In This Issue
Finn World Masters
18 Footer Season On The Way
Sailmaker Vacancy
Class40 European Trophy
Sailing Champions League Final
Clarification on Etchells Mould 8 and 10
Morrish wins Ceilidh Cup for RNCYC
First Live Video From Within Atlantic Hurricane
China Coast Regatta
Olympic champion Earle Wells passes away
Featured Charter: Libertalia - VOLVO 60
Featured Brokerage:
• • Carkeek 47 Grand Prix
• • SW78 Elise Whisper
• • Jeanneau 54
The Last Word: Ray Magliozzi

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

Lebrun extends on high scoring Day 2 at Finn World Masters
Bas de Waal, from the Netherlands, and Jesus Pintos, from Spain, may have won the races on the second day of the 2021 Finn World Masters on the Mar Menor, in Spain, but it was France's Valerian Lebrun who extended his lead after a 3,4 on a day when most of the front of the fleet put in at least one high score in the light and very difficult breeze.

Cloud cover for most of the day kept the temperatures lower than Monday, with a lot less wind at 6-10 knots. It was also really shifty with pressure changes across the race course bringing groups up the fleet and spitting some out the back.

After four races Lebrun has an 18-point lead from Terol, with Filipe Silva just three points further back. One race is scheduled for Wednesday, when the discard will kick in and change the landscape somewhat with many currently counting a letter or high score. Racing continues until Friday.

Results after 4 races
1. Valerian Lebrun Masterm, FRA, 9
2. David Terol Masterm, ESP, 27
3. Filipe Silva Masterm, POR, 30
4. Peter Peet Grand Masterm, NED, 35
5. Simon Bovay Masterm, SUI, 65
6. Christoph Burger Masterm, SUI, 67
7. Greg Wilcox Grand Grand Masterm, NZL, 72
8. Lawrence Crispin Grand Masterm, GBR, 84
9. Peter Overup Masterm, SWE, 85
10. Allen Burrell Grand Masterm, GBR, 96

Full results

finnworldmaster.com

The League's New 18 Footer Season On The Way
The new SMEG. Click on image to enlarge.

WHAT Despite the uncertainty around the Covid-19 pandemic situation in Sydney, the Australian 18 Footers League has been moving ahead at full speed in preparation for its 87th season of continuous 18ft skiff racing on Sydney Harbour.As the club's opening race of the 2021-22 season, the Spring Championship - Race 1, gets closer to reality, it's time to take a quick look at the teams.

Leading the way is four times JJ Giltinan world 18 footer champion Michael Coxon, who starts the 2021-22 season as early favourite to defend the 2021 JJ title his Smeg team won on Sydney Harbour in March.

The 2021-22 Smeg team is one of the four teams with a brand new Van Munster hull and will again have Ricky Bridge sailing on the sheet.

One crew change comes in the bow. The multi-winning JJ Giltinan champion Trent Barnabas has retired and this season is replaced by his son, Zac, who is having his first full season in the 18s.

Michael Coxon is keen to get back on the water for the new season after being locked-down for the past three months in Sydney, and the team is going full speed to get the new hull ready for racing. "Last week was a busy weekend, at Baz Atkins' loft. We've still got to fit the centreboard, run lines and sort wings, but it's coming together well. It has been fun, organised chaos."

"We're looking forward to the strong competition we will get from our major rivals, but I'm also keen to see some of the new, young talent joining the fleet this year." Coxon added.

Despite the favouritism, Smeg will certainly have a number of strong challenges for all major championships as well as the club's championship and Season Point Score.

Full story

Sailmaker vacancy
Sailmaker Ullman Sails St. Maarten is a full service loft on the island of St. Maarten (Dutch side) in the Caribbean, offering services that include sail repairs & alterations, new sails & all types of canvas products.

We are currently looking for a qualified sail maker for our upcoming season from November 2021 to May 2022.

The applicant would be responsible for all types of sail repairs & alterations, removing & re-installing sails. The fitting of new sails & U-Stack covers. Experience in canvas work would be a plus.

The successful applicant must-
1) Be a qualified sailmaker capable of high quality repairs & alterations to all types of sails, ranging from board sails to superyachts.v 2) To be able to work independently or as part of a team
3) Possess a positive attitude.
4) Ideally be active in racing /cruising.

Employment would be full time for the above dates with the possibility of a longer contract.

Please send resume to
Rob Gilders
Ullman Sails St. Maarten

Tel. +1 721 544 5231

Antoine Carpentier (Redman) wins the Class40 European Trophy
The Class40 European Trophy (unfortunately not awarded in 2020 due to a lack of races) has this year gone to Antoine Carpentier on his Mach 40.4 Redman. Having scored podium results in all his races this year except for the Rolex Fastnet Race, Antoine Carpentier has won his first European title on his Class40 Redman in a fleet that has become ever more competitive. The Swiss duo of Valentin Gautier and Simon Koster (Banque du Leman) take second place, and Luke Berry (Lamotte - Module Creation) completes the podium.

The season kicked off at the end of May with the fiercely contested double-handed CIC Normandy Channel Race, a 1000 nm loop of the English Channel and Celtic Sea, which saw Axel Trehin and Fred Denis (Project Rescue Ocean) score their first victory on the Class40 circuit.

A month later, the Class40 fleet gathered for Les Sables - Horta. With the traditional stopover in Horta cancelled, the fleet had no choice but to race the full 2450 nm non-stop. However, for the purposes of the European Trophy, there were also separate rankings for the outbound and inbound "legs".

The biennial Rolex Fastnet Race saw Antoine Magre and his Franco-British team crowned in a race that took them a little over three days.

The second edition of the 40 Malouine Lamotte, the final event to count towards the Trophy, was to be the decider for the five boats at the top of the leaderboard. It was Antoine Carpentier who won in St Malo, clinching the 2021 European Trophy title in the process.

Next up is the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre, starting on the 7th of November, which will see 45 Class40s on the start line. The outcome of this race will determine the overall 2021 Class40 Champion.

European Trophy results
Antoine Carpentier (Redman) - 374 points
Valentin Gautier & Simon Koster (Banque du Leman) - 363 points
Luke Berry (Lamotte - Module Creation) - 357 points
Olivier & Antoine Magre (E. Leclerc Ville La Grand) - 332 points
Axel Trehin & Fred Denis (Project Rescue Ocean) - 306 points.

Full results

Sailing Champions League Final
Porto Cervo: The closing day of the SAILING Champions League Final, an event organised by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda, saw Finnish team Esbo Segelförening take victory and claim the title of "Best Yacht Club of the year". The Swiss crew from Seglervereinigung Kreuzlingen and Germany's Flensburger Segel-Club finished in second and third place respectively.

Michael Illbruck, YCCS Commodore: "We organised stadium racing within Porto Cervo harbour for the first time ever. It was a thrilling sight which spectators ashore were also able to enjoy. We had four intense days, this event format emphasises the importance of consistency in achieving excellent results. In sport and elsewhere, a positive attitude to difficulties is the key to success. This regatta brings the YCCS sporting season to a close, in a year where we were able to reopen our activities, to hold the scheduled regattas, and above all to open our doors to all the sailors, owners and crews who came back to Porto Cervo despite the challenges of the current period. See you for the 2022 season!"

www.yccs.it

Clarification on Etchells Mould 8 and 10
Following a letter from David Graham, CEO of World Sailing, dated 9th October 2021, we further clarify that World Sailing have no concerns about the validity of Etchells Moulds 8 and 10.

Further to this letter, we have removed the article published on 8th October 2021 with reference to Etchells Mould 11.

We also recognise that the Etchells class is in an extremely difficult position with reference to the boats produced from Mould 11 and the recognised issues with how it was made.

Mistakes have been made along the way which all contributed to the situation the class finds itself in, and boat owners are rightly concerned about any Etchells being deemed out of class.

Our view has always been that all parties should come together to resolve the issues in an amicable and fair fashion, so that all the owners in this great class can race their yachts in the knowledge that their boats are equal on the water. It has been this ethos that has attracted some of the greatest sailors in the world to the class and will continue to do so.

There are many highly talented and knowledgeable volunteers within the class association who are extremely passionate about the Etchells, and we believe that with the combined minds a solution to the problem can be found.

We wholeheartedly agree and believe that for the good of the class, and for the wider sport of sailing, these issues can and should be resolved so that the fairest solution can be found for the good of all Etchells sailors. -- Mark Jardine

www.sail-world.com

Morrish wins Ceilidh Cup for RNCYC
Blustery conditions made for challenging racing for the seven teams competing in the Ceilidh Cup / Scottish Student Sailing (SSS) Match Racing event, hosted at the Royal Northern and Clyde Yacht Club in Rhu, Scotland, on Saturday 9th & Sunday 10th October.

The Ceilidh Cup, a fixture for many years for the club's fleet of Sonar keelboats, resumed this weekend after a Covid-induced hiatus in 2020. Moreover, it is the first competitive event in the Scottish Student Sailing calendar since February 2020.

With similar conditions on both days - a 10-15 knot westerly supplemented by 20 knot squalls as rain showers came through - Principal Race Officer John Readman made an early decision to deploy Flag Romeo, preventing competitors from using spinnakers due the blustery conditions.

On Sunday, the format was a repechage, followed by the semi-finals and finals. The repechage, which formed a mini-round robin of teams ranked 4th-7th, resulted in a 3-way tie, which required significant application of the rulebook to resolve, by reference to the results of the previous round robin. This allowed Craig Macdonald (RNCYC) to progress to the semi-finals. Fortunately, there was just time for the semis and finals before the time limit expired.

The event is part of the RYA National Match Racing Series, which concludes later this month with the invitational National Match Racing Championship Grand Finals at London's Queen Mary SC in RS21s, 29-31 October 2021.

The final results after 36 races were:
1. Ali Morrish (RNCYC)
2. Thomas Goodman (University of Strathclyde)
3. Hector McKerney (University of St Andrews)
4. Craig Macdonald (RNCYC)
5. Jesse Jackson (University of Strathclyde)
6. Mhari Orr (University of Edinburgh)
7. Matt Brett (University of Edinburgh)

www.ryamatchracing.co.uk

First Live Video From Within Atlantic Hurricane
In what's being touted as a world first, a drone sailboat was sent into a Category 4 hurricane in the Atlantic to capture live footage from inside the storm.

Saildrone collected the footage with one of its 23-foot Explorer remote-operated vessels, which was equipped with a specially designed "hurricane wing" to withstand the extreme weather conditions inside Hurricane Sam at the end of September.

It's one of five such sailing drones deployed to collect data immediately before and during ocean storms in a partnership between the California-based Saildrone and the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

afloat.ie/marine-environment/

Saildrone

China Coast Regatta Starts 15 October
Having been postponed for a week thanks to Typhoon Lionrock, the China Coast Regatta will be held from 15 to 17 October.

2021 marks the 29th edition of the China Coast Regatta, Hong Kong's premier big boat event which was established in 1993. Running out of the Club's Middle Island clubhouse, 31 yachts will be competing in six divisions: TP52, IRC 1, 2, 3, Cruiser and HKPN. Racing over the three days will consist of a variety of windward/leeward, geometric and island courses, all overseen by a top-class race management team lead by Race Officer Inge Strompf-Jepsen.

The TP52 division includes four TP52s with Alpha + skippered by Shawn Kang odds-on favourite after taking first place in their division in 2020. They are being challenged by Sam Chan, skipper and owner of Freefire, who has years of experience on this race track, and two Chinese sailing teams of Phoenix raced by Robert Wiest, Victor Kuk and David Ho and Rampage 88 skippered by Noel Chan.

In IRC Racer 1 division, the winner is hard to predict with Ambush (Mills 41), defending champion Zannekin (Ker 46) and Seawolf 2 (Ker 42 Custom) all being potential winners. Adding Neo One (Neo 400+) and Quest (Mills 41) to the mix should spice up the competition.

IRC Racer 2 is the biggest contingent with eight yachts and is more of a mixed bag as to who will come out top of the leader board. Hot favourite is probably King Mills 40 Witchcraft skippered by highly competitive sailor Nick Burns.

chinacoastraceweek.com

Olympic champion Earle Wells passes away
Earle Wells Earle Wells was known for having a "quaint" sense of humour, often lightening a potentially volatile situation, but he was driven to win and those two qualities were key factors in claiming gold with Helmer Pedersen at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

The pair teamed up to win the Flying Dutchman against a quality fleet in Tokyo, New Zealand's second Olympic sailing gold in history following the success of Peter Mander and Jack Cropp in Melbourne in 1956

The pair sailed together for another year before moving on to other things. Pedersen, who passed away in 1987, turned to ocean racing while Wells got into racing Dragons, contesting the world championships at Toronto, Majorca and Tasmania.

In the late-1960s, Wells also focused on ocean racing, going on to sail in five Sydney to Hobart races, the Clipper Cup series off Honolulu and a catalogue of other events.

Wells remained active in the sport for many years, whether as an administrator with the Auckland Yachting Association (he was chairman for three years), coaching at the Panmure Lagoon Sailing Club or building Optimists for youngsters through the furniture factory he ran with his wife Jean until 1990.

Wells relocated to Whakatane in 1990, the same year he and Pedersen were inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame, to run a deer farm.

"Earle was a very faithful person and a great family man," Roberts said. "He had this quaint sense of humour but never gave in and would often laugh about it. He just wanted to win. He was quite a special guy."

Wells and Jean were married for 55 years until her passing in 2019, and father to Leanne and John Howard. He had three grandchildren and one great grandchild.

"Life is not always plain sailing, life has been a series of tacks and running with the wind. But now he's crossed the finish line for the final time, where Jean is waiting for him," a family statement said.

Featured Charter
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This racing sailboat is a high- performance, extreme racing boat, offering superb performance in a very strong and durable hull. Libertalia is a large 65-foot monohull built for the open sea, incorporating excellent build quality. Available to charter Caribbean & Europe 2022.

See listing details in Seahorse Charters

Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 (0) 20 3920 6261
Email:
lvyachting.com

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
Raceboats Only 2013/14 Carkeek 47 Grand Prix. 750,000 AU. Located in Fremantle, Western Australia.

Carkeek 47 Grand Prix For Sale. Built by Premier Composites 2013 /2014 constructed from unidirectional pre-preg carbon/epoxy/Kevlar honeycomb sandwich construction with optimized unidirectional carbon epoxy pre-preg reinforcements in way of all deck fittings and other highly loaded areas.

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Contact
Contact Paul Eldrid

-----------------------------------------

Raceboats Only 2001 SW78 Elise Whisper.1550000 EUR. Located in Genoa, Italy.

Designed as a cruiser-racer, the Southern Wind 78 ELISE WHISPER is ideal for both bluewater navigation and competitive races.

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Contact

+33 467 66 39 93

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The Jeanneau 54 Yacht is a beautiful and practical sailing yacht, very much along the lines of her larger sister, the very successful Jeanneau 64.

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Sea Ventures (UK) Ltd
Swanwick Marina
Swanwick Shore Road
Swanwick
Hampshire SO31 1ZL
+44 (0)1489 565444

See the RaceboatsOnly.com collection at seahorsemagazine.com/brokerage/

The Last Word
Never buy a car as an investment. Buy a car to drive. That way, you’ll limit your disappointment to only one area. -- Ray Magliozzi

Editorial and letter submissions to

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

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