More than 70 boats had fun at the VELA Cup Liguria! PHOTOS, VIDEOS, RANKINGS

Good, indeed very good first VELA Cup. More than 70 boats at Chiavari leg, “sail-champagne” conditions (first little wind, then medium wind, grand finale with “siroccone” that only the Gulf of Tigullio can give), boats of all kinds in pure VELA Cup spirit: from the small First 21.7 Free Spirit to the mammoth Swan 78 Azzurro, from the weekender to the racing boat, from the “pro” crew with people who have done the America’s Cup on board (all true! There was Pietro Pinucci – American Magic at the last Cup – on the Rodman 42 Cheyenne) to the many family crews. We tell you, in detail, how it went, with reporting, rankings, photos and videos! And see you in Tuscany, next May 24, for the second leg!

• See all the photos of the VELA Cup Chiavari (photos by Margherita Solia)

VELA Cup, the party has begun!

The big party is on: the VELA Cup lands at Marina di Chiavari Calata Ovest for the first leg of the regattas dedicated to all sailing enthusiasts. More than 70 boats were at the start, animating the Gulf of Tigullio on Saturday, May 3. At 09:30 all crews gathered in front of the reception of the Marina di Chiavari Calata Ovest for the pre-race briefing, with the presence of meteorologist Riccardo Ravagnan of Meteomed, who explained the evolution of the wind on the race course and provided useful advice to the racers.

Watch the video of the VELA Cup Chiavari

Video of FocusVisionTeam

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Ready, set, go!

Everyone was ready to set off and race on the race course set up by experts Roberto Puccetti and Franco Noceti, where the boats were greeted by a breeze around 7 knots; after the first broad windward mark, as they rounded the first buoy, the wind began to strengthen, settling at 10 knots. After about an hour of sailing, when the first boats began to sail with a tailwind after rounding the striking Portofino meda, the wind strengthened again to 15 knots, with even tenser gusts. The waves also contributed to make this first leg of the VELA Cup even more peppery and fun.

Those who were there had a good time

The first boat to cross the finish line in real time was Azzurro, Swan 78 owned by owner Bruno Veronesi, who by now no longer misses a leg of the VELA Cup; he has been a regular presence for the past few years. ” It was a beautiful regatta, with wind and many boats,” he told us. Walter Tronconi, the owner of Raffica (Grand Soleil 43). “It’s been a long time since I’ve raced so relaxed. And finally, the “bang” with the nice breeze! “, Lucio Ruocco, owner of Gs 39 Mirit, revealed to us. Mirko Bargolini of Spirit of Nerina, told us that: “is a do-over experience that I recommend to anyone. The spirit of friendship, combined with a little competition, makes this event unique “. By the way, Spirit of Nerina was on the water for a good cause: they are ambassadors for the non-profit organization La Rianimazione Dei Bambini, an initiative that the VELA Cup helped promote (Learn more: Instagram @larianimazionedeibambini and www.larianimazionedeibambini.it or download the PDF brochure here).

• See all the photos of the VELA Cup Chiavari (photos by Margherita Solia)

The VELA Cup, an event for everyone

And the VELA Cup is truly an event for everyone, the celebration of all sailing lovers; the first leg in Chiavari was proof of this, as the crews were made up of people of all ages and with all kinds of experience. Among the more than 70 boats on the water, there were hulls just over 5 meters long to battle with far more powerful boats, always under the banner of fairness and fun. After waiting for the last ones to cross the finish line at around 4 p.m., the awards ceremony took place at 6 p.m., with numerous crews receiving prizes.

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VELA Cup Liguria, the rankings

LEG Winner (overall winner): Raffica 3, Grand Soleil 43, Walter Tronconi (wins a set of Veneziani antifoulings)
Overall Sport Boat winner: Azzurro, Swan 78, Bruno Veronesi.
Overall Cruising Boat Winner: Raffica 3, Grand Soleil 43, Walter Tronconi.

Cruising boat rankings 1 (up to 9 m): 1. Avalon, Tequila, Jonathan Emma 2. Sara, Sibma, Stefano Perini 3. Bell’idea, EM25, Pietro Scaglia

Cruising boat 2 ranking (9 m to 10 m): 1. Britomart, Elan 340, Francesco Danese 2. Iemanja1, Bavaria 32, Umberto Gorni 3. Green Cloud, Sun Odyssey 33, Daniele Negri 4. Spray, Grand Soleil, Massimo Wurtz 5. Crescent, Comet 303, Tiziano Bellomo 6. Tricky, BC34, Fulvio Empoldi 7. Hemerissanda II, Dufour 34, Severino Peirano 8. Roamer, Camper Nicholson 303, Emilio Conte 9. Marmelin, First 325, Franco Grimoldi

Cruising boat 3 (10 m to 11 m) ranking : 1.Gianburrasca, First 36.7, Filippo Gazzerro 2. Nikita, Bavaria 35, Stefano Gnech 3. Kiti Munina, Rustler 36, Andra Righini

Cruising boat 4 ranking (11 m to 12 m): 1. T2, Dheler DB36, Stefano Manara 2. Wednesday, Mylius, Giuseppe Fassino 3. Zerag IV, Elan 37, Vincenzo Romeo 4. Blue Moon, Grand Soleil 40, Sergio Marini 5. Blue With, Baltic 39, Zunino 6. Seventh Day, 37 CWS, Alessandro Bachi

Cruising boat 5 (12 m to 13 m) ranking : 1. Raffica 3, Grand Soleil 43, Walter Tronconi 2. Trident, GS39, Stefano Trifirò 3. Mery Rose, GS42, Luigi Faliva 4. Rosso di sera, GS 43, Andrea Compagnoni 5. Mirit, GS 39, Ruocco 6. Silver Moon IV,Sun Odissey 40, Andrea Elli 7. Adelante, Dufour 43, Roberto Castello

Cruising boat 6 ranking (12 m to 14 m): 1. Arly, Vismara 43, Salvatore Sarpero 2. Arethusa, Solaris 47, Thomas Matthes 3. Xilla, X43, Matteo Villa 4. Thetis, Bavaria 46, Riccardo Spada 5. Gioella, Bavaria 44, Marcello Lusardi 6. Yoshi, Sun Odyssey 43, Emanuele Fiore

Ranking Sport boat 1 (up to 9 m): 1. Vucko, J88, Bottcher 2. Blueberry, Surprise, Bozzo 3. Free Spirit, First 21.7, Buzzo

Ranking Sport boat 2 ( 9 m to 10 m): 1. Jlab, J99, Bertini 2. First…issima, First 34.7, Montale 3. Hellcat, Farr 31, Leporatti 4. Bambina, Stag 32,Ponsicchi 5. The Great Dream, Comet 35, Bosio 6. Ghostbusters, X34, Giolli 7. Splinter, First 31.7, Rossi 8. Babau, Sun Fast 32, Cassina

Ranking Sport boat 3 (11 m to 12 m): 1. Cheyenne, Rodman 42, Oriani 2. Aia de Ma, Pinguin 38, Olivari 3. Makeba, GS39, Burgio 4. Maverick, Comet 38S, Gaspari 5. X-Press, IMX38, Tievoli

Ranking Sport boat 4 (12 m to 14 m): 1. Spirit of Nerina, Swan 42, Bargolini 2. Alebi, Advanced 44, Arrighi 3. Bel rebelot, GS40, Brizzi 4. Capriccio, GS 40, Mensa 5. Fata, GS 43, Vezzani 6. Gebel, Sun Odyssey 43, Mondolfo

Ranking Sport boat 5 (over 15 m): 1. Azure, Swan 78, Veronesi 2. Joya, X56, Bernardini

Classic boat ranking: 1. Blueberry, Surprise, Bozzo 2. Hellcat, Farr 31, Leporatti 3. X-Press, X38, Tievoli

All the winners of the raffle prizes: Edoardo Bozzo won a comfortable jacket put up for grabs by Yachting Bond, Severino Peirano won a Moby cruising voucher, the multi-purpose tool from Leatherman was won by Walter Zunino, the Garmin cartography subscription was won by Luigi Faliva, and the wellness box from IBSA was the prerogative of Fulvio Empoldi. The shopping voucher offered by SVB Marine was won by Walter Tronconi, the Ubi Major block and belt set was won by Pietro Bernardini. To Renzo Razzi and Stefano Gnech went Ariete vacuum cleaners and sail discounts offered by CD Sails. Andrea Campagnoni won the gift certificate for Meteomed service, Vincenzo Lodi won 3 years subscription to the Journal of Sailing.