ZOKE Kiwi Match Step Up To The Big League

by Logan Fraser on 5 Oct 2011
Logan Fraser from Zoke Kiwi Match Racing reports ahead of the Argo Group Gold Cup, part of the World Match Racing Tour, in Bermuda:

Coming off our recent successes in the USA, ZOKE Kiwi Match is about to step things up a level. The team is off to Bermuda, for stage 7 of the World Match Racing Tour - the Bermuda Gold Cup. This will be our first World Tour event for the year and timing couldn’t be better, given our hot streak.

After our emphatic USA GRAND SLAM win last month, our recent run of form continued into our last event, the Nations Cup Grand Final in Sheboygan, WI. We were thrilled to come away from Sheboygan with a regatta win and to claim the Nations Cup title for the Oceania Region. The conditions throughout the event were extremely difficult, with cold autumn weather, big breeze and huge waves. We managed to keep our composure throughout, sail fast, keep the racing close and look for opportunities to pass in the big waves downwind to come out on top. The challenge ahead will be to maintain our winning streak as we come up against the best in the world in Bermuda.

The Bermuda Gold Cup is the longest running and largest event on the World Match Racing Tour. With 24 of the world’s best teams competing, it’s also one of the most difficult to succeed in. The teams are split into 3 pools of 8, and the top 2 of each pool qualify directly to the quarter finals. The next 2 teams go into a Repechage Round Robin, with the top 2 from that joining the other 6 teams in the quarters.

This is our first time competing in Bermuda and the need to perform straight out of the gate has never been more crucial. It’s an event that can benefit the teams that have been here before as the learning curve is not quite as steep. That combined with a tough format means we are definitely going to have to step our game up to have any success here.

Whatever the outcome, Bermuda is a beautiful place to sail. Positioned some 650 miles east of the USA, it is one of the most remote islands in the world. Being only 20.7 miles in area it’s also not very big. The crystal blue water in Hamilton Harbour and the sandy beaches around the 75 miles of coastline definitely make it one of the most spectacular locations on the world tour.

Live coverage of the Bermuda Gold Cup can be found on the World Match Racing Tour website www.wmrt.com as well as the daily morning and afternoon shows. Keep up to date with how we are going on our team website www.kiwimatch-sailing.com with our twitter feed, photos and videos and remember to follow the link to join our Facebook page.

Thanks again to our principal sponsor ZOKE, for making it all possible and our family, friends and fans for all their support.