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The Yacht 'Fruit' Will Not Start the Barcelona World Race
Having received communication that the Polish yacht Fruit has no valid, up-to-date IMOCA measurement certificate, and having now missed by four days the 17th December deadline by which all IMOCA Open 60's entered were required to be in Barcelona, the organisers of the Barcelona World Race have decided that they have no other option but to communicate to the Fruit team that they will not be allowed to start the race.

"It is very hard to come to a decision like this, but we cannot compromise at all on fundamental issues concerning safety." "We have every admiration for all of the efforts that the team have put in, and this is a really tough call to have to ask the team to halt their efforts to compete in the Barcelona World Race." Comments Andor Serra (ESP), Director General of the Fundació Navegació Oceánica Barcelona, the race organizers.

The IMOCA Class confirm that the Polish yacht Fruit does not comply with the current measurement rules of the IMOCA class and so no measurement certificate can be issued, and no further testing is scheduled.

The class make the point that it is the skipper's responsibility to make his boat comply with the IMOCA rule and currently the yacht does not meet the necessary requirements.

At present Fruit's engine does not satisfy the IMOCA Open 60 rules' minimum power prescription.

Although IMOCA Open 60's are sailing yachts, use of the engine can be vital when manoeuvring at close quarters in any weather, in matters of safety and security, or when the yacht's rig or sails are damaged.

Meanwhile the majority of the Barcelona World Race fleet have completed or are very close to having completed safety and security scrutineering which was continuing today on the Race Fleet Dock at the Moll Barcelona World Race.

Even if two teams have had to buy replacements liferafts to comply with the up to date rules, for most with remaining issues to be resolved concern supplying administrative paperwork, but all must be fully compliant by the end of 23rd December.

www.barcelonaworldrace.org

WMRT Looks Ahead
Since the curtain came down on the 2010 edition of the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) in the most emphatic fashion - on the final day of the final event - the sailing world has been reflecting on a season when the Tour made the headlines both on and off the water, having also made a succession of exciting announcements that will define the future of the series.

It was a final that went down to the wire however the experience of the triple Olympic gold medalist proved too much as Ainslie took the Monsoon Cup and with it, the ISAF Match Racing World Championship. Reflecting on his achievement, the Brit said: "We've enjoyed being on the Tour an incredible amount - for the whole team this victory has been massive for us."

Ainslie's win and the Monsoon Cup as a whole was a fitting finale to a season that had seen so many epic battles out on the water. Asked what his verdict was on the final event, Jerome Pels, Secretary General of ISAF gave his unequivocal endorsement: "If you want to see how to run a sailing event you should come to the Monsoon Cup."

Off the water, the bidding process for new host venues and the boat design competition are both moving forward in earnest as the Tour strengthens its preeminent position on the world's sailing scene. The closing date for the boat design competition is January 31 2011. After this, submissions will be scrutinized by the design committee of Peter Gilmour (President of WMRT), Jim O'Toole (CEO of WMRT), Craig Mitchell (Tour Director), Terry Newby (Regatta International) and three professional sailors. The committee will then meet in London, with short-listed designers invited to make presentations. Winners will be announced on 14 February 2011.

Meanwhile, bids for host venues for the 2012 season will close on 28 February 2011 to enable the Tour to have the 2012 schedule locked into place by the end of May 2011. Commenting on the level of interest, Jim O'Toole, CEO of World Match Racing Tour said: "We have been delighted by the overwhelming response to both the venue bidding process and the design competition. After more than 50 expressions of interest, and the signing of many NDAs, a number of venues are putting serious bids together."

Attention will next turn to the first event of the 2011 season, Match Race France. In 2010, Richard defeated Ainslie 2-0 in the final - a win the Frenchman will be keen to repeat on his home waters.

www.wmrt.com

Palamos Christmas Race
Following the shifty wind of the morning, starts for all classes were given today by 13:00hrs.The strongest wind conditions were registered in Alpha area where the 49ers struggled with 18 to 20 knots while the 470s and Finns sailed in lighter conditions, 10 to 12 knots in Bravo area. An average of 15 knots provided also good sailing for the Laser fleet in Charlie area. A wind drop in bravo area made sailors return ashore after completing two races. The 49er sailed 4 races today and 3 races were completed by the Laser and Laser radial.

Racing finishes on Wednesday 22 December.

Top three by class:

470 Men
1. Jasper Wagner/Tobias Bolduan, GER, 15
2. Ben Saxton/David Kohler, GBR, 17
3. Kevin Peponnet/Julien Lebrun, FRA, 29

470 Women
1. Tara Pacheco/Berta Betanzos, ESP, 12
2. Hannah Mills/Katie Archer, GBR, 12
3. Sophie Wequelin/Sophie Ainsworth, GBR, 17

49er
1. Federico Alonso/Arturo Alonso, ESP, 20
2. Bernardo Freitas/Francisco Andrade, POR, 28
3. Axel Silvy/Ulysse Hoffmann, FRA, 33

Finn
1. Jan Kurfeld, GER, 9
2. Alejandro Muscat Díaz, ESP, 10
3. Florian Raudaschl, AUT, 12

Laser Radial
1. Francesca Clapcich, ITA, 13
2. Lucia Reyes, ESP, 16
3. Michelle Broekhuizen, NED, 22

Laser Standard
1. Rodrigue Cabaz, FRA, 19
2. Alejandro Foglia, URU, 28
3. Douwe Broekens, NED, 32

www.christmasrace.org

Seahorse December 2010
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Man at the centre
There is nobody in a better position to know what's really been going on in the America's Cup these last few years than three-time Cup winner Grant  Simmer, recent head of TeamOrigin

The real deal - Part I
CARL RYVES is one of the most iconic and widely-respected of Australia's many fine sailors... he was also a close confidant of the great Ben Lexcen. Blue Robinson correctly reminded us that this story now needs telling...

Taken for granted
Easily overlooked... Italian engineer Francesco Pelizza explains the full gestation of a modern composite spar from initial concept to sea trial

If you haven't subscribed to Seahorse already we're keen to help you attend to that! - Please use the following promotional link and enjoy the hefty Scuttlebutt Europe discount... and it gets even better for 2 and 3 year subscriptions...

If you haven't subscribed to Seahorse already we're keen to help you attend to that! - Please use the following promotional link and enjoy the hefty Scuttlebutt Europe discount... and it gets even better for 2 and 3 year subscriptions...

www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/subs

The Incredible Crew
Wild Oats XI, the Rolex Sydney Hobart race record holder and winner of four consecutive line honours in five starts, will be crewed by one of the most talented teams imaginable when the big race starts on Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day.

Owner Bob Oatley, in conjunction with skipper Mark Richards, has assembled some of the best ocean racing talent from Australia and New Zealand - 17 men and two women - for the 30-metre long supermaxi's bid for top honours in the 628 nautical mile classic. Between them they have a total of 201 Hobart races to their credit, and their background takes in almost every major event on the international sailing calendar - the Olympics, the America's Cup, the Volvo Ocean Race round the world, world championships and world records.

Chances are that every ounce of this accumulated experience will be called on this year if the race forecast from yachting meteorologist Roger Badham holds true. His latest prognosis for what Wild Oats XI and other frontrunners can expect in Bass Strait predicts headwinds from the southwest of up to 40 knots and punishing seas. Such conditions will provide the ultimate test for yacht and crew and will almost certainly erase any chance of the race record - which was set at 1 day, 18 hours, 40 minutes and 10 seconds by Wild Oats XI in 2005 - being lowered.

Of the crew aboard Wild Oats XI this year Steve Jarvin and Sven Runow claim the highest number of starts: 22 and 21 respectively. Navigator Adrienne Cahalan has 18 races behind her - a record for women who have contested the classic - Iain Murray 16 and co-navigator Ian 'Fresh' Burns 15. It will be skipper Mark Richards' seventh race south.

Here is a potted profile of some of the Wild Oats XI crew:

Iain Murray (Aus): Probably the best-known name in yachting in Australia. Winner of six consecutive 18ft skiff world championships; competed in the Star class in the last Olympics; winner of world keelboat championships and America's Cup competitor.

Adrienne Cahalan (Aus): Internationally acclaimed ocean racing navigator (and mother of two young children). Australian Yachtswoman of the Year 2004-2005; four Sydney Hobart race line honours; navigator, Volvo Ocean Race round the world; Navigator aboard 125ft maxi catamaran 'Cheyenne' which broke the Round the World non-stop speed record in 2004 - 58 days, 9 hours, 32 minutes and 45 seconds.

Ian 'Fresh' Burns (Aus): An outstanding navigator, sailor and yacht designer/engineer. Was the internationally acclaimed design coordinator for BMW ORACLE Racing, the revolutionary trimaran that won the America's Cup this year.

Stu Bannatyne (NZ): Has raced around the world five times and is the only person to have won the Volvo Ocean race (previously the Whitbread Race) on three different classes of yacht - maxi ketch (New Zealand Endeavour), Volvo 60 (Illbruck) and VO70 (Ericsson). Recently named a watch captain for kiwi entry, Camper, for the next Volvo race. Tactician aboard Alfa Romeo when she took line honours in last year's Hobart race

Robbie Naismith (NZ): Known as 'Battler'. Considered to be one of the best sail trimmers in the world. He has sailed in five America's Cups, four Volvo Ocean Races and contested almost every major offshore event in the world. Raced more than 250 days during the past 12 months.

Matthew Mason (NZ): A highly experienced offshore sailor, boat builder and shore team manager with six America's Cups to his credit. -- Rob Kothe

AC Measurement Committee Appointed
The Measurement Committee for the 34th America's Cup has been appointed. Joining Chief Measurer Nick Nicholson (USA) is Carlos de Beltran Gutierrez (ESP) and Shaun Ritson (AUS).

Nick Nicholson leads the committee with experience as a measurer since 1979, including in five previous editions of the America's Cup.

"Nick has the respect of the teams and competitors and they've all voted overwhelmingly that he's the person they want in this position," said Iain Murray, the Regatta Director.

Shaun Ritson is a naval architect and marine engineer who was a member of the Measurement Committee for the 31st and 32nd editions of the Cup. He is Chief Measurer for the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012, and was a member of the VOR Rule Management Group from 2003 to 2009.

Carlos de Beltran is a Measurer and Race Officer for the Spanish Sailing Federation, and is finishing his naval architecture degree in Spain. He served as an assistant to the Measurement Committee during America's Cup 32, and is a member of the Measurement Committee for the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012.

www.americascup.com

Sail Faster And Smarter!
Speed and Smarts Speed & Smarts is a bi-monthly newsletter packed with tips to improve your racing performance. It's written by winning AC tactician David Dellenbaugh, and each issue has 16 pages full of instructional advice on tactics, strategy, speed, boathandling and rules (plus there's no advertising!).

Whether you race a one-design or big boat, at the top or bottom of your fleet, you'll find lots of valuable ideas in Speed & Smarts. In fact, when you consider the cost of other go-fast items you can buy, this newsletter gives you extremely good "bang for your buck."

View a sample issue at www.speedandsmarts.com/BackIssues/SampleIssue

Subscribe at www.speedandsmarts.com

Dalton Favours San Francisco
In a 40 minute interview on Radio LiveSPORT this morning, he made it clear that a US venue was far more suitable for Emirates Team New Zealand.

'San Francisco would be way better to us, it is not that far away, it blows - like Fremantle and is a natural amphitheater,' Dalton said.

'We need a venue, because we have to get going. The venue decision changes the sponsor mix for us', he added.

Already Team New Zealand has some sponsors interested in Toyota and Omega, and possibly Emirates - and he described the US market as being the 'last frontier: for the Middle Eastern airline.

'We look at the whole environment with the new boats, the amphitheater and San Francisco is the preferred venue for us.'

Although he has taken on a new team to undertake the due diligence, on a Challenge, but Dalton says they are 'only ticking over' until the venue is decided.

One of those comes from the Skunkworks team who did the do the U2 Spyplane, and the Stealth Bomber and the Raptor.

'The wing is the 900 pound gorilla in the room, get that wrong and no matter how good you are with the rest - the boat won't be fast', he told the Radio LiveSPORT audience. -- From Sail-world.com, www.sail-world.com

Interview in two parts on Radio Live Sport NZ:

www.radiolivesport.co.nz

Two New American Campaigns Target Les Voiles De St. Barth
For the 2011 edition of the Les Voiles de St. Barth, scheduled for April 4 - 9, two U.S. teams- Vesper/Team Moneypenny and Rambler 100-will headline.

"We participated in the inaugural Les Voiles de St. Barth and knew immediately we would return for 2011; we will have many of the same crew we had last time," said Jim Swartz (Park City, Utah), a venture capitalist who has been circling the globe for years seeking new adventures aboard his various yachts named Moneypenny. His latest acquisition, a TP52 (formerly named Quantum Racing, which was the 2010 TP52 world champion), replaces his 2010 entry, the Swan 601 Moneypenny, and will have aboard it some of the world's finest sailors, including Gavin Brady, Ben Beer, Jamie Gale, Brett Jones, Ken Keefe, Matt Waikowicz, and Swartz himself, who, as he always does, will take the helm.

"The boat is currently in Florida, having modifications made to it, which will take it out of its current one-design configuration, and we'll have our first serious race week with it at the Miami Grand Prix in March; then it's on to St. Barth," said Swartz, explaining that the "Vesper" in the new boat name refers to James Bond's true love, the double agent Vesper Lynd, who also inspired the Vesper Martini. (Bond fans should know Swartz also campaigns a Melges 32 named Q.)

Another owner/driver, George David (Hartford, Conn.), former United Technologies Chairman and CEO, will also be campaigning on a new platform at the 2011 Les Voiles de St. Barth. His 90' Rambler won the week last year, and he's back in 2011 with Rambler 100, formerly known as Speedboat and subsequently Virgin Atlantic, when Alex Jackson and Richard Branson, respectively, aspired to break the transatlantic record.

According to project manager Mick Harvey, Rambler 100, like Vesper/Moneypenny, is undergoing modifications, "to bring it up to speed as an IRC racer as well as an all-around record breaker." The principal 2011 campaign goal for Rambler 100 is the Atlantic Ocean Racing Series and its main element, the Transatlantic Race 2011.

Rambler 100, a canting keel Juan Kouyoumdjian (Juan K) design, is as powerful as they come. "With a 145' (44.3 metre) rig and a sail plan this big there's no room for error," said David. "We had some five-minute legs in the 2010 Les Voiles de St. Barth, and tight course racing with a boat this big is where it all comes together."

As they did in 2007, Ken Read and members of his Puma Ocean Racing team will be joining David aboard Rambler 100 for its first few events in 2011. Read's Volvo 70 Mar Mostro (another Juan K design) is building now for launch in April and entry in the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race. "Rambler 100 is a Volvo 70 on steroids," said Read. "How better to get ready for a race around the world."

www.lesvoilesdesaintbarth.com

Tornado Class Opens New Sailing Arena at Kieler Woche
Photo by Thomas Eisenkratzer. Click on image to enlarge.

Kieler Woche Tornados The Kieler Woche management made an announcement to implement the new Speedsailing racing style with Tornados into their program. We will present a new Sailing Arena in the centre of Kiel and we will deliver adrenaline speedsailing races in June 2011 for spectators and the media.

Tornado Sail`N´Fly. Close action, engrossing battles, slick commentary, short races, legendary skippers and all starting on time. It's sailing as we have never seen it before, and tailor-made to be both spectator and media friendly. With the new One Design Tornado we can guarantee the media and spectators to start exact on time between 1 and 35 knots.

And it is more than a partnership between a class and the Kieler Woche event organization. We want to bring forward our sport into a new era that it is accessible and affordable for all sailors and Nations.

First time in 129 years of history of the Kieler Woche, high-performance sailing gets connected to the party life and concerts in the centre of the city. This will bring thousands of people close to the sailing area, where the Tornado will perform. This way we will touch the big mass of people.

Spectators and sailors can go straight from sailing into the party life. We present pure adrenaline sailing, where the young generation is present.

Our mission is to create a win-win situation for all who are involved in Olympic Sailing. Our sport has great potential. We use the energy of the nature with human power and innovative techniques. It's time to present the very best of sailing in a better way to the media, spectators and sponsors. At the Sailing Arena in Kiel we will show that the Tornado Multihull is perfect boat for it. -- Roland Gaebler

More Information, tickets and entries at www.speedsailing.org

Featured Brokerage
Featured Brokerage Boat PUMA's "il mostro" is seriously for sale. Constantly updated and immaculately maintained.

Why is "il mostro" now seriously for sale? With the new Volvo Ocean Race rules there is no more two boat testing allowed as a cost saving measure to help teams reduce their overall budgets. PUMA Ocean Racing is in the process of building a new boat for the 2011-2012 edition of the race, so "il mostro" is now available to an up-and-coming VOR team or ambitious owner ready to break records offshore under ORR or IRC.

Click on the "il mostro" button for all the details.

www.pumavolvo70forsale.com

The Last Word
You're only as young as the last time you changed your mind. -- Timothy Leary

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