In This Issue
Team Malizia lead fleet around Cape Horn
Trofeo Princesa Sofía opens 2023's road to Paris 2024
The Holy Grail - North Sails Performance
Transat Paprec
Single handed Round Ireland Record
Sailing World on Water
IRC Records Fall On The Solent
Cascais SB20 Winter Series
It's time to throw Conrad Colman a lifeline...
Featured Charter: Curanta Cridhe - 50ft Catamaran
Featured Brokerage:
• • McConaghy MC55
• • Gunboat 80
• • J 45 Elegance Yacht
The Last Word: Edward Witten

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

Team Malizia lead fleet around Cape Horn
Team Malizia, who were contemplating a return to Cape Town after mast damage in the first days of leg 3, and who approached Cape Horn today nursing an injured crew member, have overcome all these obstacles and more to lead The Ocean Race fleet past the iconic landmark.

Team Malizia passed the longitude of Cape Horn at 16:23 UTC on Monday 27 March, 29 days, 4 hours and 8 minutes after the start in Cape Town.

In the process of leading around the Horn, Malizia skipper Boris Herrmann and his team join the 'legends of the south' as winners of the Roaring Forties Trophy - awarded for the fastest passage between the Cape of Good Hope in Africa and Cape Horn in South America.

The Malizia crew take the Cape to Cape title in 27 days, 17 hours and 31 minutes.

On Sunday, Team Malizia had a scary situation on board when Rosalin Kuiper was thrown from her bunk and hit her head, suffering a cut and a concussion. Fortunately, with the support of expert medical advice, the team was able to close the wound and Rosie has been able to rest and recuperate. Early indications are that she is recovering well on board.

theoceanrace.com

Trofeo Princesa Sofía opens 2023's road to Paris 2024
The 52nd edition of the Trofeo Princesa Sofía has a special importance just over a year before the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad begin in Paris. The best Olympic sailing specialists in the world will meet in the Bay of Palma as a taste of what may happen at the French regatta off Marseille.

The pandemic reduced the Olympic cycle between Tokyo and Paris from the usual four years to three, an exception that intensified the programmes of sailors, teams and federations, and enhances the importance of events such as the Trofeo Princesa Sofía, which could not be held in 2020 or 2021. Last year, 2022, it made a strong comeback and faces 2023 as the biggest edition in its history.

The changes in the Olympic classes have also affected the Trofeo Princesa Sofía. The Finn category and the division of 470 into male and female categories have given way to the unification in 470 Mixed and the creation of Formula Kite Men and Female, with the historic arrival of kitesurfing to the Olympic arena; on the other hand, the iQFOiL revolutionises the windsurfing category, which now incorporates foils. The technical director of the event adds: "The events in the new flying classes are very short, between 12 and 15 minutes compared to 60 minutes before, and the speed is much higher. All of this makes the logistics more complicated, we have to be very attentive and increase safety."

The 52 Trofeo S.A.R. Princesa Sofía Mallorca by Iberostar is the first qualifying event for the Sailing World Cup 2023 and will be held from 29th March to 8th April under the joint organisation of the Club Nàutic S'Arenal, the Club Marítimo San Antonio de la Playa, the Real Club Náutico de Palma, the Real Federacion Espanola de Vela and the Federacion Balear de Vela, with the support of World Sailing and the main Balearic public institutions.

trofeoprincesasofia.org

The Holy Grail - North Sails Performance
North Sails Dry and light! In two short years North Sails Performance clothing has firmly established itself among the most elite technical clothing suppliers... with the benefit of some pretty high quality assistance!

A dry bum is one thing that's very pleasant about wearing North Sails Performance foul weather gear. The other is just how light it is.

When North Sails Performance director, Nigel Musto, set out to create the best sailing gear ever seen, or worn, his primary objective was for the wearer to be comfortable and dry. Truly, properly, dry even after hours on deck in heinous conditions. However, one nice sidebenefit - the light weight of the North Sails Performance range - has ended up becoming one of the biggest draws for customers. More of that in a moment.

It has been a whirlwind entry to the market for the new range of highperformance offshore clothing. 'Our two years have been outstanding for us,' says Nigel Musto. 'We've been delighted that several of the world's top sailors, on board some of the most exciting boats – like the Gitana Team – have chosen to wear our kit. In particular the performance of 4DL, our "4-layer durable laminate" reinforcement, was way beyond even our own expectations and the feedback has been superb.'

Full article in the April issue of Seahorse

Transat Paprec
The Transat Paprec will start on April 30, twelve mixed doubles racing across the Atlantic from Concarneau to Saint-Barthelemy in the French West Indies. This will be the first time that mixed gender duos will compete on this classic course from Brittany to the Caribbean.

This Transat Paprec is actually the only transatlantic contested on equal terms in strict one design boats, the Figaro BENETEAU 3. Success is down to the combined skills of the sailing partners, many of them among the best of the current generation and up and coming stars of French offshore racing. The battle with the elements is usually relentless and the fight between the rival pairs promises to be close with no clear, outstanding favourites starting head and shoulders above the others.

The event, which is part of the French Elite offshore racing championship, has actually run since 1992 and has often uncovered new talents from among the men and women who choose to take part in a unique sporting challenge. The race retains its DNA and its sporting appeal but the Transat Paprec becomes 100% mixed for the first time.

April 21: Opening of the Village in Concarneau April 23: Prologue April 30: Start of the race at 1:02 p.m. May 16: Opening of the village in Saint-Barthelemy May 22: Prize-giving ceremony, closing of the village

Registered:

Monatoutenergie.Fr - Arthur Hubert & Colombe Julia Du Leman A L'ocean - Arnaud Machado & Lucie Keruel Queguiner - La Vie En Rose - Elodie Bonafous & Martin Le Pape Region Normandie - Guillaume Pirouelle & Sophie Faguet Mutuelle Bleue - Corentin Horeau & Pauline Courtois Ageas - Ballay - Cerfrance - Baie De Saint-Brieuc - Mael Garnier & Julia Courtois Region Bretagne - Cmb Oceane - Chloe Le Bars & Hugo Dhalenne Region Bretagne Cmb Performance - Gaston Morvan & Anne-Claire Le Berre Skipper Macif - Loïs Berrehar & Charlotte Yven Cap Ingelec - Camille Bertel & Pierre Leboucher Race For Science - Edouard Golbery & Alicia De Pfyffer Edenred - Basile Bourgnon & Violette Dorange

transatpaprec.com/en

Irish Sailor Tom Dolan Sets out to break single handed Round Ireland Record
Irish solo sailor Tom Dolan is planning to return to his native Ireland in May when he will seek to break the singlehanded record for sailing 698 nautical miles around Ireland. The skipper of Smurfit Kappa –Kingspan is aiming to complete the circumnavigation in 3.5 days or less on his 30ft (10m) Figaro Beneteau 3 which he normally races in France where he has been based for more than a dozen years since leaving his rural, farming life at home in County Meath to pursue a career in solo ocean racing.

Dolan has harboured the round Ireland idea since 2020 during a period when all racing in France was cancelled because of the health crisis. Now, in 2023, a gap in his racing calendar has opened up and he is looking to seize the opportunity.

A Class 40 sailed by Belgian Michel Kleinjans set a solo record of 4 days 2 hours in 2005 but the Department of Marine issued a notice effectively banning solo record attempts. Tom is of course knowledgeable of the situation and will of course respect all maritime safety regulations and rules set out by the World Speed Sailing Record Council. "I have a little surprise up the sleeve of my foul weather gear" he smiles.

tomdolanracing.com

Sailing World on Water
Highlights of what happened globally in the sport of sailing in the last 7 days. Recently we showed the launching of the new Paprec Arkea Team IMOCA. Now it's time to test it out. It's a magical moment, as it is the culmination of 18 months of work, and the IMOCA Paprec Arkéa, took off for the first time last week, from their Lorient Base, with Yoann Richomme and the Paprec Arkéa Team on board.

This is your weekly Sailing Global Highlights show, the World on Water for March 24, 2023.

Sailing World on Water

IRC Records Fall On The Solent
With a favourable, albeit very gusty SW wind and big tides in the Solent, three Jeanneau Sun Fast boats challenged the IRCRecords Nab Tower Course, each having a frothing Friday sail.

The previous record holders on the course were 'Redshift' Farr GP42 holding the fully crewed time at: 04h 05m 36s and the double handed record held by The Greig City Academy's 'Riot' an Intro 22 with a time to beat of 04h 55m 29s.

First to cross the start line at the Royal Yacht Squadron was the Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600 'Tigris' helmed by owner Gavin Howe with a full crew, setting an asymmetric with a deep first reef in the mainsail flying off to the East.

Tigress crossed the line at 12:31:02 completing the course in 03h 24m 42s lowering the Fully Crewed record - 40mins off the previous record set by the Ed Fishwick's 'Redshift' team. Orbit finished at 12:52:39 with a great corrected time of 03h 35m 48s which would have been a record had the time not been lowered by Tigris some 20 mins earlier. Clearly picking the right start time is everything in record setting.

The Double Handed team onboard Kestrel crossed the line at 13:56:54 delivering a corrected time of 03h 33m 18s knocking over an hour off the previous time set by the Greig City Academy's 'Riot'

ircrecords.com/recordinfo/nab-tower/

To see available courses or to apply to have your course ratified head to: IRCRecords.com

Cascais SB20 Winter Series
On the first day of the 5th Cascais SB20 Winter Series, 19 boats from the sport keelboat class completed three races in southwest light wind conditions of 5 to 8 knots in Cascais bay.

At the end of the first day the championship was led by Michael O'Connor's Irish TED team with Davy Taylor and Ed Cook. It was runner up Clube de Vela Atlântico "Another Affair" team of Miguel and Francisco Oliveira helmed by Tiago Morais. Closing the podium was the local team Solyd Properties Developers of Vasco Serpa, Pedro Costa Alemão and Diogo Machado Pinto.

On the last day and due to the weak and unstable wind that was felt in Cascais bay, the fleet headed to the Guia race area. In this place, for which Cascais is known worldwide, expectations were fulfilled and the powerful international fleet completed three more spectacular races with the wind blowing from the Northwest from 15 to 18 knots.

The big winner of the fifth race of the Cascais Winter Series was Vasco Serpa with Pedro Costa Alemão and Diogo Machado Pinto on Solyd Properties Developers. Michael O'Connor's team with Davy Taylor and Ed Cook, TED, fell to second place. Another Affair completed the podium by Miguel Oliveira Francisco Oliveira and Tiago Morais.

With the end of this championship, another winter season in Cascais was concluded and the overall winners of the Cascais Winter Series were crowned. Inscribing his name on the Tony Castro perpetual trophy, a trophy awarded to the winners of the Cascais Winter Series, the Clube de Vela Atlântico Another Affair team led by Miguel and Francisco Oliveira and assisted by Tiago Morais. Second came the debutant team in the Hotel Valverde class by Pedro Mendes Leal with António Pereira, Ricardo Schedel and Maria Tavares. The boat Solyd Properties Developers by Vasco Serpa, Pedro Costa Alemão and Diogo Machado Pinto closed the podium.

5th Cascais SB20 Winter Series Results

Cascais SB20 Winter Series Overall Results

It's time to throw Conrad Colman a lifeline...
The racing apart, the big headlines in the IMOCA Class these days are almost always about expensive new boats, new sponsorships, even new team structures.

Less is heard about the skippers who are fighting to survive in boats at the older end of the fleet, for whom finding sponsorship to underpin their Vendee Globe campaigns is like panning for gold.

One of them is the 39-year-old New Zealander who also holds American citizenship, Conrad Colman, and it is strange that he should, be in this category. That's because it is hard to think of a more complete candidate in the IMOCA ranks for full title backing from a major international company, either based in France or elsewhere.

Colman has a properly impressive sailing CV. He has raced around the world three times, including completing the 2016-17 Vendee Globe in 16th place. He was the first Kiwi to achieve that feat, as he was the first New Zealander to enter the Figaro or compete in the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe. What is more, he is right on the money when it comes to climate change – Colman was the first skipper to finish the Vendee Globe without using any fossil fuels.

In addition to his achievements on the water, Colman is a fluent French speaker and an excellent communicator who worked on the last Volvo Ocean Race as an expert summariser and analyst, helping to explain the race to non-sailing audiences.

Read more

Featured Charter
Raceboats Only Curanta Cridhe - 50ft Catamaran. From 18,000 per week EUR. Located in the Caribbean.

Curanta Cridhe (Gaelic for Braveheart) is a custom-built catamaran by Dixon Yacht Design. Fully air-conditioned, this 50-foot luxury yacht boasts three cabins, each equipped with an en-suite bathroom, a desk/vanity area and lots of storage.

Charter destinations
Croatia | French Riviera | Corsica | Naples & Amalfi Coast | Sicily | Aeolian Islands | Sardinia | Marseille to Saint Tropez | Tuscany and Elba

See listing details in Seahorse Charters

Contact
Charter Department
Bernard-Gallay
Phone : +33 (0)467 66 39 93
Mail : or

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
Raceboats Only McConaghy MC55

The MC55 might be the smallest multihull in the McConaghy range, but this cat is no kitten. Designed to be sailed and cruised by couples and families alike, the MC55 offers a hugely safe, spacious and comfortable platform that is incredibly easy to handle thanks to her clever layout and the technology installed.

The MC55 not only benefits from McConaghy’s vast experience building performance boats, but also from the carefully considered use of carbon, that sees her precise hull forms achieve an optimum strength to weight ratio. As with all McConaghy Multihulls, the MC55 has dual helm positions on the flybridge, allowing for the greatest sight lines forward, as well as an elevated position that aids in-port manoeuvres - making her an ideal choice for those new to multihull cruising.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats

+442380 016582
+447759 424900

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

Raceboats Only Gunboat 80. POA EUR.

With the launch of the Gunboat 68, in no time clients came to us with requests to build upon this new benchmark series with a larger Gunboat. Thus the Gunboat 80 manifests ambitions of the most discerning clients for more space, more speed and a high level of customizability. The owner sets the cursor from superyacht-style cruising to performance-optimized racing. Exquisite dreams become a reality.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact

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

Raceboats Only J 45 Elegance Yacht. POA EUR. Located in France.

Exciting 45’ offshore sailing yacht that may change all of your sailing plans. Leading edge hull design meets refined interior design to raise the bar on cruising comfort and performance like no J before it.

The association of J Boats’ American pragmatism and J Composites’ French flair is well documented, but somehow it has really taken on its full meaning in the J/45. It has taken over 3 years of collaborative work, mulling over every detail together in the constant search for the best possible balance.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
J Composites
1 Allee Titouan Lamazou
CS 20402 Olonne sur Mer
Les Sables d’Olonne
85109 Les Sables d’Olonne

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

The Last Word
Away from the safety of your home, the universe was not made for your convenience. -- Edward Witten

Editorial and letter submissions to

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

Search the Archives

SEARCH SEARCH

Our Partners

Seahorse Magazine

YachtScoring.com

Wight Vodka

Robline Ropes

Harken

Marlow

Navico

Translate