NORTH SAILS CONNECTS WITH YANMAR RACING

Impressive Podium Finish For The Team At The Dragon Gold Cup

After taking bronze at the prestigious Dragon Gold Cup 2019, we talked to North powered Japanese-based team, Yanmar Racing, about their impressive result.

Having only sailed together in the Dragon class for one year, it is interesting to hear how they have already clicked in the boat, proven by their recent result in Medemblik. The team consists of three sailors: boat owner and helmsman, Peter Gilmour, who lives in Perth, Australia, Yaji San who is based in Yokohama, Japan and Sam Gilmour who lives in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Primarily sailing in the International Dragon Association (IDA) Championship Events and Grade 1 Grand Prix competitions, a major perk has been the friendships developed within the class. Having come from a match racing background and used to racing just one other boat, the team found it a big change being part of a fleet of 90 boats.

Setting the mast to the mainsail has been a key mission for Yanmar Racing. “A stiffer mast section has allowed us to use a lower luff curve mainsail along with the standard North A-7+ Mainsail. We use the North V-6L, V-6M and V-6H Genoa for light, medium and heavy wind respectively and also used the R-5 Spinnaker.”

“The cloth quality is good for the Mainsail, Genoa and Spinnaker. They hold their shape well throughout the range specified.”

Medemblik as a venue was great and event was very well managed. The starts were difficult with a 1 km line, but the management of Danbuoys along the line provided additional assistance for everyone.

The regatta brought strong winds and choppy sea state conditions so we asked boat owner and helmsman, Peter Gilmour, how he felt the sails handled in these more challenging conditions: “We typically change up our Genoa in slightly lower wind ranges than most specify and this may cause us to get caught out below range with the heavy, for example. The sails seemed to handle these conditions fairly well and we were happy with the sail choices we made. Responding on board and changing gears to get the most out of the sail/mast combination as well as optimising course position is something that is evolving for us in each race and regatta we do.”

“Responding on board and changing gears to get the most out of the sail/mast combination as well as optimising course position is something that is evolving for us in each race and regatta we do.”

Race five was particularly exciting. With a steady 22 knots and gusting 28 knots, the team felt the pressure on the start line and did not get off to their best start. However, after prioritising boat speed by sailing bow down and finding clear air on the first beat, they reached the top mark in fourth. The downwind leg was fantastic, with some big windward rolls, nail-biting gybes and a generous amount of fun being had, the fleet enjoyed what ended up being the last race of the regatta.

Good luck to the team who will next be competing at the Dragon Grand Prix in Kuhlungsborn, Germany on the 2nd – 6th July.

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