RRD One Hour Classic at Circolo Surf Torbole
by Elena Giolai 27 Jun 2023 13:02 BST
A perfect edition was held of the historic RRD One Hour Classic, a regatta organised by Circolo Surf Torbole since 1989 and reserved for slalom fin and, since 2018, foil boards, which maintains its uniqueness in the evolution of times, with an hour between the two shores of Garda Trentino (Ponale and Conca d'Oro) in the challenge of doing as many laps as possible before time runs out.
It was so perfect that Circolo Surf Torbole's Bruno Martini broke both records, both fin and foil. The "Ora" (the classic south wind of the upper Garda area) was not very strong, but straight started early and gradually increased, with clear skies as when there is a north wind; it was a nice straight direction, about 20-22 knots in the early afternoon when the FIN regatta started at 3pm, preceded by the Foil, which had a little less, but was definitely better than Saturday. And this perfect day was also a perfect day for Bruno Martini, who by finding the ideal set-up with board, sail and appendages, broke the record in both the FOIL and PINNA races.
After a Friday with nothing to do and a Saturday in which both the fin slalom trial and then the foil slalom were done, Sunday was the apotheosis, cancelling out what had been done the previous day in terms of times, rankings, and fun.
Before taking to the water to challenge each other to the sound of laps and sides, participants and organisers met on the lawn of the Circolo Surf Torbole to remember, as they do every year, the athlete Alberto Menegatti, the first Italian to conquer the top positions in the World Cup and who died prematurely; the event is dedicated to Alberto with the Trophy awarded to the winner.
Sunday was first on the water with the foils, which continue to undergo rapid technical evolution: total mastery of the craft and increasingly high-performance equipment have allowed Bruno Martini to snatch the foil record set in 2022 from Jordy Vonk, with 21 sides in 1h 01'; Bruno in 1h 04' 21" achieved 22 sides, touching a top speed of 31.10 knots. The foil slalom record, on the other hand, dates back to 2018 and belonged to Bruno Martini himself, who turned 19 sides in 1h 00'31"; today, by 16 seconds he managed to surpass himself, despite crossing the ferry course just as Martini was turning the Ponale buoy halfway through the race. A truly splendid edition, in which once again Alberto Menegatti, the Circolo Surf Torbole athlete who left us all too soon and to whom the One Hour is dedicated, sent wind and splendid weather from up there. This year fewer champions, but many youngsters, new faces, who enjoyed themselves: a great sign for the future.
And let's come to the rankings, apart from the two fantastic records, which never let the One Hour get old: first Under 20 slalom fin was the Dane Noah Vinther, while in the foil category the Circolo Surf Torbole athlete Jacopo Gavioli, who is progressively growing, won. In the women's foil the Czech Kristyna Pinosova won, in the fins the Italian Anna Biagiolini. Edoardo Thermes, on the other hand, won the first edition reserved also for Windsurfers, who started together with the fin slalom, but upwind. On the men's side, the top speed achieved with 10 minutes to go in the fin slalom by Germany's Christian Hirscherberg, with a peak of 35.01 knots (equal to 64.83 Km/h). Martini won in the fins ahead of Malte Reuscher, third the first under-20 Noah Vinther. In the Foil classification behind recordman Bruno Martini was Frenchman Lucas Guiraud, first in Saturday's race. Third the Italian Daniele Benedetti.
Video Slalom fin-Sunday:
Video FOIL Sunday: