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The
latest results and breaking news from the Sailing
world.
Andrea
Mura is in the nominee list as "Best Sail-maker"
at the Sail Award 2005.
Cagliari, 8 March
2005
The
Tuttovela "Il Villaggio della Vela"
magazine, organizer of the Naval Academy Trophy
and Town of Livorno Trophy, listed my name in the
nominee list for the Sail Awards 2005 in the Best
Sail-maker category.
The prize will be awarded during a gala dinner on
April 22, 2005 onboard the historical sail-ship
Amerigo Vespucci. Voting will start on March 5,
and will end by April 22, at 12 pm. Ballots
can be cast through the "Oscar della
Vela" web site (www.trofeoaccademianavale.com).
The "one email address, one vote" rule
holds.
"It's
a wonderful surprise. Totally unexpected. I couldn't
imagine a better prize for the 20th anniversary of
the Sail Loft (1985 - 2005)",
Andrea Mura says.
"A
special thank to all the staff members: dad Sergio,
Francesca Pani, Riccardo Zuncheddu, Alessandro Pili,
Cristian Schirru and Maura Pani, without whom I
wouldn't ever been able to reach such a prestigious
goal. It's gonna be a great party."
Please cast your
ballot from 5 March to 22 April at the:
Thank you all,
__________________________________
A little help to
dolphins safeguard
Cagliari, 24 February
2005
The
Andrea Mura sail design proudly announces its
collaboration with the Centro Ricerca Cetacei
(Marine Mammals Research Center) and with the Nucleo
Tutela Ambiente dei Carabinieri to the European
project named "Argonautica 2005".
The
project's goal is to establishing the first European
Data Bank on marine mammals. The gathered data will
be used, in collaboration with governmental
institutions and national parks, to carry out
projects aimed at the safeguard of dolphins in the
Italian sea water.
During a
one year period, the "Centro di Ricerca
Cetacei" will sail along the Italian shores
with a sailboat fitting out a new sail-rig provided
by the sail loft Andrea Mura sail design.
"It's
my honor, as a passionate lover of sailing and sea
creatures, to being able to give my contribution to
the dolphins safeguard, by helping the Centro di
Ricerca Cetacei", Andrea Mura says.
Buon
vento da,
__________________________________
When
one is taken by surprise...
Cagliari, 12 November
2004
Sometimes,
when one is totally unprepared, wonderful things can
happen, like to receiving a bronze medal for the
athletic value, for winning the 2002 Italian
Minialtura Championships in Palermo, with the "Mati"
prototype, owned by Mrs. Matilde Borriello, from
Naple.
That was
the 7th trophy in my career: 420(84) Rimini; 470(85)
Cagliari; H.C.16(86) Cagliari; IMS(93) Capri;
E24(99) Quartu S. E.; E24(00) Ischia; IMS
Minialtura(02) Palermo.
The last
time I got a medal for the athletic value was back
in the far 1982 !!
Actually,
I also won a silver medal for winning two
consecutive European 420 Championships (Juniors in
Germany and Absolute in Livorno), together with
Antonello Ciabatti.
I
couldn't ever get a gold medal, though I won two
world titles back in 1991. The first one for the
America's Cup Class victory with the "Moro di
Venezia", and the second one for the 50"
Class victory. Unfortunately, both of them were not
in the list of classes which were recognized by both
the CONI (Italian Olympic Committee) and the FIV (Italian
Sailing Federation).
For this
reason the CONI couldn't award gold medals to the
crew, as usually happens to Olympic medalists
or world titles winners.
Until
1989, medals for the athletic value could be awarded
one time only and always with increasing value,
meaning that, if a silver medal had already been
awarded for the victory of an European title,
another European title victory couldn't be rewarded
with a second silver medal. Next in the list would
had been a golden medal for a world title.
Since
1989 rules have changed. Medals for the athletic
value can be awarded again and again for each
victory of an Italian title and for each best three
placements at an European or World Championships or
at the Olympic Games, for all the classes which are
recognized by the CONI.
I regard
this medal as a wonderful prize for my first 40
years which I've entirely dedicated to the sport of
sailing.
Moreover,
I am quite happy to know that some talented guys
among the youngest Sardinian sailors, are reaching
important results. I wish they could keep working
and training hard, to achieve even more
prestigious victories than those I've been able to
reach till now.
__________________________________
Este
24 Italian Championships
How to get
overtaken on the last day ....
Cagliari, 27 October
2004
Although
exhausted for taking part to the Salone Nautico di
Genova (Genoa Nautical Exhibition), I went to S.
Marinella to join the Este 24 Italian Championship
together with the same crew with whom I won the 2004
Academia Trophy.
I haven't
been at the steering wheel of an E24 since last
April!! Adding up all energies I had been spending
during the Nautical exhibition to the complete lack
of training, I was absolutely sure that we ever
could repeat the victory achieved at the Academia
Trophy.
But.....
this is the story of what went on during the three
days of the Championships.
Day
one:
Light
6-9 knots southern wind, extremely unpredictable
with up to 30° jumps in direction and south-west
short waves, which made very difficult sailing
close-hauled at port tack. 3 regattas for witch the
right tactic decisions could make the difference.
Day one ends with a 3rd, a 1st and a 4th placements,
which put us at the very top of the list, ahead of
Matteo Ivaldi, Gabrio Zandoną, Cruciani, the
skillful Russian Serghei and the Air-force (1°,
ocs and 2°)
Day
two:
Light 6
knots southern wind, with 20° jumps in direction.
After the first leg, during the second close-hauled,
we over take the Air-force guys, who had been
leading the regatta since the start. The wind blows
off completely and we are able to pass the finishing
line few minutes before the time limit. Only
seven crews can get the finishing line on time. For
everybody else is: DNF.
Also day
two ends with a 1st placement, which allows us to
keep the top of the list, even when compensation is
taken into account. The Air-force is second, having
our same points.
Day
three:
Light
wind, no more than 3 knots. The regatta shouldn't
have even started due to the lack of wind. Usually,
for all Olympic classes and for IMS, the minimum
required wind intensity is of 6 knots. Nevertheless
the jury wanted the regatta to begin no matter what,
even if the Championships was to be considered
already valid after four races.
In order
to win the title, we had to arrive ahead of the
Air-force guys, who were led by Chiattelli, or one
position behind them, on condition that we were not
in the top four in the list.
1st
start was called off, due to a general warning. We
were leading our direct competitors. 2nd start,
still leading. At the end of the first close-hauled,
Ivaldi is number one, we are second and the
Air-force is fifth. The regatta is called off due to
a wind jump!!
Restart.
This time the Air-force leads during the entire
regatta. At the end of the second close-hauled, the
honk signals that the leader has passed the
finishing line: Zandoną, who is followed by another
crew. Air-force is 3rd and we are 4th. Air-force
leads us by one point.
The flag
R, which signals that another regatta will be held,
is not shown on the inflatable boat at the finishing
line, whereas it was exposed on the committee boat
at the starting line! Ivaldi goes back to the harbor
to haul his boat. An inflatable boat reaches him and
warns him that a new regatta is to be held. Ivaldi
intimates via radio the jury not to start a new
regatta because the symbol R had not been correctly
exposed. The jury, acknowledging the mistake, annuls
the programmed regatta and goes back to the harbor.
The jury issues a new call for the next regatta,
whose start is set by 2 pm., right before the limit
time (2,30 pm) behind which any new start wouldn't
be possible anymore. Meanwhile, the wind blows off
and we have to give up our hope.
We go
back to the harbor by 2,30 pm and we submit two
formal complains to the jury. The first one for not
having signaled the letter S, in conjunction with
two acoustic warning signals, according to provision
32.2.
The
second one was to get compensation from the jury for
the damage we had suffered from the jury's decision
to shorten the regatta course, which wasn't signaled
properly. As a consequence of that decision, we
haven't been able to conduct the regatta at our
best, either trying to reach our competitor while
sailing downwind, or by forcing him to choose the
wrong side of the theater, in order to put another
boat ahead of Air-force, which was enough for us to
win.
Actually,
due to the very limited time at our disposal after
the regatta's end, I am afraid I wasn't able to
correctly formulate my complain for infringement of
provision 62.2.
Moreover,
the jury made another mistake. By loosing in the sea
water the signal R, they put themselves in the
impossibility of starting a new regatta, and the
course's reduction of the previous regatta was not
permitted under the provision of art. 32.2, which
allows a course's cut only in the view of making
possible for another regatta to be started. Indeed,
this was the actual damage that the jury has caused
us, making impossible for us to reaching our
competitor either on the water or in the final list.
We could have asked compensation by making use of
the averaged results we obtained during the entire
competition, which would have been more than enough
for us to win.
Our two
official complains have been dismissed, but we are
going to appeal.
After
all, it was a good championships, that rewarded us
with plenty of gratifications. It was very well
organized and promoted by the Este 24 group, which
has been able to put together 17 boats and their
excellent crews.
Our
sincere congratulations to the Air-force guys, who
had been able to compete at their very best all the
way through the championships.
The
appointment is on next May, in Rossignano, for the
new edition of the Italian Championships.
Our
awards collection for our victories in the first
two days of the competition, for out two first
placements in the following tests, and the cup we
got for the final second placement in the
championships.
From
the left: Paola Turchi (bowman); Luca Etiopi (Tailer);
Andrea Mura (helmsman); Gael Piomabanti (second
bowman); Maurizio Regoli (halyard man)
The
Air-force crew
__________________________________
An
unbelievable experience ....
Cagliari, 3 October
2004
It was
an unbelievable experience to join, as an
exhibitor, the 14th Monaco Yacht Show in Montecarlo.
It is in fact the only exhibition, which is
especially dedicated to the Super Yachts, and I
really mean that.
The
exhibition area is small, compared with Genoa's one,
but absolutely outstanding from a qualitative point
of view.
The
audience was mostly made of in incognito shipowners,
middlemen, naval architects and captains of super
yachts and motor yachts.
It was a
four wonderful days for exchanging ideas about every
thing which is related with the super yacht world
and to cut good deals.
That is
a market that doesn't know what economic crisis
means, flourishing at an incredible pace. We are
witnessing an unbelievable race towards even bigger
ships. This is reflected into a dramatic change in
the language: as today, any 80" is regarded to
be a toy vessel, a sort of. Trend now starts from
100" on. Shipyards do not know what to do to
satisfy the increasing demand of big yachts and they
are fully booked until 2007!!
I had
the chance and the honor of meeting and exchanging
ideas with designers as famous as Van Peteghem (the
most celebrated designer of catamarans, such as Club
Med, winner of "The Race", oceanic
trimarans, etc.), Philippe Briand, designer of
several America's Cup vessels, German Frers,
designer of the "Moro di Venezia" and
"Luna Rossa", and many others, to whom I
proudly presented the R&D project that I had
been carrying out since two years ago, together with
the CRS4's CFD group. They have shown great interest
in the project because, until now, no loft has ever
invested so much in scientific research to get
better and more technologically advanced products.
Their
interest was so genuine that they asked to
investigate further the subject and made proposal
for starting a joined adventure to enter the French
market, which, together with the Italian one, is one
of the most important in the world.
The"Andrea
Mura sail design" stand at the 14th Boat
Show in Montecarlo.
As a
result of our effort, we could get the attention
of the designer Massimo Paperini (from the Duck
Design studio), who has chosen our loft to fit
out his latest project, which is already under
construction- It is a 78" sloop, for which
we have chosen to use the innovative fabric by
Bainbridge.
78"
Duck Design, Massimo Paperini
Many
companies working in the luxury market also
joined in the exhibition, such as Agusta, the
helicopter world leader, Dassault, the famous
executive jet maker, Bugatti and Maybach, the
two famous luxury cars makers, whose products
are elected by many shipowners and sheiks, who
like to have their own helicopter on board and
their Maybach waiting for them on the dock.
The
Bugatti on exhibit in Monetcarlo: 8000 cv, 1000 Hp,
407 Km/h
Some
suggestive pictures, just to get an idea of what
kind of vessels I am talking about....
The
biggest boat on show in Montecarlo: 50 mt.
Arrivederci
at the next nautical exhibition in Genoa from 9
to 17 October.
You
are all invited to visit the Veleria Andrea Mura
sail design stand at the Padiglione B1
stand 210C
Buon
vento da
____________________________
www.ambrosiafitness.it
IV
EDIZIONE DELLE giornate
2004
Sea
and Sport
16/17/18/19
September
Porto Torres - Stella del Mediterraneo -
Asinara
The
4th edition of the Sport Medicine and Cardiology has
taken place in Porto Torres on the last 16/19
September. During the four conference's days, many
topics concerning the interaction between cardiology
and sport have been discussed, particularly those
related to diving, the approach of disabled persons
to aquatic sports, and the more general relation
between the marine environment and sport. Some 33
people joined in the conference, among them many
surgeons and sportsmen. Andrea Mura has been invited
to give a talk on topics such as sailing, the
specific training and the physical stresses sailors
are subjected to.
_____________________________
4°
consecutive victory in the season
and
4
unforgettable days.
Cagliari, 16 June
2004
The Yacht Club
Porto Rotondo and Audi have organized a great
event, which was strongly pursued by Audi, a
company which is investing a lot in the world of
sailing.
The four days of
sail racing have been made unforgettable by great
food, crowded press conferences, famous sportsmen,
such as Giacomo Agostini, Alberto Tomba, Antonio
Rossi, Karen Putzer, etc., trendy gadgets,
beautiful cars on exhibit and warm hospitality.
Our crew, sailing
the X Prozac, gave its best, winning in the
general chart, ahead of competitors such as
Orlanda, of the skipper Tormmaso Chieffi, which
was second, World Cargo, of the skipper Ricardo
Simoneschi, which was third, and Meridiana, of the
skipper Vasco Vascotto, which was fourth.
I joined in as main
sail man. It was my honor to be part of this team,
so well organized. Whenever Gabriele Benussi at
the helms, his brother Furio as tactician and
Stefano Spangaro as navigator perform at their
best, no competitors can prevail!
It was the first
time for me to sail together with Gabriele. It was
a great experience and I hope it could happen
again.
The Team www.sailingplanet.com it's
definitely a great invention and a mean to set up
a team that could take part in more prestigious
regattas.
The carbon fiber
boat by Green Marine it is not just "fantastic",
but she is a real "aircraft", especially
in light wind conditions.
Some moments during
the regatta:
While turning the
mark buoy, during the last test with Mistral blowing
at 25 knots.
During day two of the
competition.
While waiting for
wind....
Antonio Rossi,
on the left, three times Olympic golden medalist in
canoeing, joined in during two regattas as main sail
grinder. What honor !!
A famous hostess in
the F1 world was at the rudder. On the right,
Spangaro, a bit worried, was ready to take over to
preserve the boat's safety.
In the last day of
the competition, with Mistral at 20/25 knots, we
have been able to open a big gap between us and
Orlanda, far away in the background. In a rare
moment of relax, I took the chance to leave my
station as main sail man and shoot this picture.
E
Great joy during
the prize awarding ceremony. On the left the motor
bike legend Giacomo Agostini.
Some other
beautiful pictures:
Some more info:
____________________________________________
Third
consecutive victory in the season for Andrea Mura and
his
Celebrations after the
victory.
Cagliari, 5 May
2004
Great kermes
in Livorno for the XXI Naval Academy
Trophy (29 April - 2 May)
Twelve classes have
been admitted, with some 500 boats and 2500 sailors.
I have been invited
by the Livorno shipowner Luca Etiopi, to join in
this competition, onboard his Este 24 "Vento
dell'Este".
I have designed and
prepared for the occasion a new 3rd generation sail
rig.
I have been pretty
busy, for being the helmsman, the tactician and the
sail trimmer.
Nine regattas have
been run in the four days of the race, with 17
competitors.
We have been able to
win the Naval Academy Trophy, one regatta in advance,
thanks to the following standings:
1,2,1,2,2,3,2,1,2.
Charts :
Official notice
prints:
From the left :
Maurizio Regoli (halyard man); Paola Turchi (bowman);
Luca Etiopi (Tailer); Gael Piomabanti (second bowman)
_______________________________________________
It was a
great week-end from Alassio to Naples for the
newest sail's cuts by the Mura's loft, which have
won one more time.
Fulvio Cuccurullo,
the shipowner of "Kriss - Banca di Credito
Popolare", together with his crew, won the
Winter Championships Benetau 25 class, which saw all
the Campania fleet getting together.
On this occasion I
was onboard as main sail man, tactician and sail rig
supervisor. The following partial standings: 3
- 1 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 2 - 3, which we have obtained over
5 regattas during two days, awarded us with another
first placement. A great result also for Bainbridge
Italia, the maker of the new Pentex that has been
used to produce this new sail rig. The new fabric
was highly appreciated for its lightness and great
resistance to the wind pressure.
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Claudio
Quadarella while trimming the new light
gennaker of Kriss - Banca di Credito
Popolare
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While
sailing in light wind
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The complete crew:
Fulvio Cuccurullo (helmsman), Andrea Mura (main sail
man and tactician), Claudio Quadarella (Tailer), Luigi
Scognamiglio (halyard man) e Riccardo Apolloni (bowman)
At the same time, the
40.7" "Idea Fissa" crew, that I had
been sailing with last week, did finish third in
Alassio, with a victory during the first test in mid
to strong wind. That was a victory obtained with a
gap of more than half side, that left all the other
competitors amazed.
Our congratulation to
the shipowner Giorgio Girola and to his loyal crew.
These were the
partial placements: 7 - 2 - 4 - 5 - 1
Michele Remagnino,
the main sail man of "Team Idea Fissa",
comments as follows:
In the first close-hauled
leg, after "killing" Beppe Zaoli on the
starting line, we push hard, with Camillo (the
helmsman) who kept saying that with our new gennaker
it was like to have a turbo propeller... we could
really do whatever we wanted to..., luffing, getting
speed..., we close-hauled, got to the mark buoy,
turned it, nobody was behind us, just emptiness. We
finished first, by a huge gap ahead!!! Back on
the dock, everybody else was asking us about our
sail rig, the set-up, the trimming, etc.
For the next
regatta "Idea Fissa" will use the new
and bigger boat: the Farr 44.7
Buon vento da
Andrea Mura and all
the staff of the loft.
_________________________________________
2° victory
of the season for Andrea Mura and his new sails.
From Thursday to
Sunday, last week, the "Audi International
Sail Week" have been disputed in Alassio,
organized by the Circolo Nautico Al Mare di
Alassio.
Some 80 vessels, in
different classes, joined in the competition. The
Benetau First 40.7 class, in which I was competing,
accounted for some very competitive boats.
My role, onboard
the 40.7 (Idea Fissa), was helmsman,
tactician and supervisor of the new sail rig by
Mura, which were realized in Kevlar.
The adverse weather
conditions allowed to dispute only two regattas.
Nevertheless, we have been the winner, ahead of
"Wing", owned by Cecconi and conducted
by Sebastiano Napoli, with Albino Fravezzi as
tactician, and the famous "Paul & Shark",
which was led by Beppe Zaoli.
That was another
valuable result for the Andrea Mura sail design
loft, that is sky rocketing in the international
market thanks to the outstanding quality of its
new 3rd Generation sail : http://www.mura.it/docs/ricerca.htm
The 40.7 "Idea
Fissa", owned by the young shipowner Giorgio
Girola, put a glorious end to her last season. The
boat in fact, will be sold and replaced by the new
Beneteau Farr 44.7, which is to be delivered soon.
It will be one of the very first vessels coming
out from the Beneteau shipyard specifically for
the offshore world. The new boat will be fitting
out the newest sails by Andrea Mura sail design,
which implement the most advanced solutions in
terms of materials and fluid dynamic design.
Our warmest
congratulations to the shipowner and his crew,
that made this result becoming possible.
Buon vento da
Andrea Mura.
___________________________________________
Great
"Mati" !!
Absolute
winner of the Italian Minialtura Championships
Palermo
2002
Andrea
Mura (helmsman) together with Peppe Sorrentino (Tailer),
Gianpiero Gargiulo (halyard man and
co-tactician) and Riccardo Apolloni (bowman) won
the Italian Minialtura Championships, onboard the
prototype m25s : http://members.xoom.virgilio.it/m25s/ owned
by the Naples shipowner Matilde Borriello. That
marvelous vessel has been designed by two aeronautical
engineers: Antonio Maglione and Giovanni Maresca, who,
by applying the most advanced aircraft technologies,
have been able to get a true "bolide" in the
IMS world. The vessel has been realized with Okume ply
at the "cantieri artigianali Partenopei".
The set-up required one full year and has been
possible thanks to the dedication of an important
sponsor as Toto Naldi, the president of Naples soccer
team and the owner of the hotel's chain: Grand
Hotel Mediterraneo. The boat was fitting out a new
Kevlar sail rig designed and produced by the Andrea
Mura sail design.
The
Championships has been held in Palermo from 10 to 14
July, and consisted of six regattas. Some 26 boats
have joined in, one among which was from Ukraine and
had the Russian Olympic medalist Sergey Pichugin at
her helms. At the end of the Championships they got
the third placement.
Winner
of the 2002 Livorno Naval Academy Trophy in the
Minialtura class
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m25s "Mati"
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m25s "Mati"
during the 2002 Italian championships in
Palermo. |
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