Solenia 2 comes out on top

A report from the final day of the Rolex Swan Cup in Sardinia

On the fifth and final day of racing at the Rolex Swan Cup 2004 at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, the fleet was put to a tactical test in very light and shifty conditions. In the end it was Roberto Ferrero’s Solenia 2 that took overall fleet honours and was awarded the Rolex Swan Cup.

Individual class winners for the week were: Bugia Bianca (Swan 70) in Class A, Vertigo in Class B/Swan 45, and Solenia 2 (Swan 48) in Class C/D. Overall class winners were presented with a Rolex Submariner timepiece in steel and gold.

The northerly breeze at the start was around 4-5 knots. It remained light for most of the race and shifted to the northeast and then died almost completely so that the Race Committee was forced to shorten Classes A and C/D. In Class B, the Swan 45s started on a windward-leeward course of about 10 miles, but with the first boat only 300m from the finish line, the time limit ran out and the race was abandoned.

Class A sailed a course from Porto Cervo to a mark on the Golfo delle Saline, then upwind to a shortened finish at the Monaci Islands, a distance of approximately 17 miles; Class C/D were sent on a 12-mile course which took them round the Secca dei Tre Monti, then on to the same shortened finish line at Monaci.

Solenia 2 and Bugia Bianca were tied for the overall Rolex Swan Cup win, but Solenia 2 won on a tiebreak. “The sails are good on Solenia but what is important is what is in the heart," commented owner Roberto Ferrero. "We are all friends and this is the philosophy and the secret to Solenia 2.”

Lorenzo Bressani, helmsman on board Solenia, added: “It was my second Swan Cup with Solenia, so to win was very special. We have a very good crew and have sailed well all week.” Among the crew was top Italian tactician Tommaso Chieffi who said: “It is my third time at the Swan Cup and my first win, so I am very pleased. It could have been a disaster today with only 5 knots of breeze, but we stayed calm and our crew work was good.”

Marco Salvi, co-owner of the Swan 45 Vertigo said: “We have had a fantastic week of sailing with some very tough conditions. We race well together and it’s been a lot of fun. We have only had Vertigo since May and already this is our second win of the season. It has been great to have all the Swans present in Sardinia and see how our boat competes with the rest of the fleet.”

Massimo Dentice on board Bugia Bianca, gave his thoughts on the race: “Although we had one of our best starts of the week, the Swan 601 Island Fling took the lead. We overtook them passing Liscia di Vacca and were ahead for 15 minutes. Then the wind shifted and Island Fling overtook us again. The boat has sailed fantastically all week and I have sailed with a top crew of sailors in what has been a very well-organised regatta.”

In addition to the crowd of sailors from over 100 participating Swans, the prizegiving ceremony on the Piazza Azzurra was also attended by political and military authorities. The Rolex Swan Cup 2004 brings the regatta season organised by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda to a close.

To see more of Carlo Borlenghi's images from the Rolex Swan Cup - click here

Results:

Class A

Pos	Boat	Owner/skipper	Sail No.	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	Tot
1	BUGIA BIANCA	Massimo Dentice/Massimo Dentice	ITA14014	1	1	5	1	1	2	0	6
2	STAY CALM	Stuart Robinson/Stuart Robinson	GBR70R	9	8	4	3	4	3	0	22
3	AQUA EQUINOX	Filip Balcaen/Jamie Connelly	BEL6237	12	4	1	5	9	4	0	23
4	ISLAND FLING	Paul F. Winkelmann/Stephen Dodd	GBR88R	8	3	11	12	3	1	0	26
5	LOLITA	Frank & Lolita Savage/Frank Savage	USA50056	5	13	2	9	2	10	0	28
6	NOONMARK VI	Geoffrey Mulcahy/Mike Gilburt	GBR5698R	6	17	3	8	5	9	0	31
7	CONSTANTER	Willem Mesdag/Richie Seel	USA50002	4	15	7	4	7	11	0	33
8	CHIPPEWA	Clayton Deutsch/Clayton Deutsch	IVB6821	2	6	10	7	8	7	0	34
9	FLYING DRAGON	Erck Rickners/Erck Rickners	GBR6770	13	5	6	11	6	8	0	36
10	PARADIS	David Ward/Rinaldo Boscolo	GBR1582	11	9	8	6	10	RET	0	44
11	FAVONIUS	Roel Pieper/Roel Pieper	7	10	2	9	2	RET	DNC	0	52
12	SPIRIT OF JETHOU	Peter Ogden/Stuart Brandson	GBR2601R	15	10	PEN	13	11	5	0	54
13	FIAMMA	Alessandro Barnaba/Alessandro Barnaba	GBR1402	7	12	12	14	12	12	0	55
14	HAMILTON	Deutsche Bank/Matt Cowpe	GBR8602R	3	14	16	10	13	18	0	56
15	ATALANTE 2	Raymond Tanghe/Raymond Tanghe	BEL565	16	7	15	15	14	14	0	65
16	VANISH 2	Andrea Veccchi/Andrea Vecchi	50075	19	11	17	18	17	6	0	69
17	WHITE LIE	Roberto Galperti/Roberto Galperti	0	14	18	19	17	RET	16	0	84
18	ALULA	Diego Visconti/Franco Fresu	ITA1560	17	DSQ	14	RET	15	13	0	88
19	RANI	Jochen Hertzke/Jochen Hertzke	GER333	22	DNF	18	16	19	15	0	90
20	TIKEONE	Tobias Koenig/Tobias Koenig	GER5455	18	20	20	19	16	DSQ	0	93
21	URGA BURGA	Paolo Targetti/Paolo Targetti	0	21	16	21	22	22	DNC	0	102
22	GERONIMO	Active Leisurement/Roland Verbeek	NED7183	20	DNF	22	21	20	20	0	103
23	BURGGOLF	Marcel Welling/Sebastien Voituri	0	24	DNF	23	23	21	17	0	108
24	LADY IN RED	Accenture/Jan Blomme	POR68019	23	19	24	DNC	24	19	0	109
25	DEFIANCE	Clemente Rebecchini/Leonardo Angeli	1	DNC	DNC	DNF	20	18	DNC	0	125
26	ALBATROS	Manfred Kertsan/Manfred Kerstan	GER1800	25	DNF	DNF	24	23	DNC	0	130
27	CIGNO ROSSO	Brian R. Hughes/Jon Whitley	0	DNC	DNC	DNF	DNF	DNF	DNC	0	145
27	KAIROS	Fulvia Ferragamo Visc/Gianfranco Visent	ITA13521	DNC	DNC	DNF	DNC	DNF	DNC	0	145

Class B - Swan 45

Pos	Boat	Owner/skipper	Sail No.	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	Tot
1	VERTIGO	Marco Salvi/Alberto Signorini/Alberto Signorini	GBR23R	1	2	1	8	4	0	0	8
2	CUOR DI LEONE	Leonardo Ferragamo/Leonardo Ferragam	ITA14545	2	8	2	6	1	0	0	11
3	MASCALZONE LATINO	Vincenzo Onorato/Vasco Vascotto	ITA21210	11	3	6	2	3	0	0	14
4	KORA 3	Paolo Scerni/James Gair	ITA4541	4	10	4	4	PEN	0	0	22
5	MINTAKA	Stefano Polti/Stefano Polti	ITA14519	10	1	PEN	16	10	0	0	29
6	MAGICIAN	Jacques Bureau/F. Pailloux	FRA9400	5	7	11	17	6	0	0	29
7	WISC	Glynn Williams/Mike Bradbury	GBR45R	12	5	13	3	11	0	0	31
8	GINGER	Leslie Green/Leslie Green	AUS8	17	12	9	5	5	0	0	31
9	OPUS ONE	Wolfgang Stolz/Thomas Ehler	GER5245	8	PEN	8	7	8	0	0	31
10	T AL J	Vittorio Ruggiero/Alex Orsino	ITA14694	3	9	7	13	18	0	0	32
11	BELLICOSA	Massimo Ferraagamo/Massimo Ferragamo	USA52225	19	11	15	1	7	0	0	34
12	CRACKERJACK	Keith Miller/Brian Clarke	GBR6R	DSQ	4	12	9	9	0	0	34
13	AY! AY! AY!	Leopoldo Gavito/Leopoldo Gavito	FRA21690	13	OCS	18	11	2	0	0	44
14	JEROBOAM	Vittorio Codecasa/Vittorio Codecasa	ITA14525	7	19	3	18	DSQ	0	0	47
15	AMNESIA	Graham de Zille/Neil Cheston	GBR17R	6	18	17	12	12	0	0	47
16	FEVER	Klaus Diederichs/Grant Gordon/Stuart Miller	GBR945R	9	14	10	15	19	0	0	48
17	McFLY	Tony Mack/Ben Collett	GBR7745R	16	6	DNF	14	16	0	0	49.3
18	PAPASTILLA	Fabio Montauti/Fabio Montauti	ITA545	15	15	16	10	13	0	0	53
19	PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAW	Charles Swingland/Niall Rafferty	GBR9050	14	16	14	PEN	14	0	0	58
20	AXELLE S	Hubert Wargny/Damien Zucconi	FRA29745	18	17	DNF	DNC	15	0	0	71

Class C/D:

Pos	Boat	Owner/skipper	Sail No.	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	Total
1	SOLENIA 2	Roberto Ferrero/Lorenzo Bressani	ITA2992	1	5	1	1	1	0	0	4
2	EUROSIA	Loris Vaccari/Michele Vaccari	ITA10710	4	DSQ	3	3	3	0	0	13
3	KATRINA	Damon Guizot/Damon Guizot	USA28553	2	4	8	4	4	0	0	14
4	JUNKANOO	Colin Buffin/Colin Buffin	GBR1622R	12	3	2	2	9	0	0	16
5	TRUMPETER OF THE ROCK	Louis W. Triay/Louis W. Triay	GBR9801	13	1	5	6	6	0	0	18
6	OASIS	Barrie Elsbury/Barrie Elsbury	AUS6293	8	8	9	5	19	0	0	30
7	AURA	William J. Kardash/William J. Kardash	USA51016	5	16	DNF	8	2	0	0	31
8	SAGA	Alain Foulquier/Alain Foulquier	FRA8737	3	2	12	15	17	0	0	32
9	MONOMOTAPA	Alberto Querci/Alberto Querci	MO9206	7	14	11	7	7	0	0	32
10	CRILIA	Heinz Gerd Stein/Heinz Gerd Stein	GER4342	10	7	7	19	11	0	0	35
11	SOMETHING FOR US	Luisa Silvestrini/Alessio Razeto	ITA3762	6	6	17	13	RET	0	0	42
12	SIMS IV	Stefano Liguori/Stefano Liguori	ITA10029	20	10	35	11	5	0	0	46
13	TORTUGA	Sell Guenter/Sell Guenter	GER4760	15	11	14	10	18	0	0	50
14	SWANY	Gonzalo Infante/Gonzalo Infante	E6192	11	9	DSQ	18	13	0	0	51
15	FOREIGN AFFAIR	Paul Basson/Paul Basson	MON46	14	19	18	12	12	0	0	56
16	MATCHLESS	Carlo Comparini/Carlo Comparini	GBR171	19	28	21	9	10	0	0	59
17	RITA	Achim Tuerklitz/Achim Tuerklitz	GER273	24	22	4	22	14	0	0	62
18	TALANA II	Hendrik Brandis/Hendrik Brandis	GER3855	9	18	19	17	22	0	0	63
19	GALATEA	Tonjorn Tornqvist/Jan Fribury	SWE10611	21	33	23	14	8	0	0	66
20	ALFA HELIX 3	Johann Rigler/Johann Rigler	SWE48145	23	17	16	16	28	0	0	72
21	PICARO MILANTO	Toshinori Ebina/Toshinori Ebina	9804	18	25	20	21	16	0	0	75
22	WAY OF LIFE	Max Manuel Lueders/Manuel Lueders	GER4141	25	12	10	36	35	0	0	82
23	SANDETTIE	Jan Krijgsman/Jan Krijgsman	NED5454	17	13	RET	23	29	0	0	82
24	ISKAREEN	Reemt Bruhns/Arnt Bruhns	GER4517	16	24	26	20	25	0	0	85
25	FIDIBU	Alfonso Weber/Alfonso Weber	FIN5252	32	23	30	29	15	0	0	97
26	DELNIC	Louis Rousselin/Louis Rousselin	FRA9210	29	15	31	24	DNF	0	0	99
27	KENTA	Filippo Orsi Mangelli Alvera/Marco Alvera	ITA3565	37	20	15	32	36	0	0	103
28	MR BULLFROG	Joseph Fantasia/Joseph Fantasia	USA67740	RET	21	33	27	24	0	0	105
29	HINANO	Fabio Scalzi/Fabio Scalzi	USA51047	26	37	27	25	27	0	0	105
30	SKY	Jim Reiher/Jim Reiher	USA51382	28	32	29	28	21	0	0	106
31	YLVA	Alessandro Landolfi/Enrico Landolfi	GER4281	22	31	25	31	30	0	0	108
32	SAIDA	Michael Krueger/Michael Krueger	GER4365	36	38	13	33	32	0	0	114
33	CHERI	Ronald Wulff/Ronald Wulff	GER777	DNS	29	24	30	31	0	0	114
34	BALLYTRIM	Andrew Allner/Andrew Allner	GBR7826T	30	30	32	37	23	0	0	115
35	NORTHERN CHILD	Eduard Krubasik/Matthew Hayes	GBR5951T	35	35	28	35	20	0	0	118
36	KING'S LEGEND	Gijs van Liebergen/Gijs van Liebergen	NED6572	38	36	6	39	RET	0	0	119
37	FORCE NINE	Massimo Crovetto/Massimo Crovetto	0	31	34	22	38	34	0	0	121
38	FENIX	Gerard De Zwart/Gerard De Zwart	NED5468	DNF	26	36	34	26	0	0	122
39	VAITIARA	Battista Galliani/Battista Galliani	ITA9384	27	27	DNF	26	DNF	0	0	124
40	AQUILEIA	Spartaco Ippolitoni/Spartaco Ippolito	ITA85	33	39	34	40	DNF	0	0	146
41	KATHEA	Heinz Voelker/Heinz Voelker	GER4278	34	40	DNF	DNF	33	0	0	151
42	JADI III	Nicolo Orsini Baroni/Nicolo Orsini Baroni	0	DNF	41	DNF	DNF	DNF	0	0	173
43	KIDOGO III	Geminiani Enzo/Geminiani Enzo	I6184	DSQ	DNF	DNF	DNF	DNC	0	0	176