PRESS KIT RC44 CHAMPIONSHIP TOUR 2014 www.rc44.com
THE RC44 CHAMPIONSHIP TOUR 2014 Launched in 2007, the RC44 Championship Tour fast established itself as one of the most competitive and respected events on the international yacht racing circuit. The RC44 was created for top level racing in international regattas under strictly controlled Class Rules. The concept and the design features of the RC44 are dedicated to the amateur helmsmen competing in fleet racing sailing events. Reading like a who’s who of sailing’s greatest achievers, from America’s Cup legends to Olympic champions and round-the-world stalwarts, the top names to have embraced the RC44 class in its first six years include:
Present • America’s Cup Team Manager and two time British Olympic gold medallist, Iain Percy • 2000 America’s Cup winner and winner of the 2011, 2012 and 2013 RC44 Championship Tour, Cameron Appleton • Top French match race sailor and runner up in the 2007 and 2010 world match racing tour Mathieu Richard. • Winner of the 2007 America’s Cup Ed Baird • Beijing Olympic gold medallist, Paul Goodison Past • 2010 and 2013 America’s Cup winning skipper James Spithill • American yachting titan Paul Cayard • Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker • US SAILING's 2008 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year and TP52 World champion Terry Hutchinson • America’s Cup legend Brad Butterworth
That is before we mention RC44 co-designer and four-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts.
THE RESULT? A Tour in which no-one is prepared to concede an inch, with skippers pushing the boats and their crews to the boundaries of their extensive capabilities and events that are often not decided until supercharged final days of racing. As Russell Coutts says, “It has developed into a high-level racing circuit and the standard of competition has grown a lot yearon-year. Each regatta just gets more and more competitive. It is probably fair to say it’s exceeded my expectations and the potential is there to even improve things further.” David Murphy, who joined the class in 2011 with Ironbound, said: “It is a unique class, with certainly the highest level of competition in one-design sailing. For me the initial attraction was I was going to sail against the best sailors in the world.” Chris Bake, owner of Team Aqua and winner of the 2011, 2012 and 2013 RC44 Championship Tour, added: "I think the class provides a winning formula. On a relative basis it's affordable for the level of sailing you are doing, the racing format is highly enjoyable, the members of the class make it a lot of fun. It’s a good class with great people and it’s very competitive so it's very challenging for anyone coming into the fleet.”
My how you've grown! 2007 saw the first ever RC44 Championship Tour event with seven competing teams in the Slovenian port of Portoro탑. By the end of that inaugural season five more teams had joined the class. Fast forward six years and the 2013 Championship Tour saw an impressive 15 boats competing. Team Aqua won the RC44 Championship in 2013 for the third consecutive year. With world class competition the number one priority, the RC44 Championship Tour visits world-renowned sailing venues where decent breeze is as good as guaranteed and the teams have to master the whole range of conditions.
WHERE WE’RE GOING Two new venues will make their debut, alongside three RC44 favorites for the eighth season of the Championship Tour. The 2014 season will start in the Caribbean in February, where the class will be welcomed for the first time by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda in Virgin Gorda. The fleet will then travel across the Atlantic to Europe where they will compete at three European events in Cascais, Portugal; Marstrand, Sweden; and for the first time Sotogrande, Spain before crossing the 4000nm to Muscat, Oman for the final event of the season. RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup 12 - 16 February Making its debut, the 2014 RC44 Championship Tour will kick off in Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands hosted by Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS). One of the worlds premier sailing destinations the British Virgin Islands (BVI) comprises of an archipelago of more than 25 islands set amid the turquoise waters of the central Caribbean Sea. Virgin Gorda is the third largest and most populous island in the BVI’s. The fleet can expect a 15-20 knot breeze, typically from the northeast and moving to the east making the island a sought after sailing destination.
RC44 Cascais Cup 23 - 27 April
April will see the fleet return to Europe as the Clube Naval de Cascais host the second event of the Tour in the picturesque bay of Cascais, Portugal for the third year. The Clube Naval de Cascais was first founded in 1938 by sailing enthusiasts and has long been dedicated to promoting sailing in Portugal. Frequented by global yachting events including the America’s Cup World Series in August 2011, the Med-Cup, the Dragon Gold Cup, the TRANSAT Classic and many more, due to the reliable nature of the wind conditions and challenging race area.
RC44 Sotogrande Cup 25 - 29 June
Stretching along southern Spain's Mediterranean coastline, Sotogrande nestles between Gibraltar and Marbella. This beautiful location will provide the teams with the dependable westerly Poniente, the strongest easterly Levante or the southerly Sirocco wind, originating in the Sahara. Sotogrande is one of the most luxurious sports and residential developments in Europe. Its 6,000 plus acres encompass all the amenities you could imagine as a complement to the Polo Club. Golf, unspoiled beaches, a world class marina and incredible bars, restaurants and leisure centers combined with fabulous weather make this a unique destination.
RC44 Marstrand World Championships 13 - 17 August August will be the fourth year the RC44 Class has returned to the heart of Swedish sailing, Marstrand, with the event doubling as the classes World Championships. Hosted by the Royal Swedish Yacht Club (KSSS) on Marstand Island, located 40 minutes northwest of Gothenburg, Sweden’s second largest city. Marstrand sits astride two islands – Marstrandsön and Koön.
RC44 Oman Cup 19 - 23 November
The fleet will make their winter migration to the Arabian port of Muscat, Oman for the final event of the season. Oman offers crystal clear water and a prevailing north-easterly wind providing great sailing conditions to end the season. The country boasts a rich maritime heritage and has played host to a number of successful international sailing events over the past few years.
ABOUT THE BOAT The RC44 is a light displacement, high performance one-design racing yacht, which through its meticulous design and construction, allows the owner/drivers who contest the RC44 Championship Tour to really experience the thrill of sailing a topend racing boat. Co-designed by four-time America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts with naval architect Andrej Justin, the class endeavours to keep competition as fair as possible by ensuring the boats are strictly identical in terms of construction, shape of hull and appendages and weight/weight distribution as well as deck layout and equipment and sail plan. With everything, from the keel to the tip of the mast, made entirely from carbon, and with a powerful sail plan, the RC44 is rapid downwind, commanding upwind and performs exceptionally in both light winds and heavier breezes. So as well as presenting a great opportunity for the amateur owner/drivers, the class also attracts the world’s top professional sailors as the RC44’s innovative and cutting-edge design features presents them with an exciting new sailing challenge to master. “We wanted to include a degree of complexity so an owner can experience what a top-end race boat is like to sail, and it delivers on that,” explains Coutts. “and to create a boat that would be exciting to sail downwind and powerful in light winds, because most of the harbour and lake sailing is staged at lighter wind venues. “I also wanted a boat that could be sailed short-handed with a deck layout incorporating many non-standard adjustments. The trim tab on the keel is an example of that, to reduce keel area yet still achieve good upwind performance and manoeuvrability. It adds to the boat’s complexity but the racing enthusiast will enjoy trialling the different tab angles and the resulting performance benefits.”
Logistically speaking.. As well as the strict one-design class rules, one of the class’ other major concerns was ease of transportation and storage - it was important the RC44 was a non-complicated boat to own and could be raced in the summer and put away relatively easily in the winter. The RC44 class has constantly strived to help owners by developing innovative solutions to facilitate the logistics and minimise costs. As John Bassadone, owner of Peninsula Petroleum, enthused, “Definitely the logistics makes everything a lot easier; the whole way the boat is set-up is very clean and very easy,” while Artemis Racing owner Torbjorn Tornqvist added, “The boat is exciting, there is nothing out that can compare with that while the concept of moving it around means that the budget is reasonable.”
So how do they do it? The stern of the boat is removable to allow the transportation length to be less than 40 feet. The keel fin attachment is also easily detachable and the mast is assembled in two parts enabling all equipment to be stored and transported on a flat deck container to anywhere in the world. To complement this, the RC44 class enjoys the benefits of a revolutionary container that not only carries the boat but serves as a cradle once the boat arrives at a regatta venue. All equipment including sails, rudder, keel fin, boom, mast and spares are stored in compartments within the container. The bulb is transported in position under the hull. An RC44 takes just one day to reassemble when it arrives at its next port of call. Then there is the class’ expert technical support team, who work to ensure every boat is in prime racing condition every time it ventures onto the start line and can even get a boat back on the water just an hour after a major collision. Islas Canarias Puerto Calero enjoyed the full benefits of the technical support crew when she suffered a catastrophic mast breakage during the 2010 ORACLE RC44 Cup Miami. She returned ashore where the crew began stepping a spare mast that the class has available at each regatta for such incidents.
BOAT SPECIFICATIONS Boat dimensions: LOA: 13.35 m Bmax: 2.75m Draft: 2.90m Mast: 20.32m Displ: 3560kg Keel: 2200kg Crew: 680kg Concept: This is a light-displacement racing yacht designed to be fast downwind and powerful upwind. It has a high aspect ratio keel with a trim tab and rudder. Easy transport concept: The specially designed canting trailer, easy detachable stern scoop and simple keel to hull attachment with a conical joint/coupling makes the boat very easy to transport and store. The mast is also built in two structural parts making the boat easy to transport on the road with no oversize restrictions. Structural design: The hull, deck, structural liner, keel, rudder and rig were calculated and structurally optimised using Nastran software for the FEM analysis. Construction: Hull, deck and stern scoop are built in sandwich construction of epoxy resin and exclusively carbon unidirectional and biaxial fabrics, while the twill carbon woven rowing is used to give a smooth, clear, carbon look finish on all external surfaces.
Keel & bulb: The keel is built of carbon pre-preg material in carbon moulds postcured at high temperature and pressure in an autoclave. A weed cutter is fitted in the keel leading edge. The trim tab is built in carbon with RTM technology. The leadantimony bulb is cast in CNC machined steel mould for high precision and faired with epoxy compound. Rudder & steering system: The rudder and tapered rectangular section rudder shaft are one piece carbon built with RTM technology in a high precision female mould. The rudder shaft structure is FEM optimised and dimensioned according to ABS loads for speed of over 26 knots.
Mast & Rigging: The mast shape has a variable section, designed specially for this boat, to improve the mast-sail aerodynamic interaction. The mast is produced in two segments for transport reasons. Engine: Volvo 20HP diesel engine is fitted with specially developed retractable drive. The compact hydraulic transmission is moved up and down with two electro-hydraulic rams with remote controls at the steering position.
BEHIND THE MAGIC
The men behind the magicHE MEN BEHIND THE MAGIC RUSSELL COUTTS Nationality: Born in 1962, Wellington, New Zealand. Academic background: The University of Auckland, Bachelor of Engineering Career highlights: Russell Coutts has won the America's Cup as a skipper four times. His sailing record includes winning the ISAF Youth World Championships, Finn class gold at the 1984 Olympics, three World Match Racing Championships, numerous international match race wins and IOR, IMS and One Design World Championship victories. In New Zealand he has been honoured with a Commander of the British Empire and the Distinguished Companion of New Zealand Order of Merit and has twice been the ISAF World Sailor of the Year.
ANDREJ JUSTIN Nationality: Born in 1959 in Koper on the Adriatic coast, Slovenia Academic background: Studied electronics and civil engineering in Ljubljana, Slovenia and architecture in Graz, Austria before graduating in Yacht Design from the Westlawn Institute of Marine Technology in 1993. Career highlights: Andrej has lived with yachts and the sea all through his life. He designed his first boats for the biggest Slovenian boat builder ELAN in the late 1980s, and has designed several racing boats from 33-foot match race one design to 80-foot carbon, canting keel Maxi Jena. He has also designed cruisers from 37 foot to the Palmer Johnson 90' in aluminium.
THE TEAMS FOR 2014 AEGIR RACING (GBR 22) BRIAN BENJAMIN (GBR) / IAN WILLIAMS (GBR) Brian Benjamin's team Aegir Racing comes from the world of Maxi Yachts. Competing in their first full season in 2013 the team finished 12th overall. The RC44 Class forms a perfect platform to hone their starting technique and close quarter’s boat on boat strategy, not generally found on the Maxi circuit. Aegir Racing will not be competing in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup in February. ALEPH RACING (FRA17) HUGUES LEPIC (FRA) / MATHIEU RICHARD (FRA) The French team finished 9th overall in their first season, then 8th in the 2012 and 2013 Tour, but have excelled in the match racing finishing second in 2012. Having joined the class in search of a sailing challenge involving state-of-the-art racing boats in an exciting and expanding one-design class, the team is keen to keep improving. ARTEMIS RACING (SWE 44) TORBJORN TORNQVIST (SWE) / IAIN PERCY (GBR) Led by Torbjorn Tornqvist, Artemis Racing has been involved with the RC44 class since 2008. The team have finished on the podium for the past four seasons, but narrowly missed out in 2013 finishing 5th overall. New tactician Olympic gold medalist Iain Percy will be one to watch for 2014.
BRONENOSEC 44 (RUS 18) VLADIMIR LIUBOMIROV (RUS) / TOMAMASO CHIEFFI (ITA) Bronenosec 44 owned by Vladimir Liubomirov joined the RC44 Class for the first time at the third event of the 2013 season. Commodore of the Yacht Club of Saint-Petersburg and Skipper of Swan 60, Bronenosec, Liubomirov is no stranger the international sailing world having won the prestigious Russian Sailor of the Year Award 2012.
BOMBARDA (ITA42) ANDREA POZZI (ITA) / GABRIELE BENUSSI (ITA) New to the RC44 fleet for 2014 Andrea Pozzi’s all Italian team Bombarda will be lead by tactician Gabriele Benussi and will join the fleet at the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup in February.
IRONBOUND (USA 1) DAVID MURPHY (USA) / PAUL GOODISON (GBR) Representing America David Murphy’s Ironbound joined the RC44 Tour in 2011. After a break in the season for 2012 Ironbound were back on the full Tour for the 2013 season, the American team joined by tactician British Olympic gold medallist Paul Goodison came back fighting, finishing 7th overall in the 2013 fleet standings. KATUSHA (RUS 007) GENNADI TIMCHENKO (RUS) / ANDY HORTON (USA) The Russian Team Katusha, led by owner Gennadi Timchenko, joined the RC44 class 2009. In 2012 they were runners up to Team Aqua in the Championship Tour with America’s Cup legend Brad Butterworth calling the shots. For 2013 American Star sailor Andy Horton stepped in as tactician and lifted the team back onto the podium finishing 3rd overall in 2013 season.
MAG RACING (POL 44) KRZYSZTOF KREMPEC (POL) / PIOTR PRZYBYLSKI (POL) After a break from racing in 2012, Polish team MAG Racing owned by Krzysztof Krempec made a comeback in 2013 with tactician Piotr Przybylski, finishing the season in 15th. The team is known for their fun loving antics both on and off the race course. The team is known for their fun loving antics both on and off the race course. MAG Racing will not be competing in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup in February.
PENINSULA PETROLEUM SAILING TEAM (GBR 1) JOHN BASSADONE (GBR) / VASCO VASCOTTO (ITA) John Bassadone's Gibraltar based team joined the class in 2010 and have finished just off the podium in in 4th place for the last three years. Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team and her Spanish crew will be looking to continue their advance through the fleet rankings in 2014 with Italian sailing legend Vasco Vascotto calling tactics.
PUERTO CALERO RESIDENCE CLUB (ESP 1) JOSE JUAN CALERO (ESP) / JOSE MARIA PONCE (ESP) The Calero family has become a popular and established feature of the RC44 Championship Tour circuit ever since the Calero brothers discovered the class in 2008. After a break from racing after the second event in 2012, the team returned to the fleet for the 2013 World Championships and will compete in the 2014 season. Puerto Calero will not be competing in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup in February. GAZPROM YOUTH CHALLENGE (RUS 7)
KIRILL PODOLSKY (RUS) / IGOR LISOVENKO (RUS) Kirill Podolskiy's Gazprom Youth Sailing Challenge (former RUS7) provides a training platform for the St.Petersburg Yacht Club’s, Gazprom Youth Sailing Challenge. The initiative is targeted at Russian sailors from 18-27 who have limited opportunities to compete at international sailing events in Russia and reach an international level within the sport. Gazprom Youth Challenge will not be competing in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup in February. SYNERGY RUSSIAN SAILING TEAM (RUS 13) VALENTIN ZAVADNIKOV (RUS) / ED BAIRD (USA) Synergy Russian Sailing Team made its RC44 debut in 2010. Well-know Russian politician and businessman Valentin Zavadnikov led his team to a 2nd place in 2013 Tour, with top match racer Ed Baird joining as tactician and match race helm the team will be looking to emulate their success in 2014.
TEAM AQUA (GBR 2041) CHRIS BAKE (GBR) / CAMERON APPLETON (NZL) Chris Bake’s Team Aqua has been one of the leading forces on the RC44 Championship Tour circuit ever since its launch in 2007. With top match racer Cameron Appleton the permanent fixture as the team’s pro sailor, Team Aqua defended their 2011 and 2012 RC44 Championship Tour title in 2013, keeping hold of the golden wheels for a third consecutive season as well as taking home the Match Race Champion title. TEAM NIKA (RUS10) VLADIMIR PROSIKHIN (RUS)/ TOMISLAV BASIC (SLO) Russian Team Nika joined the RC44 class in 2011the team has finished 9th overall in the past two seasons. Owner and technology entrepreneur, Vladimir Prosikhin first got a taste for RC44 racing as a guest onboard the RC44 Beecom in Portorož, Slovenia in 2009. Vladimir plan is for a podium finish in 2014.
Teams competing in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup : 1. Aleph Racing (FRA17) 2. Artemis Racing (SWE44) 3. Bronenosec Sailing Team (RUS 18) 4. Bombarda (ITA42) 5. Ironbound (USA1) 6. Katusha (RUS007) 7. Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team (GBR1) 8. Synergy Russian Sailing Team (RUS 13) 9. Team Aqua (GBR 2041) 10. Team Nika (RUS10)
ABOUT THE RACING With its strict one-design racing format the RC44 class is as level a playing field as you could wish to find in international yacht racing. This adds up to hugely competitive events, where every sailor’s skills across the whole range of conditions are tested to the maximum, and a Tour series that so often goes down to the wire.
All boats are identical in terms of construction, the shape of the hull and appendages, weight and weight distribution, deck layout and equipment Each team is also limited to the number of sails they can use at every event meaning a boat’s performance is purely down to team work onboard. The RC44 Championship Tour is made up of two elements – fleet racing and match racing. With a strict 50-50 split between amateurs and professionals in each eight-person crew, the amateur owners take the wheel for the fleet racing while the pro skippers get their chance to shine at the helm during the match racing. In 2014, racing will take place over five days, with one day of match racing followed by four days of fleet racing.
Previous Results The RC44 Championship Tour 2014 comprises five events and at the end of the Tour series two champions are crowned: 1) RC44 Fleet Racing Championship Tour champion 2) RC44 Match Racing Championship Tour champion
RC44 FLEET RACE WINNERS 2008 – Banco Espirito Santo 2009 – Artemis Racing 2010 – ORACLE Racing 2011 – Team Aqua 2012 – Team Aqua 2013 – Team Aqua WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIPS
RC44 WORLD CHAMPIONS 2010 – USA 17 2011 – Artemis Racing 2012 – Peninsula Petroleum 2013 – Team CEEREF
RC44 MATCH RACING WINNERS 2008 – Ceeref 2009 – Ceeref 2010 – Team Aqua 2011 – Team Aqua 2012 – Synergy Russian Sailing Team 2013 – Team Aqua Lanzarote
The first ISAF-ratified RC44 World championships took place in Puerto Calero, in October 2010 and was won by the combined force of Anders Myralf and Jimmy Spithill on ’17’. The World Championship is a stand alone event at one venue each year. Current World Champions, Igor Lah’s Slovenian team CEEREF will defend their title at the RC44 Marstrand World Championships the fourth event of the 2014 season.
HOW THE SCORING WORKS FLEET RACING With the team owners at the helm, and the pros calling tactics, the fleet racing events are very short, intense and action-packed affairs, with boats frequently separated by just seconds at the finish line. There are generally three to four fleet races a day and there is no discard meaning every single race placing really matters. Points are allocated on the standard ISAF ‘low point system’, so the boat that comes first in a race gets one point, second gets two points etc. The team with the fewest points at the end of the fleet racing at each event is that event’s fleet racing winner. The class also has the option to introduce a long distance race during a fleet racing series. These races are often two-three hours long, Where a team finishes in an event fleet racing rankings equals how many points they count in the overall RC44 Championship Tour fleet racing rankings. For example the team that finishes fifth in the fleet racing at event one scores five fleet racing points for that event. If a boat doesn’t compete at one event they score the total number of boats taking part +2 points for that event. The final RC44 Fleet Racing Championship Tour champion is determined by adding together every team’s five best fleet racing scores from the six events, with the lowest score winning. The fleet racing takes place on a windward-leeward course, with a dog leg at the windward mark and a gate at the leeward mark.
MATCH RACING Match racing is compelling to watch and a race can be won or lost before the start signal has even been sounded so important and exciting is the prestart. With the pros at the wheel, boats go head-to-head in a rolling round robin format throughout the five events, with the rankings based on the number of victories and losses each team picks up. The match racing contests are held on a windward-leeward course with one gate at the leeward mark and for the first time in 2012 will run on a 2 minute starting sequence to allow for more races.
FIND OUT ABOUT RC44 VIRGIN GORDA CUP Making its debut, the 2014 RC44 Championship Tour will kick off in Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands hosted by Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS). One of the worlds premier sailing destinations the British Virgin Islands (BVI) comprises of an archipelago of more than 25 islands set amid the turquoise waters of the central Caribbean Sea. Virgin Gorda is the third largest and most populous island in the BVI’s. The fleet can expect a 15-20 knot breeze, typically from the northeast and moving to the east making the island a sought after sailing destination. For more than 40 years, YCCS has been one of the leading yacht clubs in the Mediterranean originating in Porto Cervo, Sardinia. The new YCCS Virgin Gorda enables the international sailing and yachting community to enjoy YCCS' legendary expertise in the organisation of top-level international sailing events and exclusive hospitality services in the British Virgin Islands. The RC44 Class organisers will also benefit from the support of Sunsail for the staff and team accommodation at the event.
EVENT PROGRAMME Wednesday 12th February 10:00 Match Race briefing 11:00 1st warning signal for Match Race 18:00 Welcome reception, YCCS Club House Thursday 13th February 09:30 Fleet Race Briefing 11:00 1st warning signal for Fleet Race 18:00 Boat Captain meeting, venue TBC Friday 14th February 09:00 Long distance race Briefing 10:00 1st warning signal for the long distance race Saturday 15th February 09:30 Fleet Race Briefing 11:00 1st warning signal for Fleet Race 19:00 Gala dinner & MR prize-giving Sunday 16th February 09:30 Fleet Race Briefing 11:00 1st warning signal for Fleet Race 15:00 Last warning signal 16:00 Prize-giving ceremony, restaurant terrace
SITE MAP OF THE VIRGIN GORDA CUP
CLASS SPONSORS
INFORMATION For downloadable images, video and media information register at http://rc44.dme.boxstuff.net
Contact Details RC44 Class Office Class Manager Bertrand Favre M/ +41 76 324 05 39 E/ bertrand.favre@rc44.com Skype: bertrandfavre
RC44 Comunications Into the Blue Jo Grindley M/ +44 7788 10676 P/ +44 1983 247286 E/ rc44media@intotheblue.biz