iShares Cup Kiel - A mixed bag of fortunes for BT

by BT Team Ellen on 1 Sep 2009
iShares Cup in Kiel held over the weekend produced seen some great racing and drama. Conditions were difficult for the 10 Extreme - squalls, torrential rain, thunder and lightning with the wind range from six knots to 14 knots and occasional some strong gusts that caught out British skipper Mike Golding, who capsized during racing on the first day.

After a nail bitting final race, Oman Sail Masirah scored their third consecutive victory, followed by teammate Renaissance and the French boat Groupama 40. It was again a mixed bag of fortunes for Nick Moloney and the BT Extreme 40 crew, although two wins in race 6 and 8 showed their capabilities if a good start could be had. But the team struggled to match the furious pace of the front runners, despite trying a different rig set up on the final day as they struggled with the boat speed, and finally finished eighth at the German event.

BT helm, who missed the Hyères and Cowes rounds due to a knee injury, Darren Bundock explained, after day 2: 'Six races today, and six different winners. We won the first race and then it was all downhill from there. Light wind, rain and more rain... A hard day in the office!'

After day two of the iShares Cup Kiel, the podium was still wide open and with six races to go plus a double points up for grabs on the last race of the day, everything was still possible. The battle was really tight between Holmatro, Team iShares and BT, all fighting for mid-way down the leaderboard.

There was no real overall strategy for the final day, especially due to the shifty conditions on the racecourse, where it was be crucial to sieze the opportunitues when they materialised: 'What we going to try and do is minimise any bad races, keep the results around fifth/sixth then take the opportunity when we're with the top three and get as many race wins as we can,' explained Ed Barney.

Unfortunately, Day 3 was not any easier. While the leaders were engaged in a tight battle for the podium, Nick Moloney, Darren Bundock, Ed Barney and Steve Mitchel were having trouble finding good boat speed. In the end, they had to concede sixth place to Team iShares and seventh to Holmatro, who had temporary BT skipper Mitch Booth, who covered for Darren at the previous two events, at their helm.

The penultimate round of the 2009 iShares Cup Extreme 40 Sailing Series takes place oer 25-27 September in Amsterdam (Holland). The dream of finishing on the overall 2009 podium, which they have done over the previous two years, may be diminishing fast but the BT team are determined to finish as high up the leaderboard as possible against some of the best sailors in the world.