TF35 NYON
Looking at the forecast overnight, Sunday was lining up to be another day of thrilling racing conditions for the final of the TF35 Nyon. With just two points between leaders Realteam and second-placed Alinghi there was the potential for an exciting showdown.
Come morning, however, the wind had other plans: “We were hoping for a good 12-15 knot southwesterly from 12:00,” explains Class manager Bertrand Favre, “but unfortunately, some heavy rain prevented the wind materialising on the lake. We could see good wind up in the mountains, which kept us optimistic but unfortunately, it didn’t happen.”
With no immediate hope of racing and a storm cell on the radar coming down the lake from Geneva the call was made at 14:30CET to cancel racing for the day.
After an almost perfect performance yesterday Esteban Garcia’s Realteam Sailing takes the TF35 Nyon regatta win and knocks Alinghi off the top spot in the overall ranking for the season.
“We are thrilled to win our first event, all the hard work this winter paid off,” enthused Realteam Sailing’s Co-Skipper Jérôme Clerc. “We had a great battle with Alinghi, almost a match race duel, which we really enjoyed. It was very close, so close in fact, that we even finished a race just a second behind them. It’s a promising start for the rest of the season, and we’re looking forward to the next race”.
Alinghi, who challenged Realteam Sailing’s every move on the racetrack this week, is tied on three points with their Swiss rivals in the TF35 Trophy overall standings but fall to second place on countback.
Spindrift opened the TF35 Nyon strong with two third-placed finishes and a race win on a day that saw deep results for the rest of the fleet. Dona Bertarelli and Yann Guichard’s team also claimed the weekend’s top speed of 36.7 knots downwind in race three. Having finished third at both the Opening Grand Prix and the TF35 Nyon, Spindrift takes a comfortable third in the overall standings.
Of the remaining fleet, only three points separate fourth to seventh. Bertrand Demole’s Ylliam XII – Comptoir Immobilier remains consistent with their second fifth-placed finish of the season. Ten points overall ties Demole’s team with Frédéric Jousset’s Team SAILFEVER, however, it is the French Team SAILFEVER lead by Loïck Peyron that has the advantage on countback.
A fourth for Erik Maris’ Zoulou at the TF35 Nyon lifts the French team off the bottom rung of the overall leaderboard on 11 points with ZEN Too just two points adrift on 13.
At the end of the day, Bertrand Favre commented: “Despite not racing today, we are very happy with the event. We had seven amazing races in a solid breeze. Racing was as intense and fun”.
