Trofeo Pirelli-Copa Carlo Negri
Santa Margherita (ITA), May 1-4

Giraglia Rolex Cup
Saint Tropez (FRA), June 8-10

Rolex Trofeo de la Reina
Valencia (ESP), July 10-13

Copa del Rey AUDI Mapfre
Palma (ESP), July 26 - Aug 2

Trofeu Quebramar-Chrysler
Cascais (POR), Aug 28-30

Trofeo Cesar Manrique
Puerto Calero (ESP), Oct 16-18

News


Quebramar-Chrysler extends lead after two more victories and a second place

Friday, 13 July 2007: Three races took place in the second day of the Trofeo de la Reina in Valencia and it seemed that nobody and nothing could stop Quebramar-Chrysler from dominating, not even a penalty for crossing the starting line too early in the day's last race.

For the second consecutive day the GP42 class stole the show in the event and offered close and exciting racing under a sea breeze that steadily built up.

Racing was scheduled to start at noon but the very light breeze at that moment forced the race committe to postpone the start. After approximately an hour, the gun was fired with a breeze that had built up to 8 knots. A last-moment right shift piled up the boats on the committee side of the line. Quebramar-Chrysler got off to a clean start to the right side of the course and lead throughout the first leg, rounding the top mark a mere 6 seconds in front of Roma and Movistar. The first run was the one that clearly decided the race. Not only didn't Quebramar-Chrysler feel any threat from the rest of the fleet, they even managed to extend their lead to more than a minute at the leeward gate. That was also their lead at the finish line. The real fight was taking place in the next three spots, with Movistar, Zurich and Roma battling till the end. Positions alternated various times but finally the three yachts crossed the finish line in that order.

The second race (fourth of the event) was undoubtedly the most interesting of the day. The breeze had reached 12 knots and the fleet was evenly split at the start line. Movistar lead from the beginning, closely followed by Quebramar-Chrysler throughout the race while Seawonder 007, Roma and Zurich were fighting for the remaining places. Until the last few hundred meters it seemed as if Movistar would score a win but the America's Cup crew aboard Quebramar demonstrated their superiority. Aided by their slight speed advantage, they pushed Movistar beyond the left layline and were able to gybe in front them, stealing the victory by a mere 6 seconds.

The second race (fourth of the event) was undoubtedly the most interesting of the day. The breeze had reached 12 knots and the fleet was evenly split at the start line. Movistar lead from the beginning, closely followed by Quebramar-Chrysler throughout the race while Seawonder 007, Roma and Zurich were fighting for the remaining places. Until the last few hundred meters it seemed as if Movistar would score a win but the America's Cup crew aboard Quebramar demonstrated their superiority. Aided by their slight speed advantage, they pushed Movistar beyond the left layline and were able to gybe in front them, stealing the victory by a mere 6 seconds.

If there were any doubts about Quebramar-Chrysler's superiority, the third and final race rejected them. Wind had picked up to 15 knots and a left-shift caused all 8 boats to pile up at the pin end and eventually forced three of them (Quebramar-Chrysler, Zurich and Movistar) to cross the line too early. Not only did Quebramar-Chrysler immediately returned to recross, they recovered all lost ground and stayed always within half a minute behind Seawonder 007. The Italians finally won the race while Movistar had to abandon in the third leg after its backstay broke.

Standings after 5 races

1. Quebramar-Chrysler, 6 points, (1+1+1+1+2)
2. Zurich, 17 points, (2+3+3+4+5)
3. Seawonder 007, 19 points, (6+4+5+3+1)
4. Roma GP42, 20 points, (4+2+4+7+3)
5. Movistar, 21 points, (3+5+2+2+9)
6. Canarias Puerto Calero, 28 points, (5+6+7+6+4)
7. Fermax, 31 points, (7+7+6+5+6)
8. AA-HPB, 39 points, (8+8+8+8+7)

 

Photos

Check all photos from today's three races in the website's dedicated section here.

 


Quotes

Patrick Shaughnessy, pitman of Roma, Vice President of Farr Yacht Design: "The GP42 class is an exciting smaller version of the TP52's. The boats are easily powered up and a lot of fun to sail. In this regatta in Valencia we have more than twice the number of boats we had in Croatia and it's nice to see this development in the class.

As far as Roma, my team is concerned, it was a boat designed before last season and as a result we started behind anybody else because they could see it and decide how to build a second generation boat. Nevertheless, we are very happy with our boat's performance, we have some very good modes and still some thingsto work on. We can develop the boat even more. Our real weakness is that we have a different team in every event. It takes a while to get up to speed since we have to learn each time.

I don't think we have a speed disadvantage over the other boats. Sometimes we have a clear advantage and when we don't, we feel there are things to work upon in crew work and sails. We are happy with the boat's position in the fleet.

Farr Yacht Design is obviously interested in the class and we have research programs planned for this fall with the aim to produce a significantly better boat for next year. We have two clients for next season and hope to build on that and make good boats.

There is interest in the USA about the GP42 class although the momentum hasn't reached the stage where a bunch of owners decide to move forward. I think, at least one boat needs to make it over to the US so that people can see it and then it will take off. It is similar to the TP52 class where a boat needed to come to Europe before it took off. Once people get to see the boats, I'm sure the class has a good future.

 


Audio files (Press on green button to start the audio file, pause or stop it with the control buttons)

Patrick Shaughnessy, pitman of Roma, Vice President of Farr Yacht Design, in English: