FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Media Pro Int’l, Barby MacGowan, barby.macgowan@mediapronewport.com, 401-849-0220 

NEWPORT, R.I. (June 15, 2022) – Bella Mente Racing’s positive feelings about racing in the New York Yacht Club’s 168th Annual Regatta (June 10-12) off Newport, R.I. translated into the team’s victory over five other ORC A class competitors in both Friday’s Around-the-Island Race and the weekend’s separately scored series of six around-the-buoys races.

“The Around-the-Island Race was a lot of fun, as tricky, changeable conditions really meant that no lead was safe,” said Mike “Moose” Sanderson, who in the absence of owner/driver Hap Fauth served as Bella Mente’s skipper over the event’s three racing days, “but we started well, managed to pass Proteus (a Maxi 72 as is Bella Mente) and then it was a matter of keeping it simple and trying to (avoid) the ‘land mines’ ahead!”  The land mines were the slower boats in some of the 13 other classes that started ahead of ORC A.

According to Bella Mente Racing’s tactician Terry Hutchinson, both the Around-the-Island Race and the Annual Regatta series were very hard-fought, but for different reasons. “For the Around-the-Island Race, Belle Mente had to contend with not only our competition (which included long-time rival Vesper, an IRC 72) but also two transition zones (major wind shifts) and lots of bogeys (other boats) on the race course to navigate through,” he said. “Saturday/Sunday racing was equally as good. Bella Mente, Proteus, and Vesper each won races, and while Bella Mente came out on top it was an incredibly tight event.”

Indeed, as stellar as Bella Mente’s performance was in the weekend’s primarily moderate breezes, there was no real turning point when the team felt assured of overall victory. “The last race was short, so when we led Vesper around the first lap after a lot of exciting boat-on-boat action, it was looking more likely we’d win,” said Sanderson, “however, it’s never over in this class, which makes it exciting all the way to the end.” 

Sanderson and Hutchinson both noted that training sessions leading up to this event were critical in the continual development of Bella Mente and its equipment. As part of that, Coach James Lyne analyzed the boat’s sail set-up, maneuvers and weight placement. During training and racing, he photographs and records the performance of the boat from an aero and hydro standpoint. “We were really happy with the new rig and sails,” said Sanderson, “but somehow we need to find some rating optimization without slowing the boat down, so we have some fun challenges ahead!” 

Sanderson added that for the Annual Regatta, Bella Mente Racing knew that Bella Mente would be most closely matched with Vesper and Proteus. In the end, the three finished, respectively, in first, second and third with only one point separating each position. “The fact that we all ended up so close on points was no surprise,” he said, “but Vesper beat up on us pretty hard at the previous regatta in the Caribbean, so it was nice to be at least in the hunt. We are under no illusion, though; we still have a lot of work to do if we want to be in the mix for the Maxi World Championships later this year.” 

Meanwhile, next up for Bella Mente is the July 13-16 New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport.

More About NYYC Annual Regatta

The New York Yacht Club’s Annual Regatta was first sailed on the Hudson River on July 16 and 18, 1846. A similar competition the previous year was called a Trial of Speed. With a few exceptions for world wars and other global crises, the event has been held every year since. For most of its existence, the Annual Regatta was raced on waters close to New York City. Since 1988, however, the event has been sailed out of the Harbour Court clubhouse in Newport, R.I., and has settled into the current three-day format.

For more information, visit https://bellamenteracing.com/. Follow Bella Mente Racing on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.

Hap Fauth’s Bella Mente brings home a win in the ORC A class at the Leukemia Cup on a fantastic day on the water in Narragansett Bay. Bella Mente was first in fleet to cross the line – with a corrected time beat the closest boat by 2:20.

“The MAGIC Show” presented by Mount Gay Rum and Pellini Coffee follows AMERICAN MAGIC throughout AC36 with America’s Cup commentator, Tucker Thompson, and cohost, Jack Griffin of CupExperience.com.

Shows will broadcast online by 8:00pm EST on every AC36 race day beginning January 14th.

• Subscribe on YouTube: click here.
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Editor’s note: Keep in mind the time difference with New Zealand. As the Challenger Selection Series is to begin in Auckland on January 15 at 3pm NZDT, that translates to January 14 at 9pm EST, and now we can tune into The MAGIC Show prior to racing. For details on the event format, and how to watch it, click here

Bella Mente’s relative AC75 racing boat, PATRIOT (American Magic), is gearing up for Race Day at America’s Cup World Series in Auckland, New Zealand on December 17, 2020 (December 16 here in the U.S.).

FOLLOW AMERICAN MAGIC:

• Recent Team Promo Video – And Now We Race
• Social Channels:
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• American Magic Latest News – scroll down to the bottom of the page to subscribe to the team newsletter

INFO ON THE AMERICA’S CUP:

• Recent Event Promo Video – 36th America’s Cup Preview – great 26-minute overview of the event history, the technology, the teams, the event
• America’s Cup homepage
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WATCHING THE RACING FROM HOME:

• Event Information
• Watching in the USA
  • Watching the racing live in the USA will require a cable subscription to NBC Sports Network (where some, not all, live racing will be available), or a subscription to the NBC Sports Gold America’s Cup Pass, which will include all live content, replays, and special content.  
  • TBD on when/if replays will be available through AC channels without a subscription.
  • Attached is the NBC Viewing Guide document, with information on NBC Sports access, broadcast schedule, subscription, etc.
  • For American Magic fans interested in subscribing to the NBC Sports Gold app (access to all racing, content, coverage), use discount code AM10 for a 10% discount on the AC Pass. Visit https://www.nbcsports.com/gold/american-magic to redeem.
• Watching outside the USA
  • In most other countries, live streaming will be available through social media and the America’s Cup YouTube channel, as well as free TV broadcast.
  • Viewing information for other countries  – https://www.americascup.com/how-to-watch

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Media Pro Int’l, Barby MacGowan, barby.macgowan@mediapronewport.com, 401-849-0220 

NEWPORT, R.I. (Sept. 29, 2020) “It has been a great ten days of sailing, that’s for sure!” said Mike Sanderson after sailing with Bella Mente Racing to a Queen’s Cup victory on Sunday, Sept. 27. The Queen’s Cup, staged by the New York Yacht Club (NYYC) since 1953 and offering as its prize one of the Club’s oldest and most prestigious trophies, was for many years held during the Club’s Annual Cruise. Of late, however, it has been a stand-alone event held in the waters off Newport, R.I.; this year it was added to the end of NYYC’s four-day New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex, in which Bella Mente also competed to finish third.

“The Queen’s Cup course was 17 miles and triangle-style, bringing back memories of the old Olympic course,” said Sanderson, who serves as Bella Mente’s crew boss and co-helms with owner Hap Fauth in offshore races.  “It’s always fun to go reaching!” He said the first full lap was in a healthy nine knots of breeze; however, a second lap brought a rain shower that killed the wind and pushed it hard right. “Our timing was good, and we made a nice little gain at the top of that lap and were then able to take advantage of it for the long light run to the finish. We never stopped, but it did get pretty light.”

Fauth said the competition was outstanding and the conditions – a fading southerly that saw many of the smaller boats in the fleet struggle to make the finish line – favored Bella Mente. “We are honored to have won such a prestigious trophy at the New York Yacht Club, and we would like to thank the Club and the race committee for a great day,” said Fauth. 

Of the 15 boats competing in the Queen’s Cup, the TP/52 Vesper, skippered by David Team (Newport Beach, Calif.), and the Botin 52 Fox, skippered by Victor Wild (San Diego, Calif.) were Bella Mente’s closest competitors, taking second and third, respectively.

Those same boats were also Bella Mente’s fiercest rivals in ORC 1 class at Race Week, held from Wednesday, September 23 to Saturday, September 26. Bella Mente shared top-three standings with them in all but two of the seven races completed on windward-leeward courses ranging from 5-23 nautical miles. In the end, however, Vesper and Fox, in that order, prevailed in overall scoring to take first and second place.

“The best way for us to get a good result against the two highly competitive 52s,” said Sanderson, “was for us to do what we could at the start of the race to make sure that they would fight it out amongst themselves. Unfortunately for Fox, that meant if they opened the door for us to tack on them a couple of times and get them behind the lower rated Vesper, we would do that. Since the corrected times for our three boats were so close, we needed every second!”

With a total of five practice days and five racing days, the net gain for Bella Mente Racing was quality time on the water, in a variety of conditions, for testing a new keel and bulb and other modifications recently made to Bella Mente, which was designed by Botin Partners and built at New England Boatworks. The team also got to reconnect personally and rejuvenate its cohesive sailing skills after a months-long period of waiting for Covid-19 to lift its foggy veil enough to make it a reasonable decision to ship Bella Mente from Mallorca to Newport and fly in her 22 crew members from different parts of the country and the world.

Said Sanderson: “It was a lovely reminder, after this crazy year, of how much we love sailing Bella Mente with Hap. We will stay Newport-based for at least the next few months and see what the world will let us do! Fingers crossed that we’ll race again sooner than later.” 

NEWPORT, R.I. (Sept. 22, 2020) – It was a long time coming, but Hap Fauth finally has reunited with his sailing family in Newport, R.I. where he will steer his Maxi 72 Bella Mente in this week’s New York Yacht Club (NYYC) Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex and the Queen’s Cup that follows it. The five days of racing starts tomorrow, and Bella Mente Racing, comprised of Fauth and 21 other seasoned sailors, has put in some serious practice time on Narragansett Bay these past few days in a lingering northerly that has pumped out winds of 25 knots and higher.

“I’m sure I can speak for all crews and owners when I say we’re so thankful that the New York Yacht Club has taken a leadership position in allowing Race Week and the Queen’s Cup to happen safely,” said Fauth. “Everyone is excited to be out of the house and on the water again.”

Fauth last sailed on Bella Mente a year ago August at the 2019 Maxi 72 World Championship. This August, when a 10-day practice session was scheduled for Mallorca, where the boat was preparing for the 2020 Copa del Rey MAPFRE before heading to the 2020 Maxi 72 World Championship in Italy, Fauth and other key crew members could not get there because of Spain’s lockdown and both events were ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It has been like a homecoming here,” said Fauth after arriving in Newport. “Everyone couldn’t wait to see each other again and do what we love most; compete and have fun on Bella Mente.”

In Mallorca, Bella Mente, which was designed by Botin Partners and built locally at New England Boatworks,underwent what Fauth called a “radical change in aero-philosophy.” A new keel and bulb were attached, and modifications were made to the mast, sails and rigging. “We kiddingly call her ‘Experimente’ because she is never the same from one regatta to the next,” laughed Fauth.

Bella Mente will be the largest boat in its ORC 1 class at Race Week and most likely will see its toughest competition from the two 52-footers sailing: Victor Wild’s Fox and David Tea’s Vesper. “This will be our first time sailing under ORC,” said Fauth, “but we know we go well with the 52s upwind. They scream downwind and prevail in flat seas while we’re better offshore in higher seas, but we also go like heck in the light stuff, which we could have when this northerly runs its course.”

As for the Bella Mente Racing Team, it lost its previous tactician, Terry Hutchinson, to the American Magic America’s Cup effort (headed by NYYC with Fauth’s leadership). He has been replaced by Adrian Stead; however, Stead could not get here due to travel restrictions, so Stu Bannatyne will step into that role. The team’s strategist will be Mike Sanderson, who co-helms with Fauth.

Said Sanderson: “Not every one of our regular crew members is here, but it’s a bonus to have an extended family, from the last five years of sailing, that we can draw off of.” Sanderson, one of four New Zealanders in the crew, will be required to go into a two-week government quarantine when he returns home after Race Week. “I wouldn’t do it except for Hap; he is a massive supporter of the sport and the industry, and for all the trouble and effort he’s gone to, we are just so excited and thankful for the opportunity to sail with him again and be at this event.”

And indeed, no one is as pumped about the sport and racing here as Hap Fauth. “Being on a boat on a crisp September day, with a spray that’s still warm on your face, is the best experience that I had as a youth,” he said after Bella Mente’s Sunday practice sail, “and I still feel the exhilaration of it today as a 75-year-old.”

More About NYYC Race Week
The NYYC’s biennial Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex is now in its 12th running. While previous editions have featured two parts, this year all competing yachts will race at the same time with racing running from Wednesday, September 23, to Saturday, September 26. Different course configurations and sailing areas, such as buoy racing and mid-distance courses, will make the week lively for competitors, while the Stadium Sailing will allow spectators to watch the racing from Fort Adams. 

More About the Queen’s Cup
The Queen’s Cup, typically sailed at the end of the NYYC Cruise, will be sailed the day after Race Week (September 27), also under ORC. It has a unique starting system in that each yacht may start within a two-minute window of the starting gun and its actual elapsed time will be used to calculate its corrected time. This is one of the Club’s oldest and most prestigious trophies with a notable list of winners.

For more information, visit https://bellamenteracing.com/. Follow Bella Mente Racing on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram.