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RC 44 Malcesine SLAM Cup - Sailing in Italy

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Boating and Sailing News 14 Jul

Lake Garda, Italy - The 2008 RC 44 Malcesine SLAM Cup concluded last week in one of the most beautiful inland sailing venues on the planet. This fourth sailing regatta of the RC 44 Championship Tour opened with match racing, and the one-design yacht fleet enjoyed the land breezes for which the lake is famous, completing all scheduled round-robin matches. As the week progressed to the fleet sailing events, however, the winds diminished, and only four yacht races were run.

Larry Ellison and BMW Oracle took first in the match racing, but not without a fight. The head-to-head battles were fierce at times, with blown 'chutes and a busted bow serving as a testament to the tight competition. Day one saw Oracle nowhere near the head of the fleet, but in day two, things changed. In a final battle with Dean Barker in Banco Espirito Santo, Ellison finally squeezed inside at the 2nd windward mark to take the race, the day, and the event. Ellison said that the venue on this largest lake in Italy was "the most beautiful place I have ever sailed."

James Spithill, helmsman on Team Ceeref said after the end of the match races: “It’s interesting to note that we have lost our two races against the two owners steering in the match: Isao Mita and Larry Ellison. Both have done a fantastic job, and particularly Larry, who has improved a lot today. It’s amazing to see that four boats could win before the last race. It shows how close the fleet is.”

RC44 championships

The RC 44 is America's Cup sailor and BMW Oracle helmsman Russell Coutts's creation. “We wanted to include a degree of complexity so an owner can experience what a top-end race boat is like to sail, and it delivers on that”, explained Coutts. The somewhat familiar-looking boats are designed for eight crew in fleet races, and six in match, with a number of gadgets to tweak for making the most out of the light air conditions these racing yachts often see.

Unfortunately, the Summer land breezes didn't last, and the fleet racing was carried out in ever-diminishing winds until being called after only four. Racers described the single long-distance event of the schedule as "a race of patience" and "a long concentration game." The next day, racing was called off as the local wind known as Ora decided to stay away, and the results were finalized, with Armando Giulietti’s Team Hiroshi coming in first for the event.

The Championship Tour includes both match and fleet racing under some well-thought-out rules, including those that require owners at the helm and limits the number of pros onboard during certain fleet races. These, along with tight one-design restrictions, are what it takes to make the class appealing to those who want to race against sailors and not boats.

RC 44 Championship