Wallén Racing take early lead in M32 Gold Cup

Miami, FL (February 28, 2014) – The seven M32 teams were greeted with cold rain and grey skies on the opening day of the M32 Gold Cup. But as soon as they went under the Rickenbacker Causeway Bridge and entered Biscayne Bay, the sun came out and the breeze filled in.

But it would be a day that really tested the crews, and especially the tacticians had to prove themselves as the wind varied a lot with many light patches. And in a fast catamaran it’s devastating to get stuck at 5-6 knots when the competition is doing 20+.

Wallén Racing best managed the conditions, despite some ups and downs during individual races. Several times teams went from first to last and back again as wind strength varied. Spectators might think that luck is a big factor in those conditions, but somehow the best teams always end up at the top anyways.

Hans Wallén and his crew managed to place 1-1-2-1-2-2, three points ahead of the earlier dominant Mattias Rahm with 2-2-1-4 6-1.

All results here: http://m32cup.com/gold-cup-results/

Hans Wallén started his sailing career with World titles in both Optimist and Europe Dinghy and became the poster boy for a whole generation of Swedish sailors. A number of world titles followed, as well as an Olympic Silver in the Star Class in Atlanta. Getting into M32 in June last year, the team never managed to sail the boat to it’s potential. But now it’s a different story.

The US teams showed great speed and often fought about the top spots, but mixing good with bad results is never a good idea in a strong fleet.

The weekend is promising more stable winds.

Photos credit: Jan Söderström
Report by Peter Gustafsson