All set for record breaking in Luderitz
The canal in Luderitz is once again occupied by some of the top speed sailors of the world. The Luderitz Speed Challenged got canceled in 2020 but is now back with a full length event.
Severne riders Karo van Tonder, Bjorn Dunkerbeck, Liam Dunkerbeck and Gunnar Asmussen have already been in Ludertiz for weeks, and lots of things have happened.
Photos by Jaco Wolmarans
Gunnar Asmussen leads the rankings
After several weeks and more than 120 runs between all competitors, Gunnar Asmussen is in the lead with a 49,79 knots run over 500 meters.
Gunnar, as well as, other Severne riders are using a Mach5 speed edition. “We had mostly light wind days and I was mostly on 5,2. I love the new Mach5 speed concept, I managed to win also on light wind days with this machine. Other days I was on 5,5 and 5,8” said Gunnar.
Current ranking
1 GER-2 Gunnar Asmussen 19.560 92.21 49.79
2 NED-127 Twan Verseput 19.672 91.68 49.51
3 NED-85 Hans Kreisel 19.767 91.24 49.27
4 E-11 Bjoern Dunkerbeck 19.879 90.73 48.99
5 GER-818 Torsten Mallon 20.648 87.35 47.17
Bjorn and Liam Dunkerbeck in town
With the arrival of Bjorn and Liam Dunkerbeck to Luderitz, the canal is truly packed with action. Over the course of the last weeks, Bjorn has been improving run by run and is currently in fourth position with a 48,99 knot run. Liam is just getting acquainted with speed sailing and has a 43,38 knot run under his belt.
Karo van Tonder injured
After what looked like promising signs for a record breaking year for South African rider Karo van Tonder, she, unfortunately, tore her Achilles tendon and had to retire for the remainder of the contest. On her Instagram channel, Karo made the following statement; “During my carve in the stop-box I felt a sudden snap in my left calve. Getting off my board, I could not walk. After a painful ride on the trailer back to the start, my dad told me that I have torn my Achilles tendon!“
Undeterred by this accident Karo said; “After this very short period on the channel, I can say with conviction that I am ready for this challenge. 💪🚀😎
… We are ready to start planning Luderitz Speed Challenge 2022!!!“
Mach5 speed
The Luderitz Speed Challenge serves as an excellent opportunity to test out concepts, materials design, and any other development ideas for the upcoming seasons.
This year, the Severne team is equipped with new Mach5 5,2 speed editions that are leading the way for event winning speeds.
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