At the Edge of Control: Swan Racing in the Bonifacio Channel
Club Swan 36 Challenge | Bonifacio Channel Photos: Francisco Ferrari, studio Borlenghi
Spray flies and adrenaline surges as the Swan fleet charges upwind through the Bonifacio Channel, where Corsica’s towering limestone cliffs funnel the Mediterranean mistral into one of the most demanding racecourses in Europe. During the Club Swan 36 Challenge, conditions delivered exactly what Bonifacio is known for: steep seas, accelerating pressure, and racing that leaves no room for hesitation.
2026 Ultimate Sailing Calendar | Photos: Stefano Gattini, Studio Borlenghi
These are the moments that define great calendar images — not just dramatic sailing, but sailing that tells a complete story in a single frame. Power, proximity, precision, and place all converge here. The fleet drives hard upwind, crews stacked to weather, bows punching through spray as control is constantly negotiated rather than assumed.
2026 Ultimate Sailing Calendar | Photos: Stefano Gattini & Francisco Ferrari, Studio Borlenghi
In one image, Swan 50 Earlybird leads the charge off the line, pursued by a tightly packed group of Swan one-designs accelerating in near-perfect sync. Early positioning is everything in Bonifacio. Hugging the Corsican coastline can offer tactical leverage — or exact a brutal toll — as breeze builds and angles narrow. The visual compression of boats, cliffs, and sea captures the intensity of that decision-making in a way words alone never could.
2026 Ultimate Sailing Calendar | Photos: Francisco Ferrari, Studio Borlenghi
What elevates these photographs is their honesty. There’s no manufactured drama — just disciplined crews operating at the edge of performance, where teamwork matters more than bravado. Every adjustment is deliberate, every movement earned. It’s sailing reduced to its essential elements: preparation meeting environment, with nothing hidden.
2026 Ultimate Sailing Calendar | Photos: Stefano Gattini, Studio Borlenghi
January sets the tone for the year not because it is extreme, but because it is exacting. These images remind us why performance sailing endures as a subject — when conditions are raw and margins are thin, the result is pure, uncompromising beauty.
