Sea, Sail & Surf news
Skandia Cowes Week
Will Greenwood wins around the Isle of Wight
New Mike Sanderson’s Open 60 dismasts during this Artemis Challenge
jeudi 9 août 2007 –
At 10:00 on Wednesday morning Dame Ellen MacArthur fired the starting cannon, setting the boats on their way heading west towards the needles in perfect sailing conditions with clear skies and a north-westerly breeze. After six hours of racing the Estrella Damm crew, with the added muscle power of Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood, crossed the finish line in first place with Roxy not far behind and Lady Gabriella Windsor, sailing for the second time ever, on the Artemis boat finishing in fourth place behind Akena Verandas.
The initial reach along the North-West coast of the Isle of Wight made for some spectacular viewing as these hugely impressive boats sped off into the distance with their colorful spinnakers up at speeds of 15 - 20 knots. Estrella Damm and Pindar, the two new boats in the fleet, quickly took advantage of their superior machines and were battling it out for first place as the boats rounded the Needles. On the other side of the island Mike Sanderson, the skipper onboard Pindar, decided to head offshore to find more wind, but unfortunately in doing so fell victim to a broken mast that snapped two metres above the deck ; no one was hurt and the boat returned home after salvaging the remains of the rig.
The south side of the island shadowed the northerly breeze leaving the remainder of the fleet trying to second guess the flukey wind conditions. Estrella Damm managed to establish a sizeable lead forcing the other boats to try and eke out every ounce of sailing know-how they possess to close the gap in very difficult sailing conditions. As the race progressed, the wind continued to drop leaving the boats wallowing in two knots of breeze off Bembridge point at 15:00 all tightly bunched with Estrella Damm still in the lead, shortly followed by Roxy with Sky Sports presenter Georgie Thompson onboard and Artemis Ocean Racing with Lady Gabriella Windsor in third place under 1 mile behind.
The final sprint to the finish line saw Estrella Damm hold off a strong challenge from the girls on Roxy, with Artemis and Akena Verandas finding themselves in a tight scrap for third that Akena Vaernadas finally claimed.
Will Greenwood : “It is going well, I have been the winch man, which is unbelievably hard but it has been amazing !” At the prize giving ceremony he added, “In terms of physical endurance it was as tough a session as I have done for a long time. We took a lead, nearly messed it up, but we were determined, everyone pulled their weight and we have won a great trophy and donated a lot of money to charity”
Lady Gabriella Windsor, racing onboard Artemis Ocean Racing, said before the race : “I have only sailed once before but never on an open 60, I think it will be really exciting.” After a great day out on the water she added “I had a great time, it was a real treat to have raced with the Artemis team who are a very talented and professional bunch of sailors. The experience has inspired me to go sailing again in the future.”
Guillermo Altadil, the skipper of the winning boat Estrella Damm, was in high spirits after the race and commented : “It was a great day for us but we feel sorry for Mike and the rest of the Pindar crew. We made a small mistake just before the Needles and were having a good race with Pindar before their accident. The race was a good and intensive race with lots of sail changes ; our guest, Will, did a good job on the winch and got to see how tough this sport really is. It is a great race to win and we are very pleased to be giving the prize money to Africa Viva where it will go to people who need it far more than us.”
Press info Tim Kelly - Pitch PR
Mike Sanderson, Pindar skipper : “Today was a very disappointing day. We don’t currently know how it happened, it’s a really clean break to the mast, nothing else is damaged. Once we are back at base we will try to get to the bottom of it, but it’s a real disappointment. I think the mast is repairable, but we won’t be able to make the Fastnet this weekend. Prior to the break, Pindar was going really well, we hit 18 knots at one point round by the Needles, which in the light winds we were experiencing was great stuff.”
Voir en ligne : www.skandiacowesweek.co.uk
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