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Glamour Weather and Tricky Winds
Photo by Guilain Grenier, www.grenierguilain.com. Click on image to enlarge.
Glamour weather and tricky winds dominated the third day of racing at the Delta Lloyd Regatta. The day looked perfect for sailing, but the word from the sailors coming shore was of shifty, gusty winds that kept everyone on their toes through the day.
Forecasts of a significant drop in the wind in the afternoon were luckily wrong, and while the wind did decrease from the 15-18 knots in the morning there was still a healthy breeze late in the afternoon when the Moths were finishing their final race of the day. And the sun shone down on the 350 sailors from 49 nations all day long. It was a great day to be sailing.
Megan Pascoe (GBR) had a perfect day in the 2.4 mR with two race wins. Michelle Broekhuizen and Marieke Jongens (NED) in the women's 470, Nicholas Heiner (NED) in the Laser, Marit Bouwmeester (NED) in the Laser Radial, Phillip Kasueske (GER) in the Finn, Zofia Klepacka (POL) in RS:X women, Alexandra Rickham and Niki Burrell (GBR) in the Skud 18 and Bruno Jourdren, Eric Flageul and Nicolas Vimont-Vicary (FRA) in the Sonar all maintained their leads.
There were new leaders in the men's 470 with Onan Barreiros Rodriguez and Juan Curbelo Cabrera (ESP), in the 49er with Pavle Kostov and Petar Cupac (CRO), in the Nacra with Billy Besson and Marie Riou (FRA), in the RS:X men's with Louis Giard (FRA).
Today was also the first day for the two demonstration events, the Kitesurfers and the Moths. Both fleets enjoyed showing off what they could in waters off Medemblik.
Racing for continues Friday at 10.00.
Full results for each class can be found at: results.deltalloydregatta.org
The Tour De France A La Voile
There is over a month left before the start of the Tour de France a la Voile 2014 and most competitors met in Paris this Thursday, gearing up for the 37th edition of the race.
The playing field is promising and the competition already kicked in, with Courrier Dunkerque 3 winning the Spi Ouest-France Intermarche a point ahead of Groupama 34, and Groupama taking over Courrier Dunkerque and Oman Sail during the Grand Prix Guyader.
Two Volvo Ocean Race winners will join the TFV as skippers this year: Franck Cammas (winner in 2012) and Sidney Gavignet (2006). Nicolas Troussel won the Solitaire du Figaro twice and Daniel Souben claimed the TFV title twice. Event director Jean-Baptiste Durier announced the participation of nine M34s in 2014, saying he is very pleased with the level of the fleet.
The amateurs from Bruxelles and Bienne Voile will be there this summer too - they have always been loyal to the event and will race onboard the M34 Be. Brussels - Bienne Voile. The Swiss team is back with skipper Nicolas Groux replacing Elodie-Jane Mettraux, now part of Team SCA in the next Volvo Ocean Race.
The Tour de France a la Voile also focused on youth sailing. The Hyères sailing club (COYCH) and Toulon Provence Mediterranee are entering a boat in the race, to be skippered by the local Florian Simonnot, aged 21. Nantes Saint-Nazaire is now a young project with rookies led by Jean-Baptiste Gellee. Normandie is back with a similar team to the last year and their age average is 26.
The event organiser A.S.O. also announced on Thursday that only the M34s would finally enter the race. "The Grand Surprise boats won't join, though it was initially open to them. Students and amateurs reacted positively at Paris boat show but not enough of them managed to raise the necessary funds," explained Jean-Baptiste Durier.
Entry list for the Tour de France a la Voile 2014:
Be.Brussels - Bienne Voile, Skippered By Delphine Wolters, Yann Burkhalter And Olivier Bessire
Bretagne Credit Mutuel Elite, Skippered By Nicolas Troussel
Courrier Dunkerque 3, Skippered By Daniel Souben
Groupama 34, Skippered By Franck Cammas
Nantes - Saint Nazaire, Skippered By Jean-Baptiste Gellee
Normandie, Skippered By Baptiste Choquenet
Team Omansail, Skippered By Sidney Gavignet
Toulon Provence Mediterranee - Coych, Skippered By Florian Simonnot
Ville De Geneve - Carrefour Addictions, Skippered By Nicolas Groux And Loic Forestier
Fuel Cells....The Standard For On-Board Power?
Fuel Cell growth within sailing - and racing in particular - is increasing. Adopters of Fuel Cell soon become the strongest promoters of the technology:
'... one less point of failure to worry about. The fuel cell has become an essential part of our equipment ....
Richard Palmer, Jangada Too
Winner, BNY Mellon JOG Cascais Race 2013
'far easier and more reliable than any of the other power generation methods...... Easy to use, simple, clean, quiet - what more could you ask for'?
Pip Hare, The Potting Shed
Winner, Mini Fastnet Race, 2013
To users the benefits of Fuel Cell are undeniable:
'... delighted with the system... it has made our life on board so much better... we don't have to worry about battery charging by either shore power or running the engine. We were able to pick up cartridges in both Crete and Levkas ..."
Jacky Black, Arwen of Bosham, moored Crete.
...and media experts have joined the campaign to make on-board battery charging simple and reliable with Fuel Cell technology:
'Fuel Cells will soon be standard on-board equipment'.
Ian Galetti, Cruising Association Magazine June 2012
'Neat, noise and pollution-free'.
Yachting World September 2013
Jean Pierre Dick Honoured In New York
Like Alain Gerbault in 1923, Eric Tabarly in 1964 and Bernard Moitessier in 1966, Jean-Pierre Dick was honoured last night by the Cruising Club of America, when he was awarded the 2013 Rod Stephens Trophy, in the magnificent premises of the New York Yacht Club.
This Trophy rewards Jean-Pierre Dick for his achievement in the 2012 Vendee Globe, when he sailed 3643 miles (4254 km) without a keel on his boat, and still managed to finish in fourth place in the Vendee Globe. James G. Binch, Vice Admiral at the Cruising Club of America spoke about the French sailor: "I am pleased to hand this very special prize to Jean-Pierre. The Rod Stephens Trophy is a rather special Trophy. It doesn't look at the nationality of the skipper, nor what type of boat he sailed nor at what type of race. It rewards good seamanship out on the oceans. So, I am honoured that the Cruising Club of America is rewarding Jean-Pierre Dick for his achievement in the 2012 Vendee Globe."
Roderick "Rod" Stephens, Jr. (1909-1995) was one of the most famous and respected sailors in America. He was Chairman of Sparkman & Stephens, the design team founded in 1929. The Rod Stephens Trophy, awarded in his honour, is attributed after an act of good seamanship contributing to the safety of a boat or one or more individuals at sea.
Coastal Race Falls Victim To Capri Calms
The coastal race for the Barclays 52 Super Series at Rolex Capri Sailing Week had to be abandoned before the fleet had reached the first turning mark this afternoon when the light breeze shut down and left the crews all but becalmed.
The leaders, Tony Langley's Gladiator and Jim Swartz's Vesper¸ were ghosting gently towards the windward mark off the rocky Faraglioni pinnacles at Capri's SE corner - when the race committee announced their decision, based as much on the fact that there was no wind at all for their return into the Bay of Naples.
Vesper, with Gavin Brady calling tactics, had made the best start off the pin end of the line and were looking good early on as the leaders tacked upwind in the gentle SE'ly breeze. They were first to run out of the breeze, close in under the spectacular cliffs, which allowed Gladiator to pass.
After erring slightly to the west on the beat - in fact only a very small distance to windward - Azzurra, Paprec and B2 became separated from the fleet in a different breeze.
Racing returns to windward-leewards Friday and Saturday.
Half Ton Classics Cup
The entry list is expanding rapidly for the Half Ton Classics Cup which will be held at Saint Quay Portreiux in Northern Brittany from 7 to 11 July 2014. More than 30 teams are expected to attend, and this 7th edition of the regatta is anticipating a bumper turnout including many of the best known boats and sailors in the class.
Launched in 2003, the Half Ton Classics Cup led the way for the revival of the IOR Classes and its philosophy has helped to ensure that most boats remain as close to their original designs as possible.
This year the HTCC regatta will be a true European championship for small IRC rated boats, with all the top French and UK halftonners on the starting line.
With two weeks to go until the initial entry closing date of 31st May 2014, the Entry List alread includes some 25 boats with additional entries being added regularly. Among the well known names competing this year are past Half Ton Classics Cup winners General Tapioca, Chimp and Checkmate XV. There will also be several new faces at the event including Peter Morton, better known to many as the man behind the Quarter Ton Cup revival, who will be racing his IRC optimised Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble.
The regatta will be hosted by the Sport Nautique de Saint Quay Portrieux in collaboration with the Bruxelles Royal Yacht Club and the Half Ton Class Europe. Registration will open on Sunday 6 July, there will be practise racing on Monday 7 July and Championship racing will take place from Tuesday 8 to Friday 11 July.
Menorca Maxi
Mahon, Menorca: The first edition of Menorca Maxi got underway on Thursday with close and exciting racing. Tom Whidden, strategist on Magic Carpet3 and Dennis Conner's tactician in six America's Cup campaigns, described it as some of the best sailing he has ever had.
The nine Wallys and three J Class yachts sailed one race off Mahon's bay under light-to-moderate conditions, with 7 to 10 knots of breeze and a rolling swell. The right-hand side of the course, closer to the shore, proved to be the clear favorite and Tango G benefited the most after a start at the committee boat end of the line.
Legendary French sailor Marc Pajot is skipper and tactician onboard Tango G.
There was close racing for the three J Class yachts, with place changing keeping the crews on their toes on the opening day of the Menorca Maxi event. Conditions for the J-Class were a challenging combination of relatively light south-westerly breezes and a rolling swell outside the harbour of Mahon.
Lionheart took today's race win, followed by Ranger in second and Hanuman in third. Bouwe Bekking, skipper of Lionheart, was pleased to start his regatta with a win.
Two more windward/leeward races are scheduled for Friday, May 23rd, second day of the Menorca Maxi event.
Menorca Maxi 2014 - Results after 1 race
Wally Class
1. Tango G, FRA
2. Galma, ESP
3. Magic Blue, GBR
4. J One, GBR
5. Sensei, GBR
6. Magic Carpet3, GBR
7. Ryocan 2, GBR
8. Open Season, GBR
9. Kenora, BVI
J Class
1. Lionheart, HOL
2. Ranger, USA
3. Hanuman, USA
Seahorse June 2014
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
Honey, they shrunk the planet
Jocelyn Bleriot brings us up to date with the Trophee Jules Verne
Onwards
And London 2012 is ancient history as Andy Rice reports from Palma
Bol d'Or Mirabaud
The queen of lake regattas
High-performance composites
King Marine are (literally) heading for outer space
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J Boats Co-Founder Signs A Very Special J24 In Howth
A rudder becomes a sacred relic - Bob Johnstone signs Howth-based Jebus, the J/24 which spearheaded J/Boats' international expansion. Photo by Brian Turvey. Click on image to enlarge.
J/24 owner Emmet Dalton, Honorary Sailing Secretary of Howth YC, has obtained a uniquely personal signature on his boat's rudder which means that one particular small but precious area of his beloved sailing machine will never be cleaned off, sanded down, or re-painted, for it's a tangible reminder of the very special human and American story which underlies the origins of the mighty J Boat empire.
The story begins in 1975. Rod Johnstone, then an ad salesman for a sailing trade magazine and an active one-design sailor, decided to build a sailboat he had been designing since completing a Westlawn School of Yacht Design correspondence course in the 60's. With $400-worth of fibreglass and wood, plus some rigging and hardware left over from a Soling of his brother Bob, he built the 24' LOA x 9' beam Ragtime on weekends in the three-car garage at his family home in Stonington, Connecticut. During the summer of 1976, with an all family crew aboard, Ragtime beat everything in sight. Rod realized he had created something special.
Enter Everett Pearson, the owner of Tillotson Pearson, Inc, a highly respected boat builder in Warren, Rhode Island. He was quite taken with Rod's design and agreed to produce the boat on spec in return for the U.S. building rights. Display ads in the sailing trade magazine got the word out. That winter, they set up a makeshift factory in an old textile mill in nearby Fall River, Massachusetts, and began popping out J/24s.
Enter the marketing experience of brother Bob, a vice president of marketing at AMF/Alcort (the makers of Sunfish sailboats at the time). He had seen the potential in the boat Rod had designed. From 1975 to 1977, Bob had helped to take Alcort from the red into the black, and then began trying to convince AMF to start producing a boat similar to the J/24. When AMF didn't jump, in February of 1977 at age 43, Bob did, and threw in his lot with J/Boats.
In all, 5,400 J/24s have been built since...
Early Entries For Rolex Middle Sea Race 2014
A good fleet has been steadily building up for the Rolex Middle Sea Race 2014. Among the 25 entries is Robertissima the JV 72 which was among the first to enter after a first attempt last year. Other entrants of note are Balaeria a TP52 and Spirit a Swan 65 as well as Libertalia a VO60 and Monster Project a VO70. Some old regulars are back again too. Beppe Bisotto on Atame could not resist another go while Andy Middleton of Global Yacht Racing has teamed up with Ross Appelby to return with a different boat Scarlet Oyster, both Beppe and Andy having competed in this race many times before.
The Notice of Race may be downloaded from the event website.
Entries should be submitted on line through the website.
Letters To The Editor -
Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.
* From Louay Habib: re: Adrian Morgan's comments on regatta press releases.
As a specialist regatta reporter, I work for the organisers of about 20 regattas a year and I totally agree with Adrian.
At certain events, the people working for PR companies are usually not sailors, the people working for the sponsors are often not sailors either. They do share a common understanding of marketing and public relations techniques and form a bond and understanding in their way of thinking - They believe that their approach is correct.
What they fail to understand is that although sailing is one of the most popular participation sports in the world (2012 - UK, 11 Million people took part in watersports according to a Government survey). Sailing is a niche sport for intelligent switched on people and a large number of the audience can see a PR angle a mile off. Let's be honest if you show a picture of a beer bottle enough times to your average football supporter, he will end up drinking it because he thinks it's cool. Sailors will not.
The real PR skill is to give value to the sponsor and entertain the audience at the same time and to do that you need to be a sailor as well as a marketeer.
The phone doesn't ring for me for several high profile events, usually because they are controlled by PR companies, which are focused on protecting their own position rather than delivering accurate, interesting sailing reports. If the organisers of these events want to engage with the enormous number of people who participate in sailing then the reports need to be written by sailors.
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The Last Word
Science has not yet taught us if madness is or is not the sublimity of the intelligence. -- Edgar Allan Poe
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