Rolex Capri Sailing Week - Day 3
by Yacht Club Italiano 12 May 2017 22:15 BST
10-13 May 2017
Rolex Capri Sailing Week © Rolex / Carlo Borlenghi
Yachts participating in the Mylius Cup got their first day of racing today while the yachts racing in the Campionato Nazionale del Tirreno ha now finished four rounds of races. Today the Farr 40s did three races and it's in this fleet that you'll find the most interesting story behind this event: a challenge between a father and his daughter.
Twenty-four year-old Claudia Rossi has only been sailing for four years, but she is already leaving her mark. "My father (Alberto Rossi owner of Enfant Terrible who is also racing in the Rolex Capri Sailing Week) has always loved sailing, but that was a deterrent for me for years. I really only began to get interested when I was twenty." Claudia started sailing aboard her father's Farr 40 and first competed on an Este 24. Last year she was the J/70 European Champion, surprising a 91-boat fleet and even herself. "The Rolex Capri Sailing Week is the first time I've helmed a boat this big and in today's conditions I was a little scared. I asked the tactician to stay close by me and give me support." Something was going right because Claudia helmed Pazza Idea to first and second place finishes today, after finishing third in all three of yesterday's races. How does it feel to be at the head of a crew of 10 men, all of whom are considerably older than she is? "I like to have clear ideas and to be in control, so to me it feels natural to be at the helm. I want to thank Pazza Idea's owner Pier Luigi Bresciani for believing in me and for giving me this chance to sail in the Farr 40 Regatta." And how does it feel to finish ahead of Dad's boat, Enfant Terrible? "Sensazione bellissima," Claudia says with a laugh.
Agnes Lill is from Tallinn in Estonia and has sailed ever since she was young. She was the Junior World Champion in the 470 Class in 2005 and was in Australia for the 2008 Olympic qualifications when she broke her knee. "I knew that my career as a competitive sailor was over, but I wanted to stay in this environment so I looked for alternatives. Estonia is a small country, so anyone who's involved in sailing in any official way tends to play several roles. In other countries there's more distinction: people who are Umpires and mark layers only do those jobs, in Estonia we do a bit of everything. I have trained as a judge and for other roles, but usually am timekeeper like I am here at the Rolex Capri Sailing Week." Agnes is an ophthalmologist so she is "always measuring," in her own words: here the measuring tool of her trade is a pink digital stopwatch. "I'm practically always the only woman working in an official role at a sailing event and it makes me laugh sometimes to see people's faces when they ask for the timekeeper and I say it's me. I guess they're looking for a grumpy old man," she says with a smile. "The start of a race can be a tense moment and I have to keep my eye on more than just the stopwatch." And how do you communicate above all the shouts and noise? "Oh, I just scream," she says with a smile.
Dora Vitalba is a familiar presence aboard the Jury Boat in races in southern Italy and she sees her life on the water as a continuous process of learning. She is an accountant from Aversa in Caserta who learned to sail twenty years ago at the Circolo Nautico Arcobaleno in Torre Annunziata. "Learning to sail was more a question of learning more about the sea, an element that you can never know enough about," she says. "I found people who shared by way of thinking, my love for challenge. But I wanted to learn about all aspects of the sport so in 2009 I took my first course to become a Judge. I'm now certified on a National level." Dora especially likes working at windsurfing events like the World Championship at Torbole, Lago di Garda. "The Rolex Capri Sailing Week is the second Rolex event where I have worked and they are always a cut above the rest. I see my role as being one of guaranteeing balance and fairness to make sure that things stay fun."
This evening Rolex is having its fabulous owner's dinner at the Hotel Quisisana and in the Piazzetta Yacht Club Italiano's sponsor BMW has one of their stunning740 iL models on display. BMW will also be offering transfer services to and from the Molo Beverello ferry landing and Napoli's airport and train station on May 13th and 14th.
The Yacht Club Italiano wishes fair winds to all participants in the Rolex Capri Sailing Week.
Founded in Genoa in 1879, the Yacht Club Italiano is the oldest yacht club in the Med. With its main clubhouse in Porticciolo Duca degli Abruzzi in Genoa, YCI has always had the primary objectives of spreading yachting culture and organising regattas. The Rolex Capri Sailing Week, the Giraglia Rolex Cup and the Rolex MBA's Conference & Regatta are just a few of the international regattas that the YCI organises. The Coppa Carlo Negri, the Trofeo SIAD Bombola d'oro and the Millevele are all events that characterise the YCI's present and show the way towards its future, a future of fun and friendly sportsmanship on the water.
The Yacht Club Italiano thanks its sponsors Rolex and BMW for their support.
Visit www.RolexCapriSailingWeek.com for more details on the regatta.
Farr 40 racing at Rolex Capri Sailing Week goes down to the final day with podium placements up for grabs; Enfant Terrible, Pazza Idea will battle for the victory (from the Farr 40 Class Association)
Competitors in the Farr 40 class have been treated to a wide range of wind conditions during Rolex Capri Sailing Week. After racing in extremely heavy air on Thursday, the fleet adjusted to light and moderate breeze on Friday.
Italian entries Enfant Terrible and Pazza Idea continue to set the pace in every velocity and will go into the final day of action fighting for the overall victory. Meanwhile, American boat Flash Gordon 6 made a strong move on Friday and will be battling MP30+10 for the final podium placement as the four-day regatta wraps up on the Bay of Naples.
Skipper Alberto Rossi steered Enfant Terrible to line honours in the first race on Friday then tacked on a couple seconds to remain atop the standings after three days of action. Pierluigi Bresciani and the Pazza Idea team also had a strong day on the water with a 2-1-3 score line and trails Enfant Terrible by just one point.
Meanwhile, owner-driver Helmut Jahn led Flash Gordon 6 to its best day of the regatta with a win in Race 8 lifting the Chicago boat into third place, four points ahead of Luca Pierdomenico and his crew aboard MP30+10.
Principal race officer Peter "Luigi" Reggio intends to run two races on Saturday to complete a 10-race series that has provided a rousing start to the 2017 International Circuit for Farr 40 class.
Jahn, a renowned architect and longtime Farr 40 owner, was pleased with his boat's performance on Friday. Flash Gordon 6 posted consecutive thirds before winning its second race of the series.
"We won the last race today because we had the best start. That is very important in a fleet this size," Jahn said. "We timed it perfectly and hit the line at full speed. We were able to control the fleet and did not have to bail out early as we have in some of the other races."
Evan Jahn steers Flash Gordon 6 at the starts and going upwind while his father takes the helm for the downwind legs. Both drivers performed splendidly as Flash led from start to finish.
"We accelerated well off the line and built a nice lead at the top mark then extended it on the run," Helmut Jahn said. "Everybody on the boat did did their job well and it was just a great way to finish the day. Hopefully, we can have another good day tomorrow and hang on to third."
Veteran professional Morgan Reeser is calling tactics on Flash Gordon 6, which has been stored in a shed in Ancona, Italy since placing fourth at the Farr 40 European Championship last summer. The Jahns chartered a boat to capture the North American Championship in their hometown of Chicago last September.
"We keep the boat in top shape and know how to set it up properly as far as rig tension and so forth," Jahn said. "The team is coming together and we will continue to work to improve our speed leading up to the worlds. It is all about the world championship. That is our focus for this season."
The 20th anniversary Rolex Farr 40 World Championship will be held off Porto Cervo in mid-July and hosted by Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. There will be one more regatta leading up to worlds with the Farr 40 Gaeta Open being held June 8-10.
Pierdomenico is feeling much better about his boat as a result of its performance at Rolex Capri Sailing Week. MP30+10, a Corinthian entry in its second season on the International Circuit, has placed second in two races and also notched a third.
"We have new sails, which has helped a lot. Our crew is learning more about the boat every day and we are very encouraged," Pierdomenico said. "We have definitely improved since last year. I thought the team did a great job in strong wind on Thursday."
MP30+10 led the opening race on Friday for two legs, but fell out of phase when the wind dropped on the second run. A gybing duel with Enfant Terrible ensued and MP30+10 wound up crossing the line in fourth.
"We figured out that our rig was too tight when the pressure dropped," Pierdomenico said. "We have to learn how to adjust the rig to changing conditions."
Struntje Light, the German boat owned by Wolfgang Schaefer, has withdrawn from the regatta after sustaining damage to the backstay in Race 5 on Thursday.
So it is down to the final day with four boats in contention for podium placements.
"It's really been a great regatta with varying wind conditions and very close racing," Farr 40 class representative Brady Stagg said. "Four different boats have won a race and the mark roundings have been quite tight. Another Farr 40 regatta is going to come down to the last day, which is par for the course."
Farr 40 Class Standings:
1, Enfant Terrible, Alberto Rossi, Ancona, Italy, 5-1-2-3-1-1-2-2, 17pts
2, Pazza Idea, Pierluigi Bresciani, Verona, Italy, 3-3-3-1-2-2-1-3, 18pts
3, Flash Gordon 6, Helmut & Evan Jahn, Chicago, 1-4-4-4-4-3-3-1, 24pts
4, MP30+10, Luca Pierdomenico, Civitanova Marche, Italy, 4-2-5-2-3-4-4-4, 28pts
5, Struntje Light, Wolfgang Schaefer, Lueneburg, Germany, 2-5-1-5-7/DNF-7/DNC-7/DNC-7/DNC, 41pts
6, Arctur, Vasyl Gureyev, Kiev, Ukraine, 6-6-6-6-5-5-5-5, 44pts