2024 44Cup Nanny Cay – Day 3
by 44Cup 23 Nov 17:05 PST
20-24 November 2024
After a slow start to the regatta, Chris Bake’s Team Aqua launched into action on Saturday, day three of the 44Cup Nanny Cay, winning two out of the three races set by PRO Maria Torrijo and the race team from the Royal BVI Yacht Club.
Weather-wise, this was the most challenging day of the regatta thus far, requiring a 40-minute delay for a squall to pass. The opening beat saw the wind drop to under five knots, displaying significant variation across the racecourse, yet it was sufficient for the agile RC44s to make solid progress.
At the start, Team Aqua secured the pin, tacking with Black Star and Aleph to windward, and when they returned on port, they got a boost to sneak in on the starboard layline first, ahead of Nico Poons’ Charisma and Christian Zuerrer’s Black Star. They extended their lead downwind, but on the second beat, Pietro Loro Piana’s Aleph Racing nearly caught them due to a favorable right shift. Nonetheless, Team Aqua scored their first win of the regatta.
With confidence, Team Aqua began mid-line in the second race and was quick to tack away. On the first beat, they excelled at playing the shifts, leading the top mark comfortably over Black Star and John Bassadone’s Peninsula Racing. Despite Peninsula and Artemis Racing gybing back onto starboard into a left shift, Aqua managed to catch the same shift and lead into the gate, eventually securing their second victory of the regatta.
In the third race, Team Aqua again demonstrated strong performance at the top mark, while several competitors overshot the starboard layline. A tight rounding saw them overlapped with Aleph Racing and Team Nika. Ultimately, Aleph Racing edged ahead on the run and claimed victory in the day’s final race for the third time in a row. With the best daily score of 2-4-1, the Aleph Racing team, led by Pietro Loro Piana, enjoyed some team debriefing at the iconic Willy T floating bar on Norman Island.
“The beauty of these boats is that they can still compete in 5-6 knots,” commented Aleph Racing tactician Michele Ivaldi. “We have sailed in worse conditions than today. Maria [PRO] made the right call to postpone since the cloud cover could have greatly affected the racing.”
Regarding the race they won, Ivaldi explained: “We initially considered starting at the upper part of the line and going straight, but we then opted for the pin. It was still tricky, but it gets slightly easier when you allow some stretch.” During the third race, they experienced the most wind of the day—10-11 knots.
Although Chris Bake was unsure why Team Aqua had improved after struggling at the bottom of the leaderboard in the regatta’s first half, he noted: “Today was incredibly challenging, but we achieved good results, while yesterday was also difficult, yet we struggled. It’s very delicate and requires precision—if you find the right positioning and get some clear air off the start without hitting any holes, it can work; otherwise, it doesn’t.”
The newcomer Turkish team, Mehmet Taki’s Wow!, celebrated a brief success in today’s first race, finishing a commendable third. “It’s been tough,” Taki commented. “The fleet is intense and doesn’t allow for mistakes, so we are striving to improve. It is indeed very difficult. There are many situations we can’t yet navigate, which we need to work on, but I’m enjoying it. Hopefully, we will encounter some trade winds tomorrow.”
As we enter the final day, any of the top seven teams could clinch victory, with just five points separating the top four—led by Nico Poons’ Charisma, closely followed by Aleph Racing, now only two points behind, and Torbjörn Törnqvist’s Artemis Racing in third.
“It was shiftier than a bag of weasels,” commented Charisma’s Australian main sheet trimmer Chris Hosking. “It’s challenging sailing and not what we anticipated coming down to the BVI this week. The conditions have been lighter, fluffier, and more variable than expected—not the usual trade winds. I’m relieved I’m not the tactician out there because it’s not straightforward.”
Tomorrow, the 44Cup fleet looks forward to racing with more pressure—although not the anticipated trade winds, still a solid 13-18 knots. “As usual,” predicted Aleph Racing’s Michele Ivaldi, “it will all come down to the last race.”
Racing will start an hour earlier again tomorrow, with a warning signal at 1100 Atlantic Standard Time (UTC -4).
2024 44Cup Nanny Cay: (after 9 races)
1. Charisma – 1 1 3 4 5 6 6 5 3 – 34pts
2. Aleph Racing – 8 6 1 7 6 1 2 4 1 – 36pts
3. Artemis Racing – 2 4 2 3 4 4 5 7 7 – 38pts
4. Team Nika – 5 9 5 2 2 2 4 8 2 – 39pts
5. Team CEEREF Vaider – 4 2 4 5 3 5 7 6 5 – 41pts
6. Peninsula Racing – 3 5 9 6 1 3 9 2 4 – 42pts
7. Team Aqua – 6 8 8 8 7 7 1 1 6 – 52pts
8. Black Star Sailing Team – 9 3 7 1 8 8 8 3 9 – 56pts
9. WOW! Sailing Team – 7 7 6 9 9 9 3 9 8 – 67 pts
2024 44Cup Overall Ranking: (after four events with one discard)
1. Team Nika – 1 2 7 1 – 4pts
2. Team CEEREF Vaider – 2 4 6 2 – 8pts
3. Artemis Racing – 8 1 2 8 – 11pts
4. Aleph Racing – 5 5 3 4 – 12pts
5. Charisma – 6 7 1 5 – 12pts
6. Black Star Sailing Team – 7 3 8 3 – 13pts
7. Team Aqua – 4 8 4 6 – 14pts
8. Peninsula Racing – 3 6 5 7 – 15pts
9. Calero Sailing Team – 9 9 10 9 – 27pts
