Light winds and strong tide thwart Hamburg opener
by Extreme Sailing Series on 10 Aug 2017
Red Bull Sailing Team fly a hull during one of the two exhibition races on the opening day in Hamburg, Germany. - 2017 Extreme Sailing Series Lloyd Images
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Mother Nature refused to play ball on the opening day of Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 5, Hamburg, presented by Land Rover, resulting in no scoring races being completed. Conditions in the German venue are predicted to improve from tomorrow.
Light winds versus strong tides on the River Elbe meant the boats were unable to race, leaving the seven international teams the remaining three days to make their mark on the scoreboard.
Race Director John Craig explained the conditions he faced: “Today the maximum we saw was five or six knots of breeze but from a variety of different directions, coupled with one of the largest tides we’ve seen here in a long time. We had about five knots of current.
“We ran two demonstration races and then we tried one for real and we had to abandon it.
“Tomorrow is looking better, we should have a bit more wind to play with, but I am looking forward to Saturday and Sunday even more as the forecast is set to build,” added Craig, who is optimistic for improved conditions for the rest of the event, with 10 – 15 knots of wind predicted on the final two days.
Due to tidal restrictions, the fleet of 11 Flying Phantoms, whose racecourse is based further along the iconic river, will be heading out this evening to run racing. Results can be found on the official website once racing has been completed.
GC32 Stadium Racing is scheduled to begin tomorrow at 13:30 (UTC+2) and can be followed via the live blog. Day three and four will be streamed live on the official Facebook and YouTube from 13:30 – 17:00 (UTC+2).
The free entry Race Village, located at the Hamburg HafenCity Cruise Terminal, will be open to public from 10:00 (UTC+2) offering front row seats for the racing along with plenty of on shore activity. For more information about the event visit the official website.
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