There might have been calm seas and light winds for the first day of the Perini Navi Cup 2015 but that didn’t stop some thrilling racing between the 16 attending yachts. Following a staggered, handicapped start, the first leg saw the fleet beat upwind. Rosehearty, with Paul Cayard at the helm, made a tactical decision to tack inshore to catch more wind, which enabled her to reach the first mark in the lead, overtaking Maltese Falcon and Jasali II. Clan VIII finished second by overtaking Maltese Falcon.

A great first day for Rosehearty. All photos: Carlo Borlenghi

On the second leg, with breezes even lighter, Maltese Falcon took back the place from Clan VIII, while the performance yachts Seahawk, Perseus^3, Elettra and Jasali II were becalmed. Rosehearty securied victory with a corrected time almost 50 minutes ahead of her main challengers.

Perseus^3 didn’t find the light airs helpful