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Yacht Class n°35 (dec 2023/jan-feb 2024)
Written by Aurore Teodoro
Real Club Nautico de Barcelona (RCNB)
The Persico 69F will sail alongside the WASZP in the Barcelona Foiling Winter Series
After being joined by the Waszp class, the Barcelona Winter Series – this series of regattas organized each season for the J/70 – now welcomes the Persico 69F. This uniquely designed sailboat, extremely fast thanks to its hydrofoils, can reach speeds of 35 knots, flying over the water at a speed twice that of the wind. With a length of 6.9 meters, a beam of 2.1 meters (expandable to 3.58 meters with the hydrofoils), and a draft of 1.7 meters, it offers 69 m2 of sail area. Inspired by the AC75 of the America’s Cup, this more compact sailboat can accommodate up to three crew members. The Barcelona Foiling Winter Series will take place from November to March, with one event per month. The Persico 69F and the Waszp will compete in an exciting course that will include up to a maximum of 60 races, both in the slalom and windward-leeward formats. To win the Barcelona Foiling Winter Series regatta winner, each boat must complete at least 6 races. Furthermore, the worst result can be discarded every 6 races, adding a strategic element to the competition. The maximum number of boats allowed will be 40 WASZP and 12 Persico 69F.
RCNB hosted the ORC World Doubles Championship
Last September, Barcelona became the playing field for the ORC double-handed World Championship, which gathered nearly 55 boats from 9 countries. For this competition, the fleet was divided into three categories: Class A, Class B, and Class C, where teams with similar performance competed. In addition, the Corinthian division and the Corinthian Trophy were included, designed for entirely amateur teams.. Over the course of a week, this competition brought together the best of double-handed sailing in a spectacular setting, and the champions proved themselves worthy of their titles in a highly competitive event. In terms of results, the Spaniards Pep Soldevila and Pol Servent, won gold in Class A on their Dufour 44 Es Tes Unno, narrowly edging out their competitors by a margin of just 0.5 points.In Class B, Americans Jonathan McKee and Peter Isler triumphed aboard the SunFast 3300 Red Ruby. In Class C, Jesús de Miguel and Unai Cilleruelo, also from Spain, excelled in their X-332 O’Marylou.
Hang Ten wins the first two acts of the Barcelona Winter
After bringing together eight boats representing Spain, Great Britain and France for the first event in October, the 2nd act in November attracted no less than fifteen boats from six countries. After winning in October, Hang Ten, the crew of Jorge Martínez Doreste, Món Cañellas, Alberto Guillén and Silvia Mas, won the second act and remains the overall leader. It is followed by the French boat and Tony Hayward’s ‘Seriousfun’. Next rendezvous from December 15th to 17th.
Smeralda 888 made a stopover at RCNB
After Monaco, Alassio, Saint Tropez, Calvi and Porto Cervo, the Smeralda 888 International Championship made a stopover at the RCNB last September for the sixth and penultimate stage of the circuit. For three consecutive days, the sailing teams demonstrated their skill and ability in the waters off Barcelona, completing eight races in variable wind conditions from 5 to 15 knots. Vamos Mi Amor took victory, ahead of Canard à l’Orange and Beda. After the Catalan stage, the fleet was expected in Monaco a few weeks later for the grand finale of this emblematic class of Yacht Club de Monaco.
Société Nautique de Genève (SNG)
SNG in the SailGP adventure
After three back-to-back events in Europe this summer, including one in Saint-Tropez, the SailGP fleet is gearing up for the next leg that will take place on December 9-10 in Dubai. The Swiss team, led on the water by Olympian Sebastien Schneiter and supported in its sporting challenge by SNG, is in its second season and still on a steep learning curve. Team CEO Tanguy Cariou, “Our first season was more of a discovery. We progressed very quickly in driving the boat, but in competition, we were not in the game at times. Even now we are still students learning with every outing and we know at times we sail too smoothly or are too conservative for this fleet. There’s no fast track [in this league], you are racing against the very best, it just takes time. We know it will all come together for us soon.” There’s high hopes the team and the SNG will host a stage in the city in 2025, during Season 5.
SNG back in Monaco for its sea regatta
As it has done every year since 1986, the club has organized the traditional offshore regatta, mandatory to qualify as a challenger for the America’s Cup. For the fourth year running, it has been organised in collaboration with the Yacht Club de Monaco (YCM). “We can draw a positive conclusion from this weekend,” said Vincent Boaron, president of the Cercle de la Voile and in charge of the event. “On a human level, we have reinforced our ties with the YCM, a twin club, and with the various SNG representatives and teams”. To be recognized, the sea regatta must meet a number of criteria. At least two series must be represented, with a minimum of two boats per series. Eight J/70 and thirteen Smeralda 888 fulfilled these two conditions. Participation even increased compared to last year, while remaining within reasonable limits: “Our aim is to organize a friendly inter-clubs event, where we can get to know each other,” explained Vincent Boaron. After a complicated first weekend, with a storm and a dead calm, the following week’s act saw the regatta validated by the organisation of two rounds.
Clube Naval de Cascais (CNC)
A CNC crew wins the J70 European Championship
Last September, the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (England), an Olympic venue during the 2012 Olympic Games in London, hosted the latest J/70 European Championship. CNC crew of Vasco Serpa, Diogo Machado Pinto, Hugo Rocha and Paulo Manso was among the 48 crews entered. After five days of fierce competition against the European elite, they took first place. It’s a source of great satisfaction for the crew, especially as the competition proved to be very close, with only a few points separating second and twelfth place overall. After proudly defending their position right up to the last minute, the Portuguese came out on top and took the European title. This bodes well for the future, given that the club will be hosting the world championship in 2026.
A nice farewell to summer
It’s been a tradition for over twenty years. Every year, late August, CNC celebrates the end of summer with the Cascais Vela. This year, there were over 150 sailors in four classes (ORC, SB20, NHC and Fin). Although there was no racing on Sunday, due to strong winds, the competition lived up to its promise. Results included victory in the SB20 class for BBDouro by Francisca Barros, Tiago Morais, Diogo Pontes and Teresa Borges Coutinho and in the Finn class for Desafio Mitsubishi and Jorge Pinheiro de Melo. Hugo Prista’s Xekmatt won the ORC, José Vozone’s Metralha the NHC. The Pedro Mendonça Trophy and the Desafio Marina de Cascais, awarded to the winners of Saturday’s coastal regatta, went to Syone (ORC) and Metralha (NHC). During the competition, the club organised its legendary Bye Bye Summer party, which brought together hundreds of people until almost dawn to bid a traditional ‘farewell to summer’.
Vasco Serpa, winner of the inaugural edition of the CNC Invitational Cup
After the J/70 European Championship title in September, CNC member Vasco Serpa won the very first edition of the CNC Invitational Cup, which took place from September 29th to October 1st. Open by invitation to corresponding clubs and members of the International Council of Yacht Clubs, this inaugural edition brought together eight teams from five clubs in five different countries. The competition consisted of a qualifying round-robin, followed by semi-finals and the final. Three junior teams also took part, led by Olympic sailors Carolina João and Santiago Sampaio. From day one, Vasco Serpa, accompanied by Diogo Machado Pinto, Pedro Costa Alemão and Tomás Barreto, set the pace, winning the round-robin and charting his course through to the finals. On the competition podium, he was followed by Finnish Martin Estlander and Swedish Per Croner. The second edition of the Invitational Cup is already scheduled to take place from 4 to 6 October 2024.
Yacht Club Punta del Este (YCPE)
A great start to the centenary
It’s a special year for the YCPE, which kicked off its centenary celebrations in style by hosting a stopover of the Clipper Race 2024. This is the third time that the Uruguayan seaside town is a host port for this round-the-world crewed race with stopovers for paying amateur crews. And the second time it is a team partner.
Indeed, once again this year, among the eleven crews, one boat bears the name and colours of the centenary club. After a fine 2nd place in the previous campaign, the start of the regatta is looking good for Yacht Club Punta del Este. Before the fourth leg between South Africa and Australia, it ranked third, after having won the second leg between Puerto Sherry (Spain) and Uruguay. The boat, skippered by club member Fernando ‘Nano’ Antía and accompanied, in particular, by two of his compatriots, Eugenia Segovia and Fernanda Nuñez, was the first to cross the finish line at home, cheered on by a large crowd despite a cold southern spring night. It should be noted that this stopover was the occasion for a real celebration ashore for the crews, but also for the Puntaesteños, as numerous events were organised. Hundreds of schoolchildren visited the Clipper Race fleet and took a guided tour on board. The crew also visited local schools to talk to the children. After a stopover of eleven days, the race resumed, setting course for Cape Town, South Africa. Before leaving, the Commodore of the YCPE, Juan Etcheverrito, presented each team with a farewell gift. The fleet then paraded through the bay before setting sail, to the applause of over a thousand people.
Iate Clube de Santos (ICS)
A sports project for the community
It’s a project close to the Brazilian club’s heart. Since 2021, as part of a partnership with the Guarujá town council and the NGO Formando cidadão, ICS has been supporting a sports project for children from the neighbouring community. Having already trained more than 150 pupils, the programme is now in its third season. To enrol, pupils must meet certain basic conditions, such as regular attendance at school and good grades, to reinforce their sense of responsibility. The programme includes canoeing, sailing and swimming courses designed to encourage the practice of sport and impart nautical knowledge, including the importance of wearing a lifejacket correctly and navigating using a tide table and the influence of the wind. New places are opened twice a year.
Great success for the Volta da Laje de Santos
A few weeks ago, the club organised the Volta de Laje de Santos, which brought together sailboats of all classes, and with winds of 8 to 10 knots, calm seas and no swell, the sailors finished the race with excellent times and no withdrawals. The winner of the ORC class was 4Z Phytoervas, skippered by Marcelo Bellotti. In the Mini 6.5 class, José Carlos de Souza’s Daddy-o finished on the podium. In the RGS class, first place went to Luiz Rosenfeld’s Asteriscus.
ICS performs at the 50th Semana de Vela de Ilhabela
It’s the biggest ocean sailing event in South America. The Ilhabela Sailing Week, named after an island of the state of São Paulo, brought together 130 competitors for a competition with changing conditions ranging from light winds and temperatures of over 30 degrees to rain and cold towards the end. Among the 130 competitors, the ICS boats achieved excellent results. Phoenix, sailed by Fábio Cotrim and Mauro Dottori, took 2nd place in the ORC A and ORC General classes. Marcelo Bellotti’s 4Z Phytoervas took 1st place in Super 40 and 3rd place in ORC General, while Xamã finished 8th. In ORC B, vice-commodore Jonas de Barros Penteado’s ASBAR IV took 3rd place. Finally, in the RGS class, Fantasma finished 19th. The Blue Ribbon for the longest regatta was won by Crioula, who also won the ORC A and ORC General classes. On the Saturday before the event, the Regata dos Bairros gathered 60 young people from fifteen sailing education projects in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and the Sail of Tomorrow, to offer them an unforgettable experience aboard racing yachts.
Crioula wins the 73rd Santos – Rio
It connects two clubs twinned with the Yacht Club de Monaco, the Iate Clube de Santos (ICS) and the Iate Clube do Rio de Janeiro (ICRJ). At the end of last October, the famous Santo – Rio regatta celebrated its 73rd edition. This event, a true celebration of sailing, with a parade on land, once again offered its 25 participants, coming from Santos, Rio de Janeiro, Porto Alegre, Ilhabela, Ubatuba, Angra dos Reis or Paraty a journey of 200 miles, in changing conditions. Based in Angra dos Reis (RJ), where the club has one of its facilities, Crioula was successful. After winning the brand new coastal regatta organised between Ponta da Praia and Itararé, ahead of the offshore race, the sailboat was the first to cross the finish line, after 29h30m09s and won the blue ribbon for the second year in a row. The boat also won in corrected time in the ORC class, ahead of Phoenix, from Santos, and Boto V, from Paraty. In VPRS, victory went to Maestrale IV, from Rio, followed by Boto V and Duma, from Olympic medalist Kiko Pelicano. In BRA-RGS, Zeus, from Ilhabela, came first, followed by Força Maior, from Ubatuba, and Tangará, from Rio.
Yacht Club of Greece (YCG)
Busy months to come
As usual, the Yacht Club of Greece has had a busy calendar athletically and socially. The tough offshore International Andros Yacht Race, which took place from August 31st to September 3rd, was once again a great success this year. As always, its sailing season was also a busy one with the picturesque Hydra race, along with YCG sailing week, the autumn cup, and dinghy races organized every week. Next year, in September, the YCG will host the 2024 ORCi national championship. Enough to offer another major event in a calendar that already includes the numerous members’, corporate, and social events the club has planned almost daily and is heading for just as many in the months to follow.
