Porto Cervo, 8th September 1999

Day three

ROUND UP

A fifty mile offshore race began at 11.40 for the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup Fleet.

The course started with a two mile beat to a windward mark, into a twelve to fifteen knot north-easterly breeze - and bright sunshine.

The wind shifted a little to the right by the afternoon, but stayed at approximately the same velocity and direction all day.

After the beat, the fleet sailed north-west to the Ecueil de Lavezzi, a gradually broadening reach, going from headsails to spinnakers.

Turning for home, spinnakers came down and headsails went back up, as the fleet returned on the picturesque inside passage of the Islands of Maddalena. Passing through the Porto Cervo line, the fleet then headsail reached to Monaci. Followed by a gennaker reach to Mortoriotto. A headsail reach to the finish.

A day dominated by boatspeed.Boomerang beats Sayonara to tie Maxi's overall. Tiketitan takes line honours for third time.

THE INSIDE STORY

Perfect yacht racing conditions once again greeted the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup fleet, as they sailed out of Porto Cervo to find the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda's Committee Boat ready and waiting. Today was the coastal race, and the numeral code pennants one and six were flying, to indicate course sixteen. There will have been a few wry grins around the fleet - that one is the fifty miler, rather than the ninety miler that could have been set.

After a short two mile beat to the windward mark, the fleet were to head north-west, leaving the Islands of Monaci, Caprera, Maddalena and Barettinelli di Fuori to port, keeping them in the open ocean. Then, after rounding the Ecueil de Lavezzi, they had to turn for home through the inside passage, leaving the same chain of islands to starboard - a route known as "bomb alley" to the crews. They re-emerge into open ocean just north of Porto Cervo, and head south to a rounding mark off the harbour entrance. Then north again to the Island of Monaci, south past Porto Cervo to the island of Mortoriotto, and from there to the finish.

The Cruising Division were first to start again, and it was Simon Fry's Wally B - currently languishing in eighth overall - that took the first beat by storm, with Peter Bateman and Admiral's Cup navigator Julian Salter were making the right moves. Next came Luca Bassani's Tiketitan, and then Nariida - but it was the first race winner, Marco Tronchetti Provera's Kauris II, that looked to have had the mall on handicap, rounding just afterwards.

Back down the track the ILC Maxi class were in a desperate struggle forascendancy. With such a long reach ahead of them after the first beat, they leader at the windward mark would have a clear lane to build a lead. Sagamore was to leeward, with Alexia above her. Sayonara started to windward this time, joined at the hip with Boomerang - these two neck and neck for three different titles at the moment. Sayonara tacked off - either wanting the right hand side of the beat, or concerned that Boomerang had the better of the start.

It was the left hand side of the beat that paid, and by the top mark, Chris Larsonand Michael Coxon, aboard Alberto Roemmers Alexia, had the lead. Sagamore and Boomerang was behind them, with overall leader Sayonara in last. All four boats had the stunning 41 metre Alejandra ahead. But the only view the crews willhave been interested in would be the one they can't see - a whorl of bad air swirling towards them. Before the oxygen masks dropped down, the first three took the low road. Sayonara had squeezed inside the equally impressive vacuum machine that is Adela, at the windward mark. And having fought clear of that, she headed high, to go above Alejandra.

Behind them, the left hand side of the beat was also paying for Riccardo Bonadeo's Rrose Selavy - rounding close behind leader My Song - but looking a leader on handicap. From behind would come a strong challenge from thirdaround, Highland Fling - top boat overall in the IMS Class outside the ILC Maxi's. But Highland Fling's owner Irvine Laidlaw has brought together an impressive crew, that includes British Admiral's Cup sailors James Stagg and Andy Hemmings, New Zealander Campbell Field, and American America's Cup sailor Mike Toppa. With winning Dutch Admiral's Cup skipper, Bouwe Bekking, as tactician, Laidlaw steers the Farr designed, Carroll Marine built 60 footerhimself. Bekking reckoned of his owner, ' He is one of the best owner/drivers around, and he has to be, there are some good guys out there'. The boat has already won IMS Class 1 and the Boat of the Week trophy at the highly competitive Key West Race Week, last January.

Once around the windward mark, the boat speed race commenced. It was straight-line white sail reaching, before the course eased enough as they approached the Ecueil de Lavezzi to set spinnakers. But once there, the kites came back down as they gybed around the rust-coloured rock - and set off for 'bomb alley'. The 'lap' of the islands was all about angles, and how quick each boat could go with their headsails, jib tops, spinnakers, staysails, gennakers and, in the case of Lindsay Owen Jones' Cruising Division leader Magic Carpet, what looks suspiciously like a Code Zero.

As they emerged through the Pas de Bisce, the battle amongst the Cruising Division boats for line honours was unchanged - Wally B led Tiketitan and Nariida. But the two top Maxi's had ground their way past Alexia and Sagamore - Boomerang led from Sayonara, after they rounded the top mark almost together. The breeze off Porto Cervo had shifted right and the remaining loop of Monachi and Mortoriotto to the finish was more reaching. As Vasco Vascotto from Tiketitan said, 'It was a reaching race, after the first mark, we didn't go upwind or downwind'. The only passing lanes came from speed, reading the pressure on the water better, and sharper crew work on the sets and drops.

Wally B couldn't keep up her stubborn resistance to the finish, and slowly Tiketitan wore her down to pass and take her third line honours in three days. Boomerang won her battle with Sayonara, to close the points gap in the ILC Maxi fleet to zero. But with the rest of the fleet stretched out behind them, north to south across the setting sun, they will have to wait to see how the handicap results resolve themselves.
Written by Mark Chisnell, for The Strategic Organisation