Record participation of 57 boats from 11 countries
The 12th edition of the prestigious Palermo-Montecarlo offshore regattas run from August 21-26, 2016, organised by Circolo della Vela Sicilia, in collaboration with the Yacht Club of Monaco and Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. A record participation of 57 boats, representing 11 countries, lined up on the start in the Gulf of Mondello in Palermo, Sicily.
The towering 27m one-mast Rambler 88 with experienced yachtsman Brad Butterworth from New Zeland at the helm crossed the finish line on at 10:00pm on Tuesday, Wednesday August 24, conquering the Trophy Tasca d’Almerita in real time in 58h 14m 11s, even if he did managed to beat the record set by the 30m Esimit Europa 2 last year of 47h 46m 48s.
Sailors from Italy, USA, France, Germany, Spain, UK, Malta, Turkey, Russia, Hungary and of course Monaco battled during the 500 nautical miles course, that retraced an ancient route taken by Phoenician ships, and is the fourth and final stage of the Mediterranean Maxi Offshore Challenge 2016 on the International Maxi Association (IMA) calendar.
At the start on Sunday in the Gulf of Mondello there was light 7-8 knot breeze, but the brave sailors came across rough seas and 25 knots on the approach to Porto Cervo with seven boats obliged to abandon the race, including the 2015 event’s winner, Extra 1 lead by Massimo Barranco, and Ville de Geneve who were 3rd at that time. The result is another notch on the trophy board of the 27m sloop, winner of the Voiles de Saint Barth in 2015 and 3rd in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race the same year.
A new generation of young sailors making their mark
After the triumphant arrival of Rambler 88, others followed on Wednesday, August 24, among them the J111 of the Yacht Club of Monaco (see photo inset by Andrea Carloni), classifying 15th in real time, and 5th in corrected time in the ORC category. The crew lead by Jacopo Carrain, was composed of Juan Alberto Casalone, Martina Petrella and Remi Piazza, three young sailors formed in the YCM sportive section, under the tactical assistance of Pietro D’Ali, Giuseppe Leonardi (No. 1), Enrico Zennaro and Filippo La Mantia.
Another Monegasque achievement was the 4th place in real time of futuristic sailing boat Infinity, the only monohull designed by Gordon Kay, member of the YCM that arrived in Monaco at the end of the morning on Wednesday.
Note also the 13th place in real time in the ORC category of Roccabella and Evgeny Strzhalkovsky of the YCM, followed by the futuristic Maverick, the only mono-hull produced in a series, designed by Gordon Kay, also a YCM member, who came in 18th. Leonardo Servi’s Scricca was first in corrected time. “After winning the Giraglia Rolex Cup this year, we are delighted to have won the Palermo-Montecarlo. It’s been an incredible season. The team is tightly knit and working so well together,” said the owner who took away the Angelo Randazzo Trophy.
A good result but more importantly an inspiration for the young sailors from the Sports Section (Martina Petrella, Remi Piazza and Juan Alberto Casalone), under the supervision of experienced sailors Pietro d’Ali on tactics, Enrico Zennaro (Number 1) and Giuseppe Leonardi and Filippo La Mantia (trimmers). A fantastic opportunity for this new generation to discover the thrills and skills of offshore racing, try out a new boat and learn from seasoned racers. “I learned so much about trimming, our position on the boat and so on. The team was fantastic with us,” enthused Martina Petrella.
This initiative is very much in line with the YCM’s sailing policy and philosophy to share experiences and knowhow which it also does through its training centre La Belle Classe Academy, set up to promote the development of yachting, the new premises of which will be inaugurated at the Monaco Yacht Show, September 28- October 1, 2016.
Winners of the 12th Palermo-Montecarlo
Line honours – Palermo-Montecarlo Trofeo Tasca d’Almerita
- Rambler 88 helmed by Brad Butterworth in 58 hours 14 minutes and 11 seconds.
IRC
- IRC Palermo-Montecarlo – Scricca (ITA) – Leonardo Servi
- IRC Palermo-Montecarlo – Give me Five (FRA) – Adrien Follin
- IRC Palermo-Montecarlo – Lunatika (ITA) – Stefano Chiarotti
ORC
- ORC Palermo-Montecarlo – Scricca (ITA) – Leonardo Servi (Trofeo Angelo Randazzo)
- ORC Palermo-Montecarlo – Lunatika (ITA) – Stefano Chiarotti
- ORC Palermo-Montecarlo – BeWild (GBR) – Renzo Grottesi
Palermo-Montecarlo x 2
- Lunatika (ITA), Stefano Chiarotti
- SL Energies Grp Fastwave (FRA), Laurent Charmy
- Prospettica (ITA), Giacomo Gonzi
Today’s Quote
“Thought is the wind, knowledge the sail, and mankind the vessel.” Augustus Hare
Monaco Reporter 