[Source: Vulcain Trophy] Alinghi and Realstone Sailing end the weekend of Grand Prix Les Ambassadeurs level on points, but Alinghi wins the event thanks to one more victory in all 14 races sailed during the event (5 wins for Alinghi vs. 4 for Realstone). You could not dream a better season opening for the Vulcain Trophy presented by Business & Decision!

“It is really fantastic that we have been able to sail 14 races this weekend, and it’s very satisfying to race at this level! I would like to congratulate the Realstone team that sailed very well during the whole event. It came down to very little, actually a single race. It could have been them, it could have been us! I’m really happy to start the season in these gorgeous weather conditions! I also would like to congratulate our tactician Tanguy Cariou who did a wonderful job” said Ernesto Bertarelli.

Jérôme Clerc, skipper of Realstone Sailing, cannot hide his disappointment. “I am obviously disappointed. We sailed very well and have been constant throughout the weekend. I think we showed a great potential. I was a little nervous today because we had already blown our wild card (disqualification on the occasion of a slight collision with Ladycat). That’s certainly why I made a mistake on the starting line of the second race and it definitely didn’t help.”

Paul Cayard, skipper of Artemis Racing, who finished in 3rd position, commented: “This weekend is the most beautiful event I attended since I am on the circuit! I look forward to the next races in Crans.”

The general ranking went through a lot of changes today. De Rham – Sotheby’s, skippered by Philippe Cardis, moves up one place overall with two nice races today, while the crew of Zen Too, after its capsize yesterday, had promised some action today. And action there was, with a win in the first race and a second place in the last one.

All crews have commented the new race format, which opens further tactical options, but also brings more suspense because it allows many ranking changes during the regattas. “This new race format is very demanding! The legs are very short; you have to maneuver a lot. That’s why it is important for the crew to be well trained” said Yann Guichard, tactician aboard Ladycat, 4th overall. “It is true that the new gate brings in adrenaline rushes and puts us in situations that are sometimes really hot!”

Next event in two weeks in Crans (Open de Crans, 26-27 May)!

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Overall ranking:

1. Alinghi (29 points) – 2. Realstone Sailing (29 points) – 3. Artemis Racing (54 points) – 4. Ladycat (62 points) – 5. De Rahm – Sotheby’s (63 points) – 6. Zen Too (66 points) – 7. Okalys – Corum (70 points) – 8. Nickel (85 points) – 9. Veltigroup (102 points)

[Source: Artemis Racing] Today was the beginning of another season in the D35 Class here on Lake Geneva. This first regatta, Grand Prix Les Ambassadeurs, is part of a series of regattas called “The Vulcain Trophy”, which includes the Bol d’Or in June. Artemis finished 4th last season and we were excited to get back out there this morning.

Six races were planned for the fleet of nine boats sailing out of the Societe Nautique de Geneve today. We had clear blue skies this morning and the wind filled in around noon. Racing got under way at 1230. We had a very mediocre day onboard Artemis during the first 3 races, with scores of 8th, 4th and 6th, in the 6-8 knot breeze from the Northeast. Nothing in particular happened but a lot of little things did not go well. Probably a little “rust” from not having sailed competitively in the boat for six months.

Then there was a long pause while the wind shifted 180 degrees and filled in at 20 knots with gusts to 22 knots and lulls to 9 knots. As the wind was coming off the city, it was very puffy and shifty. The sailing was very exciting and the boats were traveling at high speeds in the conditions. We’d had a decent third race in the 4th race of the day were sailing upwind on starboard tack and we were on a collision course with Zen who was on port tack. They tried to slow down to get behind us and miss judged it. The result was a violent crash into our port side. The hull is ok but the port “rack” is destroyed. We had to withdraw from further racing for the day. One of our crew members was thrown into the water from the impact and we narrowly avoided a pitch pole (capsizing by putting the bow under (a cartwheel) as Zen spun us away from the wind.

Anyway, we got the boat back to the dock at the SNG and are in the midst of a repair so we can compete again tomorrow.

[Source: Alinghi] The Alinghi D35 team won the Switzerland-based Challenge Julius Baer multihull series for the third consecutive year. Alinghi has competed in every D35 championship on Lake Geneva since the 35ft one-design series began in 2004 and this year, as in recent events, the crew of six has been up against some of the most talented multihull sailors in the world throughout the summer-long 12-boat series. The illustrious roll call includes some of Alinghi’s own America’s Cup team members: Loïck Peyron and Alain Gautier, as well as Michel Desjoyeaux, Franck Cammas, Pascal Bidégorry and Karine Fauconnier among others.

Alinghi, helmed by team president Ernesto Bertarelli, won two of the events this year and ranked second in three. Saturday’s performance in Lausanne-Ouchy secured the championship victory for the America’s Cup Defender with Loïck Peyron’s Okalys in second place, just ahead of Alain Gautier on Foncia.

Alinghi, Okalys-Corum and Foncia, first, second and third in the general ranking of the season. Photo copyright Loris von Siebenthal

“I am very happy with the result, especially as the level this year has been really high and the fight for the championship has been tight from the start. To finish ahead of Alain Gautier [helmsman on Foncia] and Loïck Peyron [helmsman on Okalys-Corum] is an honour as a helmsman because it’s difficult to find someone as good as them in the world of multihulls,” said Ernesto Bertarelli. “Our result is entirely due to our crew. All sailing boats have to be sailed with everyone doing their job as best they can and we are particularly lucky to have very good people in every single position; it’s a comprehensive victory for all the crew,” he added.

Alinghi has recently completed its sea trials in Genoa, Italy, and will continue to train and test its giant catamaran towards the 33rd America’s Cup in Ras al-Khaimah scheduled to start on 8 February 2010. “Our full focus is on Alinghi 5, we have many things to implement and many things to learn from the boat so there are many hours to put in on the water,” concluded Ernesto Bertarelli.

The team will recommence training in mid-October in the UAE.

[Source: Alinghi] The Alinghi D35 team won the Switzerland-based Challenge Julius Baer multihull series for the third consecutive year. Alinghi has competed in every D35 championship on Lake Geneva since the 35ft one-design series began in 2004 and this year, as in recent events, the crew of six has been up against some of the most talented multihull sailors in the world throughout the summer-long 12-boat series. The illustrious roll call includes some of Alinghi’s own America’s Cup team members: Loïck Peyron and Alain Gautier, as well as Michel Desjoyeaux, Franck Cammas, Pascal Bidégorry and Karine Fauconnier among others.

Alinghi, helmed by team president Ernesto Bertarelli, won two of the events this year and ranked second in three. Saturday’s performance in Lausanne-Ouchy secured the championship victory for the America’s Cup Defender with Loïck Peyron’s Okalys in second place, just ahead of Alain Gautier on Foncia.

Alinghi, Okalys-Corum and Foncia, first, second and third in the general ranking of the season. Photo copyright Loris von Siebenthal

“I am very happy with the result, especially as the level this year has been really high and the fight for the championship has been tight from the start. To finish ahead of Alain Gautier [helmsman on Foncia] and Loïck Peyron [helmsman on Okalys-Corum] is an honour as a helmsman because it’s difficult to find someone as good as them in the world of multihulls,” said Ernesto Bertarelli. “Our result is entirely due to our crew. All sailing boats have to be sailed with everyone doing their job as best they can and we are particularly lucky to have very good people in every single position; it’s a comprehensive victory for all the crew,” he added.

Alinghi has recently completed its sea trials in Genoa, Italy, and will continue to train and test its giant catamaran towards the 33rd America’s Cup in Ras al-Khaimah scheduled to start on 8 February 2010. “Our full focus is on Alinghi 5, we have many things to implement and many things to learn from the boat so there are many hours to put in on the water,” concluded Ernesto Bertarelli.

The team will recommence training in mid-October in the UAE.

[Source: Alinghi] Quote from the race boat: Pierre-Yves Jorand, mainsail trimmer onboard Alinghi SUI1 Décision 35, comments on what’s been a very successful racing weekend for Ernesto Bertarelli and his crew.

You’ve had a good day, a good weekend and you’ve won the regatta and now are leading the championship… How did all this happen?

“Today we had similar conditions to yesterday, so fantastic conditions of typical lake Geneva ‘Bise’ NE wind which was quite strong especially for the first two races, between 8 and 20 knots. We knew the wind was going to die down after the second race so we had a bullet and a second place, thanks to a great start from Ernesto (Bertarelli). He did a great job placing the boat in a perfect position at the start line, Tanguy (Cariou) called perfect tactics through the day and the rest of the crew: Nils (Frei), Yves (Detrey), Coraline (Jonet) and myself were working on the maneuvering and the boat speed, so it was a great success for the team today.”

From what you say and looking at the results it looks as if you had been sailing on these boats all summer…

“We made less mistakes than the other teams. We didn’t sailing during July and mid August due to the summer pause in the championship but we have sailed with the same crew as we have done since 2007 and we know each other very well, and we are very focused on race tactics and boat speed.”

You have more two regattas to go, how confident are you feeling that you can win this Challenge Julius Baer championship as you did last year and the year before?

“We knew that the conditions today were going to be lighter in the afternoon with big shifts both in speed and direction so anything could happen and we thought it was very important to secure the championship after race 6. In the two other races we focused in learning new things making sure that we were not going to make big mistakes.”

A word on Alain Gautier, another Alinghi team member, and his D35 team, Foncia…

“Alain had a great weekend in June, when he won the Bol d’Or and he managed to win one race this weekend. I know him and the team and I’m sure he will be back stronger in two weeks time.”

The next D35 regatta, HP Cup La Réserve, the seventh of the Challenge Julius Baer, will take place on 5 and 6 September

Alinghi SUI1 crew
Ernesto Bertarelli, helmsman
Pierre-Yves Jorand, mainsail trimmer and performance
Nils Frei, trimmer
Yves Detrey, bow/mastman and boat captain
Tanguy Cariou, tactician
Coraline Jonet, trimmer

[Source: Alinghi] Quote from the race boat: Pierre-Yves Jorand, mainsail trimmer onboard Alinghi SUI1 Décision 35, comments on what’s been a very successful racing weekend for Ernesto Bertarelli and his crew.

You’ve had a good day, a good weekend and you’ve won the regatta and now are leading the championship… How did all this happen?

“Today we had similar conditions to yesterday, so fantastic conditions of typical lake Geneva ‘Bise’ NE wind which was quite strong especially for the first two races, between 8 and 20 knots. We knew the wind was going to die down after the second race so we had a bullet and a second place, thanks to a great start from Ernesto (Bertarelli). He did a great job placing the boat in a perfect position at the start line, Tanguy (Cariou) called perfect tactics through the day and the rest of the crew: Nils (Frei), Yves (Detrey), Coraline (Jonet) and myself were working on the maneuvering and the boat speed, so it was a great success for the team today.”

From what you say and looking at the results it looks as if you had been sailing on these boats all summer…

“We made less mistakes than the other teams. We didn’t sailing during July and mid August due to the summer pause in the championship but we have sailed with the same crew as we have done since 2007 and we know each other very well, and we are very focused on race tactics and boat speed.”

You have more two regattas to go, how confident are you feeling that you can win this Challenge Julius Baer championship as you did last year and the year before?

“We knew that the conditions today were going to be lighter in the afternoon with big shifts both in speed and direction so anything could happen and we thought it was very important to secure the championship after race 6. In the two other races we focused in learning new things making sure that we were not going to make big mistakes.”

A word on Alain Gautier, another Alinghi team member, and his D35 team, Foncia…

“Alain had a great weekend in June, when he won the Bol d’Or and he managed to win one race this weekend. I know him and the team and I’m sure he will be back stronger in two weeks time.”

The next D35 regatta, HP Cup La Réserve, the seventh of the Challenge Julius Baer, will take place on 5 and 6 September

Alinghi SUI1 crew
Ernesto Bertarelli, helmsman
Pierre-Yves Jorand, mainsail trimmer and performance
Nils Frei, trimmer
Yves Detrey, bow/mastman and boat captain
Tanguy Cariou, tactician
Coraline Jonet, trimmer

[Source: Alinghi] After five regattas on Lake Geneva, Alinghi SUI1, helmed by Ernesto Bertarelli leads the Challenge Julius Baer series. The crew of SUI1 maintained consistant results over the weekend to rank second behind Alain Gautier on Foncia. Ed Baird’s Alinghi SUI6 finished sixth at the Grand Prix Romandie Act II to go into the D35 summer break fifth overall, ahead of experienced lake sailors, in their first D35 season.

QUOTES FROM THE RACE BOAT
Nils Frei, trimmer on board SUI1, gives some insight on how the day went for his team: “We had a good start in the first race but were on the wrong side of the course, so it was difficult to finish earlier. We had good starts in the other three races and managed to sail fast although the conditions were shifty and patchy. The key today was to get the right side of the race course, like Foncia did. They also had good speed so they deserved to win. We tried to be conservative but overall we are happy with the result.”

Ed Baird, helmsman onboard Alinghi SUI6, also comments on this weekend’s regatta: “We are encouraged in some ways because we have been sailing better and the boat handling is improving, but we also feel a little disappointed because we chose incorrectly a couple of times in the lake conditions and ended up dropping down the fleet, so we know our final score could have ended up better this weekend.
The main challenge was that there were a number of races in which one side was heavily favoured but this was not apparent at the start. Nervertheless, we are still behind but we are catching up.”

This is the last regatta of the Challenge Julius Baer before the summer break, but Alinghi sailors have a challenging task ahead of them, as Baird explains: “We now have a tremendous amount of work ahead of us with the new boat: to get it sailing and to learn about it. It’s great to have the chance to race these smaller boats against so many great teams but the real work starts a few weeks from now.”

The next of the three remaining regattas for the Décision 35 championsip is the Open de Nyon from 22-23 August.

[Source: Alinghi] After five regattas on Lake Geneva, Alinghi SUI1, helmed by Ernesto Bertarelli leads the Challenge Julius Baer series. The crew of SUI1 maintained consistant results over the weekend to rank second behind Alain Gautier on Foncia. Ed Baird’s Alinghi SUI6 finished sixth at the Grand Prix Romandie Act II to go into the D35 summer break fifth overall, ahead of experienced lake sailors, in their first D35 season.

QUOTES FROM THE RACE BOAT
Nils Frei, trimmer on board SUI1, gives some insight on how the day went for his team: “We had a good start in the first race but were on the wrong side of the course, so it was difficult to finish earlier. We had good starts in the other three races and managed to sail fast although the conditions were shifty and patchy. The key today was to get the right side of the race course, like Foncia did. They also had good speed so they deserved to win. We tried to be conservative but overall we are happy with the result.”

Ed Baird, helmsman onboard Alinghi SUI6, also comments on this weekend’s regatta: “We are encouraged in some ways because we have been sailing better and the boat handling is improving, but we also feel a little disappointed because we chose incorrectly a couple of times in the lake conditions and ended up dropping down the fleet, so we know our final score could have ended up better this weekend.
The main challenge was that there were a number of races in which one side was heavily favoured but this was not apparent at the start. Nervertheless, we are still behind but we are catching up.”

This is the last regatta of the Challenge Julius Baer before the summer break, but Alinghi sailors have a challenging task ahead of them, as Baird explains: “We now have a tremendous amount of work ahead of us with the new boat: to get it sailing and to learn about it. It’s great to have the chance to race these smaller boats against so many great teams but the real work starts a few weeks from now.”

The next of the three remaining regattas for the Décision 35 championsip is the Open de Nyon from 22-23 August.