Little Nico – Anatomy of a Wipeout.
by Bow Caddy Media 30 Mar 2022 04:25 BST
There was a high level of interest and commentary following the images which Bow Caddy Media recently posted of Little Nico's dramatic wipe out at the Sydney Harbour Regatta.
So we decided to interview Tactician and Boat Captain Mitch White to ascertain what really happened and what lessons could be drawn from the incident. (And apologies for the sound quality - a technical glitch in the recording, made worse by a very squeaky fender on the boat!).
To set the scene, the harbour race was about to start in a very gusty sou'easterly, ranging in strength from 15-25 knots. The Little Nico crew decided to do a practice run with the kite prior to the race. They were about to drop their kite when they were hit by a very strong gust.
As you can see the drama unfolded very quickly. Indeed, when we checked the time info on each image the entire sequence from nose-in to fully laid over took barely 6 seconds!
The interview lasts for nine minutes, but there is plenty to learn from this and the takeaway lessons that Mitch covers at the end would seem to apply as much to non-racing sailors as they do to experienced yachties.