Finally got a Tyrant type regatta

After three years of hard work, countless hours of optimizing and several really crash and burns we had Tyrant Weather for an entire regatta.

Tyrant is Don Thinschmidt's Nelson Marek 43 that we have optimized over the past few years to make it more suitable for Great Lakes sailing and for getting to the Island faster for the Mac races.

This past weekend was the Chicago NOOD regatta. The annual trek to Chicago for some great racing saw 12 boats in PHRF section 1. We fit right in the upper middle of the rating band and had some good boats both above and below us in rating. It was looking like a good old fashion knife fight might happen in this fleet! That proved to be right.

One thing that is for sure with Tyrant, we optimized her for 6-12 knots mostly downwind. Well we had that breeze for each race, although we did have to sit around each day for that to happen!

Boy are we fast downwind! In the light air we are able to hold our own against the bigger boats and we can really put time on them on the runs. The first race we rounded the top 5th and by the leeward mark, (1.25 miles away) we were first and never looked back.

The second race we had a couple major issues, one gybe went pear shaped and we had to gybe back. That meant we had to settle for a 4th. After the second day we were in second place one point behind Pinball Wizard and one point ahead of Seagoon.

Sunday more of the same waiting, but it filled in much sooner and the RC moved us closer to shore so that we could get a race off. We had an awesome start all lined, but I pulled the trigger a little early and had to go back. (Wizard was over as well and never came back). By the top mark we were back in the hunt and with the pace we have downwind we were able to claw back and finish second to Seagoon.

Now we were tied with the "Goon" with one race to go. A little match racing pushed them to where I thought they were buried, so I tacked away to get a clean start for myself. Boy that was a mistake! They got free to the right and I was pinned! They found a nice little lefty and were punched out again, boy are they fast upwind! We gybed after the top mark and hooked into a little pressure that the rest of the fleet did not have. That closed us up to where we had an over lap at the leeward mark. But, we cannot sail as high as long as they can. So we tacked away and cleared up. We rounded the top mark for the last time about a minute behind them. Now it was a speed test. We sailed right at their stern for the first 3/4 of the run. Slowly chipping away at their lead. When they gybed, so did we, ours was a little better and we gained more again. They did beat us across the line, but only by 20 seconds or so. That gave us a second place in the last race and a regatta win for Don!

Come to find out that we actually ended up winning PHRF overall. That gives Don a nice shinny new Corum watch!

Thanks to the crew who did a bang up job all weekend long. Thanks to Don Jr. who drove each race and did a fantastic job. But most of all thanks to Don Sr. who has given us a great toy to play with!

The Chicago to Mac race is starting to get more interesting!
Cheers

Tac

PS I will try to find a couple pictures online to post that show the boat.

What it should be like!

This is what 24 TP 52's looked like all lined up and ready for the next of racing! We really need some of this going on over on this side of the pond!

I have been signed on to Blue Nights the Swan 45 for the upcoming Swan 45 Pre-Worlds and Worlds. I will be sure to report from that.

Check out the new contact info on the top right corner.
Cheers
Tac