Cartagena – Venues 4 of the Audi MedCup 2011

When the Circuit first visited Cartagena in 2008 it was something of a hidden jewel, one to be discovered, polished and enjoyed. Now for the fourth successive season the Audi MedCup returns to the historic Murcian city where a warm welcome awaits.

All Venues of the Audi MedCup 2011:

1 Cascais 2 Marseille 3 Cagliari 4 Cartagena 5 Barcelona

Cartagena is a navy city, one with a rich seafaring tradition thanks to the deep water natural harbour which has enjoyed strategic significance throughout Spanish history. From Hasdrubal to the Phoenicians, the Romans and the Moors all used the harbour which is protected by high rocky headlands. The original walled city is still the main focal point of the conurbation and forms the backdrop to the main harbourfront boulevard.

Holding considerable importance on the south east of the Iberian Peninsula, and with mineral resources in the adjacent areas, Cartagena has been fought over and occupied since 228BC and has been home to the Spanish Navy’s Maritime Department of the Mediterranean since the 18th century.

Here in this unpretentious city locals love to embrace high level sailing events within their local celebrations and the visit of the Audi MedCup Circuit always galvanizes the local communities and visitors to have the Trophy of Murcia regatta as centerpiece.

The racing waters are surrounded on two sides by high, rocky cliffs and scrubby mountains. In 2009 Cartagena offered some of the most stunning images of the year when the strong winds and big seas conspired to produce a very physical challenge for the crews. But the winds over the course of any regatta here can be various with a mix of reliable sea breezes, the NE’ly blowing off the bluff point at the N of the race course, with a long flat land behind the race arena for the wind to accelerate down before being squeezed through the gap which forms the entrance to the harbour. It is a very exacting but exciting race area which is very popular with the crews.

Emirates Team New Zealand, the final winner of the Circuit, also took the first place in Cartagena in 2010. The same situation occurred in the GP42 Class, where the Spanish team Madrid Caser Seguros won both titles.

http://www.medcup.org

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Posted by nauticweb on May 20, 2011. Filed under Audi MedCup, Regatta-PORTS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry