REV win the Double at Miami Final in hotly contested 10-strong fleet

by Aston Harald on 11 Apr 2017 An impressive sight of 10 M32 catamarans took to Biscayne Bay for the final event of the M32 Miami Winter Series this weekend. The event was rounded off in style as strong winds blew over the racecourse on Sunday allowing boats to fly at over 20knots. REV proved themselves as the team to beat this winter, skippered by Rick DeVos, winning both this final event and the overall Series title.

When asked what to attribute the regatta win to, Rick DeVos commented, 'We have a fantastic team, today was shifty and tricky. The big takeaway this event was on the final approach to the start, I tend to get tense during the last five seconds. I got better at carving smooth turns and accelerating appropriately. It's a fun boat to drive!' Rick now returns home with the coveted Miami Rooster, something a little different than traditional trophy silverware!

Friday’s practice session saw new teams getting their hands on boats and testing new crew configurations. A steady 12-15knot breeze kept crews on their toes over the day, before some R&R (and perhaps a few cocktails) at the official event party hosted by E11EVEN in downtown Miami. Saturday was twisted into a sunbathing day as Mother Nature refused to play fair and delivered becalmed conditions over Miami.

Conditions on the final day more than made up for Saturday’s disappointment with steady 15-20knot winds, allowing this record 10 strong fleet for the Series to race in the foreground of downtown Miami’s impressive skyline.

A big draw to the class is the short, intense racing. As a well vetted monohull sailor, this weekend Pieter Taselaar spread his wings in the M32 catamaran, 'It's exciting to be flying at 20-25 knots above the water. As a driver you really have to focus on maintaining speed and nailing the manoeuvres, the proper rate of turn is critical.'

As a hugely successful winter draws to a close, we look forward to a strong summer season of M32 sailing in North America with the full program to be announced soon. We’d like to thank all those involved with the Series this year and look forward to welcoming you along for the 2018 M32 Miami Winter Series.

Leaderboard - Miami Winter Series 2017

Pos	Team	Skipper	E1	E2	E3	E4	Tot Pts
1	REV	Rick DeVos	15	14	15	24	68
2	Convexity	Donald Wilson / Jason Carroll	14	13	11	22	60
3	XS Energy	Ryan DeVos	12	15	14	16	57
4	Liftoff	Malcolm Gefter	11	10	13	18	52
5	Bliksem	Pieter Taselaar	13	11	-	8	32
6	TBA	Jim Prendergast	0	-	9	20	29
7	102BFAST	Charles Tomeo	0	12	12	-	24
8	Escape Velocity	Ron O'Hanley	10	-	8	-	18
9	E11EVEN RACING	Markus Edegran	0	-	-	14	14
10	Peshmerga	Drew Wierda	0	-	-	12	12
11	Convergence	Jennifer Wilson	0	-	-	10.1	10
12	Next Generation	Carson Crain	0	-	10	-	10
13	Extreme 2 Sailing Team	Dan Cheresh	0	-	-	6	6