Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta Day Two: Sardinia puts on its best show

The second day of the Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta served up conditions that were even better than the excellent sailing weather the fleet enjoyed yesterday. The Southern Wind Division started at 11.30 a.m., with a south-easterly wind of around 8 knots, headed for Razza di Giunco beach, where the shipyard had organised convivial social activities for the owners and crews of its boats.  

When it came to the Superyacht division, the Race Committee hoisted the AP flag ashore, instructing the fleet to wait at the docks until the wind had filled in as forecast. At 1 p.m., with 10 knots of breeze from the south-east, the 33-meter Pattoo was the first yacht off the blocks in the revised staggered starting sequence. The fleet headed upwind towards the south, rounding the islets of Mortorio and Soffi, then came back up under gennaker, through the Bisce pass, with winds that had increased to 16 knots in the meantime. At the mark by the Tre Monti shallows, the superyachts headed for the islet of Monaci, which they rounded before embarking on their upwind return leg to Porto Cervo. The course covered almost 30 miles, and kept the crews busy hoisting and lowering the gennakers, in addition to a long reach with frequent jibes on the way up to the Bisce pass.

Today's results in corrected time have shaken up the rankings compared to yesterday: in the Superyacht Cruising Class the Briand 108 Inoui won by just 20 seconds - after more than two and a half hours of racing - ahead of the 33-metre Pattoo. The Baltic 108 Win Win was a further 3 minutes and 19 seconds back. The leader board in the Combined Performance & Cruising Class also changes, with the first three positions now the same as the Superyacht Cruising Class. In fourth place, with a gap of just 3 minutes and 43 seconds from the winner, is the WallyCento V. The tight results bear witness to the skill of the crews who race on these superyachts, and the extent to which the ORCsy rating system successfully handles the diverse performances of these sailing giants.

In terms of the overall standings after two days, Inoui, Win Win and Pattoo top the Superyacht Cruising Class in that order, separated by just one point each. In the Combined Performance & Cruising Class, Inoui is again in the lead with a total of 4 points, followed in second and third place by the WallyCento V and the Baltic 108 Win Win respectively, both sitting on 5 points.

All is therefore still to play for over the next two days of racing. Tomorrow, 9th June, the Southern Wind Division is scheduled to set off at 11 a.m. with the same staggered start procedure as the Superyacht Division. The forecasts indicate a south-easterly wind of approximately 10-12 knots.

Chris Main, tactician on Inoui: "Today we won by just 20 seconds in corrected time, but having sailed most of the course a good way from our competition, it wasn't easy to work out our position. It felt to us like we hadn't made mistakes, with the manoeuvres at the right time. With these boats a mistake can cost you dearly. Once we crossed the finish line and saw the results, we had the confirmation that our race had been flawless."

Today, to mark World Oceans Day, drawings by the Year 3 students from the primary schools of Arzachena, Cannigione and Abbiadori, created by children who took part in the YCCS Clean Beach Day on 31st May, were projected on the LedWall in Piazza Azzurra.