7 August 2005

Hi Andrew,

Thought I would share my observations on the recent Shosholoza performance and situation.

I note that Dale Hudson's last letter to Smooth Sailing was right on the mark in terms of early performance of the new boat.

I do not know enough of the facts to make any detailed observations, but for what its worth:-
I heard that they only launched the new boat the day before the regatta, that the new mast was damaged and they had to use an old (or borrowed?) one. That information alone would already indicate to me that they had no chance at all of performing well in that regatta. It takes a long time to work up a new boat of any type to it's full potential, and this would be most true of an AC boat of a brand-new design that was probably rushed to get on the water in time for the regatta.

There are so many small factors that, at that level, all add up to the difference between the best performance and the worst. It is totally unrealistic to have high expectations of Team Shosholoza until they have had at least many months with the new boat on the water. Even then, there may be issues with the design that require major surgery or addressing in the second new boat. You can do as much tank-testing and computer simulations as you like, but you only really know where you are at when you have had the boat out on the water for many many hours.

I just want to express my support and empathy for the team, and urge them to not lose faith because of these early setbacks. It is still extremely early days in terms of discovering the Shosholoza potential, and good times willl come with perseverance and hard work.

Regards

Bruce Savage