn't have to bring gear with us - that was easy. And with only one 7.4m sail to rig - that seemed easy too. However, getting the sail tuned correctly and making it all go fast around the race course - well...aparently that's never easy!



So.... there I was, racing on a board with no adjustable mast track, a daggerboard that you can't trip over if you try, a 7.4 sail with no cambers and the class rules say no pumping. It was such a departure from the hyper-techie, pumping-centric world of the RS:X that was almost surreal! The first thing I learned is that I had no idea how to rig the Aerotech Zenith that is used for Kona racing. And shortly into the first day of racing I was reminded that it doesn't matter what class you are racing in - sail tuning counts! My second lessons was that I have no idea how to get a good start without pumping. Shortly after that I realized how much less attention you can pay to wind shifts when you pump around the course - and conversely, how much attention you should be paying to wind shifts (especially when you're not pumping)! Many lessons were learned - and I got schooled in the women's class by Solvig Sayre (16 year old daughter of windsurfing legend Nevin Sayre). She'll be one to watch over the next few years and I wouldn't be surprised to see her at the 2012 Olympic Trials.

The Kona was an absolute blast to race on in the super light winds. Our fleet of 14 or so stayed remarkably tight (thanks to no pumping) and it is clear that even on low tech gear it pays to be dialed in. First place winner Tom Ingram has spent quite a bit of time on his Kona and it really shows. He proved to be quick around the course in 5mph or 15mph and was getting great starts and sailing smart. When the wind picked up I was pleasantly surprised at how fun the board is to sail in planing conditions - but when it was marginal, almost planing, the no pumping rule was exceptionally frustrating and I was wishing for a formula board.

It was a blast, and I love to race - regardless of the gear, the competitors, the course or the conditions. I can't think of a better way to spend a weekend.

Next up will be the Island Style Classic in Sarasota (Feb. 23 & 24), followed by the Calema Midwinters (Feb. 29-March 2). I've decided to jump back into the Formula class for these two events - so that should make for entertaining stories!