Mike McGagh sailing WILD ROVER crushed the fleet at the Olson 30 Nationals sailed on Tampa Bay in February. On the first of the three days, ROVER romped with three bullets. The team managed to pull out a first in race four after having to pull McGagh out of the water. Mike fell in during a tack and managed keep hold of the hiking stick until he was pulled back aboard.
�In the 8-12 knots that the regatta was sailed there was no stopping these sails,� said McGagh. WILD ROVER�s final results were seven firsts, a second and a third. �We learned a lot about how to sail the boat when we sailed at the Nationals in Los Angeles in 2005, and that paid off this year.� We generally sailed a little deeper than the other Olsons, with about five degrees of weather heel. And we moved the weight way forward, when the wind went light, to try and get the wetted surface area down. We�ve had good success in previous regattas, soaking low in the puffs. And the strategy seemed to pay until the wind dropped below about seven knots. When it goes that light, we find we�re better off sailing the polars and maintaining speed.
�After the regatta, all the competitors came over to check out our fast UK-Halsey sails. We were only too happy to show them off!�
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