A PRESTIGIOUS TRIUMPH The AEZ Sailing Team sailed circles around the national competition during the BMW High Sea Championship.

Due to the intensive regatta activity and varied conflicting schedules, the AEZ Team was unable to compete at a national competition to date. This year the championship debut finally came for the offshore proficient eight man crew, who had travelled directly from the Adris Cup and switched without any preparation from the RC44 into the 14 meter long and eight ton heavy national championship class (Bavaria 42 match). AEZ Managing Director Alexander Riklin, an ambitious and longtime regatta sailor, took the helm. Christian Binder functioned as Tactician and Rene Mangold slipped into the role of Mainsail Trimmer. The championship, which was held in Biograd with gorgeous weather, turned into a surefire win for the AEZ sailors despite the internal team switch and the unusual boat class. Binder and Co. won four of the nine races, maintaining a Top 3 rank with only one exception. The crew won their debut national championship with a record advantage of eight points. Second Place went to the team of the Yacht Revue, where the 49er Aces Thomas Zajac and Thomas Czajka functioned as Helmsman and Timmer. Bronze was scooped up by Aquila Sailing Team under Christian Bayer. The next regatta effort for the AEZ Sailing Team will be at the RC44 World Championship, which takes place November 15-20th in Lanzarote. Christian Binder (Tactician): “Of course the experience was beneficial, but the competition had brought out the big guns. The best of the local scene was there and the standard was considerably high. We were the favorites, so we had to win – the external and internal pressure was obviously noticeable. The team had perfect harmony despite new combinations; we hardly made any mistakes and in challenging situations kept our cool. The result is naturally gratifying – on the one hand because the victory was not obvious and on the other because the High Sea Championship is a high quality and absolutely prestigious event.” Final Standings after 9 Races, 1 Cancelation:  1. AEZ Sailing Team 13 2. Team Yacht Revue 21 3. Aquila Sailing Team 27

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