(Lake Balaton, Hungary)- Sailing is different in Hungary. Everything
seems to revolve around food, wine & friends, though not necessarily
in that order. While racing and being competitive is important, for
many Hungarian sailors, the social element and friends that are made
partaking in their enjoyment on the water is what is most important. An
appreciation of being with friends, experiencing sunrise, sunset,
beautiful days, spectacular weather, crazy frontal systems- it is all an
extraordinary concoction of ingredients that make Lake Balaton what it
is in central Europe— a mesmerizing lake for romantics, novelists,
dreamers and innovators. Plus, the sailing can be an eye-opening
experience for those who love challenging lake sailing conditions. No
wonder such a little country has produced such amazingly good sailors
over the course of time.
For
this year’s Hungarian J/24 Championship, the weather was great, because
the wind was blowing for most of the regatta. But, according to Erik
Hercsik, “the onshore program is superb. We organized events for
everyone because the sailors can be tired in the evenings. On Thursday,
after three terribly tiring races, I arrived onshore and the Veszprém
Taste restaurant team, led by Philip Laci (a great cordon-bleu chef),
served a fabulous dinner under the tent!On Friday because of the strong onshore wind, we waited all day. As a result, after a “sightseeing” day, the J/24 sailors all ended up at the Koczor CELLAR restaurant/pub in the late afternoon. There, by the Balaton YC invitation, was a fantastic dinner waiting for the competitors! The Koczor CELLAR (Koczor Kalman, Dora and friends) served up in their beautiful and elegant hall some great wines and a four-course gala dinner!
On Saturday, there were three more races. Fierce sailing, plenty of it with over 20 knots of breeze, a “fat-burning” wind, humans torn & broken (figuratively, of course). It was Neanderthal manly-man conditions! Womanly-warriors on the loose! And, here there was a continuous evolution of the J/24 class. Amazing since 1977- nearly 40 years on our lake!
The fleet was roughly divided into 3 groups. All three groups had enjoyable battles, everyone found his opponent with whom he fought a battle against flesh & blood, ultimately to be settled with a beer or glass of wine later. With winds of 20+ knots, the most naturally competent crews rose to the top. It was beautiful! In the evening dinner program there was enough food and drink to satisfy the most adventurous and the most calm of souls.
Then
Sunday- big surprise- the wind did not want to conform to the weather
forecast correctly, the worst of all protagonists! Just one race, that
is what everyone wished. So, that ended the seven races of the
championship. Eighteen boats, 98 sailors. That’s huge! Great racing, a
great host, excellent party parties, beautiful event t-shirts,
beautiful prizes and special prizes.”As noted earlier, it was Nicholas Rauschenberger’s JUKEBOX team that won. His crew included Peter Thomas, James Paladin, Ákos Pécsváradi, and Thomas Richter. Second was Team ZULU with Matthew Cock as skipper with crew of Thomas Jager, Andrew Mustachio, Matyas Molnar, and Erika Nemeth. Third was Team DJANGO with Erik Hercsik, Peter Csaba, and others. Fourth was NORD TELEKOM sailed by Gabor Makai, Krauth Balazs, Aaron Serke, Csaba Lokodi, & Szalay Tamas. Finally, in 5th place was EUPHEMY (Thomas Madarász, Stephen Illy, Viola Baumann, Alexandra Weaver, Mihály Filó). Thanks for the report from Erik Hercsik. For more Hungary J/24 Sailing news
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