In sunshine and a light sea breeze, the race organisers offered the Gold Cup participants three up-and-down races. The ORC yachts were even sent to the Coastal Race after two short courses and enjoyed the impressive Kiel backdrop. There was a complete Danish success in the unofficial world championship of the X-99 with the crew of Thomas Nielsen's "Maxx" at the helm.
"Maxx" owner Nielsen went into the final day of the Gold Cup feeling a little tense. From the outside looking in, there was no reason for this after his performance on the previous days, but "one or two slip-ups can get you through very quickly," said Nielsen. But when the day got off to a good start with a second place, he was sure of himself. And the two final races were enjoyable sailing. "It's a team of friends and family. We had great fun."
He has had the boat for twelve years and has taken part in many regattas and Gold Cups since then. In the process, his team has gained experience in finding the right settings for the boat in different conditions. Nielsen saw the key to success in clear tactics: "We quickly looked for the open wind after the start and then let the boat run."
He also had a clear explanation for the fact that other Danish crews, the teams of Kim Sörensen and Jens Hestbech, followed on the podium: "The X-99 scene is very active here with many regattas. That brings everyone forwards. We hope that this will also develop again in Germany."
Kiel Cup according to ORC
There was another Danish victory in the Kiel Cup of the ORC class A+B. Erik Stannow's "Dixi 4" (Helsingør) is a regular guest in Kiel. She had already got off to a good start on the Kiel Fjord at the Maior Regatta at the beginning of May, finished third six weeks ago and has now emerged as the clear winner with eight victories in the nine races. She was followed by the Norwegian "Sons of Hurricane" of Jon Sverre Hoiden and the German "Surprise" of Marie Becker (Kiel).
The victory in the ORC C+D was just as clear. Jürgen Klinghardt (Lübeck) also sailed to eight victories with his "Patent 4". It was only in the Coastal Race, when the overall victory had already been decided, that the Klinghardt crew took it a little easier with fifth place, but was able to cross off the result. The owner was very satisfied: "We didn't expect this, because weak winds are not really our strength. But we have lightened the yacht a little this season, taken out some internal ballast and sailed with one less man. That made us almost 200 kilograms lighter," says the patent attorney. With several X35s in the runner-up positions, there was strong competition at the start in the group of smaller ORC yachts. In this Kiel Cup, however, the "Sydbank" of Torsten Bastiansen (Flensburg) and the "Freya" of Noah Piotraschke (Kiel) had no chance against a superior sailing "Patent 4".
