Matrisen leading at GVA Marstrand. FC: Dan Ljungsvik/ MBBR

Winner of the Baltic Circuit Award 2014 is Swedish Matrisen Sailing Team. Winning their class at the GVA Big Boat Race in Marstrand and a 3rd at ÅF Offshore Race, they are the most successful team around the Baltic. The team has competed on a more organized level since 2007. Co-Skipper Robert Szabó is also the managing director and owner of Matrisen AB (ltd), an accounting business with more 200 professionals. That's where their name comes from.

Their first campaign was in the ORCi class with an X37, and the first ever regatta was in fact Maior Cup in Kiel, Germany. After winning there in 2007 they came back in 2008 and were lucky again. Managing to lift the team up to a good Swedish national level, winning numerous regattas in the Stockholm area, they finally went first place in the ORCi and IRC Swedish Championships. An encouraging start for the team of colleagues!

2009 they decided to give the one design world a try and ended up in racing an X35. After winning Gotland Runt, today called ÅF Offshore Race, the Mediterranean came into focus: Copa del Rey in Mallorca, the X35 Worlds in Scarlino, Italy, Primo Cup in Monaco. Not all the southern regattas were sailed successfully, but back in Sweden they won the Swedish X35 cup twice and some other local regattas. However, in 2013 it was time for something else and the Farr 30 was acquired and a new team with Martin Strandberg at the helm was being formed.

GVA Big Boat Race

It's a new Swedish highly competitive coastal race, with top boats from the Swedish west coast and Norway.

The race is sailed according to Swedish handicap rules SRS that normally gives an advantage for a family type of boats. Thus a disadvantage for smaller and more race oriented boats like the Farr 30.

Flensburg. Pre-start checking. FC: Simone Rickert

The last race of the Baltic Circuit was Flensburger Pilsener cup, taking place late in the year but nonetheless providing finest Indian summer weather conditions. Thickly clouded skies with a warm wind, thankfully stronger than the 3 knots predicted. The 41 participating yachts had a crowded start at the narrow fjord of Germanys northernmost city.

The zig-zag course out of the fjord towards the open sea, quickly changing currents, shallow waters are always an exciting challenge for the crews – even the many locals. A race to display all of your yachting skills. A fickle breeze between 6 and 11 knots clearly favored the lighter boats.

The Ker 46 Shakti got special local honors "Blaues Band" for being the fastest yacht based at the Förde. ORCi over all winner was IMMAC One4All, a training project for young sailors on the verge of professionalism. At the ORCi Worlds in Kiel this summer they came in first of the amateur ranking.

Forte leading the pack. FC: Piret Salmistu

New to the Baltic Circuit and boasting a packed Pärnu harbour: In its 57th edition, the event has set a new record: This year’s regatta welcomed the largest fleet ever – 116 yachts with the total of 730 crewmembers on board: 90 yachts from Estonia, 8 from Russia and Latvia, 6 from Lithuania and 4 Finland. It started in Kärdla on July 13 and passed through Kuivastu and Pärnu, consisting of three longer stages between harbours and two technically more demanding short races. Like always, the most exciting and challenging part was the Pärnu upwind-downwind race.

On the last day of the regatta the wind decided to take an early leave and so, after a bit of postponing and praying, the last race had to be cancelled.

Moonsund Regatta is Estonias longest established race – since 1958. It is a big common project: regarding the orgaization of the competition it involves ESS Kalev Yacht Club in Tallinn, Pärnu Yacht Club and the society Saaremaa Sea Sports Yachting Association Saaremaa Merispordi Selts.

The results:

ÅF Offshore: a packed Stockholm harbour for a start. FC: Simone Rickert

This year's ÅF Offshore Race took its toll from tacticians and navigators: dominanted by a series of dead calms, the 290 participating yachts were in a a tough competition to catch the slightest bit of a breeze. Light boats were able to make the most of the situation: it was the smallest in the fleet who took the overall victory - young Swedish Team Räknäs won the SRS class on a 7,02 meter-long mini-tonner. La Dolce Vita, a Finngulf 33 with a tight crew used to winning the ÅF, was first in ORC.

Fastest yacht of the fleet was the German Ker 51 Varuna. But the actual winner of the Big Boat Class after time correction was the 46-foot Ker Shakti - again, a comparatively small boat among the really big ones, including the Super Maxi 100 Hyundai.