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Maxi Yacht
Rolex Cup 2008
Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy
September 1 - 6, 2008. |
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A bird's eye view of the big fellas |
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by
the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup Media Team |
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Photos By Kurt Arrigo and Daniel Forster for Rolex.
Edited by Peter Andrews.
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September
2, 2008. |
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Without doubt, one of the best views in the house
at the 19th Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup is that of the helicopter pilot
tasked with positioning the film and photographic teams, recording
events as they unfold. It is an enviable job and an addictive one
too.
Forty of the biggest, fastest, best-looking yachts on the planet
and you get to see them all from a perspective most could only dream about.
As the racing got underway today in a building breeze from the north-west
and with clear blue skies, the eye in the sky had the perfect view.
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R.S.V. LTD's Ranger (1st
in Race 1) and Tarbat Investment Ltd's Velsheda,
(3rd in Race 1) in Cruising Division, during the Maxi
Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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Top spots in the fleets went to the Ernesto Bertarelli’s
chartered Numbers in the Mini Maxis, Ranger in Cruising, Alfa
Romeo in Racing and Lindsay Owen-Jones’ Magic
Carpet 2 in the Wally
Division.
Cruising Division today had raced nine miles less than the other
three, which all undertook a 39 nautical mile course that must
have been strength sapping in the burning sun. All yachts took
on a windward leg from the start off Porto Cervo, towards the Island
of Caprera. A hard left turn then took the fleet into the passage between
mainland Sardina and the Maddelena Archipelago.
The shorter course for the Cruising Division saw them turn North
at Punta Sardegna to Isola Baretinelli, where they then turned south-east
for a spinnaker run to a final mark in Golfo Pevero and on to the finish
off Porto Cervo.
The other three divisions continued northwest at Punta Sardegna and
made their turn back towards the East at Ecueil de Lavezzi, at the
southern tip of Corsica.
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Neville
Crichton's Alfa Romeo, 1st in
Race 1 in the Racing Division during the Maxi
Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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The Racing Division comprising Alfa
Romeo and Rambler was scheduled to start at 11:40. But a broken runner on Rambler saw the gentlemanly conduct of the day award go to Neville Crichton,
as he agreed to a delayed start for these two boats that put them
to the back of the list. That was the last merciful act from the
canting-keeled Alfa, as she scorched around the course in 3 hours
26 minutes to correct out over a minute ahead of Rambler.
The 8-boat Wally Division witnessed the racing debut of the 143-foot
Esense, which was quite a sight. The crew's day-glow green shirts
are a striking contrast to the dark hull and teak deck. Esense is 40 feet longer than the next largest in the class, Andrè Auberton’s
Dark Shadow, which at 100-feet is impressive enough. But from above,
Dark Shadow looks like a dinghy compared to her big sister.
Just as David showed Goliath a thing or two about speed and agility
versus size and power, the relatively smaller Wallys; Lindsay Owen
Jones’ Magic Carpet 2, Claus Peter Offen’s Y3K and Thomas
Bscher’s Open Season (all between 95 and the 100-foot mark)
slipped away from Esense on the first windward leg and led her around
the course. Irvine Laidlaw's Highland Fling
X is one of the smallest
in the class, but did well enough to finish second on handicap, ahead
of Charles De Bourbon’s Genie.
The Royal Ocean Racing Club's CEO, Eddie Warden Owen is on board
Highland Fling X as tactician this week and described the race today
as one as the best days racing he has had in Porto Cervo.
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Roger
Sturgeon's Rosebud / Team DYT, 3rd in Race 1 in the Mini
Maxi Division of the Maxi
Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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"it was just great going up between the islands
today. We were close with some of the others all the way, just
wonderful".
Warden Owen admitted to taking advantage of being behind the leading
boats at the top mark of the course. "We knew as we turned the
corner at the top that the wind would follow us around. Just to make
sure, we looked through the binoculars at the boats ahead and could
see those that had taken a high line were having to gybe to keep
on course. So we stayed low, took a longer route but with more speed."
A similar story unfolded in the Cruising Division, where the Ed
Dubois designed, 144-foot, Salperton was making her competitive
debut in the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup. Another Briton, Andy Green,
is on the helm and thoroughly enjoyed his day steering the biggest
yacht in the fleet around the 30-mile course. Green too, took a
lower route at their top turning mark.
"We did really well today. We held our time up between the islands
and really took it out of the fleet on the way back."
Salperton finished second on the water and on handicap, they were
barely a minute behind the J Class, Ranger.
"Ranger is so well sailed it's hard to get close. But we did well," commented
Green, who is clearly in awe of the machine he has control of this week.
About the boat, "it's as big as it gets" he added. And it is.
From the dock, Salperton is impressively long, the bow stretching away
into the distance and it must look that way from the helm. From the water
in a small RIB, she is enormous, spreading her huge shadow across the
water. From the air she is something else, words failing to adequately
describe the magnificent sight of her in full flight.
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Porto Cervo welcomes Irvine Laidlaw's Highland
Fling X
and Jean-Charles Decaux's J
One,
2nd and 3rd respectively in Race 1, Wally Division of the Maxi
Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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It takes nerves
of steel to stand at the helm of one of these maxis on the start
line. Millions of dollars of boat and equipment at stake. Not
to mention the egos. Spare a thought for Tom Burnham at the helm
of Arne Glimcher’s 125-foot Ghost. For the first time,
Burnham is an experienced yachtsman, an America's Cup sailor
and full-time pro on the grand-prix circuit.
When he signed up to race on Ghost, it was as tactician and crew
boss. Tom Whidden normally drives the silver wraith. But Whidden
was unexpectedly unable to attend this week's event and Burnham
was asked to step up to the plate.
"It was a little nerve-wracking out there. But it was also
very exciting and a lot of fun to be helming such a fantastic
boat. We had a great start which owed a lot to the teamwork.
The guys had me in the right position, which made it easy." By
all accounts, Ghost did have great start. Andy Green (on Salperton)
certainly felt they had the best start of the fleet.
Unfortunately, despite leading the Cruising Division around the
course on the water, Ghost lost ground on the run towards home.
The tack line on the spinnaker broke as they reached down the
back of the islands and although the crew had the replacement
spinnaker up and drawing in a couple of minutes she was relegated
to eighth on corrected time.
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Neville
Crichton's Alfa Romeo, 1st
in Race 1 in the Racing Division of the Maxi
Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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The second J
Class Velsheda rounded out in the top three on handicap. And
the anticipated dogfight in the Mini Maxi division duly came.
Torben Grael, skippering the brand-new, Reichel-Pugh 69 Alfa
Romeo 3 in its first competitive outing brought her home first
on the water finishing 14 seconds ahead of Numbers.
The lead could have been more but it was problems with some sail
changes towards the finish which Grael felt had slowed them up.
And although Alfa Romeo 3 finished fifth on corrected time, Grael
was very pleased with the day. |
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A bird's
eye view of the starting line of Race 1, during the
Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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The start was
best seen from the air as Numbers, Alfa
Romeo 3 and the two STP
65s Rosebud / Team DYT and Moneypenny seemed to hit the line
in a bunch at the Committee Boat end and stayed together for
much of the initial beat.
Andy Soriano’s Allegre took the pin end of the line but
when she crossed back towards the leading bunch, she was not
far off the pace. Allegre was third across the finish line and
fourth on handicap.
Moneypenny came in just ahead of Rosebud
/ Team DYT on the water
and on handicap, finishing second in the Mini Maxi Division.
Matt Ciesicki, a downwind trimmer, summed up the feelings of
the crew.
"Halfway up the beat, it was looking pretty bad for us.
Our competition was two to three minutes ahead of us. We just
chipped away and the second half of the beat went well. Once
we got around the top and got in a close reaching situation,
the boat really came alive.”
“We stacked everyone all the way back and just let the trimmers and
drivers do their work and gapped right up close to Alfa and almost bow to
bow with Rosebud. We were very happy with our downwind speed and we nearly
caught Alegre at Monici. We ended up with a pretty happy result to come in
second against some great competition."
We'll let Ed Baird, America’s Cup winning helmsman and
ISAF Rolex Sailor of the Year on the Mini Maxi Numbers, sum up
the day's proceedings.
"It was a classic Porto Cervo race, it just was beautiful.
12-20 knots from the west, up through the straits and around
the islands. We had good close racing, lots of boats in the hunt,
short tacking up the rocks, followed by a run and a reach with
gennakers back to the mark and then to the finish. A fabulous
day, there wasn't a cloud anywhere!" |
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Tarbat
Investment Ltd's Velsheda,
3rd in Race 1 in Cruising Division, during the Maxi Yacht
Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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The Maxi Yacht
Rolex Cup is organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, in conjunction
with the International Maxi Association (IMA) and will run from
September 1 to September 7 2008.
For further information on the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup and the entire
YCCS sporting season please visit www.yccsmaxi.com. |
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Mayers
and Bertarelli's Numbers, 1st
in the Mini Maxi Division after one race of the Maxi Yacht
Rolex Cup 2008.
Photo © ROLEX / Kurt Arrigo.
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CURRENT PROVISIONAL STANDINGS |
Place |
Boat Name |
Owner |
Nation |
R1-Points |
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Racing Division: |
1. |
ALFA ROMEO |
Neville Crichton |
NZL |
1-1.0 |
2. |
RAMBLER
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George David |
USA |
2-2.0 |
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Cruising Division: |
1. |
RANGER |
RSV Ltd |
USA |
1-1.0 |
2. |
SALPERTON |
Primero Maritime Ltd |
CAY |
2-2.0 |
3. |
VELSHEDA |
Tarbat Inv. Ltd |
GBR |
3-3.0 |
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Mini Maxi Division: |
1. |
NUMBERS |
Meyers / Bertarelli |
USA |
1-1.0 |
2. |
MONEYPENNY |
Jim Swartz |
USA |
2-2.0 |
3. |
ROSEBUD / TEAM DYT |
Roger Sturgeon |
USA |
3-3.0 |
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Wally Division: |
1. |
MAGIC CARPET 2 |
Lindsay Owen-Jones |
GBR |
1-1.0 |
2. |
HIGHLAND FLING X |
Irvine Laidlaw |
GBR |
2-2.0 |
3. |
GENIE
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Charles de Bourbon |
MON |
3-3.0 |
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Outimage
and Rolex © 2008 |
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For more information
about the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2008, including the entry list and
results, please visit: |
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