Six of the best race crews in the world were on San Diego Bay Friday afternoon in final preparation for the start of the America’s Cup World Series – San Diego.
With racing taking place in 6 to 9 knot Southwesterly wind, several teams took advantage of the situation to practice their starts and close-quarters race maneuvering. China Team had a strong day in the two races, posting a win and a second place finish to top the table ahead of Sweden’s Artemis Racing.
“San Diego has a reputation for light airs but today was nice, up in the 8-10 knot range,” said China Team skipper Charlie Ogletree. “We’re strong in the light winds as our helmsman, Andreas Hagara, his specialty is light airs. He’s won a world championship in similar conditions so he’s got a good feel in the light. We’re hoping for good results; we need to learn to race at the front, so we’ll be looking to do as well as we can this weekend.”
On Saturday and Sunday, the racing gets serious, with all nine America’s Cup World Series crews scheduled to race in the Port Cities Challenge. Three fleet races are scheduled each day. Representatives from the member cities will be aboard the race boats on Sunday.
Following two training days on Monday and Tuesday, the championship portion of the America's Cup World Series - San Diego runs from Wednesday November 16 through Sunday November 20, and includes fleet and match racing, as well as AC500 Speed Trial drag races. The teams earn points from their final ranking in both the fleet and match racing events towards the 2011-2012 America's Cup World Series, currently led by Emirates Team New Zealand.
With racing taking place in 6 to 9 knot Southwesterly wind, several teams took advantage of the situation to practice their starts and close-quarters race maneuvering. China Team had a strong day in the two races, posting a win and a second place finish to top the table ahead of Sweden’s Artemis Racing.
“San Diego has a reputation for light airs but today was nice, up in the 8-10 knot range,” said China Team skipper Charlie Ogletree. “We’re strong in the light winds as our helmsman, Andreas Hagara, his specialty is light airs. He’s won a world championship in similar conditions so he’s got a good feel in the light. We’re hoping for good results; we need to learn to race at the front, so we’ll be looking to do as well as we can this weekend.”
On Saturday and Sunday, the racing gets serious, with all nine America’s Cup World Series crews scheduled to race in the Port Cities Challenge. Three fleet races are scheduled each day. Representatives from the member cities will be aboard the race boats on Sunday.
Following two training days on Monday and Tuesday, the championship portion of the America's Cup World Series - San Diego runs from Wednesday November 16 through Sunday November 20, and includes fleet and match racing, as well as AC500 Speed Trial drag races. The teams earn points from their final ranking in both the fleet and match racing events towards the 2011-2012 America's Cup World Series, currently led by Emirates Team New Zealand.
From : America's Cup
