Newport, Rhode Island: On a shifty, puffy and generally frustrating day on Narragansett Bay, the key to success in the 2022 Resolute Cup was patience and conservative decision making, at least according to the two skippers currently occupying the top two slots.
“Anything in the top six, we’re happy with,” said Wade Waddell, of the Corinthian Yacht Club team. “If we found ourselves in the top group, we were looking to play defence more than for an opportunity to go from fourth to second. If we can pass a boat with taking little risk then we will.”
With four finishes between fifth and second, Waddell steered the Corinthian Yacht Club team into the overall lead on the first day of Gold Fleet sailing in the Resolute Cup. Two points behind Corinthian is the defending champion crew from San Diego Yacht Club, which started the day with a win and then added three more solid, if unspectacular, finishes.
“You’ve got to be patient,” Tyler Sinks, from San Diego Yacht Club said. “It’s very painful sometimes, because you execute your game plan and things don’t work out, or the race goes inside out. We had a situation today where the guy in first got passed by a big pack from behind. It’s just that kind of race. It’s so shifty, it’s so puffy. No lead is safe.”
