The teams lined up for race 2 with Estonia and Lithuania powering across the line perfectly, while Austria were a fraction late at the Committee Boat end.
Even a poor hoist by Slovenia on the final downwind leg wasn’t enough for Austria to do any more than close the gap a little, and the Estonian Icebreakers picked up their second race win, with Slovenia and Austria now tied on 3 points.
With the breeze down slightly at between 8 and 12 knots, and with a right shift, the three yachts had to tack onto port to start race 3. Estonia again made the best start, leading the fleet away on the big left shift, with Slovenia on their hip and Austria to leeward.
Rounding the final windward mark, Slovenia had an issue with the spinnaker drop line, allowing Estonia to pull away. The Austrian Eagles soared to their first win, Estonia took second, while Slovenia had to settle for third.
Austrian Captain Thomas Zajac was happy to find the shift which propelled them to the win: “We knew we needed a bullet to stay in touch, and we decided to go for the harder manoeuvre at the gate, and we were actually quite confident to go to the left. In Austria we don’t have any sea, we are born on lakes with mountains around, so usually we really enjoy the shifty stuff.”
Estonia continue to lead on 8 points, with Austria closing the gap on 6 and Slovenia on 4 points.