Southeast Sailboats sponsored GBR Team sailor Michael Beckett had a great first event of 2017. Read what Michael has to say below….
“Miami World Cup was the first event of the 2017 World Cup series, and the first major gathering of the World’s best sailors since the Rio Olympics. It was also my first event as a full time sailor so I was looking forwards to seeing what impact a hard winters training would have on my performance.
After a 10 race opening series I just managed to do enough to stay inside the top 10 and qualify for Sundays medal race. The racing was generally light and shifty, favouring those sailors who could be consistent. I was the youngest competitor in the medal race – it was an amazing experience and I learned so much. I’ve never done a race with such high calibre sailors, it was so intense!
I was pleased to fly home with my final finishing position of 9th. While not renowned for being a class that changes much, there here have been a few changes in the Laser fleet since 2016. The introduction of the new MkII sail has led to many of the sailors adding an extra block to their downhaul systems to make an 8:1 system, something which was rarely seen with the MkI.
I was using my 8:1 downhaul supplied by Southeast Sailboats, which is a superb system. I was also using the new Dinghy Star line, which is the perfect combination of abrasion resistance, grip and suppleness. Control systems that use this line run exceptionally smoothly.”
Find out more about our 8:1 Downhaul system and Dinghy Star