The Racer of the Sea started for the third time at the surf festival on Fehmarn, and with 60 starters, demand was once again very high. Before hitting the water on Saturday and Sunday, two workshops were on the programme: while Lina Erpenstein and Yannick Mittas organised a day full of highlights together with 17 female surfers at the ROTS Girls Day, Leon Delle and Oliver Tom Schliemann taught the newcomers to the regatta all about competitive windsurfing in theory and practice at the ROTS Academy.
On Saturday it was race mode on! After registration and the skippers' meeting, the first races got underway straight away. First of all, the twenty or so starters in the mixed division (foil and fin) took to the course downwind of the test course, a downwind slalom with three gybes. There was a clear trend: even with more wind, many riders were turning to foil. As the wind picked up quickly, the forty "fin only" riders were also able to get going in around 20 knots. Six races per division were held in full-fleet mode. In the evening, after the award ceremony on the main stage, there was a dinner together, sponsored by partner HDI
The second day started again with fantastic conditions and sufficient wind for both divisions. Three more official races were held in both divisions, as well as a final race outside the classification in the defi-start format. As a surprise guest, Vincent Langer showed on Sunday that he is still one of the fastest on the regatta course. The Finn field was also prominent with names such as Marco Lang and Dany Bruch. However, to ensure that the youngsters and newcomers to the regatta didn't lose the limelight, the best three U19 starters and the best three rookies were honoured in both divisions. For the first time, an U16 classification was also honoured in the "Fin only" division.
In addition to the prize money of 1001 euros donated by the main sponsor Windlounge, which is available at all three Racer of the Sea events this year, there was also a prize for all other participants, so that nobody went home empty-handed. Support was provided by Starboard, Severne, XO Sails, i-99, XCEL, Salty Elements and Surf & Fashion Fehmarn.
Marco Lang wins with a freeride sail and gives away the prize money
In the Finn classification, nobody could hold a candle to Marco Lang at the weekend, who remained more than competitive even with a freeride sail. He gave his 250 euro prize money to the best U16 surfer Mika Henning, pointing out that it is very important to support young people. Behind Marco, there was a close battle for the podium places, which Dennis Müller won in the end ahead of Justus Schott.
In the mixed foil classification, young Maxi Räuchle showed that he has great potential and took a commanding win ahead of Alexander Neubert and Keno Recke, the best U19 rider. Lena Haverland showed impressively that she can definitely hold her own in the men's field and was best lady overall with a strong eighth place. Runa Krabbenhöft and Nadia Jablonski followed in second and third place. The other podium places were divided as follows:
U19 Mixed (Foil & Fin)
- Keno Recke
- Erik Wehkamp
- Jule Kiel
U19 Fin only
- Jesse Richter
- Thies Johnsen
- David Langebeck
U16 Fin only
- Mika Henning
- Philipp Köhlert
- Andrej Oberreich
The next Racer of the Sea regatta will take place from 10 to 11 June in Kellenhusen. The Windlounge will also be there with a stand and plenty of test material. In addition, the first ROTS Foil Academy offered.
All information and registration can be found at www.1001grad-events.de .
