Race director Ralf Paulsen sent twelve double-handed crews to Höruphav in Denmark and back to Kiel in two races for the Senate Prize on Wednesday and Thursday (27 June). And on Friday evening from 7 p.m., a fleet of 46 yachts will compete for the Silver Ribbon in the 125 nautical mile overnight race. The course takes the crews from Kiel towards Funen and Langeland.
The idyllic harbour of Höruphav, east of Sonderborg at the exit of the Flensburg Fjord, was the intended destination of the yachts with a crew of two in the Senate Prize. The maxi "Calypso" of Gerhard Clausen/Jonathan Knottnerus-Meyer (Hamburg/Kiel) travelled fast, even too fast: The crew crossed the finish line after 3:41 hours - but with one major flaw. They had forgotten to round a mark. As a result, they were out of the ORC A class for this race. The "Rentnerbank" of Lorenz Jensen/Niklas von Meyeringk (Hamburg) was able to celebrate victory.
Silver Ribbon: good conditions expected at the start
On the return race, the "Calypso" was regularly the first yacht to cross the finish line, but the "Pensioner's Bench" also came out on top here. In the ORC B class, the Kiel "Astarte" of Klaus Ricklefs/Arne Rosenkranz took the overall victory with second place on the outward leg and victory on the return leg, followed by the "Jynx" of Patrik Heinrichs. The yardstick classification was won by the "Lore" of Martina Beyer/Christian Rocholl (Kiel). Race director Paulsen was pleased with the idea of moving the Senate Prize from the final Sunday into the week: "We had two great days with a very nice barbecue evening in Höruphav. On the way back, we managed to get all the crews to the finish line in time before the storm and thunderstorm - even though some of them got a bit of rain on the way to the harbour."
The weather forecast now also predicts a good start to the final long-distance regatta. After the start of the Silver Ribbon in Strander Bucht, the yachts should set off towards Denmark with good winds. Depending on the exact wind direction, the course through the Danish islands will lead either left or right around Langeland and through the Svendborg Sound. Looking ahead to the rest of the night and Saturday, the regatta organisers are keeping the option open to adjust the course. This is because a large area of calm is on the horizon between Germany and Denmark.
