News

September 20, 2006

A consistent day, posting regular top five scores was the primary objective for the Breitling MedCup TP52 championship series leading Mean Machine/Mutua Madrileña as racing started today for the final regatta of the season.

In tricky conditions, a patchy oscillating SE’ly breeze that could never quite summon double figures and mostly averaged between four and seven knots, Mean Machine/Mutua Madrileña won the first race of three, following up with a fourth and sixth.

Mean Machine not only lead the Trofeo Balearia Ibiza y Formentara regatta, but more than doubled their 14 points lead that they started the day with over their nearest rival Warpath, Steve and Fred Howe’s boat skippered by Dean Barker.
Contrasting rather painfully with the strong start from Mutua Madrileña, the Howes’ Warpath lie tenth after these first three races, posting a 12th and 15th before winning the final race of the day.
After losing Tuesday’s planned racing to a lack of breeze, competition today was always close and tense, although the leading boats were often able to extend thanks to the advantage of being unhindered in their ability to utilise the windshifts to best effect. Indeed to the untutored eye Mutua Madrileña and Warpath made their victories look easy in the first and third races, while Roberto Bermudez guided Caixa Galicia to victory in the second race, just getting the better of Tom Stark and the crew of Rush, which took second place.

“That is really all we could ask for from today in these conditions and in this fleet.” Smiled Mean Machine/Mutua Madrileña’s trimmer Dirk de Ridder, “We are not really thinking about anything other than trying to do the best we can. We do know that the boat is quick upwind so we are just trying to concentrate on getting a clean start. Most of the year we have started middle line when we can, sometimes happy to give away the favoured end because we know we have the speed. Downwind in these conditions Bribon and Caixa, the older boats, are the quickest in the fleet.”
“Overall we are happy with the day because we gained on the opposition, but it certainly in no way is over. We know better that to write off Terry Hutchinson. We went out today knowing that our margin could go with one bad race, so now we want to just keep on doing what we are doing.”