Al Capone's alive and kicking

by Bob Fisher on 6 Jul 2005 Playing a conservative game, Einar Sissener’s Al Capone III is retaining her overall lead in the IMS European Championship at the halfway stage of the long race that concludes the series, the Eurocard Gotland Runt.

At the rounding of Hoburgen, at the southernmost point of the 362 nautical mile course, Al Capone III, from Norway, was in eighth place, giving her a provisional points total of 33.25. Her nearest rival had become Horst Mann’s Judel/Vrolijk 42, L+H Hispaniola, the corrected time leader at the halfway stage. The German boat had 66.25 points.

King Harald’s Fram XV was still the leader on the water, but had slipped to 30th of the 37-strong fleet on corrected time. Despite this huge penalty, with the points for this race being trebled, Fram XV was in third place overall.

The overnight breeze rose to as much as 24 knots as the boats beat their way to Visby and they then have a close reach to Almagrundet lighthouse in an easterly breeze of 11 knots.