A Rapido 60 Trimaran, built by Triac Composites has just won New Zealand's Yates Cup, in tough conditions, which was held from 17-18 July 2020. Romanza completed the course in 24 hours, 16 minutes and 45 seconds.
The Yates Cup is a 230 nm circuit around some of the islands in the Hauraki Gulf, starting and finishing in Auckland.
The skipper and co owner of Romanza, Dougall Love writes that "the first leg was a long windward beat of around 50 miles which became increasingly rough as we left the shelter of the Gulf. This proved the undoing for 9 of the Race’s 26 starters (36 per cent of the fleet) with broken gear or seasick crews. Withdrawals included two of the top TP52s, which regularly race here, with damage (see video below from 1-3 seconds for withdrawals). But Rapido was unscathed.
Below, Dougall reflects on the performance of the Rapido 60 in this particular race.
"Romanza performed beautifully and although some of the upwind bouncing was quite ‘impressive’, we didn’t feel at risk at any time.
"She is extremely strong and stiff and can be pressed hard without feeling anywhere near an edge.
"Reaching in the big seas had its moments when the swell tried to control us, but a quick easing of the sheets and a bit of helm down turned that straight into fast surfing. Exhilarating, even when it’s pitch black!
"Being dry when it’s intermittently raining (the nearest land actually had severe flooding) and there’s spray going everywhere except into the boat, is wonderful too.
"We shared a not very sympathetic thought for all the soaking wet and cold crews perched on monohull rails while we were dry and warm!
Overall
"So, a great race in a great boat with a top crew. Nice to be able to handle the difficulties that broke so many boats without a hiccup and to arrive home tired but warm and dry.
"Coming in first by so far was a bonus and the tracker looks impressive as we gap-off from everyone else 😊."
Further information
To view the original and unabridged article on the Rapido Trimarans' website, dated 23 July 2020, click here,