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48 hours on the causeway ( miami pro-am)    march 8-9 ,2008      final results

 48 Hours Wrap Up......

A great weekend of racing finished out on Sunday with winds that were way down from the 25 knot peaks of Saturday.  There was enough wind though for  2 races to be run ( a total of 7!).  The two days of racing in challenging and shifty winds allowed for many changes in the lead of each heat.  Making it to the top mark in the top group did not mean you would be there at the bottom, as timing your rounding with an approaching gust was crucial.  Avoiding the "weed mats" was important as well if you did not want to be sailing backwards after taking the lead!

 

The top racers at the event were all close in each race, making the total scoring very close amongst the top 4 (sorry Peter, Simona gave me too much San Fernando!)  Fernando eventually came out on top (starting line antics aside), Ron Kern was as always Mr Consistent, and the Windsurfer of the Year Alex Morales was neck and neck with him, and the tie breaker gave him third!  Peter Ifju showed that all the time he put in over the last year was worth it with some great sailing, taking one bullet as well. 

 It was great to have a group of sailors from far away come and join us for the race as well!  Thanks to Team Texas:  John Jay Ernst and Kirk Simmons for trekking down after the Midwinters, and to Rick Whidden from Maui Sails for sticking around to join the fun on Saturday before heading back North.  The Kona crew was there as well with John in the lead, team captain Mike in second and Jim (better late than never) rounding it out.  Also making the race fun to watch on and off the water were the Formula hotties err uh women, ladies or girls (whatever the PC word is):  Dominique, Natalie and Nancy out there doing battle and having fun.  The Junior fleet was the biggest we have ever had in Miami with 6 coming to race this event,  Alex Stahnkie from Calema came out on top. 

Special thanks to all the sponsors:  Miami Windsurfing, SteaZ, San Fernando, Catch a Wave, and Next Sports.    Also thanks to Brian Barr the founder of the 48 Hours for being the race committee, and to Angelo for the incredible pictures!  Simona as always made sure everything was in order on the shore side (what would we do without you?)  Thanks especially go out to the US Sailing Center Miami for hosting the event at the final hour (dredge that channel a bit though!).  Keep tuned for more excitement from Miami Windsurfing soon!

 Rick Randall  US 089

Formula men : 1- Fernando Martinez   42     2- Ron Kern   K     3- Alex Morales  US-188

Formula Junior  1-Alex Stankie  USP22      2- James  Crumley  61   3- Sebastian Lehner  C

Formula  woman  1- Dominique Vallee CAN   2- Natatia Luczynska  POL-45  3- Nancy Rios USA-21

Kona   1- John Cerchio  2- Michel Rayl  3- Richard White

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48 Hours gets wind.............

Saturday saw 30 sailors show up at the US Sailing Center in Miami with forecast winds of more than 20 knots.  As everyone began to arrive, the wind gusts blowing offshore through the trees was making everyone wonder what the right sail choice was for the day.  We set the course and measured winds of 12 - 16 knots, and everyone made their choice of sail doubting what we said as the whitecaps were not visible from the shore. 

After the racers fianally made it out to the course, racing commenced with winds gusting to over 20 knots.  Most sailors chose rigs around 10 meters, witrh a few nonbelievers going large.  The first races favored those starting on port after a big wind shift, and the decisions made on the course when the headers came were crucial to success.  The Biscayne Bay weeds had been blown in by a couple of days of South winds, and only added to the fun.

 A break in the racing provided more time for indecision in sail sizes, with a few sailors heading in to change their gear.  After the break, those who had gone big benifitted in the dying breeze.  Most everyone had a nice walk home to the race site as the offshore winds and outgoing tide added to the challenge.

 The after party was as always the highlight of the day in Miami, with plenty of San Fernando flowing and curing all the pain of the day.  Simona held down the shoreside end of things with her typical style.  Thanks to everyone for showing from far and wide to join in the fun, more to come tommorow with a forecast for more wind from the North and some cooler temps to add a different aspect to the day.   We will let you know how it goes! 

48 HOURS ON THE CAUSEWAY

  MIAMI PRO-AM RACE SERIES

at

 US Sailing Center Miami

March 8-9, 2008

"Miami Pro-Am    # 3  --  48 hours on the causeway "

  march 9 -11   , 2007 

The day got off to a bit of a late start, due to everyone, sailors and race committee include being pretty tired from Day 1!  Though some were skeptical that the wind was going to be good, the race committee was confident that it would happen. Simona kept the crowd under control and made them happy with plenty of Miami style hospitality on the beach while they waited.  The course was set with a windward leeward configuration, and then we sat back for a while.  Sure enough, at noon the wind began to build and the boat headed out to set the starting line.  The racers followed, and racing commenced at 12:45. 

The first race had just under 10 knots at the starting line, and more on the course.  Starts were exciting to watch, with half the fleet on Port and half on Starboard.  The second race, the wind built a bit more and the racers were very aggressive this time!  On the third race, Mathias started on Port and was forced to duck some starboard tackers, and managed to snag the anchor line of the committee boat.  Still he managed to fight back to 4th place! 

 
The final 2 races saw winds continue to build to over 12 knots, with gusts over 14.  The final race saw a terrific battle between Fernando and Mathias who really wanted to win!  In the end, Fernando had too many good races to be overcome though. The prizes were given from our very generous sponsors West Marine(Top places in each category:  a foul weather jacket), Maui Sails(backpack), Fanatic, F2, North Sails(T shirts).  Craig Gertenbach head of Fanatic came in from South Africa to help give out awards and check out the Miami scene(Thanks!).  Plenty more San Fernando wine was consumed while we watched the sun sink down over the Miami skyline.
 
Formula Men:
 
1.  Fernando Martinez                 ARG- 42
2.  Mathias Penheiro                   BRA -5
3.  Steve Sylvester                         S3
4.  Vincent Barre                         FRA 5495
5.  Yuri Taguti                                 BRA -17
6.  Ron Kern                                            K
7.  Tinho Dornelas                         US- P2
8.  Eduardo Owen                            US 01
9.  Uwe Dreyer 
10. Don Wagner                                       D1
11. Alex Morales                             US -188
12. Peter Ifju                                           IF1
13. John Groesbeek                      US -811
14. Jon Jay Ernst                        US -1166
15. Tuomas Sandholm                 USA -79
16. Brian Barre                                      U
17. Sergio Kapul                                   X
18. Kirk Simmons                               TXN
19. Danilo  Ferrero                             011
20 Juan Gonzales                          CR-1
 
Formula Women
 
1.  Monica Arche                    ESP- 211
 
Hybrid Men
 
1.  Marius Tudor
2.  Richard White
3.  Jim Desilva
 
Hybrid Women
 
1.  Denise Paris
 
 
 
48 Hours Day 1
 
Well the wind was looking pretty slack early in the day, with wind readings on the course only about 6 knots.  So a hybrid race was run before the lunch break was taken.  Then after everyone had fueled up, we got the wind we had been hoping for, a nice and seady 10 knos.  Four races were run between 3:15 and 5:15.  Mr consistency Steve Sylvester seems to be in the lead at this point with 3 rd place in every race!  Fernando and Mathias may have been ahead of him, until going over early in the last race, and not restarting.  We will see what happens after racing resumes Sunday, and after all throwouts are accounted for.
 
The party was rocking when we got to Shake a Leg, with the DJ cranking tunes.  The paella was filling, and the San Fernando wine was relaxing us well.  A bunch of raffle prizes from sponsors, Maui Sails, Next Sports, and Liquid Surf and sail were given away.  Then everyone made their way home to get some rest for the final day.
 
RR
----------------------------------------------------
 
Well it is the day after, and we have had time to think about everything.  It was really a great event, but it was a lot of work on everyones' part.  We have to really thank the people who made this event possible:  Alex Morales and Simona Madan, who put in a lot of work to get this event ready.  They had to use a lot of energy for many days before anyone ever showed up at the beach.  Pushing very hard to get all the people lined up to work at the event, getting the permits (that is a story for another day....), getting the insurance for the event, and then racing in the event(Alex) and running the shoreside activities (Simona) was quite a feat.  Other people that put in the efforrts to get this thing done were Eduardo Owen, Rick Randall, Marvin List, Jorge and Jim Desilva.