The 2016 IFCA Aruba Hi-Winds | Pan American Slalom Championships
with unfamiliar weather conditions
The day started out cloudy after an early morning rain fall which changes the whole situation such as the weather including the vibes on the beach.
After the 10am skippers meeting, the competitors prepared their light wind gears and were put on standby as the winds were still on the light side. After approx an hour a few gusts came trough and the wind measurements were between 10 to 14 knots with gusts up to 16 knots measured on the finishing boat.
In The Seniors it first seemed that Gollito Estredo was going to have a fantastic day as the lighter competitor flying throughout the race area and with the best exits at the marks during the first heat which had to be re-sailed due to big wind lulls in the first attempt. The race committee decided to wait a little more, hoping conditions would improve, but the winds remained light and on the edge thus races were being forced to start.
Gollito Estredo won the first heat and Ethan Westera was back in top form winning the second heat.
The Finals was a very exciting one as Ethan flew towards the first mark securing himself in front of his rival Mateus Isaac who was also fighting for that second podium position behind the event leader Taty Frans. With Gollito Estredo -the talented freestyler- giving all he got, took the second place in the last event elimination but, unfortunately still missed out on a podium position by just 2 points.
Final results Seniors |
The Youths another exciting battle for first place..
both Mack Van Den Eerenbeemt and Alessio Botteri secured a position in the Final and then after the Juniors -who sailed in tricky conditions, but with no real effectiveness on their results- and the Masters – where things got tricky at the first mark between Uwe Dreijer and Sergo Mehl with a protest included left the door open for Constatino Saragoza as Sergio Mehl was being disqualified after a protest.
Final results Juniors |
Final Results Grand Masters USA 213 Myles Borash: North-American Champion |
The Youth Finals became a victim of the unfamiliar weather conditions with super light winds and even bigger wind lulls. The first start attempt got canceled as too many sailors were floating right after the starting signal.. on the second attempt the time was eventually up and with the poor winds and two competitors with a premature starts including the last warning signal according to the Notice of Race it simply came to an end 1min after the scheduled time. The End
Final Results Youths |
WOMEN
3e Alyssa Wijnand BON 2e Maria Belen Bazo PER 1e Carenus Salazar VEN
Final Results Listings: SENIORS | YOUTHS | JUNIORS | GRANDMASTERS