Farr 40 Pre Worlds

TWINS, Erik Maris, FRA leading the Pre-World races after 2

After a busy season in the Mediterranean and the Baltic, the Farr 40 fleet has moved north to Copenhagen in preparation for the Rolex Farr 40 World Championship. The Royal Danish Yacht Club (RDYC), host of Worlds, welcomed thirty-five boats from twelve countries to their new yacht club headquarters on Tuborg Harbour, in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Friday was the first day of racing in the Rolex Pre-Worlds, a tune-up for the Rolex Farr 40 World Championships, which begins on 29 August and runs through 1 September. Teams from USA (7), Denmark (6), Italy (6), Australia (4), Norway (3), France (2), Germany (2), Switzerland (1), Ukraine (1), Finland (1), Brazil (1), and Sweden (1) took to the water today to get a feel for the local conditions with mixed results. For full results http://www.farr40.kdy.dk/uploads/After_race_2.final.htm

Melges 24 Blowout

Photo credit: Rolex / Daniel Forster
Rolex Baltic Week
Rough weather with stormy gusts on the Bay of Neustadt caused spectacular sailing conditions for the participants of the Rolex Baltic Week on Tuesday (21 August). Some of the 74 teams competing in the Melges 24 European Championship suffered material damages, but no major injuries. The “Blu Moon” from Switzerland with helmsman Flavio Favini defended the overall lead by nine points ahead of the Italian “Uka Uka” skippered by Lorenzo Bressani. The “Lenny” crew and skipper Toenu Toeniste from Estonia remained the leading Corinthian team.

Barking Mad: Top Dog in the Baltic

Photo by: Rolex / Daniel Forster

Photo by: Rolex / Daniel Forster

US yacht “Barking Mad” superior again on the last race dayJim Richardson from the United States is the first overall winner of the Rolex Baltic Week 2007.
The owner and helmsman of “Barking Mad” and his team have won the Farr 40 competition on the Baltic Sea off Neustadt, Germany as well as the European Circuit, a grand prix series of this prestigious international class comprising five separate regattas. Richardson beat the Australian “Kokomo” by Sue and Lang Walker in both competitions and sent her down to place two. Wolfgang Stolz and his “Opus One” team from Frankfurt, Germany finished fourth overall and ranked as best German team. In the European Circuit, Stolz overtook Wolfgang Schaefer's “Struntje light” (sixth) and gained the “bronze medal”.

Hutchinson back in the saddle

Photo by: Rolex / Daniel Forster
Farr 40 Rolex Baltic Week - Neustadt, Germany

The first day of the 4th Rolex Baltic Week started in Neustadt, Germany on Friday (17 August) with four incredibly tight and exciting races in the international Farr 40 class. The lead changed several times not only in all single races, but also in the overall ranking. At the end of the day the Jim Richardson's US yacht “Barking Mad” by had a narrow lead by just two points ahead of Sue and Lang Walker's “Kokomo” from Australia.

“It was very tough racing in tricky conditions,” said Terry Hutchinson, who is the tactician on board the leading “Barking Mad”. “But the race committee managed it pretty well.” The day started with a fresh and gusty westerly breeze, which decreased later on and shifted in a thunderstorm front. These conditions caused the practice race for the European Championship of the international Melges 24 class to be abandoned. Their Europeans are due to start on Saturday (18 August) at 14 h local time. http://www.regattanews.com

A day in the life: Fastnet

Copyright onEdition 2007©

Aviva Racing Open 60 - Dee Caffari and Aviva retire and head home
As first light appeared I realized that it was not just the night making it difficult to see but the visibility was very poor with the constant drizzle that was still falling. I checked the boat and found some areas of chafe on the mainsail that had resulted in some holes and the extra pressure had a knock on effect. While I was repairing what I could of the damage, Mike checked the weather ahead. We needed to reach the Fastnet Rock before the feared NW winds arrived otherwise we would be beating into 45 knots of wind once more. At our current prediction this was not going to happen. I had to ask myself if I really wanted to put my seasick crew and Aviva through another hard night to reach the rock?

After a chat we all decided unanimously that we could repair the damage now and still enjoy a sail home with reduced stress levels rather than risk severe damage that would be expensive and put us all at risk in the Irish Sea. So we are now broad reaching at 16 knots in poor visibility to return to Portsmouth. The seas are still large and sloppy and the wind is still gusting in excess of 25 knots. I can see smaller yachts still making their way along the south coast of England and wish then safe and sensible sailing. http://www.avivaoceanracing.com/