The 2012 Zhik Nautica Moth World Championships went down to the wire and were decided in the very last race in fabulous conditions. Joshua McKnight kept his calm, sailed nearly flawlessly and prevailed over fellow countryman Scott Babbage with two bullets in three races. Rob Gough had a very good last day and snatched third place overall from Anthony Kotoun in the last race.
If Scott Babbage capsizes at the first weather mark then words are not enough to describe the tough, demanding but equally spectacular conditions on a race course. The “Pelèr”, the morning northerly breeze on lake Garda, was blowing furiously from early on and with a violent storm forecast to hit Campione del Garda in the afternoon, the race committee had scheduled a 10am start. That gave the 60-strong Gold fleet of moths the opportunity to sail three exciting races that saw Joshua McKnight prevail, practically from start to finish.
When the race committee fired the gun for the day’s first race, the 20-25 knots of Pelèr and one-meter waves were guaranteed to put a big strain on the sailors and their boats. Both Babbage and McKnight had a clean start in the middle of the line and headed to the right-hand side of the course, as close to the eastern shore of lake Garda as possible. Babbage was in the lead at the first top mark with McKnight hot on his heels. That’s when opportunity knocked on McKnight’s door. A few hundred meters after the distance marker Babbage capsized and went for a swim. Not only did McKnight assume control of the race, he stretched his lead and won with ease, ahead of Babbage and fellow Australian Rob Gough who would start his best day in the event.
In the second race of the day, conditions weren’t as brutal but no less than 20 boats had to either abandon due to gear failure or opt for the safety of the marina. Without any doubt, the man of the race was Bob Gough whose bold tactical call paid a huge dividend and handed him the victory. On the northern race area, the eastern shore of lake Garda is usually favored. However, Gough saw a big left shift coming, separated from the bulk of the fleet and seemed like the lone ranger, approaching the first weather mark from the left. The move paid off and Gough rounded the first mark in third place, behind Mcknight and Babbage. He stuck to his strategy and overtook the leading pair while Babbage would snatch second place from McKnight right on the finish line.
As the sky cleared and temperatures rose the Pelèr abated in the third race. McKnight and Babbage were still separated by a two-point cushion and all McKnight had to do was to avoid having two boats between him and his sparring partner. Not only did he achieve it, he had a commanding lead from the start, crossing the finish line in front of Babbage. Rob Gough came in third and snatched the final podium place from Anthony Kotoun who struggled in these conditions.
Sunday’s races conclude the 2012 Zhik Nautica Moth World Championships that saw record-setting numbers both in terms of participating sailors (125) as well as countries (20). Conditions were on the lighter side in the beginning of the event but then lake Garda delivered and the Moths brought the “wow” factor back into sailing. The Moths will now fly again in the 2013 World Championship that will take place in the month of October on Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii.
Confirming their leadership in the 69F Class, where they had won the European title just a few weeks ago, the Finns of FIN 1 Racing also won Act 2 of the 69F Cup, held over the weekend in Torbole, thanks to the organization of the Circolo Vela Torbole.
The showcase curtain-raiser to the new Los Angeles 2028 Olympic cycle, Mallorca’s famous 54 Trofeo Princesa Sofía Mallorca by FERGUS Hotels started in perfect sunshine and seabreezes last Monday and today came to a fabulous conclusion, enjoying equally sparkling thermal breezes under picture postcard blue skies studded with puffy white clouds.
19 winners have been crowned and the inaugural Foiling Week Pensacola has come to a close after seven days of racing, community events, and social engagements. Inclusive of the largest Waszp North American Championship in US history, the world of foiling was shared with spectators from far and wide, and conversations are already underway for a (…)
The Italian Jesper Karlsen (Fraglia Vela Riva) has been proclaimed absolute champion of the 35th Palamós International Optimist Trophy and Spain has revalidated the title as winner of the 19th Nations Cup. In this way Karlsen will inscribe his name the Permanent Vila de Palamós Optimist Trophy breaking a streak of three consecutive Spanish (…)
The 48th Palamós Christmas Race crowned its winners after four days of intense competition in the waters of the bay of Palamós (Girona), with a very high international participation with teams from 16 countries represented.
Seasonal closure in style for Groupe Atlantic that, in Malcesine on the occasion of the 2024 69F Cup Grand Prix 4, defeated its opponents, conquering both the circuit and the EUROSAF 69F European Championship : actually, the final event had a double value, assigning both the circuit title and the continental one.
Le maxi-catamaran Orange a été mis à l’eau lundi veille de Noël et achève en ce moment sa phase de préparation technique au chantier de La Ciotat. Il naviguera pour la première fois demain dans les eaux méditerranéennes afin de réaliser ses premiers essais en mer.
La nouvelle gamme Meridian comprend 4 récepteurs GPS à 12 canaux parallèles mémorisant jusqu’à 500 waypoints et 20 routes réversibles de 30 segments maximum.
Nick Moloney, navigateur australien de 32 ans, vient d’être nommé co-skipper du monocoque Kingfisher. Il prend donc la suite d’Ellen MacArthur à la barre du voilier de 18 mètres que la jeune Anglaise vient de mener à la deuxième place du Vendée Globe.
Petit temps au départ de Sydney. Photo : Oskar Kihlborg Team SEB Electronic Image.
C’est à 3h, heure française, ce matin, (soit 13h heure locale), que les huit bateaux engagés dans la Volvo Ocean Race 2001-2002 se sont élancés pour une troisième étape de 2 050 milles, divisée en deux temps.
VO60 s gather at the start of the Sydney- Hobart race which is part of the third leg in the Volvo Ocean Race from Sydney to Auckland. Photo : Oskar Kihlborg Team SEB Electronic Image.
Today, in the early morning coolness, Darling Harbour, Sydney, was a hive of activity as the crews starting leg three of the Volvo Ocean Race made their final preparations and bade their last farewells.
A presque 24 ans, Ellen MacArthur vient d’inscrire son nom au palmarès prestigieux de la Transat Anglaise. En remportant la course mythique dans la catégorie des monocoques, elle succède à de grands noms de l’histoire de la course au large comme Éric Tabarly et Yves Parlier, ou ses compatriotes Francis Chichester et Geoffrey Williams. Pourtant (…)
Des marins comme Francis Joyon, il n’y en a plus beaucoup. La nouvelle donne de la course au large spectacle favorise l’éclosion de jeunes talents médiatiques, tous aussi à l’aise face à un micro que sur un voilier de course au large ou autour de trois bouées. En remportant la Transat anglaise, au nez et à la barbe des machines les plus (…)
Jean-Marie Liot, vingt-neuf ans, est photographe de mer professionnel depuis cinq ans. Basé à Arradon, dans le Morbihan, il vient de lancer sa galerie virtuelle sur internet.