The morning after the night before had dawned at the PuntAla venue on the delightful Tuscan coast.  The region had been due to get a little spot of weather the previous evening.  And by little spot, I mean a massive slow-moving thunderstorm accompanied by biblical rain levels that found every crack and gap in restaurant roofs and came under doors.  But no lasting damage and the resort awoke to a few puddles, but as the place is built upon sand, the water had largely dissipated.

The largest ever A-Cat Worlds opened today in PuntAla Camping & Resort, Italy.  Nearly 185 sailors are entered in the twin classes with the first races scheduled for Monday 9th Sept. on two course areas.  However, due to an extreme weather warning, the race committee decided not to hold the practice race on the Sunday, so the sailors go an afternoon off for exploring the local area, or just sitting in the ridiculously high humidity of the resort, waiting for the inevitable thunderstorm to arrive, which it has now done.

Photo- guppypix.com 

Within the pine forests and on the sandy beaches of the PuntAla Camping & Resort, the excitement is building. The little lizards are scampering about in anticipation as the A-Cat Worlds start Monday, the practice race is due Sunday.  This should see the biggest A-Cat fleet starts ever witnessed by most sailors.  85 or so boats in two fleets, stretched out, should be a magnificent sight. The sound of their pilots screaming at each other could also be an interesting thing to witness.

The New Zealand A-Division Association have announced a change in venue for the 2025 Worlds.  Due to recent financial commitments now being demanded by the previous venue, that were unaffordable and far in excess of the current IACA World Entry €300 per boat fees, the NZADA have decided to switch venues to the Auckland based Milford Cruising Club.  This is just around the corner from the 2014 Takapuna venue as will sail on the same waters.  

PJ and Mischa tell all they know, so far.

https://youtu.be/-3MU1MlTWbs

Welcome to the first ‘proper’ racing day of the PuntAla regatta festival.  Next week we see the 2024 World Championships, for both Classic and Open categories, but this weekend we have an Italian National event, a TT series event if you will, and it is being used as a practice/warm up event for the Worlds.

This document was compiled by a working group of dedicated A-Cat sailors - Christian Stock, Dominik Peikert, Matthias Dietz (+), Rainer Bohrer. 

We dedicate it to our deceased sailing friend Matthias Dietz, whose great fairness should be a role model for us all.

In English - Download it here

En Français télécharger ici

2024 A-Class Cat Worlds Preview.

With the A-Cat Worlds 2024 entries for Italy, having now closed, we have 184 boats.  I’ll just say that again, we have 184 boats!  This is probably the largest single class multihull event in the World this year and it’s also one of largest cat fleets assembled outside of the Texal race this year too! In fact, that’s bigger than all the combined boat fleets at the Olympics!

Jacques Valente passed away on July 11. He was a seasoned sailor with a rich career, known for his participation in events such as the Mini Transat and the Route du Rhum. His passion for sailing began at the age of 9, and despite significant health challenges, including a kidney transplant in 2008, he continued to be an active advocate for organ donation and a prominent figure in competitive sailing.

Jacques owned several A-Cat’s during his sailing career and was member of the I.A.C.A. Committe from 2021 to 2023. We express our deepest sympathy to his wife and survivors.

A great fun event, with some interesting moments for all.  Christian Stock reports.