Why Pip Hare needs you now

Sailing with Pip Hare last week reminded me of my father’s sailing mantra: ‘It’s all about drag.’

- PETE GOSS

I have many memories of fine-sanding the bottom of my dinghies and the excitement of discovering graphite paint. As crew on my Mirror dinghy, my father was incredibly patient in demonstrating its effect, from lifting the centreboard where we could, healing the boat to reduce wetted area and lying in the bottom during light airs to reduce windage.

During last week’s trip with Pip, her yacht Medallia suddenly came to life and erupted into another dimension. She had reached that sweet spot where the foils lift her nose and she enters an upward speed spiral of diminishing drag and increasing apparent wind.

The grin-inducing power surge is remarkable and I’m mesmerised by the foil tip as it slices through the wave tops. There are five of us on board including my long-time friend and speed sailor Paul Larsen. A major refit, introducing the latest foil package to