In This Issue
• Rayon Vert - Multihull Line Honours in RORC Transatlantic Race
• American Magic's Fight To Save Patriot
• Climbing Home to A Final Battle
• Midnight Seeks Enthusiastic Capable Crew
• Classic Boat Awards 2021
• Blow Away the Cobwebs at the 25th Charleston Race Week
• International 5O5 European Championships
• New York Yacht Club Statement on American Magic
• The IRC New Flying Headsail: What's the Buzz?
• Patriots Together
• Featured Charter: Kali - First 47.7
• Featured Brokerage:
• • J/109 - BOO
• • Swan 105 RS - Child of Lir
• • GER 5500 - Broader View Hamburg
• The Last Word: Dwight D. Eisenhower
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
Rayon Vert - Multihull Line Honours in RORC Transatlantic Race
Click on image to enlarge.
Antigua: Oren Nataf's Multi50 Trimaran Rayon Vert, skippered by Alex Pella crossed the finish line of the 7th edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race at 13:33 UTC in an elapsed time of 9 days, 3 hours, 33 mins and 19 secs.
Racing Two-Handed across the Atlantic in under 10 days is a remarkable achievement. Rayon Vert crossed the finish line at full speed, surfing in the Caribbean swell. Helen Spooner, who has organised the volunteers for every edition of the RORC Caribbean 600, greeted the pair with the assistance of the Antigua & Barbuda Coastguard. Oren and Alex were all smiles, receiving ice cold beers after finishing the 2,735-mile race from Puerto Calero, Lanzarote, Canary Islands.
Rayon Vert's owner Oren Nataf is a member of the Yacht Club de Monaco and he last raced across the Atlantic in the 2019 Transat Classique. His classic Olin Stephens 49ft yawl Stiren was also skippered by Alex Pella. Next year, Nataf intends to race across the Atlantic solo with Rayon Vert in the 2022 Route du Rhum.
Rayon Vert's skipper, Alex Pella is one of Spain's most decorated offshore sailors. Pella won the 2014 Route du Rhum and the 2017 Transat Jacques Vabres, and was crew on IDEC 3 for the 2017 Jules Verne Trophy win.
The next boat expected to complete the RORC Transatlantic Race is Johannes Schwarz's Volvo 70 Green Dragon, which is due to cross the finish line in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
American Magic's Fight To Save Patriot
Sunday evening on New Zealand's Hauraki Gulf, with live footage streaming to anxious sailing fans around the globe, American Magic sailors and support crew fought a desperate battle to save PATRIOT, the AC75 the 150-person team spent years designing, building, sailing and refining. On her 44th day of sailing, and her third day of racing in the Prada Cup, PATRIOT sustained major mid-race damage to the port side of the hull and was in real danger of slipping beneath the waves.
Moments earlier, the sleek, blue-hulled AC75 was winning her race against Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli with room and style to spare. As soon as a 25-knot rain squall sent PATRIOT flying into the air and then down onto her side, her fate rested in the hands of a tireless coalition of team personnel, America's Cup competitors, first responders, and many others.
Watch American Magic's RACE WEEK, Ep.2, to see how it this dramatic mid-Gulf rescue effort unfolded on the racecourse, on the team's chase boats, and at the team's base.
Climbing Home to A Final Battle
With less than two weeks - perhaps even just ten days - until the finish of what is set to be the closest ever edition of the Vendee Globe it is still impossible to predict which three skippers will finish on the podium.
"To be honest we wont really have a decent idea until the first ones get to the entrance to the Bay of Biscay at La Coruña," warned Jacques Caraës, race director this morning.
Emerging from the Doldrums first Charlie Dalin (Apivia) and Louis Burton (Bureau Vallee 2) are taking slightly different options. Dalin may be computed to be 48 nautical miles closer to the finish than rival Burton but the skipper from Saint Malo is sailing over three knots faster, is actually more north than Dalin but is making a lower, faster angle and so diverging to the west. Their lateral west east separation is already 110 miles.
The speed race 800 miles northwestwards is towards the point where they each think it fastest and easiest to cross a high pressure ridge of light winds to connect with a North Atlantic's winter low pressure arriving from Newfoundland.
For the nine leaders managing the final charge will be particularly tricky. "They will have to take care of their boats, the boats are tired and they are tired," points out Christian Dumard, the Vendee Globe meteorologist." Normally at this stage it is usually enough to be in a kind of safe, conservative mode to bring the boat home. But this time they are going to have to push and push hard in sometimes strong winds. At midday on the Vendee Globe Live show, erstwhile leader Yannick Bestaven (Maître CoQ IV) revealed that he had has had technical problems since the depression coming into Cape Horn. "I don't have a pulpit anymore, no furlers and there are some sails that I can't use anymore. These added to the difficulty of getting through the Doldrums but I feel like I'm coming out of it."
Top ten at 18 Jan 2021 - 21h (UTC)
1. Charlie Dalin - APIVIA, 2794.81 nm to finish
2. Louis Burton - Valley 2 Office, 78.58 nm to leader
3. Damien Seguin - GROUPE APICIL, 112.58 nm
4. Thomas Ruyant - LinkedOut, 121.86 nm
5. Yannick Bestaven - Maitre CoQ IV, 124.44 nm to leader
6. Giancarlo Pedote - Prysmian Group, 160.97 nm
7. Boris Herrmann - SEAEXPLORER - Yacht Club De Monaco, 163.5 nm
8. Benjamin Dutreux - OMIA - WATER FAMILY, 190.5 nm
9. Jean Le Cam - Yes We Cam!, 271.88 nm
10. Maxime Sorel - V and B-MAYENNE, 489.2 nm
Midnight Seeks Enthusiastic Capable Crew
Captain/Chef/Mate
The Oyster 82 Midnight will be back afloat Ipswich in April, refreshed and ready for passage to the Med, where the season will comprise a mix of charter and owner's use. She will then head for the Caribbean and on to Scotland and Ireland in '22.
Her owner, Oyster's founder, is a keen racer and part of Midnight's duties will be to provide regatta support for a vintage gaff cutter and a new IRC 52.
Crew with relevant experience are invited to email their CV in confidence. It may be possible to arrange interviews in Antigua up to 28 Jan, thereafter in the UK.
Classic Boat Awards 2021
One of the categories again this year is Classic Boater of the Year and one of the four finalists is a frequent contributor here... Euan Ross, the author of the immense (and immensely fascinating) book Highland Cowes, currently gracing your humble narrator's office coffee table.
This year's usual suspects:
Eric Kesteloo
Eric Kesteloo has captained the 184ft (56m) barque Europa since 2006, taking her all over the world including regular trips to Antarctica every season. But in 2020, Covid 19 forced him and his crew to set off on a voyage which, for such a vessel, may be unique in these modern times: from Ushuaia, at South America's southern tip to Holland, non-stop and almost entirely under sail. Eighty-one days and 10,160 miles later Europa returned to Scheveningen with crew morale high and the ship in good shape.
Sean Mcmillan
Sean McMillan founded Spirit Yachts in 1993 after a decade designing and building classic yachts. Today, Spirit is the world leader in new, wooden Spirit of Tradition sailing yachts - they've built more than a few motorboats too. In 2020 year, Spirit built the biggest single-masted wooden sailing yacht in Britain since Shamrock V in 1930, the Spirit 111; has started setting up the Spirit Academy of Yacht Construction and Technology; and signed up James Bond to the brand... again.
Luke Powell
From 1997-2012, Luke Powell built eight traditional Scillonian-style pilot cutters. After buying Agnes back from her owner, he and wife Joanna spent the last few years chartering. In 2020 Luke completed his ninth pilot cutter Pellew, three times the displacement of his next biggest. He now runs the Rhoda Mary Shipyard in Truro, where Pellew was built, as a traditional boatyard and training centre and, as soon as Covid allows, will charter both Pellew and Agnes. As a builder of large, traditional vessels, he is unrivalled.
Euan Ross (pictured above)
Major biographies and research projects, like the Lloyds digitisation, might have a limited audience, but their benefits are enormous to yachting historians and enthusiasts in perpetuity. This year, we are shortlisting Euan Ross, for his second work, Highland Cowes. This is a biography not of a man but of a nation, and over its 300,000 words, tells nothing less than the story of sailing in Scotland. Euan's previous (2016) book, The Piper Calls the Tune, was a biography of Scottish yacht designer David Boyd.
Cast your ballot: awards.classicboat.co.uk/classic-boater-of-the-year/
Blow Away the Cobwebs at the 25th Charleston Race Week
Due to the lack of sailing in 2020, organizers of Charleston Race Week are adding innovative ways to help participants blow away the cobwebs and help improve their game. One addition will be GPS trackers for participants to track their results and improve performance.
Coaches will also be on the courses to observe and commentate, which will be available online for everyone to review. What's more, real-time tracking engages spectators and enhances sponsor value.
The 25th anniversary event, April 8-11, will be run safely and innovatively and pent-up demand is expected!
Register before January 31st to save $100!
International 5O5 European Championships
16 - 20 July, 2021. Weymouth, Uk
The International 505 Class European Championship typically attracts around 100 entries and is held bi-annually when the Class World Championship is held outside Europe. As Covid-19 travel restrictions ease, the European Championship in Weymouth will be a welcome major open event for sailors from around the world before the World Championship in Bermuda from 27 Oct - 5 November.
www.int505.org/2021-european-championship-weymouth/
New York Yacht Club Statement on American Magic
Like New York Yacht Club American Magic fans around the world, I watched yesterday's Prada Cup race against Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli eager to see PATRIOT show her speed in her favorite conditions. To see our team go from almost certain victory to almost losing the boat in a few short moments was heartbreaking. I am extremely grateful that no one was seriously injured.
On behalf of the Flag Officers and members of the New York Yacht Club, I want to express our most sincere thanks to the other three America's Cup teams - Emirates Team New Zealand, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli and INEOS Team UK - along with the America's Cup Event staff, local fire and rescue personnel and Coastguard New Zealand for their immediate and unwavering support yesterday. Without it, I don't think we would've been able to keep PATRIOT afloat.
The road ahead will be challenging. But after interacting with the American Magic team over the past three years, I know there is no finer crew of sailors, builders, designers, engineers and support personnel on the planet. We will get PATRIOT back on the water.
It's not easy to create an America's Cup syndicate from scratch and be competitive. But as the first five legs of yesterday's race proved, American Magic did just that, building a boat and crew fast enough to take on the world. We are tremendously proud of this team. I look forward to cheering on PATRIOT in the near future.
Go American Magic. Go PATRIOT. -- Christopher J. Culver, Commodore
The IRC New Flying Headsail: What's the Buzz?
Barry Hayes of UK Sailmakers Ireland (in conjunction with Jenny Howells of the RORC Rating Office) explains the main difference between a flying Jib and an IRC flying headsail
The main difference between a flying Jib and an IRC flying headsail is the flying Jib is non-overlapping and measures in as a headsail (Headsail Area HSA). The flying headsail (flying sail area FSA) is a small, flat and overlapping code zero which is a new sail type in IRC.
The flying headsail is a code zero development and has very little to do with a headsail as it's measured as a spinnaker/genoa. As big boats and double handed boats developed their offshore sails over the past few years, particularly now that there are more foiling boats, a hybrid sail was developed with the code zero as the starting point. The new sail measures somewhere between a code zero and a genoa. This sail didn't fit in any rating rule and was rated as a headsail if under 75% mid girth so was heavily penalised. IRC now has moved to include it in their measurement rule. So boats can use the sail offshore and have it rated.
Full article in Afloat magazine
Patriots Together
It was drama of the highest order that stands up to anything that we have seen in Formula 1 or any other high-octane equipment sport. The American Magic capsize, however, showed another side of the America's Cup and it's a quality that sailors recognise worldwide and a code that every racing sailor signs up to. It is the Fundamental Rule 1.1 of sailing in the International Racing Rules and states: "A boat or competitor shall give all possible help to any person or vessel in danger."
s Patriot capsized, immediately an armada of chase boats was on the scene and this was quickly followed up superbly by all of the race teams lending every possible piece of support, equipment and manpower that they could muster to save the wounded American yacht. The New Zealand Fire Brigade came in with pumps and the Coastguard was on hand to lend assistance. Collectively, miraculously, everyone pulled together in American Magic's hour of need and stabilised the lifeless, helpless, carbon goliath as it drifted holed and direction-less on the tide.
Amidst the shock and sheer sadness of the situation, it was also one of the most magnificent sights of human compassion and determination that I have seen in the America's Cup and all credit to every single person who battled so tenaciously to save the vessel.
So often we get whooped-up into the rivalry of the Cup that it's easy to forget that real people with real human feelings are involved.
Magnus Wheatley's full editorial in Rule 69 Blog
Featured Charter
Kali - First 47.7. Located in Caribbean, Mediterranean
The Beneteau First 47.7 a racer/cruiser, is a very versatile yacht, offering racing performance with the comfort of a cruiser. Beneteau built two versions of the First 47.7 – and Kali is a mixture of the two, making her an exceptional yacht. Kali has the shorter keel but the racing rigging and will enable some thrilling performances, especially going downwind. She has a great symmetrical spinnaker with a classic carbon spi pole. She is a great choice to take part in the Caribbean Season, with individual spaces available.
See listing details in Seahorse Charters
Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 (0) 20 3920 6261
Email:
http://lvyachting.com
See the the Seahorse charter collection
Featured Brokerage
2006 J/109 - BOO. 89,950 GBP. Located in Lymington, UK.
Very successful and well maintained J/109, with a fresh sail wardrobe, recent instruments and reasonable price.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
Ben Cooper
Berthon Yacht Sales
Tel: 0044 (0)1590 679 222
E-Mail:
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2014 Swan 105 RS Child of Lir. 7,900,000 VAT Paid EUR. Located in Calpe, Spain.
Swan 105 CHILD OF LIR was commissioned by an experienced owner who sought a modern performance cruiser utilizing the very latest technology while maintaining a high level of comfort and the ability to sail with minimal crew. Nautor’s Swan was chosen as the builder and the design is a unique collaboration of Frers Naval Architecture and Beiderbeck Design. Drawing on a long and successful experience, Frers developed a hull form and sail plan that allowed for excellent performance and sea keeping abilities while Beiderbeck implemented their forward-thinking expertise to create an innovative arrangement that maximizes volume and comfort on deck and throughout the interior. Special attention was paid to the low noise level throughout the Yacht. There is a special night mode generator to guarantee restful sleep.
See listing details in Nautor's Swan Brokerage
Contact
Nautor's Swan Brokerage - Thomas Perry
Tel. +377 97 97 95 07
nautorswanbrokerage.com
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GER 5500 “Broader View Hamburg”. 155,000 EUR. Located in Kiel Germany
GER 5500 “Broader View Hamburg” is available for sale - located Kiel Germany
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
See the RaceboatsOnly.com collection at seahorsemagazine.com/brokerage/
The Last Word
A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both. -- Dwight D. Eisenhower
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