Markus Wieser lifting the 1st place match race trophy. Image copyright Nico Martinez/RC44.
by Sharon Allison
A match race win and fifth place in the fleet race meant a very satisfying third place overall for home team Sea Dubai in the Al Maktoum Sailing Trophy RC 44 Championship at Dubai International Marine Club. With newcomer, Raimondo Tonelli at the helm the team were guarded for the three days of the fleet racing but achieved two podium places for the first time as they enter their third season of racing in the class. ‘At the end of last season I told the team that I believed in them and now they have made me very proud. This is just the beginning and I am looking forward to a really good season for Sea Dubai,’ said Saeed Harib, CEO of the team and Dubai International Marine Club, commenting on the teams success.
Recovering from a 360 degree penalty turn. Image copyright Nico Martinez/RC44.
It all looked dodgy at one point though for Sea Dubai as an incident in the first race of the fifth day put them at the back of the pack. Massive winds early in the morning meant the start was postponed until 12:30. Once the start got underway Sea Dubai were sixth at the windward mark but a mistake on the position of their tack made them do a three hundred and sixty degree penalty turn. They did it quickly but misjudged the distance from the mark and were forced to repeat it as they were too close, leaving them at the back of the fleet. But all was not lost; they played the wind shifts well and managed to pick up two places to come seventh.
Sailing into the gloom. Image copyright Nico Martinez/RC44.
The Race Committee had to wait for the wind to settle before the next race as it swung around. Visibility was bad and impossible to see the mark boat relaying the windward mark. Sea Dubai got a great start on the final race and headed into the gloom rounding the top mark first but finished in fifth. ‘This has been a fantastic event for us,’ said Matti Paschen, the sail trimmer. ‘We knew we could come third overall if we got reasonable results today. We were quite nervous after what happened in the previous race and more pushy on the second start. We got away well and stayed ahead of the fleet for the first leg, but the wind was all over the place and rather than risk anything we kept calm knowing that we were in a good position to finish in the top five, which is just what we needed,’ he added.
The sailors will meet next in Lake Traunsee in Austria in April for the next round. They have sailed in the lake before and it is where they won the DHL long distance race. ‘We are really happy to get third place overall here in Dubai,’ said Markus Wieser, ‘it’s our best result so far and a great way to start the season. Now we will focus on Austria where we already have a good track record.’
Enjoying the 3rd place overall trophy with Saeed Harib. Image copyright Nico Martinez/RC44.
Overall results:
Position Name Match Race Fleet Race Points
1st Artemis 3 2 5
2nd No Way Back 2 3 5
3rd Sea Dubai 1 5 6
4th Aqua 7 1 8
5th Ceeref 4 4 8
6th Katusha 8 6 14
7th Islas Canarias Puerto Calero 6 8 14
8th BMW Oracle 5 9 14
9th Austria 9 7 16
Dubai International Marine Club
RC44
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