X40s at Oman: Final Day, Rotschild 1st, Artemis 2nd

Watch out with Terry (quick learner almost grabing 1st place on first try) and the Artemis team for AC34, with a 1st class sailor like Hutchinson, plus Santi Lange and Juan K designing of course they are my bet to beat Oracle. Glenn Ashby and his new protege/alumni, A-Class ace also on 1st attempt, Dean Barker were 4th.
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Media release www.extremesailingseries.com
“Final race decider as French team clinch Act 1 victory in Oman It was what has become a classic Extreme Sailing Series™ finish to Act 1 at The Wave, Muscat, Oman. The all-French team of Groupe Edmond de Rothschild clinched victory in the final double points race at the end of an astonishing 32 races over 5 days. “I didn’t know what to expect in terms of emotion in the case of victory, I didn’t have time to digest it as my crew threw me in the water,” said an emotional Pierre Pennec who was in tears at the finish. “I am very
emotional as it’s a lot of work, a lot of personal investment. It’s a long time now that I wanted to drive an Extreme 40, and winning ahead of all these champions, it’s amazing.”

Terry commented: “It’s good to see that all our hard work since the end of 2010 has paid off but there is still much room for us to improve. We’re having a little bit of a crew rotation for Act 2 in Qingdao, so there will be
lots of work to do”. Act 2 of the Extreme Sailing Series will be staged between the 15th to 17th April in Qingdao, China, preceded by two openwater racing days.

Dean Barker’s Emirates Team New Zealand had a big comeback in the second half of the Act to finish in 4th place overall, beating Italy’s Luna Rossa by 2 points. Max Sirena’s Luna Rossa team that includes Britain’s
Paul Campbell-James, defending 2010 Extreme Sailing Series skipper, struggled with consistency but seven first places over the five days including a win in the double-points final race ensured they kept the chasing Alinghi team at bay”.

Extreme Sailing Series, Act 1 at The Wave, Muscat
Overall Results after 32 races:
Pstn / Team / Skipper/crew / points
1st Groupe Edmond de Rothschild (FRA), Pierre Pennec 253 points
2nd Artemis Racing (SWE), Terry Hutchinson/ 243 points
3rd Red Bull Extreme Sailing (AUT), Roman Hagara239 points
4th Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Dean Barker 236 points
5th Luna Rossa (ITA), Max Sirena 234 points
6th Alinghi (SUI), Tanguy Carioiu / Yann Guichard /217 points
7th The Wave, Muscat (OMA), Torvar Mirsky 208 points
8th Oman Air (OMA), Sidney Gavignet 188 points
9th Team Extreme (EUR), Roland Gaebler 143 points
10th Niceforyou (ITA), Alberto Barovier95 points
11th Team GAC Pindar (GBR), Ian Williams 62 points