Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta at Yacht Club Costa Smeralda - Day 2
by Yacht Club Costa Smeralda 4 Jun 2015 19:29 BST
2-6 June 2015
Bright sunshine and light airs once again characterized the second race day of the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta in Porto Cervo. Following a short but hard-fought race there was no change at the top of the classification as Ganesha (Class A), My Song (Class B) and Grande Orazio (Class C) held on to first place overall in their respective divisions. Racing will continue in the event organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda and Boat International Media through Saturday 6th June.
After waiting for the light winds to stabilize the YCCS Race Committee sent the superyacht fleet on a short course inside the straits between the islands of the La Maddalena archipelago and the coast of Sardinia. The yachts were accompanied by 8 to 10 knots of easterly breeze and the pressure was on owners and crews to make the most of the light air as competition remained incredibly tight for the duration of the race.
A battle of the giants ensued in Class A as the 45-metre Saudade and the 46-metre Ganesha vied for supremacy. It was the Wally Saudade with Danish match racer Jesper Radich on tactics that slipped across the line first, however Ganesha's bullet from yesterday leaves her one point ahead in the overall classification. All is yet to play for in the coming days as just four points separate the top four boats in this division.
Albert Büll, at the helm of Saudade, had a fantastic day: "We found it beautiful - it was a great race for us. We think the race committee made the right decision to postpone the race, then send us into the straits and shorten it to 12 miles. The first downwind leg it was better to sail inside [left down the course] like Ganesha did. We were on the wrong side - we saw this, just a little difference, and we did a different thing on the second downwind leg - you have to learn!"
Pier Luigi Loro Piana's My Song managed to fight off a sustained challenge from the 33-metre WinWin in Class B to claim her second consecutive victory and confirm her place at the top of the overall classification. WinWin is just two points behind in second place and the 33-metre Inoui sits in third.
Current divsion title-holder Grande Orazio didn't give an inch today and chalked up a second bullet ahead of Nahita, which has British sailor Andy Green on board. There was no change in the top three positions overall as Grande Orazio and Nahita hold their places followed by the 31-metre Gaia, designed by Spirit Yachts.
Competition continued back on the dock as crews presented their top cocktail creations for a panel of judges.
Racing is scheduled to continue tomorrow, Friday 5th June, at 12 midday. Further light breezes are forecast.
Follow the regatta via Live Tracking from the YCCS homepage. News and images will be posted on the YCCS Twitter account (#LoroPianaSYR). The full entry list and complete event schedule are available on www.yccs.com and www.loropianasuperyachtregatta.com