Updates Onshore Archives - Page 6 of 8

Fast Approaching: Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship

August 23, 2014 By Bella Mente Leave a Comment

Bella Mente and its team of 30 sailors and shore crew are expected to arrive in Porto Cervo, Sardinia early next week to prepare for the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship, which kicks off September 1 and continues through to September 6. With owner/driver Hap Fauth at the helm, Bella Mente Racing will embark on four days of practice next week to prepare.

Bella Mente at the 2013 Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship (Photo Credit Rolex/Carlo Borlenghi)

“This year’s Mini Maxi Rolex World Championships will probably be the tightest racing the class has ever seen,” said Mike Sanderson who will join Fauth along with Terry Hutchinson and John Cutler in the afterguard onboard.

Sanderson added that the regatta is the team’s pinnacle event annually because of its strong turnout of other extremely competitive mini maxis. In 2012, Bella Mente Racing was crowned Mini Maxi Rolex World Champion, and it hopes to steal back the title from Niklas Zennstrom’s Ran 2, which won last year and will be returning again next month with a new boat (Ran 5). Zennstrom’s former boat will also be competing as Robertissima III with Roberto Tomasini Grinover at the helm.

Bella Mente at the 2013 Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship (Photo Credit Rolex/Carlo Borlenghi)

Bella Mente Racing will once again be faced with George Sakellaris’ Shockwave, which it narrowly lost to at the 33rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE earlier this month in Palma Mallorca (Shockwave and Bella Mente took first and second place, respectively, in IRC 0).

“We were very happy with how the boat was going at Copa del Rey and feel that we can win races,” added Sanderson. “The team has worked hard to make the boat as ‘rating efficient’ as possible without, hopefully, costing us any raw speed. Overall, the boat is feeling better than it has ever felt and the team is more settled and prepared than ever. We are ready to put our heads down and fight.”

Check out photos below of Bella Mente being prepared for Sardinia (Photo Credit: Peter Henderson)

Bella Arrives in Palma

July 9, 2014 By Bella Mente Leave a Comment

ArrivingPalma2

After being loaded in Bermuda late last month, Bella Mente arrived in Palma Mallorca, Spain this week. The crew will be joining her the first week in August for the 33rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE, which will kick off the team’s European circuit. A full update will be coming soon. In the meantime, to find out more about the regatta visit http://bit.ly/U4Ou7t.

ArrivingPalma1_Web

Day 1: NYYC Annual Regatta

June 13, 2014 By Bella Mente Leave a Comment

Bella Mente Racing, along with the rest of the 105 boat fleet, experienced extremely light conditions in today’s Around-the-Island Race portion of the New York Yacht Club’s Annual Regatta presented by Rolex. A breeze of 3-4 knots quickly dissolved after the start of the 19-mile race (around Jamestown, R.I.) and the race committee was forced to shorten the course to a finish at the Jamestown Bridge on the west side of the island.

Photo Credit: Rolex / Daniel Forster

“Today was always going to be tough,” said the team’s crew boss Mike Sanderson. “One thing I always love about racing in Newport is that Rhode Island has lots of active weather so you often see a wide range of conditions. Today was one of those days where we got a bit of everything.

“It was a massive game of ‘snakes and ladders’ in extremely light and fickle winds,” added Sanderson,
“and unfortunately for us we finished halfway down a “snake” just ten minutes before the race committee shortened the course, though we had been leading on the water. Tomorrow is another day and we are looking forward to racing. Fingers crossed for some lovely sailing breeze.”

IMG_4594_web

The team will hit the water again for Saturday’s and Sunday’s combined series of races, which officially constitutes the 160th New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta presented by Rolex.

Throughout the weekend Bella Mente Racing will be posting updates via Facebook and Twitter and blog posts nightly. For event coverage please visit www.nyyc.org.

Bella Comes Together at Newport Shipyard

June 3, 2014 By Bella Mente Leave a Comment

Bella Dives Back in with NYYC Annual Regatta

June 2, 2014 By Bella Mente 1 Comment

In less than two weeks, Bella Mente Racing will hit the ground running for the New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta presented by Rolex. Scheduled from June 13-15, it will be the team’s first event since suffering from a mast failure at Les Voiles de St. Barths in April.

Bella Mente at the 2012 NYYC Annual Regatta presented by Rolex. It was the first event that the team competed in on the current boat. (Photo Credit Billy Black)

“We plan to get Bella Mente back on track as quickly as possible,” said the team’s crew boss Mike Sanderson adding that the 72-foot maxi is currently being worked on at the Newport Shipyard and will be equipped with a new keel and a newer mast before the weekend classic. “It is a really interesting race and what we are looking for is a smooth and slick performance from our whole infrastructure.

The team has its work cut out for them with a slew of challenging competitors also racing in IRC, including the IRC favored TP52s Constellation, Hooligan, Interlodge and SLED and rival mini maxi Caol Ila R which they have been constantly swapping positions with all season. Caol Ila R to took the class win at Les Voiles de St. Barth while Bella Mente won the mini maxi class at Key West Race Week (Caol Ila R came in second) and finished second overall and second in the IRC Z class at RORC 600.

“The ratings on Caol Ila R and the TP52s make them tough to beat so we need to make sure to keep our distance,” added Sanderson. “If they are beside us then they are winning.”

Bella Mente at the 2012 NYYC Annual Regatta presented by Rolex. It was the first event that the team competed in on the current boat. (Photo Credit Billy Black)

Following Annual Regatta, the team will embark on the Newport Bermuda Race the next week (June 20) before heading across the Atlantic to embark on its European circuit, which includes the 33rd Copa del Rey MAPFRE in August, the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship in September and the Rolex Middle Sea Race in October.

“Between now and this fall we will constantly be switching from inshore to offshore mode. We are very privileged to have such a wide range of events and we need to focus on winning them. That road is going to start at the Annual Regatta.”

Follow the team on Facebook and Twitter. Nightly updates during events can be found here.