PWA World Tour windsurfers on the water with the RC44s
by RC44 Class Association 30 Mar 2018 01:16 AEDT
PWA World Tour windsurfer Diony Guadagnio flying past Peninsula Petroleum © Nico Martinez / MartinezStudio
At the beginning of March the 2018 RC44 Championship Tour season kicked off in Lanzarote with the RC44 Calero Marinas Cup, however the carbon one-design racing yachts weren't the only pro fleet on the water.
In nearby Costa Teguise professional windsurfers from around the globe were taking part in the month long winter training program at the Slalom Pro Training Camp. With both disciplines out on the water at the same time PWA World Tour windsurfers Kurosh Kiani, Nicolas Goyard, Diony Guadagnino, 2017 Foiling World Champion Antoine Questel and Formula Windsurfing World Champion 2016 Alex Cousin took the morning off from their busy training schedule to get on the water and check out the RC44 racing.
Having met the crew of Team Aqua at the RC44 debrief in the Marina Lanzarote hospitality area the evening before, and with a shared interest in racing, Kurosh and his team joined the Aqua boys on the water to follow the first race of day two.
"We've been training in Lanzarote throughout February so we thought it would be good to check out what else is happening," Kurosh Kiani explained. "They are impressively beautiful boats. Our stuff is pretty high tech; the latest lightest materials, and you can see that in these boats too. The carbon hull, the carbon mast, everything is built for performance. It's super impressive to sail next to them and see how small we are in comparison. "
Tactician on Team Aqua, Cameron Appleton added: "The RC44 fleet has been coming to Lanzarote for winter racing over the past seven years and it is great to see how the island has developed as a destination for water sports. Last November, whilst we were racing we were lucky enough to see the start of the RORC Transatlantic Race and this year we've got the pro windsurfers out here with us. There is plenty going on."
For the RC44 Calero Marinas Cup four days of perfect racing conditions culminated in Monaco based team Charisma taking the event win in the final race. The technical racing and big breeze allowing the boats to hit their top boat speed of 26 knots and delivering the world class racing teams a thrilling week of racing. For the windsurfers, February in Lanzarote delivered week after week of consistent winter training in challenging conditions, proving Lanzarote as the top destination for winter water sports.
Click here to find out more about the Slalom Pro Training Camp or here to find out more about Marina Lanzarote.