Jonas Sørlie is the captain of Diverta X, taking part in the Albin Express class – one of the biggest boat classes in Færderseilas of the year. In the boat is a young “team” from Nissauden, who brought Jonas with him Vettel Stoen, Philip Forslund, Eskil Uwa and Eric Wu from the start in the inland Oslovjord. When the boat started last year, it was a victory – but captain Jonas thinks it will be even tougher to win this year:
– There are many good and experienced sailors in many boats in the class, so we are really pleased to finish in the top five. But there is a lot that can happen, and the tactical choices will decide a lot under the south wind. If we get off to a good start, and break free from the others, then things can go well, says Sorley, who has not yet decided how Drupaksundt will pass.
– I don’t think we’ll take the road west of Håøya, but we’ll see what the wind conditions will be all afternoon. Most likely we choose to go between Oscarsborg and Håøya, then stay on the western side of the fjord and pass sjeteen on Hurumsiden between 19:00 and 20:00, says Sørlie, who is very happy with his crew.
Although we are young, most of us have sailed at a high level for many years and participated in international tournaments. So if we get it flowing nicely with the sailing, it will be interesting to see how far we end up on the list.
Headwind does not fit
Of course, many boats are provided by the Drøbakssund Sailing Association, and one of the most experienced is Steinar Jørgensen. And at Marialene in the NOR Rating category with Spinnaker, he and the crew started with low expectations:
– Our boat is definitely the best when it gets flat in the tailwind. In Færder this year there will be headwinds almost all the way, after which we will lie and trample in the waves. So the ambitions of victory are not very high, and above all we aim to have a nice voyage, says Captain Jorgensen, who laughs easily when Amtasporten asks who really decides in Marialen, because the head of the Norwegian Sailing Association – Guru Stein – is with the crew.
We didn’t talk much about it, the captain laughs.
— but cooperation is the most important thing, and perhaps we do it well, he says, and perhaps we get it right because the chief is also the wife of Captain Jorgensen — both have sailed the Seven Seas and knows how important it is to cooperate well in the boat.
And for the record: The captain also has Jay Markusen, Heidi Diamond and Christian Pulsrud in what could be a tough race for the DSSF crew.
Click on the link below to see Færderseilaset live:
Watch Færderseilasen minute by minute