Finn Masters Magazine and Yearbook 2017

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE News

2016 MASTERS PROFILE

TORBOLE Triumph

AND

YEARBOOK

Results

Events

RAFA TRUJILLO INTERVIEW

2017

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Contents Contacts, Calendar & Suppliers News Barbados Beckons Torbole Triumph - 2016 World Masters Rafa Trujillo interview 2018 Finn World Masters Preview Christoph Burger interview Farewell from Mike Till Piet Eckert Interview Finn Masters Profile Masters Euro Cup 2016 National Masters Events Bids for 2019 Finn World Masters Dinghy Racing Centre Profile Seeing Europe by Finn

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YEARBOOK

Finn Masters Magazine and Yearbook - the official publication of the Finn World Masters ISSUE NO. 4 • FEBRUARY 2017 The Finn Masters Magazine is a non-profit publication that is distributed free of charge to all active Finn masters who are IFA members through their National Finn Association, as well as other interested parties connected to the Finn World Masters around the world.

Articles, race results, photographs and reports from countries are always welcome.

All advertisement enquiries should also be addressed to the Editor. A media pack is available on www.finnworldmasters.com

SUBSCRIPTIONS To subscribe to this magazine go to www.finnworldmasters.com or send an email to media@finnworldmasters.com with your full name and delivery address.

MAGAZINE EDITOR Robert Deaves, 2 Exeter Road, Ipswich IP3 8JL, England. Mob: +44 (0)7932 047046 Email: media@finnworldmasters.com

COVER PHOTO

2016 World Masters Legend Champion, Howard Sellars (GBR), powers down the top reach at Torbole. Photo: Michael Kurtz

IFA WEB SITE www.finnclass.org FINN SHOP www.finnclass.org/shop FINN MASTERS www.finnworldmasters.com

History of the Finn World Masters About the Finn World Masters Finn World Masters 1970-2016

39 39 40

Trophy Winners Annual Masters Meeting 2016 Minutes Rules and Event Manual

41 42 43

ADVERTISERS Art of Racing Devoti Sailing Dinghy Racing Centre finnsailing.de Hi-Tech Sailing Pantaenius Pata Petticrows Sandiline Suntouched WB Sails Wilke Zhik

35 12 21 15 17 38 26 19 26 4 48 23 2

Most of the excellent photos in this issue from the 2016 Finn World Masters in Torbole were taken by Berit Hainoja and Michael Kurtz.

You can see the full galleries here: https://finnworldmasters.com/latest-news/item/582

Masters President’s Message

By Andy Denison, GBR 20

his year, 2017, is a year we will remember, because for T the first time in history the Finn

World Masters will be held in the Caribbean. This is only the second time the Masters have travelled outside Europe since the event began in 1970, as well as the furthest we have travelled from our traditional central European stronghold.

The Finn World Masters is a truly recognised world event. So much so that we have had serious interest from Thailand and Queensland, Australia, but these overseas venues need serious consideration and it’s my intension to open discussion on this subject at the AMM in Barbados.

Barbados has been a huge learning curve on organisation, transportation and logistics and huge thanks are due to Ray New, GBR 80, for being the lead coordinator for shipping containers with Geest, as well as the other country coordinators: we all owe him a pint or a rum.

We have three contenders for the 2019 Championship, Marsala, Sicily is bidding again, and we also have great bids from the Royal Danish Yacht Club at Skovshoved, and the Royal Malta Yacht Club in conjunction with Yachting Malta.

A brief presentation will be made at the AMM in Barbados but I ask that you please

read the reports on the website and in this magazine, as the presentations at the AMM will be scaled down.

It was time for us to revamp the website and I hope you agree with me that the new site is far easier to navigate and use. My thanks to Robert for another huge amount of work.

The clash with the Masters Euro Cup has left me with a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth. Granted, a number of sailors wanted to sail at Whitsun and were not going to Barbados, but I felt a little disappointed that it was competing with the Masters Worlds for sailors. However, perhaps this is also an opportunity to review our event structure and make some changes in the future.

At present we don’t have a Finn European Masters and it has made me think that perhaps there is some mileage in using the Euro Cup as an official Finn Masters Championship, with authority and IFA organisation. This subject will also be on the AMM agenda, but for those of you not coming that have strong thoughts on this please let us know in advance.

I wish you all a great season, and safe travels to all those coming to Barbados.

Keep fit. Keep safe. Keep sailing.

Andy Denison Finn Masters President

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

33

Suntouched Sailboats The One Stop Finn Shop!

New and used Finns, including the Fantastic Devoti D-Fantastica!

All spares and accessories, available to click and buy online.

Devoti Sailing DEM FOILS

www.suntouched.co.uk Buy online – worldwide shipping Suntouched Sailboats Ltd., Hayling Island, Hampshire, UK Tel: +44 (0)208 133 0104 Mobile: +44 (0)7734 251033 email: info@suntouched.co.uk Skype name: Suntouched

CONTACTS AND CALENDAR

Finn World Masters Committee

Events calendar 2017 2-9/6 5-9/6 16-18/6 18-20/8 22-28/8 25-27/8 2-3/9 9-10/9 14-15/10

President Masters’ Fleet

Andy Denison (GBR 20) 4 Wickfield Ave, Christchurch BH23 1JB, UK Tel: +44 (0)1202 484748 Mob +44 (0)7802 355 522 Email: andy@denisons.com

18-25/5 2018 FINN WORLD MASTERS El Balís 7-14/6 2019 FINN WORLD MASTERS tba

Supplier directory

Marc Allain des Beauvais (FRA 99) IFA France 62 Avenue Camus, 44000 Nantes, France Tel: +33 (0)285 520 330 Mob: +33 (0)6 07 29 27 56 Email: marc@transmer.com Philip Baum (RSA 51) 18 Norwich Drive, Bishopscourt 7708, Cape Town, South Africa Tel: +27 217 611 752 Mob: +27 829 904 399 Email: pbaum@endcliff.com

Staff

*Please note that there may be changes in the committee at the AMM

Robert Deaves (webmaster, secretary, magazine editor, media) 2 Exeter Road, Ipswich, IP3 8JL. UK Tel: +44 (0)7932 047046 Skype: robert.deaves Email: media@finnworldmasters.com

ESP

Please check local websites for latest details and information.

Further updates also at www.finnworldmasters.com/calendar

Rolf Elsässer (GER 202) Am Honigberg 20 60435 Frankfurt Tel: +49 69 986 626 47 Mob: +49 172 6334163 Email: rolfelsaesser@web.de

Georg Oser Rolf Lehnert Fons van Gent Andy Denison

Barbados BAR Tihany HUN Bracciano ITA Świnoujście POL Moscow RUS La Salle, Michigan USA WV Randmeer NED Karlstad SWE Warsash GBR

Future events

Henk de Jager (NED 11) Willem Alexanderlaan 3 5263AZ -Vught, The Netherlands Email: henk.dejager11@gmail.com Tel: +31 736 565 008 Mob: +7 701 754 1813

PAST PRESIDENTS 1978-1992 1992-2008 2008-2013 2013-present

FINN WORLD MASTERS Euro Masters Cup Italian Masters Polish Masters Russian Masters (Open) North American Masters Open Dutch Masters Swedish Masters UK Masters

BOATBUILDERS AND SUPPLIERS Devoti Sailing www.devotisailing.com Finnports www.finnports.com.au Dinghy Racing Centre www.dinghyracingcentre.nl HiTechSailing www.hitechsailing.com Jibetech www.jibetech.com

CZE AUS NED ITA USA

Petticrows Pata Boats Pata Finns Africa Suntouched Wilke

Jorge Rodrigues

jrsilva@gmail.com

www.petticrows.com www.patafinn.hu www.patafinnsafrica.com www.suntouched.co.uk www.wilke.ch

GBR HUN RSA GBR SUI

MASTS & BOOMS Art of Racing (booms) C-Tech Concept HIT Masts Pata Suntouched Wilke

www.artofracing.co.nz www.c-tech.co.nz www.conceptsailracing.com www.dinghyracingcentre.nl www.patafinn.hu www.suntouched.co.uk www.wilke.ch

NZL NZL ITA NED HUN GBR SUI

SAILS Doyle Raudaschl Dynamic Sails North Sails Turtle Sails Ullman Sails Victory Sails WB Sails

www.raudaschl.co.at www.dynamicsails.com www.northonedesign.com www.turtlesails.de www.ullmansails.co.uk www.victorysails.com www.wb-sails.fi

AUT GBR GBR GER GBR SLO FIN

OTHER Finnsailing.de HIT Trailers Marina Dellas Pantaenius Rob Coutts Sailing Sandiline Waverunna Zhik

www.finnsailing.de www.hittrailer.nl www.dellas.de www.pantaenius.com www.robcouttsailing.com www.sandiline.com www.waverunna.com www.zhik.com

GER NED GER MON NZL/USA SLO NZL AUS

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

BRA

5

NEWS Farewell to two Finn Masters

Towards the end of 2016 we lost two of our most enthusiastic Finn Masters, just weeks apart.

New Website for Finn World Masters

Over the winter months we have been hard at work creating a new website for you. The old site had served us well but it had become hard to navigate and use. The new site has been built using the same content from the old site but everything else is new, so it is probable that any old direct links you had no longer work. On the new site everything is organised into Events, with direct links from the home page, so it is possible to find everything about one event with one click. However it is a work in progress and we hope to add more content and extra features in the coming months. This website is also fully responsive so should work just as well on your phone and tablets. As always, feedback is always welcome.

NEWS Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual After several versions over the last three years we have finally arrived at what we think is the definitive document to define the Finn World Masters and its events. This was approved at the 2016 AMM in Torbole.

It combines all our former documents into one booklet that not only acts as a useful guide to placing a bid to host a championship, but also as a manual for those organising an event.

We have formalised a lot of current practice into this new document, based on our experience in the last few years, so that in the future the organisation and management of our events will be much more transparent and consistent. In the future, with the first being El Balís in 2018, we will also require championship organisers to sign a document agreeing to conform with all the rules in the Manual. We hope this will be another step to be able to guarantee we can maintain the high quality events that we have become accustomed to holding.

You can download the document from the Finn World Masters website.

The 2016 Edition of the Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual also can be found in the Yearbook section at the back of this magazine

6

Regarded marine artist, accomplished sailor, long time Finn and Etchells sailor, Mike Till, 77, passed away at home on 10th October 2016 after a tough bout with cancer, surrounded by his wife Kathy and his children.

Sailing and organizing sailing events were a key part of Mike’s life. He never let his illness slow him, whether it was sailing his XOD just two weeks before his death, or sailing with 360 other Finns at the 2016 World Masters Championship in May, or working on a disabled sailing regatta.

Mike was an ardent supporter of the Finn class, and especially of the Finn Masters, for more years than most of us have sailed Finns and his unique outlook and high standards were a lesson to everyone. His support, encouragement and his continual presence was treasured by all those who knew him.

He sailed the Finn World Masters this year in Torbole knowing it would be his last, but still with great humour, a huge grin and still wanting to be competitive.

He served on the World Masters Committee for many years as well as for the British Finn Association in a range of roles.

Born to a tea plantation manager in Ceylon in 1939, Mike was no stranger to foreign travel or languages. His business career was in the insurance industry as a Lloyd’s broker which included later owning his own Lloyd’s broking company, Bradstock Haywood Till. His career led him to conduct business in many countries in Europe and the Middle East and he was a major respected character in the London Insurance Market.

Mike will be missed around the world, by family, friends and sailors who knew and respected him. The Finn class send its sympathies to Mike’s family and friends.

John Torrance died suddenly on Wednesday 19th October, after collapsing whilst out to dinner and efforts to revive him failed. John was a hugely enthusiastic Finn sailor, a class measurer and had been working hard to grow the Finn fleet around his local area in Burnham-On-Crouch. He was highly respected as a sailor in both dinghies and keelboats, as a race officer, and for his contribution to developing sailing at his club.

John was a regular at the Finn World Masters for many years, winning many friends with his chatty, personable character on and off the water.

John had recently arranged a Finn Class start in Burnham Week and was always on hand to offer advice and help to fellow Finn sailors. Finn Masters around the world will always remember him for his friendship and enthusiasm. We send our deepest sympathies to his family and friends.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

2017 Finn WORLD MASTERS – BARBADOS

Barbados

hospitable welcome to the island and it is stacking up to be a great championship.

By the time many of you are reading this most of the boats headed to the Finn World Masters in Barbados will either be in containers heading for the Caribbean or being prepped ready to go into containers. Expected entries for this once in a lifetime opportunity, to combine a champagne sailing venue with a world-class holiday destination, will be around the 130-150 mark as we are still waiting for some final figures.

beckons

150 entries?

We expect to have containers going from at least AUS, AUT, CAN, CHI, CZE, DEN, FRA, FIN, GER, GBR, MON, NED, NZL, POL, RUS, SUI, SWE and USA, with about 15 containers being shipped through Geest and the rest arriving by other carriers. Early entry ended on Jan 15, but late entries can still be accepted up to April 1, so if you change your mind, there is still time to enter and perhaps the odd space in a container can be found. For further details please contact Ray New (ray.new@ ntlworld.com)

Still Time

hree years of preparation and eager anticipation are T about to be realised with the first Finn World Masters to be held in tropical destination. The 2017 Finn World

Masters in Barbados will be only the second time the event has travelled outside Europe (after Canada in 2001) and perhaps marks the beginning of a new era for the championships with many bids pending for future years away from the Finn Masters traditional stronghold in central Europe.

Planning for the Barbados Worlds is at an advanced stage, with a lot of people now getting quite excited by the prospect of sailing their Finn in Barbados’ warm and azure tropical waters.

The host club, the Barbados Yacht Club, has great experience in hosting large events, with the GP14 World Championship the most recent in April 2016. All the sailors can be assured of a warm and

For those of you who are going we will be publishing further information on the Finn Masters website as the event draws closer. We will try and push out as much information as possible, but please do check the website occasionally for any updates. There are quite strict Customs requirements for the containers and what can and cannot be sent, so please make sure all your paperwork is in order to minimise any problems on arrival.

With the event following directly on from the OK Dinghy World Championship (and a number of sailors are doing both events), the change around between the two will be crucial, and as soon as final numbers are known we will publish details on how this will happen. Around 80 OK Dinghies are expected, so together with the Finns that will be around 230 boats on site at the same time. Some degree of flexibility will be needed to make sure the change over is smooth and also that the Finns do not impede the success of the OK Dinghy Worlds.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

7

2016 FINN WORLD MASTERS – TORBOLE, ITALY

berit hainoja

Tokovoi could hardly be separated. With four starting groups, it was almost impossible to get any significant points advantage if you were always at the front of the fleet, as shown by the fact that come the medal race on the final day, any of the top 10 could mathematically still have won the event, with only 14 points separating them. And in spite of a completely random selection fleet allocation, some of the top sailors still hadn’t sailed against each other.

Many sailors arrived early at Torbole to put in some practice and were rewarded by a week of very light winds and rain.

However, by the day of the practice race the weather had returned to normal and on four of the five days of actual racing, a cold 1420 knot Ora swept down the lake challenging the fleet with tight tactical racing into the corners.

Rafa Trujillo wins largest Finn

2016 Masters

he 2016 World Masters will go down in history for T being the largest Finn event of all time (so far) and for a gladiatorial battle to be champion that was only decided in the last minutes of the final race.

An astonishing 355 Finns made it Circolo Vela Torbole at the northern end of Lake Garda for a week of fantastically competitive and close racing. In fact the Finn fleet was dotted around all the clubs from Riva to Torbole. Lanfranco Cirillo, the major sponsor of the event through his Fantastica Sailing Team, spoke through the rain at the opening ceremony about the spirit of the Finn class and Finn sailors. He said The Finn was an Olympic class for all, for the strongmen of the sailing world. “The Finn is not just a boat, it is a lifestyle.” Not many present disagreed with his sentiments.

Competitors in Torbole included many former Olympians and many former champions. Increasing numbers of sailors are returning to the class for the great competition that it offers and the standard is rising every year.

robert deaves

event ever at University of Sailing

Lake Garda has been called by some sailors as a University of Sailing. Everyone learned something about the nuances of sailing on Europe’s most famous lake. The Finn is also a university for life with stories and memories told and relived each evening in the bars and restaurants of Torbole. It was a huge melting pot of experience and knowledge.

But even if some sailors didn’t have the day on the water they wanted, the scenery around them was simply breathtaking.

The geography of the area that creates its world famous winds dominated the racing, with the huge mountainsides towering above the small boats putting everything into perspective. But it is the boat, the fantastic Finn, which is the true equaliser.

The scope of the racing was immense, with the fleet split into four starting groups on two course areas covering almost the entire visible water at that end of the lake. Early on it was fairly clear who the front runners were going to be with defending champion Vladimir Krutskikh and 2004 Olympic silver medalist Rafa Trujillo, sailing at his first World Masters, winning every race in their groups over the first three days.

Behind them, six time Masters champion Michael Maier and Piet Eckert were stringing together a series of top scores that left them in touch with the two leaders. The next group of Paul McKenzie, and Christoph Burger, Laurent Hay, Harles Liv, Marc Allain des Beauvais and Yuri

8

berit hainoja

Immense Scope

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Rafael Trujillo (1) M Vladimir Krutskikh (2) M Michael Maier (1) GM Piet Eckert (3) M Paul Mckenzie M Christoph Burger M Laurent Hay (2) GM Harles Liiv M Marc Allain d. Beauvais (1) GGM Yuriy Tokovoy (3) GM

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

ESP 100 RUS 73 CZE 1 SUI 86 AUS 22 SUI 7 FRA 75 EST 7 FRA 99 UKR 21

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50

NED 121 Martijn van Muyden GER 707 Uli Breuer RUS 711 Dmitrii Petrov RUS 41 Felix Denikaev SUI 5 Christoph Christen GBR 2 Allen Burrell RUS 161 Aleksandr Kulyukin AUT 7 Michael Gubi ITA 55 Walter Riosa GER 711 AndrĂŠ Budzien NZL 2 Ray Hall NED 780 Jan Willem Kok CHI 12 Antonio Poncell GER 194 Axel Schroeder HUN 88 Zsombor Majthenyi ITA 1025 Armando Battaglia GER 193 Thomas Schmid UKR 8 Taras Havrysh GER 165 Dirk Meid GER 8 Jurgen Eiermann NED 29 Bas de Waal SWE 59 Lars Edwall UKR 14 Volodymyr Stasyuk RUS 31 Igor Frolov NED 60 Luuk Kuijper RUS 21 Vladimir Butenko NED 7 Cees Scheurwater ITA 6 Enrico Passoni NZL 6 Gary Lokum ESP 17 Xavier Penas NZL 15 Greg Wilcox RSA 1 Greg Davis GBR 635 Simon Percival ITA 80 Martin Atzwanger HUN 50 Akos Lukats ITA 872 Nicola Menoni DEN 80 Michael Staal AUS 75 Phil Chadwick DEN 21 Otto Strandvig ITA 89 Florian Demetz

1 1 2 1 2 -7 3 4 3 6

4 8 2 2 5 4 7 6 2 -14 5 2 7 21 3 9 8 15 15 -18 -14 12 8 10 -25 3 5 -14 -35 16 (ufd) 5 12 14 -32 5 -28 11 -29 8 11 5 4 6 8 7 9 16 16 10 13 9 7 6 13 11 9 10 11 22 -37 12 11 10 -21 9 6 8 12 17 22 20 10 -25 5 -24 3 15 10 3

1 1 1 2 -6 3 5 1 3 2

1 1 1 -3 5 5 -6 2 5 1

-33 3 6 -13 2 -15 -13 7 10 13 -73 9 2 5 3 2 5 9 11 3 7 7 4 10 9 16 11 11 8 2 5 10 3 8 13 3 4 17 14 4 -46 4 10 7 16 8 8 11 11 2 8 19 13 -32 7 9 18 -25 4 6 23 16 30 8 6 14 20 19 12 11 15 -31 18 13 14 20 17 4 20 18

1 1 1 1 -3 1 2 3 5 3 3 1 3 3 4 -9 1 2 4 6

2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 20 18

7 9 13 17 26 27 30 31 34 37

5 2 12 4 1 12 5 3 2 5 5 6 2 (bfd) 9 15 3 2 2 11 10 8 8 (bfd) 11 8 8 5 16 6 6 22 14 -15 10 5 4 16 7 7 16 7 15 (bfd) 13 -28 -32 2 -34 23 -41 16 27 9 6 22 8 14 -45 22 7 4 9 6 17 18 11 11 9 -52 9 8 13 13 4 20 7 39 22 -54

2 1 3 2 1 6 1 -18 -40 1 2 9 3 11 4 6 4 20 4 17 15 18 8 15 3 2 5 -45 10 5 9 -34 10 -35 14 3 10 15 -47 12

24 27 27 30 33 33 38 41 42 43 46 49 50 51 52 54 55 56 56 57 58 60 60 61 65 67 67 68 69 70 71 74 74 75 75 77 77 78 85 85

who would sail the medal race and for the first time ever, all ten sailors entering the medal race at the Finn World Masters in Torbole had a chance of walking away with the title.

berit hainoja

After nearly fifty years of competition, the Finn World Masters remains one of the most important events in the Finn year. A quarter of a century ago the event name was changed from the Veteran Gold Cup to the Finn World Masters to reflect this. The Masters has been often copied but never matched. It has survived because of the camaraderie and support of large numbers of Finn sailors worldwide who enjoy racing a great boat with friends made through a lifetime of involvement in the class. Many of those who raced in the early Veteran worlds were present in Torbole, attracted by the spirit of the class and the intense competition. No one gives away an inch in a Finn race and that is as true today as it was half a century ago, at all levels.

On the Thursday all racing was abandoned ashore as rain and unstable winds from the wrong direction meant any fair racing was going to be difficult. So the positions from Wednesday determined

M GM M GM M GM M GM M GM M M GM GM M M GM M GM GM GM GM M GM GM GM M GM M M GM GM M GM M GM GM GM GM M

-1 -1 2 1 1 3 2 4 -6 -10

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

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2016 FINN WORLD MASTERS – TORBOLE, ITALY Everyone’s a Winner

Whatever the outcome of the final races, everyone was a winner with a spectacular day of sailing.

The medal race itself was as dramatic as it was scenic. Sailed up against Garda’s steep walls, the lead changed three times before the finish. Maier took an early lead and sailed away for what looked like a certain seventh title. But Trujillo wasn’t quite finished and worked his way towards the front after a mediocre first upwind. He was right behind Maier and Krutskikh at the final top mark and split gybes on the run to the finish.

The gamble paid and he found enough pressure to sail through for another race win and the title. Krutskikh passed Maier for second. It was a thrilling end to a thrilling week.

All week Grand Masters, Grand Grand Masters and Legends traded places with the younger Masters. The Masters and Grand Masters medals were all contained within the top 10 with Trujillo also winning the Masters title, Maier took the Grand Masters while Marc Allain des Beauvais won the Grand Grand Masters title by a sizeable margin. In the 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97

10

GBR 68 HUN 7 HUN 5 SUI 83 AUS 261 NOR 64 POL 99 ITA 2 ITA 4 GBR 720 FIN 201 GER 157 RUS 17 FRA 38 RUS 34 ITA 67 AUS 231 GER 909 BEL 1 FRA 66 POR 5 FIN 22 AUT 333 GER 293 ITA 23 NED 27 POL 100 GBR 21 SWE 14 DEN 246 CZE 70 NED 55 AUS 3 GBR 10 RUS 212 NED 111 CZE 43 GBR 20 NED 2 ITA 24 NED 965 CZE 67 GER 60 GBR 9 AUS 41 BRA 21 GER 19

John Mackie M Antal Szekel GM Guza Huszar M Beat Steffen M John Condie GM Petter Fjeld M Wlod. Radwaniecki GM Marco Buglielli GM Francesco Faggiani M Julian Smith GM Kristian Sjoberg GM Frank Dinnebier GM Vasiliy Kravchenko M Michel Audoin GM Aleksandr Kasatov GM Gino Bucciarelli M James Mayjor GM Udo Murek GM Wim Henderieckx M Philippe Lobert GM Jorge P.de Melo GM Ville Valtonen GM Gerhard Weinreich M Rob Coutts (2) GGM Grumelli Umberto (3) GGM Paul Kamphorst GM Marek Jarocki M Michael De Courcy GM Stefan Nordstrom GM Jens K Andersen GM Vaclav Cintl M Eddy Huisman GM Jake Gunter GM Robert Deaves M Lanfranco Cirillo GM Chris Frijdal GGM Ladislav Hyrs M Andy Denison GM Wouter Molenaar GGM Stuffer Peter M Robert Thole M Josef Jochovic GM Thilo Durach M Tim Tavinor GM Darren Gilbert GM Ricardo Carvalho GM Andreas Bollongino GM

86 87 91 94 95 98 101 103 104 105 105 105 106 109 109 110 111 112 115 115 117 117 118 120 120 121 121 121 124 126 127 128 128 128 129 129 129 136 137 139 139 141 144 146 146 147 148

98 ITA 5 99 GER 59 100 POL 2 101 GBR 1 102 GER 188 103 GBR 90 104 HUN 4 105 ITA 73 106 GBR 77 107 GER 713 108 NED 11 109 GBR 5 110 AUS 51 111 GBR 61 112 CZE 33 113 ITA 75 114 GRE 71 115 FRA 28 116 NZL 43 117 NED 902 118 RUS 1117 119 RUS 171 120 GBR 65 121 GER 111 122 SUI 25 123 AUS 262 124 UKR 5 125 RSA 51 126 HUN 972 127 NZL 18 128 ITA 131 129 ITA 1000 130 FIN 112 131 RUS 100 132 AUS 33 133 ITA 33 134 ITA 114 135 NED 987 136 RUS 51 137 GER 206 138 POL 26 139 UKR 10 140 GBR 37 141 AUT 273 142 GER 43 143 SWE 91 144 FRA 84

coveted Legend category, Howard Sellars won the title for a record equalling third time.

Super Legend

For the first time ever the class introduced a prize for Super Legends (over 80). Pedro Jimínez-Meifren may have been the only one, but he got the biggest cheer of anyone at the prizegiving, simply because he epitomised everything that the other 354 sailors hoped to emulate when they reached that age – the ability to still sail the Finn. Pedro also completed most races when sailors half his age were staying on shore.

Victory for Trujillo is a milestone for the class – the first time an Olympic medalist has won the title. He said he would be back.

“The group of sailors in the Finn Masters are very nice and I really enjoyed my time here. I enjoy coaching the Finn but I still enjoy sailing it as well.”

Everyone returned home sad that the event was over for another year but buoyed by the knowledge that in one year’s time, the Finn World Masters fleet will meet again, in Barbados.

Francesco Cinque GGM 149 Detlef Stock GM 150 Andre Skarka GM 151 Sander Kooij GM 151 Kluegel Michael GM 152 Richard Sharp M 152 Gabor Antal GGM 154 Luca Taruschio M 155 Howard Sellars (1) L 155 Torsten Haverland GM 155 Henk de Jager GGM 156 John Greenwood GM 160 Rod Tanks M 161 John Heyes GM 162 Ivan Rames GM 162 Emilio Garcia Canales M 163 Panagiotis Davourlis GM 163 Sebastien Grall M 165 Nick Winters M 172 Pieter Risseeuw GM 173 Andrew Bill GM 173.4 Alexander Kravchenko M 174 David Potter GM 174 Rainer Haacks GM 175 Till Klammer M 177 Craig Ginnivan GM 178 Valerii Gusenko (2) L 178 Philip Baum GGM 179 Gyula Monus M 179 Gerard Lelieveld M 181 Stimpfl Gregor GM 182 Marcello Micheli M 183 Seppo Ajanko GGM 184 Dmtriy Akhramenko M 185 Stuart Skeggs M 189 Giangiacomo Alborghetti M 193 Roberto Benedetti M 193 Lenard Kaptein GM 195 Mikhail Petriga GM 196 Klaus Reffelmann GM 197 Boguslaw Nowakowski GM 197 Valentyn Klymentyev GM 197 Steve Hayles M 198 Markus Schneeberger M 198 Ingo Spory GM 198 Per Friberg GM 200 Jean-Pierre Lostis GM 201

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

147 SUI 1 146 SUI 32 147 NED 999 148 GER 17 149 AUS 274 150 GER 122 151 NED 54 152 AUT 400 153 UKR 2 154 SUI 12 155 GBR 80 156 NED 977 157 RUS 16 158 NED 922 159 RUS 205 160 HUN 18 161 FRA 23 162 SWE 100 163 ITA 16 164 CZE 313 165 SUI 63 166 GER 145 167 BEL 15 168 GBR 78 169 CZE 222 170 GBR 52 171 SUI 13 172 SWE 2 173 AUT 511 174 USA 74 175 GER 997 176 GER 226 177 FIN 226 178 CZE 25 179 CZE 17 180 ITA 85 181 RUS 142 182 ESP 196 183 GBR 617 184 BRA 3 185 NED 746 186 FIN 227 187 ITA 920 188 GER 811 189 GER 101 190 GER 202 191 POL 23

Hans Fatzer GGM Urs Huber GM Hein Bloemers GM Kai Schader GM Nicholas Kennedy GGM Holger Krasmann GM Joos Bos GGM Bernhard Klingler GM Pavlo Krainiev M Franz Buergi GM Ray New GGM Thomas v.d Berg GM Oleg Khudyakov M Roel van Olst GM Sergey Stepanov M Mihaly Demeczky GM Maxime Le Goff M Hp Hylander GGM Harald Stuffer M Petr Kramar GM Thomas Gautschi GM Kai-Uwe Goldenitz GM Denis Alain GM Robert Temple M Petr Vinkl GM Will Patten GM Peter Kilchenmann GGM Svante Collvin GM Gerhard Schwendt GM Henry Sprague (3) L Jochen Dauber M Uwe Fernholz GM Jukka Partinen GM Jirka Silhavy M Tomas Kramar M Klaus Heufler GM Yury Polovinkin GGM Pablo Lopez-Baldan M Jean-Louis Simons GM Ricardo Valerio GM Marald Van Reijsen M Ronnie Roos M Alberto Romano M Michael Knoll M Marco Poloni GM Rolf Elsaesser GGM Piotr Pajor GM

201 202 204 207 207 208 209 209 211 211 211 213 215 215 216 218 219 219 222 222 222 232 234 236 239 240 242 243 243 244 244 245 245 248 248 250 251 252 252 252 253 254 255 255 257 258 258

Super Legend: Pedro Jimínez-Meifren (ESP) Legends: 1 Howard Sellars (GBR), 2 Andreii Gusenko (UKR), 3. Henry Sprague (USA) Grand Grand Masters: 1 Marc Allain des Beauvais (FRA), 2 Rob Coutts (NZL), Umberto Grumelli (ITA) Grand Masters: 1 Michael Maier (CZE), 2 Laurent Hay (FRA), 3 Yuri Tokovoi (UKR) Masters: 1 Rafael Trujillo (ESP), 2 Vladimir Krutskikh (RUS), 3 Piet Eckert (SUI) 192 FRA 117 193 SUI 72 194 GER 710 195 FRA 897 196 UKR 1 197 AUS 7 198 POL 38 199 NED 31 200 GER 835 201 GER 75 202 ITA 14 203 UKR 89 204 GER 84 205 RUS 71 206 GER 247 207 BRA 103 208 LTU 27 209 GER 103 210 BEL 5 211 NED 58 212 NED 88 213 GER 175 214 HUN 51 215 RUS 189 216 NED 52 217 HUN 27 218 SUI 69 219 GBR 24 220 SWE 66 221 GBR 22 222 NED 95 223 ESP 39 224 FRA 27 225 NED 860 226 ITA 900 227 CZE 75 230 GER 115 229 FRA 118 230 GER 58 231 HUN 2 232 GER 161 233 SUI 88 234 GBR 58 235 POL 21 236 GER 876 237 NED 82 238 SUI 91 239 GER 678 240 ITA 50 241 ITA 17 242 SUI 65 243 CAN 3 244 GER 222 245 POL 27 246 AUS 168

François Richard L Patrick Ducommun GM Walter Kuhlmann M Bruno Regout GM Volodymyr Bogomolkin M Greg Clark GGM Juliusz Reichelt GGM Hans Zuurendonk GM Michael Ziller GM Christian Rupp M Igor Petukhov GM Sergii Vovchuk M Michael Huellenkremer GGM Leonid Kleimann GM Ronny Knoll M Luis Mosquera M Rytis Bagdziunas M Ralf-Udo Lemke GGM Yves Verhofstede GGM Maxim Berrens M Chiel Barends GM Michael Mockel GGM Istvan Rutai M Lukin Sergey GGM Henk Meijer GGM Andrik Szabolcs M Jean Pierre Weber GGM Rory Barnes GM Ulf Bjureus GM Andrew Wylam GGM Wobbe De Schiffart GGM Jose M Pujadas GGM Pierre Lallemand M Louis Kruijer L Massimo Paccosi GM Vladimir Skalicky GM Matthias Vorgerd GM Thomas Scherer GM Thomas Schulz GM Peter Sipos GGM Ralf Kratz GM Daniel Muller GM Paul Brown GGM Jacek Binkowski GM Wolfgang Genesius GM Roel Lubberts GM Patrik Muster M Wolfi Hiss GM Norberto Felici GGM Martin Kusstatscher GM Thomas Bangerter GGM Ian Bostock GM Ulf-Peter Pestel GM Piotr Rosinski GM Robert Ugarte M

261 261 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 267 268 269 270 270 271 271 271 272 272 273 275 275 279 280 281 282 283 289 290 291 297 299 301 305 306 309 311 312 313 313 316 316 320 321 323 323 323 326 328 328 329 330 331 332 334

247 GER 171 248 SUI 51 249 AUT 19 250 GER 45 251 NED 100 252 SUI 3 253 NZL 213 254 NZL 3 255 FRA 74 256 GER 467 257 FRA 72 258 GER 5 259 NED 13 260 USA 101 261 GER 696 262 ITA 10 263 RUS 18 264 GER 71 265 GBR 739 266 FRA 53 267 ESP 6 268 HUN 69 269 USA 32 270 ITA 7 271 NED 38 272 SWE 9 273 GER 112 274 BRA 42 275 HUN 81 276 AUS 68 277 NED 8 278 ESP 320 279 ITA 111 280 AUT 21 281 GBR 82 282 GER 249 283 GER 460 284 GER 200 285 DEN 77 286 ITA 46 287 NED 93 288 NED 9 289 GER 118 290 POL 3 291 GBR 587 292 HUN 64 293 GBR 545 294 CHI 10 295 ITA 76 296 ITA 93 297 ITA 29 298 GER 400 299 AUT 10 300 GER 911 301 GER 92

Volker Tetzlaff GM Ulrich Appenzeller GGM Gerald Raschke GM Dirk Sundermann GM Arend van der Sluis GGM Carlo Lazzari GM Maurice Duncan L Ben Winters L Duret Jean Louis L Stefan Prell M Philipe Le Frapper GM Herbert Straub GM Harold Lensing GGM Peter Frissell GM Jens Fischbach M Diego Maltese GM Evgeny Dzhura M Bernd Blass GM Paul Ward GM Corcaud Gilles GM Roger Jordana Quer M Csaba Stadler M Charles Heimler GGM Antonio Pitini GGM Olaf Van Heusden GGM Veine Jutmar L Egbert Vincke L Paulo Picchetti GM Imre Solymosi GM Jay Harrison GGM Rodrick Casander L Miguel Angel Mateo GM Bruno Catalan GGM Scherzer Erich GGM Simon Green GM Georg Feurer GM Dirk Vahlpahl GM Dahlhoff Ulrich GM Flemming Bender Jensen L Luca Marastoni GM Gelmus Peeters L Jobs Isselmann L Oliver Bronke M Jan Okuicz-Kozaryn L Douglas Sturat GGM Balazs Szucs GM Dick Pratt GGM Marco Aur. Montalbetti GGM Franco Voltolini GGM Nikolaus Mair GGM Hans Peter Zischg L Stephan Bauer M Engelbert Prutsch M Patrick Frind M Detlev Guminski GGM

335 336 338 339 341 341 341 343 344 346 347 349 349 351 351 353 355 356 358 359 359 359 360 363 363 364 366 366 367 368 380 382 385 386 386 386 388 389 390 393 394 394 396 396 398 400 400 404 405 406 406 406 409 410 410

302 NED 4 303 NOR 3 304 ESP 7 305 POL 127 306 GBR 42 307 NED 900 308 FRA 108 309 FRA 800 310 GER 26 311 SUI 4 312 ARG 1 313 SWE 7 314 ITA 881 315 GER 119 316 NED 32 317 ESP 400 318 NED 885 319 AUS 98 320 ESP 21 321 SWE 21 322 GER 89 323 GBR 727 324 GBR 55 325 GRE 5 326 SWE 4 327 ESP 35 328 HUN 9 329 SUI 2 330 SUI 441 331 ESP 318 332 GER 40 333 POL 31 334 GER 949 335 GER 62 336 SUI 29 337 GER 46 338 GER 545 339 GER 456 340 GER 123 341 ITA 926 342 GER 38 343 AUT 339 343 BEL 14 343 BRA 35 343 CZE 80 343 GBR 4 343 GBR 19 343 GER 1 343 GER 34 343 GER 186 343 NED 754 343 NED 786 343 NED 848 343 RUS 2

Ruurd Baerends GGM Ola M. Johannessen L Denes Peter M Jan Kominek GGM Richard Phillips GGM Dick Hooijer GM Giovanni Bocelli M Yves Zoccola L Willi Meister L Jiri Huracek GGM Ricardo R. Anderson GGM Hans Wiberg GGM Fabio Panaro GM Peter Bronke L Peter Verhoef GGM Juan L. Biechy Baldan GM Bert Veerkamp GGM James Ley L Mauricio Luque Diaz M Mats R Karlsson GM Gunter Kellermann L Paul Smith GM Mike Till L Ioannis Giaramanis M Jan-Erik Floren L Pedro Jiminez-Meifren SL Tamas Beliczay GGM Helmut Klammer L Martin Nydegger GM Antonio Furest GGM Heinz Stammnitz GGM Maciej Rozkrut GM Harbeck Franz GGM Uwe Barthel GGM Althaus Han L Peter Truhm L Martin Cordes GGM Willi Mayr GM Udo Bengsch GM Roberto Castellano M Reinhard Fabry L Walter Prager L Michiel Missiaen GM Colin Reed L Martin Jozif M Russell Ward GM Simon Hoult M Werner Beuck L Dieter Borges GGM Detlef Blaschkowski GGM Karel Van Arkel GGM Johan De Schiffart GGM Pax Ven De Griend L Tommaso Piccioli M

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michael kurtz

RAFA TRUJILLO INTERVIEW – ESP 100

Sailing my Finn and hanging out

with friends afa Trujillo is best known for winning an Olympic Silver medal in 2004 and the Finn Gold Cup in 2007.

R After retiring from the senior circuit following his third Olympics in the Finn in 2012, he took to coaching and immediately had success there, taking Jorge Zarif to a Finn Gold Cup victory in 2013, and continuing on to see Zarif finish fourth at the 2016 Olympics.

Rafa was arguably the most decorated sailor taking part at the 2016 Finn World Masters, so it was no surprise to see him winning, but in doing so he managed to win every fleet race as well as the medal race for a perfect score.

“Five years ago, I did not imagine that I would be sailing in the event but the level of Master’s fleet has been steadily improving and the fleet is of very good quality so I was excited to get back into the boat after almost four years out of it. It was a great opportunity to sail against friends and push myself.”

“With the Worlds being in Lake Garda in May, I knew the conditions would suit me but I was really unsure as to how things would play out during the Worlds as a lot of the fleet were training almost full-time and sailing against Olympic sailors whilst I sat in a coach boat coaching Jorge.”

In spite of that, “I sailed well during the fleet racing but had an absolute shocker in the Medal Race. It was a lovely week of sailing and in terms of my sailing I was surprised that my upwind speed, which is usually quite good, was not very competitive but thankfully my downwinds saved me.”

evident that Piet Eckert had fantastic upwind speed as he rolled me during the first beat.”

Despite winning every race, because of the huge number of boats, and four groups racing each day the points at the end of the week ended up very close with the medal race deciding the medals. For the top sailors, the finishing order was more or less going to be the overall order and that is how it turned out, with Rafa not sure of the win until the final 50-100 metres.

Did he think it would be that close? “I certainly did a great job making it hard for myself but between Mike, Boba and I we provided some good entertainment.”

Hanging Out With Friends

He describes the greatest attraction for him to sail the Masters as, “Sailing my Finn and hanging out with my friends.”

While he hopes to defend his title in Barbados, a lot depends on his other professional sailing commitments.

“I hope to be able to come but Michael Maier has stopped replying to my emails regarding helping me getting my boat to Barbados…so I’m not sure…hehe… Seriously I will most likely have to make a decision at the last minute as my pro sailing will

“Garda is a great venue and one I really enjoy sailing in. When I was Olympic campaigning I always tried to spend at least two weeks a year there training. The event was a great environment both on and off the water, and I really enjoyed my time with the fleet. I had not started on such an aggressive starting line in a very long time. The upwind speed of the top 20 sailors was quite impressive.”

“I have a lot of respect for the whole fleet but the ones that were initially on my radar as I knew them from my time as an Olympic athlete were Mike Maier, Vladimir Krutskikh, Christoph Burger and Martijn Van Muyden. During the practice race it became

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michael kurtz

Great Venue

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

berit hainoja

that is looking at joining the fleet.”

For future venues, “Now that I am based in New Zealand, I have discovered a lot of amazing sailing areas there, which are beautiful both on and off the water. It would be great to have a Southern Hemisphere Masters. I also think that a location like Brisbane would be amazing for the Masters fleet as the RQYS has fantastic facilities and great sailing conditions. Cadiz in Spain is one of my favourite venues and another one that would suit the Masters fleet.”

On Barbados, “I think it’s great that we go to these exotic locations but we also need to ensure that we have good facilities to host the events as the fleet numbers are huge.”

have to take priority, but I am currently entered. I hope to sail in the Finn as much as I can but, any future regattas will depend on my professional work as sailing the Finn is now something I do for fun.”

“At the moment my priority is to improve my fitness level and when I am at home in Auckland I try to get out on the water at least three days a week.”

Great Future

But he thinks the Masters has a great future and will attract more top sailors in the coming years. “After I won the Masters Worlds I heard from a lot of ex-Olympic sailors hoping to join the Masters fleet as it seemed like such a good event, so I expect the level will continue to increase for Barbados and Barcelona. In Spain we already have 20 new Master sailors who have joined the fleet as they look forward to Barcelona 2018. My spies on the ground in Spain tell me that there might even be an Olympic Gold medalist

COACHING TIPS Most common mistake One that probably stands out is the efficiency of the pumping technique downwind.

Three ideas to improve performance Keep the boat flat going upwind Minimise your risks Try to have clear air always

Format

On the format of the World Masters, he has some controversial views. “I believe there should be one more day or racing, this way we could have three days of group fleet racing, one day of Gold Silver and Bronze and the Final day with a MR included. This will ensure that we have an opportunity to sail against all the sailors, which will make the final outcome fair.”

Outside of Finn sailing, “I like the offshore sailing and I try and get involved in as many projects as I can.

Apart from the Volvo, races like the Sydney to Hobart and the Maxi Worlds are ones that I really enjoy. At the moment I am doing some freelance coaching; it’s great to see the next generation coming through. I hope to have another opportunity on the Volvo; we will see how things develop early this year.”

The highlights of his successful sailing career include, “My World championship win, my Olympic Medal and other podiums at Worlds and World Cups. Professionally the America’s Cup in Valencia and the last Volvo.”

Being a Legend

Does he envisage still sailing Finns when he is a legend? “If my old body allows me to. It was impressive to see the fitness level of the Legends… I can only hope to be in as good a shape as they are.”

Approaching a new venue Collect as much information from local sailors and believe in your instincts; all Masters sailors have years of experience.

michael kurtz

When conditions are unpredictable Try to build confidence and focus on taking low risk decisions around the race course. The Finn is a hard fleet and you normally win by being consistent with your results and not having too many poor ones.

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robert deaves

LOOKING AHEAD TO 2018 FINN WORLD MASTERS – EL BALÍS, SPAIN

Warm welcome

in prospect for El Balís Masters

Miguel Angel Mateo, the driving force behind the fast growing Catalonian Finn fleet invites us to the 2018 Finn World Masters, to be held at Club Náutico El Balís from 18-25 May.

round 50 years ago, our club opened its doors for A the first time. It is located on the coast by the small Mediterranean village of Sant Andreu de Llavaneres,

which is about half an hour’s drive north from Barcelona.

Its location, near one of the most attractive capitals in the world, its familiar atmosphere, its great sailing conditions, and its constant efforts to achieve the highest standards of quality, are behind the steady growth of members joining and the achievements of the club.

With a permanent spirit of enjoying and promoting sailing activities since inception, El Balís has been hosting countless regattas either local, regional, national and international, meeting the highest standards and helping to breed several world champions in various classes (Optimist, J80, 29er, 420) and a gold Olympic medalist (Finn – José María van der Ploeg - 1992).

resulted in the resuscitation of the fleet.

Last year it was possible to celebrate the first official Catalan Championship of this new phase of the history of the class in the region, with 16 boats, including a Super Legend and a Lady. The fleet now numbers around 20 Finns, and is still growing. A great impulse to this growth has to be credited to the Finn Masters Club, an informal association of more than 50 Spanish Finn sailors of all ages. Their enthusiasm, passion, and vast knowledge about Finn sailing, has become a true engine for the renaissance of the class.

To further promote it, beginning this year the Club Náutico El Balís is offering a special deal to all Finn sailors belonging to the Catalan Federation. It includes unbeatable prices to join the club, and the organization of the Balís Finn Series. This consists of two Finn regattas and two training events per month (every Saturday).

We hope to succeed in creating an unstoppable momentum to increase the size of the fleet and to consolidate this amazing class in our region. Around one half of the fleet is now in El Balís.

The staff of the club is already actively working on the preparation of the FWM2018. Most of the information on the facilities of the club and on our plans for the event can be found at the brand new website of the Finn World Master under the 2018 tab.

Success

After successfully hosting the J80 Europeans in 2014, with 52 boats, El Balís is now facing with excitement the organization of the Finn World Masters in 2018. Our club feels blessed to have received the support of the World Master’s Fleet to be the host of such an amazing event, where we expect to welcome hundreds of Finns that will bring the best master sailors of the best dinghy ever to our beautiful Mediterranean coast.

After the great performance of JM van der Ploeg in 1992, the Finn fleet in Catalonia began a slow but steady decline to become almost extinct by the early 2010s. But in 2013, three Finn sailors of El Balís and two other newcomers to the class decided to create the Association of the Finn Class Catalonia (finncatalunya.com) to serve as a contact point and a voice to promote Finn sailing in our region. The FinnCat proved efficient in ‘spreading the news’ and

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Unique conditions

We would like to highlight the unique conditions of our club to provide the needs for the event ‘all-in-club’, or almost. Race Office, the social club quarters, a sailors meeting/chillout zone (beach bar), accommodation for around 100 participants (campervans, in-marina boats), chandlery, mechanical services, gym, swimming pool, supermarket and laundry (24h), 11 bars and restaurants…all in the club within comfortable walking distance.

Security will be a major concern for the organisation. The

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Construction of Club Náutico El Balís in the 1960s club is fitted with a modern CCTV set of cameras, and is guarded 24h by staff of the club. A strict tally system will be set up and professional rescue services will be caring for the fleet on the water. The Legend and Super Legend sailors will receive priority attention when launching their Finns and when arriving from the sea. It is important to remark here that the winds in El Balís coasts are often around 10 knots, very rarely approaching or surpassing 20 knots.

Currents are almost anecdotal.

Socials

It is very well known that the Masters Finn Fleet is as keen for sailing their boats as for enjoying the after-sailing events and surroundings. The club is organizing a rich offering of activities and ladies programme, some of which will be announced in time for advanced booking. We are really excited about that. These activities will include a villa and a market in the club, gastronomic and cultural proposals, including, of course,

several excursions to the amazing city of Barcelona, or shopping in a very popular outlet village some 20 minutes form the club. A fleet dinner and live concert are, of course, also scheduled.

Get Ready

Finally, we would like to announce that this year the club is organizing a Finn regatta around the same dates of that of the FWM2018 (18-25 May 2018). This will be held on the 12, 13, and 14 May 2017 within

the Cornudella Trophy (the flagship regatta of the club, in honour to its founders). It does not pretend to be a full test event, but it will be ideal for anyone willing to get familiar with the surroundings, the winds and the waters of the site for the next great Finn Masters Championship. Registration fees will be very affordable. The Notice of Race will be published soon.

We can’t wait to welcome you all to El Balís.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

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berit hainoja

CHRISTOPH BURGER INTERVIEW – SUI 7

Unique event

with many great moments

orn in 1976, Christoph Burger was finally old enough to sail his first Finn World Masters in 2016. In the B biggest Finn fleet of all time he placed sixth overall and missed a medal by just 10 points.

“I believe that Torbole was unique in many ways. I love that lake; know it quite well from sailing many times there, not only in the Finn. I have good confidence in my equipment and was preparing for the event as good as possible. I did a lot of physical preparation, not necessary sailing. I know the Finn very well from my time in the class and I knew that on this lake fitness would be a key factor. So I knew that I could do well, but how well in a 300+ boat fleet was hard to imagine. I had no goal really, but wanted to enjoy every moment of it.”

Training

michael kurtz

To prepare for the event he set up a small training programme together with his friend from Norway, Petter Fjeld, with two sessions of four days each before the championship. “The first time went great, we managed to sail twice per day and had a blast.

The second time I caught a stomach infection that put me down after the first day of sailing. I had to go home, lost 6kg bodyweight in only three days and even the worlds were in danger. Once I was home I had antibiotics for seven days, of which the two last days of the treatment were during the worlds. So I was weak and just tried to make the best out of it. Considering all this my on-the-water preparation was limited to only about 15 sailing days before the Worlds. Day by day I felt better and the energy slowly came back towards the end of the event. With my final ranking, sixth, I was very happy in the end.”

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“I enjoyed every moment of it. It is unique to sail with so many different guys and age groups. It is super easy to socialise with the fleet on shore and I had many great moments. The older guys all have my respect when it gets down to sailing the Finn in the normal Lake Garda conditions. Once the race has started it is all about your race. When you are up in the front of the fleet, the flash backs of the earlier days come up. The problem was that due to the lack of sailing before the event my body couldn’t always keep up with what I wanted to do.”

His first experience of the Masters was in 2013 at La Rochelle, when he coached some other Swiss sailors. “In La Rochelle I was in the coach boat and it was quite hard to see the guys having a lot of fun and I had to stay on the rib. When I was sailing the Finn full time, my sparring partner and I said that we would do our first Masters in Finn as soon we both reached the required age.

Unfortunately, my friend Anthony Nossiter nicknamed, ‘Nock’, had America’s Cup commitments during his first possible Masters in Torbole. The Barbados Masters are going to be during the AC, so it will not happen in Barbados either, but hopefully we manage to join Spain together.”

Sailing Experience

Christoph started his sailing career on Lake Thun in Switzerland in the Optimist. After that he sailed the 420 and the Laser. Then in 1996 he started Finn sailing and did two full time Olympic programmes for 2000 and 2004. In Athens, 2004, he qualified but was not sent by the Swiss federation.

Then bigger boats called. “In 2000 I sailed with the First Swiss America’s Cup team in Auckland during the Luis Vuitton Cup as a port grinder. That was an unforgettable adventure where I met great guys and it turned out to be a very useful door opener for many other projects I did. After Athens I mainly put my focus on studies and work. Since 2013 I have run my own business www.burgersailing.ch and do professional sailing as well as coaching and joined North Sails Schweiz at the same time. I do several coaching clinics through the year in different classes like the Finn, Dragon and Yngling for example. I am a World Champion in the 5.5m class and multiple Swiss Champion in the Finn and the 5.5m. Since 2014 I am the Swiss Finn Class President.”

He says the choice to get into the Finn in 1996 was pretty clear.

“My dad was a Finn sailor and in my home club in Thun we have about, still today, 30 Finns. So after my time in the Optimist and the Laser the choice was clear. Soon after I did some local regattas before I went to Australia to sail over the European winter in the same year. The Finn sailors are a strong gang at my club and it is fun to be part of that. Last year we hosted the Swiss Nationals with over 80 boats, a great event.”

Attraction of the Finn

The attraction of the Finn remains as strong as ever. “These days it is mostly about the friendship with other sailors, and to go to great locations and to have fun. The Finn remains a top boat in many aspects. It is physically challenging and makes you a better sailor on other boats. The free pumping is a new element that came up which is very attractive as well. You must know the game and to know how to play with the boat, mast and sail setup. There are so many theories out there and it is fun to test and move yourself in the right direction. That hasn’t changed.”

“I believe that if you have raced the Finn at the top level you have created a unique connection to it. Some will sail the Finn forever and others won’t. But sailing in the Master Worlds it is not only about the pressure of the result, to satisfy sponsors and federations. It is about doing what you love to do. And what is better than doing what you love, and to end the day with a couple of beers at the club’s bar instead of having to go for a bike ride, stretching and massage.”

He thinks there is scope for the current Masters events to expand beyond the current schedule. “Especially when the Worlds are not in Europe. It is not easy as we see this year to send your boat half way around the world. You almost need another boat to

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Sailmaking

Growing up in a sailmaking family, Christoph was on the floor at his father’s loft from very young age. “That is something that stays with you for the rest of your life. I’ve studied banking and finance in Zurich and worked for a private bank in Geneva. But the passion got me back and I joined North Sails in 2013. The technology is a constant moving factor and is pushed very hard at North Sails. The aim is to make the boats faster, with lighter sails that have a longer life. Not so much in the One Design but there are other factors

berit hainoja

michael kurtz

be able to do some regattas and training in the meantime. Also, it is simply not everyone’s preference to do the Worlds overseas. I believe with an attractive alternative it would be a win-win situation for the class. I believe that the number of entrants will not change for the worlds if there is an attractive programme in Europe.”

like design and marketing that are very interesting. To be able to combine all this with the sport you love is just a dream job for me.

My motto is: ‘Say what you do and do what you say.’”

“My aim is to satisfy every client that needs new sails. It doesn’t matter what boat. One-design, racers, club-racers, cruisers. Every client is important to me and I try to give my best advice and put in all my experience when he’s about to purchase new sails. I treat all the clients the same, if he owns a big boat or a small one.”

“My main class is the 5.5m where I am the class representative and responsible at North Sails. Together with North Sails One Design Europe I have developed the latest generation of sails that are very successful. Currently, I also sail the Dragon, the Star, the J 70. I did some big boat races like the Rolex Middle Sea Race on a 70 feet boat, the Round the Isle of White with a Farr 45, and Copa del Ray with a Farr 40.”

But he says his highlights in a broad sailing career are mainly in the Finn. “The Master Worlds in Torbole is up there. But when I was three times in Sydney, Australia over the winter to prepare for the European season in the Finn was a special experience, and not only on the sailing side but also for life.”

And he is very much looking forward to his second Finn World Masters, in Barbados. “To sail in Barbados is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I don’t want to miss. I expect wind, sun, warm water, good competition and one or two rums at the end of the day.”

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

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berit hainoja

Finn MEMOIRS OF MIKE TILL – GBR 55

A Finn farewell from

Mike Till

Maury, the French Gold Medalist. She was of composite build and very pretty and, unlike the Mader, very bendy. I enjoyed sailing that boat.

By this time I was hooked and just loved sailing the Finn so when the opportunity came up to go to the then Veterans Worlds I decided that this was a great idea. At that time in the early 1980s the Finn fleet was pretty much dominated by the Germans and it was they who had started this event. The turnout would be in the 70s, or 80s maximum, and the ambience was always great.

So my first ever Veterans was in Bracciano, Italy, which was a nice venue and a good introduction to the international fleet and the experience of large fleet starts for the first time.

It was at Bracciano that I made many friends who I’m happy to say remain so today. There were, from memory, some eight Brits at that first event including Brian Hardy, Rodney Cobb and David Shackelton, just to name a few. Brian Hardy and I acquired two Vanguard Finns, which was a big move up for us, and I well remember going to Holland to collect these two boats with Tim Tavinor.

2016 Finn World Masters in Torbole, knowing it would be his last, but still with great humour and a never ending competitive spirit. Before he died he left us the following words about a life spent sailing and enjoying Finns and Finn sailors.

Brief Bio

I was born in March 1939 in what was then Ceylon as my father was a tea planter.

I started sailing very late in life in my late thirties. I got going pretty quickly and started my racing career in Wayfarers out of Bosham Sailing Club (BSC) where we had a good competitive fleet.

I also became Rear Commodore Sailing of BSC. After my Wayfarer days I moved into the Finn Class and became eventually Class Captain, and for a short period, Class Secretary.

In 1990 I moved into the Daring Class in Cowes and sailed these boats for some four years before buying my first of three Etchells. I eventually was elected Class Captain of the Etchells UK fleet and was elected as a Governor of the Class. I competed in many World Championships and had the good luck of getting Barry Parkin as my helm.

I was elected Rear Commodore Sailing of the then Royal Corinthian Yacht Club and am currently Rear Commodore Sailing of the Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club.

Some five years ago I moved into the XOD Class and am currently the overall Class Captain.

During these years I sailed my Finn less and less but continued competing in most of the World Masters and some local open events, but living on the Isle of Wight rather restricted my Finn sailing.

michael kurtz

ormer member of the Finn World Masters Committee F and much loved Finn sailor Mike Till passed away in October 2016 after a battle against cancer. He sailed the

My Finn memories relate in the main to the Veterans, which then became the Masters.

In the days when we had less than 100 boats at these events the ambience was different to what the Masters has now become.

They were great events with a wonderful ambience and I made many friends for life.

We went for one Masters to the Isle des Ambiez, a location, which would never work today. The ferry took all of 12 boats at a time. The island was beautiful and the sailing excellent. No cars could drive on the island so it was walking everywhere. On one of the days we were languishing in zero wind and very high temperatures to the extent that a number of our European friends stripped off to the buff. As we started the race in just about zero breeze the Mistral came in with a vengeance. All our girls up on the cliffs could see the Mistral coming in (and had also seen the other action) and no doubt enjoyed the scenes of carnage that ensued.

Many of our German friends just sailed to the shore and beached but we Brits really enjoyed the windy conditions.

Following the tragic death of our son in 1981, I abandoned my Wayfarer and it was then that Rodney Cobb, a stalwart member of BSC and an ardent Finn sailor, persuaded me to go singlehanded and with his help I acquired a Mader from a barn in Suffolk.

I well remember my first outing as we went to Datchet and it was quite windy. I do not know how many times I capsized but there were quite a few. I didn’t like that particular Finn at all. It was ultra stiff and very unforgiving so I got rid of it pretty quickly.

I acquired a Lanaverre, ostensibly previously owned by Serge

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françois richard

Masters Memories

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Another wonderful venue was the Camargue. From a scenic point of view it was a great place with lots of wildlife and quite good sailing. One incident is engraved on my memory. Kurt Schimitzek, from Austria, arrived in his Lancia Integrale, parked outside his apartment, had a shower and a drink then walked out to his balcony to see that his high performance Lancia was gone.

The car has been stolen, as was all his Finn gear. Poor guy.

We had a number of really good Masters at Maubuisson with some memorable racing and post racing socials. It was those great evenings on the dunes that I remember so well.

I could go on for hours but I am actually finishing this off literally on my last downwind leg. I can see my usual adversaries, unfortunately ahead of me, but it’s Lake Garda and it is damn windy. The event, which was the largest Finn Masters, is historic (at least in my lifetime) with some 354 boats participating. With just one leg to go, I had rounded the penultimate leeward mark but I was a long way back and was just mixed up with the other fleet, which was sailing a different course. To make matters worse, I capsized, which was so disappointing. So, I didn’t get a result, after all that effort. But, I did re-right the boat and sail to the finish line. Boy was I glad to get to the dock, where I was greeted and assisted by the appointed nurse, Tanja Engels, who as usual was very helpful. Perhaps this is an appropriate end but my inner heart says absolutely not, and that I should fight on to sail again.

claire adb (2011)

Final Words

Postscript from Mike’s daughter, Juliette: My Dad died three hours after dictating this; having lapsed into unconsciousness not long after he finished talking about the Masters. He was thinking about sailing – and his Finns – to the end.

robert deaves (2011)

Mike Till 10 October 2016

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berit hainoja

PIET ECKERT INTERVIEW – SUI 86

For the challenge

and the

fun factor iet Eckert finished a career best fourth place at the P 2016 Finn World Masters in Torbole, in addition to taking the bronze medal in the Masters division. We talked to him about his sailing background, what led him to sail in the Finn Masters, and his preparation for Torbole.

“I started sailing as a junior on the Swiss lakes. Soon my brother and I teamed up and we began to sail in the 470 class. In 1986 we started to compete in the Flying Dutchman. We missed out the 1988 Olympics but went on and won the qualifications for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. With a fourth at the Europeans and a third in Kiel we were confident enough to meet our target with an eighth overall at the Olympic regatta.”

He says the Olympics remains highlight of his sailing career.

“Since pressure, exposure and expectations were high it was really important to finish well. You don’t want to quarrel with yourself about missed opportunities. I have been able to conclude this chapter of my life well. I am relaxed and satisfied about that period.”

“In 1993 the Flying Dutchman got dismissed and we moved into the Soling but ran out of time for a third consecutive campaign. We stopped sailing for more than 15 years. I focused on architecture and family. In 2010 we bought a new Lacustre, which is an elegant classic yacht, a Swiss national class with quite a number of boats on Lake Constance. It brought the old team back together, but I soon missed the lack of competitiveness. Today, we use it very rarely.”

2014, 17th in Kavala in 2015 and now the fourth in Torbole.

“I like the boat. The heavy hull has its own momentum, especially in lighter wind. Its physicality is a real challenge and the technical side is highly refined. I don’t know any other boat with such a comparable combination.”

“I think the Finn is a unique singlehander. Honestly there are not much alternatives for taller and heavier sailors. The Masters makes it possible to sail in your proper category. It keeps the challenge up and increases the fun factor. It’s very much organisable. Since the boat is so compact, it’s easy for logistics. You don’t need a big budget and you can simply organise your own schedule.”

“Such an easy and individual access to sailing attracts a larger mainstream. That’s why the Finn is still contemporary for middleaged people. In Switzerland most of the other sailing classes are dying. You can hardly race in a fleet of 20 boats. Generally the Finn class offers a great camaraderie and there is a lot of help for logistics and transports. Though you sail alone there is quite a collective experience.”

Dinghy Academy

Piet is one of the Masters who has been using Luca Devoti’s Dinghy Academy in Valencia for highly focussed training “Luca’s Dinghy Academy is great. It is an outstanding platform to sail. I moved my boat on a permanent basis to Valencia. In fact I passed up sailing in Switzerland and I try to escape once a month for three days. On Fridays I leave Zürich at noon and sail out at three o’ clock to Luca’s race course. You sail 10-15 races on such a weekend and you compete against top contenders. It is so efficient. Luca and his team simply commit to progress.”

“It puts a new light to sailing if you still improve and not just maintain your former abilities. I think it’s a great experience if you link improvement to the fact of getting older. If you want to race other regattas, transport of boats and equipment is taken care off. I can only recommend it to Masters. I learnt a lot in a very short period of time and have a lot of new friends. The conditions in Valencia are ideal. The temperature is really perfect. I sail just with my summer hikers. The city is interesting, a great place for shopping with lots of good restaurants. My wife loves it...”

Torbole

His goal for Torbole was to be in the top 10. “In Valencia we trained a lot in strong breeze to feel at home with the conditions on Garda.

We tried to get rid of hesitations when it comes to sailing in big breeze. Racing on small courses helped and speed training was done to secure good speed. Normally regattas at Garda are kind of dragster races.

“I was quite surprised how volatile the Ora was. I sailed most of the time on the upper course. To go immediately to the rocks wasn’t really successful. The obvious shifts made the game a bit more complex which was good. On the outer loops the Torbole side was the one to consider. It was really hard to get started properly. The start at the committee boat was so chaotic… My upwind speed saved me many times.”

“I don’t do much more than Finn sailing. I still have small kids, so sailing time is rare enough. Occasionally I sail the classic on Lake Constance with my girls or visit my brother racing the D35 at Lake Geneva. I find very little motivation to travel to provincial places in Switzerland in order to wait all weekend long for wind: most of the time you just hold a glass of beer and chat. It’s fair and some people really need it, though it’s not my plan right now.”

“I ordered my first Finn in 2012. I wanted to get back to the basics: so no fat yacht sailing with a few low key boats on the line, but rather severe one design dinghy racing, no team obligations and a boat that was physically demanding. I convinced a bunch of friends to try it and they joined me.”

His first Finn World Masters was La Rochelle in 2013 and he remembers being very impressed by the big fleet. He has now done four World Masters, placing 16th in 2013, eighth in Sopot in

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berit hainoja

Finn Sailing

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

“Generally the Masters at Torbole was a fantastic event. The sheer quantity was a challenge. There won’t be many clubs in Europe capable of holding a regatta on that scale.”

He is happy that the growing stature of the event will attract many more top sailors and this provides an added attraction for more to come back to the Finn and compete. “I think at Garda there were eight Olympians in the medal race. Today the professional elite sails much longer on the Olympic circuits than we did at the time. Some guys like Vasilij and Michele are well over 40 and still winning Olympic medals and championships. I think that an event like the Masters once a year is very attractive for such heroes. For them, it is the great Return of the Jedi.

Seeing Rafa at Garda impressed so many: great style, superb sailor and what a great help he offered for so many to get out of the water.”

“More and more Masters or groups of them have coaches.

You see some of the best top Finn sailors coaching the old guys. It solidifies the class. As we support some of the young they help us out on that event. That’s amazing.”

Uniqueness

He has mixed view on whether the Masters should try to incorporate more events into the annual programme. “I am not quite sure whether an event like the Masters should be repeated or multiplied as smaller events. The uniqueness of the one event of the year is striking. The result is the current multi-nationality and the high number of competitors. To organise a Master circuit could be too demanding for many of the sailors. It might reduce the attraction of the main event, though the idea of the Euro Masters could work if the World Masters would be organised overseas.

Unluckily this year the Euro Masters and the World Masters are at the same time. That is not an added value. It works against each other. This shouldn’t happen.”

In terms of any improvements to the regatta, “I thought that

the referees on water were ridiculously strict regarding Rule 42.

It seems that they have been briefed by Masters organisation. It would be worth to rely on a proven team of judges, which have a track record on judging the Finn class regattas at an appropriate level. At Torbole I remember sailing downwind in race 3 against Marc Alain. We both got flagged more than 100 metres ahead of the fleet, just trying to sail the boat calmly through upcoming gusts. I wonder how those guys on that particular rib would have sailed through such gusts in a Finn.”

“In Torbole I also found the safety boats rather insufficient. Frederico Melo, who coached me, was very busy getting the Grand Grand Masters and the Legends back into their boats. Many capsized and stayed in the water too long. I thought that it was a bit too risky. Since the fleets are so big, a precise definition how to define the fleets for the next day should be applied. I was surprised that we sailed with a preconceived order all week long. This should be changed at the next Masters.”

Barbados beckons and, “I underestimated the logistics a bit but now I am really curious. It seems to be a beautiful place. I will have to do some more training though. So far I have been only once to Valencia, I was too busy in the office. But I will intensify from now on. I looked at the statistics. Beginning of June might be the start of the rainy season, and it looks like we need some thinner gear. Otherwise you sweat too much. I heard there are some great whites out there…”

Does he think the Masters should be more adventurous and travel to these ‘exotic’ venues more often? “Not really. I think we need simply a great place to sail. An exotic venue once in a while is good. But it’s not an obligation. Next year in Spain might be interesting as well. I will be a Grand Master for the first time.”

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MASTERS PROFILE 2016 Finn sailing venues

At least 200 sailing clubs were represented at the Finn World Masters 2016 at Torbole.

he 355 Finn sailors (aged from 40 to 80 years old) T from 30 nations who raced at Torbole, Lake Garda, Italy in May 2016 were all handed a questionnaire to

complete to try and build a profile of the Masters fleet.

Around a third of sailors responded and Richard Phillips (GBR 42) has produced the following profile based on the data received.

Finn Masters

PROFILE

FINN SAILOR CHARACTERISTICS Age of competitors

30 Nations - (8 in top 10, 13 in top 20, 20 in top 50) 13 Nations 10+ entries each

The fleet included past Olympic and Finn Gold Cup sailors several with successes in a range of double handed and single handed dinghies.

A very significant proportion of the fleet have taken to sailing a Finn late in life. A quarter of those responding to the questionnaire had been sailing Finns for 4 or less years; in several cases for less than a year and only half for 8 or more years. However a further quarter had over 17 years of Finn racing experience. Those that have sailed a Finn in the past are returning and at least one competitor has been sailing a Finn for over 50 years. This is a very healthy sign for the class.

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There is no upper age limit to compete but you do need to be at least 40 years old in the year of the event. The results clearly demonstrate that even in force 5 winds anybody up to the age of 60 had a realistic chance of being in the top third of the fleet and even one sailor in their 70s achieved this. A quarter of the fleet was over 61 years old and 10% were over 68 years old.

Finn Sailing history

Based on the responses of the 100 sailors who completed the questionnaire, there is no age barrier to starting to race a Finn with many racing a Finn for the first time late in their sailing careers. 2 sailors indicated they had sailed in a Finn at the Olympics and 16 in a Finn Gold Cup.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Other International Dinghy Sailing History

Of those disclosing their past sailing experience in international dinghies, 32 had raced in Lasers, 15 in Optimists, 15 in Int 470s, 11 in Cadets, 12 in FDs, 8 in 505s, 3 in 420s and 4 in OKs, one each in 49er, Fireball, Topper and International 14. The best non Finn results included 1st Fireball EC, 2nd FD Worlds, 3rd OK Worlds, Star Olympics, 470 Olympics, 4th Star EC, Americas Cup.

Height of sailors

96 sailors disclosed their height. The range of heights of sailors from 170 to 203 cms was very large. Half were under 183 cms, a quarter were under 178 cms and a quarter over 187 cms. To be competitive in the prevailing conditions one needed to be over 175cm. There appeared to be no significant advantage or disadvantage in the 175 to 185cm height range and possibly a slight advantage in being taller.

Distribution of heights and performance by height Average height by position overall

Weight of sailors

96 sailors disclosed their weight. Half were under 95kg, a quarter were under 86kg and a quarter over 102kg. The heaviest was 130kg and the lightest 73kg.

EQUIPMENT

Performance by weight

The key elements of a Finn are the hull, mast, sails and foils. Finn sailors tend to focus on finding the right mast for their weight and then matching the sails to the mast.

Competitors were asked to complete a questionnaire about the make and year of manufacture of their hull, sails, spars and foils. The responses varied in detail. It is hoped that at future World Masters events more details can be collected. The charts below show the equipment chosen for use at the Finn World Masters.

In the case of sails and spars competitors are permitted two of each and it is not possible to know which was used in each race.

Furthermore, it should be remembered that all races were sailed in a Beaufort force 5 wind.

HULLS

Position in fleet (based on weights provided by a third of fleet)

25% of the hulls were built between 2014 and 2016; 25% were built in 2004 or earlier. The distribution shown in the chart below is based on the 56 hulls for which competitors stated a date.

Devoti is clearly the most favoured builder and there were at least 3 in the top 5. Petticrows and Pata were also represented amongst the top 100 boats.

Based on the survey results and performance at Torbole, there is no apparent advantage in having a new boat. Some boats in the top 100 were over 16 years old. It is however interesting to note

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MASTERS PROFILE 2016 (cont.)

MASTS

The bend characteristics of a mast and the way it is set up in the boat are considered to be key elements of racing a Finn. It is rumoured that some sailors test out dozens of masts and then when they find the best fit for their weight and style of sailing they keep it. There is plenty of evidence that many sailors retain their rig when changing their Finn.

The results of the survey suggest that several suppliers are favoured by the top sailors.

Whilst there appears to be a preference for Wilke masts amongst the top 50, several competitors had a Pata mast as their second mast. We have no information as to which mast they used during each race but relatively few boats declared a second mast.

that there are significant variations in apparent performance by boats built in specific years....this may be because the top sailors have identified vintage years or hull shapes have changed slightly from year to year and the conditions on Lake Garda favour some shapes over others. It will be interesting to study this further after the Finn World Masters in Barbados.

SAILS

As can be seen on the chart below showing the distribution of sails based on the 100 sailors who completed a questionnaire and the 95 who indicated the make of at least one sail they were using (each Finn is limited to two mainsails), the predominant choice is North, with significant numbers choosing WB or Doyle sails. A range of other sailmakers each supplied sails to a few boats.

EQUIPMENT CAVEATS

The charts above reflect only the small proportion of the fleet who provided information and the results in different wind and wave conditions may be different. It is hoped to obtain more comprehensive data in Barbados.

CONCLUSIONS

The Finn is a thriving international class with 355 competitors from 30 nations attending the Finn World Masters 2016 in Torbole and with eight nations including an Olympic medalist represented in the top 10 and 20 nations in the top 50 it is clear that the standard of Finn sailing is very high all around the world.

The spread of ages (40 to 80), the range of weights (73kg to 130kg) and heights (160cm to 203cm) clearly demonstrates that the Finn appeals to a very large range of sailors who are attracted to the lifestyle of the Finn World Masters circuit. Many start sailing a Finn late in their sailing career and then keep returning.

As regards equipment the dominant suppliers in recent years have been Devoti for hulls, North for sails and Wilke for masts but Petticrows and Pata hulls, WB and Elvstrøm sails and Pata and Heol masts are supported by some of the top sailors. There is no need to have new equipment to do well in the Finn World Masters.

THANKS

Age of sails

56% of the sails for which a year of manufacture was stated were made in 2015 or 2016. A third of the sails used by the top 100 boats for which a year of manufacture was stated were made in 2016.

Andy Denison (President - Finn World Masters) and the Finn World Masters, Circolo Vela Torbole and Circolo Vela Arco for organising and running a fantastic event attracting 355 Finns from 30 nations.

Susan Burgess for attending the sail measurement for three days, issuing the questionnaires and encouraging sailors to provide responses and the CVT secretariat for printing the questionnaires.

Questionnaire, analysis and report prepared by Richard Phillips (GBR 42) richard@esailor.co.uk.

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Finn Masters Euro Cup 2016 On the first day, three, on the second day, two and on the third day, three races could be completed while on the fourth day of the regatta the wind disappeared after the start and the race was abandoned. It was a pretty high scoring regatta for some as the wind was sometimes hard to read. After these races there were plenty to talk about in the marina, where free beer and wine was offered.

Foreign competitors were the rulers at the top of the final results as they won all the categories. In the overall and GM categories defending champion Ian Ainslie was first, Tauras Rymonis was second, just like last year, and Jiri Outrata third, as well as being the first in the GGM category. The winner of the Legend category was Friedrich Müller from Germany, who placed 23rd in the 46 boat strong fleet.

In 2017 the Finn Masters Euro Cup will be organised again in Tihany, but earlier than usual. Since the Masters Worlds will be in Barbados, we would like to offer an opportunity for those who don’t have the budget or the time or mood to get there, so at 5-9 June we will organise the Masters Euro Cup with the same hospitality as some of you have already experienced. This will be also a great opportunity to get acquainted with the venue of the Gold Cup, which will be held in early September. Hope to see you there.

Ian Ainslie defends his Euro Cup title

See www.finnmastersec.org

HE, a sailing club at Tihany, on the western shores of Lake Balaton, organised the Finn Masters Euro T Cup for the sixth time in 2016, and again a South African stood on the top of the podium.

As usual, the regatta was held from 7-11 September in a nice light easterly breeze. Although the forecast was not so promising, eight races were completed out of the 10 that were scheduled over four days with sunny weather and winds from around 6-10 knots.

Usually these easterly winds disappear in the late morning hours, but due to the narrow Tihany strait, these winds remain there for longer, which helps when organising racing. This time the courses were set on the western side of the peninsula, so it was an excellent opportunity to practice on the water where the 2017 Finn Gold Cup will be held.

Below: GM, GGM, Legends

2016 Masters Euro Cup 1 RSA 1 2 LTU 7 3 CZE 8 4 UKR 10 5 HUN 5 6 UKR 32 7 HUN 7 8 HUN 2 9 CZE 43 10 CZE 4 11 CZE 75 12 UKR 8 13 HUN 907 14 NED 11 15 CZE 80 16 RUS 21 17 HUN 75 18 HUN 4 19 HUN 18 20 POL 100 21 AUT 11 22 HUN 50 23 FRA 53 24 HUN 51 25 HUN 82 26 GER 146 27 UKR 55 28 HUN 15

28

Ian Ainslie GM Tauras Rymonis GM Jiri Outrata GGM Valentin Klymentyev GM Huszár Géza M Maksym Krukovskyi M Székely Antal GM Sipos Péter GGM Ladislav Hyrs M Zdenek Gebhart GM Vladimir Skalicky Gavrish Taras Berecz Botond Henk De Jager Martin Jozíf Vladimir Butenko Németh Örs Antal Gábor Demeczky Mihály Marek Jarocki Bernd Moser Lukáts Ákos Gilles Corcaud Rutai István Csonka András Friedrich Müller Valarii Gusenko Taubert László

GM 89 M 92 GM 93 GGM 94 GM 100 GM 102 M 102 GGM 105 GM 107 M 112 GM 121 M 1 GM 128 M 134 M 137 L 150 L 168 GM 188

1 (18) 2 4 1 1 5 1 4 (11) 2 2 11 11 (16) 2 5 8 (14) 12 6 9 7 10 20 6 1 1 3 (21) 7 13 5 16 (19) 19 12 5 (18) 6 6 6 2 3 7 8 (26) 12 (25) 15 21 5 9 4 16 7 (24) 3 21 16

2 6 4 3 16 1 18 13 7 14

1 5 12 6 9 3 11 22 10 4

12 25 53 53 56 64 64 67 71 81

29 HUN 961 Varga Attila GM 200 30 HUN 64 Szűcs Balázs GM 216 31 LTU 3 Aidas Butrimas M 216 32 POL 2 Andre Skarka GM 216 33 HUN 140 Mészáros Gábor GGM 219 34 HUN 27 Andrik Szabolcs M 219 35 HUN 19 Kovács Márton M 221 36 HUN 9 Beliczay Tamás GGM 229 37 HUN 81 Solymosi Imre GM 231 38 HUN 400 Dobszai Zoltán M 245 39 AUT 320 Gál Csaba L 251 40 HUN 181 Ikrényi Gábor M 257 41 LTU 8 Dangis Babikas M 263 42 HUN 26 Zsitvay Szilárd GM 286 43 AUT 339 Walter Erich Prager L 287 44 AUT 328 Willi Wolschner GM 297 45 HUN 1225 Szalai László GM 308 46 HUN 120 Szolvik Gyula L 318

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Masters events across the world

Italian Masters he 2016 Italian Master T Championship took place in Acquafresca di Brenzone, Lake

Garda, a couple of weeks before the Finn World Masters in Torbole.

and everything was to be decided on the last day. After heavy rain during the night (and snow on the mountains around Garda) in the morning the Northerly Peler was blowing strong and the Race committee decided to postpone ashore.

When the wind decreased at around 20 knots the fleet was sent out and a couple of general recalls due to a very biased starting line caused another delay, with the Peler continuing to decrease. The race was shortened at the second upwind with Marco Buglielli who managed to finish with

Martina Orsini

33 Finns were present, including sailors from Ukraine, Austria and Finland in preparation for the Torbole event Seven races were sailed in light to medium conditions, with the Ora less regular and stronger than usual due to unstable weather.

Since the first race it was immediately clear that the fight for the leadership was between Walter Riosa and Nicola Menoni, the only ones who managed to have consistent results in the variable conditions.

After two days and six races Nicola was first but Walter had a better discard

Swedish Masters ailed as part of the USS Regatta S at the home of Finn sailing, Uppsala, Daniel Miles won the 2016 Swedish Masters title from Fredrik Tegnhed and Svante Collvin.

Miles also won the Grand Masters while former World Masters Champion Mikael Brandt took the Grand Grand Masters and Torsten Jarnstam the Legends.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

SWE 11 SWE 77 SWE 5 SWE 69 SWE 2 SWE 60 SWE 14 SWE 721 POL 26

Johannes Pettersson Daniel Miles Fredrik Tegnhed Erik Åberg Svante Collvin Martin Pluto Stefan Nordström Mikael Brandt Bob Nowakowski

10 FIN 228 11 SWE 111 12 FIN 145 13 SWE 21 14 NOR 12 15 SWE 804 16 SWE 4 17 SWE 55 18 SWE 9 19 SWE 328 20 POL 3 21 SWE 740

Harri Kokko Torsten Jarnstam Mathias Tallberg Mats R Karlsson Tore Glen Berg David Berg Jan-Erik Florén Thomas Dansk Veine Jutmar Lasse Wastesson Jan Okulicz Lars M Hansen

50 66 67 69 71 92 93 99 100 104 107 129

the last gusts of Peler and only five boats managed to arrive within the time limit.

Boat Walter and Nicola were DNF and Walter won the Championship due to his best discard and Nicola had to settle for second place. Marco Buglielli was third.

Walter was assigned the Sergio Masserotti perpetual Trophy and the Grand Master title, while the Master title went to Gino Bucciarelli, the Grand Grand Master to Bruno Catalan and the Legend to Umberto Giugni.

1 ITA 55 2 ITA 872 3 ITA 2 4 ITA 67 5 AUT 7 6 UKR 14 7 ITA 140 8 UKR 2 9 ITA 900 10 ITA 89 11 UKR 1 12 ITA 111 13 ITA 52 14 ITA 114 15 ITA 722 16 ITA 960 17 ITA 33 18 ITA 77 19 ITA 23 20 FIN 112 21 ITA 10 22 ITA 920 23 ITA 4 24 ITA 1022 25 ITA 68 26 ITA 98 27 ITA 63 28 ITA 11 29 ITA 88 30 ITA 141 31 ITA 22 32 ITA 76 33 ITA 94

Walter Riosa 25 Nicola Menoni 30 Marco Buglielli 46 Gino Bucciarelli 47 Gubi Michael 50 Volodymyr Stasyuk 60 Ennio Cozzolotto 63 Pavlo Krainiev 67 Massimo Paccosi 68 Florian Demetz 69 Vladimir Bogomolkin 71 Bruno Catalan 74 Franco Martinelli 78 Roberto Benedetti 78 Michele Tognozzi 82 Giorgio Ricci 82 Giangiacomo Alborghetti 86 Alberto Bellelli 87 Umberto Grumelli 92 Seppo Ajanko 98 Diego Giuseppe C. Maltese 101 Alberto Romano 117 Francesco Faggiani 130 Filippo Petella 132 Pietro Saija 137 Marco Viti 141 Bruno Fezzardi 141 Paolo Cisbani 141 Umberto Giugni 159 Giovanni Mela 160 Mauro Fragiacomo 174 Franco Voltolini 181 Irrera Renato 204

Above L-R: Daniel Miles, Johannes Pettersson, Fredrik Tegnhed

13 22 24 28 29 32 33 43 47

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Masters events across the world

Polish Masters t the end of August Polish Finn A Masters was held in Puck. The event was organized by Laser and Finn master sailors.

It was a great atmosphere, nice weather and an excellent venue. A sprint race with five competitors for the Puck Mayor prize was organized as a sideshow for the spectators on the third day. In the open category Marek Jarocki won from Andrzej

Romanowski and Boguslaw Nowakowski.

In age groups: Master - 1. Marek Jarocki; 2. Marcin Mrówczyński; 3. Artur Piernicki; Grand Master - 1. Andrzej Romanowski; 2.

Bogusław Nowakowski; 3.Jacek Binkowski; Grand Grand Master - 1.Juliusz Reichelt; 2.

Jan Kominek; 3. Wojtek Nadolski; Legend 1. Jan Okulicz; 2.Wojciech Jankowski. The event attracted 19 Master.

1 2 3 4 5

POL 100 Marek Jarocki, M 8 POL 73 Andrzej Romanowski, GM 9 POL 26 Bogusław Nowakowski, GM 18 POL 87 Marcin Mrówczyński, M 24 POL 99 Artur Piernicki, M 25 6 POL 38 Juliusz Reichelt, GM 7 POL 715 Przemysław Chmura, M 8 POL 21 Jacek Bińkowski, GM 9 POL 58 Marek Kubat, M 10 POL 23 Piotr Pajor, GM 11 POL 127 Jan Kominek, GGM 12 POL 27 Piotr Rosiński, GM 13 POL 210 Dariusz Konopczak, GM 14 POL 33 Krzysztof Żółtowski, GM 15 POL 85 Wojciech Nadolski, GGM 16 NED 863 Piotr Kosobucki, GM 17 POL 3 Jan Okulicz-Kozaryn, L 18 POL 31 Maciej Rozkrut, GM 19 POL 24 Wojciech Jankowski, L

North American Masters ric Lidecis counted an almost E perfect score at the North America Masters held at MBYC IN

September, winning seven out of the nine races. Henry Sprague took the first and last races to tie on points

UK Masters he 2016 Suntouched Sailboats T Finn UK Masters and Northern Championship attracted 18 Finn sailors from across the country to West Kirby Sailing Club over the weekend of 3-4 September.

With an ambitious 12 races planned, the was gruelling combination of sea and lake sailing, with a mix of sailing conditions beginning with a strong southerly breeze and showers at first as the competitors hauled their Finns across the West Kirby Mud towards the advancing tide. Sprint races were also held in the ‘Marine Lake’; widely known as the venue for the premier team racing event - the Wilson Trophy. With the wind gusting 30-35 knots at times, it

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with Darrell Peck, but took second place on countback.

1 USA 505 2 USA 74 3 USA 21 4 USA 8 5 USA 9 6 USA 40 7 USA 1138 8 USA 67 9 CAN 5 10 USA 32

Erik Lidecis Henry Sprague Darrell Peck Mike Dorgan Rob Coutts Charles Rudinsky Scott Griffiths Remko Boot Jim Hecht Charles Heimler

9 22 22 32 34 54 57 70 72 75

provided quite a spectacle.

Overall victory went to the rapidly improving junior, Cameron Tweedle, though double National Champion Allen Burrell did his best to keep him in sight. Burrell won the Masters Championship and the Grand Masters title. John Mackie was first Master in sixth, while Richard Philips was first Grand Grand Master in 11th.

Results (Masters extracted) 2 GBR 2 Alan Burrell, GM 3 GBR 5 John Greenwood, GM 4 GBR 720 Julian C Smith, GM 5 GBR 21 Michael de Courcy, GM 6 GBR 68 John Mackie, M 7 GBR 65 Dave Potter, GM 8 GBR 567 Martin Hughes, GM 10 GBR 96 Tim Simpson, GM 11 GBR 42 Richard Phillips, GGM 12 GBR 617 Jean-Louis Simons, GM 13 GBR 548 John Tweddle, M

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

11 17 24 29 33 42 43 54 64 73 74

11 USA 11 12 USA 1214 13 USA 29 14 USA 303 15 GER 172 16 USA 1066 17 USA 1181 18 USA 60 19 BRA 28 20 USA 222 21 USA 84 22 USA 90

34 39 44 47 51 55 65 68 79 79 85 87 91 110

Jim Hunter 75 Peter Connally 92 Santi Reyero 95 Joe Chinburg 99 Andreas Siggelkow 107 Glenn Selvin 112 Jose Manuel Martin-Nieto 123 Mark Tegio 124 Xavier Sheid 141 Terry Greenfield 155 James Lawson 162 David Wilson 184

14 GBR 29 Stewart Mitchell, GM 15 GBR 58 Paul Brown, GGM 16 GBR 771 Paul Smith, GM 17 GBR 534 Chris Barbary, M 17 GBR 3 Jonathan Miller, M

81 84 84 114 114

“Open Russian” – but also for the Russian Masters Championship.

Russian Masters rom August 23-28, 66 sailors from F 19 regions of Russia, but also from Estonia, UK and from Thailand came to Moscow to compete for the main prize of the traditional regatta

While the youngest sailor was 15, the oldest was Victor Kozlov at 82 years old.

The level of competition was quite high and was held in some very nice weather, which is usual for the end of August in Moscow with sun and wind from 8 to 15 knots. 12 fleet races and one medal race were carried out.

2015 World Masters Champion, Vladimir Krutskih won the medal race to take the overall win as well as the Masters prize. Felix Denikaev was first Grand Masters, while Yuri Polovinkin won the Grand-Grand-Masters.

Victor Kozlov won the Legends.

Results (Masters extracted)

1 RUS 73 Vladimir Krutskih, M 9 RUS 41 Feliks Denikaev, GM 11 RUS 161 Aleksandr Kulyukin, M 18 RUS 131 Aleksandr Lauhtin, M 20 RUS 711 Dmitriy Petrov, M 21 RUS 171 Aleksandr Kravchenko, M 22 RUS 3 Aleksey Borovyak, GM 24 RUS 205 Sergey Stepanov, M 26 RUS 21 Vladimir Butenko, GM 28 RUS 51 Mihail Petriga, M

Dutch Masters he 2016 Dutch Masters was combined with the Delta Lloyd T Open Dutch Championships and held from 16 – 18 September at Medemblik

While Hein van Egmond won the overall title, Karel van Hellemond was top Master in third in the 59 boat fleet. Returning 1996 Olympic bronze medalist, Roy Heiner won the Grand Masters prize in 11th.

Results (extracted) 3 NED 41 Karel van Hellemond, M 6 NED 121 Martijn Van Muyden, M

41 49

New Zealand Masters arl Purdie took the 2016 Waiuku K Finn Masters in a fleet of 13 Finns. All 8 races were sailed in some tricky conditions.

Second placed Ian Baker sailed an old Mark 3 Marten hull, while Graham Lambert

39 123 122 171 173 176 215 227 233 240

11 NED 927 Roy Heiner, GM 76 12 NED 881 Thierry Van Vierssen, M 98 14 NED 780 JW Kok, M 127 16 NED 43 Ronald van Klooster, GM 137 17 NED 111 Chris Frijdal, GGM 139 18 NED 40 Peter Aukema, M 139 19 NED 67 Ronald Ruiter, M 146 21 NED 27 Paul Kamphorst, GM 156 22 GER 81 Jan-Dietmar Dellas, M 172 24 NED 60 Luuk Kuijper, GM 180 25 NED 999 Hein Bloemers, GM 188 26 NED 29 Bas de Waal, GM 194 27 GBR 5 John Greenwood, GM 195 29 NED 66 Ewout Meijer, GM 199 30 NED 820 Johan Van de Pavert, GM 206 32 NED 977 Thomas van den Berg, GM 207 33 NED 100 Arend van der Sluis, GGM 210 34 NED 54 Joos Bos, GGM 214 35 NED 7 Cees Scheurwater, M 220

30 RUS 17 Vasiliy Kravchenko, M 251 33 RUS 34 Aleksandr Kasatov, GM 278 34 RUS 4 Ban’ko Aleksandr, GM 292 35 RUS 142 Yuriy Polovinkin, GGM 294 37 RUS 333 Igor Frolov, GM 319 38 RUS 13 Lev Shnyr, M 337 41 EST 2 Nikolay Koryachkin, GGM 358 43 RUS 811 Nikolay Kovalev, GGM 373 44 RUS 16 Oleg Hudyakov, M 378 45 RUS 20 Sergey Bolotin, GGM 388 52 RUS 189 Sergey Lukin, GGM 472 56 RUS 18 Evgeniy Dzhura, M 517 57 RUS 50 Andrey Dyubin, M 534 59 RUS 137 Al’bert Nazarov, M 538 61 RUS 36 Dmitriy Volovik, M 544 64 RUS 97 Maksim Gromov, GM 591 65 RUS 22 Vyacheslav Rymashevskiy, GM 600 66 RUS 117 Viktor Kozlov, L 643 37 NED 11 Hend de Jager, GGM 38 NED 62 Tim van Rootselaar, GM 40 GER 165 Dirk Meid, GGM 41 GER 226 Uwe Fernholz, M 42 GBR 9 Tim Mr Tavinor, GM 43 GBR 52 Will Patten, GM 45 NED 2 Wouter Molenaar, GGM 47 NED 922 Roel van Olst, GM 48 NED 31 Hans Zuurendonk, GM 49 GER 444 Ingo Lischka, M 50 NED 22 Peter Hubregtsen, GM 51 NED 58 Maxim Berrens, M 52 NED 128 Harry van de Pavert, M 53 GER 202 Rolf Elsaesser, GM 54 NED 82 Roel Lubberts, GM 55 NED 8 Rodrick Casander, L 57 NED 117 Karel van Arkel, M 58 GBR 77 Howard Sellars, L 59 NED 90 Rutger Rozemuller, M

228 234 239 240 267 277 282 298 298 309 311 313 315 322 326 342 378 398 420

sailed a beautiful wooden Elder hull he purchased off Trademe. The boat had plenty of speed and looked superb on the water. In third, Dirch Andersen won the Grand Master prize, while Alan Dawson in sixth was Grand Grand Master champion.

1 NZL 111 Karl Purdie (M) 2 NZL 232 Ian Baker 3 NZL 22 Dirch Andersen (GM) 4 NZL 10 David Hoogenboom 5 NZL 4 Mark Perrow 6 NZL 23 Alan Dawson (GGM) 7 NZL 230 Justin Hurst 8 NZL 17 Illia Ovsiika 9 NZL 193 Gerrit Bearda 10 NZL 18 Gerard Lelieveld 11 NZL 244 Geoff Letcher 12 NZL 27 Jim Goodaire 13 NZL 56 Graham Lambert

11 20 24 25 34 37 45 47 61 68 71 86 89

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BIDDING CLUBS FOR 2019 – MALTA AND SkOVSHOVED

he locals like the fact that they keep Malta as a little T secret to themselves. Malta is an archipelago with several small islands including two habited Islands to the north-west, Gozo and Comino.

Malta

visible from the promenade. The sail in and out looks relatively easy with no restriction, while the backdrop is very impressive.

Accommodation

The hotel, apartment and b&b accommodation is vast in this area. The nearest hotels to the club are around 0.5km away from the harbour, at Sliema. There are self-catering apartments one road back from the club. The Excelsior Hotel is almost directly opposite the club on the other side of the harbour, which would be accessible via water taxis. Motorhome and camper van facilities will be beside the dinghy storage area.

Ladies Programme

The OA together with the Tourist Minister are very keen to showcase many of the island’s attractions and give the ladies and guests a cultural experience. robert deaves

Transportation

Malta is about 27km in length by around 14km in width, and it is classed as the most densely populated country in the world having a population of around 420,000 people.

The history of Malta is vast, with inhabitancy dating back some 7,000 years and this can be seen in the architectural landscape, which litters the Island, the main focus being the impressive bastions and fortifications that protect the cities. With many cities in such close proximity the landscape is truly impressive. The capital, Valletta, is a fortified city on a peninsula with Grand Harbour on one side and the harbour of Marsamxett on the other. There are many creeks and waterways surrounding Valetta with roads running alongside, with many bars and restaurants, together with magnificent sites and attractions.

Royal Malta Yacht Club (RMYC)

The club is situated north-eastern side of the island, at Ta’ Xbiex, at the head Marsamxett Harbour, just a short way across the water from Valletta.

The club has excellent facilities for a Finn Masters Championship. The club is host to the Rolex Middle Sea Race, berthing the majority of the yachts and providing shoreside facilities for around 1,000 sailors. The crew party caters for around 2,000 people. The club fronts onto the water’s edge with a lovely outlook across the water to Valletta. To the left hand side going towards the hotels and bars of Sliema is a rocky bathing area with swim ladders into the sea.

To the right hand side is the marina and parking, it is here that it is anticipated to keep the Finns in rows, with the Legends in front of the club next to the club concrete slipway, and trailer and container storage also on site. There will also be ample car parking.

The airport is 15 minutes away by car/taxi. The airport is served by more than 30 airlines providing links to most of Europe and the Middle East. There is also a comprehensive bus service. Ferries run from Genoa and Sicily, and favourable rates will be explored with the operators. For southern Europeans, driving and ferry is probably the easiest way to get there. For northern Europeans, it will probably be easier and cheaper to ship the boats by container and fly in. Malta has a major container port, located in the south on the island, about 12 km from the yacht club.

Climate and Conditions

The 2019 Finn World Masters will take place on June 7-14th. The expected weather in Malta during this time of year is light airs to 12 knots with the air temperature in the region of 27°. Sea temperature is around 22°. Stronger sea breezes are due later in the year.

Attractions

The history of the Island is vast and throughout the years has been sculptured by a number of different cultures. It is worth visiting the old city of Mdina and travelling up to the north of the island and visiting Gozo and Comino. The beaches on the island are in the north together with the blue lagoon.

Race Area

It is proposed to hold the racing outside of the harbour, a sail out of around 1.5 km. This will be off the coast of Sliema and be very

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FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

for a small fee. There is also a large grassed area beside the club, which can be used for tents and an overflow for camper vans.

Those that wish for more formal camping can use the site at Charlottelund Fort which is around 2km from the club, an abandoned fortress on the sea front, now used as a campsite.

Accommodation

There is one small hotel at Skovshoved, but many others in Hellerup, 4km away, Klampenborg, 2km away, and Jægersborg, 3km away. In the past sailors have also used sourced accommodation on Airbnb for self-catering near the club at Skovhoved. Of course, the centre of Copehagen is only 8km away, with an abundance of hotels of all types. As mentioned there is plenty of camping and caravanning, including tents.

Skovshoved, Denmark

Race Area

he Royal Danish Yacht Club (RDYC) or the Kongelig T Dansk Yachtklub (KDY) wishes to host the 2019 Masters at Skovshoved, one of three facilities it operates north of Copenhagen.

Established in 1866, it is the largest yacht club in Denmark with around 2,000 members. The main office is just south of Hellerup at the Tuborg harbour, behind the grandiose Tuborg brewery building, however the club has other sections to it, with sailing centres at Skovshoved and Rungsted, both a short distance further north along the beach road.

Skovhoved harbour is around 4km north of Hellerup, and is the fourth largest harbour in Denmark, with more than 600 berths.

The RDYC has had facilities at the harbour since 1942, and it was hugely expanded recently. The area in which it is located is reputed to be the richest part of Denmark, together with sandy beaches, and is an area popular for outdoor activities and sports.

Racing will take place directly in front of the club in the Øresund, an expanse of water stretching to Sweden 25km away.

There is little current and a small rise and fall in the tide. The depth is good and with the shipping lanes on the Swedish side, there are no restrictions on where to set the courses. The hinterland is largely flat, so racing can be run quite far inshore with no problems.

It’s proposed to hold the medal race just off the sea wall, which offers excellent spectating from the club area on a floating pontoon.

Launching and recovery for the championship will be inside the marina.

Location

The nearest towns are Hellerup to the south and Klampenborg to the north, with the club sitting nicely against the backdrop of the surrounding large marina, together with some restaurants and café bars, enjoying inside and outside eating: adequate facilities for a championship. Together with the catering facilities there are a number of buildings for media, jury and a large wooden building, used in past regattas for parties and grand functions. The club has hosted many championships for a number of classes including, in 2016, the ORC Worlds, Dragon Gold Cup and J/70 Nordics, and we certainly had confidence that they can deliver.

Facilities: There is an abundance of storage space for road trailers and boxes. The dinghies will be parked in an open area next to the club slipway (35 meters wide for launching and recovery), while the coach boats will be kept on pontoons nearby. There is easy access for trucks and large trailers with excellent loading and unloading space.

Camping: A huge paved area next to the coast and club is available, with electric hook-ups and chemical disposal available

Conditions

It is usual to expect light to medium wind conditions at the time of year for the championship, with air temperature typical of European summer. Water temperature in June is around 15-18°.

Ladies

It is proposed to host a ladies programme which will include a number of excursions. This may include: shopping and sightseeing in Copenhagen, Viking Museum, Kronborg Castle, and the historic Bakken amusement park, in a parkland setting with bars and restaurants. There are many other beaches, museums, attractions and restaurants to visit.

As an association we have felt it best to try and get some idea of commitment prior to arriving at the event and we may distribute a form to partners upon signing up for entry.

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BIDDING CLUBS FOR 2019 – MARSALA, SICILY

Marsala, Sicily arsala is a town situated at the western point of M Sicily, in the Middle of Mediterranean Sea, in front of Aegadian Islands. Writes Marco Buglielli, ITA 2.

The Club

The bid for the organisation of 2019 Finn World Master is presented

by Circolo Velico Marsala (www.circolovelicomarsala.com), created in 1973, which has an extensive experience in organising regattas at national and international level (including 2013 Moth European championship, 2007 49er Europeans, 2005 Italian Championships for all Olympic classes, Lightning Worlds, several Italian championships including 2015 Finn Italian Masters, etc).

The club is located 500 meters from the historical centre of Marsala and occupies an area of about 5,000 square meters. In the immediate neighbourhood of the club there is a vast parking area for campers, cars and trailers, with all the necessary facilities. The clubhouse has a secretary’s office, a big saloon, rooms for regatta office and jury, bar and restaurant, changing rooms with indoor and outdoor showers and toilets.

There are two big launching ramps and a single one, together with a small beach close to one of the ramps where other boats can be launched. Furthermore there are piers at sea, where RIBs and small boats can moor.

An area of the club is dedicated to families with sun umbrellas and beach chairs.

Weather and Racing

In May the weather is usually fine, with high temperatures between 20° and 25° Celsius. The prevailing southerly breeze is stable in daytime between 10 and 20 knots. Occasionally westerly winds blow from 8 to 25 knots. Tidal range is minimal (30 cm) and the current is light (less than 1 knot). The racing area is close to the club and two trapezoid courses can easily fit in the vast

34

area between Lilibeo Point, Aegadian Islands and the Stagnone lagoon.

Transport

Trapani Birgi international airport is just 14 km from the club and hosts Ryanair and other low cost companies, while Palermo international airport is at a distance of 100 km. Palermo is the main harbour in Sicily and is connected by ferries to Genoa, Civitavecchia and Napoli.

Other ferries link Napoli to Trapani. Discounted fares will be available for all maritime transfers.

Accommodation

In the vicinity of the club there are several different accommodations available (hotels, B&B, apartments).

An area adjacent to the club will be equipped with water and electricity for campers.

Tourist attractions

Marsala is famous for its internationally renowned wine, with several wineries active in the city and its neighbourhoods. Guided tours will be organised in the ancient and fascinating Cantine Florio, 3 km from the club. Food is a must in Sicily and all kinds of pasta, fish, meat and vegetarian dishes can be enjoyed in restaurants just a short walk from the club.

A great number of tourist attractions are available in Marsala and within 50 km, like the nice beaches and the wonderful Aegadian island (connected by hydrofoils from Marsala) and the minor islands (Mothia, San Pantaleo e Isola Lunga) in the Stagnone Lagoon, a natural reserve famous for windmills and the salt pans.

The historical and artistic heritage is very rich, with the archaeological areas of Segesta and Selinunte and their astonishing Greek temples, the medieval town of Erice, close to Trapani (where the America’s Cup series were held in 2011 and 2013). A very interesting and varied Ladies programme will be organised, and all family members can easily find pleasant activities.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

DINGHY RACING CENTRE PROFILE

Dinghy Racing Centre ased in the village of Harderwijk at the south-eastern B corner of the IJsselmeer, Dinghy Racing Centre is the number one supplier of new and used Finns and carbon wing masts for Finns. With its leading edge technology and ongoing tests it is among the best in the world for building fast masts for top Finn sailors around the globe.

In addition to producing Finn masts the company is also an authorised dealer of both used and new Devoti Finns as well as selling trailers and trolleys. Furthermore, the company repairs boats and masts, as well as supplying parts and clothing.

DRC is a one-stop-shop for all things Finn related, with just about anything you need under one roof.

Jan van der Horst began selling Finns in The Netherlands, and in 2015 he sold his company, Hit Masts Holland to Gerko Visser.

Nowadays Hit Masts Holland is working together with Dinghy Racing Centre, and Hans Klaassen and Gerko Visser are working together to bring the Hit mast to a higher level and better performance.

Masts

The Hit Mast has been developed continuously over the years together with Ceilidh Composite Technologies BV, which is also known for its Europe and OK Dinghy mast successes. More than 2,000 Hit masts have been distributed to some of the best Finn

sailors around the globe. DRC recently developed the Hit Mast Pro, a mast with more rigidity and flexibility. Dutch Finn sailor, PieterJan Postma, won the European Championships in 2016 using a Hit Mast Pro. Also Rafa Trujillo won the 2016 Finn World Masters in Torbole with a Hit Mast Pro. Today the company is working and testing the Hit Mast Pro with the Dutch Finn sailor Nicholas Heiner, former Laser World Champion and son of 1996 Finn bronze medalist Roy Heiner.

DRC continuously develops all parts of the mast, which are nowadays a much higher standard, such as the masthead lock and boom bolt, made from titanium, the mast foot and deck ring from the best material, the new transparent matt UV lacquer, the special masthead in a better position for the halyard and sail and the high modulus carbon.

Materials and Construction

The masts are laid-up with a combination of different stiffness carbon fibres. Further strength is added by the use of woven cloths, which are orientated to reduce the influence on the stiffness of the mast. All HIT masts are customised for the helmsman. Weight and sailing experience is a major issue when customising the mast for speed and sail handling.

DRC also works closely together with Devoti in Poland distributing Finns across Western Europe, and has always been a huge supporter of the North UK Finn sail range. To reach even more Finn sailors and promote this wonderful boat, DRC now has distributors in France through Bruno Rossignol, and the USA. Dinghy Racing USA was launched towards the end of 2016 and now also holds stocks of Finns and Finn equipment.

DRC will continue to develop masts and boats, to help its customers have a wonderful time at events or at their sailing club.

stronger | lighter | faster aor@artofracing.co.nz

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Seeing Europe by Finn – by charles heimler, USA 32 while ago Robert Deaves asked me to write about my A experience of the past seven years sailing the Finn in Europe at the Masters Worlds, Europeans, and national

events. Robert is an accomplished sailing journalist, so the invitation to write an article for this journal spirited me to put down my ideas in words with the hope that I might nudge other Finn enthusiasts to take their sailing and travelling to the next level.

by Finn Since 2009, I’ve flown from my California home near San Francisco to participate first in the master worlds, and then several other splendid regattas in the Netherlands, UK, Wales, France, Poland, Estonia, Denmark, Greece, and Italy. I’ve been able to travel/sail in Europe twice each year between semesters teaching at a small college in the heart of ‘Silicon Valley’. In Spring 2016, I had a leave from my job, so I spent 90 days in Europe and sailed in five events.

In June 2017, I’ll be heading to Barbados and in 2018 to El Balis, Spain. This type of sport sailing and travelling has been called ‘The Finn Lifestyle’, and I look forward to it every Spring. I call it ‘my Finn adventure.’

First Sail

robert deaves

I first sailed a Finn, a Newport with a wooden mast and Dacron sail, on a small lake near Los Angeles, in the early 1970s when I was in high school and had just gone through sailing the Southern California standard pram, the Sabot and then Snipes, and then just when I would get an OK Dinghy, the Laser appeared and took all the oxygen for young, skilled competitive sailors, who went into Lasers en-masse for all good reasons. When I sailed that Finn then, though, the boat was fun to tack and sail downwind and it felt much better on its lines than the junior boats I’d sailed in. That Finn day made an impression on me that lasted through college, a short-time as a charter boat captain on San Francisco Bay and Santa Monica Bay, and then 10 years sailing dinghies in California. The Finn appeared once again in my life, this time for good, when my home sailing club was selected to host the US Olympic Trials for the Sydney Games. It was the calling into the boat that could not be ignored.

I got my first Vanguard in 1998, made for the 1984 Olympics with an aluminium mast and stiff Dacron sale. I was already a Master, at 44 years old. Since I was 12, I raced Sabots, Snipes,

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michael kurtz

Seeing Europe

Lasers, and Thistles, so competitive sailing was in my DNA, but the Finn soon made itself the greatest challenge with the most reward.

You learn more about sailing in a Finn than in any other boat. I sailed that Vanguard all over California up until the eve of the 2004 Olympic Trials regatta at which I was loaned an upgraded boat, mast and sail. We raced eight races over six days in the Spring conditions on San Francisco Bay – strong westerly winds and cold 5 foot tides to make a strong current.

After that, I bought USA’s Olympian Kevin Hall’s Athens boat, and sailed in the regatta in Newport Beach at which Zach Railey qualified to go to China. During that time, I sailed several times at the Miami and Kingston Olympic Classes regatta. Several summers and Januaries I drove a Ford Econoline 250 van with a 3-boat trailer and a Finn on top of the van to these regattas, logging 4,500 km one way – the income from boat transport offset much of the travelling costs. And as National Secretary in those years I doubled the dues paying membership for the USA and Canada. But my Finn programme leapt up to the next level in 2009, when I was on sabbatical leave from my college and could focus on the Finn lifestyle.

Canadian Olympian Chris Cook organized a ‘Coaches Regatta’ in Miami that year, which consisted of four days of clinics, practice, and debriefs. International sailors regularly train in January in Miami, so that year I was sailing with Rafa Trujillo, Ed Wright, Bryan Boyd and others. Chris has a novel and innovative way to coach sailing so that people of all levels benefit. It was a great, ‘safe’ experience, and I learned a lot about the Finn and became much more fit.

Getting a Boat

To get going seven years ago, I had to start somewhere, so I started by getting a boat of my own rather than chartering at each event. Using the website and email, I bought a UK built Devoti, made for the 2004 Olympics in Greece, from Jan van der Horst, along with a brand-new Hit mast. This way, I had my familiar boat and would not have to re-learn the position of the control lines and other peculiarities each boat reveals, each time I arrived at the regatta venue in Europe and pulled-off the top cover – that great moment when you, the sailor, reconnect with your kit. For me, through experience the best way, and the shortest and most pleasant way, to get from San Francisco to Europe was by KLM Airlines to Amsterdam, which is a major, international hub. I’ve always been comfortable in Amsterdam Centraal as I spent the winter of 1977 there – but that is a story (and a memoir) for another time. Here is the place where I recover from jet lag for a few days before connecting on with Transavia to another city. The worldwide, first world transportation system of planes, trains, and cars make international travel incredibly seamless these days. It’s possible to have breakfast in San Francisco one day and sail the next evening on the other side of the Atlantic. At last count, I’ve made sixteen trips to Europe since 2009 and have sailed or coached at 20 events—an excellent return on the investment of that 2004 Devoti.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

I marvel at how sailing the Finn for a decade or so in the USA and Canada has allowed me to bridge over to sailing the Finn competently in Europe, which can seem so different, foreign, far away for many of my compatriots at home. Most Americans don’t have passports, so don’t travel out of the country, and even fewer to a place to race sailboats on their holiday time. But a boat is a boat and the wind and water is the same most everywhere except for the local, geographical, and meteorological conditions.

One major difference, which to me is the core of the attraction to European sailing regattas, is the size of the fleet. In North America, we typically sail in fleets of less than two dozen, yet in the European events the boats number 60-150. Imagine what an energy-rush it is to me to launch off a starting line or around overlapped course marks with so many other boats around.

From my first regatta in 2009, at Maubuisson for the Finn World Masters, on the lake just a few km from the ocean in southwest France, to launching amidst 200 plus boats from the city promenade along the harbour into the Aegean Sea in Greece, to gazing above at the high mountains at Lake Garda in Italy, the scenery, scenes, and sailing have been stellar. Usually, I am the only or one of a few North Americans in the event, but more recently a few more of my colleagues from North America have come over, and a few Europeans have in turn visited us in the USA and Canada. Our North American fleet is also made up expats from all over the world who I often see at the Finn World Masters and then in Florida, Alabama, Kingston, or California for our Nationals and North Americans.

Unique regattas

Some of the unique regattas I’ve been to also include Steinhude Lake in Germany, Armistice Day on Lac du Carcans in France, the Europeans in La Rochelle (it was cold just like at the Masters there), the Europeans at Barcelona (at which I qualified for the sixth place in the USA Olympic Trials), the Baltic Sea in Estonia and Denmark at the Gold Cup, and my favourite of them all—the Dutch Finn Master Nationals at Randmeer, Netherlands. I don’t know for sure, but I may hold the record for the most appearances at a Finn World Masters of anyone from the USA. That’s a lot of ‘participation points’.

In 2009, I had a sabbatical-leave from my college and worked on a project. In my free time, I focused on my sailing, and then when the time between terms arrives, I’ve sailed regattas. In North America, our regattas are thousands of km apart – at our Nationals and North Americans, most people who participate drive two days on the interstate to arrive for a long weekend. So, in order to sail events I bought a Ford 250 van and transported four boats with a trailer to six events a year in the USA and Canada. I spent most of the winter of 2009 sleeping in that van, like an old school Finn sailor, in order to sail a winter schedule in Miami, Mobile, Lauderdale, and New Orleans. But the big leap forward for my Finn masters sailing adventure, what set it up in a way that moved me to that next sailing level, was the Coaches Clinic in Miami and then the Finn World Masters in France.

at the European Union fabric. It was what is called ‘a fertile ground’.

So, when I travelled to Greece for the world masters championship, the framework and schema of years and years of reading and learning languages, catalyzed by interaction with so many welcoming people in Kavala, was lit on fire – I experienced an intellectual epiphany. I worked on writing books every day like the journalist I had been in a previous career, and over the days evolved two more trips there, so over the months of May, July, and August, I made three trips there, to the same town, Kavala, in the region of Macedonia and read a score of books about Greece and compiled two full notebooks. So in a short way, sailing the Finn in Greece ignited in me a creative impulse for more writing books and articles, and more memories of sailing and motivation for more sailing, the benefits of all that time beside Kavala, sitting on the side of a mountain beside the Aegean Sea within site of the island of Thasos.

Grand Grand Master

It takes a bit of fitness to sail a Finn, a level that when you arrive at the age of a Grand Grand Master, is reached only with a fitness training programme at home. My first step to improving my physical sailing of the boat was buying a hiking bench, which I keep in front of the television and try to use as much as I can. There’s a great YMCA gym near my house for those type of activities, and for the past few years I have gone against the grain of the American-style of commuting by car to work to employ a commute combination of bicycle and train – much more the Dutch way. It all adds up to feeling comfortable in the boat and moving well around the boatyard. And at regattas I’ve followed the Richard Hart example of getting about the boatpark by folding bike, which helps take the soreness out of the legs. My Finn friends and I often remark on how in order to keep sailing the Finn as a master sailor, it’s imperative to keep up with the active lifestyle.

My impressions of my travel I’ve recorded in iPhone photos and journals. And now with smartphones and Facebook, nearly all the Finn Masters and their companions post their regatta photos and information on the world wide web—so through the year we can keep in touch with each other (find me on facebook). My thoughts about these experiences are revived sitting at my desk back home and I hope to give a sense of the Finn sailing ‘lifestyle’, and give you a nudge toward taking it up as an activity. As current Finn Masters president Andy Denison says: “may you have more memories than dreams”, and my Finn adventures have certainly provided the memories that follow the dreams.

The Finn lifestyle gripped me most strongly in Kavala, Greece, where because of the time at the regatta I was so enlivened by the lifestyle in Greece that I returned twice that summer and compiled 46 days there, always staying just a little away from the harbour in a hotel owned by and managed by sailors. Greece has its share of ancient history and modern challenges. Athens sits in the south and Thessaloniki in the north, and it produces only two percent the European economy – tourism is its largest product, shipping its national trade, Western core philosophy its major gift to the world, the academy and the Olympic Games its modern vestiges; we who have studied know of Greece for its ancient ruins like the Acropolis, the myths and philosophy that form the underpinnings of Western learning, and most recently for the Olympic Games in 2004. And that summer Greece became the epicentre for a debt crisis that still tugs

berit hainoja

Finn lifestyle

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FINN WORLD MASTERS YEARBOOK 2017 In 1984 entries exceeded 100 for the first time and they had to divide the fleet into two groups on the small lake. In 1985, an even larger number gathered in Bavaria.

Lake Chiemsee offered not too much wind, but it was good enough for four races. The veterans were no challenge for Jørgen Lindhardtsen who won with four straight line honours.

In 1990, the sailors forced Georg Oser, the Masters organiser to have an ‘Oldie AGM’, and one of its first actions was to rename the event the Finn World Masters.

During this time there were generally more than 100 boats attending and in 1999 when 148 boats took part it was considered exceptional.

In 1995, Larry Lemieux found out that you didn’t have to be 40 to sail the Finn World Masters, as long as you promise to turn 40 that year. He, not unexpectedly,

history of the he first suggestion for a special T Finn Veteran Gold Cup for sailors over 40 years of age was presented

by Dr. Fred and Heidi Auer at the 1969 IFA AGM in Bermuda. The Auers also organised the first Veteran Gold Cup on the Silvaplana See close to St. Moritz in Switzerland.

Even Rickard Sarby sailed in the regatta to represent Sweden. Mel Oskamp won and organised the next event in Holland.

From this time stems the tradition that the winner has the right to decide the place of the next Veteran Gold Cup. In 1971, Oskamp invited the veterans to Medemblik.

Menoni from Italy won and took the Cup to Lake Garda, where Oskamp won it back in 1972. However, since he already knew how much work it was to organise such a regatta, he declined to do it again and delegated it back to Switzerland. In 1973 at Lac de Neuchatel. De Jong from Holland arrived, looked around and declared that there would be no wind and left again, without even having unpacked his boat. He was right, since only one race was sailed and the title was not assigned.

From 1974-1979 the event was held in Port Carmargue, France. Andre Mevel won three titles during this time. In 1978 Heinz Reiter of Germany won the Cup but when he offered to organise it in 1979, a committee was formed to retain the event in sunny Port Camargue. Karel Hruby won in 1979 and turned out to be more stubborn and nobody could convince him not to take the organisation along.

So in 1980 the veterans went to Lake Lipno, Czechoslovakia. Whenever the Hruby was in front, the wind died. When Georg Oser was lucky the races were counted. So, finally Oser won his second title far ahead of defender and runner-up Hruby.

Oser again delegated the organisation to southern France and Robert Laban.

Gy Wossala won, but was not able or willing to stage the next Championship and delegated the 1982 event to Austria.

Ivan Hoffmann was leading up until the last beat of the last race, and everybody was thinking of sailing in the CSSR again.

However Oser won that race and the title for the third time to ring up Robert Laban for help once more. And he was kind enough to grant it. But it blew a lot in 1983; for some too much. The unexpected winner was Heini Unterhauser from German speaking northern Italy.

michael kurtz

Finn World Masters

won the regatta and went on to become the most successful Master sailor at that time, winning four more titles in 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2004.

In 1996, for the first time ever the Finn World Masters was combined with the ‘real’ Finn Gold Cup in La Rochelle, France, and this was repeated in 2000 in Weymouth, UK. From 2003, André Budzien won three titles and six more podium places. Also, long time Olympic campaigner Michael Maier reached an eligible age and has so far exceeded Lemieux’s record to win six titles. In 2008 numbers passed 200; there were 229 entries for Medemblik, but this was exceeded the following year and three times since with the record now standing at 355 in 2016.

The only problem with the Finn World Masters is that each year a new group of sailors qualify without merit simply by getting older than 40, so the numbers sailing get bigger all the time. And the problem for the organisers is finding a venue large enough for such a big fleet. It is a nice problem to have.

About the Finn World Masters

inn sailors of the age of forty and above are called ‘Masters’ F and are divided into age groups:

Master (40-49), Grand Master (5059), Grand Grand Master (60-69) and Legend (70 and above).

Each year the Masters, the Grand Masters, the Grand Grand Masters,

the Legends and Ladies sail a separate World Championship called the Finn Masters. Also existing are the large local groups of Finn sailors, which are actively involved in national or club level regattas. Ages vary between 18 and 75 years, but in the Finn Legends some sailors are above 80 years. The binding factor characterising these Finn sailors is that all have a sport-loving, collegial and institution based on friendship and respect. Note: If, in a specific year, you reach(ed) the age as listed, the accompanying title is applicable from January 1 to December 31 of that year.

Category 2017

Jan.1 – Dec. 31 Master 40-49 Born 1968-1977 Grand Master 50-59 Born 1958-1967 Grand Grand Master 60-69 Born 1948-1957 Legend 70+ Born 1947 or earlier Ladies 40+ Born 1977 or earlier

2018 Jan.1 – Dec. 31 Born 1969-1978 Born 1959-1968 Born 1949-1958 Born 1948 or earlier Born 1978 or earlier

2019 Jan.1 – Dec. 31 Born 1970-1979 Born 1960-1969 Born 1950-1959 Born 1949 or earlier Born 1979 or earlier

NOTE: all ages and years are inclusive of that year

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MEDALISTS AND WINNERS 1970-2016

Finn World Masters

1970-2016

1997 Cervia, Italy

2008 Medemblik, Netherlands

1998 Castelleto di Brenzone, Garda, Italy

2009 Maubuisson, France

1 Wolfgang Gerz, Germany 2 Larry Lemieux, Canada 3 Minski Fabris, Croatia

1 Larry Lemieux, Canada 2 Minski Fabris, Croatia 3 Wolfgang Gerz, Germany

1970 St Moritz, Switzerland

1984 Lago di Caldaro, Italy

1999 Maubuisson, France

1971 Medemblik, Holland

1985 Seebruck, FR Germany

2000 Weymouth, England

1972 Gargnano, Garda, Italy

1986 Lagi di Bracciano, Italy

2001 Kingston, Canada

1973 - Not awarded

1987 Les Embiez, France

2002 Split, Croatia

1988 Lido degli Estensi, Italy

2003 Schwerin, Germany

1 Andreino Menoni, Italy 2 Othmar Reich, Switzerland 3 Mel Oskamp, Netherlands

1 Mel Oskamp, Netherlands 2 Andreino Menoni, Italy 3 Beda Zingg, Switzerland

1974 Port Carmargue, France 1 Andre Mevel, France 2 Mel Oskamp, Netherlands 3 Vernon Stratton, Great Britain

1975 Port Carmargue, France 1 Andre Mevel, France 2 Othmar Reich, Switzerland 3 Erich Kaspareth, Italy

1976 Port Carmargue, France 1 Andre Mevel, France 2 Laszlo Zsindely, Switzerland 3 Othmar Reich, Switzerland

1977 Port Carmargue, France 1 Georg Oser, Switzerland 2 Heinz Reiter, Germany 3 Andre Mevel, France

1978 Port Carmargue, France 1 Heinz Reiter, Germany 2 P Lebois, France 3 Georg Oser, Switzerland

1979 Port Carmargue, France 1 Karel Hruby, Czechoslovakia 2 C Sturm, Switzerland 3 Andre Mevel, France

1980 Lake Lipno, Czechoslovakia 1 Georg Oser, Switzerland 2 Karel Hruby, Czechoslovakia 3 Jiri Maier, Czechoslovakia

1981 Port Carmargue, France 1 Gy Wossala, Hungary 2 Georg Oser, Switzerland 3 Frank Roth, Switzerland

1982 Lake Neusiedl, Austria

1 Georg Oser, Switzerland 2 Ivan Hoffmann, Czechoslovakia 3 Friedrich Müller, Germany

1983 Port Carmargue, France 1 Heini Unterhauser, Italy 2 Frank Roth, Switzerland 3 Herbert Herwig, Germany

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1 Walter Mai, Germany 2 Palle-Steen Larsen, Denmark 3 Friedrich Müller, Germany 1 Jørgen Lindhardtsen, Denmark 2 Klaus Stuffer, Italy 3 Henning Wind, Denmark 1 Heini Unterhauser, Italy 2 Klaus Stuffer, Italy 3 Georg Oser, Switzerland

1 Peter Raderschadt, Germany 2 Walter Mai, Germany 3 Ivor Ganahl, Switzerland 1 Hans Fatzer, Switzerland 2 Jiri Outrata, Czechoslovakia 3 Kurt Schimitzek, Austria

1989 Torbole, Garda, Italy

1 Peter Raderschadt, Germany 2 Kurt Shimitzek, Austria 3 Mikael Brandt, Sweden

1 Larry Lemieux, Canada 2 Greg Davis, South Africa 3 Jean Paul Gaston, France

1 John Greenwood, Great Britain 2 Larry Lemieux, Canada 3 Andrew Cooper, Great Britain 1 Larry Lemieux, Canada 2 Hein-Peter Okker, Netherlands 3 Eberhard Bieberitz, Germany 1 John Greenwood, Great Britain 2 Minski Fabris, Croatia 3 Larry Lemieux, Canada 1 Eberhard Bieberitz, Germany 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Roman Teply, Italy

2004 Cannes, France

1 Larry Lemieux, Canada 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Michael Gubi, Austria

1 André Budzien, Germany 2 Jurgen Eiermann, Germany 3 Laurent Hay, France

2010 Split, Croatia

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Christen Christoph, Switzerland

2011 PuntAla, Italy

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 Allen Burrell, Great Britain 3 Uli Breuer, Germany

2012 Pwllheli, Wales

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 Allen Burrell, Great Britain 3 Laurent Hay, France

2013 La Rochelle, France

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Erik Lidecis, USA

2014 Sopot, Poland

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Akeksandr Kukliukin, Russia

2015 Kavala, Greece

1 Vladimir Krutskikh, Russia 2 Dmitry Petrov, Russia 3 Giacomo Giovanelli, Italy

2016 Torbole, Italy

1990 Altenhein, Switzerland

2005 Bracciano Lake, Italy

1 Rafael Trujillo, Spain 2 Vladimir Krutskikh, Russia 3 Michael Maier, Czech Republic

1991 Port Carmargue, France

2006 Lake Balaton, Hungary

*For the Austrian Hungaria Cup (Presented 1982 by Peter Mohilla and Gy Wossala.)

1992 Uppsala, Sweden

2007 Murcia, Spain

1 Mikael Brandt, Sweden 2 Friedrich Müller, Germany 3 Jiri Outrata, Czechoslovakia 1 Kurt Schimitzek, Germany 2 Jochen Lollert, Germany 3 Hermann Heide, Germany

1 Roland Balthasar, Germany 2 Herman Heide, Germany 3 Peter Vollebregt, Netherlands

1 Silvio Santoni, Italy 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Allen Burrell, Great Britain

1 Michael Maier, Czech Republic 2 André Budzien, Germany 3 Michael Gubi, Austria 1 André Budzien, Germany 2 Agustin Juarez, Spain 3 Allen Burrell, Great Britain

1993 Lake Bracciano, Italy

1 Peter Vollebregt, Netherlands 2 Walter Mai, Germany 3 Jan Bjornberg, Sweden

1994 Diessen, Germany

1 Roland Balthasar, Germany 1 Jiri Outrata, Czech Republic 3 Walter Mai, Germany

1995 Malcesine, Garda, Italy 1 Larry Lemieux, Canada 2 Kurt Shimitzek, Germany 3 Wolfgang Gerz, Germany

1996 La Rochelle, France

1 Roland Balthasar, Germany 2 Wolfgang Gerz, Germany 3 Walter Mai, Germany

michael kurtz

1 Mel Oskamp, Netherlands 2 Othmar Reich, Switzerland 3 Worn Clark, South Africa

1 André Budzien, Germany 2 Mihail Kopanov, Bulgaria 3 Han Bergsma, Netherlands

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

(President’s Cup, Presented 2014) 2014 Aleksandr Kuliukin, Russia 2015 Vladimir Krutskhik, Russia 2016 Rafael Trujillo, Spain

GRAND MASTERS

(Finn Veteran Gold Cup - Trophäe Marktgemeinde Kaltern 1984) 1984 Walter Mai, Germany 1985 Jørgen Lindhardtsen, Denmark 1986 Heini Unterhauser, Italy 1987 Peter Raderschadt, Germany 1988 Hans Fatzer, Switzerland 1989 Peter Raderschadt, Germany 1990 Mikael Brandt, Sweden 1991 Kurt Schimitzek, Germany 1992 Roland Balthasar, Germany 1993 Peter Vollebregt, Netherlands 1994 Roland Balthasar, Germany 1995 Larry Lemieux, Canada 1996 Roland Balthasar, Germany 1997 Wolfgang Gerz, Germany

Luksa Cicarelli, Croatia (1st GM) Henry Sprague, USA (1st GM)

Eberhard Bieberitz, Germany Jiri Outrata, Czech Republic Marin Mrduljas, Croatia Eberhard Bieberitz, Germany Marin Mrduljas, Croatia Ilias Hatzipavlis, Greece Francresco Cinque, Italy Michael Gubi, Austria Marc Allain des Beauvais, France Rob Coutts, New Zealand André Budzien, Germany Michael Maier, Czech Republic Yuri Tokovoi, Ukraine Michael Maier, Czech Republic

GRAND-GRAND MASTERS

(Finn World Masters Trophy Builded by Ralf Kratz SV Biblis Germany) 2000 Luksa Cicarelli, Croatia

Mike Till, Great Britain (1st GGM) 2001 Louie Nady, USA (1st GGM) 2002 Minski Fabris, Croatia (1st GGM) 2003 André Budzien, Germany 2004 Larry Lemieux, Canada

Alan Tucker, South Africa (1st GGM) 2005 Friedrich Müller, Germany 2006 Friedrich Müller, Germany 2007 Luksa Cicarelli, Croatia 2008 Luksa Cicarelli, Croatia 2009 Jørgen Lindhardtsen, Denmark 2010 Luksa Cicarelli, Croatia 2011 Michael Brandt, Sweden 2012 Pascal Tetard, France 2013 Henk de Jager, Netherlands 2014 Henry Sprague, USA 2015 Francesco Cinque, Italy 2016 Marc Allain des Beauvais, France

LEGENDS

(Legends Trophy presented in 2012) 2006 Walter Mai, Germany

Seigfried Bohl, Germany Walter Mai, Germany Walter Mai, Germany Richard Hart, Great Britain Howard Sellars, Great Britain Howard Sellars, Great Britain Friedrich Müller, Germany Richard Hart, Great Britain Henry Sprague, USA Howard Sellars, Great Britain

LADIES

(Ladies Trophy presented 2012) 2006 Bozena Smidova, Czech Republic 2007 Bozena Smidova, Czech Republic 2008 Bozena Smidova, Czech Republic 2009 Brigitte Devilliers, France 2010 Brigitte Devilliers, France 2011 Sabine Breuer, Germany 2012 Sabine Breuer, Germany

GOLDEN CRUTCH 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Han van Vierssen, Netherlands Horst Klein, Germany Rolf Lehnert, Germany Herbert Sondermann, Germany Jürgen Kraft, Germany Lucio Nodari, Italy Dieter Borges, Germany Hans-Günther Ehlers, Germany Jiri Outrata, Czech Republic Kurt Schimitzek, Austria Kurt Schimitzek, Austria Herbert Sondermann Claudio Bosetti, Italy Louie Nady, USA Mladen Makjanic, Croatia Peter Raderschadt, Germany Martin Plecity, Czech Republic Nicola Menoni, Italy Bernd Moser, Austria David Potter, Great Britain Laurent Hay, France Francesco Cinque, France Bas de Waal, Netherlands Arwin Karssemeijer, Netherlands Panagiotis Davourlis, Greece Raymond Hall, New Zealand Alexiy Marchevskiy, Russia Henry Sprague, USA Martijn van Muyden, Netherlands

* NOTE: These lists generally represent the engraving on the trophies. Some trophies appear to have been used for various categories over the years. Where there are inconsistencies or lack of engravings, other names are displayed in italics.

It seems some sailors won categories but the trophies were presented to others. Please see the results tables on http:// www.finnclass.org/news/686 for complete lists and the large number of gaps in the records that need completing.

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1970 18 1971 13 1972 14 1973 20 1974 20 1975 7 1976 ?

1977 28 1978 37 1979 29 1980 30 1981 38 1982 51 1983 48 1984 103 1985 111 1986 83 1987 94 1988 100 1989 101 1990 103 1991 97 1992 85 1993 127 1994 140 1995 132 1996 120 1997 131 1998 132 1999 148 2000 90 2001 32 2002 134 2003 158 2004 191 2005 168 2006 184 2007 136 2008 2009 2010 167 2011 2012 133 2013 2014 2015 204 2016

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264

282

355

Attendance at Finn World Masters 1970-2016

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

michael kurtz

MASTERS

Jiri Outrata, Czech Republic Hans-Günter Ehlers, Germany

285

Trophy Winners

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

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ANNUAL MASTERS MEETING 2016 • FINN WORLD MASTERS RULES AND EVENT MANUAL

Annual Masters

Meeting 18 May 2016 Torbole Minutes

Minutes of Annual Masters Meeting Held at Circolo Vela Torbole, Italy, 18 May 2016 Present: Andy Denison, Henk de Jager, Rolf Elsässer, Marc Allain des Beauvais, Philip Baum 1. President’s opening remarks 2. Approval of 2015 Minutes Seconded by Will Patten 3. Presidents Report: Increased Media traffic and the importance of social media activity were highlighted, Facebook in particular seen as a key demonstrator of the buoyant life of the Finn class. Masters encouraged to engage in sharing and liking Finn related posts.

A future problem of the very high numbers of participants in future European World Masters locations was highlighted.

An Event Manual has been created with the aim of cutting duplication and maintaining standardisation for organisers of Future world masters events

6. Rory Barnes, Tech Update/IFA Certification of boats intended to ensure that a boat is certified when it leaves the factory and has a single identity over its entire life. Thus the ISAF number will provide full details of any boats history.

Discussion points: Limitation of equipment, possibly limiting to 1 of everything including sails.

Weight of sail cloth, was mentioned as a discussion point as was the question of the supply of boast to the Olympics 7. Financial Report The World Masters organisation is in good shape. One step towards improving that position is the move to take control of payments for events in order to secure the Masters Fee. 8. Website/Magazine/Clothing Updating the site is underway the format being changed along with hosting to improve the online experience.

The magazine is, thanks to Robert Deaves, in control and a good size. However, it was pointed out by Andy that if any can or is asked to contribute an article then they should.

Masters clothing is now available and will provide a commission income to the Masters 9. Candidates for 2018.

Balis: Miguel Angel Mateo gave an excellent presentation on the strengths of Balis, highlighting the location, the facilities, the weather, the ability to host over 400 boats on one site and “unlimited free beer for 1 day”.

A brief account was given of the visit to Barbados ahead of 2017 and mention made of the difficult choice between two very good options for 2018.

The President wanted particularly to thank the following for their help during the past year: The Committee, (all named), Robert Deaves, Rory Barnes, Ray New, Jan Kingma, Garry Sibbald, Susan and Richard for the survey

5. Amendments to rules: Proposed by Andy Denison, seconded by Miguel.

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michael kurtz

4. Committee/Re-elections No one leaving or due to leave this year, though both Marc Allain de Beauvais and Andy Denison are due to leave in 2017.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

Marsala: Marco Buglielli highlighted the advantages of the location, the prevalent weather and the experience of the club in hosting similar events. He pointed out that 250 boats could be hosted at the club and that a nearby second club could accommodate the overspill.

The AGM then voted: 93 votes cast for Balis, 75 for Marsala. Balis will be the venue for 2018 10. Information on Barbados presented by Ray New Shipping organisation, each country to appoint a co-ordinator to communicate with Ray, who will then communicate with Geest. Particular emphasis was placed on Geest only wanting one contact.

Expected numbers: Pre entries 130.

Shipping due to start Mid April, with boats expected back mid to late July.

Additional shipping costs were detailed, as were the logistics of getting boats to the departure points in Le Havre and Portsmouth.

11. Any other business Ancient Mariners Cup, Notices ref Race 6 Meeting concluded at 11.16 am Next meeting: 10am Wednesday June 11th 2017, Barbados Yacht Club.

of stable wind directions and good breezes; variable and very light airs venues shall be avoided.

1.2 The course of the Finn World Masters Championship shall be exclusive and separate.

1.3 The date and place for the Masters World Championship shall be published on www.finnworldmasters.com no later than 12 months prior to the event.

1.4 The venue will normally be situated within Europe. However, the Annual Masters Meeting can decide to accept a candidate outside Europe.

Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual - 2016 Edition CONTENTS Part A – Organisation Part B – Finn World Masters Championship Rules Part C – Equipment Inspection Part D – Media Requirements and Guidelines Part E – Bidding procedure Part F – Organising Authority Declaration PART A - ORGANISATION 1. Structure 1.1 The Finn World Masters shall be managed by an elected President and a committee of up to six members. A Masters Secretary may also be appointed to assist the President. The term for all positions shall be four years, renewable at the appropriate Annual Masters Meeting.

1.2 The Finn World Masters Championship is a World Championship for Finn sailors who will reach the age of 40 during the year of the event. It has to be organised as an event offering good racing in limited wind strength in combination with good socials.

1.3 The Finn World Masters (FWM) Championship of the International Finn Class shall be governed by the Rules of the International Finn Class (IFA); the Racing Rules of Sailing in force at the time of the event; and the Finn Masters World Championship Rules and Event Manual.

These shall be binding on the Organising Authority (OA) unless varied in writing by the Masters President.

1.4 All documents and messages concerning the Finn World Masters and its championships shall be written in the English language and the language spoken shall be English.

1.5 This document has been created, to bring consistency to the Championship. It provides information about the format, and provides guidance for potential candidate venues. This document will be used as a basis for discussion when the Master’s President visits the location organising a Championship. The President will expect to see that the venue has sufficient resources in place to manage a championship and will report his findings back to the Finn sailors.

2. Annual Masters Meeting 2.1 During the week of the Finn World Masters (usually on the Wednesday morning at 10.00) there will be an Annual Masters Meeting (AMM) for all competitors.

The timing will be discussed with the

organising committee to ensure it is included in the schedule of racing.

2.2 The OA will provide a suitable room big enough to hold all the competitors for this meeting. Resources available in the venue must include a screen and microphone. A projector can be supplied by the Masters President.

2.3 The time and place shall be fixed by the Masters President and shall be published on the FWM website, www.finnworldmasters. com, at least one month before the AMM. 2.4 The Agenda will include: a) Approval of the Minutes of the last AMM b) Report of the Masters President c) Finance Report d) Election, or re-election, of the Masters President for a 4-year period.

(This President shall automatically be elected Vice-President (Masters) of the IFA Executive Committee by the IFA Annual General Meeting.) e) Election of new member(s) of the Masters Committee to stand for a period of 4 years f) Approval of venue and date of Finn World Masters to be held two years after the current Championships. g) Any item presented to the Masters President in writing at least one calendar month before the Meeting. h) Finn Masters may, by a simple majority, decide whether any other business should be added to the Agenda. Any proposals must be handed over to the Masters President at least 24 hours before the start of the AMM. 2.5 It is recommended that the immediate past President remains on the Committee for the year following retirement. The nominee for a new President should be elected to the Committee at least one year prior to becoming President.

PART B – FINN WORLD MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP RULES 1. Location 1.1 The Finn World Masters Championship shall be sailed on waters that have a record

2. Organisation of the championship 2.1 The Organising Authority (OA) will organise and manage the Championship in close conjunction with the Masters President. The OA is financially responsible for the whole event. No funds from the FWM will be available, except for the prizes, as mentioned in 22.2.

2.2 The Organising Authority may make no deviation from this Event Manual, or Finn Class Rules, without the written permission of the Masters President.

4. Eligibility 4.1 The Finn World Masters Championship shall be held annually and is open to all Finn sailors who during the calendar year of the event shall be in their 40th year or older.

4.2 There will be the following categories: a) World Master (the overall winner) b) Master (winner 40-49 years old) c) Grand Master (winner 50-59) d) Grand Grand Master (winner 60-69) e) Legend (winner 70+) f) Super Legend (winner 80+) g) Ladies h) Classic Boat (Hull built prior to 1985).

5. Dates of the Championship 5.1 The Championship will be held during the period of Whitsun.

5.2 The Practice Race will be on Whitsunday afternoon in the race area where the racing will take place.

5.3 The first race will be sailed on the Whit Monday.

5.4 The last race will be sailed on the Friday following Whitsunday.

5.5 Other dates will only be considered after discussion with the Masters President.

6. Format 6.1 The format will be announced at least two months prior to the event. It will depend on the expected number of entries and what is realistic on the sailing water.

6.2 Depending on entries, the fleet will be divided into Colour Groups of similar size, which will change each day. The decision about the number of groups will be taken by the Masters President.

6.3 The series will consist of a maximum of eight races.

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FINN WORLD MASTERS RULES AND EVENT MANUAL 6.4 A maximum of two races will be sailed on each day; except that three may be sailed to save the series if races have been lost. This decision shall only be taken with the approval of the Masters Committee.

6.5 Four races shall be completed to constitute a series.

6.6 Five races shall be completed before a medal race is sailed.

6.7 The format could be as follows: a) When sailing in one group, there will be a maximum of eight scoring races. b) When sailing in more than one group there will be a maximum of seven opening series races and, on the last day of racing, there will be one final fleet race and a medal race. For the medal race the top ten sailors in the overall result after the opening series, plus the sailors with equal points to tenth place, will be selected for the medal race. c) When sailing in more than one group, the groups will be allocated using a system described in the Sailing Instructions and carried out by a person nominated by the Master’s President using provided software. d) Identification of the boats in the different groups will be defined in the Sailing Instructions.

7. Scoring 7.1 The low point scoring system will apply.

After five races have been completed, the worst score of each competitor will be discarded.

7.2 In the medal race (if applicable) the scoring points will be doubled and not discarded.

7.3 The results for category groups in B4.2 will use the points the competitors have in the overall results.

8. Entry Forms And Notice Of Race 8.1 The Organising Authority shall publish the Notice of Race (NoR) and Entry Form in the English language during the month of January in the same year of the event, or at least four months prior to the event, whichever is earlier. The NoR, whilst abiding by the RRS, shall be agreed by the Masters President before publication.

8.2 The OA shall use standard templates for the Notice of Race provided by the Masters President.

8.3 The Notice of Race (NoR) shall not be changed without approval of the Masters President.

8.4 The entry fee shall be agreed with the Masters President and shall include the cost of the Masters dinner and a €20 Masters Fee for the Masters account. The Masters Fee may be changed at the Annual Masters Meeting for succeeding years.

8.5 Eligible boats may enter by completing the Entry Form for the Masters as published on the Finn World Masters event website.

8.6 Fully completed entry forms and payments should be received no later than four (4) weeks prior to the event. After

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completing and sending the Entry Form the competitor agrees to pay the Entry Fee as defined in the NoR, however, only after receipt of payment is a competitor’s entry valid. Entries and/or payments received less than four weeks before the first race, will be charged 50% more. Entries and/ or payments received after arrival will be charged double the entry fee. No shows without notification will be expected to pay before any entry will be accepted in future years. This rule may be varied in writing by the OA in exception circumstances.

9. Sailing Instructions 9.1 The Sailing Instructions (SI) shall be published by the OA in accordance with the provisions of current RRS, World Sailing Race Standards, IFA Class Rules, and the Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual, and approved by the Masters President no later than 2 months prior to the event.

9.2 The President will, at least 3 months before, provide the standard SI template to the OA. These standard SI will be adapted on limited items by the local organisation.

9.3 The SI shall not be changed without approval of the Masters President.

9.4 Preliminary Sailing Instructions shall be published on the event website at least two months before the first race. The final version will be produced at registration.

10. International Jury 10.1 There must be an International Jury in accordance with RRS Appendix N. It shall include at least six members (two from the organising country and four from other countries) who have proven experience in on the water judging of RRS 42 (Propulsion) and umpiring Medal Racing. At least two should have practical Finn racing experience. If two course areas are being used then the jury will include at least eight members.

10.2 The International Jury should meet with the IFA Representative and/or Masters President before the first race for a policy briefing. The Jury Chairman must not be of the same Nationality as the organising country.

10.3 One national judge may be appointed through the Eurosaf exchange programme.

As long as Appendix N is applied, one national judge from the host country may also be appointed.

10.4 The Masters President will recommend the constitution of the Jury.

Notwithstanding this, the Jury must be approved by the Masters President, at least 6 months prior to the event.

10.5 There shall be at least one boat with 2 judges per fleet.

10.6 For the medal race the OA must provide 3 suitable judge boats.

10.7 Rules 42 and 31: The Jury will apply Appendix P of the Racing Rules of Sailing with regard to Rule 42 and may draw attention to boats that break Rule 31 during the rounding of the marks.

FINN MASTERS MAGAZINE & YEARBOOK 2017

11. Courses 11.1 Courses will be either a windwardleeward course or a trapezoid course. The target time for a race is 75 minutes; the maximum time for a race is 120 minutes.

11.2 When sailing in one starting group the windward-leeward course will be used.

When sailing in two starting groups the trapezoid course, with outer and inner loop will be used. When sailing in more than two starting groups, two race areas should be sailed simultaneously.

12. Advertising The Organising Authority may require all participating boats to display the event sponsor’s advertising in accordance with RRS.

13. Insurance, National Association dues and IFA dues All eligible boats shall provide the current IFA Class sticker for the year of the Championship plus hold an insurance certificate showing a minimum third party limit of €2,000,000 or equivalent in another currency. Sailors shall sign a declaration, but will not be asked to present the insurance documents.

14. Race officer (PRO) The PRO shall be a World Sailing qualified International Race Officer (IRO) and his appointment shall be subject to the approval of the OA and the Masters President.

15. Race office 15.1 The Race Office should be open from 08.30 to 19.00, from the first day of measurement.

15.2 Preliminary race results must be available as soon as possible after each day’s racing and posted onto the Official Notice Board.

15.3 The Official Notice Board must be in, or close to, the Race Office.

16. Skippers Meeting A briefing meeting for the sailors should be held before the start of the practice race, or the first race if no practice race is scheduled. The Race Committee and the International Jury will be introduced to competitors. The Race Officer has to be present. Sailing Instructions should be available well in advance. The Masters President and/or the committee may request additional skippers meetings.

17. Starting signals 17.1 All flag signals will be repeated on all starting line boats.

17.2 Audible signals will be given, when possible by a gun.

17.3 The Committee Boat should display the approximate magnetic compass bearing from the leeward mark to the windward mark in clear, large numbers.

17.4 The Committee Boat shall ensure that it is able to post all boats numbers that

have been black-flagged in a manner that is legible from a reasonable distance.

18. Start line 18.1 The start line shall be equivalent to 1.5 times the length of the Finn multiplied by the number of starting boats. Where there are more than 60 boats on any one start there should be a middle mark, or boat, placed in the centre of the line. This shall not constitute a mark of the course for the purpose of the ‘round the ends rule.’

18.2 In addition to the Committee Boat there shall be a pin end boat that shall repeat all flag and sound signals made by the Committee Boat.

18.3 Committee Boat and pin end boats shall display clearly visible line flags at a height of at least 8 metres.

18.4 All flag signals shall be in a prominent position, at least the height of a Finn mast above sea-level.

18.9 In the event of a General Recall, a fast boat must cross in front of the fleet as soon as possible after the signal has been given, clearly displaying the First Substitute flag.

19. Windward mark boat Wherever possible there should be a mark boat at the windward mark displaying a clearly visible shape or flag, in such a manner as to assist identification of the windward mark. This is particularly important in poor visibility.

20. Minimum/maximum wind strength and time limit 20.1 These shall be prescribed in the SIs but no race shall be started in less than 5 knots of wind measured on the Committee Boat at deck level.

20.2 No race shall be started in more than 20 knots of wind measured on the Committee Boat at deck level.

20.3 The decision whether to start a race or not, regarding wind speed, will be taken by the Race Committee.

20.4 The time limit for each race and for the latest warning signal on the final day must be specified in the SIs. 21. Safety 21.1 The Organising Authority shall demonstrate it has an adequate Safety Plan in place.

21.2 There shall be sufficient safety boats in order to secure the competitors safety.

There shall be at least 1 patrol boat for 20 competitors.

21.3 Each designated patrol boat shall have 2 capable people on board, of which 1 shall be able to jump into the water to provide assistance, when necessary.

21.4 The Safety Plan should include a protocol to indicate when a helm is safely ashore if the boat is left on the race course.

21.5 Mark boats should be located at the windward and leeward marks while racing is in progress in order to record each boat

passing these marks and to ensure all boats sail the correct course.

21.6 There shall be 24 hours a day security on the regatta compound, to continue until 12.00 on the day after the last official day of racing during the Championship, normally Saturday.

21.7 The OA will organise medical assistance and will have contact with a medical doctor.

21.8 When sailing at sea or on a wide lake a tally system is recommended for each racing day. This will be included in the Sailing Instructions, together with the penalty for not having tallied in or out. This will normally be a nominal monetary penalty payable to a local charity.

22. Prizes 22.1 The OA will provide prizes for the top 10 sailors in the Overall Results and for the top three sailors in each age category.

22.2 The Masters organisation will provide medals for the first three competitors in the categories described in B4.2.

22.3 The Masters President will provide a participation prize for all Legends.

22.4 The Masters President will provide all Classic Finns with a gift.

22.5 Perpetual prizes will be awarded to: a) 1st Overall (Austrian-Hungaria Gold Cup) b) 1st Master (President’s Cup) c) 1st Grand Master (With the grapes on top) d) 1st Grand Grand Master (With the Finn model on top) e) 1st Legend (Wide cup) f) 1st Lady (Wide cup with ears) g) The ‘Golden Crutch’ will be awarded to the 11th place finisher in the overall results.

23. Data protection At no time may the contact information for competitors be passed to a third party for their use. This would be a breach of data protection.

24. Accommodation and transport for class officers and officials The Organising Authority shall pay for travel, accommodation and meals for the Masters President, one nominated class official (normally the media rep), the Class Measurer (s) and the Jury. The IFA shall advise which class measurer(s) shall be invited.

25. Liability Each competitor is required sign a form to confirm the following items: a) A liability clause. b) They have understood and abide by the risk statement as written into the notice of race c) The boat has a valid measurement certificate and the boat meets the IFA Class Rules d) The competitor has a third party insurance to an amount of at least €2,000,000. This amount to be fixed in the NoR.

e) The competitor has a valid IFA sticker, which proves that his IFA fee has been paid.

26. Organising Authority 26.1 The Organising Authority (OA) will appoint one person who will be the primary contact between the Masters President and the OA. Email addresses and cell phone numbers will be provided.

26.2 The OA shall sign a declaration of compliance with these Rules (Part F).

26.3 The OA will acquire, and take full responsibility for establishing and maintaining all the relevant permissions and licenses required to run the event. This will include liaison with authorities such as the host country’s National Finn Association and MNA, police, military, environmental organisations, local and port authorities, community, health and safety, etc 26.4 It is recommended that the OA has arrangements in place for competitors to purchase third party insurance for the duration of the event, if needed.

26.5 No later than four weeks after the completion of the event, the OA shall pay to the Finn World Masters any balance of the Masters Fee described in Rule 8.4.

Interim payments may be requested by the Finn Masters President (see also 26.6) before the event begins, or after entry fees are received by the OA, and must be paid within two weeks.

26.6 The Masters President reserves to right to collect up to 40 entry fees directly from competitors (about 10% of the number of expected competitors). These payments will serve as the first instalment of the Masters Fee (see 8.4) as well as acting as a Bond to ensure the successful running of the Championship. The Bond may be used at the discretion of the Masters President to ensure compliance with this Event Manual. Upon satisfactory completion of the event, any balance, taking into account any Masters Fees owed, will be released to the Organising Authority.

27. Other facilities 27.1 Free parking should be available at, or very close, to the venue.

27.2 The OA must ensure that appropriate road signs are in place to guide motorists to the venue from the main arterial routes.

Signs must clearly indicate the Finn logo with an arrow to indicate the direction of travel to the venue. Postal or Zip codes of the venue must also be available on the website and in the notice of race.

27.3 The OA must have and display at the venue the national flags of all the competing nationalities.

27.4 Accommodation must be available on or very close to the venue and must have the capacity to provide for 300-400 persons. Every effort should be made for accommodation to be within walking or biking distance from the boatpark.

27.5 There must be space, close (walking

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FINN WORLD MASTERS RULES AND EVENT MANUAL distance, or biking distance maximum of 2 km) to the host club, for 60 - 80 campers. There must be electricity and water available on the site. Toilets must be accessible 24 hours a day. The cost for these facilities will be as reasonable as possible. Ideally campers should be accommodated at the club.

27.6 There must be sufficient Finn dinghy parking spaces for more than 300 Finns and more than 250 road trailers on the beach or in the vicinity of the club.

Finn parking spaces should ideally be numbered. There must be security in the boat park from three days before the Championship commences until 12.00 on the day after the Championship finishes.

27.7 There has to be sufficient launching facilities to be able to launch and recover the entered number of Finns within a 30-minute period. Sufficient support and assistance must be available to assist competitors in launching and recovery. A system must be in place for the storage of the launching trolleys that will ensure competitors can easily locate their trolleys after sailing.

Bow numbers corresponding to boat parking spaces and or individual tally numbers will be made available to the competitors.

27.8 When sailing on salt water the OA will provide sufficient fresh water hose pipes in the boat park so competitors can rinse their boats each day after sailing.

27.9 The OA shall ensure there are adequate communication services, including fast and sufficient wi-fi, for competitors and press.

It is recommended that there are separate channels for race committee and jury, media and competitors.

27.10 Trolleys should be labelled with sail numbers/bow numbers and allocated space numbers.

28. Opening and Closing Ceremonies 28.1 The Opening Ceremony will take place on Sunday evening with short speeches from the OA’s President, the Master’s President and local officials (i.e. the Mayor of the hosting city) as a welcome to the sailors. This will be followed by a snack buffet and drinks for all competitors and their escorts.

28.2 The prize giving ceremony will be held on the Friday, after the last races. It will normally be carried out by the Master’s President together with the President of the OA. 28.3 The national anthem will be played for the overall winner and the winners of each age category.

28.4 The prize giving will immediately be followed by a closing ceremony, with a small party, with drinks and snacks for competitors and their escorts.

28.5 The OA will provide locals gifts for the Measurer and the members of the Jury.

28.6 The Finn Class flag will be supplied by the Master’s President and will be

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officially returned to him at the prize giving ceremony. Another flag will be available for all competitors to sign at registration.

This flag will, at the closing ceremony, be presented to the OA by the Master’s President. The Masters President will also supply a Finn class flag for the committee boat, which is to be returned to the Masters President after the last race.

28.7 The structure of the Opening Ceremony shall be: a) Stand for host country National Anthem b) Welcome by the host club/other dignitary c) Welcome from the Finn Masters President d) Previous year’s winner to present cup to OA e) Finn Masters President hands Finn flag to OA f) Finn Masters President declares the event open 28.8 The structure of the closing ceremony shall be: a) Stand for host nation National Anthem b) Welcome and thanks by Finn Masters President, with gifts to officials c) Reply by the host club/other dignitary d) Any other presentations e) Prizegiving. Order will be: i) Classic Finn gifts; ii) Legends (all); iii) Super Legend iv) Legends (OA Prize + medals + trophy) v) Ladies (OA Prize + medals + trophy) vi) 11th place prize vii) Grand Grand Masters (OA Prize + medals + trophy) iix) Grand Masters (OA Prize + medals + trophy) ix) Masters (OA Prize + medals + trophy) x) Overall (top 10 prizes + trophy) f) Final speeches g) Finn Masters President hands signed flag to OA h) OA hands back Finn Masters flag to close the event.

28.9 All trophy winners shall sign a declaration of safe keeping before leaving the venue with any trophy.

29. Arrival and departure 29.1 The OA should be prepared to receive competitors from the Wednesday before the start of the event.

29.2 The OA must be prepared for a staggered departure of competitors after the Championships with competitors leaving from Friday through to Sunday.

30. Results 30.1 Result lists will be printed for use in the prize giving ceremony for the overall results and each of the categories in B4.2 31. Miscellaneous 31.1 The OA will provide each competitor with an event shirt.

31.2 The OA will provide each competitor with a small local gift as a memento of the local area.

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31.2 During the week (preferably on the Wednesday) there will be a Finn dinner or buffet. This will be included in the entry fee for competitors. Wives or others accompanying will pay ticket at the race office.

31.3 Other after race parties and social events, e.g. beer and snacks, free or at low cost may be organised at the discretion of the OA. 31.5 The OA will organise a programme for the ladies not sailing. The cost of this programme will be as reasonable as possible. Ideally, trips to local attractions should be offered on 2 or 3 days during the week when sailing is taking place.

31.6 The OA should plan to launch a Facebook page for the event as soon as possible after the end of the previous year’s championship concludes.

31.7 The following shall be given to the Masters President immediately after the Championship. a) A complete list of entries from the website, including no-show entries (without notification), including addresses, tel. numbers and email addresses. b) Overall results. c) Results for the Masters, Grand Masters, Grand Grand Masters, Results for the Legends, Ladies and the Classic Boats.

32. Final decisions The final decisions on any matters not covered by the RRS and the International Jury shall rest with Masters President.

PART C – EQUIPMENT INSPECTION 1. Overview 1.1 The items of sailing equipment to be inspected and the measurement procedure will be discussed with the Masters President, but the inspections as mentioned below will always be executed.

1.2 An Equipment Inspection Committee (EIC) will be established. The EIC must consist of at least 3 qualified measurers.

The EIC should execute spot checks on the class rules during the Championship on boats selected at random. These spot checks will be executed directly after crossing the finishing line. For this purpose a separate inspection boat shall be available.

1.3 All eligible boats shall present a current valid IFA Measurement Certificate.

2. Equipment 2.1 Boats will be measured in accordance with the latest Class Rules and amendments thereto.

2.2 The measurer may check any measurements within the Class Rules at any time during the event. At Equipment Inspection the following items shall be scrutinised: a) Hull: Weight, including checking amount and location of weight correctors.

Arrangements to prevent the mast and rudder from becoming detached in a capsize. b) Masts: Max 2 per boat. Weight, centre of gravity and mast limit marks. c) Booms: Boom limit marks, and limiting stop with the boom attached to the mast. d) Centreboard: Maximum projection from the keel. e) Sails: Max. 2 per boat. Only sails that have been certified according the Finn Class Rules shall be presented.

PART D – MEDIA REQUIREMENTS AND GUIDELINES 1. Website 1.1 The main website will be the Finn World Masters (FWM) site: www.finnworldmasters. com. This site will be used for all of the official Finn communications.

1.2 The OA will provide content and manage a microsite on the Finn World Masters website, which will be the event site, for six months prior to the event until the event’s completion.

1.3 The Finn World Masters will provide a template and access for the OA to add content and manage entries.

2. Media coverage 2.1 Whenever possible the Finn Class will provide the press coverage of the event with daily reports, onshore photos and videos, published during and after the event on the Finn Class website, electronic newsletters and social media feeds.

2.2 The organisers will supply travel, accommodation and meals to the Finn Class press officer, and (if they compete in the Championship) their entry fee.

2.3 The organisers will be asked to provide additional on-the-water photographs through a local photographer and to provide coverage of the event in local and national media.

2.3 The OA shall discuss with the Finn Masters President about the possibility, subject to budget, of video or other media production.

2.4 For further detail please contact Robert Deaves, Chairman Marketing Committee of the International Finn Association (robertdeaves@yahoo.co.uk) or the Masters President.

3 Media channels and materials 3.1 The Finn class operates an integrated media platform that incorporates many third party and social networking services such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Instagram and Youtube. These will be the official social media channels of the event, though OA are welcome to create additional event based channels.

3.2 When preparing publicity and marketing, the OA can request photos and videos from the Finn Class for editorial or promotional use. The Finn Class has a large library of photos and video footage that is free for use.

PART E – BIDDING PROCEDURE 1. Nominations for a venue 1.1 Nominations for a venue shall be sent to the Master’s President prior to February 1st two years before the desired year of the Championship.

1.2 Candidates will be sent the Finn World Master Rules and Event Manual and new venues may be visited by the Master’s President as soon as possible.

1.3 After the Masters President has approved the venue and an agreement has been made on compliance with these Rules, an invitation to present the venue and organisation during the next AMM will follow.

1.4 During the AMM a maximum of four potential candidate venues are invited to make a maximum of a 3-5 minute presentation. The presentation shall be supplied digitally, or on a USB drive, in advance of the meeting for publication on the website.

1.5 Normally venue nominations can only be accepted two years in advance, but in special circumstances, a venue can be voted on three years in advance. However, the venue proposal can only be heard, and voted on, if there is a majority in favour of this at the meeting.

1.6 A candidate wishing to organize the FWM shall guarantee a visa for all competitors.

1.7 All bids must be accompanied by a completed and signed declaration form (Part F), and accompanying papers including a proposed budget, and must be with the Masters President one month before the AMM. 2. Voting procedure 2.1 After the presentation(s) the competitors present will vote for the venue that will host the FWM two years ahead.

2.2 This decision shall be by a majority show of hands. If all venues gets less than 50% of the vote, the venue with the lowest vote will be removed and the vote re-held.

This process will be repeated until there are only two venues left, if appropriate.

2.3 The decision will be ratified in the minutes of the AMM and by the Masters President who will confirm the result of the vote in an email to the OA. 3. Venue visits 3.1 All bidders must invite the Masters President and/or Secretary for a 1-2 day site visit between placing the application and the AMM where it is to be voted on.

3.2 The Masters President will pay for travel and expenses up to the point of arrival. The bidding country will pay for accommodation, meals and internal travel.

3.3 Venues that have successfully held previous Finn World Masters may not be visited.

4. Documentation 4.1 At least one month before the AMM where the venue will be voted on, the Masters President shall be sent the following documentation a) Signed declaration in Part F, agreeing to all parts of the Rules. b) Proposed budget for the event c) Brief details on prevailing weather and sailing conditions at the time of year the event is proposed. d) Map or diagram of venue indicating size, boat park areas, race areas, location of nearby accommodation.

4.2 Bidding clubs are welcome to bring or send documentation to handed out at the Finn World Masters championship where the vote will be taken.

4.3 Bidding clubs shall provide a brief article and photos for publication in the Finn Masters Magazine, if a visit cannot be arranged before publication.

PART F – ORGANISING AUTHORITY DECLARATION ACCEPTANCE OF THESE RULES On behalf of the Organising Authority (OA), the below signed agrees to comply with all the requirements laid out in the Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual and in all matters pertaining to the organisation and running of the Finn World Masters Championship I, [name] of (name of Organising Authority/ Yacht Club)

agree: • to comply with all points in the Finn World Masters Rules and Event Manual • that any deviation will only be on the written approval of the Finn World Masters President • to pay the Masters Fees (see Rules B8.4 and B26.5) into the Finn Masters account on demand, with the balance payable no later than four weeks following the final race of the Championship On behalf of the Organising Authority [signature]

[print name]

On behalf of the Finn World Masters [signature]

[print name]

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