Please select your home edition
Edition
Cyclops Marine 2023 November - LEADERBOARD

2023 44Cup Cowes World Championship Day 3

by 44Cup 12 Aug 2023 10:36 PDT 9-13 August, 2023

With near gale force winds forecast for the afternoon, to stay on schedule racing for the high performance owner-driver RC44 one designs on the penultimate day of their World Championship was brought forward by two hours with a first warning signal at 0930.

In the southwesterly breeze the race area was set up between Hill Head and the Brambles Bank, in the northeastern quadrant of the central Solent, by the Royal Yacht Squadron's expert race management team led by Peter Saxton and the 44Cup's own PRO Maria Torrijo.

In fact when racing got under way it was only in 16 knots, the tide running from left to right across the course. Torbjörn Törnqvist's Artemis Racing and Igor Lah's Team Ceeref powered by Hrastnik 1860 were called over early. While the right was winning early, the left came good up the beat and here Team Nika managed to round ahead of Nico Poons' Charisma and then continued to hang on for the remainder of the race.

Tactician Nick Asher described the conditions: "It wasn't as windy as we thought it would be to start with. We were wondering about which jib to go on - everyone was on their J3 and we matched them. It was very shifty - puffy with some big holes in it - it was about just trying to get off the line and stay in phase. There were lefties - 20 degrees shifts coming off the island - and more pressure sometimes."

In the next two races, it was the turn of the defending world champions and 2023 44Cup leaders Charisma. Again the Monaco-flagged team headed left and, despite being caught up in traffic with Chris Bake's Team Aqua and John Bassadone's Peninsula Racing, wriggled clear, crossing clear ahead of several starboard tackers to squeak around the top mark just ahead of Hugues Lepic's Aleph Racing and Ceeref. Despite Ceeref and Team Aqua gybing early on the run, Charisma stayed in front to take her first bullet of the series.

Charisma did well out on the left again in race three, but this time pulled out a solid lead by the top mark, leaving teams Nika and Aqua to round behind in traffic. Charisma went to claim the bullet unperturbed until the final run when the chasing packed closed in with the top five crossing the line within just nine seconds.

With a near perfect 2-1-1 scoreline today, Charisma has surged up the leaderboard, five points ahead of Team Nika and another two ahead of 2019/21 World Champions Team Aqua.

Traditionally Charisma's crew likes the big conditions but Poons points out that they won last year's World Championship in Portorož, Slovenia in sub-6 knot conditions. "But," he observes, "our chances in heavy weather are less open-ended than in light conditions." As to any tactics tomorrow, Poons says "We will just do our thing like normal and go as fast as possible..."

Main sheet trimmer Chris Hosking added: "Today was good. The 44s are renowned for being exhilarating boats in those wind speeds. They are fantastic boats - upwind we were doing target [speed] and downwind we were planning. We were all pushing each other to keep fully focussed. We had three great starts and good boat control."

As to why they went left, Hosking explained: "The first two races certainly there was current, which we thought was favourable on that side. The third race was a more open race track with a few more options."

Both Team Nika and Team Aqua scored nine points today, with Hugues Lepic's Aleph Racing a point from the podium. A 4-3-2 restored day one leader Team Aqua to the podium. "I thought it was quite hard upwind, but downwind we had good speed and good angles and we recovered from some bad mistakes," said Chris Bake, who is hosting the 44Cup Cowes via his club, the Royal Yacht Squadron. "Overall it was a really fun day - the RC44 comes alive in 20+ knots. It was really gusty from 16-23 knots and really fun...when we were going well... Obviously Nico and Charisma are sailing very strong. Hopefully we can get a few races in tomorrow."

Team Ceeref powered by Hrastnik 1860 has been uncharacteristically light on top placed finishes this regatta and posted a 3-5-3 today, leaving her fifth. "It was great sailing - a lot of wind but up and down, right and left. I enjoyed it a lot - it was extremely hard to steer, but I survived. Now I have to go and have a cup of tea!" said Igor Lah.

Charisma's Chris Hosking concluded: "It is never over until it is over in this class. There are too many good boats here and good people to go resting on your laurels, based on what happened yesterday. We will need to stay fully focussed and check through our processes and do basic things well - get off the start; make sure we are going quick and don't make any boat handling errors."

Tomorrow racing is scheduled to start on time at 1130 BST.

2023 44Cup World Championship ranking: (after ten races)

1. Charisma - 4 2 2 4 8 2 6 2 1 1 - 32pts
2. Team Nika - 7 3 1 2 4 5 5 1 4 5 - 37pts
3. Team Aqua - 1 1 4 8 1 7 8 4 3 2 - 39pts
4. Aleph Racing - 2 5 6 3 2 6 1 7 2 4 (2) - 40pts
5. Team Ceeref powered by Hrastnik 1860 - 6 7 7 5 5 3 3 3 5 3 - 47pts
6. Peninsula Racing - 3 4 5 7 7 1 7 5 6 8 - 53pts
7. Black Star Sailing Team - 5 6 3 6 6 4 2 8 7 6 - 53pts
8. Artemis Racing - 8 9 8 1 3 8 4 6 8 7 - 62pts
9. Bullet - 9 8 9 9 9 9 10DNF 9 9 10DNF - 91pts

44Cup overall ranking 2023 (after two events)

1. Charisma - 2 1 - 3pts
2. Team Ceeref powered by Hrastnik 1860 - 1 5 - 6pts
3. Peninsula Racing - 4 2 - 6pts
4. Aleph Racing - 3 3 - 6pts
5. Team Nika - 5 4 - 9pts
6. Black Star Sailing Team - 8 6 - 14pts
7. Artemis Racing - 6 8 - 14pts
8. Team Aqua - 7 7 - 14pts

Related Articles

Marstrand challenges Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team
Team Nika claimed the overall victory after a dramatic final day in the 44Cup Marstrand Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team wrapped up their participation in the 44Cup Marstrand in 10th place after a week marked by extreme weather conditions that tested the international sailing elite. Posted on 29 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 overall
Team Nika's golden wheels get shinier While the penultimate day of racing at the 44Cup Marstand was cancelled due to excess wind, today conditions off the paradise Swedish island for the final three races were still boisterous from the lumpy residual sea state after Friday's gale. Posted on 28 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 day 3
Gale force winds batter the west coast of Sweden With gale force winds battering the west coast of Sweden, racing had to be cancelled on day three of the 44Cup Marstrand. Posted on 27 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 day 2
Aleph Racing takes the lead after glorious four race day The 44Cup is nothing but surprises. Day two of competition for the one-design owner-driver RC44s at the 44Cup Marstrand was forecast to be light but in fact provided further magnificent conditions, with sunshine and flatter seas than yesterday. Posted on 26 Jun
Tough start for Lanzarote Calero in Marstrand
An intense day on the water, marked by gusty winds and a series of incidents The Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team began their participation in the 44Cup Marstrand with an intense day on the water, marked by sunny conditions, gusty winds, and a series of incidents that impacted the day's results. Posted on 26 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 day 1
Peninsula Racing and Team Nika share the limelight After a gale forced the cancellation of yesterday's practice racing, for day one of the 44Cup Marstrand, taking place off the familiar Swedish paradise island, there was a west to northwesterly that built as the afternoon progressed, to 17 knots. Posted on 25 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 starts tomorrow
Fleet back up to 12 on eve of breezy Marstrand event While the RC44s were up to 11 for the last event in Porto Cervo, for this week's 44Cup Marstrand, scheduled to set sail tomorrow from the breezy west coast of Sweden, the fleet has now grown to 12. Posted on 24 Jun
Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team returns to Marstrand
The team returns to these waters with good memories The Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team is heading into the third stage of the 2025 44Cup in Marstrand, Sweden, with a clear objective: to turn the season around and climb the overall rankings. Posted on 21 Jun
44Cup Marstrand 2025 preview
3rd event of the season in Sweden next week Historically this is the most consistently visited venue for the high performance owner-driver RC44 one designs and their owners, which have visited the remote picture postcard island on Sweden's west coast since 2011, with the sole exception of 2016. Posted on 20 Jun
Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team at 44Cup Porto Cervo
Heads held high and another important step forward in its journey The Lanzarote Calero Sailing Team concluded its participation in the 44Cup Porto Cervo with heads held high and another important step forward in its journey within the demanding RC44 circuit. Posted on 19 May
C-Tech 2021 SnuffAir 728x90 BOTTOMSea Sure 2025PredictWind - GPS 728x90 BOTTOM