To Fight Another Day

It was always highly marginal that the boat was going to sail the next day because it’s impossible to force chemical processes, and there was simply too much resin and epoxy involved to risk advancing the timeline. The forecast was for a building 25 to 30 knots, and the race committee would decide to race or abandon by 11:00 a.m. It didn’t seem windy enough to cancel, initially, but the decision was then pushed back to 1:00 p.m. While work on the boat and the wings continued, everyone understood that if there was racing that day, Land Rover BAR would pick up two free points to even the series. The long-term weather forecast was extremely complex, and there was a good chance that winds would remain too high for racing over the coming days. If New Zealand didn’t sail, BAR would win the series on a tiebreaker, awarded to the last race winner.

At 1: 30 p. m., the decision finally came: no racing. Now the team could commit to more- thorough repairs, and the sailors and shore crew who had been going nonstop could rest and work on themselves. For the first time since the boat capsized, it felt as if everything was going to be all right. The galvanizing effort of the past 36 hours would strengthen the team’s resolve. The group did in fact emerge stronger and better off for it. There were no individuals. It was one team with one goal, and everybody was committed.