Rolex Capri Sailing Week - final chapter in the bay of Naples

Competitors at Rolex Capri Sailing Week arrived at the Yacht Club Capri, to find that racing was highly unlikely due to a lack of wind. Shortly after midday, the race committee announced that there would be no racing today. Therefore, last night’s standings were the final results for Rolex Capri Sailing Week 2010.

In the Mini-Maxi Class, the Mills 68 Alegre was unstoppable, taking a clean sweep of all six races. Andres Soriano, owner and driver of Alegre, was understandably delighted and shared his thoughts in a dockside interview. Summing up, Andres Soriano said:

“It’s wonderful, we ended last season winning the Rolex Middle Sea Race which was a great way to end the season. It was a very tough race but was probably the best sailing achievement I have ever had. 80% of the crew of Alegre was the original crew chosen. There is a lot of good banter on the boat, a lot of support and most importantly, there is a lot of trust that people will get the job done. If we make a mistake, the crew knows that they have their crewmates helping them out. To me that security blanket is a big plus.”

Our success at Rolex Capri Sailing Week is a combination of thought and co-ordination that has improved the performance of the boat. We knew what she was good at from the previous year and a half, and we also knew where the weak points where. We worked closely with Mark Mills, the designer, and we put together a wish list of suggestions to make the boat go better. The keel has been lengthened to improve stability and we have stiffened the mast, but in all we have only added about 150 kg. After the changes, our first event was Palma Vela, then Portofino and now here in Capri, we have got the full measure of the changes that have come into play.

However, one always needs to improve, we have the Giraglia Rolex Cup coming up which will be very competitive. You can never spend enough time on the water, learning the boat. There is always fine-tuning to be done. This regatta has been fantastic, especially having Francesco de Angeles who is a gentleman and a superb sailor, and most importantly having his generosity. He has helped us with little things that have raised our game, giving Alegre insights that were explained in a humble and practical fashion.”

Rolex Volcanoes’ Maxi Race
At the prize giving this evening, where all the winners were awarded with a Rolex timepiece, the organizers announced the inauguration of the Rolex Volcanoes’ Maxi Race, which will form part of next year’s Rolex Capri Sailing Week. This new offshore race will be organized by the International Maxi Association (IMA), in conjunction with the Yacht Club Gaeta and the Yacht Club Capri, with Rolex as title sponsor.

The 400 nautical mile race will start from Gaeta, just to the north of Naples, and will take the fleet around two magnificent archipelagos in the central and southern Tyrrhenian Sea - the Pontinian Islands and the Aeolian Islands, including the active volcano of Stromboli  - before returning to the finish off Capri.

Course: Gaeta –Ponza –Capri – Stromboli – Vulcano – Alicudi – Capri

Whilst the Maxi fleet is racing offshore, there will be inshore races for other classes.

The Rolex Capri Sailing Week 2011 is scheduled for May 24th to 28th 2011.

Final Standings - Rolex Capri Sailing Week 2010
Place, Boat Name, Owner, Nation, R's-Points

MINI MAXI
1. ALEGRE Andres Soriano GBR, 1-1-1-1-1-1-6.00
2. JETHOU Sir Peter Ogden GBR, 2-2-2-2-3-2-13.00
3. AEGIR Brian Benjamin GBR, 3-3-3-3(RDG)-2-3-17.00

For more information related to Capri and the Rolex Capri Sailing Week, please click here.
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