The opening race of the 1st German Sailing League on Lake Starnberg remained exciting until the very end, but in the end it was almost a familiar picture: the defending champions NRV won the first regatta this year on equal points ahead of the Seglerhaus am Wannsee (VSaW) and the German Touring Yacht Club (DTYC). The Hamburg team (44 points) was able to secure its first win of the season with the greater number of race wins (7). The chasing pack from Berlin and Tutzing, who also scored 44 points, were thwarted on Sunday afternoon by a persistent lull, to which the last six races fell victim.
Nevertheless, VSaW and DTYC also considered the result a happy ending. VSaW tactician and Vice President Ulrike Schümann said: "After our grey start, I'm very happy with the result in the end." In predominantly light winds, the 18 first division teams gave each other nothing this weekend and fought for every point until the very end.
NRV team manager Klaus Lahme was delighted with his team's victory, but at the same time was puzzled about how it came about: "We were pretty superior in the end, it worked out well. But it was also an inconsistent series, somewhere between genius and madness. That's rather atypical for us, we don't really sail like that. At times it was a bit like a chicken coop. We still have to work on that, but we are of course very happy with the result."
As in the inaugural season of the German Sailing League, Hamburg are once again the hunted, while others want to avoid one thing above all else: relegation! "We've learnt that in Hamburg from the footballers and handballers," said 25-time German champion Frank Schönfeldt, who took over the helm for the Mühlenberger Segel-Club, "just don't get relegated!"
The "Clown" sailmaker from Hamburg reported emotional rollercoaster rides for all the teams in the fickle light winds on Lake Starnberg. Some crews went from first to last place and vice versa in the blink of an eye. "You could see today that some went out with blond hair and came back with grey hair. Overall, the regatta was incredibly well organised by the Bavarian Yacht Club. They have set the bar very high for the upcoming events. That was great tennis!" The MSC is in twelfth place after the first Bundesliga regatta. At the end of the season, that would just about be enough to stay in the league. The relegation places start from 13th place...
For the time being, the red lantern of the league bottom hangs in the stern of the Lübeck Yacht Club. The second of a total of six league regattas will be held in the club's home waters from 19 to 21 July. The season ends with the final and championship celebrations at the end of October on Hamburg's Outer Alster.
The starting signal for the 1st German Sailing League 2014 has been given. On Lake Starnberg, the NRV came out on top on equal points ahead of VSaW and the German Touring Yacht Club and took the lead in the standings. The Hamburg team remain the hunted in the league
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
