Submitted
by Vincent Barre:
The I-to-I race is an event that
you need to start 24 hours ahead of time, stacking up on carbs and
water to minimize the risk of cramping. As I arrived at 08:35am on
Sunday the wind was there and it was time to rig. I went for 9.8 and a
65cm soft fin. By the time everything was assembled, the crowd gathered
for a final countdown and review of the marks:
There will be a lot of reaching
this year as the 15-20 knots East winds will make us motor above the
ocean. The first 1.5 mile reach to the Inland Port Everglade marker
will be followed by an upwind leg to the outside marker, 2.5 miles
away. Then a 12+ mile leg to the inlet will be the main course of the
day, with a nice 11 mile reach back to finish.
The weather was absolutely perfect
and the sea agitated just enough to make me feel like at home in
Jacksonville. Thankfully the shore break was not bad given the wind
strength and we got underway with 15 minutes to the start. I spent a
few minutes dialing my harness perfectly and saw most of the other
riders do the same. The sail size varied between 11.0 and 6.7 for the
Formulas and 9.0 for the Konas. I hit the start a few seconds after the
end of the countdown and luffed the fleet. Within a minute I could see
I had good speed and was steadily catching-up. As we got to a shallow
area near the inlet I passed through a bunch of breakers without
slowing down and got to the reach buoy close to the leaders. A huge
boat shut the channel in front. A couple of guys crossed in front of
the boat. I thought it was way too dangerous and tacked immediately
with Eduardo. Within minutes I tacked back toward the channel and
arrived with a nice lay-line. I came to the buoy with Mathias. I got
some weeds and had to stop but he missed the buoy so I ended-up in
second place a few 100s of yards behind Ron.
Then began the brutal exercise of
keeping your board full speed on a reach for almost 13 miles. At the
beginning it is fun and exhilarating. The surf was pushing a little bit
so it felt like you were on black-diamond slopes with a rocket pulling
you forward. This is a nice feeling. I did not see anything in the
water just because it went so fast! Only a few flying fish would
disturb the speed blur. However after a few miles my back leg felt like
it was about catch fire so I started managing the distance by changing
my stance and alternating speed rushes with recuperation stances leaned
forward, pushing on the front leg. Mathias had a much better average
speed, so he passed me with about 1/3rd of the way to go. Ron was
keeping at a distance. I was in the groove until I had a moment of
distraction and at the same time the top of a wave collapsed on the
board’s nose. I had a big catapult and slashed a 4-foot hole in
my sail. I thought my race was over: Most unlikely could I go on with
half the sail torn right above the boom. I got up and sailed easy for a
few hundreds of yards, and it seemed to hold-up. I put a little more
pressure and the cut was stopped by the seams in the grid. Did I
mention I love grid sails?
So I decided to continue
progressively putting more pressure in the foil. The center of effort
was not stable anymore but it was not too bad. During that exercise,
Fernando had passed me. I found the buoy and jibed back.
It is interesting that after a
while the leg pain is just gone and the limbs seem to stop sending
message to the brain…..
The way back was a tad more
technical because you had to climb the waves a little more. I got
another huge catapult, this time because I got plainly flattened, not
excuses…. I got stuck between the sail and boom with by
bag pack. I focused on not panicking and felt with my hands until I
found the snag point. I then proceeded to clear the gear. When I
finally emerged I could not feel my legs and my vision was altered.
Well I guess I was only a few seconds from passing out! Obviously that
cooled my mood a little and it took a couple of minutes to get back in
the groove. The torn sail was still holding up so that was good. By
that time the 3 first guys were not reachable and nobody was visible
behind. It was up to me to manage the rest of the leg and keep my
place. I went to the chicken strap and played with every gust to keep
the pressure in this somewhat awkward, but safe, position on a reach.
After a couple of miles I got the hang of it and made good time. I
passed Movie Star who was on his way back due to an quipment problem
and checked on Brian who was floating in the middle of the ocean,
resting. That leg ended-up being very enjoyable. Easy and fairly fast.
I finished in 4th place behind
Mathias who caught up with Ron, and Fernando in third. I was happy with
the result and managed the race with some energy to spare.
A lot of people finished this year.
Some finished in less than 1 hour and 15 minutes. So, make the math: 27
miles of straight course including 2+ miles of upwind zigzags in less
than 1.5 hours. That spells F.A.S.T. over such a long distance and
diverse course!
The sailors helped the finishers
out of the water as they came: with the fatigue it was easy to make a
mistake that would cost you a mast.
This was a great race again. I like
the event as it is so different from your typical buoy race. It is a
real adrenaline rush, no head-ache setup. The course is challenging,
the participants are relaxed and friendly.
I went home shortly after the results, with a good, suspenseful, “book on tape” to keep me awake until home….
Vincent.