The Tahiti Black Pearls overcame seaweed on their keel on the first day of the SSL Gold Cup Africa and Oceania Qualifier, which hampered them on the startline and first upwind leg, to come back and take second in the only race of the day.
Tactician Teiki Hacheche explained, “We had a very good start, and then we figured out that we were stuck and couldn’t get our speed. We checked the sails, and finally we decided to check the keel, and we had a big patch of seaweed stuck. We had to go backwards to get rid of it, and then it was good, but it was too late. One more lap and maybe we could have won, but they did the right thing and it’s part of the game, so it was a fair and a good race for the Seychelles.”
A storm then hit Lake Neuchâtel sending the fleet ashore, but conditions look great for Wednesday afternoon, which should allow three races to be held, bringing the schedule back on track.
The team that was so impressive in the 2023 SSL Gold Cup have demonstrated that they still have the speed and tactics to compete, and will be looking forward to demonstrating that on Wednesday.