EuroSail News #5083

In This Issue
• Guyader Bermudes 1000 Race
• Melges 24 World Championship
• Let in more light with Moonlight Hatches
• 2022 GC32 Racing Tour
• Yacht Racing Forum, Malta, November 21-22
• Cagliari, Sardinia International Keelboat Team Racing Regatta
• SSL Gold Cup Starts Now
• Boat Test on Chase Zero - the AC37 game changer?
• National Rating System For Cruiser Racers
• For The Record
• Featured Charter: Cookson 50 - TestaCuore
• Featured Brokerage:
• • AC40
• • Infiniti 52R
• • MOD 70 Powerplay
• The Last Word: Lawrence Ferlinghetti

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

Guyader Bermudes 1000 Race
With a record-breaking entry of 24 skippers, 21 of whom made it to the finish, this was the best evidence yet of the extraordinary good health of the IMOCA Class as it enters another exciting year dominated by the Vendee Arctique, and then the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe.

In its simplest terms it was won by the form skipper in the IMOCA Class, the relentless Charlie Dalin on APIVIA who was followed home, more than half a day later, by his compatriot and longtime rival Jeremie Beyou on Charal. The third player in that trio would have been Thomas Ruyant on LinkedOut, but gremlins in the steering system on that boat forced his early retirement.

But it was no surprise to see those three sailors dominating this 1,200-mile race, in proven, competitive, well-funded boats that have been optimised to the limits. The big question now is how well each of those campaigns will go as they transition to new boats, with Beyou the first to make the step in his new Sam Manuard design in time for the Route du Rhum, and then Dalin and Ruyant following suit early next year.

Behind them a contest that started in light winds, and then saw big breeze at the Fastnet and again at Finisterre, was always going to be a challenge for skippers in new machinery. The first to finish was Louis Burton in Bureau Vallee, securing third place on the former L’Occitane en Provence (also from Manuard’s board) which had dismasted in the Transat Jacques Vabre.

Then came the first standout performer outside the podium places as Nicolas Lunven crossed the line off Brest in fourth place, less than an hour behind Burton on Banque Populaire, the rented former Groupe APICIL, a non-foiler originally launched way back in 2008.

The IMOCA Class takes on the second edition of the 3,500-mile Vendee Arctique that starts from Les Sables D’Olonne on June 12th. -- Ed Gorman

imoca.org

Melges 24 World Championship
Sadly, the final day of the third 2022 Melges 24 World Championship in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S. was to be dogged by light winds. After long wait, first ashore and then on the water, the final possible Race Twelve of the championship was started twice - first at 12:15 but was abandoned in three minutes. The second attempt was successful, but due to the major wind shift, PRO Tom Lihan had to abandon the race again. Now past the deadline for starting a race, the victory and World Title were sealed to Peter Duncan’s team Raza Mixta (USA) with Victor Diaz de Leon calling the tactics and Erik Shampain, Matt Pistay and Morgan Trubovich in crew. In the Corinthian division, victory goes to Taki 4 (ITA), claiming their fourth Corinthian World Title with Niccolo Bertola, Giacomo Fossati, Giovanni Bannetta, Pietro Seghezza, and Marco Zammarchi.

Peter Duncan, who’s first run for the Melges 24 World Title finished with eighth place in Miami Worlds in 2016, was posting nine times out of eleven only one-digit results to the scoreboard, securing its victory with a six-point lead getting his name on the Melges Performance Sailboats Trophy.

Final Top 10 (out of 31, 11 races, 1 discard):
1. Raza Mixta - Peter Duncan, USA, 46 pts
2. Zenda Express - Harry Melges IV, USA, 50 pts
3. Monsoon - Bruce Ayres, USA, 50 pts
4. Dark Energy - Laura Grondin, USA, 51 pts
5. New England Ropes - Bora Gulari, USA, 52 pts
6. Lucky Dog - Travis Weisleder, USA, 77 pts
7. Full Throttle - Brian Porter, USA, 79pts
8. Pacific Yankee - Drew Freides, USA, 83 pts
9. Nefeli - Peter Karrie, GER, 86 pts
10. Zingara - Richard Reid, CAN, 102 pts

www.melges24.com/Worlds2022

Let in more light with Moonlight Hatches
Just like your windows transform your home, allowing the light in whilst keeping the elements out, the hatches on your yacht do the same role.

Saltwater, sand and extreme weather can take their toll and as sailors, we like to keep elements out, perhaps it’s time to check your hatches and portlights. Did you know that in addition to increasing light and creating a new look, modern moonlight hatches offer a number of benefits?

1. Larger more powerful glass frames secure tightly over the inner frame, staying firmly closed when sailing in extreme seas.
2. Handles and hinges are made of an impact resistant ABS material with powerful O-rings holding the handles tightly in position.
3. A flexible inner frame provides a sympathetic cover on the inside of the deck.
4. No dangerous isocyanates and binds on degreased materials above and below the water.

For more than 30 years, Moonlight has worked to establish itself as a leading manufacturer and supplier of marine hatches and portlights for motor and sailboats. From concept through to design and careful selection of materials, to the finishing touches and shipment, Moonlight controls everything in-house.

What’s even more impressive is that you can replace your old leaky deck hatch with a new dry and modern style one in a few simple steps. Find out more here bsi-rigging.com/moonlight-guide/

For more information on Moonlight and all the high-quality marine brands within the BSI Group including BSI Rigging, GORI Propellers, Hundested Propeller, Jefa Steering and OYS Rigging please visit bsidk.com

Alinghi Red Bull Racing to field two teams on the 2022 GC32 Racing Tour
Seven flying catamarans are set to line up on one of the world’s top race courses over 25-29 May at the GC32 Riva Cup, opening event of the 2022 GC32 Racing Tour. After a season and a half lost to the pandemic, this will be the first time in three years that the World Sailing-endorsed foiling catamaran class has managed to return to Riva del Garda - one of the most perfect venues for the sport, renowned for its strong, reliable winds and flat water.

In 2021 the abbreviated season was won by Alinghi, which claimed three out of four events with the exception of the GC32 World Championship in Villasimius when Red Bull Sailing Team took the crown. Since then Alinghi has announced its new challenge for the America’s Cup as Alinghi Red Bull Racing. It is thus now within the context of an active America’s Cup team that the champions return with two GC32s - Alinghi Red Bull Racing - SUI 8 (identified by its yellow lines) and Alinghi Red Bull Racing - SUI15 (with red lines). The former is once again being helmed by Swiss ace Arnaud Psarofaghis, while the other boat will be skippered by Swiss 49er and Flying Phantom skipper Maxime Bachelin. -- James Boyd

2022 GC32 Racing Tour
25 - 29 May: Riva del Garda (ITA)
22 - 26 June: Lagos (POR)
13-17 July: Lagos World Championship (POR)
14-18 September: Villasimius (ITA)
19-23 October: Mar Menor (ESP)

www.gc32racingtour.com

Yacht Racing Forum, Malta, November 21-22
Make sure to pencil the date in your diary: the next edition of the Yacht Racing Forum will bring together key personalities from the yacht racing industry for two days of conferences and networking.

YRF is a unique opportunity to meet the who’s who of yacht racing and do business in a relaxed and informal environment.

Have a look at the draft programme and speakers list online: It doesn’t get much better.

The organisers, with the support of Yachting Malta, GAC Pindar and World Sailing, are also putting in place a great social programme that includes evening receptions and even a cruise around Valletta.

Corporations willing to exhibit should book their stands rapidly: space is limited.

Registration is open on www.yachtracingforum.com

Cagliari, Sardinia International Keelboat Team Racing Regatta
Day 3 and it is Navy Day in the port of Cagliari with aircraft carriers and various escorts moving in and out... but nothing was to get in the way of the final day of racing in this the most amazing of venues.

Despite another great night of entertainment, eating and dancing; racing got underway as planned and the teams, best friends ashore were if anything more aggressive and competitive than ever once afloat. Score lines of a win by any team rarely reflected the closeness of the race with places changing again and again as boats aproached the downwind finish.

After some 40 races the Royal Thames and Yacht Club Costa Smeralda emerged as clear leaders. Race 1 of the finals saw the Thames somehow lose the grip they had had over the whole event. Collecting penalties the race went easily to the Italians.

Could the Thames get their act together for race 2 with the Italians looking totally dominant. They did and this time the Thames romped away to a virually unchallenged win. Race 3 and again the Thames look to be dominating when the traveller in their lead boat disintegrated and chaos ensued... or appeared to until Bethan Mathew on main took charge of the flogging sail, thrashing sheets and threatening chunks of metal. Then it was all teamwork to shepherd the broken boat to the finish line to victory and to wild applause.

So ended three days of amazing racing Will 2K return to Cagliari..without a doubt not just to sail and race but to enjoy the most amazing of cities. -- Bruce Hebbert

Final Places
1. Royal Thames Yacht Club (GBR)
2. Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (ITA)
3. Eastern Yacht Club (USA)
4. Royal Yacht Squadon (GBR)
5. Bayerischer Yacht Club (GER)
6. Canottiere Ichnusa (ITA)

www.facebook.com/2KTeamracing/

SSL Gold Cup Starts Now
Qualifying series kicks off on May 19th in Switzerland

Sailing has finally its own World Cup! Like football in 1930 and rugby in 1987, the SSL Gold Cup is designed to crown the best sailing nation of all! The World's Top 56 countries, selected on their SSL Nation ranking, will battle their way through to raise the coveted and only Sailing World Cup trophy.

The SSL Gold Cup 2022 will start on May 19th with the Qualifying Series in Grandson, Lake Neuchatel (Switzerland). All teams ranked from Top 25 to 56 in the January 2022 SSL Nations ranking will meet in 8 groups of 4 teams each. There will be 5 stages of Qualifying Series running from May 19th to July 17th.

After 3 to 4 days of racing, only the top two teams of each group will go through to the Final Series that will take place from October 28th to November 20th, 2022, to defend their national colors.

The Final Series venue will be officially announced on May 24th.

The SSL Gold Cup is raced on the exact same boat: the SSL47. 11 sailors on each national team, including women and men, will be selected through their national SSL ranking but also their Captain’s choice, with no financial nor technological barriers. All athletes come from Olympic classes, Match-Racing or the America's Cup. All nations, from Sailing leading countries like Australia, France, Great Britain, New Zealand or USA will race at the same level as the small ones such as Guatemala, Slovenia, Tahiti or Estonia. Passion for sport and sailing will unite all these teams with their public, who will be able to enjoy Live broadcasting of the races on Youtube and Facebook.

www.starsailors.com

Boat Test on Chase Zero - the AC37 game changer?
Photo by Richard Gladwell. Click on image to enlarge.

After a few weeks of testing in Auckland, there is a little doubt that Chase Zero is a game-changer for the America's Cup.

We had our first look at the foiling chaseboat, during a mid-week media day on the Waitemata. Afterwards there was a quick first look at Emirates Team New Zealand's land yacht to be used in Project Speed - more of that later.

The sight of foiling AC75's being pursued around the America's Cup race course by a fleet of 14 metre chase boats pushed by an impressive-looking 1600hp bank of outboards will soon be a dim memory.

So too will be the roar of outboards with the throttles wide open - replaced with a low-pitched whine. We're told it is a combination of transmission bearing and foil noise.

With six aboard, and travelling at 30-40kts, the onboard verbal interactions are not a lot different from standing around the office watercooler having a chat. -- Richard Gladwell

Read more in Sail-World.com

National Rating System For Cruiser Racers
Recognising the need for, and current lack of an entry level rating system, the RYA and RORC have joined forces with the South West Yacht Time Correction Factor (YTC) rating system to develop and roll out a new initiative: the RYA YTC, powered by RORC Rating.

YTC has been developed over recent years by a group of volunteers, initially based in Falmouth, but now more widely spread across the South West, to rate the wide variety of cruiser/racer yachts to be found racing in clubs so that they can race against each other easily, competitively and fairly. YTC is based on the statistical models developed by Linda Wolstenholme of Emsworth Slipper SC, but the system has developed significantly since the early days and, for those clubs who wish to use it, a means to introduce more accurate results-based club handicapping. Under an innovative tripartite agreement, the existing YTC core team, led by RYA SW Regional Chair Chris Davis, will continue to advise and support both the RYA and RORC in order to achieve both a seamless transfer for existing users and development and alignment of the system with IRC. The RORC Rating office will bring their unrivalled operational knowledge of rating systems to managing the new system and overseeing future development.

For the RORC Rating Office this project is part of their ambition to support the growth of the sport.

The aim of the new management team is to move systems across and embed the processes in 2022 before really promoting the system and encouraging more clubs to adopt the system in 2023 and beyond.

Any club wishing to adopt the RYA YTC for their club racing, or any boat owners interested in obtaining an RYA YTC rating can find all the details at ytc.rorcrating.com or www.swytc.org.uk

For The Record
The WSSR Council announces the establishment of a new World Record:

Record: Bermuda to Plymouth Monohull.
Yacht: Rosalba. 60ft Monohull
Name: Richard Tolkien. GBR. and a crew of 3
Dates:.24th April 2022 to the 6th May 2022.
Start time: 17;54;56 UTC on 24/04/22
Finish time: 21;07;05 UTC on 06/05/22
Elapsed time: 12 days 3 hours 12 minutes and 9 seconds
Course length: 2870 NM
Average speed: 9.86 kts

Comments: Previous Record: Talanta. Mikael Ryking/Irena Cracheva SWE/RUS. Jun 2017. 13d 5h 19m 38s

John Reed
Secretary to the WSSR Council
sailspeedrecords.com

Featured Charter
Cookson 50 - TestaCuore. Located in Mediterranean 2022.

The Cookson 50 is one of the most iconic ocean racing yachts ever built. The Cookson 50 is a fantastic choice for serious racing teams, she is easy to power up and eats up the miles on the race course. Available in the Mediterranean 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
AC40. POA EUR.

Presenting the AC40, a scaled AC75 foiling day-racer designed by Emirates Team New Zealand and built by McConaghy.

A one-design class that brings America's Cup foiling performance to a competitive racing circuit.

With self-tacking headsails and battery power replacing grinders, the yacht is sailed by two helmsmen and two trimmers. An autopilot control system maintains stable flight.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact

Tel: +852 5501 6001

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Infiniti 52R POA EUR.

The Infiniti 52 R is a custom-designed Grand Prix racing yacht developed to take full advantage of the performance benefits of DSS. Ideally suited to race coastal and offshore in locations all over the world and competitive under all rating systems, the Infiniti 52 R changes the game in this size range. Developed in conjunction with 4-time Whitbread/Volvo winner Stu Bannatyne, the Infiniti 52 R was developed to fulfil the wishes of a number of clients who were looking for a yacht that would provide a significant performance increase over current options but able to sail and race with 50-60% of the crew traditionally required for yachts of this size.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
Infiniti Yachts
Tel: +44 7920 395397
Email:

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MOD 70 Powerplay. 1,500,000 USD.