District 20  Regatta Report

Mon Mar 7th, 2016 through Sat Mar 12th, 2016

Eric Doyle/Payson Infelise and Paul Cayard/Brian Fatih in 18 knots

Eric Doyle/Payson Infelise and Paul Cayard/Brian Fatih in 18 knots

2016 Bacardi Cup

 

Report by Paul Cayard:

Today was the first day of the 88th Bacardi Cup. The Bacardi Cup started in Havana Cuba and was moved to Miami in the late 50's. 70 Star teams from 14 countries are entered for the event.

The wind was in from the east at 15-17 knots and all the teams were ready for the noon start. 2.5 hours later, we finally started our 2 hours race. We got back to the dock at 5:00. It was a very long day. Unfortunately for some, it was a short day as a few broke masts and other gear.

Without going into all the details, we had many-several (can't remember) recalled starts, postponements and even half a race that was abandoned after the first lap. I was worn out before the race started. The starting line for a fleet this big is two lines put together with a large signal boat right in the middle. So adjusting the angle of the line is a three boat operation and takes time to get anchors up etc. No doubt the race committee are worn out too.

When it finally started, Brian and I had a good start at the left end and initially looked very good. Problem was that the wind went right 15 degrees from there, and with that much leverage to the wrong side, it was a long haul back to 8th were we finished. While not overly ecstatic about that finish, it is a long week and a very tough fleet.

The German Team, and past World Champions, Robert Stank and Fritjof Kleen sailed well to take the win. Peter Vessella and Phil Trinter moved from 5th to second as the race progressed and Arthur Anosov with Edward Morey up front got the bronze. Lars Grael and Samuel Conclaves, the current World Champions, were 4th with local Miami hero Augie Diaz and Bruno Prada in 5th.

The forecast is windy all week. Maybe a bit more tomorrow - 20 gusting 25. The race committee will send the fleet on reaches on the first lap if it is real windy. They do this to eliminate one dead downwind run which is where most of the masts break. We don't reach much anymore in the Star class so that will be interesting. Could become a habit this week.

Day One Video

Day Two: All the forecasts were predicting big breeze-20 knots. It didn't materialize. That's why they call it a forecast and not a factcast.

We had a much shorter day on the water which was appreciated by all. I was in bed at 8:15 last night! After a 20 minute delay to get the line set, we had just one general recall today and then got race 2 underway in 16 knots from the East and choppy seas.

Brian and I had a decent start about 2/3rds of the way to the left end of the line and held starboard for about 10 minutes. Our speed was good and we were immediately up amongst the leaders. We rounded the first mark 4th and headed downwind. When we gybed to port it seemed like everyone behind us did as well. We were immediately set up underneath (in the wind shadow) of a 15 boat pack. This is not good when you need wind to push your boat.

Needless to say we had a stressful run and ended up losing quite a bit of ground. We rounded the gate at the bottom of leg 2 about 13th.

With good speed up wind and a much better second downwind run and we finished the race in 5th.

Today was Italia Day with Diego Negri and Sergio Lambertenghi taking the win. They had very good speed upwind and down wind. They were second at the first mark but passed yesterdays winners, the German team of Stank/Kleen, on the first downwind leg. The Italians stretched out to a big lead, an obvious indication of speed.

For a while Torben Grael and Guilherme Almeida moved into second place but the Germans recaptured second up the last windward leg. Augie Diaz and Bruno Prada are going very fast in their new Folli which just arrived Friday. They passed by Torben as well to finish third, Grael 4th and Brian and I in 5th. Missing from the top group today was Lars Grael (Torben's younger brother and current World Champion) who finished, an uncharacteristic, 25th.

It's a little early for us to be looking at the scores, lots of racing to go.

Day two video

Day Three:
Today was a perfect Miami day for sailing. The wind was in the mid teens, the waves were good for surfing the boats downwind and the Star Class was out in force for the Bacardi Cup, a tradition of 89 years.

What other class of boat has a trophy that has been continuously competed for, for 89 years? A trophy that started in Cuba? Is there any other sporting event competed for in the USA that was started in Cuba? People say the Star is an old boat, traditional, slow etc. Well it is, but it has also endured for 105 years. The class has gone from a gaff rig to a Marconi rig, from wood to fiberglass and from cotton to Dacron. The Star has evolved with the times, carefully accepting innovation while protecting its roots. Today the Star is a modern boat and still challenging to sail well. And the class is still conducting championships with some of the top sailors in the world.

Why? There is a lot of ingredients to the Star class that make it what it is. It would be too lengthy to get into it here but when I come back to the Coral Reef dock at the end of the day, and tie up alongside Torben Grael, a man I have competed against for over 30 years, on the Southern Ocean, at the Olympic Games, at the America's Cup, and we shake hands after a good battle in the Star, nothing needs to be said. He's here and I am here for the same reason - there is nothing better than racing a Star.

Today, the German's were the best team, following up on Monday's win. They were second at the first mark but got past Augie Diaz, (a giant in terms of the skill and camaraderie he brings) on the first downwind. The two teams battled all race but the Germans prevailed and are putting together a very strong bid to win the Bacardi Cup. Brian and I had a good day hovering around the 3-5 positions most of the race and finally finishing 3rd. Diego Negri and Sergio were pushing us hard and finished 4th. Torben and Guilherme were 5th.

There are a lot of excellent sailors I am not mentioning in these articles. Look at the scoring sheet below. For example our current World Champion is in 9th. It is not easy if you don't have a good start and first leg. Passing in this group is very difficult.

Tomorrow's forecast is for strong winds in the 20+ knot range. Each day the forecast has been overstated so we will see how tomorrow materializes.

At the half way mark, the Germans are leading comfortably, Augie and Bruno are second, Diego and Sergio 3rd, Brian and I moved up to 4th and Brad Funk with Mark Strube are sailing very well and moved up into 5th.

Day three video

Day Four:
The wind was blowing hard all night and early this morning. The Race Committee put up the postponement flag at 0900 and at 11:00 called it for the day. This is a good call for the fleet on the whole. While the top 25% of the fleet could race in 25 knots, many of the participants would either not go out or would go out and possibly incur damage. If you break your mast, that is an $8K outing. Good call by the race committee.

However, tomorrow we will have two races. These races are World Championship length races; 10.7 nm. Each race takes about 1:45. So it will be a long and physical day. The first start will be at 11:00 rather than the usual 12:00.

The forecast is for 17 knots from the southeast at 10:00 dropping to 11 knots by 16:00. It should be a beautiful day for racing Stars.

Someone will have to make a move tomorrow if the Germans are to be beaten. There is one discard in this series so two top 5 finishes for the Germans and they may not even have to go out for the 6th race on Saturday. But sailing is usually anything but straight forward. We still have half the series to go!

Day Five: Diego Negri and his crew, Sergio Lambertenghi, were in a class of their own today winning both races. The German team finished 6th and 3rd. So going into tomorrow these two teams are tied for the lead and intact, no one else can beat them.

Brian and I thought we had a good day with a 4, 2 but we found out upon arriving back at the dock that we had be Black Flagged in the first race of the day and therefore disqualified. Fortunately there is one discard in this series so two are discarding the black flag.

In the second race, we were always battling around 4th or 5th but then down the final run to the finish we passed 3 boats to finish second.

Augie Diaz and Bruno Prada were also Black Flagged in the first race today and finished 4th in the second race. The have a four point lead on us going in to tomorrow's final race.

In 5th is Brad Funk and Mark Strube. Brad is a Laser and 49er sailor, new to the Star class. They are sailing very well in this Bacardi Cup and finished with a 2, 8 today.

Tomorrows forecast for Biscayne Bay is 13 knots form the southeast with the temperatures in the high 70's.

Day Five Video>

Day Six:
Another perfect day for sailing today on Biscayne Bay with 12 knots of wind to from the southeast and sunshine.

The final race was for all the marbles. Robert Stanjeck with Frithjof Kleen (GER) up front and Diego Negri with Sergio Lambertenghi (ITA) were tied and no one else could beat either of them. Augie Diaz was in third and I woke up to find out I was in fifth place after going to bed in fourth place. Last night, the Jury had awarded Torben Grael redress after he was hit by a give way boat in race 5. He was in 10th place at the time and the jury awarded him 4th place for the race. It was a bit hard to comprehend. Anyway, we beat him today so that wasn't an issue for us.

After our customary one general recall, the race committee put up the Black Flag. The Germans shot off the line and were never headed. They led wire to wire. The Italian's were in the top four at the first mark and worked their way up to second by the end of the race.

Brian and I tried a loser rig today and it wasn't good. We had mediocre speed upwind and were in 20th after the first lap of the race. We hit a nice shift on the right side up the second beat to round the top mark the second time around 12th. By the end of the race we had moved up to 10h with Torben and Guilherme in 13th. Augie Diaz and Bruno Prada finished 6th in today's race so they remained comfortably in third for the series.

Day Six Video

Tomorrow I am headed to St. Barths for the Bucket where I will rejoin the Rosehearty Team where I serve as tactician. We had a successful year last year on Rosehearty, being top Perini at St. Barts and winning the Perini Cup in Porto Cervo in September. My America's Cup team mate from 2003, Peter Holmberg will be joining us as helmsman. I always enjoy sailing with Pete.

IÂ’ll will start back up with the reports on Friday. Paul T


Star
Place Boat Skipper Crew Sail #: Fleet 1 2 3 4 5 6 Total
1 Starboat   Robert Stanjek   Frithjof Kleen   GER 8340   BF   1.0 2.0 1.0 6.0 3.0 1.0 8
2 Stellore   Diego Negri   Sergio Lambertenghi   ITA 8497   VE   6.0 1.0 4.0 1.0 1.0 2.0 9
3 8465   Augie Diaz   Bruno Prada   USA 8465   BisB   5.0 3.0 2.0 71.0 [BFD] 4.0 6.0 20
4 8506   Paul Cayard   Brian Fatih   USA 8506   WSFB   8.0 5.0 3.0 71.0 [BFD] 2.0 10.0 28
5 Vida Bandida   Torben Grael   Guilherme Almeida   BRA 8510   Gua   71.0 [DNF] 4.0 5.0 4.0 4.0 [4.0, RDG] 13.0 30
6 Spacecraft   Brad Funk   Mark Strube   USA 7829     7.0 6.0 8.0 2.0 8.0 9.0 31
7 Pawseidon   Peter Vessella   Phil Trinter   USA 8496   BisB   2.0 10.0 12.0 7.0 5.0 11.0 35
8 Akimbo   Brian Ledbetter   Josh Revkin   USA 8203   PS   13.0 8.0 13.0 11.0 7.0 3.0 42
9 USA 8320   George Szabo   Isao Toyama   USA 8320   SDB   15.0 9.0 7.0 10.0 15.0 4.0 45
10 USA 8323   Eric Doyle   Payson Infelise   USA 8323   SDB   16.0 18.0 6.0 3.0 14.0 8.0 47
11 Renata   Lars Grael   Samuel Gonçalves   BRA 8474   Par   4.0 25.0 9.0 71.0 [BFD] 6.0 5.0 49
12 econ industries   Reinhard Schmidt   Uli Seeberger   GER 8427   ZuW   11.0 7.0 21.0 5.0 71.0 [BFD] 16.0 60
13 8446   Tom Loefstedt   Jespere Sundman   SWE 8446   RS   24.0 22.0 10.0 8.0 12.0 15.0 67
14 UNVRNO   Torkel Borgstrom   Juan Pablo Engelhard   ARG 8502   BA   10.0 12.0 29.0 9.0 27.0 14.0 72
15 Pied Piper/National Marine   Jack Jennings   Brendan Larrabee   USA 8464   LS   29.0 16.0 16.0 17.0 10.0 20.0 79
16 8231   Arthur Anosov   Edward Morey   USA 8000   SL   3.0 13.0 27.0 71.0 [BFD] 13.0 27.0 83
17 Stella   John Maccausland   Dave Caesar   USA 8490   CR   14.0 30.0 26.0 12.0 11.0 21.0 84
18 8229   Tomas Hornos   Roman Gotsulyak   USA 8229   BH   26.0 19.0 11.0 13.0 25.0 19.0 87
19 8250   Andrew Macdonald   Brad Nichol   USA 8250   NH   21.0 11.0 25.0 71.0 [BFD] 16.0 17.0 90
20 Fram   Gautschi Christoph   NIELS HOLWEG   SUI 8409   Bod   25.0 21.0 23.0 21.0 9.0 18.0 92
21 Remarc   Brian Cramer   Cam Lymburner   CAN 8445   WLOC   28.0 26.0 18.0 18.0 24.0 12.0 98
22 Uragano   Thomas Londrigan   Steve Cutting   usa 8505   SL   18.0 15.0 22.0 26.0 22.0 23.0 100
23 Lara   Hubert Merkelbach   Gerrit Bartel   GER 8450   UB   31.0 71.0 [DNC] 31.0 19.0 18.0 7.0 106
24 Maricota   Admar Gonzaga   Alexandre Figueiredo De Freitas   BRA 8459   Par   19.0 23.0 24.0 15.0 28.0 29.0 109
25 Arctur   Vasyl Gureyev   Tsypko Oleg   UKR 8493   Ukr   71.0 [DNF] 20.0 15.0 23.0 20.0 33.0 111
26 8423   Christian Nehammer   Florian Urban   AUT 8423   Att   20.0 28.0 19.0 28.0 21.0 25.0 113
27 Star   Rob Cullen   James Hynes   CRO 8247   EB   35.0 17.0 14.0 25.0 71.0 [BFD] 26.0 117
28 8351   Henrik Dannesboe   Jan Bonhoeffer   SUI 8351   Sem   17.0 38.0 20.0 22.0 71.0 [DNC] 24.0 121
29 Barbarella IV   Tibor Tenke   Miklos Bezereti   HUN 8386   Ore   33.0 39.0 30.0 24.0 19.0 30.0 136
30 1888   Luke Lawrence   Ian Coleman   USA 1888   BisB   22.0 14.0 17.0 16.0 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 140
31 8318   Benjamin Sternberg   Stuart MacIntosh   USA 8358   CLIS   32.0 24.0 33.0 32.0 26.0 37.0 147
32 Sar Express   Fabian Mac Gowan   Ariel Simonet   ARG 8279   OL   12.0 29.0 71.0 [DNC] 14.0 71.0 [DSQ] 22.0 148
33 Voodoo   Stefan Lehnert   Dietmar Hobbie   GER 8361   Brm   37.0 37.0 36.0 27.0 23.0 36.0 159
34 The Energy Bus   Jon Vandermolen   TC Belco   CAN 8466   GL   23.0 71.0 [DNF] 32.0 20.0 17.0 71.0 [DNC] 163
35 YSTER   Erik Dahlen   Lars Kangasniemi   SWE 8108   SwB   30.0 41.0 40.0 29.0 43.0 28.0 168
36 Fridolin   Ingvar Krook   Christoffer Lundgren   SWE 7978   AR   71.0 [DNF] 34.0 37.0 35.0 29.0 40.0 175
37 Big Jim   Mike Hecky   Guy Avellon   USA 8395   CR   27.0 47.0 35.0 36.0 50.0 31.0 176
38 Asterope   Raffaello Astorri   Alessandro Vongher   ITA 8402   Viar   43.0 32.0 48.0 33.0 34.0 34.0 176
39 Diecidecimi   Giovanni Coppo   MASSIMO CANALI   ITA 8219   Man   38.0 44.0 49.0 34.0 30.0 42.0 188
40 Logistikstar   Henning Voigt   Dirk Struve   GER 7750   Aac   36.0 51.0 34.0 40.0 41.0 38.0 189
41 Pichon Pichoni   Erich Mones   Juan Locatelli   ARG 8285   BisB   41.0 31.0 38.0 42.0 44.0 56.0 196
42 Grinch   Bert Collins   Jake Doyle   USA 8063   AN   71.0 [DNF] 45.0 41.0 31.0 40.0 39.0 196
43 Dodie   Charles Beek   Chas Beek   USA 8420   NH   46.0 35.0 46.0 43.0 31.0 50.0 201
44 Southern Star   Jerry Wendt   Alex Baker   CAN 8272   WLOC   40.0 43.0 50.0 38.0 37.0 54.0 208
45 YOYO   GUIDO FALCIOLA   Luca Paloschi   ITA 8373   FdAL   47.0 48.0 43.0 45.0 38.0 44.0 217
46 Bliss IV   Staffan Thunell   Peter Soderblom   SWE 8275   SwB   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 47.0 30.0 35.0 35.0 218
47 Lobstern   Lars Ahlstrom   Lars Edwall   SWE 7608   Kat   39.0 50.0 42.0 48.0 49.0 45.0 223
48 Puffin   David Branch   Ray Rogers   USA 8184   BI   50.0 40.0 54.0 37.0 48.0 58.0 229
49 Redemption   Keith Donald   Kevin Elterman   USA 8087   AN   42.0 46.0 55.0 49.0 45.0 49.0 231
50 Leporello   Daniel Wyss   Urs Joss   SUI 8329   ZU   44.0 42.0 53.0 71.0 [BFD] 46.0 48.0 233
51 Los Ballos   Haico De Boer   Federico Calegari   NED 8473   Hol   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 28.0 71.0 [BFD] 33.0 32.0 235
52 8498   Alberto Zanetti   Diego Peisajovich   ARG 8498   OL   34.0 27.0 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [BFD] 39.0 71.0 [DNC] 242
53 Oelvente   Arnd Glunde   Marcel Beltz   GER 7982   Neu   51.0 36.0 45.0 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 47.0 250
54 High Octane   Lothar Geilen   Carlos Miquel   GER 8396   BisB   52.0 53.0 44.0 50.0 51.0 55.0 250
55 NN   Klaus Meyer   Jorg Mueller   GER 8179   Brm   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNF] 44.0 36.0 41.0 263
56 Quick Exchange   Aaron Smith   Jon Kidder   USA 7710   Asp   49.0 52.0 57.0 53.0 54.0 57.0 265
57 xxx   Hubert Rauch   Andy Lachenschmid   GER 8416   And   48.0 49.0 71.0 [DNF] 47.0 52.0 71.0 [DNC] 267
58 8271   Allan Cullen   Dave Martin   CAN 8271   EB   71.0 [DNF] 33.0 51.0 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 43.0 269
59 846   Marco Angiolini   Davide Leardini   ITA 846   Ben   71.0 [BFD] 71.0 [DNC] 39.0 39.0 71.0 [DSQ] 51.0 271
60 Tess   Mike Phinney   Rick Burgess   USA 8410   SLE   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 41.0 42.0 46.0 271
61 8507   Jim Revkin   Roger Sharp   USA 8507   BH   71.0 [DNS] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 46.0 32.0 52.0 272
62 Opus II   Dwight Escalera   Elizabeth Escalera   USA 6320   NB   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 56.0 52.0 53.0 59.0 291
63 Swedish BLUE   Ante Razmilovic   Brain Hammersley   GBR 8443   NFB   9.0 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 293
64 Vivi   Frederico Viegas   Renato Moura   BRA 8403   Par   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 51.0 47.0 71.0 [DNC] 311
65 Sonya   John Chiarella   Bob Carlson   USA 8215   Sun   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 52.0 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 53.0 318
66 Terry   Christopher Line   Larry Scott   CAN 7601   WLOC   45.0 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 329
67 6730   George Macon   Sarah Macon   USA 6730   DR   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 54.0 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 338
68 7887   John Hokanson   Paul Avery   CAN 7887   BisB   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNF] 355
68 Miisca   Alessandro Pascolato   Henry Boening   BRA 8494   GuB   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 355
68 8236   Ralph Grossmann III   Kip Gardner   USA 7611   LH   71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNF] 71.0 [DNC] 71.0 [DNC] 355

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