30.09.2017

Regates Royales

After five days of racing with typical the Cote d’Azur early autumn conditions -sunny skies and light winds- the 39th edition of the Régates Royales-Trophée Panerai came to an end in grand style. The 15 Metre Mariska got gold in the Big Boat series with a clear score of five wins out of five races, while the One Tonner Ganbare succeeded in snatching the title to Italy’s Il Moro di Venezia by just one point. “Serial winner” Rowdy added yet another victory to her long list, with Argentina’s Cippino at her heels, the 8 Metre Carron II and Linnet skippered by Torben Grael, particularly at ease in light winds, were crowner winners in the gaff cutters classes. Save the date for September 2018, for the 40th edition.

The 39th edition of the Régates Royales-Trophée Panerai was marked by a sweet sea-breeze, a light south-easterly building in the early afternoon and later,decreasing and dying towards sunset, by close racing at sea and lively social events ashore. This year several new entries debuted in Cannes, to the likes of the two P-Class Olympian and Chips skippered by Marc Audineau and Bruno Troublé respectively, that duelled all week to get gold in the gaff cutters’ class, or Stéphane Richer’s tiny Ellad , a gorgeous Fife-designed canoe-stern from 1937 and the fast Fjord III by Argentinean German Frers Senior; from François Ramoger’s 6 Metre Azaïs designed by François Camatte and totally restored by his grandson, to Italy’s Ardi (ex-Kerkyra II), a 1968 One Tonner by the famous American firm Sparkman & Stephens.

A light south-easterly was on the menu for the last race, crucial to define the podium positions in several classes. First boat to cross the finish line in real time was, Mariska, that showed excellent speed in light air as did Fabien Després’ Viola, Cholita skippered by Italian Bruno Catalan, and Daniel Sielecki’s Cippino from Argentina.

Brazilian star Torben Grael drove NYYC 30 Linnet, owned by Italian Patrizio Bertelli, to the highest step of the podium, with P Class Olympian in second and Viola in third.

In the Classic Racers’ class Don Wood’s One Tonner Ganbare reshuffled the cards on the very last day, snatching victory from the Italian Maxi Il Moro di Venezia skippered by Massimiliano Ferruzzi by just one tiny point. Gold also went to French Jean-Pierre Sauvan’s Maria Giovanna II in the Vintage Marconi class whilst Karl Lion’s Tabasco 5 dominated in the Spirit of Tradition division with four wins.

“We had very good racing for the Dragons, the 5.5 and the Tofinou, despite light wind conditions, thanks to the good work from the Race Committees we could launch at least a race every day. I wish to thank all those who worked so hard this week. And everything went very well for the classics too, with an ideal setup for such gorgeous boats. See you next year in Cannes for the 40th edition!” Declared Jacques Flori, President of Yacht Club de Cannes

“On a sports level everything worked out well, no matter the light wind. Ashore, the social events were also a success, especially the Birthdays’ Night. The media coverage has been good, and the volunteers did a great job. We hope to be able to offer even more opportunities to enjoy fully the Régates Royales-Trophée Panerai for the locals and the tourist next year.” Said Pascal Gard, COO Régates Royales de Cannes

For full results, more photos, videos and interviews please visit: www.regatesroyales.com

Serial sailors
German Frers

Is this your first time in Cannes?
“No, I’ve been here before with my boat Sonny, three years ago.”

And this year you are back with Fjord III
“Yes, this is a very special boat for me, it used to belong to my father when I was five years old. It’s the first boat I’ve sailed with and a very good one, a real racer that won the Bermuda Race in 1954. My father was also a yacht designer, he was passionate about sailing, he taught me the fundamentals and he’s the reason why I chose to be in this business. And so it’s my son, since twenty years, carrying on the family tradition. “

You have created a lot of different boats, haven’t you?
“Yes, quite a few. I’ve designed all the old Maxis like Ragamuffin, Il Moro di Venezia and some America’s Cup boats, Il Moro, Luna Rossa…”

What do you think of the new AC protocol and the news that have been announced?
“I’m very happy that it is going to be monohulls, that there will be a nationality rule and the boat will have to be built in the team’s country. We go back to the tradition of the America’s Cup and for me it makes sense. I have a lot of admiration for multihull sailors but I think it’s a different sport.“

Will you be working with Luna Rossa again?
“We worked together since 2000, I don’t know about the future, it’s too early to say.”

How is it going with Fjord III in Cannes?
“We are second in the overall I think, we won yesterday and today’s race so the final results are still to be decided in this last round.”

28.09.2017
Tight at the top
A good breeze of around twelve knots and flat seas made for an ideal setting of day 3 of the Régates Royales de Cannes – Trophée Panerai. Classics had their double-lap triangular course set in the Bay of La Napoule, with the overall scoreboard taking a more defined shape. In the Juan Gulf the air was lighter and shifter, forcing the Race Committee to wait until the early afternoon to be able to launch two races for the Dragons, the 5.5 and the Tofinous

The weather pattern was no different today – light in the morning, developing into a south-easterly, increasing to 12-14 knots later in the afternoon, the third episode of the Régates Royales – Trophée Panerai was characterized by a steadier and stronger wind, putting tacticians, navigators and sailors’ skills to the test.

It was Mariska to cross the finish line in first among the big boats, the 23 Metre Cambria and the others unable to keep her pace, piling up more valuable points and increasing her margin after three races. Similarly, other longer and more powerful boats, like the Italian Maxi Il Moro di Venezia showed that quality counts more than age. The two 12 Metre France and Chancegger seems to like stiffer winds better, as do the One Tonners Ganbare (1973), Resolute Salmon (1976) , Sagittarius (1974) and Galvana (1975).

Brazilian star Torben Grael, helming the NYYC30 Linnet shined among the gaff cutters, accumulating a solid margin on her immediate pursuers, the Marc Audineau’s P Class Olympian and the two New-Yorkers designed by Nathanaël Herreshoff, Jonathan Greenwood’s NYYC40 Chinook and the NYY50 Spartan skippered by Justin Burman. Despite a fourth place, Italian Luigi Pavese’s Samurai leads among the Classics on Jean-Pierre Sauvan’s Maria-Giovanna II, and French skipper Philippe Monnet on Lys winning today’s round.

In the Marconi class, Argentinean Daniel Sielecki’s Cippino got a win on Brendan Mc Carty on Rowdy with Leonore skippered by Mauro Piani in third on both the day’s and the overall results board. Angelo Mazzarella’s Carron II despite a second place in today’s race, won by German Frers’s Fjord III, is still on top of the smaller Marconi scoreboard.

Weather conditions are expected to further improve tomorrow, with slightly stronger winds.

A Russian-British duel

After some waiting, a light breeze also set on the Juan Gulf where the race course is set for the Dragons. Two crews were caught over the line with a black flag and were therefore disqualified: French Stéphane Baseden on Outlaw and Russia’s Vasily Senatorov on Even Better. The fight for victory was, once more, a thing between UK’s Yvan Bradbury on Blue Haze and Russian Anatoly Loginov on Annapurna. The day’s second W/L race further confirmed the leadership by the two crews, who will more than likely finish on the series’ podium, finishing tomorrow, while Germany’s Pedro Rebelo de Andrade on Pow Wow, France’s Jean Bréger on Ulysse, British female skipper Gavia Wilkinson-Cox on Jerboa and Russia’s Igor Goikmberg on Zenith can still aspire to the bronze.

For full results and more content, please visit: www.regatesroyales.com

Serial sailors
Torben Grael: a family affair

They may be America’s Cup, Volvo Ocean Race, Mini Transat, offshore or Olympic sailors or maybe all of the above. Many can be seen on the dock in Cannes for the Régates Royales-Trophée Panerai.
Brazilian sailing star Torben Grael has done it all, and almost won it all. He says classic yachts are his fist-time love and explains how sailing is a true family affair for the Grael’s dinasty.

Is this your first time in Cannes?
“No, I raced here with by brother back in 2007, on Wright on White a 12 Metre, originally called New Zealand KZ3. This year I was invited to sail with Linnet. I love classic yachts, I own a 6 Metre from 1912 and being here is a nice opportunity to see so many wonderful boats.”

You are sailing with Linnet, that is Patrizio Bertelli’s boat right? Any news you can give us on the America’s Cup?
“There is nothing officially defined yet. I’ve been sailing with Prada Luna Rossa for ten years, I have a lot of friends working for the team. I like sailing with Patrizio and enjoying my time here in Cannes, we’ll be in Saint-Tropez next week racing together on Linnet.”

You’ve done the Games, The America’s Cup, the Volvo Ocean Race and now you’ve turned to classic yachting?
“No, actually I’ve learned to sail on this kind of boats, the one I have now used to be my grandfather’s and she won a silver medal in 1920 in Stockholm. She’s beautiful, a gaff cutter originally. It’s nice to come to Cannes and see so many gorgeous old yachts, we haven’t so many in Brazil. But for us is a family affair. My brother Lars (also an experienced sailor and an Olympic medallist) has a 6 Metre from 1933, and our uncles have one 5.5 and a Dragon. We also love cruising boats.”

Your daughter Martine also won a golden medal in Rio 2016 and she’s embarking for her first Volvo Ocean Race, it’s a real sailing dynasty…
“Well, she’s third generation. My uncles went to games in Acapulco and Kiel, in the Star and Soling class. My brother Lars and myself were on it from 1984 up to Athens 2004, and now is Martine, but my son Marco also sails a 49er and finished eleventh in Rio. It’s a nice thing to see.”

Do you think it will be harder for a girl?
“Yes it is quite tough but I think introducing the rule of having a maximum of seven male and two female crew members was very positive. It will help having more girls doing offshore top events.”

Boats and classes
From Cowes with love

At the eve of the 20th century, yachting becomes more popular in both the USA and in Europe and designers start creating boats specifically conceived for the local conditions. Concepts and crew skills differ hugely at a time when yachts start to be transported by rail from one country to the other. The Godinet rule, adopted in 1892 by the Union des Yachts Français (French Yachting Union) quickly spread all over Europe until 1901 when a more restrictive rating, the jauge Méran, was embraced. The Godinet rating rule was also used by the Cercle de la Voile de Paris in 1899 for the first championship reserved to One Tonners, Un Tonneau in French, that later became the famous One Ton Cup.

Bona fide
One of the aficionados of the Régates Royales de Cannes and one of the best example of yacht designed based on the Godinet rule, is gaff cutter Bona Fide, built on the Isle of Wight at Charles Sibbick & Co.’s shipyard in less than two months for owner J. Howard Taylor. A century later she underwent extensive restoration works at the Cantieri Navali Dell’Argentario on the Tuscan coast. The boat was conceived according to the Five Ton rating rule in 1899, and won gold at the Olympic Games in 1900,

Technical specs Bona Fide
Designer: Charles Sibbick
Year : 1899-Albert Yard (Cowes)
LOA: 13,62 m
LWL: 8,90 m
Beam: 2,57 m
Draft: 1,86 m
Displacement: 11,4 t
Upwind sail area: 144 sq.

25.09.2017
Quiet Cannes

Grey skies and light airs were on the menu today for the opening day of the 39th Régates Royales de Cannes – Trophée Panerai. Two races were launched for the Dragons while the classics had some serious training before racing starts tomorrow for them too.

The palms on the world-famous Croisette were not moving much today. The wind was light and shifty as the sun rays were almost totally hidden by the thin clouds. As the sea breeze was late in showing up and it was patchy on the race area, the Race committee had to make several attempts before being able to launch the first race for the 44-boats strong Dragon fleet.

Actually the easterly wind was never stronger than five or seven knots, barely enough to ripple the water. And, after some trying the fleet started the day’s first race with a black flag (meaning that all the boats over the line are automatically disqualified) on a windward/leeward course. The strong Russian crew skippered by Anatoly Loginov on Annapurna prevailed on fellow countryman Igor Goikmberg on Zenith and Germany’s Michaël Schettun on Chi, in third place.

Yet, race 1 was just an appetizer, because the flimsy and shifty wind forced the RC to set a new course to launch race 2. The day’s second round reshuffled the cards on the table: the Russians were not at their best and finished mid-pack, whilst the British and the Germans sailed on a high.

UK’s Yvan Bradbury on Blue Haze won the race,ahead of Germany’s Michaël Schettun on Chi and Briton Jonathan Brown on Storm finished in third, with Annapurna and Zenith in fifth and eight place respectively. The first French crew across the line was Jean Bragger’s Ulysse, while Turkish team Monday, skippered by Arkun Demircan, debuted in grand style finishing in the top ten on this first appearance in Cannes.

Classic training
The light air did not discourage the classics’ crews, who took advantage of it to do some training and to fine-tune their setups and improve their manoeuvres before racing starts on Tuesday. 12 Metres or ketches, centenary yawls or gaff cutters, dozens of yachts went out on the bay. There will be many more tomorrow, when racing kicks off officially and just under a hundred boats will wrestle for victory, in different divisions and classes. The wind should still be a light easterly, increasing a notch in the afternoon thanks to a warmer sun on the Bay of La Napoule. The air temperature should also be very pleasant and typical of the early autumn on the Cote d’Azur, with some 20-23° C.

The outlook for the rest of the week is even more positive: the wind should steadily increase making the Régates royal once more.

Boats, classes and people: the Dragon
Just like the Régates Royales, that were first organized in 1929 as a tribute to the King Christian of Danmark, the Dragon celebrates its eighty birthday. It was designed by Johan Anker in 1929. The original design had two berths and was ideally suited for cruising in his home waters of Norway. The boat quickly attracted owners and within ten years it had spread all over Europe and was also an Olympic class from 1948 to 1972.

Technical specs:
LOA: 8,90 m
Beam : 1,95 m
Draft: 1,20 m
Displacement: 1 670 kg
Keel: 1 000 kg
Mainsail: 16,00 sq. m
Genoa: 11,70 sq. m
Spinnaker: 23,60 sq. m

To download
Photo
Copyright : Eric dervaux

More information please visit the official website : www.regatesroyales.com