Kieler Woche - Day 7
by Andi Robertson 25 Jun 2016 00:03 BST
18-26 June 2016
A 'Crazy' Shifty Kiel Day Upsets Some Top Seeds
Olympic medallists share the top two positions in the competitive 49er Class after two difficult Finals races at Kieler Woche as the thundery air brought big shifts in wind direction. But both Peter Burling and Blair Tuke, New Zealand's 2012 silver winners, and Jonas Warrer, Denmark's 2008 gold winning helm in Qingdao, had three solid races apiece to hold first and second respectively.
Burling and Tuke sailed a 4,5,3 to lie five points clear of Warrer and Peter Lubeck who started the Finals stage with two fourths and a discarded eighth.
Shifts in wind direction were big and unexpected in the warm, close and humid weather. Ireland's Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern, winners in Palma in April, won the first Gold fleet race in the breeziest conditions of the three races – 8-11kts from the SW. Austria's Benjamin Bildstein and David Hussel won the second race of the day and Germany's Erik Heil and Thomas Ploessel won the third.
Warrer reported: "It was really shifty, a Kiel day when you had to pick a side and both sides paid at different times. We were never that good at the first mark but we were good at then picking off some boats each time. But overall we were consistent but not that good. We are here to win. That is why we are. We do all we can to win every race. We have a good series with a high quality entry. We are having a good regatta. We know we can win. Peter and Blair are good but we are close to them and that is good for us."
The 470 Junior World Championships entered the Finals stage today and the big shifts, especially in the second races later in the day, proved particularly random and problematic. The saving grace for many of the top contenders who found themselves deep in the fleet at the finish is that most of their main title rivals were down there with them. The Men's fleet reported a shift of 50 degrees during the second race. If you were on the wrong side of it there was no way back. Spain's Charles brothers won the first race and were leading the second before the Big Shift summarily dumped them to a 24th – a discard they did not really want with one more day of racing before Sunday's Medal race (watch the medal races live on www.kieler-woche.de). Germany's top hopes Malte Winkel and Matti Cipra, leaders going into today's races, were also badly positioned relative to the shift. But they partner their resulting 10th to a 17th and so drop to second. Japan's Keiju Okada and Naoya Kimura lead overall now with no finish out of the top 10 across all seven races so far.
"We were feeling really fast and made good starts and won the first race. We got the first two shifts right and then just had to pull in the Swiss boat which was leading which we did with good speed. In the second race we were first at the top mark but then on the downwind there was a 50 degree shift to the right. We were in the wrong position and so we dropped a lot of positions. We took too much risks to come back and in the end we lost more boats. I do think they should have abandoned the race," David Charles said. The Barcelona twins lie third just three points behind the Japanese leaders.
"We did not make good starts and then made mistakes and ended up in the traffic. It was hard to get back. We did not have a good view of what was happening, we were not clear in our thinking. We need to focus on the good results to rebuild our confidence in our decision making, which shifts and gusts to take." Is the assessment of Germany's Malte Winkel.
France's defending champions Guillaume Pirouelle and Valentin Sipan had a better day, winning the second race they are tied on 24 points with the Spanish brothers who pipped them to the ISAF Youth Worlds title in the 420 in 2012.
In the Women's races the Spanish leaders suffered a similar fate to their male counterparts. Silvia Mas and Paula Barcelo could not use the big changes in direction to best effect. Their 17th is their discard but they still have five points in hand over Maria Bozi and Rafailina Klonaridou, last year's runners up who had a 14th in the same race. Best scoring female duo today was Israel's big changes in direction to best effect. Their 17th is their discard but they still have five points in hand over Maria Bozi and Rafailina Klonaridou, last year's runners up who had a 14th in the same race. Best scoring female duo today was Israel's Yahel Wallach and Shahar Tibi with a 6,2. Israel have two womens crews in the top seven.
"It was so shifty today and we were very, very bad. We sailed so bad. I don't know why we are the same as the boys, we must think the same. But we never feel pressure to sail well. We just go out and sail our best." Explains leading helm Silvia Mas from Barcelona. The leading duo sail with a picture of the Virgin Mary taped to their side-tank. "We have sailed and trained with the boys for many years and that has definitely helped us. We are very close and help each other." She adds. Backed by a crack crew including 2000 Soling Olympian and Mascalzone Latino America's Cup sailor Michele Paoletti as tactician, and her father Alberto back watching at the venue where he won the ORC worlds, Claudia Rossi can hardly be accused of beginner's luck. But it is the 24 year old's first big regatta in the J/70 since she took up sailing seriously less than three years ago, and she and her Petite Terrible lead a start studded 95 boat J/70 European Championship. Her father bought her a J/70 as a graduation present – and one for himself – and she has been hooked ever since.
Petite Terrible won the first race after Carlo Alberini's Calvi Networks was disqualified for a starting infringement under the Black Flag. Petite Terrible's second race fifth place remains their discard.
Only two races could be sailed before the breeze completely disappeared. Stefano Roberti's Monaco Yacht Club flagged Italian crew made a 4,6 in the other fleet and so share the same 8 pts tally after five races.
"It was a difficult day in light winds but we were very focused. We were a little pinned at the start of the first race, wanting to go left, but we lost Calvi at the top mark and they lead. So it was good that Calvi Networks was DSQ'd. Our second race the start was not so good we were stuck with very little wind." Claudia Rossi explains. "I started only in February with the J/70 and this is the team we will take to the world championships in San Francisco. It is my first regatta in the J/70. But I have only sailed for three years. My crew are happy with me but we have to be strong. They all work very hard to get better every day."
Both races had black flag starts after general recalls for both fleets. Enrico Fonda, 2012 European and World Melges 24 Champion, tactician with Stefano Roberti on the joint leading J/70 concluded. "It was a very light, shifty tricky day and so to come away not having made a big mistake is good for us. Many good teams had a bad day. Our team is fairly new, sailing with new trimmers here for the first time. But Stefano is a very fast driver and we have had good speed yesterday and today."
J/70 Europeans: Mediterranean teams show the secrets of fast trimming
It was a late one on the race area for the J/70s on their second day of the European Championship at the Kiel Week.
In the light and shifty breezes the race committee managed to start two races, before the wind finally disappeared when they were trying to start the third race. So PRO Thorsten Paech decided to send the 94 crews back to the dock. The leaders of the fleet changed - on paper from Stefano Roberti (Monaco) to Claudia Rossi (Italy) but only on countback. Both crews now share the same point score, 8pts. The best German crew is Pit Finis team (Duesseldorf/Germany) who are eighth.
"It was a day, where you would lose so much by making small mistakes. All 47 teams in our group in round the first mark very close together and then If you happened to be on the wrong side on the downwind, you lost a lot", reported Stefano Roberti. Even for the joint regatta leaders not everything went smoothly.
In the first race, they were third at the first mark, but they were held from making their gybe by their rivals and lost a few places. "Fortunately, we could fight our way back up to fourth place again. That was good for us especially when we realized that our opponent had started in the wrong group." A sixth place from the second race will be the discard for Roberti. "Since we are a rather heavy team, we are very happy with our boat speed. But Claudia Rossi with her crew is incredibly fast."
Oliver Schwall, the founder of national sailing league, is coming to terms with the idea the teams from the Mediterranean have a higher speed potential. "In the national sailing league we are sailing with basic settings on the J/70, which we are not allowed to change. You immediately notice that these other teams know how to set up their boats better. " Sailing with his brother Rene, Bo Teichmann from the J/70 importer "Mittelmann's Werft" and Moritz Jaeger-Roschko, Oliver Schwall is 22nd after five races. "Unfortunately, we got stuck in a wind hole in one race", recalled Schwall.
The only German crew in the top ten is the team of Pit Finis with tactician Karol Jablonski, who is clearly moving up the rankings with 7,2 on this second race day
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