Press Release
23rd June 2003
Light conditions for the first
day of Giraglia Rolex Cup British Enigma wins
from the Italian Idea
Five
knots of wind at the start building to a patchy
nine knots in the afternoon, bright sunshine and
temperatures topping 35 degrees, were the conditions
that the 120 boat fleet faced for the first inshore
race of the Giraglia Rolex Cup in St Tropez, France
today. The race was a slow affair with the leading
Maxis taking more than two hours to sail the 17-mile
course. The smaller classes of the 120 boat fleet
spending closer to five hours on the course.
It
was Charles Dunstone¹s Enigma of London that
made the early running with a clean start, opting
straight away for the right hand side of the Gulf.
Always in the pressure it took more than 20 minutes
for the much larger Alfa Romeo to get back to
the right side of the course and into the lead
on the water.
The
6-mile upwind leg took the fleet out of the Gulf
of St Tropez to a buoy five miles off the Pampelonne
Beach. By the weather mark, more than an hour
into the race, Alfa Romeo held a slim 5-minute
lead on the British boat Enigma on the water not
enough on corrected time. The second leg, a close
reach should have suited those boats that set
Code Zero masthead headsails. The New Zealand
registered Alfa Romeo made this choice and disappeared
over the horizon away from the rest of fleet as
those without this light weather headsail considered
what might have been. Enigma chose to sail high
under headsail and then set a spinnaker closer
to the second mark. The third leg was again a
light reach that turned into a run. At the finish
of this light and slow race Neville Crichton¹s
Maxi lead by more than 20 minutes, but it was
Enigma¹s day whose first outing against real
opposition proved highly rewarding.
Further
down the fleet the day proved extremely long and
frustrating as the smaller boats suffered in the
light and patchy winds, not benefiting from the
tall rigs of the Maxi boats. In Class One it was
Stefano Spangaro¹s X-Sport that lead from
the start, showing the same kind of form as at
the Rolex IMS Offshore Worlds in Capri last month.
Class
Two, the largest class in the fleet with 41 boats
and with two large One Design subdivisions (IMX
40 and Beneteau 40.7), had its own start. It was
the day of the IMX 40s with Piergiorgio Ravioni¹s
Exploit winning Class Two, two other IMX 40s taking
second and third in class.
Provisional
Results after first race
Class Zero
Pos.
Boat Type
Owner/Skipper Corrected Time
*1st
Enigma Reichel/Pugh 70
Dunstone/Bedford 2:12:03
2nd
Idea
Raiola/deAngelis 2:14:04
3rd
Alpha Romeo Reichel/Pugh 90
Neville Crichton 2:18:26
Class
One
Place
Boat Type
Owner/Skipper Corrected Time
1st
X-Sport Gd Soleil 56R
Spangaro/Benussi 2:23:28
2nd
Imagine IMX 45
Argelies/ 2:27:17
3rd
Aurora Canard 41
Berruto-Bonomo 2:31:11
Class
Two
Place
Boat Type
Owner/Skipper Corrected Time
1st
Xploit IMX 40
Ravaioni 2:33:56
2nd
Farewell IMX 40
Pierrejean 2:39:46
3rd
Nearmiss IMX 40
Noel 2:40:35
Class
Three
Place
Boat Type
Owner/Skipper Corrected Time
1st
Key West Beneteau First 36.7
Vaccarone-Francesia 2:48:29
2nd
Alcidia Beneteau First
36.7 R Nicolas/ 2:50:35
3rd
Malf Amato C&C 37
Leuzzi/ 2:50:43
Class
Four
Place
Boat Type
Owner/Skipper Corrected Time
1st
Dream Away X-342
Poli/ 2:53:39
2nd
Ala Bianca Polaris 33
Capozzi/ 2:59:13
3rd
Mariolina Beneteau First
31.7 La Volpe/ 3:02:34
*Best
Corrected Time.
Racing
in the Giraglia Rolex Cup will continue on Tuesday
24th June, with the second inshore race.
Giraglia
Rolex Cup 2003 Race Day One
Quotes:
³We
didn¹t expect the wind on the right at the
start. Enigma had better local knowledge than
us and they showed the way from the start. After
that it was difficult to get far enough ahead
to beat them on corrected. They sailed well.²
Neville Crichton, owner and skipper of Alfa Romeo,
first home today but correcting out with third
best time.
³We
didn¹t need a Code Zero today. The boat went
just fine with what we had.² Charles Dunstone,
owner/helmsamn Enigma, corrected time winner Class
Zero and Best Corrected Time for the fleet.
³It
all happened in the first five miles. It was important
to be on the right at the start, and to not miss
any of the shifts. The pressure was generally
better on the right, Enigma sailed over there
first and we never managed to get back to them.²
Francesco de Angelis, helmsman on board Idea,
second place Class Zero.
³Finding
shade on the boat was today¹s biggest battle.²
Jonnie Higham, navigator Edimetra VI, sixth place
Class Zero.
