It’s sometimes difficult to know which is more tiring: a long day on the water racing or a long day on the water waiting.
A long day waiting is what befell Group D, who were scheduled to race first on Wednesday and went out to the race area soon after midday.
The wind filled in, sometimes up to 25 knots, but from multiple directions. Pietro Fantoni on the committee faithfully recorded all that happened, and the orange flag was almost raised at one point, but the wind was coming from all points of the compass.
There were times he was convinced that the Joran, a cold, violent katabatic wind that sweeps down the southeastern slopes of the Jura Mountains, was filling in. It is renowned for its sudden, powerful gusts across the Mittelland – the Swiss plateau – and especially notorious on Lake Neuchâtel. It came, briefly, and then went.
Inside the space of ten minutes it had swung from 200 to 320 degrees, sometimes with squalls in opposite directions to each other at the same time. Definitely not the conditions where racing can be held.
Ashore teams played badminton, table tennis, caught up on emails, and chatted at the villa, sometimes in the sunshine, and sometimes in the rain. The camaraderie which has already developed between the teams is fantastic, and a true reflection of what it means to be part of the SSL family.
Teams also met to discuss strategy and analyse the day 2 video footage, looking at how mistakes could be rectified and how other teams were finding different modes, such as how the Belgian Sea Devils utilised a high mode to climb past the Lithuanian Ambers when they were seemingly in an impossible position behind them. The extraordinary broadcast is not only fun to watch, but an invaluable tool for tactics.
For Thursday, the concluding day of the SSL Gold Cup Brasil 2026 European Qualifiers, there are two races scheduled for each fleet, both counting for double points, making it a moment of high stakes, as the tickets to Rio are on the line.
With only three races completed so far, the tension will be high, and the margin for error razor thin. The wind is forecast for the south west, which should provide the stability needed to set a fair race course.
Join us on www.youtube.com/@Starsailors for the livestream of what is bound to be a dramatic day of racing!
How to follow the SSL Gold Cup?
Social media: Instagram & Facebook, and TikTok
Broadcast LIVE from the racing: YouTube