LOUISE RACING WINS KING JUAN CARLOS TROPHY

North Sails Fuels Grant Gordon To The Overall Win

The 24th King Juan Carlos Trophy was the second leg of the International Dragon European Cup Series 2019. The event saw some tight competition last weekend at Clube Naval de Cascais.

After three days of racing, every one of the top eight boats had a chance to win, meaning the trophy was all to play for going into the fourth and final day. Troika (NED 412) won the opening race with Louise Racing (GBR 820) narrowly beating Sophie Racing (SUI 311) into third. This left three boats tied for the overall lead, with a number of opposing teams dangerously close by.

However, it was Scotland’s Grant Gordon with his team on Louise Racing, and North Sails Dragon expert, Ruairidh Scott, that managed to get the most out of their boat, winning not just the final race, but the overall regatta as well.

Ruairidh Scott explains the team onboard Louise Racing had fantastic speed all week which really helped on the final day when it mattered most. Cascais is a boat speed critical venue as everyone aims for the right of the course, so being quick was important. The North sails proved very versatile in varied condition – often the race would start in 10 knots and end in 20. Our genoas have nice wide crossover so we felt comfortable even when sailing close to or out of range on each sail. Cascais is a boat speed critical venue as everyone aims for the right of the course, so being quick was important.

”Our genoas have nice wide crossover so we felt comfortable even when sailing close to or out of range on each sail. The North sails proved very versatile in varied condition – often the race would start in 10 knots and end in 20.”

Sailing with a full North Sails inventory throughout the regatta (A-7+ mainsail, V-6M and V-6H genoas, R-5 spinnaker), this result, combined with a third place in Cannes earlier this year, sees Louise Racing leading the Grade 1 circuit overall.