In This Issue
• A tough night off the Irish coast in the Vendee-Arctique- Les Sables d'Olonne
• Thomas Ruyant Was Quite Far Ahead Whatever The Conditions
• Sirius Grip - Lazyajack Polybraid - Flat Mooring
• IKA Update July 2020: Europeans confirmed, Worlds postponed
• #RestartSailing Webinars
• Virtual Book signing and RAFFLE July 8, 7pm ET: You're invited!
• Public consultation launched to seek views on proposals for Cowes Harbour
• RYA Confirms eSailing Nations Cup - GBR Selection Policy
• Zoom Classes Available for Young Sailors Not Able to Get Out on the Water this Summer
• Royal Akarana Yacht Club announce Youth America's Cup Squad
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Bavaria C42
• • Marten 49 - SUMMER STORM
• • OUTREMER 4X - NEW BOAT
• The Last Word: Lhamo Thondup
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
A tough night off the Irish coast in the Vendee-Arctique- Les Sables d'Olonne
During their second night at sea, on their way from Les Sables d'Olonne to Iceland, the fleet has been closing on the southwest corner of Ireland with the leaders coming within a couple of miles of the coast near Kinsale in a bid to get out of the worst of the weather.
It has been a long hard beat into the northwesterly wind which has been hitting 35 knots in the gusts. Throughout, the leader has remained the Frenchman Thomas Ruyant on LinkedOut - the boat named after a charity supporting the homeless.
He has set a tough pace for the leading group which has settled into a collection of four boats with Charlie Dalin on Apivia this morning in second place just one-and-a-half nautical miles behind, then Jeremie Beyou on Charal (+2.5) and Kevin Escoffier on PRB (+3.9) in fourth place.
At a position about 45 miles south of the Fastnet Rock on starboard tack, Ruyant was pushing his foiler ahead at 14 knots with about 800 miles to go to reach the IOC UNESCO waypoint off the southwest tip of Iceland.
The last 24 hours have seen a second boat return to port with Damien Seguin following the earlier example of Sebastien Simon (ARKÉA PAPREC) deciding to head for Port-La Forêt on board Groupe APICIL.
Seguin discovered that his alternator mounting had completely sheered off in the upwind conditions that were battering his boat and realised he would not have enough power to run his onboard systems without being able to use the engine.
"I quickly looked at what I could do and realised that unfortunately I couldn't fix it at all," said Seguin who has never retired from a professional race before. "It seemed very difficult to continue like this upwind without being able to re-charge the batteries on board, so I made the decision with the team to return to Port-La-Forêt," he added.
Seguin was just south of Brest this morning on his way home but had not retired from the race.
Thomas Ruyant Was Quite Far Ahead Whatever The Conditions
For Charlie Enright, "Charal has been the most consistent boat since relaunching last year. She trashed the fleet at the Azimut and showed amazing ability before parking up in the TJV and Apivia won't be at 100% due to a delay in new foils, but have been going well in training". Christian Le Pape adds: "Jeremie is today the only one who ticks all the boxes, like its potential and his knowledge of the boat, experience of the racing and solo racing. Remember Charlie has never raced solo in an IMOCA."
If the fact remains that Jeremie Beyou's lead over Charlie Dalin seems more and more tenuous, Dalin saying on Tuesday that he is aiming "at least the podium", Charlie also benefits from having the expertise of Yann Eliès and Pascal Bidegorry in his corner. Eliès confirms: "Charlie's biggest gain is that he finally had time to do a little optimising, homework and sailing. There's a lot of things to understand and little things you pick up when you go sailing a lot that then become second nature when when you are racing and you know your base settings very precisely."
Gaël Robic, who sailed recently on Apivia with Dalin out of Port-la-Forêt, also noted the skipper from Le Havre's progress: "It may not be the fastest boat outright but it is the most allround and the most successful in terms of reliability / performance. And Charlie is getting to know it really well, his manoeuvers are fluid and clean." Ryan Breymaier adds: "Charlie Dalin seems to be running a program in his image, very serious and driven, with small gains and all around performance the goal".
But the sailor that caught the eye of the TV journalist was Thomas Ruyant: "It seemed really easy for him, he was quite far ahead whatever the conditions. In addition he is physically and mentally sharp. He has an approach which differentiates him. He is almost the only one who says that he is here to win the Vendee-Arctic. Indeed Ruyant, from Dunkirk, said this week, "Everything is good I want to take advantage of that and give it my best. I am happy with where we are. I'm good in my boots. " Also speaks Ryan Breymaier: "Thomas Ruyant has a good idea what he wants in a boat after his previous Vendee, and his association with Antoine Koch (sailplan and sailing philosophy) seems to be paying dividends in ease of use and speed."
Sirius Grip - Lazyajack Polybraid - Flat Mooring
This season's Robline newcomers
The 2020 extension of the Robline assortment includes, besides diameter and colour upgrades, a focus in 3 different categories.
Cruising - Sirius Grip
A new sheet your hands will love! The Robline best-seller Sirius 500 got an upgrade this year. Besides the beloved advantages of its compactness and longevity - the Sirius Grip got some staple fiber in its cover which adds more grip to it. When using the Sirius Grip as a sheet, your hands will just love it while the use of a cruising halyard is unaffected by this new material mix.
This Sirius Grip is available in 3 colors: red-white, blue-white and black white and in the diameters of 8, 10, 12 and 14 mm.
Mooring - Flat Mooring
The Flat Mooring was especially developed to distribute the frictional energy to a larger area while being soft and easy to handle. These characteristics make it an ideal mooring rope for tricky and choppy mooring situations. The key feature of this newly developed mooring rope is its novel cover design.
Flat Mooring is available in black color and comes in the diameters of 12, 14 and 16 mm.
Overall boatwork - Lazyjack Polybraid
Robline is thriving on a daily base to optimize both the boat life of the final customer as well as the factories. This new product will truly help all of you. The Lazyjack Polybraid was especially developed for Lazyjack Systems. Its characteristics are a combination of being slippery enough for easy gliding into the Lazyjack bag, easy splicability just like a Dyneema® Single Braid and high durability against wind and weather.
This line is available in grey in order to ensure an even better UV-resistance than white ropes do and available in the diameters of 5, 7 and 9 mm to fit for all Lazyjack systems.
For further information please search www.roblineropes.com/en/products/ or contact your local dealer.
IKA Update July 2020: Europeans confirmed, Worlds postponed
Following the re-opening of borders within Europe, the Formula Kite European Championship is now confirmed and will take place in Puck, Poland, from 18 to 23 August.
The Notice of Race can be found here
Early Bird entry fee rates (230 EUR) apply until 14 days before the event.
Please remember that nationality flags on hull and helmet are mandatory for all Formula Kite continental and World championship events (and a number of World Sailing events). It is the competitor's responsibility to produce and apply them correctly. Only the approved designs at formulakite.org/equipment/nationality-flags shall be used.
Formula Kite Individual Worlds
Unfortunately the Corona crisis also takes it's toll on our major events, and the event in Weifang (CHN) cannot go ahead as planned. Despite all effords of the class, the Chinese Yachting Association and the local organiser we cannot ensure that unrestricted travel to China will be possible any time soon. This may also affect other events in China planned for later in the year, but it is too early to take a decision on that.
The class is now looking for alternatives to host the 2020 Formula Kite Individual Worlds. The most likely scenario is to host the event in Cagliari, the week before the Formula Kite Mixed Team Relay Worlds in Torregrande (if the world wide travel situation by then allows participation of competitors from outside Europe). Running both World Championships back to back allows teams for easier logistics, and for the teams from outside of Europe to only have to deal once with possible immigration measures. We are also exploring options how Regione Sardegna can assist teams that possibly have to quarantaine on arrival.
#RestartSailing Webinars
Last week the Prime Minister announced further easing of restrictions in England, so it was timely that for Webinar 4 we were joined by Ian Walker, RYA Director of Racing, where we were looking at some of the implications for clubs and classes.
www.facebook.com/restartsailracing/videos
Magic Marine & North Sails Solo National Club Race event
While many clubs consider how they can most safely restart sailing, the National Solo Class has come up with a solution which allows local club sailors to participate remotely (using phone app or GPS trackers) in a National event on 19th July 2020 with combined scores across all participating clubs. Tonight (Fri 3rd July) there will be a club online briefing to go through the format. If you would like to join the meeting email
Virtual Book signing and RAFFLE July 8, 7pm ET: You're invited!
Next Wednesday evening, Alice Early and I are co-hosting a virtual booksigning event sponsored by Savoy Books in Westerly, RI. We'll each be doing a short reading from our recently published novels and discussing our characters, setting, and theme.
Signing up is free, and every attendee will be entered into a raffle for a $50 gift certificate. It's a great way to win a few books, while supporting two authors and two "fiercely" independent bookstores (Savoy and its partner, Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT).
If you attended the virtual launch party for Ferry to Cooperation Island a few weeks ago, I promise this will be just as much fun. (If you missed FERRY's launch party, watch the video.)
Raffle Details
To show our support for Savoy/Bank Square Books, we are donating a $50 gift certificate that will be pulled out of a hat at the end of the evening. While we will of course encourage the winner to buy our books, it can be used to purchase anything in either store (and they provide both curbside pickup and mail delivery options).
Thanks and we look forward to seeing you next Wednesday at 7pm ET! Register now -- Carol Cronin
For more information about Alice and her thrilling #coastalfiction fantasy The Moon Always Rising, visit her website.
Public consultation launched to seek views on proposals for Cowes Harbour
The Cowes Harbour Advisory Committee stakeholder representatives met today, Friday 3rd July, to hear about and discuss several proposals, including an idea to combine Cowes Harbour Commission (CHC) and Cowes Town Waterfront Trust (CTWT), a potential application by CHC to the Charity Commission to register as a charity, and the requirements for a modernising Harbour Revision Order.
The aim of these proposals is to assist the continuing development of Cowes Harbour as a thriving port, a centre for leisure sailing, an events venue and tourist destination. The meeting of the stakeholder advisory committee for Cowes Harbour is the first phase of a comprehensive consultation process with all the stakeholders of both organisations, including customers and local communities.
Cowes Harbour Commission and Cowes Town Waterfront Trust are keen to understand your views and comments on this initial stakeholder consultation and exciting proposals for the future of the harbour and waterfront.
We encourage and invite all interested parties to read more details on our proposals, which are available via the following links: cowesharbourcommission.co.uk/consultation and cowesyachthaven.com/news.
RYA Confirms eSailing Nations Cup - GBR Selection Policy
At the beginning of June, World Sailing announced the launch of the 2020 eSailing Nation's Cup; an international knockout tournament which will see nations across the globe battle it out for the eSailing Nation's Cup.
The RYA can now confirm that it has finalised the 2020 RYA eSailing Nation's Cup GBR Team selection criteria and over the coming months will be looking to select a team of highly skilled and talented eSailors in the line with the criteria detailed within the Notice of Race.
The 10 strong team will be selected from the results at the GBR eSailing National Championship results in September and, in line with the Notice of Race for the Nation's Cup, ensuring that the team consists of:-
- At least two Certified eSailors (Olympic & professional sailors, World standard eSailors)
- Four competitors from the RYA eSailing Spring Club or Class Championships
- At least one from each gender
- Four eSailors selected on merit according to the eSailing National Championship results
The RYA GBR eSailing Nations Cup Team will be selected on 22 September 2020, after which the Team will first compete in fleet regattas for seeding purposes which could see up to 50 boats and five teams competing in each regatta.
From there the team will have to battle through the first round knockouts, quarter and semi-finals before hopefully challenging for the winners title in the eSailing Nations Cup final to be held on the 02 November, when the World Champion National Team will be crowned.
www.rya.org.uk/go/NationsCupSelectionCriteria
Zoom Classes Available for Young Sailors Not Able to Get Out on the Water this Summer
Are you having trouble finding sailing classes that will go on this summer? The Kingston Yacht Club in Kingston, Ontario, Canada may have a solution for you. Concerned that a number of children won't be able to get out on the water for sailing lessons, they have come up with free Zoom classes to be run in the mornings Monday - Friday. They have beginner, intermediate and race classes you can sign up for. Read More
academy.kingstonyachtclub.com/
Royal Akarana Yacht Club announce Youth America's Cup Squad
In January 2020, the Royal Akarana Yacht Club (RAYC) made the decision to enter a team into the Youth Americas' Cup regatta as part of the 36th America's Cup, to be held on home waters in March 2021.
Founded in 1895, and celebrating 125 years this coming season, RAYC has been considered the home of blue water sailing since the first trans-Tasman race was held by the club in 1931.
In 2001, RAYC launched the Akarana Sailing Academy, and since then, the training these sailors have received has seen world championships won and sailors embarking on the next era of their careers including high performance and offshore sailing.
Now the RAYC is ready to move into the next phase of youth development, with the Youth America's Cup being the perfect platform to launch a team of sailors aged between 18 and 24 years to race in the AC9F foiling monohull. The AC9F introduces the exciting era of foiling monohulls to youth sailors.
RAYC was fortunate to have 33 experienced applicants. They have been through a selection process involving advice from several experienced sailors. The process of selecting a squad of eight sailors was challenging, with little known about the new AC9F boat, and what is required to make it perform in a racing environment.
RAYC feels that the sailors selected provides a range of skills and experience that can be successful in the Youth America's Cup Challenge.
The RAYC Youth America's Cup Squad consists of four female sailors and four male sailors.
Full release and names within the hour... at rayc.co.nz
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The Last Word
People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost. -- Lhamo Thondup, the 14th Dalai Lama, happy 85th Birthday!
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