An Elan 410 “winnows out” the Class 40: Potestà wins Rome by One

April 11
– At 15:35:50 on April 10, Phantomas crossed the finish line of the first Rome for 1. It is an Elan 410, with Carlo Potestà at the helm, the first boat to win a solo race in Italy. Class 40s are behind. They will come with their ears down. Meanwhile, at Riva di Traiano there is the party, which is already starting aboard the Race Director’s dinghy.

POWER: “I SLEPT A LOT!”
Wife Clara and daughters Gaia and Camilla wave and wave from afar. If Carlo is “gassed,” his women are even more so. “Tonight we finally sleep,” they confide. At the end you can tell it has been an adventure for them, too. “I slept so much,” says Carlo instead, “whenever I could. I took Dr. Stampi’s advice literally. I closed my eyes for a few minutes even every couple of hours. The first few days even in the cockpit. I felt the real fatigue only this last night, when the wind was so much and resting became difficult, also because of the accumulated adrenaline“. It slowly relaxes. He is happy. He hugs Clara and his daughters once again, then indulges in a joke: “I found out that you can’t sleep under spi. I tried it once and had to run out because the boat was going on its own.”

A ROMA FOR ONE ALWAYS IN THE LEAD
Problems? “Never, not even one, but I still can’t believe I won. I also got lucky. I set Phantomas for light winds, knowing it was my only chance to do well, but when on the way back, toward Gaeta, the wind started to increase I really thought the Class 40 would catch up with me. Then I saw that I continued to keep the gap unchanged, and only then did I think it was finally done.” His was an all-out race, starting in Ventotene when “after a long edge to land I aimed straight for Ventotene and found myself first.” From there it was really Phantomas. And who saw him anymore!

ROMA FOR TWO: ALL EASY FOR RODOLFI AND AUGUADRO
At 7:54:57 a.m. yesterday, the winning ride of TWT UComm, Marco Rodolfi and Matteo Auguadro’s Akilaria 40, also ended. “It was fun, a lot of fun,” Marco Rodolfi began once he set foot on the dock, “as always a beautiful regatta. Pulled face from little sleep (confessed) on the last night, but happy with the result. “It was tiring,” Rodolfi continued, “especially on the outward journey because we had little wind. But then, however, it was always walking, and we also had a little maestral that took us all the way to Pontine, and a little grecale that got us home quickly.” A downhill race in the second half, but with some difficulty on the descent to Lipari. “We had some difficulties at the Pontine Islands,” Rodolfi concludes, “because in deciding whether we should go inside or outside we reached the result of being stationary for a couple of hours. But then we stretched out again and had a good race. On the way back we got a good strategy right, we read the wind well and went the right way.” “The last night we expected it to be tough,” comments Matteo Auguadro, “and we decided to rest early. We wanted to get there as early as possible because we knew there was a transition from one wind to another. We got virtually no sleep this night, but we completed it the way we wanted to, in the best possible way.”

April 10 – At 00:29 this morning Guido Paolo Mamucci’s Cookson 50 Cippa Lippa 8 crossed the finish line placed in front of Riva di Traiano winning the Rome for All in real time. Shortly after 3 a.m. it was the turn of Franco Niggeler’s Open 42 Kuka Light, the strange six-piece boat designed by Doug Schickler and Davide Tagliapietra’s ST Yacht.

ROMA FOR ONE, ALMOST DONE FOR POTESTÀ
Meanwhile, the Rome for One sees “usual” Carlo Potestà in the lead aboard the Elan 410 Phantomas, now 43 miles from the finish line at the time of writing (8 a.m.) followed by Giancarlo Simeoli’s Class 40 Aeronautica Militare and Matteo Miceli on Echo 40. Fourth was Mario Girelli on the Pogo 40 Patrica, while Pierpaolo Ballerini on Azuree (an Azuree 33) slipped to fifth, but the fact that the length of his boat is far less than the others will help him in no small part on the plywood.

TWT UCOMM DOMINATION IN THE FOR TWO
As for Roma per Due, Marco Rodolfi and Matteo Auguadro are just a few miles from the finish with a more than reassuring lead over the rest of the fleet, led by the First 40.7 Blucolombre (about 80 miles from the finish). You can follow the progress of the race in real time by clicking here

April 9 – The situation at the top of Rome for One does not change: Carlo Potestà on his Elan 410 Phantomas continues to dominate undisturbed with a good 30-mile lead over his rivals and passed Lipari at 6 p.m. yesterday (at the time of writing, at 8 a.m., it is 181 miles from arrival). Behind him is Pierpaolo Ballerini on Azuree 33 Azuree, followed by Giancarlo Simeoli on Aeronautica Militare (Class 40), Mario Girelli on Patricia II (Pogo 40) and Matteo Miceli on Eco 40 .

NEVER HAD SUCH A COMPETITIVE REGATTA
Said Giancarlo Simeoli (on passing near Lipari the velvet took): “I’ve never had such a competitive regatta, no one quits here, everyone wants to get there but at the same time those from Rome X 2 and Rome X All also help us out by talking over the radio and guarding against dangers while sleeping. The sails on my boat are old and don’t roll up like they do on the other 40s, so I have to pull them up and down, and at night when they are wet, they are really heavy. The wind comes and goes, and every three to four hours you need to be on deck working with the sails.”

ROME FOR TWO AND FOR ALL

TWT Ucomm with Marco Rodolfi and Matteo Auguadro aboard now has an 80-mile lead over their opponents at Roma per Due. The two have “only” 157 miles left before the finish line. They are followed by First 40.7 Blucolombre and Gaiarda! It seems that Mamucci’s Cookson 50 Cippa Lippa managed to put a few miles (14) between herself and Niggeler’s Open 42 Kuka Light in the Rome for All. Only 87 miles to the finish line. Blackbull, in third place, follows with 116 miles behind.

SHORE ARRIVALS FOR TWO AND ALL
Meanwhile, at Riva di Traiano, the feast of arrivals has begun with the Riva for 2 and the Riva for All (with a reduced 220-mile course) drawing to a close. At 2:21:45 p.m. Tany&Tasky, Guido Deleuse’s First 45, was the first boat to cross the finish line at the end of the Riva for All “cadet” regatta. A fully deserved real time success for a boat and crew that always distinguish themselves in this regatta and also in the long Rome for All, where they also knew the honor of the podium. Here at the Shore for All they already won in royalty last year. A few minutes later, at 14:39:56, Giumat, a Dufour 44 carried by Massimiliano Sansoni and Gianni Dini also crossed the finish line, thus winning the Riva for 2 in real time. At 16:33:05 came Ammuina, First 40.7 by Carlo Scoppola /Riva per Tutti) followed by Argo, First 44.7 by Luciano Manfredi, at 16:35:55 (Riva per 2) and at 16:44:35 by Gordon, Elan 410 by Marco Ghione (Riva per Tutti). To know the winners in plywood will have to wait for the arrival of all boats.

April 8
– Rome for One, for Two and for All continues. And the dominance among the sovereigns of Phantomas, Carlo Potestà ‘s Elan 410 that is giving all Class 40s in the regatta a run for their money and heading for a passage that counts, that of Lipari, continues.

THE PURSUERS
The chasing fleet is not sitting on its hands: there is, in fact, a barking Class 40 outfit, led this morning by Giancarlo Simeoli’s Aeronautica Militare at 22 miles, with Matteo Miceli (ECO 40) at 25 miles, Mario Girelli (Patricia II) at 26 miles. Among them, as small and venomous as a Coral snake, is (in third place overall) Pierpaolo Ballerini’s Azuree 33 , which bites Simeoli’s tail just one mile from the more powerful Class 40. Behind many took a windless bubble, starting with Brinati, Campagnolo, and Fiordiponti who seem to be the most penalized 0.6 – 0.8 knots) . But Frattaruolo and Santececca are no joke either (1.7 knots). Swimming would be faster.

ROME FOR ALL AND FOR TWO
As for Rome for All, it is increasingly a two-way challenge between the Cookson 50 Cippa Lippa 8 and the Open 42 Kuka Light. But for now it all seems to be working out in favor of Guido paolo Mamucci’s Cookson, which overnight managed to increase its lead to 2 hours and 5 minutes over Franco Niggeler’s “bolide.” There is also no history at the Rome for Two with Marco Rodolfi and Matteo Auguadro’s Class 40 TWT Ucomm leading by as much as 37 miles over the pursuer Prospettica. You can follow the progress of the regatta in real time by clicking here

April 7 – Set off! Cannon shot yesterday for the Rome for One, for Two and for All, with a nice north-northeast breeze. The regatta, organized by Circolo Nautico Riva di Traiano, has already proved to be a success in terms of the number of registrations for the new for Uno, the first true solo-race open to all organized in Italy.

POWER TO LEAD AMONG LONERS
There are 16 (no, there is no Massimo D’Alema) loners who are playing it safe on the 535-mile Riva-Ventotene-Lipari-Riva course. For now, leading the way after about 100 miles traveled is Carlo Potestà aboard Phantomas, which recently passed the Ventotene gate. It is followed, less than a mile away, by Pierpaolo Ballerini ‘s Azuree and Marzio Dotti‘s J111 JStorm. In fourth position is Massimo Girelli ‘s Pogo 40 Patricia II and right behind Eco 40, the Este 40 helmed by Matteo Miceli.

TWT UCOMM DOMINATION IN DOUBLES, CHALLENGE TO TWO TO ALL
As for Roma for Two are firmly in the lead. Marco Rodolfi and Matteo Auguadro aboard the Class 40 TWT Ucomm, while in the Rome for All, as expected, it is a two-way challenge between Cippa Lippa 8, the Cookson 50 by Guido Paolo Mamucci and Kuka Light, the Open 42 of Franco Niggeler: The two boats are already off the coast of Capri, with a significant lead over the rest of the fleet that has yet to pass the Ventotene gate. You can follow the progress of the regatta in real time by clicking here.

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