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An “Elephant” never Forgets !
The three “Early Season” Dutch weekends on the Aalsmeer came to an exciting climax at the weekend when the local “Hotshots” Jan Bakker and his two sons, Dominic & Olivier did a “Messi” with 3 wins on the final day….
The “Hat-Trick” of wins, was just reward for the time and effort this excellent Dragon Racing Family have put in working on their upgraded Petticrows purchased this year which was the former “Biff” now re-named “Elephant”.
Three weekends of racing accumulating with a total of 19 teams in the final event, including boats from Norway, Germany and Belgium, shows this excellent Dutch “Spring Series” is proving more and more popular each year. Having raced there myself last season, the Aalsmeer is a most perfect platform to blow away those winter blues and speed test your boat against some top sailors. With cheap flights to “Schipol Airport” the Dragon Centre at Aalsmeer is just 20 minutes away, so no time is lost in getting to your Dragons and out onto this wonderful fresh water lake.
Also having a great final weekend of races was the Petticrows agent for Holland, Andre du Pont in his brand new “Hard Tack” NED 424. Andre was crewed by Dutch Secretary Huib Bannier and Siebe de Boo…
Here you see Andre and his “Hard Tack” Team pushing the boat to it’s limits downwind.
The volunteers of the WV Aalsmeer were applauded at the prize giving, not only for their great support and enthusiasm but for their shore team who do an excellent job craning in & out, also their on the water Committee. The club also put on an Italian Buffet which was enjoyed by all the satisfied sailors..
One of the many “Water Towers” overlooks the Aalsmeer Fleet during one of the downwind legs.
So for future reference if Cannes or Cascais is a step too far for winter sailors why not join the Dutch Fleet next spring for this superb series of 3 weekends?
Full results and more information can be found on www.dragonclass.nl
Higher, Faster, Longer………………. Stavros.