XIV Puig Vela Clàssica regatta
This Saturday the last day of the XIV Puig Vela Clàssica regatta was held, which brings together the world elite of classic sailboats in which Yanira and Fjord III have been proclaimed winners.
More than 200 sailors and 15 boats of nine different nationalities have competed since July 15 in the waters of Barcelona for one of the most prestigious trophies in the Mediterranean. Yanira and Islander, representing Spain, winners of the Enrique Puig trophy.
Aware of the social concern about COVID 19, in this edition the organization has increased the sanitary conditions by carrying out antigen tests for crews and organization, thus ensuring compliance with the measures recommended by the authorities.
Dexterity, beauty and emotion to the end
For the third day in a row the weather conditions have been excellent for the regatta in Barcelona. Thus, the third and last round of the XIV Puig Vela Clàssica Regatta began with the occasional presence of the Garbí thermal wind (200º), which was already blowing 12 knots from the moment of departure. Once again the state of the sea was ideal, as a result of the slight swell, both near the Barcelona coast and a few miles out to sea.
XIV regatta Puig Vela Clàssica 1
The Race Committee opted for a coastal route between buoys, whose 6 sections totaled 14.75 nautical miles in distance, navigated in upwind, cross and downwind courses, mainly. As has been customary in this edition, the start of the race started with British punctuality at 1pm.
The final victory in the Época category was announced, due to the dominance shown by Fjord III (Germán Frers, 1947) of Scott Perry in the first two races contested, settled with victories over Islander (Dickie & Sons, 1937) of Ricardo Albiñana. Today there was no surprise, and the Uruguayan boat once again dominated all facets of the regatta. He came out ahead of Islander, he sailed fast and was right in the tactics and the different maneuvers that the route demanded. After spending 2:19:27 hours to complete the test, and after applying the time compensation, Fjord III was imposed by 12:18 minutes to Islander, and closed his final locker in an unbeatable way, with three victories and only 3 points . For the Uruguayan Fjord III team, this is their second Puig Vela Clàssica victory, which they previously won in 2019.
XIV regatta Puig Vela Clàssica 1
In the Clásicos fleet, Andrés León’s Yanira (Bjarnee Ass, 1954) started the day with a two-point margin over Damián Ribas’s Alba (Phil Rodes, 1956), who was not willing to give up. Also the triple tie between Sea Fever by Enrique Curt, Emeraude (Germám Frers, 1976) by Vittorio Cavazzana and Altamar (Alonso Allende, 1970) by Pedro Ramos, boasted an intense regatta in order to win a place on the final podium.
After a good start, Yanira controlled their direct rival on the right side of the first beat, but in the second section, a closed through, Alba raised the spi while ahead of Yanira avoided risks, as it was a very fair course for this candle. This allowed Damián Ribas’s men to regain ground, which in the end earned them the triumph of this third round, with 1:21 minutes ahead in compensated time for Islander.
The second position of the crew commanded by Andrés León, was worth him to add 4 points in the final table, compared to 5 in Alba, and thus be the winner of the category. In this way, Yanira adds its fourth victory in the Puig Vela Clàssica, after prevailing in the 2010, 2011 and 2013 editions, approaching the record of five victories held by Alba, harvested in 2008, 2012, 2015, 2016 and 2017 .
XIV regatta Puig Vela Clàssica 1
The third and highly disputed position in this Classics category was awarded to Altamar, after being third in the decisive test for only 5 seconds !! on Sea Fever after time compensation. Emeraude closed his participation with the same numbers at the end of fifth of the day and of the general classification.
The awards ceremony: farewell to three exciting days of competition
At 6:00 p.m. the awards for the XIV edition of the regatta were delivered at the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona (RCNB). The category winners of the XIV Puig Vela Clàssica were the Spanish Yanira de Andrés de León in Classics and the Uruguayan Fjord III, by Scott Perry, in vintage boats. These boats have received their award from Jordi Puig on behalf of Puig.
Yanira and Islander, representing Spain, winners of the Enrique Puig trophy.
XIV regatta Puig Vela Clàssica 1
Final general classifications of the competition
Epoch
1. Fjord III (YC Uruguay), Scott Perry
2. Islander (RCNB) Ricardo Albiñana
Classics 1
1. Yanira (RCNB), Andrés de León
2. Alba (RCNB) Damián Ribas
3. Altamar (RCNB) Pedro Ramos
