A typical autumn morning set the scene for the first day of the 33rd Winter Challenge 2024/2025, organized by the Fraglia Vela Desenzano in collaboration with the Vela Club Desenzano and Nauticlub Moniga. At 7:00 AM, fog enveloped the lake, but by 10:00 AM, a gentle breeze began to clear the mist, revealing a breathtaking view of sails ready to compete in the Gulf of Desenzano.
The event saw significant participation, with 74 boats registered. Among them were various classes, including Dolphin81 (22), Meteor (13), Surprise (4), and Asso99 (12), as well as a variety of boats from the Orc class. This championship is one of the highlights of the sailing season on Lake Garda.
A special moment took place during the presentation of a book dedicated to Ettore Santarelli, held on Saturday afternoon at Fraglia Vela Desenzano. On this first day of racing, the prestigious trophy named in his honor was also awarded, commemorating the centenary of his birth. The boats designed by Santarelli represent over half of the vessels competing in this edition of the Winter Challenge.
The first race took place with a wind of about 5 knots, under the careful supervision of judges M. Miniati, R. Valsecchi, M. Olivieri, and A. Fronti. This year, many crews included students from local sailing schools: Fraglia Vela Desenzano (7), Fraglia Vela Peschiera (1), Circolo Nautico Brenzone (1), Scuola Vela Est Garda (3), and Scuola Vela Go Sail (3). A special crew also represented the Scientific Sports High School Sacra Famiglia of Castelletto di Brenzone, helmed by Tommaso Gallina and coached by Davide Ferrari.
At the end of the first race in the Dolphin81 class, Giovanni Perani took the lead with “Insolente,” followed by “Baraimbo” helmed by Razzi Imperadori and “Whisper” by Taddei. In the Asso99 category, the first place went to “LeonAsso” helmed by Fravezzi Albino from the Go Sail CN Brenzone sailing school; second place went to “Sorpasso” from the FV Desenzano sailing school helmed by Steven Borzani; while third place went to “Kiss my Asso” helmed by Conatti Francesco.
In the Meteor class, Dario Mesini leads the standings with “Bloody Mary,” followed by Pier Antonio Acquaviva with “Miseria Nera” and Simonelli Damiano with “Synergos.” Finally, in the overall Orc standings, Claudio Bazzoli stands out on “Spirto Libero,” followed by Michele De Rossi on “Surprendimi,” who ranked first in the Surprise class, and Ludovico Zugni Tauro on “Gattamelata.”
The perpetual trophy Ettore Santarelli was awarded to Giovanni Perani for the Dolphin81 class and to Fravezzi Albino for the Asso99 class.
The Winter Challenge calendar continues on December 1st and will run until February 2, 2025, with further events scheduled in the program of the Fraglia Vela Desenzano, which will also see the start of the traditional Gel Laser reserved for single, double, and collective dinghies on November 23 at the same venue.
Italian Version
