Working on my second build (so I am far from experienced) and with this one I am cutting some stripes into the deck. The front deck is not peaked, it has a general roll to it which seems pretty manageable. However, my strips are curving, climbing, dropping, twisting, etc., and getting all these tightly fitted with no gaps is a bit of a challenge. My pattern has the stripe growing in size from a point at one end to about six inches on the other.

I've started at the end of the stripe that is narrow and am working my way toward the wide end. Is it easier with cove/bead or flat strips? How concerned should I be with the little gaps? How much will they fill in when I sand it down? Do I just plan to tape and fill my gaps afterward or do I just need to slow way, way down and be as careful as I can about making sure everything looks perfect prior to sanding? Basically, what is the trick to getting good tight fits with all these strips?

Thanks!
Tyler