Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta 2009 at Scheveningen, Holland

Racing during the Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta © Richard de Jonge

Racing during the Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta © Richard de Jonge

A sunny, windy Whitsun Monday completed four days of brilliant sailing conditions at the Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta off the Dutch coast in Scheveningen. About three thousand sailors enjoyed the sun, tactical games, challenging currents, and a smooth organisation. For some participants the entertaining evenings were just as important. Although the fleet leaders had to stay focused to defend their positions, no surprising shuffles took place during the last day. The ROARK won in the IRC 1 class, and Team Van Vuuren in the IRC 2. The Lenco of Nico Brabers took the first position in the ORC 2 fleet. In the biggest one design class of the event, the Formula 18, team Heemskerk/Tentij won by twelve points. The European title in the International 14 was claimed by the Brits Richardson and Johnson.

For the IRC and ORC yachts, the competition for the overall win of Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta had already begun on May 19, with two offshores from Scheveningen to Harwich and back. From last Friday until Sunday they have been sailing upwind downwind matches off the coast of Scheveningen, and a mid length race on the final day, Whitsun Monday. The wind was very variable and shifty during the first three inshore days, which resulted in difficult tactical games. The last day, the 16-knot breeze was more stable. After the first beat to the upwind mark, the fleets continued to sail a long reach leg. The winner, skipper Kees Kaan from ROARK/Claus and Kaan Architecten says: "It was very important to have a good start and fast upwind leg, because after that, it was hard to overtake each other." The ROARK had a brilliant start. Kaan says: "It actually surprised me. There were hardly any boats around us at the starting line." Along the way, some larger, faster boats passed them, but that didn't affect their win. Remarkably, the Antilope from Willem Wester, a Grand Soleil 43, performed so well on the inshores, that it obtained a third position overall, without sailing the offshores.

IRC 2/ORC: Widening lead

During the first two inshore days, the competition was very strong in the IRC 2 class; every race another team won. The last two days, Team Van Vuuren gained a head start over its rivals in their new Salona 34. Nevertheless, the FRD-Xperience was determined to win the last race. Skipper Van der Starre says: "Our boat is faster, so we timed at every buoy if our lead was big enough." However, they didn't manage to beat Team Van Vuuren. Van der Starre: "Racing is all about making the least mistakes. We've made a few small mistakes during the week."

In the ORC class there was a lot to be gained during the last day, but eventually the fleet leaders managed to strengthen their positions. In the ORC 1, the Popov from Hans Tak gained the first place. Nico Brabers' Lenco triumphed in the ORC 2, partly thanks to two excellent offshores. The EscXape (ORC 3), skippered by Jan de Bruin, won nearly all races in his fleet. This team is sailing on their home waters. In the ORC 4/5 de Celestine would have liked to push the J entre 28 from its throne. Van der Hout's team didn't succeed because they couldn't get their boat up to speed during the last race.

One design: New classes and largest fleets

The one design classes did not compete in the offshores, but sailed ten upwind down races during the four regatta days in Scheveningen. The largest fleets were the Formula 18 with about sixty competitors and the J22 class, which consisted of 28 boats. New to the event were the International 14, Swan 42 and Melges-24.

In the Formula-18, team Heemskerk/Tentij ruled from day one. Only the Boskalis teams Larsen/Van Helden and De Koning/Visser managed to steal one bullet from them. In the International 14, the British teams dominated the top five of the fleet. Apparently, the Germans had to get used to the North Sea, because later on, they managed to climb in the rankings. Team Richardson/Johnson won the European Championship by far.

How different was the situation in the J22. Eelco Blok and his team were in the lead during the first two days, but the difference with number four was only four points. On Saturday, Jeroen den Boer and his crew took over. Michiel van der Meulen was very eager to beat Den Boer. His team obtained a first and a second place during the final races, but that was not enough. Jeroen den Boer managed to prolong his title by two points.

Although the Melges-24 is quite popular abroad, the class is still to be discovered in the Netherlands. As a result, most of the competitors were fairly new to the boat. But because they were all experienced sailors, the fleet stuck together and the racing was quite exciting. Eventually, the Dutch Melges-24 dealer, Hein Ruyten, won the event.

About the Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta

The Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta consists of two offshores and four days of inshore racing off the coast of Scheveningen. The Delta Lloyd North Sea Regatta 2009 started on 19 May with the Vuurschepenrace from Scheveningen to Harwich. After a lay day, the IRC and ORC classes departed from Harwich on Friday 22 May, to sail the North Sea Race. During the Whitsun weekend, from 29 May until 1 June, more than 20 classes competed in front of the coast of Scheveningen. Several disciplines participated: big yachts, Olympic classes, open boats and surfers. From this year, the event is sponsored by Delta Lloyd.

More information at www.nsr.nl