The eastern Solent threw up a magnificent opening day of competition for the RC44 Portsmouth Cup with the wind mostly blowing at 10 knots before building to 20+ ahead of a squall. Once this kicked in it provided the high speed thrills and spills for which the nimble one design RC44 keelboat is famous in these conditions.
The stand-out performance of the day was from Vladimir Liubomirov's Bronenosec which was unbeaten across the five races she sailed today. Igor Lah's Team CEEREF, the present RC44 fleet racing championship leader, had one of the best match racing days of her long career in the RC44 class, winning five of the seven races she sailed.
The RC44 Portsmouth Cup is the third event of the 2016 Championship Tour, which pitts the world's top businessmen and the best sailors in the industry compete in high performance one-design 44-foot carbon racing yachts. Published July 13, 2016.
RC44 Class Association - RC44 Fleet racing:
Published on May 16, 2016: The RC44 World Championship Marina de Sotogrande, Fleet racing day 4, had a worthy winner in Igor Lah and his Team CEEREF crew, the second occasion the Slovenian team has claimed this prize. But this was only after some anxious moments off the Andalusian port, as Lah's crew slogged it out with local heroes, John Bassadone's Peninsula Petroleum from nearby Gibraltar.
RC44 Portsmouth Cup 13-17 July 2016: "... a home-water advantage for five-time RC44 Championship Tour winner Team Aqua. Owner Chris Bake, will be hoping to lead his team to a home victory this summer. The world famous and challenging waters of the Solent host some of the world’s most famous sailing events including, Cowes Week and the Round the Island Race. These waters will be a fantastic event for the class offering dynamic sailing at the UK event. "It’s great to have such a prestigious and high caliber event come to Portsmouth. We are delighted to be able to host the event from within our Team headquarters. Allowing us to share these outstanding facilities with like-minded individuals and we will enjoy having ringside seats to the action this RC44 event is sure to bring. It’s a pleasure to have you all here and good luck,"--Sir Ben Ainslie."
RC44 Portsmouth Cup Schedule:
Wednesday 13th July
1000 - 1100 Skippers briefing. Guest briefing & tour of Land Rover BAR base.
1100 - 1130 RC44s and hospitality RIBs head out to race area
1130 First warning signal for Match Racing
1530 - 1800 hrs : Guests and sailors back to shore and post race reception
Thursday 14th July
1000 - 1100 Skippers briefing. Guest briefing & tour of Land Rover BAR base.
1100 - 1130 RC44s and hospitality RIBs head out to race area
1130 First warning signal for Fleet Racing Day 1
1530 - 1800 Guests and sailors back to shore and post race reception
1700 Skippers Press Conference
Friday 15th July
1000 - 1100 Skippers briefing. Guest briefing & tour of Land Rover BAR base
1100 - 1130 RC44s and hospitality RIBs head out to race area
1130 First warning signal for Fleet Racing Day 2
1530 - 1800 Guests and sailors back to shore and post race reception
2000 - 2300 RC44 Portsmouth Cup Official Gala Dinner
Saturday 16th July
1000 - 1100 Skippers briefing.Guest briefing & tour of Land Rover BAR base
1100 - 1130 RC44s and hospitality RIBs head out to race area
1130 First warning signal for Fleet Racing Day 3
1530 - 1800 Guests and sailors back to shore and post race reception
Sunday 17th July
1000 - 1100 Skippers briefing. Guest briefing & tour of Land Rover BAR base
1100 - 1130 RC44s and hospitality RIBs head out to race area
1130 First warning signal for Fleet Racing Day 2
1530 - 1800 Guests and sailors back to shore and post race reception
1630 Official Prize Giving
More info: rc44.com and RC44 Portsmouth Cup
Tweets by RC44Class
RC44 2016 Schedule:
- RC44 BERMUDA CUP 2 - 6 March
- RC44 SOTOGRANDE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 11 - 15 May
- RC44 PORTSMOUTH CUP 13 - 17 July
- RC44 CASCAIS CUP 21 - 25 September
- RC44 VALLETTA CUP 23 - 27 November
more sailing news below (@ web version link below for mobile)
Follow @johnthecrowd
