ANOTHER HEAVY AIR DAY FOR RACERS IN DAY THREE OF MAXI YACHT ROLEX CUP; AMERICANS LEAD CRUISING A AND SPIRIT OF TRADITION DIVISIONS

Argentinean Alexia leads Wally Division; American Harry Macklowe’s Unfurled wins third straight race in Cruising A; Italian Filippo Faruffini’s Roma solidifies lead in Cruising B, UK’s Black Dragon ahead by 1 point in Racing Division, and US’s Adela takes lead in Spirit of Tradition

PORTO CERVO, Italy (September 7, 2005) – For the second day in a row, racers and boats were tested by heavy winds as they took to the water in day three of the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup. The weather system that produced yesterday’s 20- to 25-knot winds had blown through, and this morning, a light southeasterly greeted the fleet, which has been reduced to 36 boats after Maximus was dismasted yesterday. Heavy wind and rain moved in just before today’s start, and the breeze shifted to the northeast, building to 20 knots by the time the five divisions set out on a 29-mile course.

After three days of racing, two US yachts are leading their divisions: New York real estate developer Harry Macklowe’s Unfurled won her third straight race today in Cruising A, while US self-made billionaire George Lindemann’s 180-foot schooner Adela’s first-place finish today moved her into first place overall in the Spirit of Tradition class. The Wally Division leader, Alexia, owned by Alberto Roemmers of Argentina, sailed another impressive race to take line honours and finish first on corrected time. In Cruising B, Italian Filippo Faruffini’s Roma held onto her overall lead with a second-place finish today, and Black Dragon, a UK entry owned by Performance Yachting, also finished second in today’s race to hold a narrow one-point lead in the Racing dDvision.

According to Black Dragon mainsheet trimmer Chris Mason, doing well today was a matter of perseverance. “A slightly frustrating course for us as it was not suited to the boat,” said Mason. “We only had the spinnaker up for about 9 minutes in the whole race due to the strength of the winds. We enjoyed the race though, it was especially interesting at the bottom mark (at Cala di Volpe) when the wind was going from 6 knots to 20.”

Five boats raced in the Racing Division today, as Maximus remained in port after losing her rig in yesterday’s high winds. The mast was recovered from 138 feet of water this morning, and her return to the regatta is uncertain at this time. The current Racing Division standings had further upset today, when Grant Wharington’s Skandia was OCS at the start of today’s race and failed to restart. Skandia had been in second place coming into today, but was overtaken on the scoreboard by Roland Pieper’s Favonius after the BVI entry finished first today. Skandia is now in third, but has lodged a protest against the Race Committee’s decision, with the hearing scheduled for tomorrow morning. Tomorrow, the Racing Division is scheduled to resail race one which had been discarded the first day of the regatta.

In the Cruising Division A, American Arne Glimcher’s Ghost took line honours for the second day in a row, finishing nearly 10 minutes ahead of Macklowe’s Unfurled. Corrected time put Macklowe in first for the race, while Ghost’s corrected time placed her in third today, to maintain her position in second overall.

“We’re on a steep learning curve here,” commented Ghost Captain Simon Lacey after today’s race. “The conditions are so changeable, it’s a real challenge to judge the winds, choose the right sails and get them up in time. We’re really happy with the way the crew and the boat are performing given that this is our first time out. We’ve seen that the boat is fast. We just need to do a little tweaking now. We’re having a great time here in Porto Cervo.”

In the Cruising B Division, Italian Fabio Magifesta’s Charis’s first-place finish today moved her into second overall, overtaking Gunter Hertz’s Allsmoke in the standings after the British yacht broke a steering cable and had to retire. Italian Filippo Faruffini’s Roma second-place finish today was enough to hold onto the overall lead, four points ahead of Charis. Allsmoke is in third overall.

Competition is tight in the Spirit of Tradition class as the top three boats are separated by one point. Adela’s win gave her the lead over Italian Alfredo Canessa’s Whitefin. Both have five points, but, currently, Adela’s two first-place finishes break the tie. Annagine, owned by C.E. Van Asbeck of the Netherlands, is in third place overall with six points.

With thunderstorms forecast for tonight and conditions similar to today’s for the morning, the Racing Division can look forward to another bumpy ride while the other divisions take advantage of tomorrow’s lay-day.

Full results, photos and updates from the sea can be found at www.yccsmaxi.com. For high-resolution photos please visit www.regattanews.com

Rolex will host a gala dinner for participants at the Cala di Volpe Hotel tomorrow evening, the entertainment will include a concert by internationally acclaimed African singer and musician Youssou N’Dour.

The Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup and the Rolex Settimana delle Bocche (Week of The Straits), a regatta for the one-design Farr 40 and Swan 45 classes and IMS racers taking place September 12 through 17, will close the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s 2005 sporting calendar. For full details of these regattas and all of the Club’s events visit www.yccs.it.

Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup Provisional Results Day 3

• Racing Division (6 Boats)
  Pos, Boat, Owner, Country, Points (Total)
  1. Black Dragon, Performance Yachting, GBR 1, 2 (3)
  

  2. Favonius, Roland Pieper BVI 3, 1 (4)
  3. Skandia, Grant Wharington, AUS 2, OCS 7(9)

• Wally Class (12 boats)
• Pos, Boat, Owner, Country, Points (Total)
  Alexia, Alberto Roemmers, ARG, 1, 2, 1 (4)
  Y3K,Claus Peter Offen, GER, 3, 1, 4 (8)
  Open Season, Thomas Bscher, GBR, 5, 5, 7 (17)
  
• Cruising Class A (6 boats)
• Unfurled, Harry Macklowe, USA, 1, 1, 1 (3)
  Ghost, Arne Glimcher, USA, 2, 2, 3 (7)
  Kokomo of London, Salvatore Trifiro, ITA, 4, 5, 2 (11)
  
• Cruising Class B (9 boats)
• Roma, Filippo Farufini, ITA, 1, 1, 2 (4)
  Charis, Fabio Magifesta, ITA , 3, 4, 1 (8)
  Allsmoke, Gunter Hertz, GBR, 2, 3, DNF 10 (15)
  
• Spirit of Tradition (4 boats)
• Adela, George Lindemann, USA 3, 1, 1 (5)
  Whitefin, Alfredo Canessa, ITA 1, 2, 2 (5)
  Annagine, C.E. Van Asbeck, NED 2, 3, 3 (8)

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