In This Issue
Etchells Biscayne Bay Series
Bacardi Cup
Harken Exclusive Worldwide Distributor of Ropeye Rigging Products
Vintage Yachting Games 16 - 22 September 2018 in Copenhagen, Denmark
Hall of Famer Randy Smyth rescued
International calendar challenging for the Medemblik Regatta
Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
A Flying Start For The Martinique Flying Regatta
Letters to the Editor
Featured Brokerage: 2017 Jeanneau Sun Fast 3200 R2, 2004 Ker 32, Donovan GP26 Speed6
The Last Word: Baba Rum Raisin
Brought to you by Seahorse magazine, Scuttlebutt Europe is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to
Etchells Biscayne Bay Series
The 2017-18 Etchells Biscayne Bay Regatta Series wrapped up with the 3-day Midwinters East Regatta for the Schoonmaker Cup on March 2-4 in Miami, FL. Forty-four boats came out to beautiful Biscayne Bay for the scheduled 8-race regatta, under the auspices of Etchells Fleet 20 and Biscayne Bay Yacht Club.
The regatta serves as the last opportunity to win the coveted series championship. The scoring for the overall series crown is comprised of a boat's best two finish places in the first three regattas of the series plus her score in the Midwinter Championship Regatta.
Going into the finale, three teams were separated by two points. Jim Cunningham on Lifted was sitting on top with two points. British Olympic Medalist Lawrie Smith, on Alfie, was in second with three points. Reigning Etchells World Champion, Steve Benjamin on Scimitar sat in third position with four points. They were all primed to duke it out for the crown.
Peter Duncan won the Midwinters Regatta and the Schoonmaker Cup while the award for top Corinthian team went to Craig Mense and his crew of John Harford and Fred Strammer who finished a 22nd overall. Jose Fuentes was awarded the Dr. Steve Horowitz Memorial award for most improved team.
Winning the overall Etchells Biscayne Bay Series was Steve Benjamin on the strength of two seconds in the second and third regattas of the series, and a second in the Midwinter Championship. He was followed by Lawrie Smith in second and Peter Duncan in third.
Final top five, Midwinters Regatta:
1. Peter Duncan/ Andrew Palfrey/Victor Diaz de Leon/ Sasha Ryan, USA, 31
2. Steve Benjamin/ Michael Menninger/ Ian Liberty/ Johnny Goldsberry, USA, 47
3. Kevin Grainger/ Mark Mendelblatt/ Chuck Norris, USA, 58
4. Andrew Cumming/ Brian Kamilar/ William Felder/ Nikki Medley, CAN, 65
5. Scott Kaufman/ Lucas Calabrase/ Austen Anderson/ Jesse Kirkland, USA, 66
Bacardi Cup
Diaz and Prada took the first winners gun at the 2018 Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta on Biscayne Bay, Monday.
They finished ahead of Eivind Melleby and Joshua Revkin of Norway with Diego Negri and Sergio Lambertenghi of Italy in third place.
Paul Cayard and Mark Strube USA finished fourth and fifth were Eric Doyle and Payson Infelise USA, with sixth Ireland's Peter and Robert O'Leary.
Britain's John Gimson and Chris Brittle finished 11th, with Maxwell Treacy and Robert Shanks of Ireland 12th. -- Gerald New, www.sailweb.co.uk
Top ten after the first race:
1. Augie Diaz / Bruno Prada, USA
2. Eivind Melleby / Joshua Revkin, NOR
3. Diego Negri / Sergio Lambertenghi, ITA
4. Paul Cayard / Mark Strube, USA
5. Eric Doyle / Payson Infelise , USA
6. Peter O'Leary / Robert O'Leary, IRL
7. Robert Scheidt / Brian Fatih, BRA
8. Thomas Allart / Arthur Lopez, NED
9. Peter Vessella / Phil Trinter, USA
10. Luke Lawrence / Pedro Trouche, NED
* This year this epic race begins with a much deserved tribute to one of the heroes of this legendary class, a man who wrote history for his Country and for the sailing world: Sir Durward Knowles passed away at age 100 on February 24th at Doctors Hospital in Nassau, Bahamas. Today the whole Bacardi Cup Fleet saluted him with a special memorial.
Bahamian and Star class flag were hoisted by the ISCYRA President Hubert Merkelbach joined by past presidents Lars Grael and Jack Rickard, the two times Star class Gold Medalist Mark Reynolds and Paul Cayard at 9am before the competitors started docking out towards the racecourse. A touching moment for a past Star class commodore who won the first Olympic medal (bronze) for his country, Bahamas, in 1956, who then succeeded and won gold eight years later, in Tokyo. Sir Durward is also a Star World Champion, winning the title in 1947 in Los Angeles, and his name is written on the Bacardi Cup as he won it in 1951 with Ding Shoonmaker as crew.
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Harken and Ropeye - At the Front.
Vintage Yachting Games 16 - 22 September 2018 in Copenhagen, Denmark
Olympic Sailing material development has also been impressive. The boats, hundred years ago, then state of the art, were made of wood or steel with cotton sails and without joystick, spinnaker or trapeze. The designs of then are now considered slow and heavy. In a world of Olympic plastic and skiffs some predecessors might look dated. However, many former Olympic classes are still active as international classes sailed at high level by sailors, from all around the world.
For example, the 12' Dinghy, active at the Olympics in 1920 and 1924, is still today active in regattas in twelve different countries on three different continents. More recent, the in 1910 designed Star, the primary Olympic keelboat from 1932 through 2012, may have lost its Olympic status but not its Olympic reputation! Still this keelboat is raced by the some of the best sailors worldwide.
The Olympic history has produced many of these beautiful designs stills fit for sailing at high level all around the globe. Besides the two classes mentioned earlier the Europe, 2.4 Metre (active at the Paralympics), Olympiajol, 12m2 Sharpie, Flying Dutchman, Yngling, Soling, Dragon, 5,5 Metre, 6 Metre, are all internationally active and racing at high level.
Apart from their shared Olympic heritage, they have more in common. The boats are sailed by a large group of regatta sailors from all over the world. Most classes have developed and improved and are still modern racing machines. With modern materials and equipment and sailed by the best, sometimes professional sailors.
Specially developed for these classes the first Vintage Yachting Games was organized in 2008 in Medemblik, the Netherlands. A multi-class sailing event for former Olympic and Paralympic classes.
The 2016 edition at Weymouth, the 2012 Olympic sailing arena, unfortunately had to be cancelled at the latest moment. Therefore, this led to a new Olympic schedule, the Vintage Yachting Games will now be raced coinciding with the Winter Olympics. The 2018 Games will bring the fleet of the former Olympic and Paralympic Classes to Copenhagen, Denmark. The Vintage Games will take place between September 16 and 22 (first day of racing Sept. 18th). -- Rudy den Outer
Hall of Famer Randy Smyth rescued
Randy Smyth, one of North America's top multihull sailors and a member of the National Sailing Hall of Fame, was rescued by the Coast Guard last night when his 20-foot trimaran capsized during the WaterTribe Everglades Challenge, a 300 nm Florida race from Tampa Bay to Key Largo.
At 9 p.m., Coast Guard 7th District Command Center watchstanders received a personal locator beacon activation connected to annual race for kayaks, canoes and small boats.
The Coast Guard's St. Petersburg station verified the owner of the beacon was Smyth, 63, of Fort Walton Beach, and contacted him via VHF-FM marine band radio. Smyth stated his sailboat had capsized 12 miles south of Sanibel Island and was in need of emergency assistance.
Smyth is one of nine Americans to have both been on a winning America's Cup crew (1988) and win an Olympic medal in sailing (1988, 1992).
The Everglades Challenge, which started March 3, is an unsupported, expedition style adventure race with check points and a time limit of eight days or less.
International calendar challenging for the Medemblik Regatta
The Medemblik Regatta, formerly known as the Delta Lloyd Regatta, is being held from the 22nd to the 26th of May. The regatta celebrates it's 34th edition this year. For all those years, sailors have praised the location for it's sailing conditions and the regatta as a well organized event. Seeing the names on the registration list so far, the 34th edition will have some strong competition again.
The regatta used to be a World Cup event, but is now named a World Sailing Classic event by World Sailing, the international sailing federation. This means the regatta is kept in her legacy of one of the world's biggest Olympic regatta's over the past 34 years. The regatta is well-known for its innovations towards the Olympics. Wind wise the location is good for sailing and everyone coming to Medemblik knows they can expect great competition in tough conditions, and a well organized event.
World Sailing promises to build on such strong existing major Olympic Class International Events. This way they establish a stable and long term World Sailing global calendar. "This should be done by strengthening the cooperation with the Olympic classes, World Championships and Regional Championships," said Kim Andersen, World Sailing President.
For the last two years they've failed in this promise towards the Medemblik Regatta. In 2017 the World Cup Santander was planned close to the event, this year the World Cup Marseille is scheduled just a week after the regatta in Medemblik. The World Cup is a big event for all sailors aiming for the Olympics 2020, so many sailors and coaches chose to go to the World Cup and skip Medemblik. Although the Medemblik Regatta is now a Classic Event, it doesn't get the support that's promised by World Sailing.
The Medemblik Regatta has a strong history and the professional organization won't just let the regatta disappear from the international calendar. For the Dutch sailors it's a great opportunity to compete in their own country and invite family, friends and sponsors. The structure of the event for this year is already set and they're already looking for next years event. Keeping the great courses on the water and a welcoming venue around the regatta center.
The Medemblik Regatta is held from the 22nd to the 26th of May 2018 at the Regatta Center Medemblik.
Online registration for the Regatta is open:
medemblikregatta.org/registration/
Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
Montel Fagan-Jordan (GBR)
'I was in the Fastnet team, Montel is a great sailor and also a great skipper' - Espoir Mazambi; 'A fantastic young man who worked his guts out' - Paul Hodge; 'The whole Grieg Academy deserve this award' - Colin McDonald; 'I am so proud also for his teachers and his school' - Dolores William; 'Wonderful!' - Dennis Earle; 'Everyone this young man comes into contact with is impressed' - Nick Ferrier; 'Trailblazer!' - Jon Holt; 'A superb example of what can be achieved with dedication and hard work' - Katina Read.
This month's nominees:
Overdue but we chose not to stir things up while he was still the man in charge… Boydy to his friends, Michael got his sea legs in J/24s back in Ireland in the 1970s. As well as being joint winner of the 2017 RORC Championship through his three-year tenure as commodore he was there to present prizes after every RORC race (including when racing). Plus not every club commodore is such a 'worthwhile' addition to a party: Irishman, you see
Back in Antigua after taking the line honours and handicap monohull double in the Caribbean 600 must have felt a long way from floating around, probably terrified, in the Irish Sea after his previous maxi capsized in the 2011 Fastnet. Many others would have been put off by that experience - Larry Ellison gave up ocean racing after the stormy 1998 Hobart - but David was back at sea within months and soon hard at it again
Seahorse Sailor of the Month is sponsored by Henri Lloyd, Harken McLube & Dubarry. Who needs silverware, our prizes are usable!
Cast your vote, submit comments, even suggest a candidate for next month at seahorsemagazine.com/sailor-of-the-month/vote-for-sailor-of-the-month
View past winners of Sailor of the Month
A Flying Start For The Martinique Flying Regatta
Debuting at the International Paris Boat Show in early December 2017, the Martinique Flying Regatta passes a new milestone today with the publication of the Notice of Race to trigger the sporting countdown to the event.
Aiming to become the Caribbean's major foiler meet, the event showcases the very latest technology, which is the future of competitive sailing. A particularly favourable spot for it, the Baie de Fort de France is a vast marine space spanning 70km2 and ranked as one of the most beautiful bays in the world with its steady medium winds and its continuously flat seas protected by the mountains. The perfect playing field for foiling craft then, particularly given the balmy average air temperature of 28°C in November.
From 17 to 24 November 2018, there are now 7 guest series set to represent nearly all the existing foilers. These range from the ultra-modern, fun craft like the Kitefoil and the Windfoil, to the individual Onefly and the famous Moth foilers, the double-handed Flying Phantom and the 3-man Easy to Fly, culminating with the 5-man GC32 inspired by the America's Cup.
The course will comprise both nautical arena courses in the Baie de Fort de France to put on a show for the locals in Martinique and long-distance courses around the bay with the backdrop of the stunning shores of Les Trois Ilets, Anse Mitan and Anse a l'Ane.
To support the racers, the organisation is setting up sizeable logistics facilities: transport of craft in containers included in the entry fees, special rates for air transport thanks to the partnership with the Corsair International company and special rates for accommodation.
Organised by the Comité Martiniquais du Tourisme and the Sirius Evénements company, the event has also already received the support of the Grand Port Maritime in Fort de France and the Ligue de Voile de Martinique, which represents the island's clubs and will make up the offshore organisation. -- translation by Kate Jennings
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 Darren Burns, Farr 30 Class President:
2017 has come and gone and the 2018 season is quickly approaching. Over the last year we only managed to host one class OD event: Canadian Nationals. As we look to the future of the class the council has determined that the likely event of our fleets being able to host another world's event is unlikely. Our 2016 international regatta in Sweden came as close as we have come to qualifying in the last 5 years. Given that we have mostly transformed into a regional fleet class the executive has taken the decision to no long support the class as a World Sailing one design yacht. This has been a difficult decision however we feel that supporting this classification is no longer financially viable and for reasons noted is likely to not produce another world championships in the foreseeable future.
The council has reduced class fees three times over the last 5 years and continues to only see membership support at the class sanctioned events. These events have seen 100% of the membership fee go back to the event in the form of a class sponsorship to support the implementation of the class rules. Over the last three years we have made minor modifications to the rules to allow the removal of the stove, cushions, and toilet during class racing and we will continue to look to the fleet for recommendations on further modifications that we can find consensus from the fleet on.
Looking at the 2018 season, we are finalizing/supporting three OD events: North American Championships, European Championships, and Canadian Nationals. These three class sanctioned events will continue to follow the full class rules as they stand with the modifications noted above. The class will continue to financially support these events until we have exhausted the class resources.
Out of the 200 plus boats built we have a small cluster of fleets on the north west and north east coasts of North America, Northern Europe, and the Middle East. These fleets continue to hold one design fleet racing though out the season and have seem some fleet building over the last two years. The longevity of this class is a testament to how great the Farr 30 is as mixed fleet boats. Many new sport boats have come and gone over the years and most have not been able to match the boat for boat agility of the Farr 30.
In the next few weeks we will be posting the dates and locations of the 2018 OD events on the web site along with results updates and any other news the fleet would like to share. Please use this as a resource for your own local fleet racing and send any other posting along to be shared with the class.
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The Last Word
Do I experience the Almighty differently from you? We both go nameless between births?!. -- Baba Rum Raisin
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