Paul Cayar
Rob Weiland
Twenty years and twenty boats?
The final two days of the last 52 Super Series event of 2019 saw six windward-leeward races in champagne conditions on the emerald waters of Porto Cervo. No need to explain the fun of TP52 racing on days like these, just lean back and count your blessings. Win or not win, all were smiling. That night the end of season party
around the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda pool closed the curtain on the 2019 season in fast and fun style with food, drinks, music, emotional speeches, trophies… plus more drinks, dance and cama- raderie extending far beyond the team names on the shirts. Relent- less pursuit of sporting glory bonds as only those who do it can fully understand, with a passion sometimes bordering on addiction. So we just ticked off eight years of 52 Super Series, after a brief
hiatus over winter 2011-2012 during which we rebuilt the series from the ashes of seven years of the Audi MedCup starting in 2005. The name 52 Super Series was announced by Lars Böcking of
Jacaranda marketing on 16 April 2012. He had convinced the three founding TP52 owners, as well as this modest class manager, to position us using slogans such as ‘Sailing is coming home’, ‘Concentrate instead of exaggerate’ and ‘the world’s top inshore monohull competition’. All of which at the time showed a rather high level of ambition considering we were five teams at most! No offence intended but no matter where you position the
52 Super Series we aim to start our ninth season in five months’ time in Cape Town in the first week of March. To be followed three weeks later by the first ever Rolex TP52 World Championship in Africa. That one fully covered live via
52superseries.com. We are already planning how to get all the equipment to Cape Town in good time and at sensible cost. In the recent September issue I mentioned plans for a TP52
38 SEAHORSE
20th Anniversary Regatta inviting non-Super Series TP52s and IRC52s to join the TP52 anniversary fray. No longer a plan, the Notice of Race is out and, welcoming back our old friends, the event is now known as the Audi TP52 20th Anniversary Invitational – owners of 52s racing in Europe have been invited and their response is overwhelmingly positive. I learned that many of them do indeed follow what we do with
the class and series and that they take the time to follow our racing and regularly check what we publish on
52superseries.com and
transpac52.org. Our partner in celebration for this one is the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda; so, yes, a unique opportunity to experience the club and much heralded waters around it as unfortunately since the demise of the Sardinia Cup racing is today mainly restricted to Maxi-sized or one-design yachts. Dates are 16-21 June and any team racing a TP52 or IRC52 built from TP52 moulds is hereby invited! Just send me an email and we’ll take it from there. As the 20th anniversary event doubles up with the Audi 52 Super
Series Porto Cervo regatta we had to make a few decisions on how to mix invitational boats racing on IRC corrected time with boat-for- boat racing as is the 52 Super Series hallmark; all while we try to keep it as fair as possible for the TP52s racing for the 52 Super Series overall trophy as well as max fun for both fleets. June 16 will see all boats race together after having done some
practice starts for a corrected time-scored W/L race, which is normally the Super Series practice race. Trophies to be handed out that evening during the welcome cocktails. June 17 and 18 will sport two W/L races each day in which the
Super Series fleet has the first start, to be followed in a five-minute sequence by the Invitational start, which we will repeat on 20 and 21 June. This will give fair racing for both fleets for separate trophies for each of them, as well as the opportunity to compare both starts
NICO MARTINEZ
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