Three-hour search for exhausted Finn-class sailor
According to the organiser, the sailor intended to return to the class’s mooring at Mövenstein after the first race. However, he apparently used the wrong landmarks along the coast to navigate and headed towards Neustadt instead of Travemünde.
As he did not turn up either at the next start or on shore, the regatta organisers launched a search. According to the organisers, boats from the race committee, the German Red Cross Water Rescue Service (DRK-Wasserwacht) and the German Life Saving Association (DLRG) took part in the search. Initially, the search proved unsuccessful because the man from Berlin had already left the regatta course area.
Apparently, the sailor then capsized and rested for a short while on the capsized boat. He then righted his dinghy himself and sailed back to the Möwenstein on Travemünde beach under his own steam.
According to the organisers, they had been on the verge of declaring a maritime emergency, but this was ultimately no longer necessary.
Tough conditions right from the start
The conditions in Lübeck Bay proved a real challenge for the sailors. The wind reached gusts of up to 25 knots. As a result, almost half of the 40 or so Finn sailors either stayed ashore or returned early.
In the Finn class, a close battle unfolded at the top of the standings. André Budzien from Schwerin, who has just won both the Finn dinghy and the OK dinghy had won the Warnemünde Week, pulled away from the rest of the field alongside Fabian Lemmel from Berlin.
After a total of four races, both had two wins each. It was their other results that made the difference: Budzien also secured two second places, putting him one point ahead of Lemmel. The outcome of the class was therefore still undecided after the weekend.
The weather also had a significant impact on other classes. The RS 700 and RS 800 classes initially managed just one race each, whilst the RS Venture Connect class, which was included, remained in the harbour throughout the early stages. In the RS Tera World Championship, many children and young people struggled with the wind, waves and capsizes.
Hobie 16 and offshore sailors crown their champions
The first results were already announced at the weekend. In the Hobie 16 class, Ulf Hahn and Katrin Wiese-Dohse from SC Kellenhusen took the lead in the overall standings with finishes of third, second and first. Maurice Schwarz and Roman Kühler from Bocholt took second place ahead of Lukas Riepe and Wiebke Finkemeyer from Surendorf.
The offshore sailors also completed their races. In the ORC classification, Jürgen Klinghardt’s ‘Patent 4’ came out on top against Jens Kuphal’s ‘Exciter’. Both crews achieved one first and one second place each; the better result from the first race proved decisive. Third place went to Torsten Habicht’s “Matchbox”.
In the Yardstick classification, Björn Carstensen’s ‘Pepper and Salt’ won by a narrow margin ahead of Florian Walden’s ‘Venskab’ and Stefan Meining’s ‘Na und’. The margins were tight, with only a few points separating the three teams.
The long-distance race around Fehmarn also proved a challenge for the crews
The Fehmarn round-the-island long-distance regatta also highlighted just how challenging the weekend had been overall. Of the 22 yachts entered, 17 took to the start line, but only eleven completed the full course.
Based on the calculated time, Hendrik Decker’s “Cedo Nulli” won. The fastest yacht on the official course was Johannes Berg’s “Jinx”. Andi Lochbrunner’s “Resolute” actually crossed the finish line even earlier, but was excluded from the results because the crew chose a different course – albeit one of the same length – due to the mast height and construction work on the Fehmarn Sound Bridge.
Several teams withdrew from the regatta early. The reasons cited included wind, waves and seasickness, amongst others.
British teams are setting the tone at the RS Games
International crews dominated the RS Games. In the Sport category of the RS Tera World Championships, Bora Carrington, Freddie Harrison and Louis Rumboll from Great Britain took the lead. In the Pro category, Charlie Hunt, also from Great Britain, was in the lead, followed by Hari Clark; Oleksandr Chykalov from Ukraine came third.
After five races at the RS 500 European Championships, Paul Cullen and Fresh Abendstern were in the lead, ahead of Peter and James Curtis. The Czech team of Lucie Kosatova and Lukas Kosata were in third place.
In the RS 700 class, Rob Higgins topped the standings with three wins from four races. In the RS 800 class, Louis Johnson and Lucy Hewitson took the lead. The RS Venture Connect class also got their European Championship campaign underway following their weather-related break. Adam and Shaun Billany from Great Britain, along with Pedro Câncio Reis and Teodoro Cândido from Portugal, shared first place in the class.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital