Another double win for de Ridder

Mean Machine TP52 takes the lead at the Audi MedCup's City of Alicante Trophy

A long day on the water for the 16 TP52s at the City of Alicante Trophy, the first regatta of the 2008 Audi MedCup Circuit as after a lengthy postponement they took part in the 30 mile long coastal race around Tabarca Island. The ultimate reward was for 2006 MedCup Champion Peter de Ridder (NED) and his Mean Machine crew who collected the best points, after leading through the mid race scoring gate and taking the winning gun by a comfortable margin.

Mean Machine tactical duo Ray Davies (NZL) and Tom Dodson (NZL) called the crucial first beat perfectly and the black hulled new Judel/Vrolijk design, launched only three weeks ago, was able to fend off any advances through a smart combination of good speed, through optimum sail selection across the very differing wind speeds, good trimming and the right tactical calls when the breeze went light and unsettled over the final few miles.

After a postponement racing got underway just before 2pm with a first beat before the TP52s could break out their reaching gear. Dean Barker and Ross Macdonald on Bribon, today with owner Jose Cusi on board, made an assured start at the committee boat end of the line along with Mutua Madrilena and Platoon. At the leeward, pin end of the line was Mean Machine and one third up the line from the pin was Quantum.

On the beat there was more pressure on the left side of the course benefitting Mean Machine, Artemis, ONO and Desafio . Peter de Ridder's black boat rounded the top mark first ahead of Quantum, Tau and Matador.

At the leeward gate Mean Machine had hung on to her lead but with Tau moving up second ahead of Quantum and Artemis. By this stage the wind had built to nine knots.

From here it was eight miles upwind up to the turning mark at Bajo de Llosa. At this mark Mean Machine led Artemis by 28 seconds with Tau back into third, just under a minute after the leader.

With the breeze up to 12 knots, the next leg provided an opportunity for a rare sight of the TP52's reaching gear. Here the added stablity of the new generation boats was beginning to show with Artemis finally leaving Tau in its wake. However this advantage was lost by a poor gybe peel at the turning mark.

The next leg took the boats back towards Alicante and into less pressure and more patchy breeze, crews peeling to get up their bigger gear. Despite some tense moments furling their upwind code zero, Mean Machine was able to pull away from Artemis by staying on a more inshore course. By this stage Terry Hutchinson and the boys on board Quantum had overhauled Tau.

Despite some compression in the fleet in the light, shifty breeze coming into the finish in which Quantum in particular suffered, Peter de Ridder and his Mean Machine were able to cling on to the lead, taking their third and fourth consecutive victories (the two sections of the coastal race) in the Alicante Trophy. It was another good day for John Cook and Cristabella who claimed third at the finish, just getting across the finish line a nose ahead of Tau.

In winning twice today Mean Machine now leads the Audi MedCup Circuit and the City of Alicante Trophy regatta by a single point from the American boat Quantum Racing owned by Doug de Vos (USA) and Fred Howe (USA). Just one point behind them are Tau Ceramica Andalucia (ESP) who lead on Day 1, and who continue to sail smartly with the former Artemis, which won the Med Cup overall last year.

Peter de Ridder (NED) Mean Machine skipper/helm commented: “We are very happy again that we toughed out this one. Our plan was really was to find a big gap on the start line and we managed to do that, to sail in clear wind for a few minutes, and really after that the rest was history. I think that generally the boys on our boat are pretty good on coastal races. I think they are particularly good at making the proper sail calls for the wind, and at making smooth changes between sails and that can be worth a few boat lengths at times. And winning four races in a row matches the first year when we won in Punta Ala and gets towards the five races we won last year in Portimao.”

Second through the scoring gate, which was set off the northwest corner of the picturesque island, and second across the finish proved a better day for the reigning MedCup Champion Torbjorn Tornqvist and the new Artemis. They move up to sixth place overall.

Torbjorn Tornqvist (SWE) owner/helm of Artemis said: "We have been working on the boat and we generally sailed better all round today, like me steering after being rusty from over the winter!. Things are coming together, we are definitely feeling ourselves smoothing into it better, we felt we had a speed advantage upwind and that was a good feeling. Of course the start wasn’t the best, we have been asking questions and working it all out, the rig setting and tuning on the new boat. It doesn’t behave like the last. we are trying things out, setting things up again."

Results - provisional Standings after six races
(Position, Boat, Country, R1, R2, R3, R4, R5, R6a, R6b, Total Points)

1 - Mean Machine MON (7, 16, 5, 1, 1, 1, 1, 32)
2 - Quantum USA (4, 5, 9, 3, 2, 4, 6, 33)
3 - TAU Ceramica Andalucía ESP (1, 1, 6, 9, 9, 3, 5, 34)
4 - Bribón ESP (3, 3, 1, 4, 4, 12, 9, 36)
5 - Mutua Madrileña ESP (2, 4, 8, 8, 3, 6, 12, 43)
6 - Artemis SWE (12, 11, 4, 10, 7, 2, 2, 48)
7 - Platoon by Team Germany GER (5, 9, 2, 5, 14, 8, 8, 51)
8 - Matador ARG (10, 14, 3, 2, 10, 5, 10, 54)
9 - El Desafío ESP (9, 6, 7, 11, 5, 11, 7, 56)
10 - Cristabella GBR (11, 2, 15, 7, 12, 10, 4, 61)