T
he wind whipped the sails and whistled in the rigging. The waves still sloshed against the fibreglass hull. And there were plenty of other noises: muffled thuds and bumps and scrapes as the boat knocked against pieces of debris.What was missing was the cries of the seabirds which, on all previous similar voyages, had surrounded the boat.
The ninth year, the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta opens the Mediterranean superyacht season. Year-on-year the regatta attracts the world’s most notable and award winning sailing superyachts for four days of exhilarating racing.
Hosted by Boat International Media in conjunction with the world-renowned Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS), the fleet took the glittering waters of Sardinia from 30 May – 3 June 2017. Racing is set against the region’s spectacular coastline, with four days of breathtaking sailing in a full race programme organised by the highly experienced YCCS international race committee. With a stunning clubhouse in Porto Cervo and being reputed as one of the world’s leading regatta organisers, owners and crew expected the highest level of racing.
Porto Cervo’s first race held on May 31, 2017 with the Wallycento Magic Carpet Cubed leading the Yacht Wally Class and Escapade being in command of the Superyacht division of the race. Participants in the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta, were able to enjoy a beautiful day of sailing, typical of Costa Smeralda, from the first day of racing.
The first to leave the Wally Class was Wallycento Open Season while the Magic Carpet Cubed straight to the top surfing on the left side of the path. Afterwards it was the turn of the Superyacht division, with individual departures to prevent all kinds of risk. Among the superyacht leading there were two rookies, Ribelle and My song , who immediately showed excellent performance, followed by Saudade , the 140 – foot winner of the two previous editions. The real surprise, however was Escapade a cruiser designed by Dubois for comfortable cruising whose beneficial rating took him from last place to the second in real time. Ribelle was the winner of the first day.
The second day started with a spectacular competition with Wally Class which saw great battle between Magic Carpet Cubed and 107 feet Open Season. Unlike yesterday, there was more stable wind conditions favoring the five on corrected time Wally 80, protagonists of spectacular crossing a few meters away along the entire route. The Nahita won the day,
After the start of the Wally Class was the turn of the individual staggered departures for Superyacht division. My Song Pier Luigi Loro Piana, the fastest yacht in the fleet, left for last and immediately started to pass other competitors slower to hire a good battle, maintaining a safe distance under Rules for Superyachts. Saudade reached and passed the entrance to the Passo Bisce a few miles from the finish in Porto Cervo. To calculate the corrected time, Saudade closes in third place and My Song in the fifth and Escapade winning the race.
The third day yet posed another challenge. The Wally 107 which had Jochen Schümann as owner-helm was able to establish a small lead on the first short upwind leg which she was able to extend just enough to hold her time over rivals Galateia and Magic Carpet 3, that took second and third position respectively. Magic Carpet 3 goes into the last race with a margin of three points over Lyra, which slipped off the top with a disappointing sixth position. Sailing in the best of the shifts on the opening short leg also proved crucial for the first win of this regatta for Saudade. Victory kept last year’s overall winner in close contention to make three titles in succession but the Saudade crew, which sails under tactician Bouwe Bekking, needed to beat overall leaders Ribelle.
Excellent conditions on the final day of racing which saw a spectacular action on the dazzling water and triumphs for Saudade and Magic Carpet 3 at the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta 2017. The crucial elements for Magic Carpet 3’s victory in final Wally class race that was put in place by Walker, the strategist Tom Whidden and the navigator Marcel Van Triest before the downwind could start. Going first downwind into the Passo del Bisce, the Magic Carpet 3 crew was elected to start off the pin with a leeward end of the line. As they entered the narrowing strait they crossed ahead of rival Galateia by just half a boat’s length. Walker guided Magic Carpet 3 into two particularly beneficial puffs of breeze through the little islands there as they stretched away henceforth. Open Season, started on the wrong side of the line, was always on the back foot. However, after three races of near flawless crew work, the Magic Carpet 3 crew nearly snatched defeat from the jaws of victory when they botched their final hoist and nearly lost out within a few hundred metres of the final finish.
Galateia, with Jeremy Robinson called the tactics and Simon Fisher as navigator, finished runners up in the Wally class while second place in the Superyacht class was taken by one of this year’s new yachts ,Ribelle. The ninth year of Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta witnessed Magic Carpet cubed winning the wally class and Saudade winning the Superyacht class in 2017.
