PalmaVela

The best bay of Palma has welcomed the classes that today have inaugurated the tests of the 18th PalmaVela. Sun, strong wind and waves have been the ingredients of a first day that has required the best of skills. Galateia reigns among the Great Lengths and the Spanish Nadir among the ClubSwan 42.

This Thursday, the 18th PalmaVela began in the bay of Palma with the premiere of the first two classes to compete: IRC/IMA Maxi, with the longest boats in the fleet, and the one-design ClubSwan42. The first leaders of this 18th edition after this first day are Galateia (IRC/IMA Maxi) and Nadir (ClubSwan42).

The great lengths debut with a coastal one in which Galateia has reigned
The majesty of the great lengths has returned to the bay thanks to PalmaVela and has done so with a 28-mile (45 km) coastal regatta, including passage through Illetas and El Toro.

The Wallycento Galateia sails under the banner of the New York Yacht Club. It is a boat from 2015 of more than 30 meters in length and with more than 20 crew members on board, including renowned round-the-world sailors such as the winner of the Volvo Ocean Race Daryl Wislang, the navigator Simon Fisher and the Mallorcan Jordi Calafat, to whom his teammate Kelvin Harrap, cane for a day in the absence of the setter, has praised: “I think that in the first part Murray Jones and Jordi Calafat took a couple of roles very well and that has made the difference. This boat has always done well in strong wind conditions and today she has served us well. We managed to reach 26 knots of speed at the stern! We didn’t make the best start, but as we got closer to the first mark, the wind quickly picked up to 25-30 knots”, he commented upon landing.

Leopard 3 has finished in second place after almost two and a half hours of racing. Good result for Chris Sherlock’s team since at the beginning of the test they had to be penalized by turning around and starting again for having started early. Complete the provisional podium of the IRC/IMA Maxi Magic Carpet 3.

The only Spanish in this class is the Pelotari Project, owned by Andrés Varela Entrecanales and winner of La Larga de PalmaVela. On this occasion they were sixth on a day in which they expected a strong wind but not that much, as recognized by the Canarian crew member Luis Doreste: “We expected a strong wind, but the conditions were a little stronger than we expected. The start was spectacular because we were able to enjoy sailing close to the Maxis, although due to the difference in the size of the boat they were leaving. A good day to enjoy sailing and the bay, we hope to continue enjoying the rest of the week”.

The Spanish Nadir leads the ClubSwan42 with two first
In a day in which the strong wind and the waves have been the protagonists, the expertise of the crews has been more decisive than ever. With 18 knots (33 km/h) of wind, at 2:00 p.m. the ClubSwan42 inaugurated their participation in this 18th PalmaVela, an intensity that has reached peaks of 30 knots (more than 55 km/h) in the second test of the day.

At the controls of Nadir is his owner Pedro Vaquer. The CVP Andratx boat has a one hundred percent Spanish crew and PalmaVela has started strongly: two regattas, two first and first overall leader of the ClubSwan42 class.

Rayco Tabares from the Canary Islands, crew member of the Nadir, highlighted the spectacular nature of the day: “We had a very nice day to sail, with quite a strong wind. It’s been a good start to the season, winning both races, and we’ve had a lot of fun, I hope it continues like this for the remaining three days. The crew has made the perfect maneuvers, which was very important today with these wind conditions and they have given us a plus, along with the tuning of the boat. Let’s see if we can continue with this dynamic even if the conditions soften”.

Daring Sister by Tomás Dolezal (4-2) and Pez de Abril by José María Meseguer (2-4) exchanged places in the two races of the day, finishing tied in the general with six points, the same as the British Long Echo, fourth.

This , Friday, the 6th, the fleet will resume the competition starting at 1:00 p.m. The two classes that have been launched today in the bay of Palma will be joined by another seven -ORC 0-1, 2, 3, 4-5, J80, Dragon and Spirit of Tradition-, already touching the 80 teams in contention and waiting for the ORC A2 to open their markers on Saturday.

For the moment, everything indicates that it will be a day of milder conditions than today but still with gusts that could exceed 15 knots of intensity.

The PalmaVela regatta is organized by the Real Club Náutico de Palma, with the approval of the Royal Spanish Sailing Federation and the institutional sponsorship of the Government of the Balearic Islands and the Palma City Council, with the collaboration of the Balearic Sailing Federation, Club Náutic S ́Arenal and the Port Authority of the Balearic Islands.

PROVISIONAL PODIUMS. Day 1
(Position/Ship/Skipper/Stands/Points)

IRC/IMA MAXI YACHTS
1. Galateia, David M. Leuschen, 1 point
2. Leopard 3, Chris Sherlock, 2 points
3. Magic Carpet 3, Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones, 3 points

CLUBSWAN 42
1. Nadir, Pedro Vaquer, 1+1=2 points
2. Daring Sisters, Jan Hirsal, 4+2=6 points
3. Fish of April, José María Meseguer, 2+4=6 points