Jones and Rice - first Bastardos

A report on the International 14 racing on Lake Garda

Martin Jones and Andy Rice stole the Adolfo Bastardo Trophy in a thrillingly close battle between the International 14s, as they raced around Lake Garda in perfect skiff conditions earlier today. Mike Lennon and John McKenna had worked Hyde Sails into an early lead up the windy first beat, and had maintained that lead for the much of the race. But at the last gasp before the finish, Jones and Rice judged their final approach slightly better and sailed Gill Marine across the line with just seconds to spare. It was a perfect way for Jones, a former 14 World Champion, to celebrate his birthday.

However, there is a price to be paid for victory, and that comes this evening in the form of drinking an unhealthily large quantity of grappa, the local alcoholic poison in this region of northern Italy. There is a further price to be paid if Jones and Rice fail to return next year to defend the title in the Bastardo – a fine of $4,000 for non-attendance, no less. Some say that is why the race is called what it is, but in fact the Trophy is named in honour of a Swiss 14 sailor called Adolfo Bastardo.

Many teams had a shot at the lead today, because despite the force 4 to 5 winds at the start, the shifting breeze made for a tricky game of snakes and ladders. Former 18-foot skiff World Champion Tim Robinson has made a recent return to the class with his old team mate Zeb Elliott, and the Selden Masts boat showed some awesome bursts of pace at times. Alister Richardson has recently retired from Olympic campaigning in the 49er class but has transferred his skills very quickly to the 14. With former 14 and 18 World Champion crew Dan Johnson doing the hard work at the front of RMW Marine, they were threatening to bounce back from a poor start, only to overshoot the first turning mark up the Lake at Limone, where the wind had died to nothing. Multiple champions Ian Pinnell and Tim Hancock climbed to third aboard Pinnell & Bax on the way back down the lake as the 14s blasted down at speeds in excess of 20 knots, but they took a dunking after one of their trapeze rings gave way.

Meanwhile, up at the front, Jones’s Bieker 4 was pitted against the Morrison 12 of Lennon, and they two-sail gybed around the mark at Torbole absolutely neck and neck, to move into the final phase of the race, a tricky tight reach along the bottom of Garda back to Riva. Lennon and McKenna were easing away from Jones and Rice, but misjudged their final approach to the finish, allowing Gill Marine to sneak victory by a nose.

Did Lennon lose the race, though, or did he throw it? After all, with a $4,000 liability hanging over you, winning the Bastardo is not everyone’s idea of a victory. Lennon and McKenna might be saving themselves for the big one, the three-day Riva Cup which begins tomorrow. While Jones will be forced to celebrate his birthday with grappa this evening, Lennon will be allowed to continue with his favourite pre-race tipple, a strawberry daiquiri. It will be interesting to see who shows the better balance at the back of their International 14s tomorrow, as these extreme machines are never the most stable of platforms, with or without alcohol.

Results - Top Three

1. Gill Marine - Martin Jones/ Andy Rice
2. Hyde Sails - Mike Lennon/ John McKenna
3. Selden Masts - Tim Robinson/ Zeb Elliott