SSL City Grand Slam - Melleby and Revkin in action on Day 1

by Rachele Vitello on 4 May 2016 Three heats, nine races and 86 Star teams, commenced battle on the first day of racing at the inaugural Star Sailors League City Grand Slam on Lake Alster, Hamburg, Germany. There were a few surprises as the rapidly changing conditions caught out many of the teams taking part, resulting in several World Class Star Sailors failing to make the top ten after three races.

With two more days of racing in the qualifying rounds scheduled, it is still early days but today's conditions showed that Lake Alster is an exceptionally challenging place to race. The key to today's top performers was starting well and keeping your 'head out of the boat' to anticipate changes in the wind.

The Norwegian and American team of Eivind Melleby and Josh Revkin put in a stellar performance today and lead the 86-strong Star Class fleet after three races. Melleby has been away from the Star fleet for some time but his young crew from Connecticut USA is a rising star, having come third in last month's Star World Championship with Brian Ledbetter. Melleby and Revkin were competing in the last heat of the day and won all three races but it was far from easy. “We had to fight all the way.” commented Eivind Melleby. “There are many world class sailors at the regatta and many more that know this lake very well. To be honest, I am a little surprised that we were so quick. The last time I raced was over a year ago but our speed was very good and so was our starting procedure.”

Mateusz Kusznierewicz and Dominik Zycki scored two straight bullets and a rare tie for first place in the last race with Diego Negri and Sergio Lambertenghi. Dominating two of today's races, puts the Polish team in second place overall after three races. “I have grown up sailing on lakes, so this was not unusual for me. Dominik and I have not sailed together as often as some of the other teams but in the past we have sailed together for so long and we have a fantastic understanding, it is like knowing how to ride a bicycle. It was our good starts and boat speed that were gave us the results today.”

The young American team of Luke Lawrence and Ian Coleman put in a top class performance, scoring a win and two second places to end the day third overall. Lawrence and Coleman are one of the youngest teams racing at the SSL City Grand Slam and came fifth at last month's Star World Championship in April. “We got off the line well today and kept in simple.” commented Luke Lawrence. “For the short first upwind leg, we decided to go for the right hand side of the course, as coming in on starboard tack was nearly always going to pay. Even if the left had a better breeze or a bit of bias, it is far better to come into the first top mark with rights.”

Other top performers today included local sailors, Johannes Polgar and Markus Koy, who finished the day in fourth place and fellow Germans, Michael Koch and Carsten Witt, who finished the day in fifth place. Racing resumes tomorrow for the second day of the qualifying rounds, light winds are forecast for the day.

Full coverage of all five days of action will be streamed live on the Internet for Free, with expert commentary from special studio guests, including Dennis Conner. On the water, the latest in hi-tech camera technology, as well as Virtual Eye 3D Graphics, will provide thrilling viewing. Armchair sailors can also race the course with Virtual Regatta.

Watch the races from Tuesday, May the 3rd at 10 AM to Saturday, May the 7th:

Overall Results:

Nr	Bow#	Sail Number	Team	Country	Heinz-Nixdorf-Pokal R1	Heinz-Nixdorf-Pokal R2	Heinz-Nixdorf-Pokal R3	T	N
1	10	NOR 8317	Eivind MELLEBY Joshua REVKIN	NOR	1.0	1.0	1.0	3.0	3.0
2	9	POL 8404	Mateusz KUZNIEREWICZ Dominik ZYCKI	POL	1.0	1.0	1.5	3.5	3.5
3	70	USA 2	Luke LAWRENCE Ian COLEMAN	USA	1.0	2.0	2.0	5.0	5.0
4	7	GER 8442	Johannes POLGAR Markus KOY	GER	3.0	2.0	6.0	11.0	11.0
5	64	GER 8204	Michael KOCH Carsten WITT	GER	6.0	3.0	3.0	12.0	12.0
6	8	BRA 8510	Torben GRAEL Stefano LILLIA	BRA	4.0	4.0	4.0	12.0	12.0
7	3	USA 8465	Augie DIAZ Bruno PRADA	USA	2.0	3.0	8.0	13.0	13.0
8	5	GER 8340	Robert STANJEK Frithjof KLEEN	GER	3.0	6.0	4.5	13.5	13.5
9	4	FRA 8237	Xavier ROHART Pierre-Alexis PONSOT	FRA	2.0	1.0	11.0	14.0	14.0
10	31	RUS 8281	Alexey ZHIVOTOVSKIY Lev SHNYR	RUS	6.0	5.0	3.0	14.0	14.0
11	91	GER 1122	Jan SEEKAMP Björn SCHÜTTE	GER	6.0	3.0	6.0	15.0	15.0
12	1	USA 8320	George SZABO Patrick DUCOMMUN	USA	4.0	8.0	4.5	16.5	16.5
13	19	USA 8464	Jack JENNINGS Phil TRINTER	USA	12.0	4.0	1.0	17.0	17.0
14	11	USA 8323	Eric DOYLE Payson INFELISE	USA	3.0	12.0	4.0	19.0	19.0
15	21	NED 8334	Thomas ALLART Christian GIANNI	NED	7.0	9.0	3.0	19.0	19.0
16	2	ITA 8497	Diego NEGRI Sergio LAMBERTENGHI	ITA	17.0	2.0	1.5	20.5	20.5
17	32	SWE 8352	Lars EDWALL Hakan LUNDGREN	SWE	13.0	4.0	6.0	23.0	23.0
18	12	ITA 7488	Roberto BENAMATI Alberto AMBROSINI	ITA	5.0	5.0	14.0	24.0	24.0
19	93	BRA 8172	Francisco SIEMSEN Arthur LOPES	BRA	12.0	6.0	7.0	25.0	25.0
20	38	GER 8225	Helge SPEHR Jesper SPEHR	GER	14.0	10.0	2.0	26.0	26.0
21	69	GER 7860	Alexander HAGEN Uli SEEBERGER	GER	7.0	10.0	9.0	26.0	26.0
22	17	GER 8491	Ulrich VATER Karsten MORF	GER	9.0	8.0	9.0	26.0	26.0
23	83	GER 7866	Philip BEHN Matthias WOLFF	GER	11.0	7.0	10.0	28.0	28.0
24	15	FIN 8121	Jesper SUNDMAN Tom SUNDMAN	FIN	11.0	14.0	5.0	30.0	30.0
25	6	GER 8450	Hubert MERKELBACH Gerrit BARTEL	GER	5.0	13.0	15.0	33.0	33.0
26	50	GER 8378	Frank TUSCH Sven WINKELMANN	GER	4.0	7.0	23.0	34.0	34.0
27	24	NED 8381	Haico de BOER Matthias WOLFF	NED	16.0	7.0	11.0	34.0	34.0
28	18	CRO 8339	Marin LOVROVIC Dan LOVROVIC	CRO	2.0	25.0	8.0	35.0	35.0
29	73	NED 7584	Alwin van DAELEN Jean Louis FLIER	NED	10.0	11.0	14.0	35.0	35.0
30	79	GER 8299	Joachim HELLMICH Stefan LACHER	GER	10.0	13.0	12.0	35.0	35.0
31	78	GER 8027	Sönke WESTPHAL Andreas KAERGER	GER	9.0	11.0	16.0	36.0	36.0
32	26	SWE 8433	Calle SCHRODER Alex SCHRÖDER	SWE	8.0	17.0	12.0	37.0	37.0
33	23	SUI 8351	Henrik DANNESBOE Jan BONHOEFFER	SUI	12.0	8.0	18.0	38.0	38.0
34	39	DEN 8380	Johnny JENSEN Frederik JEPPESEN	DEN	15.0	5.0	19.0	39.0	39.0
35	77	GER 7557	Florian RICHTER Sebastian RICHTER	GER	19.0	9.0	11.0	39.0	39.0
36	55	GER 8400	Jörg MELLIS Uli DAUB	GER	14.0	19.0	7.0	40.0	40.0
37	41	GER 8355	Christian PAUCKSCH Peter HÜBNER	GER	18.0	14.0	8.0	40.0	40.0
38	99	GER 8093	Dr Tobias BRINKMANN Marko A HASCHE	GER	11.0	9.0	20.0	40.0	40.0
39	85	UKR 8119	Pavlo BONDAR Mykola DMYTRENKO	UKR	21.0	6.0	14.0	41.0	41.0
40	48	GER 8384	Frank THURNER Michael ZILLER	GER	22.0	12.0	7.0	41.0	41.0
41	60	DEN 8261	Rune SCHYTT Henrik AHRENTSEN	DEN	7.0	30.0 DNC	5.0	42.0	42.0
42	74	GER 7483	Nils HANSEN Sven JOHANNSEN	GER	15.0	12.0	15.0	42.0	42.0
43	56	GER 8213	Felix GOLD Norbert PETER	GER	17.0	11.0	15.0	43.0	43.0
44	43	GER 8179	Klaus MEYER Jörg MÜLLER	GER	8.0	16.0	20.0	44.0	44.0
45	28	SWE 7978	Ingvar KROOK Christoffer LUNDGREN	SWE	16.0	15.0	13.0	44.0	44.0
46	89	GER 8118	Tillmann WIESE Benni BRAU	GER	20.0	17.0	9.0	46.0	46.0
47	30	GER 8262	Jochen DIERCKS Herbert BRAASCH	GER	20.0	16.0	10.0	46.0	46.0
48	71	GER 8190	Florian KUKE Lars LENSING-HEBBEN	GER	9.0	18.0	21.0	48.0	48.0
49	44	GER 8361	Stefan LEHNERT Dietmar HOBBIE	GER	22.0	16.0	10.0	48.0	48.0
50	94	GER 7806	Wulf KAHL Wulf Peter KAHL	GER	19.0	13.0	16.0	48.0	48.0
51	29	DEN 8296	Flemming SORENSEN Niels THRYSOE	DEN	10.0	22.0	17.0	49.0	49.0
52	46	ITA 8373	Guido FALCIOLA Luca PALOSCHI	ITA	22.0	14.0	13.0	49.0	49.0
53	96	GER 8109	Thorsten HÜLSMANN Magnus BOTHE	GER	14.0	21.0	16.0	51.0	51.0
54	45	GER 8483	John H HELMSING John SCHLUBACH	GER	17.0	15.0	19.0	51.0	51.0
55	66	GER 8020	Thomas APPEL Stephan WAGNER	GER	23.0	17.0	12.0	52.0	52.0
56	33	GER 8321	Arnd GLUNDE Marcel BELTZ	GER	15.0	19.0	18.0	52.0	52.0
57	59	GER 8346	Thomas KOHLER Christian KNOLL	GER	18.0	18.0	17.0	53.0	53.0
58	100	CHI 8173	Frank SCHÖNFELDT Carlos SCHULTZ OETTINGER	CHI	19.0	10.0	25.0	54.0	54.0
59	84	GER 7920	Andreas DELLWIG Oliver HAHNE	GER	13.0	22.0	19.0	54.0	54.0
60	35	GER 8130	Henning VOIGT Dirk STRUVE	GER	20.0	21.0	13.0	54.0	54.0
61	95	SWE 7758	Robert SJÖGREN Mattias HEIDING	SWE	18.0	15.0	22.0	55.0	55.0
62	27	GER 8416	Hubert RAUCH Kilian WEISE	GER	21.0	23.0	17.0	61.0	61.0
63	51	GER 8150	Olaf RICHTER Andreas KÖHLER	GER	24.0	19.0	18.0	61.0	61.0
64	68	DEN 8428	Frank BERG Martin HEJLSBERG	DEN	25.0	18.0	21.0	64.0	64.0
65	87	GER 99	Tim KAMRATH Axel SCHULTE	GER	21.0	21.0	22.0	64.0	64.0
66	16	CRO 8360	Marin MISURA Tonko BARAC	CRO	5.0	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	65.0	65.0
67	37	POL 8417	Ireneusz STAWIANY Jakub STAWIANY	POL	26.0	20.0	21.0	67.0	67.0
68	67	NED 8350	Hein DIJKSTERHUIS Jim DIJKSTERHUIS	NED	8.0	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	68.0	68.0
69	88	GER 768	Rainer KAMRATH Henning WIEZORKE	GER	16.0	23.0	30.0 DNF	69.0	69.0
70	49	GER 7686	Robin NOLTE Andree NOLTE	GER	23.0	24.0	22.0	69.0	69.0
71	58	SUI 8133	Urs INFANGER Oleg CHTCHETININE	SUI	24.0	26.0	20.0	70.0	70.0
72	47	GER 8124	Uwe HANNEMANN Annette DAHMS	GER	28.0	20.0	24.0	72.0	72.0
73	63	GER 7272	Reiner PETERSEN Oliver BERGER	GER	24.0	25.0	23.0	72.0	72.0
74	13	GER 8414	Achim GRIESE Michael MARCOUR	GER	13.0	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	73.0	73.0
75	81	GER 7859	Peter TOEDT Stefan KÄSHAMMER	GER	26.0	24.0	25.0	75.0	75.0
76	76	POL 8365	Mariusz MODRZYNSKI Maciej DABROWSKI	POL	28.0	20.0	28.0	76.0	76.0
77	34	GER 8311	Axel HAMPE Christian CONRADS	GER	25.0	27.0	24.0	76.0	76.0
78	61	GER 7674	Dominik FALLAIS Markus KATTENBUSCH	GER	23.0	28.0	26.0	77.0	77.0
79	57	GER 7449	Peer PETERSEN Frank WIESNER	GER	27.0	26.0	26.0	79.0	79.0
80	62	GER 7466	Günter KELLERMANN Erik KELLERMANN	GER	26.0	28.0	27.0	81.0	81.0
81	75	SUI 7948	Alexander TENNIGKEIT Jo SCHWARZ	SUI	27.0	27.0	27.0	81.0	81.0
82	86	ITA 83	Edoardo CATTAPAN Tommaso SAPONARO	ITA	25.0	30.0 DNC	30.0 DNC	85.0	85.0
83	92	GER 7251	Henning DIECKMANN Michael HEINLEIN	GER	30.0 DNF	29.0	28.0	87.0	87.0
84	25	USA 8310	Benjamin STERNBERG Stuart MACINTOSH	USA	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	90.0	90.0
84	54	USA 8507	Jim REVKIN Hannes LINDAUER	USA	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	30.0 DNC	90.0	90.0
84	80	GER 8005	Jürgen PAUST Stefan PAUST	GER	30.0 DNF	30.0 DNC	30.0 DNC	90.0	90.0

DNC	Did not start; did not come to the starting area
DNF	Did not finish