Please select your home edition
Edition
Leaderboard brokerage

Kieler Woche - Day 3

by Andi Robertson 20 Jun 2016 19:54 UTC 18-26 June 2016

505s vote Brexit and Danish do Ding Dong

A westerly breeze gusting up to 20kts at times and blowing out of the Kiel Fjord presented a new set of challenges for the racers at Kieler Woche where stamina on and off the water is as much a primary requirement.

Race management runs like a perfectly tuned modern diesel engine, turning round starts and finishes with enviable efficiency. Making optimum use of the great racing breezes that maximises racing time and minimises recovery time.

The Musto Performance Skiff class had their day in the sun, figuratively and literally. With bright sunshine and the mercury finally rising above 20 degrees the Musto Skiffs were stars of the live showcase arena today, with all the action streamed live on the event website.

Germany's Past European champion Frithjof Schwerdt did not compete at the recent world championships in Carnac, France but he is taking every opportunity to lead the new world champion Andi Lachenschmid around a race track which Schwerdt used to call home waters. The gusty, shifty conditions are very much to the liking of Schwerdt who has built up a cushion of thirteen points over Switzerland's second placed Roger Oswald and 15 over the world champion who is a close friend as well as rival. After living in Kiel and racing and training here for four years while studying mechanical engineering, regatta leader Schwerdt now races on Munich based Lachenschmid's home lake Ammersee. He counts a scoreline consisting of a magnificent seven wins from nine starts. "It was such nice sailing today with plenty of wind, sometimes too much. I like these conditions, shifty and gusty and I seem to be able to do well." Schwerdt explains
 "Andi is the actual world champion and so not having been able to go to the world championships I was really motivated to race him here. It is nice to be beating him. I studied here until a year ago and now race against Andi on his Lake Ammersee. I started with the skiff in 2011 for one year and went to the 49er class for one and a half years but it was too difficult and so I came back to the Musto Skiff."

On the same course area the ding dong duel between Danes Soren Dulong Andreasen and Jesper Nielsen for supremacy in the Contender class saw Dulong Andreasen take over the regatta lead today thanks to three back to back race wins:

"Out on the Hotel course the winds were very gusty which was bit like my home waters of Hellerup but playing the shifts was better for me, I was fast on the reaches. But I was never that far ahead. I don't think I ever rounded the top mark first."

"The Contender class is really flourishing in Germany where there are a lot of young guys sailing the boat. They like the boat because the boat gives you so much back the more you practice. For many of these guys the Laser, for example, is much too simple. The Contender is hard to sail and even in light winds you are powered up and trapezing, so it is good on Lakes too. They have over 200 boats active in Germany and so weekend regattas they are getting 45 boats easily."

German crews might be looking for a Brexit vote against their British rivals in the hotly contested 505 Class where three GBR crews are in the top 5. Andy Smith and Tim Needham, Gill Race Team, seized the lead today with three race wins back to back in races 7,8 and 9. They lead Germany's Dr Wolfgang Hunger and Julien Kliener by three points while Ian Pinnell and Alex Davies dropped to third after their 6,5 7 today.

"The level is very high here and so it is great racing. We have been together for four years now and I think we know the settings well and what makes us fast. Today you really had to use the wind shifts." said helm Davies, "We have three very good British crews here and I think that we are all pushing each other hard which is great in terms of practice for the World Championships. Ian Pinnell had two wins yesterday and so that meant we had to do better than that today!"

The 29er class sailed their first day of Finals Series racing. Under other circumstances a 13th in the first Finals race might have been a discard for the Dutch pair Pieter van Leijen and Daniel Bramervaer, but the erstwhile regatta leaders have a UFD and a 19th – the result of a mechanical failure – already and so they slipped to second, despite winning three races today.

"It all got a bit tougher today in gold fleet. It was difficult. The margin for error is smaller and the westerly direction out of the channel meant it was bumpy with lots of waves. The first race we did ot find good speed in the conditions but we evaluated and then sailed three bullets. But in the final race we made some little mistakes." Said helm van Leijen, "But you can't have regrets about the discards we have. The first is the result of a mechanical failure and the second the UFD, if you don't get them sometimes you are not pushing hard enough."

www.kieler-woche.de

Related Articles

SAIL Amsterdam 2025 is just around the corner
Iconic 5-yearly event will welcome a spectacular fleet of tall ships and historic vessels From 20 to 24 August 2025, SAIL Amsterdam will once again bring the magic of maritime heritage to the heart of the Dutch capital. Posted today at 7:22 pm
CNB Rendez-Vous a great success
In the stunning setting of Costa Smeralda with a fleet of 23 yachts CNB celebrated its annual Rendez-Vous in the stunning setting of Costa Smeralda with a fleet of 23 yachts converging in Porto Rotondo for a weekend of sailing, camaraderie, and elegance on and off the water. Posted on 26 May
Dufour 48 first photos in Palma
Going further with the outdoor living experience The Dufour 48 truly embodies the new generation of Dufour yachts and goes further by offering an outdoor living experience and unprecedented comfort for a 48-footer. Posted on 24 May
Lightweight Wind Barrier
The Henri-Lloyd Breeze Jacket combines lightweight, waterproof performance with modern design The Henri-Lloyd Breeze Jacket combines lightweight, waterproof performance with modern design, making it the ideal choice for warm-weather sailing and everyday on-water activities. Posted on 24 May
Cape Horn Hall of Fame nominations close by 30 May
Public nominations open for just a little longer The International Association of Cape Horners (IACH) is calling for nominations for new inductees to the Cape Horn Hall of Fame. Posted on 22 May
Cruising through the Islands of French Polynesia
World ARC 2025-26 fleet recently spent six unforgettable weeks here The 30 yachts of the World ARC 2025-26 fleet recently spent six unforgettable weeks "free cruising" among the three main sailing archipelagos of French Polynesia: the Marquesas, the Tuamotus, and the legendary Society Islands. Posted on 21 May
Introducing the Calibrator from SailingPerformance
Onboard electronics from Sailling Performance Have you ever sailed on a boat where the wind numbers coming from the onboard electronics were constantly wrong, where every time you tacked, the wind seemed to back by 15 degrees? Posted on 21 May
Coast Guard proposes removing hundreds of buoys
Some buoys are in notoriously rocky and challenging bays and harbors on the Northern Atlantic Coast On April 15, the First Coast Guard District released an initiative proposing the removal of hundreds of navigational buoys, or Aids to Navigation (AtoNs). Posted on 20 May
Henri-Lloyd supports Jazz Turner's challenge
GBR para-athlete overcomes fears in attempt to break record For a young woman with multiple and complex health issues, Jazz Turner is remarkable calm as she faces her imminent departure on her around Great Britain sailing challenge. Posted on 20 May
Discover the hybrid version of the Excess 11
Pairing a genset with twin electric engines By offering a hybrid engine aboard the Excess 11, our iconic, entry-level model, Excess Catamarans asserts its pioneer spirit, constantly innovating in the pursuit of a new way to cruise. Posted on 19 May
Hyde Sails 2024 - One DesignCrewsaver 2021 Safetyline FOOTERNorth Sails Loft 57 Podcast