In This Issue
• Alinghi claims GC32 Riva Cup
• Back to the Future - 120 years of the One Ton Cup
• Yacht Racing Forum: Business, Network, Information - and Fun!
• Endeavour Trophy count down
• Managing the field of play - B&G
• Kick off the Caribbean regatta season with the Island Water World Grenada Sailing Week 2020
• Dolan Finishes 2019 Figaro Season On A High
• Classic conditions for Bosham SC Revival
• Mini-Transat
• Ocean Racing Club of Victoria: Reflecting on 70 years
• Featured Brokerage:
• • 1894 G L Watson 36 FT Cutter
• • Italia Yachts 12.98
• • COYOTE Botin Carkeek 52
• The Last Word: Rudyard Kipling
Brought to you by Seahorse magazine and YachtScoring.com EuroSail News 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
Alinghi claims GC32 Riva Cup
While Alinghi has led at the end of every day of racing at the 2019 GC32 Riva Cup, the Swiss team was on the ropes this afternoon when their arch-rivals Oman Air, in seemingly unbeatable form, scored three back-to-back wins levelling the scoreline with them.
As ever with the Dolomites forming the most spectacular of backdrops, racing today, hosted by the Fraglia Vela Riva, was held in a 14-16 knot Ora southerly.
In the fourth and penultimate race, the Omani team's winning streak came to end, but it was not Alinghi but Red Bull Sailing Team that claimed the bullet. However in this Oman Air's second to Alinghi's fourth, handed the Omanis a slender two point lead going into the final race.
With Oman Air having had the upper hand all day, a chink finally appeared in their armour in the deciding race, allowing both Alinghi and Red Bull Sailing Team through. After a nailbiting final few minutes, where Oman Air desperately tried to catch up, these positions held at the finish line causing the two frontrunners to end the GC32 Riva Cup tied on points. Sadly for Oman Air after such a strong final day, GC32 Racing Tour tie breaks are decided on final race position, handing the GC32 Riva Cup to Alinghi.
This was the second win of the season for Ernesto Bertarelli's team following their victory at the GC32 World Championship in Lagos, Portugal in June.
The 2019 GC32 Racing Tour will conclude in Muscat, Oman over 5-9 November, where we can expect another sleeves-rolled-up fist fight between the circuit's two heavyweights to determine who will be this year's champion. -- James Boyd
Final overall results after 19 races
1. Alinghi, 45
2. Oman Air, 45
3. Red Bull Sailing Team, 58
4. Zoulou, 68
5. Argo, 82
6. Black Star Sailing Team, 107
7. Codigo Rojo Racing, 127
Back to the Future - 120 years of the One Ton Cup
For the fourth year in succession, the FAST40+ Class will be competing for the One Ton Cup, created by the Cercle de la Voile de Paris (CVP - Paris Yacht Club) in 1899. The 2019 edition will be sailed in French waters for the first time since 2002, hosted by La Societe des Regates du Havre. This year is the 120thanniversary of the first regatta, with the One Ton Cup returning to France, where it all began.
Racing for the FAST40+ Class for the One Ton Cup starts on Thursday 19thSeptember with four days of action concluding on Sunday 22nd September. The owner driven hi-tech race boats, with pro-am teams, will compete in up to ten races. PRO Stuart Childerley has the option of organising short sharp windward leeward races longer and round the buoys courses. Social events are part and parcel of the FAST40+ Class with après sailing gatherings, a regatta dinner at the famous La Societe des Regates du Havre clubhouse, and the presentation of the world famous One Ton Cup to the winning team.
Established in 1838, La Societe des Regates du Havre is the oldest yacht club in France and is no stranger to the One Ton Cup. In 1958 the regatta was won in Le Havre by R.S.G. Perry's Royal Thames from the drawing board of the famous 12 metre yacht designer David Boyd. The win for Royal Thames was the first by a British team for over 30 years. In 1965, 14 teams from eight nations competed in Le Havre for the One Ton Cup. Hans Albrecht's Sparkman & Stephens designed One Tonner Diana III was victorious, the first Danish team to ever lift the trophy. In 1967 the One Ton Cup returned to Le Havre, Hans Beilken's Optimist was the winner racing his Dick Carter designed Optimist, winning the cup for Germany for the first tim since 1911. Hans Beilken's Optimist retained the trophy in 1968.
Past winners of the One Ton Cup include many legends in the sport of sailing; Syd Fischer, Harold Cudmore, Henrik Soderlund, King Harald V of Norway, Paul Cayard, Francesco de Angelis, Bertrand Pace, John Kostecki, Thierry Peponnet, and Russell Coutts. The current holder is Niklas Zennstrom's Ran Racing, which will be competing to retain the trophy in a highly competitive fleet. Peter Morton's Girls on Film lifted the famous trophy in 2016 and 2017.
Yacht Racing Forum: Business, Network, Information - and Fun!
And also have fun, network with the sports' leading personalities, share a drink with the best designers and sailors, the greatest event organisers, sponsors or class managers.
The 12th edition of the Yacht Racing Forum will take place in Bilbao, Spain, on November 25-26. The conference will bring together around 350 delegates, including the sports' main decision-makers from all over the world.
If you haven't registered yet, here is the address: www.yachtracingforum.com
Endeavour Trophy count down
Fine-tuning for 2018 Merlin Rocket champs Christian Birrell and Sam Brearey. Photo by Sue Pelling. Click on image for photo gallery.
For the first time in many years response to the annual Endeavour Trophy invitation dinghy champion of champions' event has been overwhelming, with organisers at the Royal Corinthian YC, and new sponsors Investec, looking forward welcoming the 30 dinghy class national champions to the home of the Endeavour Trophy.
Edwin Buckley - event director and race officer commenting on the event and the support of its new sponsor said: "We are very proud to announce Investec Wealth & Investment becoming a sponsor this year, we are all looking forward to working with them alongside our long term sponsors for this prestigious event."
Among those already signed up to do battle at this annual event are Ben Saxton/Toby Lewis who are not only keen to defend the title they won last year, but who are also looking forward to trying to make it a record five Endeavour wins in a row. Another win would also put Saxton in a position of matching the record number of Endeavour Trophy wins currently held by Nick Craig who has six wins to his name.
To ensure a relatively level 'playing field' for the diverse entry that includes youth, singlehanded and doublehanded sailors, the popular one-design RS200 dinghy is the chosen Endeavour dinghy for the fifth year in succession. For continuity competitors will also have the use of brand-new sails courtesy of RS Sailing and Hyde Sails.
The Endeavour Trophy eight-race/one discard series takes place on Saturday and Sunday on windward/leeward courses, and is preceded on the Friday by the Investec Training Day. Presented by Steve Irish - former champion/Endeavour competitor and coach - the training day offers competitors, particularly first-timers to the event, and those unfamiliar with the RS200 class, a chance to acquaint themselves with the boat before racing begins on the Saturday.
Those keen to support the event and join the champions after racing on the Saturday evening (12 October) are welcome to attend the grand Endeavour dinner in the Trophies Room at the Royal Corinthian YC. Tickets are available to purchase at £22.50 in advance from
royalcorinthian.co.uk/endeavour/
Managing the field of play - B&G
The technology focus for the new SailGP global championship has been on the F50s and for good reason. The F50 is a new class of boat that shares DNA with the revolutionary cats used in the last America's Cup. The boats are turbo-charged with advanced foils and sophisticated control systems. It has been an impressive undertaking and has delivered yet another step forward for high-performance sailing.
F50s are capable of more than 50kts (60 mph) and can make 30kts downwind in less than 10kts of breeze. The technical advances are clear to see. 'Race Control set and modify the course on a PC-based navigation system, which is sent to the LiveLineFX servers for processing and redistribution', explains Matt Eeles, R&D lead for B&G. In addition to a Fibre Optic Gyro compass, the committee boat utilises a B&G H5000 motion corrected wind solution to calculate true wind data, which is used by the Principal Race Officer to set the course axis and length. It also provides the true wind data for the layline and wind broadcast graphics.
Full article in the October issue of Seahorse
Kick off the Caribbean regatta season with the Island Water World Grenada Sailing Week 2020
Grenada Sailing Weeks unique two venue event starts on Sunday 26 January 2020 with skippers briefing at the prestigious Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in St George's where it continues for the first two days of racing and the lay day. Race day three will move with the transition race to the scenic Secret Harbour Marina in Mount Hartman Bay for the final days racing. Final nights prize giving and the grand finale will be held at at a 'to be announced' location. All venues have been specially selected to show case the beautiful island of Grenada.
The organising committee in association with the Grenada Sailing Association continue to support the youth initiative introduced last year to Grenada Sailing Week to help to bridge the gap between between youths and keel boats by sponsoring a youth sailing team to compete in one of the classes.
Register and pay before the 30 Nov 2019 to benefit from early fee of US$90.00
Online registration: yachtscoring.com/emenu.cfm?eID=9522 NoR is posted online: www.grenadasailingweek.com
Dolan Finishes 2019 Figaro Season On A High
Tom Dolan, the Irish skipper of Smurfit Kappa, finished his first season in the Beneteau Figaro 3 on something of a high note when he took fourth place on the last stage of the 12th Tour de Bretagne à la Voile.
Dolan, who sailed with young Turkish sailor Ediz Onen on the multistage two-handed week-long race round the Brittany peninsula took a creditable 21st place overall in the 37-boat fleet.
The course took the fleet from Saint-Quay-Portrieux to La Trinite-sur-Mer via Saint-Malo, Brest, Concarneau and Larmor-Plage and included a testing, 330 nautical miles stage into the western Channel from Saint Malo to Brest via Hands Deep by Plymouth which gave Dolan some of his best, most exciting racing of the year.
But it was on the concluding light winds, tactical 26 miles stage from Larmor Plage to La Trinite sur Mer that Dolan and Onen made their best result on Smurfit Kappa. There were two choices, working offshore or closer to the coast. Choosing the course closer to the land paid and the Irish-Turkish duo lay third until the final three miles where they lost one place to French rivals Corentin Douguet and Christian Ponthieu (NF Habitat).
Tom is bringing his boat to Dublin Bay from 28th September where he is making some day and half- day sails available to guests who make a suitable contribution to funds for
Classic conditions for Bosham SC Revival
Photo by Andrew Young. Click on image for photo gallery.
53 boats from 9 sailing clubs took part, with some dinghies travelling from as far as the Netherlands. Bosham SC's annual regatta and Concours d'Elegance event for classic dinghies has become a firm favourite with dinghy sailors everywhere.
This year's classic celebration was made extra special by a showdown between International 12s and Axe One Designs, both wooden clinker-built 12-foot dinghies with illustrious histories. Designed in Liverpool in 1913, the International 12 was the first-ever one-design Olympic sailing boat, chosen to compete in its own class in the 1920 and 1928 Olympics. Today the International 12, still barely changed after more than a century, is a popular single-handed sailing boat sailed across the globe.
Two International 12s from Holland competed in the Classic Boat Revival this year. Bert Hamminga is the force behind a new world association for the International 12 to reflect its enduring popularity. Fleets of International 12s now regularly compete in Holland, Belgium, France, Ireland, Germany, Italy, Turkey and Japan as well as Bosham where local sailor Doug Branson is an ardent supporter.
So impressed was Bert Hamminga with the sailing in Chichester Harbour and the support of Bosham SC that he is now planning to make Bosham the venue for a major regatta in 2021, with 40 boats from across Europe expected to take part.
Over the five races of Revival weekend of 7-8 September, the Axe One Designs - a faster 1951-designed boat - proved to have the measure of the International 12s.
Steve Daniel from the Royal Southampton YC was first overall in class in his Axe One Design. Second in Axe One Design number one was Nigel Daniel from the Axe YC in Devon, the club for which the boat was originally designed. Bert Hamminga brought his International 12 home third overall in class.
In a fast fleet made up of mainly of 18s, with a sprinkling of Jollyboats, Sharpies and a Merlin Rocket, Bosham's Richard Stirrup, Dave Hall & Jono Prosser emerged victorious in their 80 year old National 18.
The medium fleet of mainly Yachting World Dayboats and Devon Yawls was won by Alastair & Jacqui Seaton in their YW Dayboat, while honours in the slow fleet went to Bosham's Hugh Ambery in a Tideway.
Winner of the Concours d'Elegance for the best turned-out classic dinghy was Poole YC's Colin Blewett's stunning self built International 12.
The regatta was generously sponsored by McAfee, Verisona Law, Pusser's Rum. -- Bob Murray
Mini-Transat
On Sunday 22 September at 14:15 hours, the Mini-Transat La Boulangere will set sail. Following the withdrawal of the Swiss sailor Arnaud Machado due to injury, ultimately there will be 87 women and men taking the start of a unique journey into solitude, with virtually no means of communication.
Solitude is the very essence of the Mini-Transat. In a world where communication and the instantaneous circulation of news are a constant, the fundamentals of this race have remained unchanged since the first edition in 1977. Aboard Mini 6.50s there are no computers, no satellite links, no live media link-ups, no photo and video sends. It's impossible to contact your loved ones to share the magical moments or try to get over a touch of the blues. The only link with the shore is a daily report broadcast over SSB radio by race management to give the low-down on the weather situation, the 48-hour weather forecast and the distances to the goal for each competitor.
Cut off from the world, but potentially in contact with the other Mini sailors
The sailors have the opportunity to communicate between one another via VHF, which has a limited range (around 10 miles). During the first leg (La Rochelle/Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), the exchanges are regular for the majority of the competitors. However, things become more complicated during the second leg to Martinique. Indeed, as the competitors spread out across the Atlantic, the exchanges become few and far between. If they're not sailing within a group, the racers can spend days, weeks even, without uttering a single word.
Arnaud Machado (910) was one of the favourites in the production boat category. Unfortunately, he fell of his bike a few days ago, fracturing his tibia. This injury inevitably makes it impossible for him to have a second attempt at the Mini-Transat. "I'm bitterly disappointed. I wasn't expecting that two years of preparation and sacrifice could fall through in a couple of minutes, especially as I was avoiding taking any risks as we neared the start. It's a cruel twist of fate. I'm going to do all I can to start a programme of rehabilitation as quickly as possible so I'm ready for action again early next year."
Ocean Racing Club of Victoria: Reflecting on 70 years
Westcoaster 1977 Trophy presentation to skippers Guy Ellis (Anaconda) and Jim Searle (Hot Prospect). Click on image to enlarge.
"We have many positive things to reflect on, new and old," says ORCV Commodore, Martin Vaughan. "I was thinking recently that just two years ago there were eight boats in the ORCV Winter Series; this year there were 62 boats across monohull double-handed, and cruising in IRC, AMS, PHS, plus multihulls.
"It shows how far we have come and how healthy keelboat sailing is, with boats representing all the Bay clubs in Victoria. It's very pleasing for us and for Victorian sailing in general," he ended.
What many may not realise or remember is the Club, formed in 1949, undergoing a name change during the 1972/73 season; from the Cruising Yacht Club of Victoria to the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria. It was a period of great change and advancement.
One of the unforgettable results of this decision was the ORCV, organising and conducting the first ever Melbourne to Hobart Ocean Race in conjunction with the Derwent Sailing Squadron in Hobart. The race stands out as it is the only one to take yachts down past Tasmania's world-famous west coast wilderness and Southern Ocean.
Continuing its progression, the Club added the Melbourne Osaka Double-Handed Yacht Race to its calendar in 2013. At 5500 nautical miles, it remains the longest ocean race emanating out of Australia by quite some distance.
Three new recent initiatives by ORCV have been the introduction of the 'Four + Autohelm', to the Club's offshore racing program; the Coastal Sprint Series, aimed specifically at helping crews make the move into ocean racing and the 'Keep Plastics out of the Ocean' efforts in the recent Melbourne to Apollo Bay Ocean Race. -- Di Pearson
Featured Brokerage
PEGGY BAWN is a rare thing indeed. The number of surviving vessels from pioneering Clydeside yacht designer George Lennox Watson’s lifetime (1851-1904) can be counted on a careless carpenter’s fingers.
Long gone are his huge America’s Cup challengers and “Big Class” racing yachts, and only two of the fleet of palatial steam yachts – the superyachts of their day – from his Glasgow drawing boards are known to survive, in fabulous condition although barely recognisable from their original appearance.
It is left to PEGGY BAWN to carry the flame for Watson’s groundbreaking mid-1890s work in setting the standard for moderation in sailing yacht design, work that has never been challenged – only endorsed by those who followed his lead through the 20th century, especially Olin J. Stephens, who was a self-confessed Watson fan.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
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+44 (0)1202 330077
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Rarely available brokerage example of the award-winning Italia 12.98 with 3-cabin, 2-heads layout, complete with B&G instrument pack, full optioned, lightly used, ready to sail.
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B&C 52 ex CAIXA GALICIA - 2001. Botin & Carkeek's design. Winner Cupa del Rey 2002, IMS World Championship 2001 and 2002. Very good condition. Ideal IRC and IMS racing. Ready to race 2019 season. SPARCRAFT carbon mast, boom and spinnaker pool. 2005 BROOKS AND GATEHOUSE instruments with 6 jumbos repeater. All LEWMAR winches. HARKEN blocs, travellers and rails. SPINLOCK jammers.
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The Last Word
I could not dig: I dared not to rob:
Therefore I lied to please the mob.
Now all my lies are proved untrue
And I must face the men I slew.
What tale shall server me here among
Mine angry and defrauded young? -- Rudyard Kipling
Editorial and letter submissions to
Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html