Calm before Bacardi storm

Miami, FL (January 28, 2022) – A slow start to the opening race of the day for all fleets at Bacardi Winter Series event 2 with light fluky breeze on Biscayne Bay.

Plenty of leader board shuffles saw teams jostle in the tricky and super shifty conditions, with three races for each of the J/70 and Melges 24 and six for the 69F fleets.

Racing continues tomorrow in what is forecast to be a rough and tumble breeze of around 21 knots with gusts up to 30 while the finale on January 30 expects to see the breeze ease up.

J/70
Three J/70 races and three different winners. Consistency from Bobby Julien and team on Dingbat advanced them from a double digit opening race finish to score a 2,4 and lead the fleet by 1 point over Richard Witzel on Rowdy, with David Jannetti’s Very Odd 4 points behind in third.

“Today was a challenging day as it was a west wind and very, very shifty and puffy and, for a relatively new sailor, it was a tough day,” commented Julien. “Thanks to the crew we took advantage of some of the shifts and we were reasonably strong downwind and it worked out alright.”

Dingbat crew member Alec Anderson continued, “We didn’t have particularly good starts today, but in those conditions sometimes it’s not the end of the world. We were able to get our bow free and clean on all three and get relatively in phase and the boat was going well.”

Choosing the left hand side of the light wind track in race 1 gave a clear advantage, which rewarded Jim Vos on Godzilla who read the shifts to hustle through the fleet and take the opening race win.

Race 2 saw the clouds roll in, the temperature drop and the breeze increase, slightly. After a general recall, the fleet navigated their way through a really challenging breeze, where playing the light wind shifts which traced super slow across the course was key.

Fresh from finishing the RORC Transatlantic Race on Powerplay, Peter Cunningham took the early lead, but couldn’t hold it as the conditions continued to drop to around 5 knots, oscillating 5-10 degrees. Those who read and played the shifts upwind triumphed as the pressure continually changed. Onto the second upwind and the fleet played the right side, with Robert Hughes’ Heartbreaker going on to take the win, Bobby Julien in 2nd and Richard Witzel in 3rd.

Onto race 3 and Victor Cribb on Victory claimed the early lead, but was overhauled by Witzel’s ‘Rowdy’ who took the bullet, Victory in 2nd and Heartbreaker finishing 3rd.

MELGES 24
Peter Duncan reminded everyone of his versatility whatever the weather, to close the opening three race day in first overall with his crew on Raza Mixta.

“We had a great day today,” said Duncan. “We had really nice crew work and a good tempo on board the boat.

“What we did right today was that we stayed in phase. We were tacking on shifts, and there were a fair amount of shifts going on out there, and we were lucky. The shifts are actually very interesting out on Biscayne Bay in a breeze like today, because the shifts are more dominated by the puffs and you need to stay in breeze. So we did a good job with that.”

Race 1 was all about Harry Melges IV, grandson of iconic sailing personality Buddy Melges, and his crew on Zenda Express who delivered a horizon job, leading race 1 from start to finish. Second to Raza Mixta and third to Sandra Askew’s Flying Jenny team.

Winner of last year’s Winter Series event 2 and the 2021 Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta, Bora Gulari on New England Ropes showcased his credentials in race 2, leading by around 6 boat lengths at the leeward gate. With all top 5 boats packed closely together and pushed hard by Peter Duncan, Gulari struggled to maintain his control in the neck and neck battle. On the final downwind, Duncan drove hard, securing his lane to extend over Gulari and take the win, with Michael Goldfarb on WarCanoe in third.

Onto race 3 and the breeze demanded a change of pace and a fully hiked crew, with the race again looking set to belong to Duncan’s Raza Mixta who led the first two legs. Heading back upwind, Peter Bergendahl’s Wardance optimized their attack to take the advantage, with Megan Ratliff’s Decorum close behind. As these two teams locked into their own battle, John Bailey’s Talisman claimed a tidy third place.

Series information – Race details – Facebook

Day One Results – Top Five

J 70 (25 Boats)
1. Dingbat, Bobby Julien / Thomas Barrows / Alec Anderson / Chris Watters , USA – 11 -2 -4 ; 17
2. Rowdy, Richard Witzel / Tomas Dietrich / Carlos Robles / Jud Smith , USA – 14 -3 -1 ; 18
3. Very Odd, David Jannetti / Travis Odenbach / Andy Horton / Kris Warner , USA – 4 -10 -8 ; 22
4. Bazinga!, Daniel Goldberg / Tomas Hornos / Lucas Calabrese / Ian Coleman , USA – 5 -7 -10 ; 22
5. Heartbreaker, Robert Hughes / Robert Hughes / Willem Van Way / Paul Goodison / Mark Speerman , USA – 20 -1 -3 ; 24

Melges 24 (20 Boats)
1. Raza Mixta, Peter Duncan / Victor Diaz de Leon / Matt Pitsay / Erik Shampain / Morgan Trubovick , USA – 2 -1 -4 ; 7
2. New England Ropes, Bora Gulari / Kyle Navin / Norman Berge / Ian Liberty / Dave Hughes , USA – 5 -2 -6 ; 13
3. Talisman, John Bailey / Mike Buckley / John Bowden / Beth Whitener / Bear , USA – 6 -4 -3 ; 13
4. WarCanoe, Michael Goldfarb / Jonny Goldsberry / Morten Henriksen / Matteo Ramian / Emory Williams , USA – 4 -3 -8 ; 15
5. Zenda Express, Harry Melges IV / Finn Rowe / Ripley Shelley / Jeremy Wilmot / Kate O’Donnell , USA – 1 -13 -5 ; 19

The 2021-22 Bacardi Invitational Winter Series is held for J/70 and the Melges 24 fleets on December 18-19 and January 28-30 (along with Persico 69F) with the finale on March 9-12. Also racing in March are the VX One, Viper 640, and Persico 69F classes. Additionally, the Star Class will headline the historic Bacardi Cup, one of the world’s oldest sailing events, which celebrates its 95th anniversary on March 6-12, 2022. – Details

Source: Bacardi