Another sun-blasted day here in Arenys, the thermometer well over 30*C, and everyone looking for shade as much as any sign of wind.
But once again, it was not to be, so after 18hrs the decision was taken that no racing was possible and the fleets were “stood down”. We’ll see if something can ripple the water tomorrow.
The wait for wind gave us a chance to catch up with none other than Russell Coutts, Commodore of Manly Sailing Club – the host club of the 2019 O’pen Bic World Championships.
Coutts is a sailing legend and it’s a privilege to have him here with the NZ O’pen BIC team, showing how highly regarded O’pen BIC is in that nation of expert sailors.
“It’s going to be a great venue. I predict it’s going to be a verity of conditions as we can get light winds and we can get strong winds. Probably a combination of both.”
“There are a lot of boats now in New Zealand, we just had an event a few weeks ago and we had 92 boats, so I would expect there will be a lot of young New Zealand sailors, who would like to do the event. We’ll also have quite a few sailors from Australia, Japan, hopefully China, the United States are building their fleet now and I think they are planning on bringing some sailors down to Manly. On top of that Italy and France and hopefully other European countries.”
“We’d like to welcome everyone to come to the event. Especially those that have to travel a long way, I’m sure it will be a fantastic event and you can also explore a new country as well”
The 2019 O’pen BIC World Championships will see racers making the long trip down-under, the first time in the competition’s history. The O’pen BIC World Championships will be proceeded by the Manly O’Pen Seeding regatta, in which all those entering the O’pen BIC Worlds will be required to complete at least one race to qualify for their main event.
The 2019 Worlds event website – https://worlds2019.openbicclass.org/
Register for the 2019 Worlds online – https://www.registernow.com.au/secure/Register.aspx?E=29869
Meanwhile, back on the Costa Brava: last chance for any conclusive racing is tomorrow, Saturday. We’ll all be back on the beach ready for a start as soon as there’s any sign of wind. Last possible warning signal 16hrs.
Good luck to everyone!
