| EXTREME! Major collision,
4 capsizes, a broken mast. |
| By Extreme Sailing
Series 2011 Media. |
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Photos: Sui Zhi Qiang,
Lloyd Images, Giordana Pipornetti (Niceforyou)
Edited By Peter Andrews. |
| April 15, 2011. |
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Never in four years of the Extreme Sailing Series has there been so much drama in one day. In almost unprecedented conditions here in Qingdao, the public witnessed some extraordinary adrenalin fueled ‘stadium’ racing.
They first witnessed major collisions between The Wave-Muscat (OMAN) and Oman Air (OMAN) at the first downwind mark of the first race. Then there were four dramatic capsizes starting with The Wave-Muscat (OMAN) in Race 2. The remaining three were by Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Team GAC Pindar (GBR) and Oman Air (OMAN) during the final race of the day. |
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The Wave-Muscat mid-capsize in race 2 on day 3, during the Extreme Sailing
Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Sui Zhi Qiang / Lloyd Images.
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During the first two races, it was the very gusty conditions that tested some of the world’s best sailors to their limits and beyond, with 3 to 23 knots. By the time they got to the final race, the wind had got up to 30 knots.
"Massive day! The only way to describe it is extreme! The wind was funneling through the big buildings of the city, really puffy and shifty, it caught a lot of people out," said Will Howden from Red Bull Extreme Sailing. |
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Red Bull Extreme Sailing capsize in race 4 on day 3, during the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Giordana Pipornetti / Niceforyou.
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Torvar Mirsky, Skipper of The Wave-Muscat in his first Extreme 40 season, was to have his toughest day yet. During race 1, he accelerated in to the back of Oman Air, right at the first downwind mark. The the impact threw crewman Dave ‘Freddie’ Carr into one of the shrouds (the cables holding the mast up). Then soon after in Race 2, they suffering a catastrophic capsize. Freddie has been given the ‘OK’, but will remain in hospital for observation for 48 hours.
"I can honestly say that this is the worst day of sailing I’ve ever had," commented a visibly shaken Mirsky, the youngest skipper on the circuit. "First of all taking out Freddie and then in the second race, we got hit by a gust that I couldn’t handle and the boat went down and we all knew straight away that it was going to go over and to hold on. We were trapped and doomed for a disaster. Kyle and I got flicked off from the top and fell onto the mast and snapped it."
The Wave-Muscat were accelerating away after a ‘hot’ bear away and gybe at the final top mark, and lost control as a gust hit and spun them in to a very fast cartwheel. |
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The Wave-Muscat capsize in race 2 on day 3, during the Extreme Sailing
Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Sui Zhi Qiang / Lloyd Images.
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The conditions on the second day of Act 2 guaranteed that these fast and powerful Extreme 40s were going to be a handful, even for these experienced professional crews. By the third race, the 11-boat fleet had been told to put a reef in and keep their massive downwind gennakers furled. A sensible measure, but not enough to stop three further capsizes in the final race when the gusts were reaching 30 knots.
Roman Hagara’s Red Bull Extreme Sailing was chasing for the lead in the final race and was just meters from the pedestrian breakwater when they capsized. "We saw a gust coming which we knew was really hard. The wind was 5 knots when we went into the gybe and 25 after. We dived immediately and then capsized. We went so quickly. All four of us were hanging on because we know what happens from the last time, so we were all safe and luckily we had lifejackets and helmets on and nobody got hurt." |
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Team GAC Pindar capsize in the final race on day 3, during the Extreme
Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Giordana Pipornetti / Niceforyou.
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Whilst Red Bull Extreme Sailing was being righted by their support rib, British skipper Ian Williams, who is new to this multihull game, was the next capsize victim. This came about as he closed in on the downwind mark just a little too ‘hot’, along with Oman Air (back out racing with a replacement crew). Oman Air’s skipper Frenchman Sidney Gavignet bailed out, but when trying to bear away to come back down to the mark a second time, a powerful gust during a tight turn, sent them also hurtling in to a capsize.
Emirates Team New Zealand stayed out of trouble and retained the top position on the leaderboard, ahead of Alinghi in 2nd, while Red Bull Extreme Sailing finished in 3rd place today. |
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Oman Air, the 4th and final capsize of day 3, during
the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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The pit lane was busy well into the night, as man and machine were put back together. Red Bull Extreme Sailing was righted with its mast intact, despite rubbing along the bottom of Fushan Bay. Team GAC Pindar was also righted with its mast intact and towed back in, albeit missing one of their daggerboards. Both teams expect to be racing tomorrow.
The Wave-Muscat suffered a broken mast and full inversion, with the extent of the damage still to be assessed. Oman Air also spent some hours fully inverted and was now back in the harbour, with its condition yet to be established. It was a day one can only described as Extreme! |
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Oman Air, the 4th and final capsize of day 3, during
the Extreme Sailing Series 2011, Qingdao, China.
Photo © Lloyd Images.
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Extreme Sailing Series Act 2 Qingdao
Current overall standings after Day 3 (15.4.2011)
Position / Team / Skipper & crew / Points
| 1st |
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker, Glenn Ashby, Jeremy Lomas and Richard Meacham on 134 points. |
| 2nd |
Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Cariou, Yann Guichard, Nils Frei and Yves Detrey on 127 points. |
| 3rd |
Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara, Hans Peter Steinacher, Will Howden and Craig Monk on 124 points. |
| 4th |
Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena, Paul Campbell-James, Alister Richardson and Manuel Modena on 124 points. |
| 5th |
Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec, Christophe Espagnon, Thierry Fouchier and Hervé Cunningham on 116 points. |
| 6th |
Artemis Racing (SWE), Santiago Lange, Rodney Ardern, Morgan Trubovich and Andy Fethers on 96 points. |
| 7th |
The Wave-Muscat (OMA), Torvar Mirsky, Kyle Langford, Nick Hutton and Khamis Al Anbouri on 81 points. |
| 8th |
Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier, Mark Bulkeley, Daniele de Luca and Simone de Mari on 81 points. |
| 9th |
Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler, Bruno Dubois, Sebbe Godefroid and William Wu on 75 points. |
| 10th |
Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet, Kinley Fowler, David Carr and Nasser Al Mashari on 57 points. |
| 11th |
Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams, Brad Webb, Gilberto Nobili and Jono Macbeth on 27 points. |
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| For more information: www.extremesailingseries.com. |
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| Outimage and the
Extreme Sailing Series™ © 2011 |
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