While waiting for the European championship to take place in Baratti, the national circuit continues, offering beautiful sailing days. The Second D-one cup, stage of the Italian open championship circuit, valid for the assignment of the title, took place at the Yacht Club Imperia.
After the races in Dervio, with more sustained winds, the group took on the typically summer conditions: almost calm sea and light wind..
In fact, the wind fluctuated between 5 and 8 knots, allowing everyone to race and complete the trials, and enhancing the skills of the more tactical and light helmsmen.
The event also benefited from the welcome visit of three foreign guests, who completed and integrated the Italian presence. Mareck Batchick CZE04, Nick Crickmore GBR06 and Nick Favell GBR101 have embarked on a long journey to share the pleasure of racing with their Italian colleagues. The whole italian class thanks them warmly and renews the invitation to join for other appointments.
Without diminishing the strong spirit of competition, the grit and tenacity of our welcome guests, we must nevertheless admit that the attraction of a seaside resort in its best form and a pleasantly warm weather have also played a part in making our colleagues leaving the mists and reaching Italy. Without taking anything away from the waters of the southern English coast, full of sailing glories, our guests appreciated the sun and the already tangible holiday atmosphere in Imperia, among tourists in flip flops and an aperitif on the seafront, courtesy of the hosting Yacht Club.
For our part, we welcomed them with a pleasant dinner of trofie with pesto, potatoes and green beans, according to the Ligurian tradition. All were guests on Tommaso's boat, whom we thank for organizing this impromptu event.
The first day of racing saw three trials take place with winds of 6-8 knots, in a thermal breeze regime. The almost perfect conditions allowed the group coach and reigning Italian champion (Enrico Ciferri ITA315) to express himself at his best. On opposite sides, however, Enrico had to contend with Marek, who behaved very well, always contending with Enrico for the first position. The others had excellent tactical ideas which occasionally led them to emerge, but without the reliability of Enrico and Marek.
The final classification therefore sees Marek prevail over Enrico only by virtue of the "last round" rule, given that their score is identical. A good Nick Crickmore comes third, despite being far from his ideal weather conditions.
Everyone was greeted warmly by the Yacht Club staff who helped form the team spirit that we seek so much on these occasions. We thank the staff, the race committee and the club presidents for their commitment and hospitality.
The Italian Open championship then continues, with changes to the provisional ranking. Find detailed explanations in the dedicated article - Prosegue il campionato Italiano.
Alberto Franceschi ITA149
photo gallery: IMPERIA2023
