5.5 Metre Austrian Open 2025 at Union Yacht Club Traunsee - Day 1
by 5.5 Metre Class Association 23 Aug 00:38 UTC
22-24 August, 2025
The inaugural 5.5 Metre Austrian Open, incorporating the Salzkammergutpreis, began on Friday, 22 August with generally light and shifty conditions, with some stronger patches of wind under the clouds passing overhead. As a result only one race was completed after a long wait ashore, and then afloat, for a stable breeze.
After a poor start, No Stress (GER 124/SUI 201, Jorg Sonntag, Margit Deinzer, Oliver Weiss) took the left side and rounded ahead and extended for a huge win, taking the breeze on the first downwind while the others waited.
Arcano (AUT 24, Dirk Harms, Eugen Kossina, Paul Christian Laherstorfer) crossed in second place after dropping to third on the final downwind, but then regaining second just before the bottom mark after Wasa V (AUT 66, Stephan Holzinger, Michael Bernhard Fischer, Peter Farbowski) had to drop their spinnaker following a 50 degree windshift.
After a day of torrential rainfall on Thursday, the wind remained in the west, across the lake, varying from 0 to 15 knots as clouds passed overhead making setting any courses quite challenging in the constantly changing conditions..
The event is taking place from the Union Yacht Club Traunsee at Gmunden. The Salzkammergutpreis has been run for five years, and is based on ratings per class of boat, but this year is the first year an open championship has been held.
A second race was attempted about an hour later but was abandoned during the starting sequence as again the wind dropped out.
The event continues until Sunday.
For more information visit event website.
Gallery of the day available here.
Watch the daily reels on the class Instagram (int_5.5_metre_class) and Facebook pages.