(Monte Carlo, Monaco)- “It’s been a long time since I had so much fun on
the water” said a competitor at the Primo Cup – Trophée Credit Suisse
about their full weekend of racing on the water in "fresh to
frightening" breeze conditions, rather epic 4-8 ft Mediterranean seas
sweeping into the bay and the mountainous principality swept by a
combination of snow flurries and sun-kissed by the soft winter
Mediterranean sun.Monaco’s bay again delivered a varied regatta full of surprises. From bright blue skies on Friday to the scattering of snow on Saturday, not to mention the tail end of a Mistral, the weather conditions delighted the IRCs and the one-design fleets.
Even though conditions were not quite good enough to race on the Sunday,
due to the centre of a depression in the Gulf of Genoa changing tack,
five very enjoyable races were started over this second weekend compared
to six last weekend. With fourteen nationalities present and a high
level of competition, the Primo Cup – Trophée Credit Suisse confirmed
its demanding reputation and quality for all yachts and hundreds of
sailors.A special note must also be made that makes the Primo Cup – Trophée Credit Suisse unique in its prize-giving for regattas around the world-- Credit Suisse Bank, appropriately enough, offers a 24 carat 99.999% Gold 1 oz. ingot to the winner of a drawing amongst the winners (a 1 in 6 chance)!! Plus, Slam Advanced Technology Sportswear is awarded to the top three in IRC Class.
The first day of sailing was fabulous. It started with a steady 10 knots south-westerly wind, with beaming sunshine and calm sea, reaching 30 knots by the end of the day. Three races were started for the J/70s while the IRC class sailed two races.
For the second day of the regattas, the early starts of the morning saw spring sailing conditions. Then the weather Gods got a bit chaotic! Later races were replaced by snow falls and wind gusts reaching up to 20 - 25 knots of wind towards the end of the races, challenging the nerves and physical skills of the racing crews on their last legs. Two races were completed Saturday, allowing the Race Committee to count five races in total for the J/70 one-designs and four for the IRCs.
In
the IRCs, the J/111s were sailing against 14 boats in a massively
competitive fleet. Loving the conditions was the J/111 ESPRIT SUD sailed
by Thierry Bouchard, finishing a well-deserved 4th place overall with a
7-5-3-3 scoreline and only missing the podium bronze by just two
points. The other J/111, MERLIN sailed by Michel Buffet and Gilles
Conte, finished in the top ten by gathering a record of 9-6-10-8 to
finish 8th overall.In the meantime, the YCM will soon host from 8th to 10th March 2013, a new Team Racing event in J/24s as well as the J/24 European Championship, organized from the 6th to 12th October 2013.
Sailing photo credits- YCM/ Carlo Borlenghi. For more Yacht Club Monaco and Primo Cup- Credit Suisse sailing information
