Waka Racing at the Slovenia Match Race Cup. Supplied image.
by Garth Ellingham
It has been a wonderful first day here on the Adriatic in Koper, Slovenia. We have had 30+ degrees and perfect sailing conditions with stunning scenery in the back ground.
An un beaten score line didn’t come easy for us though. We had pulled a local bowman for this regatta but after one of Waka’s gruelling training session yesterday he came out worse off. Turning up this morning he was not well with an ankle injury but had got his mate to come along and sail with us instead. A fine job his mate did indeed.
Our first race was against Roberto Ferrarese of Italy and we controlled that race from the start.
Race two against top ranked Eugeniy Neugodnikov (RUS) was one for the spectators. 15 knots in extremely over powered boats was the setting for this rip snorter. We won the start and rounded first with Eugeniy close behind. A gybe, 10 aggressive luffs and two penalties later we rounded the bottom mark with “a lot on” and Eugeniy on our tail. A mainsail falling down and jib half up saw him take the lead but still with a penalty. Cat and mouse behaviour erupted downwind when no one hoisted as he tried to trap us. A successful effort and patience on our behalf gave us the scrappy victory.
A much tidier afternoon sore us secure two more important victories and finish the day with a 4 from 4 score line. Four more races await us in the morning where we hope and plan to secure a top finish in the first round.
Video report by Waka Racing on Day One of the Slovenia Match Race Cup:
Waka Racing would like to thank our main sponsor Tax Management NZ and all the support we receive from the RNZYS, Frontend, Zhik , Wells and Co, PredictWind and Devine Consultants.
Waka Racing
Slovenia Match Race Cup
