In This Issue
• Fast and dramatic start to Rolex Sydney Hobart
• IRC European Championship 2023
• Head turner
• Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar
• World Sailing Show
• Selden Sailjuice Winter Series
• RORC launch SailRaceHQ
• Sailing World on Water
• OCC Awards Challenge Grant to Novara One Planet
• Featured Charter: Pura Follia
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Tyker Class 40 - 'Impulse'
• • 60' Canting Keel Mini Maxi 'Wild Joe'
• • Swan 100-103 'Hoppetosse'
• The Last Word: Brian Gerald O'Driscoll
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
Fast and dramatic start to Rolex Sydney Hobart
The 2022 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race got off to a fast and dramatic start today. The assisting downwind conditions once the boats turned right at the Heads could see the first boat cross the finish line as early as tomorrow night.
The 1pm start on Sydney Harbour got underway in north to north easterly 10-15 knot winds, under glorious sun and blue skies, belying the thick fog that blanketed Sydney at dawn.
Moments after the fleet of 109 boats began their 628 nautical mile race, the race between the four maxis was impacted by drama.
Three of the maxis took the western channel on Sydney Harbour – Andoo Comanche, Black Jack and LawConnect; while Hamilton Island Wild Oats immediately tacked for the eastern side. From there, the fleet regularly tacked up the Harbour to make their way out of the Heads.
* Andoo Comanche (John Winning Jr) continues to lead the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race this morning, but the other three 100-footers are keeping her honest, with LawConnect (Christian Beck) giving chase just nine nautical miles off Andoo Comanche's transom.
Peter Harburg's defending Line Honours champion, Black Jack and the Oatley family's Hamilton Island Wild Oats, are not out of the picture either, a further five nautical miles behind as the top four continue to sail in good running conditions. Winning's boat was travelling at 21 knots around 6am, but by 6.30am had picked up the pace to 26 knots.
The top four are sailing out to sea, well east of the rhumbline, 44 nautical miles behind LDV Comanche's 2017 race record of 1 day, 9 hours, 15 minutes, 24 secs, but it won't take long to catch the record up today if the wind holds in as predicted.
The Bureau of Meteorology expects the north/north-easterly to build throughout the day to 33-plus knots, making for strong running conditions which may change up the results.
Yacht Club de Cannes to host the IRC European Championship 2023
From Monday 29th May to 4th June 2023, the IRC European Championship will be sailed in Cannes. The event will be organised by the Yacht Club de Cannes, with the partnership of UNCL - Pôle Course du Yacht Club de France.
The Notice of Race will be published in the beginning of 2023 and the entry portal will be open in the website of the Yacht Club de Cannes. There will be an early bird discount for entries registered and paid in advance.
The rating bands will be as shown in the Reglement du Championnat Méditerranée IRC en Equipage 2023 and the event will be open to boats with a valid IRC ENDORSED certificate.
Alternately organized in the North (Channel) and South (Mediterranean Sea), the IRC European Championship is a key event of the IRC 2023 season and it aims to bring together more than 60 boats. As an ideal playground of our Championship, the bay of Cannes and its surroundings offer wide options in terms of race courses.
The program will consist of 2 days dedicated to confirmation of registrations, IRC measurements and safety checks, then 5 days of races with various types of race courses (windward-leeward, coastal races and a long coastal race).
Head turner
Let top Italian sailmaker and racer Paolo Semeraro loose with a boldly innovative designer like Shaun Carkeek, give them a wide-open brief to just 'do it better' when it comes to contemporary cruiser-racer design and no surprise that the end result really is kinda special...
The quest for both performance and comfort on the same boat has been an ongoing challenge for builders and designers everywhere since there are inevitable compromises in finding appropriate solutions to achieve both. Yet the new Neo 570 c may be as close as possible to have found an optimally perfect solution, as confirmed by initial sailing on hull number one, Carbonita.
Two years ago the vision from project manager and builder Paolo Semeraro sounded simple enough: use the best possible elements of modern design and technology to build a boat that can be as fast as a TP52 in most wind conditions yet still be capable of being adapted for comfortable family cruising, and with both modes having reduced crew. Along with designer, Shaun Carkeek, it was determined that achieving this would be possible only in a longer larger boat, so the design settled on 57ft being a perfect length to accommodate all the elements of the design brief.
Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar
Today we revisit an unusual entrant, one that get us emails every year... the Sloop Tavern in Ballard Washington USA
This one has a long history:
In 1952 a man named Ole Olsen opened an unassuming little nautical themed bar in Ballard Washington. At the time Ballard was a small working class enclave known for its shipyards, machine shops, and lots of Scandinavians. The Sloop Tavern was one of many taverns lining the streets of ballard when liquor laws were colored blue and there were only three beers on tap.
Today the Sloop is the last tavern in Ballard. In 1977 then owner Joe Chase turned the sailor's bar into a weekly clubhouse for his newly formed yacht club - The Sloop Tavern Yacht Club, which still has regular races in the summer to this day and has a large trophy case in the corner of the bar. With the addition of the yacht club the many boats of the Shilshole bay marina started adorning the walls of the Sloop.
In the last 40 years Ballard has changed a lot but the Sloop hasn't changed much. We still serve burgers from a local butcher, fish caught wild in Alaska, and the coldest beer in town.
Is there a special drink they make?
34 OZ Beer Mugs (pictured at right). It's famed locally as the Sloopersize and the best beer deal in the area.
Tell us about YOUR favorite bar. We're accepting nominations until Friday January 6th
World Sailing Show counts down to The Ocean Race and 37th America's Cup
The bumper end-of-year December 2022 episode of the World Sailing show, premiering on 23 December 2022, leads with an in-depth preview of The Ocean Race, which gets under way on 15 January 2023 in Alicante, Spain. Following a nine-stop route, the new-look event will round Africa's southernmost point before crossing the Pacific, navigating up the eastern seaboard of the United States to cross the Atlantic and returning to Europe after more than six months at sea.
Other highlights include:
- Emirates Team New Zealand setting new land speed record pace
- A look back at a record-breaking year for Para Sailing
- A round up of the year's biggest events across all classes around the globe
First Ever North & South Day For Selden Sailjuice Winter Series
What better way to work off the Christmas overindulgence than a brisk sail on 27 December? For the first time ever, there are two events running on the same day for the Seldén SailJuice Winter Series. With mild temperatures and a moderate to strong south-westerly forecast for both events, it should be a day to remember, whichever you choose.
Yorkshire Dales Brass Monkey
It's three years since the last edition of the most northerly event in the series, when Colin and Oly Murray sailed their Norfolk Punt to victory on this stunningly beautiful lake surrounded by the hills of the Dales. There's a good entry already signed up for the event, ranging in speed from the Topper of Fred Buckley to the faster asymmetrics like Max & Colin Rawlinson's 29er and Jono Shelley's Musto Skiff.
Burghfield Breezer
Taking place for only the second time, last year's inaugural Burghfield Breezer near Reading in Berkshire was won by Nigel and Andy Bird in an Enterprise. So far there is a good entry from hiking singlehanders like the Blaze, Solo, OK and Laser. Racing his OK is former series winner and multiple dinghy champion Nick Craig, while Ben Flower won the Datchet Flyer at the beginning of the month and is entered for Burghfield in his Laser/ ILCA 7. Among the doublehanders are the Merlin Rocket of James and Sophia Clancy and a Tasar sailed by Peter Bell and Tim Simmons.
Other upcoming events:
Grafham Grand Prix, Grafham Water Sailing Club - 2 January 2023
Bloody Mary, Queen Mary Sailing Club - 7 January 2023
King George Gallop, King George Sailing Club - 21 January 2023
John Merricks Tiger Trophy, Rutland Sailing Club - 4 & 5 February 2023
Oxford Blue, Oxford Sailing Club - 18 February 2023
Prizegiving at RYA Dinghy Show, Farnborough - 25 February 2023
RORC launch SailRaceHQ
The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) has launched a new race entry system SailRaceHQ, replacing the old Sailgate system with immediate effect.
Following a three-year study and build programme, SailRaceHQ is a totally new system that has many advantages and user-friendly features.
If you are intending to enter any RORC race from the 2023 RORC Caribbean 600 and beyond, Including the 2023 Rolex Fastnet Race, you now need to register with SailRaceHQ.
Apologies to those who have already entered under the old system, but it is necessary for you re-register at SailRaceHQ. If you have already paid for the 2023 RORC Caribbean 600, your account will be credited accordingly. We thank you for your understanding and co-operation, if you have any questions or require further information, please mail -- Louay Habib/RORC
Sailing World on Water
This is the first time that sails are set on the INEOS test boat, which is testing on the bay of Palma. Giles Scott talks to Justin Chisholm about the ongoing commissioning of the yacht.
This is the weekly Sailing World on Water for December 23, 2022. These are highlights of the sport, globally, in the last seven days.
New York Yacht Club American Magic yacht Patriot, was towed outside of the Pensacola Bay in the afternoon to find bigger swells, and were absolutely sending it on long runs that saw the recon Rib struggle to keep up. There were several instances where the main hull was on top of the wave and the foil was in the trough. During those instances Patriot would quickly come off the foil as there appeared to be no water under the foil."
UK Olympic Coach Jon Emmett talks to Micky Beckett, ILCA 7 sailor from Britain, at the 5th Portugal Grand Prix, Round One, where they experienced big seas and winds in the Villamora venue,
Regular viewers of the World on Water will recognise that we are huge fans of the IMOCA foiling and non-foiling yacht series and we are happy to bring you the best moments of their 2022 season.
OCC Awards Challenge Grant to Novara One Planet
Devon, UK: The Ocean Cruising Club is pleased to support the Novara One Planet project and has awarded a Challenge Grant towards the costs of purchase of a solar array. This grant is the ninth to be made since 2019. A variety of challenging projects have been supported in that time, including unsupported, non-stop, singlehanded circumnavigations and several environmental maritime research projects.
The Novara One Planet project aims to connect people to the impacts of climate change through science, education, art and adventure. It will do this through listening to the stories of people in coastal communities, how they are affected by, and adapting to, climate change and how communities can reduce their climate impact.
The sailing vessel Novara is a platform for climate/environmental science, in particular research in coastal communities in the Artic, Caribbean and Pacific.
The OCC Challenge Grant scheme has two categories; the Adventure Challenge Grant and the Conservation Challenge Grant. Prior membership of the OCC is not required in order to apply. If you, or someone known to you is planning a particularly ambitious sail-exploration or is planning a similarly ambitious maritime conservation or environmental project, consider applying for an OCC Challenge Grant. Further details including eligibility criteria and how to apply are available on the OCC website.
Featured Charter
Pura Follia. From 16,000/week EUR. Located in Gaeta.
PURA FOLLIA, an Ice 60 designed by Umberto Felci in collaboration with the shipyard's team,is a truly fast cruising boat. While catering for the comfort of a charter, she also ensures top performances and speed in regatta due to her high construction technology and Italian craftsmanship. With 3 comfortable cabins for 6 people, guests time on board is only improved by a professional crew of 2. Her range of marine toys, including paddle boards, a tender and snorkeling equipment, and on-board relaxation facilities ensure that a charter with this boat will be a fantastic time!
Charter Destinations:
SUMMER : West Mediterranean
Naples & Amalfi Coast | Sicily | Sardinia | Tuscany & Elba
WINTER : West Mediterranean
Naples & Amalfi Coast | Sicily | Sardinia | Tuscany & Elba
See listing details in Seahorse Charters
Contact
Audrey Lucas
+33 668892280
See the the Seahorse charter collection
Featured Brokerage
2007 Tyker Class 40 - IMPULSE. 125000 USD. Located in Portland, ME, USA.
Tyker Class 40, IMPULSE is built for one purpose - to be a competitive yacht, inshore as well as offshore, as demonstrated by the numerous Class 40 events worldwide.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
Ben Cooper
Tel: 0044 (0)1590 679 222
E-Mail:
-----------------------------------------
2002/2018 Reichel Pugh 60 - Wild Joe. 440,000 EUR.
Wild Joe was originally built as Wild Oats IX with full carbon/nomex construction. As times move on so has Wild Joe which is now fitted with a new DSS foil system installed early 2018. That coupled with her new Doyle Sails package and upgrades across the board, the boat is bang up to date once again.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
+447759 424900
+442380 016582
-----------------------------------------
2006 Swan 100-103 'Hoppetosse'. 3,800,000 EUR Ex VAT Located in Palma de Mallorca.
Swan 100-103 Hoppetosse is a superyacht and masterpiece built by Nautor’s Swan and launched in 2006. She combines the performance of a racing yacht with world-class comfort and opulence. The Swan 100 FD’s deck lines give the yacht a very impressive sleek and racing-oriented look. The cockpit concept features two spacious L-shaped sofas with large cockpit tables on either side of the center-line companionway. In addition, the helmsman seats are extended aft to form another seating area on the aft deck. The coaming continues aft of the L-shaped helmsman seats awarding a sleek and elegant profile.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
Lorenzo Bortolotti
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +377 97 97 95 07
See the RaceboatsOnly.com collection at seahorsemagazine.com/brokerage/
The Last Word
Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad. -- Brian Gerald O'Driscoll
Editorial and letter submissions to
Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: or see eurosailnews.com/advertise/