The fourth regatta in the Coppa Italia J/70 series was just completed in the beautiful town of Scarlino in western Italy. With nine races in three fantastic days of sailing, no one could complain. The typical Westerly breezes blew a very steady 20-25 knots all weekend. Wonderful hospitality was provided by the Scarlino Yacht Club and hosted by Claudia Tosi. The experienced RC Chairman Ettore Armaleo provided excellent organization. The Italian J/70 class is seeing a tremendous increase in the fleet’s overall competitiveness. Continuous changes in positions and close-crossings at the finish line made for exciting sailing for everyone. Like they had in the previous regatta, CALVI NETWORK’s skipper Carlo Alberini combined with Olympic caliber tactician Karlo Hemlik to take the overall win due to very consistent scoring. Alberini’s Team is still leading the Italian J/70 National Circuit, but they had a much harder time competing in this past weekend’s fleet, as everyone is learning how to sail J/70s faster. The second place boat was the newly launched WHITE HAWK, sailed by owner Igor Lah and sailing with tactician Michele Ivaldi, one of Italy’s best national sailors. In a show of fair play, they reported to the RC their mistake in crossing the finish in race 8 incorrectly, consequently taking a DSQ for the race. In third place was SPREAD, sailed by Paolo Boido. Helmsman Juan Pablo del Solar from Chile sailed for his first time on a J/70 fresh from the factory in France. The Italian J/70 Fleet will now move to Riva del Garda for the fifth regatta of the series in July. For more J/70 Italian Circuit sailing information, visit http://www.j70.it/.