Italians begin Farr 40 season on top

San Diego, CA (March 7, 2015) – Alberto Rossi and his crew aboard Enfant Terrible have ended each day of racing at the Farr 40 Midwinter Championship on the top of the scoreboard. In a class where consistency is key, Enfant proved day after day to be the most consistent competitors in the class. The Italian crew raced a beautiful regatta against some very serious competition, and now they will head into the rest of the Farr 40 circuit as the Midwinter Champions.

“My crew has been fantastic,” said Enfant owner Alberto Rossi. “We understood the situation going into the last race.”

After finishing second to Plenty in Race 10, Enfant now held a four point lead over the defending world champion. A disappointing 9th place in Race 10 knocked Struntje light below Flash Gordon 6, leaving Plenty and Enfant as the two contenders going into the final race.

“We got into a match race with Plenty during the starting sequence,” Rossi said of the moments leading up to start of the final race. With a four point advantage, the regatta was Enfant’s to lose and they knew it. A heated tacking battle in the last race ensured that Plenty wouldn’t stray too far ahead.

Ultimately, Enfant finished 5th and Plenty finished 6th. John Demourkas and the Groovederci crew saved their best race for last, finishing 1st in the final race. Close behind them was Helmut Jahn’s Flash Gordon 6 in 2nd place.

In addition to their podium finish in 3rd place, Flash Gordon was the top boat of Day Four. “We’re happy with today,” Jahn said. “We came together and learned, and because of it today was our best day.” Looking forward, Jahn and his crew are eager to continue their momentum into the next regatta. “For the first regatta of the series, this doesn’t hurt. Our goal moving forward is to just try and be in the top three.”

In an incredible debut regatta, newcomer Rick Goebel is the Corinthian class Champion. With the first regatta under his belt, Goebel is eager to dive into training. “This year, the timing really works well with training. With everything happening on the West Coast, we’re able to train here at home and worry about traveling next year,” Goebel said. Insanity plans to compete at Sydney next year.

Goebel sees this regatta as just the beginning, but for Rossi, the Midwinter Championship was all about redeeming the past. “We really have to thank Marco Capitani, our coach,” Rossi said. “He did a really great job solving some of the problems we took with us from the last championship in San Francisco.”

After four beautiful days of racing, the Farr 40 class will head to the San Diego Yacht Club for awards and prizes. The Farr 40 circuit will continue May 27-30 at the West Coast Championship, hosted by Cabrillo Beach Yacht Club.

Final Results (11 boats; 11 races)
1. Enfant Terrible, Alberto Rossi , ITA – 2 -2 -3 -1 -1 -4 -8 -2 -2 -2 -5 ; 32
2. Plenty, Alex Roepers , USA – 1 -6 -7 -3 -3 -1 -3 -1 -5 -1 -6 ; 37
3. Flash Gordon 6, Helmut Jahn , USA – 8 -3 -1 -6 -2 -8 -1 -7 -3 -3 -2 ; 44
4. Struntje light, Wolfgang Schaefer , GER – 10 -1 -2 -2 -5 -3 -4 -3 -7 -9 -3 ; 49
5. Groovederci, John Demourkas , USA – 4 -9 -4 -5 -4 -5 -2 -8 -11 -5 -1 ; 58
6. Nightshift, Kevin McNeil , USA – 3 -7 -5 -7 -8 -7 -6 -4 -1 -7 -4 ; 59
7. Insanity, Rick Goebel , USA – 7 -4 -8 -8 -10 -2 -11 -5 -8 -11 -9 ; 83
8. Temptress, Ray Godwin , USA – 6 -5 -6 -9 -6 -10 -10 -11 -6 -4 -10 ; 83
9. Blade 2 , Michael Shlens , USA – 9 -8 -9 -4 -7 -6 -7 -6 -10 -8 -11 ; 85
10. White Knight, Zoltan Katinszky , USA – 11 -10 -10 -10 -9 -11 -5 -9 -4 -6 -8 ; 93
11. Foil, Gordon Leon , USA – 5 -11 -11 -11 -11 -9 -9 -10 -9 -10 -7 ; 103

Complete results – Photos – Event details – Class website

Report by event media. Photo by Sara Proctor.

2015 International Circuit
March 4-7: F40 Midwinter Champ – San Diego, CA
May 27-30: F40 Event # 2 – Cabrillo Beach, CA
July 22-25: California Cup – Marina del Rey, CA
August 19-22: Rolex North Americans – Santa Barbara, CA
September 24-27: Rolex World Championship – Long Beach, CA

Click here for full 2015 calendar.