Nice! And what if you are in the head-on current and the other guy isn't? Or what if you have your spin sheeted in tighter than the other guy when the light puffs do hit you on an inland lake? What if you got your fat butt on the back of the boat while the other guy is camping out in front of the front main beam? What if you have extreme mast rake 'cause you were expecting a heavy wind day (or forgot to change from the last heavy wind race) and the other guy is way forward for power?
That is the whole reason to 2 boat test. Those variables and a host of ones not mentioned are all factors in making the boat go faster.
In an event like Eustis where there are random puffs across the lake and sections where there is 0 pressure, trying to analyze technique is not really worth the effort. Get to where you think there may be wind and do not make any course changes if you do not have to.
If there is breeze to actualy race, then work on your technique. Get the sail trim and weight ballance in the ball park, then concetrate on helming the boat. Pick a course with 90 degree apparent wind. Then practice comming up and falling off about 3-5 degrees and feel what the boat does. If you come up and there is no acceleration or if light wind, no added pressure in your main sheet, then the aded distance makes for bad VMG, so head back down. In general you are tying to gain as much hull speed as possible. The trick while you are learning to feel it, is to not just come up untill the hull flies. In the lighter stuff this is likely way too far.
Time on the boat so you can feel the subtle variations is the key.
M