The ‘One Hour Classic’ is a unique windsurfing race held in Lake Garda and 2019 marked its 30th anniversary. The aim of the race is to reach in 1 hour the largest number of laps around a course defined by two marks positioned on opposite sides of the lake. John Skye flew the flag in the event for the UK and his sponsor RRD; he recounts his experience of the event.
Having competed in just about every discipline of windsurfing, I would probably say my weakest point would be long distance racing. My relatively average height and weight means I am always going to struggle in a straight line against the classic large framed speed machine guys. So having fought my way around the 40 km race course at the DefiWind, the last thing on my mind was the famous One Hour Classic at Lake Garda. However my RRD marketing manager had other ideas, and was determined that I should take part, so it was with a bit of reluctance that I booked my ticket for Italy. Going to Lake Garda is always a pleasure, but not so much the idea of racing full power for 1 hour straight, normally on pretty large slalom gear!
The One Hour for those that don’t know is one of the simplest concepts in racing out there, with 2 buoys set either side of the famous lake, roughly 2.5 km apart. A classic rabbit style start line for the 100+ competitors, who then blast full power for 1 hour whilst the race crew count the laps and the time on top to finish your last lap. The record was set last year by Bruno Martini at 19 laps in 1 hour 31 seconds, which is around 55 km in an hour.
GARDA
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