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News / Countdown to Slovenia

 

With the double-header of the European and World Championships just over three weeks away, the International Fireball Class is in countdown mode to the pinnacle of the 2013 international regatta season in Portoroz, Slovenia.

The Europeans and Worlds will be hosted between the 9th and 20th of September with the Europeans taking up the first week. To date fifty-six boats are entered for the Europeans and seventy-one boats for the Worlds, with eleven countries represented and two continents. As with most international events in the Class, the UK contingent is the biggest with seventeen boats but they are being pushed hard by our hosts, the Slovenians with sixteen boats and the Czechs with fifteen boats. Thereafter, the pecking order is Italy (6), Ireland and Switzerland (5), Belgium & Shetlands (2) and Canada, France and Germany 1 each.

The entry list reads like the "Who's Who" of the Class with current World Champions, past World Champions, National Champions, Sailmakers, Class Officials and stalwarts of the class who appear at most World Championships.

The World Champions from 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012 are on the entry list, as are the European Champions from 2012. One half of the winning combination from the recent UK Nationals is entered sailing with the defending World Champion crew. A significant number of the top ten crews at the UK Nationals, from a 49 boat fleet, will be in Slovenia.

The defending European Champions are Matt Burge and Richard Wagstaff who won the title in Bracciano, Italy in July 2012. At the recent UK Nationals they finished fifth overall in what the reports of the event describe as being a very competitive regatta. The defending World Champions from the December 2011/January 2012 regatta in Mandurah, Western Australia, Tom Gillard and Sam Brearey, have split for the Slovenia event with Tom sailing with Simon Potts and Sam sailing with Christian Birrell. They also won the 2010 Europeans sailed in the Czech Republic. Their predecessors as World Champions, Matt Burge & Richard Wagstaff (Sligo, Ireland) have already been mentioned, but their predecessors in turn, Chips Howarth & Vyv Townend (2009, La Rochelle and 2010, Barbados) are entered for both regattas. From the UK Nationals sailed in Looe, Cornwall, a couple of weeks ago the conspicuous absentee is the winning crew, Richard Anderton. Other top ten finishers from the UK Nationals include David Wade, 4th helm, Matt Rainback & Simon Foskett (6th overall) and Peter Gray & Tim Saunders (9th overall). And while the other countries may argue that a UK win shouldn't be a foregone conclusion, the reality is that if a team from outside the UK is to win, this is the pedigree of competitor they will have to beat.

The Czechs have shown in recent times that the standard of their fleet has improved significantly and, after a 37-boat Nationals at Lake Lupno in July, they will be doing their best to ensure they are at the front end of the fleet. Claude Mermod and Rudi Moser will probably lead the Swiss challenge and the Irish will look to the likes of new National Champion Kenny Rumball and his predecessor Noel Butler & Stephen Oram to front up their challenge. The French will be represented by perennial Worlds competitor Jean Francois Nouelle ("Cantona") sailing with Juin Franck and our German friends Joerg Nolle & Roger Leeman will do their best to upset the form horses. And the man who has probably sailed more Fireball international regattas that anyone else in the current fleet, Louis Smyth of Ireland will also be there.

If there is to be an award for the furthest distance travelled to the regatta, then the "shoe-in" for that award is the Canadian combination of Fireball International Commodore and Technical Representative, Joe Jospe and Tom Egli respectively. However, from within Europe, there are two entries from the Shetlands who would surely have the longest distance to drive to the event, never mind the most ferries to catch.

Our hosts have advised that we can expect good weather in Portoroz!

General: September is weather-wise one of the most pleasant months in Portoro?. The hottest summer days are already over but the weather can be still very nice and warm. The average maximum daily temperature is 23.9° C. Even if September is the month with the highest monthly precipitation average (120 mm of precipitation), the rainy events are rather short lasting and intensive. The average number of days with rain above 10 mm/day in September is 3.4. The atmosphere is already getting more stable thus the number of thunderstorms is relatively small (3.6 per month comparing with 8.2 in July).

The precipitation events and thunderstorms are mainly associated with the passages of cold fronts which are getting more frequent compared with summer months.

Table: Values for Portoro? (September), period 1971-2000:

Winds: The most relevant wind data for the race area in front of Portoro? is the one from oceanographic and meteorological buoy Vida located a few miles from the racing area in front of Piran. The wind rose from meteorological buoy indicates that most frequent winds are sea breezes from WSW to NW. The general direction of the sea breeze depends on the general pressure gradient. It varies between WSW to NW. The sea breeze usually starts around 11 am, is the strongest around 2pm and it dies between 6 and 7pm. The strength of the sea breeze is usually from 8 to 14 kts. Land breezes in the morning are generally weak, stronger after the Bora episodes. Stronger gradient winds are expected from two dominant directions. S (SE in the Portoro? bay) – jugo (Scirocco in Italian) and mainly from NE (Bora). SE-S winds are normally blowing before the approach of the cold fronts. Sometimes they mix with sea breeze resulting in the sea breeze from SW.

Bora is associated with the period after the passage of cold fronts and contrary to the winter and spring months doesn't last for longer periods. The longer episodes with Bora are associated with lows in the N Adriatic but the probability of their appearance is quite low in September. Bora is a katabatic gusty wind and gusts can easily reach more than 30kts. The North Adriatic Sea is still quite warm in September, the average temperature is around 22 deg. C. Sea can get temporary colder after the intensive Bora episodes, but it regains the normal temperature in few days.

Weather information by Jure Jerman, Environmental Agency, Republic of Slovenia & in Go Sailing Newsletter, Dec 2012 – available via the Fireball International website.

More information at www.fireball-international.com/worlds

 

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