“Buon vento. Benvenuti a Capri.” With these words, Massimo Massaccesi opened the fifth Rolex Capri Sailing Week last evening at the skipper's briefing held at the Capri Palace Hotel elegantly located in Anacapri. This morning, Capri greeted the crews with beautiful sunshine and the thirty-eight competing yachts set about creating a few more legends for this island of myth, celebrity and fine-cuisine.

The welcome, though, was limited to the clear sky. The two races were held in difficult conditions, where the wind eventually settled from a westerly direction but without much stability. Fragile breeze, meant fragile leads and this showed at times as some of the first leg leaders found themselves second leg losers. Table toppers this evening are: Vincenzo Onorato and Mascalzone Latino (ITA) in Farr 40 (2,1); Nico Poons and Charisma (NED) in Swan 45 (4,1); Enrico Scerni and Kora 4 (ITA) in Swan 42 (1,1); Alessandro Nespega and Fral 2 (ITA) in Comet 45S (3,1), and, Massimo Russo and Athanor (ITA) in Comet 41S (1,1).

In the Farr 40s, it was Marco Rodolfi and TWT (ITA) that came out all guns blazing, after two aborted starts and an impending 180 degree wind shift left Peter Reggio, the Principal Race Officer, with little choice but to hold up proceedings for an hour and a half to allow the westerly flow to settle. Second at the first windward mark, Rodolfi and tactician Tiziano Nava made gains downwind and by the finish had done enough to sneak across the line a hair's breadth ahead of Mascalzone Latino. Race two did not go so well for TWT, who were fourth at the first mark, but victims of a vicious hole on the downwind leg that left them struggling to recover to seventh at the finish. Enough to lie second in class overnight, but Onorato and his team put in stellar second race to lead from start to finish and the Neapolitan has an ominous five-point advantage already.

For all crews, tomorrow is another day, and this regatta is by no means over. Overnight it will be important to count one's blessings and focus on the days ahead. Legends will be created, but they are not written on the first day.

Today's Plate of the Day is threefold: Pizza Margherita for antipasti, followed by a steaming plate of stewed clams (cooked in a sauce that sadly would not be divulged), and rounded off with fresh turbot (rombo) baked with tomatoes and basil. All courtesy of Da Giorgio, which opened in 1948 and has the most stunning view out towards Ischia.

The Rolex Capri Sailing Week, organized by the Yacht Club Capri, runs from 19 to 23 May.

For more information about the Rolex Capri Sailing Week including entry lists and media accreditation please visitt www.yccapri.com

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