The Ama Guadalupekoa boat from Hondarribia achieved a superb victory today in the Hernani Regatta, held in the waters of Pasaia Bay. Following their second-place finish on Saturday in Astillero, today's win clearly establishes Hondarribia and Zarautz as the main favorites for the promotion play-offs. The Zarautz crew finished second, trailing the winners by six seconds and 39 hundredths.
Both boats lead the general classification with fifteen points, three more than Kaiku. They each have one victory, but Hondarribia tops the table due to their most recent win.
Although the Hernani Regatta was initially scheduled as a linear race with three lengths and two turns, it was ultimately contested in a time-trial format, maintaining the same maneuvers. High temperatures significantly influenced the competition.
In the first round, Ondarroa was the fastest (12:08.24). During the second round, the wind increased slightly, and the top three finishers could not improve upon Ondarroa's time in the initial maneuver (3:57). Kaiku required two additional seconds, while Zarautz and Hondarribia needed four more.
The second maneuver seemed to decide everything, with Ama Guadalupekoa, Enbata, and Bizkaitarra clocking the same time (7:46), improving Ondarroa's previous record by three seconds. The outcome rested on the final stretch, where Osertz Alday's crew gave their all to secure the victory, demonstrating clear superiority. Zarautz, having started after the Hondarribia boat, finished more than six seconds behind, improving Bizkaitarra's prior time by over two seconds.
Similar to Saturday, third and fourth places were secured by Kaiku and Deusto.
Hernani, meanwhile, finished in sixth place and holds the same position in the overall standings, tied on points with Isuntza, who is seventh.
The Liga ETE will resume next Saturday in the waters of Elantxobe (11:00).
