One of the truly great areas in the world for yacht racing, Great Sound, Bermuda, will be the playing field for the 2001 International 14 Global Team Race Championships, 19th to 21st November, and the 2001 Dinghy World Championships 23rd to 30th November. Royal Bermuda Yacht Club will be the host and are the authors of the description below.
“Enclosed on three sides by land, Great Sound is protected on the north ocean-facing side by a barrier reef that holds the ocean swells at bay. The racing area is 25 to 85 deep. The racing area offers the Race Committee the opportunity to set courses with windward legs of 1.75 to 2 miles in length with scope to set long reaches and good downwind legs. The course will be approx. 18 miles in length, at the discretion of the Principal Race Officer.
The surrounding land forms with hills and bays create interesting conditions, full of lifts and knocks without reference to local knowledge. The cloud conditions are often the most influential factors affecting the lifts and knocks. In general the wind conditions in Bermuda in the month of November are ideal for dinghy sailing offering the challenges of both moderate to heavy air sailing with perhaps a light air respite.
The weather conditions in Bermuda in November are generally warm (68-76 degrees Fahrenheit) and are affected by the frontal systems approaching from the United States to the west.
The water temperature is 70-73 degrees Fahrenheit. The tide rises and falls 3.5 ft. on average in Bermuda but has little effect in the racing area. It flows at a maximum of 1.5 knots through the bridges on the northwest side of the Great Sound and at approx. 0.5 knots in the area between Hawkins and Pearl Islands on the south east side of the Sound. Both areas are clear of the main racing area except that in certain wind conditions marks may be placed within 0.25 mile of these tidal areas. Seas reach a height of 2.5 to 3 ft. in 25 knots of breeze without ocean swells.”
From the ISAF website: http://www.sailing.org
Day 1 of the International 14 Class Global Team Race Challenge was held today on Hamilton Harbour, Bermuda, hosted by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.
There were 6 teams of 4 entered, including Canada, Great Britain A, Great Britain B, Japan, Switzerland and U.S.A. Racing was in a round robin format. The conditions on Hamilton Harbour were almost ideally suited for the imaginative ‘S’ courses used for the racing. Winds were between 8-12 knots, and a couple of interesting wind shifts made for some fun and tactical racing.
In the end U.S.A. led the qualifiers into tomorrows semi-finals with a perfect 5-0 record. Second was Great Britain with 4-1, Canada in third with a score of 3-2, and Switzerland completing the list with a 2-3 score.
Tomorrow sees the U.S.A. team paired against Switzerland and Great Britain taking on Canada in a best 2 of 3 series. The winners will sail for the finals and the R.B.Y.C. Challenge Cup. The forecast is for winds of 15-25 knots.
The Worlds Championships start on Friday, November 23rd in Bermuda’s Great Sound. There are 54 teams entered from countries around the world. –Kevin Blee, News Editor ISAF
www.rbyc.bm/I14Worlds/Index.htm
Soling World Championship 18-25 November, 2001, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Schneeberger (AUT) leads the Soling World Championship after two races, although they are tied on points with Nehm (BRA). Close behind on third is Ostergreen (BRA)
Results, after 2 races:
1 AUT Markus Schneeberger Harry Vettermann/Franz Panek 2, 6, 8 pts
2 BRA George Nehm Marcos Pinto Ribeiro/Lucio Pinto Ribeiro 3, 5, 8 pts
3 BRA Boris Ostergreen Pedro Prosdocimo/Nelson Galvao 1, 8, 9 pts
4 AUT Franz Urlesberger Udo Moser/Volker Moser 6, 3, 9 pts
5 ARG Luis Cerrato Federico Haymes Biedma/Fabio Scarpati 5, 7, 12 pts
6 GBR Tony Clare Phil Crebbin/Brian Hammersley 4, 10, 14 pts
7 ARG Patricio Gutierrez Gustavo Iconomopulos/Fabian Sobrero 7, 9, 16 pts
8 ARG Martín Busch Pablo Noceti/Ismael Ayerza 15, 4, 19 pts
9 ARG Enrique Mich Franco Valette/Ramiro Villamarin 8, dnf, 32 pts
10 ARG Pedro Gianotti Alejandro Mozetich/Pablo Lynn 9, dnf, 33 pts
Event website:
http://www.solingworlds.com/
