The second stage was conducted on the famous Lago di Garda, hosted by the Fraglia Vela Malcesine along its picturesque eastern shoreline...truly a storybook town. Thirty crews participated in this event this past weekend. Many of the hot Italian teams were in attendance, such as reigning J/70 European Champion Claudia Rossi on PETITE TERRIBLE and European Corinthian Champion Gianfranco Noe on WHITE HAWK. Here are the daily reports.
Day One
The Peler wind, which remained strong throughout the day, slightly decreased during the afternoon. That traditional southern breeze made it possible to complete four consecutive races, much to the delight of all the sailors.
The first victory of the day went to Federico Strocchi's CHEYENNE, sailing just his second regatta ever on the Italian J/70 Circuit. And, by winning the last race, closed the day in third overall. The second bullet of the day went to Luca Domenici's NOTARO Team, and the third win went to Mauro Roversi's J-CURVE.
At the end of the day, NOTARO Team closed the day in first on the leaderboard with solid 2-1-2-6 finishes. Federico Leproux's ALICE was a distant second with a 5-9-7-3 tally.
Day 2
Sunday's weather was windy, cold, intense, with a stronger than normal "peler" breeze from the south. Three more races were held. And, the domination of Domenici's NOTARO team continued unabated.
"In Malcesine, we had days of strong wind and demanding conditions, which the crew has always been able to cope with well. There have been changes in the crew compared to 2019. So, initially we had to find some synergy on board. But everything went well. In fact, to the point that once again we managed to win. This victory brings great satisfaction to me, especially because it is shared with my family who was here with me. Thanks also to those who support me from home. Because, without their help I would not be able to be here to race," commented Luca Domenici. Luca's crew included Diegro Negri, Giorgio Tortarolo, Michele Mennuti and Francesca Gangi.
Second was J-CURVE crew led by Mauro Roversi, with team of Manuel Modena, Federica Salvà, Branko Brcin and Carlo Fracassoli. And third was ALICE, skippered by Alessio Peppu Marinelli and crewed by Vid Jeranko, Enrico Fonda, Nevio Sabadin and Livia Tarabella.
In the Corinthian category, the victory went to the ANIENE YOUNG team comprised of Luca Tubaro, Filippo Baldassari, Matteo Morellina and Andrea Ruffini. Second was Ludovico Fassitelli's JUNDA- BANCA DEL SEMPIONE (crew of Maximilian Kuester, Francesco Orlando, Davide Vignone, Alessandro Montefiore). Third was WHITE HAWK (Gianfranco Noè, Matija Succi, Giuliano Chiandussi, Barbara Bomben, Alexander Gabriel Harej).
The Italian J/70 fleet is preparing to leave Lake Garda to head to Sanremo, where the last two events of 2020 will, hopefully, be held for the 2020 season. For more J/70 sailboat information