The Regata dei Tre Golfi which started from Naples on Friday, saw the upper half of the 25-boat maxi fleet suffer from repeated hold-ups, calms and transitions. Behind, the smaller slower entries enjoyed more continuous breeze. As a result, Class 4 boats filled the top six places under IRC corrected time. Ultimately the slowest, Giuseppe Puttini's 48-year-old Swan 65 ketch Shirlaf, won this year's 69th Regata dei Tre Golfi ahead of Luca Scoppa's Dehler 60 Blue Oyster and Vincenzo Addessi's Mylius 18E35 Fra'Diavolo.
This year, the 156-mile race started and finished in Naples. It was the first of the International Maxi Association's IMA Maxi European Championship, organised by the Circolo del Remo e della Vela Italia (CRVI). This Championship continues with four days of inshore and coastal racing from Monday to Thursday (20-23 May).
Regata dei Tre Golfi winner for a second time - Guiseppe Puttini's well-sailed, immaculate Swan 65 ketch Shirlaf.
This was the second time the local Swan 65 had won this event, following her 2021 victory. A delighted Puttini explained the dominance of the lowest-rated maxis: "The wind improved as the race went on - the big ones reached Capri, and they stopped dead. Sometimes, that happens to the small boats, but it was the big ones this year. Conditions were ideal for Shirlaf."
The biggest shock was an almighty storm in the race's latter stages that affected the smaller boats with the greatest severity. Suddenly, between Capri and the Li Galli southerly turning mark, this brought prolonged 30-40 knot winds and torrential rain.
While she may be approaching her half-century, Shirlaf is immaculately maintained and combines original equipment, like mast-mounted halyard winches, with modern gear, like her sails and bowsprit. Her crew is mostly Neapolitan, with the exception of their sole professional, Sicilian tactician Gabriele Bruni (brother of Luna Rossa Pirelli Prada helmsman Francesco), who coached the Italian Nacra 17 team to Olympic gold in Tokyo.
