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Index - Russell Couts Introduction . . . . . . . . . . 4 - Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 - Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 - Staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 - Acknowledegments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
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RC44 Valletta Cup
Match Racing
Making its debut on the RC44 circuit, Malta promised a sensational start to the 2015 RC44 Championship Tour and the Mediterranean venue did not disappoint. Big breeze throughout the week ensured the teams experienced maximum thrills in the renowned capital of Valletta, the historic ‘City of Knights’.
Malta laid on possibly the best ever beginning to a RC44 Championship Tour with six match race flights contended within the confines of one of sailing’s most spectacular settings: The 500 year old Maltese capital of Valletta on one side and the city’s giant forts on the other. After racing on the Grand Harbour in a south-easterly breeze that started at 15 knots and proceeded to drop throughout the day, four of the eleven teams were left on four wins: Bronenosec Sailing Team, Team Nika, Charisma and Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team.
The year began with many familiar teams lining up to compete for the illustrious ‘golden wheels’, however a significant number of crew changes created a sense of anticipation to determine which boats would be leading the pack this season. The return of Slovenian skipper Igor Lah and his Team CEEREF was a key addition to upping the competition with the fleet. The 2013 RC44 World Champion took a year out from the Tour in 2014, returning in full force with British tactician Adrian Stead. Also putting the pressure on defending Tour Champion, Team Aqua, two of the world’s most talented Kiwi sailors joined the ranks of experienced RC44 tacticians. With Dean Barker taking a place on Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika, and Ray Davies joining Nico Poons’ Charisma, the scene was set for an incredible level of competition at the RC44 Valletta Cup.
With Bronenosec Sailing Team and Team Nika the only two teams to finish the day with just one loss, it was Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec that won on count back. Day 1 Fleet Racing With it all to play for, each team had its moment of glory during the four days of fleet racing that followed. The sailors were faced with a challenging start on Malta’s north coast, when the crews took on some of the biggest waves and most confused seas ever encountered in their slender one-designs. The start area for the windward-leeward courses was set up off St Julian’s, northwest of the Maltese capital on the first day of fleet racing. The first race was made no easier as the wind dropped off to 6 knots, leaving the boats at the mercy of the big waves on the downwind legs. There was then a wait for the breeze to settle before it re-established itself in the northeast, building to 18-20 knots for race two and dropping again for the day’s third and final bout. Despite his absence from the circuit, it was Igor Lah who claimed the first two races before scoring a disappointing ninth place finish in the third and final race of the day. Having misjudging the start and ducking the entire fleet on port tack, the only blemish on an otherwise perfect day, Team CEEREF ended day one leading, but tied on points with Katusha, which scored a seventh in race one, but then two seconds. . Day 2 Fleet Racing A forecast of gale force winds meant that Principal Race Officer, Peter Reggio, got racing underway two hours ahead of schedule, at 0930, fitting in two races on the second day of fleet racing.
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Run in ‘changeable’ conditions, the races started in wind averaging 10-12 knots, but with a sizeable swell left over from the day before, oddly running with the boats on the upwind legs. For race two the wind continued building, typically in the high-teens with the wind-driven waves picking up, confusing the sea state even further. Despite the challenges presented, Katusha was the stand out performer, winning both races. However the Russian team didn’t have it all its own way. In race one, Torbjorn Tornqvist’s Artemis Racing led at the top mark while Katusha was midfleet. Coming into the leeward gate, the Swedish team was penalised for gybing too close to Nico Poons’ Charisma, allowing Katusha to edge into the lead. Charisma overhauled Katusha on the second upwind with the Russian team eventually only winning by a nose on the line, a closeness of competition that has become standard in the RC44s. Day 3 Fleet Racing With a gale passing across Malta overnight, conditions did not abate until early afternoon when the wind momentarily dipped below the statutory 25 knots and the teams were final able to start the third day of fleet racing at 14.00, local time. Even then a mighty seaway was still running and with the wind piping up mid-race, the penultimate day of competition was one that the crews will remember for some time, coming ashore soaked to the bone, but with Cheshire cat grins. The teams were pushed to the maximum, and with only one race contested, Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing, with British two time Olympic gold medallist Iain Percy calling tactics, led after a bouncy first beat. The Swedish crew kept its cool, hoisting the spinnaker without incident in the big conditions; a feat that some crews further back in the fleet didn’t manage. However, even Artemis Racing didn’t come away unscathed, slamming into a huge wave, causing the boat’s sacrificial bow to come off and allowing Charisma to catch up and overtake the Swedish team on a second lively upwind. Leading at the weather mark, Nico Poons was able to hang on for a final downhill and take his first race win of the 2015 RC44 Championship Tour. Going into the final day Charisma had moved up to second, five points off Katusha in the lead, having podiumed in five out of the six races run so far. The overwhelming memory of the day will certainly be the conditions that verged on ‘survival’, but proved how robust the RC44s are even in big wind and waves.
. Day 4 Fleet Racing Conditions came good for the final races of the RC44 Valletta Cup in Malta with the wind well into the 20s and substantial waves once again, but with the welcome addition of Mediterranean sunshine. The fleet was coaxed out an hour earlier in order to complete three races before returning to the Royal Malta Yacht Club early in the afternoon. The races saw crews severely challenged once again, however Nico Poons and his Charisma team put in another consistent day, winning the final race and the RC44 Valletta Cup comfortably, the team’s first ever RC44 event win. The two Russian teams from St Petersburg Yacht Club completed the podium places with Team Nika in second and Bronenosec Sailing Team finishing third.
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Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup
Day 1 Fleet Racing
The fleet’s first foray in Sardinia’s iconic sailing haven of Porto Cervo, where the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda hosted an outstanding event, was well received by the RC44 teams.
A rare day in Costa Smeralda with light and tricky wind conditions, combined with an annoying left-over swell, caused a long wait out on the water, then a long wait ashore before the AP over A signal was hoisted, marking the end of a fruitless opening day of fleet racing at the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup.
For the RC44 Championship Tour’s initial appearance in one of the world’s top yacht racing venues, the teams faced off on the famous azure waters off the Italian island’s northeastern tip, competing for the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup. Match Racing A full schedule of six razor’s edge match race flights were run on a warm, summery day that saw Costa Smeralda deliver a shifty 6 to 12 knots of breeze. Going into the event, Bronenosec Sailing Team, Team Nika, Charisma and Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team were all tied on four points at the top of the 2015 RC44 Match Racing Championship. At the close of play, the standout teams were Bronenosec Sailing Team and Artemis Racing, both on four wins and one loss. Vladimir Liubomirov’s Russian team continued to established itself as a force to be reckoned with, topping the match race podium for the first two events of the 2015 Tour. Bronenosec’s one loss was to Nico Poons’ Charisma and Artemis Racing dropped its one race to the ever-improving RUS7 - anywayanyday, with owner Kirill Podolsky helming throughout. One of the most improved teams was MAG Racing on which Croatian match racer Tomislav Basic was sailing for the first time, calling tactics for skipper Artur Kasner. Basic was clearly making an impression, for after winning no matches at the first RC44 regatta of the season in Malta, the Poles won three in Porto Cervo.
Frustration for one of the world’s most experienced Principal Racing Officers, Peter Reggio, and his race management team, brought the inevitable cries of ‘it’s not normally like this here’, but the RC44s teams are experienced enough to be prepared for every eventuality, participating in a sport that relies on Mother Nature’s co-operation. Day 2 Fleet Racing With another complex local weather system that proved challenging to the Race Committee, day two of fleet racing at the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup saw three races completed on two different race courses. The day started regularly enough and the course was set up directly off Porto Cervo with the breeze building to 12 knots from the east-south-east. Igor Lah’s Team CEEREF made the best of the beat to lead around the top mark ahead of Team Aqua, but it was Chris Bake’s boat, being helmed on this occasion by guest skipper, three time Farr 40 World Champion, Jim Richardson, that nosed her way ahead on the run and held the lead to the finish. After this race, the wind began shifting wildly and PRO Peter Reggio made the decision to move the course a few miles northwest to ‘Bomb Alley’, where the wind was a more stable 12 knots from the east-north-east. The second race of the day saw Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika do well out to the right of the first beat. She led around the top mark and never looked back. However, Nika sandwiched her win with an 8-9 leaving her in seventh place overall. With time getting on, a third race was sailed as the wind started to develop some significant shifts with the southeast and easterly breezes fighting each other. As Charisma’s tactician Ray Davies described it: “On the first beat, a huge left hand shift came through before the start and half of the fleet hightailed it off to the leeward end of the line and were launched up the first beat. Then on the second beat the flip side happened and you had to go right, but the right only paid at the very end. So it was very tricky.”
In particular Team CEEREF and Team Aqua found themselves on the wrong side of the first beat to trail into the top mark. But the winning move came from Bronenosec Sailing Team, which, in fourth place at the time, bucked the trend and rounded the starboard leeward gate. The Russian team subsequently reaped the rewards of both beneficial shift and pressure rounding the top mark with a massive advantage. After three races, Bronenosec Sailing Team led overall, but only by one point over Team Aqua. Day 3 Fleet Racing Conditions off Sardinia’s Costa Smeralda were the most consistent yet on the third day of the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup. The 7-10 knot north-northeasterly allowed the race committee to hold four races on the event’s penultimate day, compensating for windless Thursday’s loss to the schedule. The day was a high scoring one with consistency noticeably absent from the performance of even several experienced teams. Hugues Lepic’s Aleph Racing, being led by America’s Cup winning helmsman Ed Baird, was last in the day’s second race when she was penalised and had to carry out a penalty turn for preventing Artemis Racing from crossing the finish line, but went on to win the next race. Similarly, the previous day’s star performer, Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team, had a disappointing day posting a 10th and 12th, causing the morning’s overall leader to plummet to 7th overall. But the biggest ‘hero to zero to hero’ was Team Nika, which won the first race, came last in the third and won the last. The fourth win went to Katusha, on which new co-owner Alexander Novoselov was racing his first RC44 regatta. “It was a great day and for me it was a complete surprise,” admitted the Geneva-based Russian, who has previously raced Melges 20s. “I put 99% of the victory down to the team, who are nice and professional.” Back at the top of the leaderboard were the familiar teams from 2014 – Team Aqua and Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team, both of whom scored 20 points, as did third placed Aleph Racing. With the final day of fleet racing at the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup ahead, any of the top nine boats were still in with a chance of winning.
Day 4 Fleet Racing
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Contested in Porto Cervo’s famous ‘Bomb Alley’, the final day of the event saw a steady 10 knot northeasterly. Team Aqua started the day with a strong statement of intent, convincingly winning the first race. While that was a good first step, unfortunately in the second race Team Aqua got boxed in, setting them back to square one on the leaderboard, five points ahead of Peninsula Petroleum in second. Ultimately an eighth place to Peninsula Petroleum’s fourth in the final race was enough for Team Aqua to win the event by a point, with Team CEEREF rounding out the podium. A high scoring fleet racing regatta, where each team picked up a range of results along the way, finished impressively close with only three points separating the top three teams. Team Aqua’s victory at the Audi RC44 Porto Cervo Cup saw her regain the RC44’s coveted overall championship leader’s ‘golden wheels’ from Nico Poons’ Charisma.
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RC44 Marstrand Cup
Day 1 Fleet Racing
RC44 fleet was once again privy to exceptional Swedish hospitality as the RC44 teams were welcomed back to the island of Marstrand for the fifth consecutive year.
Three races were held in 10 -15 knots winds with grey overcast conditions in the morning giving way to a summery afternoon, similar to the previous day, only with an uncomfortable lumpy sea state.
Attracted to Scandinavia by Torbjorn Tornqvist’s Artemis Racing, that fields two boats on the RC44 Championship Tour, the teams were hosted by the Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club (GKSS) at the picturesque holiday hotspot located on Sweden’s west coast.
After a disappoint day match racing and stating off with a poor first fleet race, Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika managed to turn its luck around. With the help of guest tactician, double Etchells World Champion, American Bill Hardesty, the Russian team won the second and third of the day’s races.
This year Artemis Racing was not the only Swedish element of the competition. Standing in for Chris Bake on Team Aqua for the second time this season was Richard Goransson, best known in recent years for his ‘Inga from Sweden’ campaigns on the Melges 20 and 32 circuits.
Sailing on home waters, Torbjörn Törnqvist’s team won the first race after the bold call was made to go right off the line. Let down by a fifth in the second race, Artemis Racing started well and worked hard to gain the lead on the first beat of the day’s third and final race only to lose to Team Nika. At close of play just one point separates the top three teams with Team Nika leading on seven points, ahead of Artemis Racing and Nico Poon’s Charisma, whose 2-2-4 score line made them the most consistent team of the day.
Having helmed Team Aqua in Malta at the start of the season, Goransson took the wheel back at a key time for Team Aqua. After the last regatta in Porto Cervo in June, Chris Bake’s team regained the fleet racing championship lead and with it the coveted leader’s Golden Wheels. Match Racing A chilly overcast morning with light winds turned into a brilliant summer’s afternoon with 15 knots for the racing. Bronenosec Sailing Team once again demonstrated its boat-on-boat skills and managed to consolidate its lead in the 2015 RC44 Match Racing Championship, moving two points ahead of second placed Artemis Racing. Top performers, Bronenosec Sailing Team and Team Aqua, both posted a 6-1 winloss. While Team Aqua got off to a slow start, tactician Cameron Appleton described the day as some of the best match racing on the RC44 Championship Tour, with penalties, passing and a chance to try most of their playbook and at the end of the day Chris Bake’s team was elevated from fourth to third overall in the RC44 Match Racing. Artemis Racing and Charisma also had good days, scoring five wins and two losses, while Kirill Podolsky’s RUS7 – anywayanyday managed to double the number of wins they have recorded so far this year to date in just one day.
Day 2 Fleet Racing The fleet headed out to the west of Marstrand Island where they were treated to three races in a 8-14 knot northwesterly, less tide, and with it a flatter sea state, and sun and warm temperatures from the outset. The wind, however, remained shifty and it was day that severely tested tactician’s risk versus reward decisions. The only team not to put in a ‘big’ result was Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team, scoring a 1-3-3, allowing her to prise the overall lead off Team Nika in the final race. Trailing Bronenosec in the overall results are Team Nika, Artemis Racing and Charisma, all of whom had one poor race. Nico Poons’ Charisma, for example, finished last in the first race, but won the second. After an uncharacteristically average start to this regatta’s fleet racing, John Bassadone’s Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team finally upped its game to claim the day’s final race with the biggest margin seen so far in Marstrand.
Day 3 Fleet Racing
While Team Aqua won the first race of the day, for the Swedish regatta on the RC44 Championship Tour, the final race’s results could not have been staged better.
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A big day in Marstrand started with Liubomirov’s team leading by a mere point, until an opening race win for Vladimir Prosikhin caused his Team Nika to regain first place, holding on to it until disaster struck towards the end of the last race resulting Liubomirov recovering first.
At the first top mark rounding there was the unfamiliar sight of Gustaf Lidvall’s Artemis Racing Youth rounding first, immediately ahead of Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing.
Coming ashore Prosikhin was feeling conflicting emotions. In the first race Team Nika just managed to successfully sneak in on port tack at the weather mark as the competition bore down on her on starboard with rights and went on to take the win.
Team Nika and Charisma claimed the remaining podium steps, tied on points, with Nika coming second on countback. A consolation prize for Vladimir Prosikhin, Team Nika moved into pole position in 2015 RC44 Championship and claimed the leader’s golden steering wheels.
After finishing fourth in today’s second race, Prosikhin was lining up for a podium finish in race three until the last run towards the finish line in Marstrand Fjord, when what Prosikhin described as “a catalogue of disasters” unfolded: A genniker twist developed during a gybe and with a boat immediately to leeward Team Nika was unable to bear away to unwind it. Eventually they sorted it out, but Prosikhin then gybed in front of Peninsula Petroleum and bore away too early resulting in the two boats touching and an “expensive penalty” ending in a costly eighth place finish. With the help of tactician Ray Davies, Nico Poons’ Charisma got her second bullet of the series in race two thanks to a good fast start by the committee boat The final race of the penultimate day saw the RC44 Marstrand Cup get its sixth individual winner in Chris Bake’s Team Aqua – with Swede Richard Goransson at the helm. On Katusha, Russian RC44 newbie Alexander Novoselov pulled off his best result of the regatta finishing third. With Andy Horton off on paternity leave, tactician this week was British America’s Cup helmsman Chris Draper, sailing his first ever RC44 regatta. Day 4 Fleet Racing Impeccable sailing from Vladimir Liubomirov and the crew of his light blue RC44 saw Bronenosec Sailing Team claim the RC44 Marstrand Cup for the second year running. Bronenosec’s overall victory was helped by it winning the final day’s second race, contested in challenging conditions when a light 10 knots wind was paired with a ‘boat disappearing’ sized swell that dropped off over the afternoon.
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RC44 Cascais World Championship
Day 1 Fleet Racing
A favourite among sailors for the reliable wind conditions and challenging race area, the RC44 Class returned to the Bay of Cascais for the fourth consecutive year where the Clube Naval de Cascais hosted the teams.
RC44s are not supposed to race at night, but after a windless, race-free opening day at the RC44 Cascais World Championship and a windless morning on the first day of fleet racing, Principal Race Officer Peter Reggio was not going to miss an opportunity. The sea breeze finally came good mid-afternoon allowing a first start at 1530, but this resulted in a general recall and a black flag second start that got away cleanly. After all this and the three solid races that followed, the sun was getting low in the sky.
MAG Racing was supported by Portugal’s finest. Joining the Polish team for the RC44 Cascais World Championship was Olympic bronze medallist Nuno Barreto, who provided the Polish team with local knowledge along with the added experience of fellow Portuguese sailors Gilberto Conde and Luis Brito. Match Racing Open to the Atlantic, Cascais has the reputation of being a windy venue, but thanks to a giant area of high pressure hovering over Europe, the gradient breeze all but shut down off the Portugese coast Sadly a forecast showing an absence of strong prevailing northwesterlies and indicating light winds for the first two days of the RC44 Cascais World Championship was even worse than predicted and match racing was not possible at an event for the first time in as long as anyone could remember. A glassy start to the World Championship event meant that Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team retained its two-point lead in the rolling 2015 Match Racing Championship.
While the afternoon was sailable in 6-10 knots, the northwesterly breeze blowing along the coast was decidedly patchy. This, combined with a powerful tide thanks to the full moon having just passed, resulted in a day when consistency was vital and the tacticians had to earn their keep. Doing this best was Britain’s Adrian Stead on Team CEEREF, posting a 2-1-5 and leaving Igor Lah and his Slovenian team three points clear of defending World Champion, Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team. Sailing with stand-in helmsman, Antonio Sodo Migliori, a two time Farr 40 World Champion, Peninsula Petroleum Sailing Team, the 2012 World Champion, claimed the day’s first race, but had to fight back after getting caught in irons and being last off the start line in race two. The final race of the day was won by Vladimir Prosikin’s Team Nika, the current RC44 Championship Tour leader. However this was after a disappointing 11th place in race one when, according to Prosikhin, everything went wrong. Day 2 Fleet Racing Conditions finally came good with the breeze building into the high teens for day three of the RC44 Cascais World Championship. A different winner in each of the day’s three races, a new overall leader in Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team and just two points separating the top three boats at the close of play, gives some indication of how close this clash of the titans was. A problem with a jib halyard immediately before today’s first start, seemed not to phase Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing, as the Swedish America’s Cup crew fought its way to the front in race one, sticking to the right hand side of the course to take advantage of a 10 degree bend in the breeze, under the guidance of Italian tactician, Francesco Bruni.
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Day 3 Fleet Racing
ned in Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika.
After the world’s longest wait ashore, thumb twiddling until the wind filled in at the RC44 Cascais World Championship, the AP ashore was finally dropped late afternoon, dragging crews away from the Japan-Samoa Rugby World Cup game. The first start eventually occurred at a record-setting 1730 local time with two races held, the boats returning to the Marina de Cascais with darkness having already fallen. With crews breaking their head torches, when the boats arrived back it felt like the finish of a Volvo Ocean Race leg.
Ultimately Team Nika, Bronenosec and Team CEEREF each scored five points today, leaving the finish order the same as yesterday with Nika six points clear of Bronenosec and Team CEEREF a further point behind.
Despite the light conditions, the wind not getting above seven knots from the southeast, the wait was worth it. However several top players suffered deep results, causing an upset in the scoreboard and an overall leader change after each race.
Fortunately, despite a cutthroat battle with Nico Poons’ Charisma throughout, Team Nika was able to claim race two, and the RC44 World Championship title for the first time since joining the class in 2011, while also retaining the ‘golden wheels’.
Ripples were also felt through the fleet with the welcome return of Chris Bake to the helm of Team Aqua - his first time back since Oman in November 2014. While his team remains on the back foot after picking up two deep results on Thursday, a win in yesterday’s race and a 1-2 on the penultimate day of fleet racing propelled them up the leaderboard from eighth to fourth. Going into the day, two points separated the podium, with Bronenosec out in front, one ahead of Team Nika and another ahead Team CEEREF. However a tenth for Liubomirov in the first race, caused the Russian boat to plummet to third overall. Conversely Team CEEREF’s second launched her into first place with a four point lead over Team Nika. However Team CEEREF’s celebrations were short-lived, finishing last in the second race after being caught out furthest away from the highly profitable left side of the course. Meanwhile Team Nika had won the pin and headed left. When she tacked back she was just able to sneak across Team Aqua’s bow and from there led around the track, giving Prosikhin’s team a six point lead going into the final day. Elsewhere a 5-3 for Hugues Lepic’s Aleph Racing represented the French team’s best day of the regatta while a pair of sixth placed finishes for the Polish MAG Racing team of Krzysztof Krempec and Artur Kasner was one of the best days of their 2015 season. Day 4 Fleet Racing
Two big wind, big wave races made for a thrilling, albeit damp, conclusion to the RC44 Cascais World Championship when a worthy and popular winner was crow-
This result so nearly came a cropper when, while leading today’s first race, Team Nika managed to hook a lobster pot as they approached the leeward gate. While most of the fleet overtook them, they were able to fight back to finish fourth.
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RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup Migrating to the Caribbean for the winter for the second year in a row, the season finale of the 2015 RC44 Championship Tour was contested in Virgin Gorda’s sun-drenched paradise from 25-29 November. Hosted by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda at its winter base, located in the North Sound of Virgin Gorda, nine yachts lined up to challenge for the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup. Teams were also jostling for positions on the annual RC44 Championship Tour leaderboard and with six teams capable of podium finishes going into the final event, tight racing was guaranteed. Match Racing Vladimir Liubomirov’s Bronenosec Sailing Team prevailed at the conclusion of the 2015 RC44 Match Racing Championship when seven flights were sailed in winds that peaked at 15 knots before dropping to 6-7 mid-afternoon and becoming increasingly shifty and puffy. Starting the day with a two-point advantage over Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing in second, Bronenosec was the top scoring boat of the day alongside Igor Lah’s Team CEEREF. Dropping just one match, in flight five, to Team Aqua, Liubomirov’s team ended the day four points clear of Team Aqua, which ultimately took second in the 2015 Match Racing Championship, one point ahead of Artemis Racing. Day 1 Fleet Racing Competition could not have been closer for the opening salvos of the fleet racing held within the confines of Virgin Gorda’s North Sound. The only consistent aspect of the day was the balmy 30°C temperature, with the wind speed having a far greater range than forecast. Two squalls passed through, each bringing winds of up to 20 knots (and some rain) followed by 5 knots or less after. Similarly each race had a different winner with Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing coming out on top, scoring no lower than fourth in the nine boat fleet, the Swedish team was left two points ahead of Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika. Ending the day tied on points, Igor Lah’s Team CEEREF and Alexander Novoselov’s Katusha both had mixed fortunes. Winning a race each, they also picked a few re-
sults in the bottom half of the fleet. Bronenosec Sailing Team picked up the fourth and final race win, finishing off the first day of fleet racing at the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup. Day 2 Fleet Racing Despite the wind gods repeatedly throwing curve balls at competitors, Törnqvist and his Artemis Racing crew were able to firmly consolidated their lead on the second day of fleet racing With Italian Francesco Bruni calling tactics, the Swedish team promptly won the opening two races and followed up with a 6-2, making them top scoring boat of the day, and eight points clear of Liubomirov, whose also posted a race win, placing his team in second overall. While the conditions were lighter and not quite as up and down as the previous day, there was a significant right shift that forced the race committee boat to up anchor and move the course prior to race four. John Bassadone’s Peninsula Petroleum finally came good in the last race, managing to pick up their own personal puff, in the ultra-shifty conditions, coming into the first top mark rounding which helped them round ahead. A solid 2-2-1 in the final three races elevated the Gibraltar-based team to third overall. Day 3 Fleet Racing Conditions on the penultimate day of the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup turned volatile, reminding competitors that the exotic venue, while balmy and hot, is also in the centre of the Caribbean Trade Winds belt, complete with gusty winds and tropical rain showers. Both featured, with 30 knot gusts and intermittent downpours that closed down visibility and caused dramatic fluctuations in the wind. As a result just two races were held before a bigger, more intense deluge dumped its load on the North Sound race course and racing was abandoned for the day. Despite the tricky weather, the star performer was John Bassadone’s Peninsula Petroleum with a 1-2, elevating them to second overall, five points behind the ever-consistent leader, Artemis Racing. Peninsula Petroleum was in second to Katusha most of the way around the course and just managed to overtake her on the second upwind.
While Peninsula Petroleum was out of the chocolates in this year’s overall Fleet Racing Championship, she was now gunning for the regatta lead. However Artemis Racing, with Törnqvist steering and Bruni calling tactics, seemed unstoppable, winning the second race of the day by a giant margin. Krzysztof Krempec’s MAG Racing offered up an impressive performance, finishing third in first race – their best result of season so far – and were lying second in race two until they were penalised after their spinnaker touched Peninsula Petroleum during the hoist on the second downwind. Prize for the biggest comeback of the day goes to Igor Lah’s Team CEEREF, which, along with Katusha, was OCS at the start of race two and yet pulled through to take third. Day 4 Fleet Racing Artemis Racing secured their event win on the final day of fleet racing at the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup, with a four point margin over Peninsula Petroleum, having led from the outset of the four day regatta. But while this was close, the outcome of the 2015 RC44 Fleet Racing Championship was closer, only decided in the last seconds of the final race, followed by some intense mathematics and the breaking of a tie. While it wasn’t the best day for the Swedish team, Törnqvist and his crew put in a late charge this season, posting four bullets during the event to achieve their first RC44 victory since the Austria Cup in 2012. 2015 RC44 Fleet Racing Championship The 2015 Fleet Racing season became a two horse race between Vladimir Prosikhin’s Team Nika and Liubomirov’s Bronenosec. The two teams had either won or come second in the two previous events and, in the Championship, Team Nika was one slender one point ahead of her rival going into the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup. Going in to the final day of the season, Bronenosec was lying third in the RC44 Virgin Gorda Cup, one place ahead of Team Nika, but needed another boat to finish the regatta between her and Team Nika to win the Championship. Initially this seemed all but impossible, but in the day’s first race, the two event leaders, Artemis Racing and Peninsula Petroleum, finished last, leaving Bassadone’s team still second but only three points clear of Bronenosec. This margin narrowed further to two points going into the day’s third and final race.
67 Against the odds, at the final weather mark rounding of the deciding race, Bronenosec was in a Championship winning position: Leading, with Team Nika in second and Peninsula Petroleum in fourth. However on the last run a squall rolled over the fleet and with gusts of 30 knots on one side of the course and nothing on the other (where the leaders were), the positions were overturned. Ultimately Team Aqua and MAG Racing came home first and second respectively, but, importantly, Peninsula Petroleum was third, meaning she retained second in the regatta with Bronenosec and Team Nika still third and fourth. On the championship leaderboard Bronenosec and Team Nika were left tied at the top, but with Team Nika claiming the title – the tie split through her having scored a better result at the RC44 Cascais World Championship. Sailing under the direction of tactician Ed Baird for the first time in Virgin Gorda, Prosikhin was ecstatic to have won the season and is already looking forward to defending the title with the America’s Cup winning helmsman by his side next year.
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73
75
77
79
2015 RC44 TOUR MATCH RACING CHAMPION BRONENOSEC SAILING TEAM
81
2015 RC44 WORLD & FLEET RACING CHAMPION TEAM NIKA
83
85
87
89
91
93
95
97
99
101
103
105
107
109
111
113
115
117
119
121
123
125
127
129
131
133
135