Admiral's Cup: Greifswald family crew enjoy power play with Goliaths

Quality and quantity are high in the comeback of the Admiral's Cup. The series clearly demonstrated this in the Channel Race and in the shorter races. "You might look for a slower boat to start alongside at other regattas, but they are simply non-existent here. There are no weak teams," says "Imagine" skipper Felix Streckenbach, describing the high-calibre fleet after the most successful day of racing for his crew to date.

Admiral's Cup: "Imagine" on the rise

In the competition between the large boats in Class AC 1, the Greifswald TP52 "Imagine" moved up to eleventh place among 15 large boats on Thursday after a long day of sailing, finishing sixth and eighth. On the last day of the inshore phase in the Central Solent, they were also able to beat boats such as Peter Harrison's TP52 IRC "Jolt 3" and Maximilian Klink's Botin 52 "Caro".

The "Imagine" crew looks back favourably on the series so far, with the Channel Race and a total of six shorter races. "At the beginning, we perhaps had a bit of respect for the many Cup professionals. It's a bit crazy: you're sailing against people and boats that you normally only see on Instagram or Facebook. Like Ed Baird (editor: America's Cup winner, "Jolt 3"). In the meantime, however, we've lost a bit of respect," says Felix Streckenbach, talking about his own learning curve at the summer summit of international sailing teams.

I think we have our best team ever on the boat." Felix Streckenbach

It's fun "to beat them sometimes". "It's a huge motivation," says Felix Streckenbach after the inshore showdown at the Admiral's Cup in the British waters. All 29 crews in the two Admiral's Cup classes AC 1 and AC 2 had their hands full with the shifty and unstable winds of the last few days. "The conditions make it incredibly difficult to maintain a well-sailed position. You make a good start and defend, but the others keep coming back," says Felix Streckenbach, explaining the difficult game.

It's great fun, even if you're not sailing at the front." Felix Streckenbach

On Thursday, the crew on Peter Harrison's co-favoured "Jolt 3" also experienced a weaker day for them with ninth and fifth places, losing the lead in the AC-1 classification to the more successful Wally Rocket 51 "Django WR51" with fourth and first places. Karl Kwok's co-favoured TP52 "Beau Geste" follows in third place after two second places. Niklas Zennström's Carkeek CF 520 "Rán" returned to Cowes harbour in sixth place overall in AC 1 with a mixed record of third and ninth places.

The challenging Solent region

The central Solent area proved to be very challenging for sailors and race organisers over all three days of inshore racing. Felix Streckenbach says: "It's really demanding in terms of manoeuvring. We have to give 110 per cent to be in the middle of the field here. The wind was a bit more constant today and even a bit more than forecast, around eight or nine knots upwards."

The "Imagine" driver went on to say: "In previous races, we had always been killed by a lull in between. In each of these races, you suddenly find yourself - like the others - standing still for two or three minutes. We are not used to such conditions - total standstill and or even 50-degree wind shifts. We then have problems manoeuvring our way through."

On Thursday, things went upwards for "Imagine" in the Admira'S Cup Powerplay. "We had super good starts today, so we're really pleased. And then we also managed to defend that as the race progressed in relatively constant winds. It was a really good team performance. Everyone in the crew has the same approach: full throttle," says Felix Streckenbach.

Admiral's Cup: two years of preparation

His team has spent almost two years preparing themselves and the "Imagine" for the sailing highlight in England. "It's an extremely complex event. We dropped everything because we wanted to," says Streckenbach.

We love this inshore and offshore combination!" Felix Streckenbach

When they decided to pass two years ago in light of the storm warnings for the targeted Rolex Fastnet Race, the desire for another Fastnet attempt was an important building block on the "Imagine" course to participate in the now successfully revived Admiral's Cup. Her project has been running since 2020, with only a few regatta options at the beginning. "Things really took off from 2022," recalls Felix Streckenbach.

We are absolutely delighted to be able to sail against these boats here and these people at the highest level." Felix Streckenbach

Like his brother and "Imagine" boat captain Theo Streckenbach (Maritimer Service Greifswald), radiologist Felix Streckenbach is also intensively involved in the "Imagine" project as project manager and skipper. Both once sailed for several years on "Silver Neo" in the Fast40+ class. While Theo, now 28 years old, lived in Sydney and Auckland for several years, working for North Sails and Hood Sails, the brothers also took part in a Sydney-Hobart Race in 2016 - each of the brothers on a different boat, Felix with his father.

A family sailing affair

Now all of Streckenbach's sailing energy is channelled into the "Imagine" project - and currently into the Admiral's Cup. Father Holger Streckenbach (56) sails as owner and crew member. His 31-year-old sister Anna also supports the team in the shore crew. "Imagine" is a sporty and passionate family affair.

"We're sailing the best boat we've ever had. The condition is really good! When we come into the harbour after the races, there are still a few things to do, but nothing complicated like before," says Felix Streckenbach, describing the excellent technical condition of the "Imagine".

We can now really step on the gas with our boat." Felix Streckenbach

The Streckenbachs have also upgraded for the Admiral's Cup, but not to the level of the competition, who have almost all turned up on the Solent with completely new sailing gear. "Around a third of our sails are new," says Felix Streckenbach, giving an insight. The new wardrobe also includes two mainsails. They were able to buy some good second-hand headsails from the TPs in the 52 Super Series.

Final in the Admiral's Cup: the Rolex Fastnet Race!

They will be taking eight to ten sails into the Rolex Fastnet Race, the 51st edition of which starts on Saturday 100 years after its premiere with a record fleet of 450 boats. "This time it looks like it will be a long, long cross. With rather fewer reaches," says Felix Streckenbach. The "Imagine" is a good "up & down" boat, while racing machines such as the French TP52 "Teasing Machine" or "Rán" have also been optimised for reaching.

VMG downwind and cruising are among the "Imagine's" best features, which is why at least the latest wind forecasts could favour the German boat with sail number GER 280 in the final of the Admiral's Cup in the Rolex Fastnet Race with triple scoring. The Streckenbachs still have a score to settle with the largest and most famous offshore race in the world.

They consider the wind forecasts to be "very lucky". "It looks like the fastnet will be up to a maximum of 20 knots. We're really looking forward to it," says Felix Streckenbach, whose crew is enjoying the British sailing summit on the water and on land to the maximum. "The area is very challenging, the communication with the sailors here and the hospitality are mega," says the "Imagine" skipper, who also praises the work of the race organisers.

Complicated winds challenge sailors and race organisers

"The race committee has a very, very difficult job here. Especially in the shallow water of the Solent. We also have boats with a draught of four metres here... The winds were so complicated that gennakers were sometimes hoisted on the cross. But they have a good team and great buoys. Today alone they must have had to shift ten tonnes and the course three times due to the difficult conditions. It's all done more quickly than I've ever experienced before. They are very experienced and also very motivated."

Then there is the visually stunning spectacle in the Solent, which has also impressed the "Imagine" crew in recent days. Felix Streckenbach explains: "The huge Ultims and catamarans are already sailing here, preparing for the Fastnet. All the crews take a look when they race across the Solent. That's impressive!" According to Streckenbach, the harbour in Cowes is something like "the spiritual home port of sailing". Everything in the small town on the Isle of Wight in the south of England, where time seems to have stood still in some of the alleyways, is centred around the Admiral's Cup and Fastnet Race.

Felix Streckenbach says: "You walk through this fully flagged place and are accompanied by it everywhere. Helly Hansen or Henri Lloyd or Fastnet posters and much more are on display in every second shop window. It's unique. The hosts are super happy that we're all there. There are drinks and food every evening at the RORC. Harken, Southern Spars and others are happy to host us here. Everyone is happy to get together here."

The Fastnet start on Saturday

The starting shots will be fired on Saturday afternoon for the last big sporting "get-together" at this successful revival of the Admiral's Cup. The Rolex Fastnet Race begins on 26 July. Here you can watch the live broadcast of the Fastnet start on Saturday from 11.45 am. Marked for the Admiral's Cup fleet the sailing blockbuster with an expected record fleet of around 450 boats, the triple scored final has the potential to turn some of the previous results upside down.

This is how the cards are dealt in the Admiral's Cup: In the team ranking, Karl Kwok's TP52 "Beau Geste" and the smaller Botin 41 "Beau Ideal" have a joint lead with 36 points. They are followed by "Jolt 3" and "Jolt 6" for the team from the Yacht Club de Monaco (44 points) and - already some way behind - the Djangos from the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (59 points) and "Caro" and "Callisto" for the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (62 points). The intermediate results of the boats can be found for class AC 1 herefor Class AC 2 here.

The team from Regatta Verein Greifswald (150 points) is in eleventh place ahead of the Rolex Fastnet Race with "Imagine" and "X-Day". The team from the Bayerischer Yacht-Club, reduced to Dirk Clasens Humpheys 39 "Ginkgo" after the sad "Red Bandit" mast breakage, has dropped back to 13th place, although the "Ginkgo" crew also achieved a strong fifth place in race six on Thursday. "Ginkgo" is eleventh in class AC 2, as is "Imagine" in class AC 1. The Hamburg Sailing Team (198 points) with "Elida" and "Edelweiss" remain at the bottom of the team ranking. Click here for the team standings in the Admiral's Cup.

Looking forward to the Rolex Fastnet Race

The "Imagine" crew is looking forward to the Rolex Fastnet Race with great enthusiasm. "It's rare for a Fastnet to be held in winds of up to 20 knots. It's great luck for the fleet to get such a weather window. We're looking forward to it and preparing everything. Then we can get going. We like long distances," says Felix Streckenbach, mentally pushing the accelerator pedal to the floor.

The race of the century starts on 26 July - another great preview of the Rolex Fastnet Race: