Virtual Eye- Bigamist 7's amazing recovery in Race 8 of Audi MedCup
by Virtual Eye on 25 Jul 2009
Bigamist 7 (center) of the line) is just over at the start, along with Matador which was almost a boatlength over at the Committee boat end in Race 8. ARL Media
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Bigamist 7 made an amazing recovery in Race 8 of the Audi MedCup being staged in Sardinia.
Using Virtual Eye we are able to see her jump the start and be recalled, and then climb back to be second at the weather mark for the first time.
A big right hand shift in the breeze off Sardinia, lifted Bigamist 7 from seventh to first in the space of just under five minutes
Bigamist 7 clung to Emirates Team NZ for the next two legs, getting through the New Zealanders mid-way up the second beat, and then held off a two boat attack to ease away for a comfortable win.
Click in the appropriate part of the caption to see these images in full frame.
Matdor and Bigamist 7 return to be a long way behind the fleet
Bigamist 7 sets off after her restart taking a big move out to the starboard layline, and dropping back from 158 metres at the start to 177 metres at this point.
Bribon sees Bigamist 7 starting to get onto something and comes across bouncing Bigamist 7 out to the right. Although B7 is 7th she has reduced the margin by 100metres - see her curved track as she lifts on starboard.
Bigamist 7 comes back onto starboard, continues to lift against the port tackers and comes back to lead the eight strong fleet - having hauled back a massive 177 metres.
Bigamist 7 continues down the starboard laying, Emirates Team NZ while back in second for a time centralised on he course and was just able to keep clear on a lee bow tack against Bigamist 7 to take the lead, at the end of Leg 1.
At the first mark Matador has recovered and is in second place in the starboard tack lineup
Back of fleet luffing incident around Mark 1, while Emirates Team NZ lead.
Bigamist 7 defends from Emirates Team NZ and Bribon as the leaders approach the finish line at the end of Race 8
Pedro Mendonça’s Bigamist team is a well known group who have long campaigned under Portuguese colours. Skipper-helm Afonso Domingos is a top Star sailor in his own right, winning the 2008 Bacardi Cup and finishing 8th in the Star class at the 2008 Olympic Games.
They have sailed on the Audi MedCup Circuit since 2006 in Bigamist VI which was originally Lexus Quantum which finished second overall in 2005. In spite of its age relative to the rest of the fleet Bigamist VI showed well in Cartagena and in Portimao, scoring a handful of fourth and fifth places.
For 2009 Mendonça has bought the former Platoon, the 2008 Judel Vrolijk design which finished fifth overall in 2008.
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