Sydney 40 World Championships - Day 1
by John Roberson 1 Jul 1999 19:18 BST
EUROPEAN AND GERMAN CREWS SHARE THE LEAD AFTER DAY 1
The European entry Merit Cup, and Germany's MK Cafe share the lead after the first day of the "Race 1 Sydney 40 World Championships", both having scored first and second places.
Steered by Vasco Vascotto, Merit Cup put on a very convincing performance in the opening race of the championship, to take the gun by 1 minute, 28 seconds from MK Cafe.
In race two it was the German's turn to taste glory, with Karol Jablonski grabbing the gun, but their margin over Merit Cup at the finish was a slender 18 seconds, after a very close fight all the way around the track.
By putting in a steady performance in both races, the Dutch entry Trust Computer Product, steered by Jochem Visser, claimed third place on the leaderboard, after scoring third and fifth places.
Racing on the Solent, between the Isle of Wight and mainland England, was under a steel grey sky, with the occasional shaft of silvery sunlight breaking through.
The wind was generally in the 18 to 20 knot range, from the south-west, with the occasional gusts of 25 knots, which tested the crews, particularly on the downwind legs.
There is no doubt that both Merit Cup and MK Cafe looked more professional in their crew work and boat handling than the rest of the fleet.
In the case of the European boat this is not surprising, as they have been sailing their craft since September last year, whereas the Germans have only just jumped aboard their boat for this event.
Most of the other teams had their good moments, but on other occasions, they had that "just got off the plane" look, with some spectacular wipe outs, and very messy spinnaker work.
Commenting on their performance during the day, Merit Cup's navigator Mark Chisnell said, "we had our luck today, I guess we just have to stay lucky."
Results (after 2 races):
Pos Boat Owner Pts R1 R2
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1= Merit Cup Marco Greggio 3 1 2
1= MK Cafe Thomas Friese 3 2 1
3 Trust Computer Jochem Visser 8 3 5
4 Invicta Massimo Mazzaroma 9 5 4
5 Arbitrator Stephen Bailey 11 8 3
6 Blue Yankee Pride Farley Towse 12 4 8
7= Turbo UK David Walters 13 6 7
7= Sledgehammer Ron Jones 13 7 6
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
On the regatta:
John Roberson
Tel: +44 (0)1983 295144
e-mail: robo_bandana@compuserve.com
On Sydney 40:
Louise Bashford
Tel: +61 (0)2 9979 8044
Website: www.bashford.com.au
On Race 1:
Jonny Falkner
Tel: 01243 573333
e-mail: sydney40@race1.demon.co.uk
THIS CHAMPIONSHIP IS ALSO SUPPORTED BY:
Bashford International
Jacobs Creek Wines