Sailor blown off course
Published 15 Jul 2010 09:00
0 Comments
Burgh star struggles with blustery winds
HELENSBURGH'S Charlotte Dobson admits the strong winds at Largs are blowing her off course in her bid for glory at the Laser Radial World Championships.
The sailing sensation came back strongly in the lighter breezes after a moderate opening on Saturday.
And her impressive second place was paired to a hard-won 32nd to leave her lying in 18th position overall.
But the Great Britain team member revealed the gusts are hard to handle on the Clyde estuary.
She told Sport Scene: "It was a real hard introduction to Largs in an easterly.
"There was more pressure coming in from the top right of the course and I seemed to keep using that quote well.
"I was quite quick upwind and managed to fend everyone off a bit downwind, but I managed to make the gains upwind.
"But then in the second race I did not have a very good start and that made it hard from there, to get to the right hand side and to find the pressure.
"People on the very hard right just went a bit too far.
"Then at the top mark there was the biggest shift of the day, 30-40 degrees, and these boats came reaching in from the right.
"It was always going to be a struggle.
"The second race where I got to was actually quite good for where I started from, it would have been in touch.
"You can't really see the pressure coming."
This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 15 Jul 10
Return to the main index, get more from this section or browse our Sport archives.
