EuroSail News #5313 - 19 April
In This Issue
• Sparks Fly On Day One Of Congressional Cup
• Canadians take the early lead on first day of racing at AON Etchells Worlds
• All about the articulation - Southern Spars
• IMOCAs in the Rolex Fastnet Race
• 11th Hour Racing Team crew announced
• Sailors and Astronauts Connect
• ClubSwan 50 - Scarlino Warm Up
• Patrick Corrigan, AM - Long-time 18ft skiff sponsorship
• Traditional Polynesian canoe prepares for voyage around Pacific
• Featured Charter: Semper Fidelis - Alegria 67 Catamaran
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Balance 442
• • Swan 82-010 Grey Goose
• • AC40
• The Last Word: Plato
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
Sparks Fly On Day One Of Congressional Cup
The 58th Congressional Cup kicked off with fiery action beneath blue skies and splendid winds of 10 to 14 knots, as 10 of the top-ranked match racing teams from seven nations began the battle for the iconic Crimson Blazer.
Leading the charge was defending Congressional Cup champion and six-time World Champion Ian Williams (GBR). Competing in the Congressional Cup since 2006, Williams has won an astonishing five Crimson Blazers in 12 attempts. "Congressional Cup is the first event on the 2023 World Match Racing Tour, so it's very important for us to start the year strong, in our bid for our seventh match racing World Championship," he pointed out.
But Williams spreads his time competing in a diverse range of classes and series. "This year I'm focused on the WMRT with ChinaOne.Ningbo, plus fleet racing in M32 catamarans. So meaningful preparation has been difficult for us, with a team spread around the world." Instead, he explained, "We've watched videos of previous years and read up on our notes to get ready for this Congressional Cup. It's been a struggle," Williams added, "We're really happy finishing the first day 4-2."
Williams noted his is one of the more senior teams on the lineup: with only one crew member under 40. By contrast several opponents have much younger crews like Jeppe Borch (DEN), 25 and Nick Egnot-Johnson (NZL), 24 nipping at his heels.
Chris Poole (USA) wrapped up Day One undefeated: 6-0.
Racing continues Wednesday through Saturday, April 19 through 22
Canadians take the early lead on first day of racing at AON Etchells Worlds
Strong winds and sunny skies ensured a successful opening day for the AON 2023 Etchells World Championships, being held on Biscayne Bay.
Principal Race Officer, Dave Brennan, completed two picture-perfect races in the exact conditions that were predicted —- north to northeasterly winds ranging from 12 to 18 knots.
When all was said and done, skipper Luke Lawrence and his crew aboard Cruel Jane 2.0 (CAN 1501) were atop the standings with five points on the strength of second and third place finishes. Brad Boston called tactics, while Andrew Macrae worked the bowl for Lawrence, who was two points clear of second place Steve Benjamin and the Tons of Steel (USA team.
Steve Benjamin steered Tons of Steel to victory in the second race, which got underway in northeast winds at 50 degrees. Mike Buckley is serving as tactician onboard, which rounded the first weather mark in eighth place then took the lead for good on the second beat.
"We wanted to favor the right side based on the forecast for a sweeping right shift, but as we know here on Biscayne Bay the left is often very good and powerful in northeast winds," Benjamin said. "We chose the left and just tried to sail on the lifts upwind, the headers downwind and just connect the dots."
Ian Liberty and Dave Hughes are also crewing for Benjamin, the 2017 World Champ. Benjamin, a longtime sailmaker and 2015 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, had some regret about how Race 1 panned out.
"We left a little on the table in the first race. We wound up sixth and could have easily been third," he said.
Top ten after 2 races
1. Cruel Jane, Luke Lawerence / Andrew Macrae / Brad Boston, CAN, 5.0
2. Tons Of Steel, Stephen Benjamin / Michael Buckley / Ian Liberty / Dave Hughes, USA, 7.0
3. Racer Smithy, Mark Thornburrow / Malcolm Page / Mike Huang / Duncan Gregor, HKG, 11.0
4. Oatmeal, Peter Duncan / Andrew Palfrey / Mark Mendelblatt, USA, 13.0
5. Veracity, John Sommi / Victor Diaz de Leon / Will Ryan / Beccy Anderson, USA, 17.0
6. Skanky Gene, Jay Cross / Taylor Canfield / George Peet / Franny Schulte, USA, 18.0
7. Eat,Sleep,E,Repeat , Paul Ward / Charlie Cumbley / Paul Childs, GBR, 18.0
8. Lydia, Josh Powell / Chris Bush / Patrick Powell, USA, 22.0
9. Rock On, Argyle Campbell / Alex Curtiss / Mark Ivey / Jessie Kirkland, USA, 26.0
10. Lifted, Jim Cunningham / Steve Hunt / Erik Shampain / Serena Vilage, USA, 27.0
Full results on YachtScoring.com
All about the articulation - Southern Spars
On AC40s there is plenty going on aloft as well as more obviously in the water...
Bigger isn't always faster. In the 2013 America's Cup in San Francisco the speed and spectacle of 72ft wingmasted cats on foils turned heads like never before. But in the next Cup cycle in Bermuda the smaller AC50s were more nimble and in some cases faster. And they were already more consistent performers.
Back then, part of the focus was on the solid wing sails. The current Cup boats have what appears to be a more conventional sailplan yet for the Southern Spars-built masts on the AC40s, this return is anything but straightforward. The rapid ascent up a staggeringly steep speed curve pushes the boundaries of design and build. It's also clear that new AC40 one-design monohulls are potent machines and punching above their weight.
Full article in the May issue of Seahorse
World's Leading Offshore Racing Class Heads For The Rolex Fastnet Race
40 IMOCAs are due to compete in the next Vendée Globe in 2024. The majority of these 60 footers, many of them foil-born flying machines, will also be on the July start line of the Rolex Fastnet Race, now part of the IMOCA calendar and counting as qualifying miles for next year's singlehanded non-stop round the world race. In this year's historic 50th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's flagship event, the IMOCAs will race doublehanded (with an extra media crewman).
The IMOCA line-up in the Rolex Fastnet Race will be formidable. At present it includes eight brand new boats (for some the race will be their first ever) and 12 of the 33 competitors from the last Vendée Globe, including all the podium finishers.
Following a start line collision that put him out of the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race, Vendée Globe winner Yannick Bestaven returns with his new Maître CoQ V, a Verdier design built from 11th Hour Racing's moulds. Since finishing third in the last Vendée Globe, Louis Burton has acquired the Manuard-designed former L'Occitane en Provence, the most scow-bowed of the last generation IMOCAs. This he has rechristened Bureau Vallée, as all his boats have been since he was youngest skipper in the 2012-13 Vendée Globe.
Charlie Dalin returns to the Rolex Fastnet Race after one of the most exceptional performances in 2021 when he not only demolished the IMOCA competition (in this evenly matched class, his Apivia finished six hours ahead) but at the Scilly Isles his 60 footer was on the transom of the ClubSwan 125 Skorpios.
This time Dalin is back with a new IMOCA, the Verdier-design MACIF, due for launch in June.
Read more: rolexfastnetrace.com
11th Hour Racing Team crew announced for Leg 4 of The Ocean Race
Skipper Charlie Enright (USA), Navigator Simon Fisher (GBR), Trimmer Francesca Clapcich (ITA), media crew member Amory Ross (USA), joined by six times veteran of The Ocean Race, Damian Foxall (IRL)
11th Hour Racing Team will set off from Itajaí, Brazil, for hometown of Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. on Sunday, April 23, 2023
11th Hour Racing Team has announced the crew for Leg 4 of The Ocean Race from Itajaí, Brazil to Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. Skipper Charlie Enright will draw on his squad of IMOCA sailors and will be joined by Navigator Simon Fisher (GBR), Trimmers Francesca Clapcich (ITA) and Damian Foxall (IRL), along with media crew member Amory Ross (USA).
Enright commented, "We have two changes to the onboard team for this upcoming leg to our hometown of Newport. We are bringing back Francesca in place of Justine Mettraux [SUI], and new to the line-up onboard Mālama is the hugely experienced Damian Foxall, in place of Jack Bouttell.
"We are very lucky to have such a deep bench in our team. The Southern Ocean leg took its toll on us all - the boat as well as the people! We had always planned to give our team members a rest and, looking around the fleet, a lot of the other teams are doing the same. Relative to the competition, we continue to feel strong."
This will be the first leg of The Ocean Race 2022-23 sailed by Foxall, a six-time veteran of The Ocean Race, who has over 450,000 nautical miles under his belt.
Sailors and Astronauts Connect From Two of the Most Extreme and Remote Locations
It's always good to make friends with your neighbors ...
Witness a remarkable exchange between sailors racing against the forces of nature in the Southern Ocean and NASA astronauts on the largest modular space station in low Earth orbit. These two crews share a unique bond, experiencing life in extreme and hostile environments, limited living conditions, and both undertake scientific experiments for the health of the planet.
During Leg 3 of The Ocean Race - the world's longest and toughest sporting event - the only US-entry in the race, 11th Hour Racing Team, reached the most remote location on Earth ... 'Point Nemo'. Some 1,450 nautical miles or 2,688 kilometers from land in any direction, the closest people to them outside of their competitors were the astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS).
As the five-strong crewed sailed underneath the ISS, orbiting at 17,500 miles an hour, 250 miles overhead, the crew decided to send a message to their nearest neighbors ...
And a few days later, they got a reply ...
ClubSwan 50 - Scarlino Warm Up
The Yacht Club Isole di Toscana racing season kicked off with a weekend dedicated to the Swan One Designs, during which nine ClubSwan 50s tested their technical skills in the gulf, in front of Marina di Scarlino, to get prepared for The Nations League circuit 2023, which will see its beginning in the Sardinian waters of Villasimius in just one month's time.
The weekend program consisted of a series of training-races, preceded by starting sequences, in which the teams were able to finalize the setup and test sails and materials. Several sailors of international caliber who, together with representatives of the main sailmakers, made this weekend a real hotbed in view of the imminent start of the season. At the end of an intensive 3-days, the teams left Marina di Scarlino satisfied with the opportunity enjoyed.
The conditions were varied. Starting fom a building mistral wind on the first day, with three races disputed between 10 and 18 knots, a meteorologically complex day was the second day, while a grand finale with Northerly breeze permitted to sail three gorgeous races on Sunday.
Well done to the leading team of The Nations League both in 2021 and 2022, the German HATARI (Marcus Brennecke), that got off on the right foot, with the German Markus Wieser as tactician, assisted by the well-known New Zealand America's Cup and Volvo Ocean Race athlete, Ross Halcrow, and by the navigator Michele Ivaldi (ex Luna Rossa, TP52 Quantum Racing).
There was no shortage of internationally renowned sailors on board the other boats, including the Italian DRIFTER SAIL with the Laser and Star olympic sailor (as well as Star World Champion), Diego Negri (ITA) that got 2nd place, and a fierce EARLYBIRD which from this year has multi-medalist Laser and Star Robert Scheidt (BRA) calling tactics, finishing in 3rd position.
As parterre-de-roi, not least MOONLIGHT, with the American Andy Horton as tactician, or PERHONEN who lines up Adrian Stead (GBR).
The season will proceed with the 52 Super Series Scarlino Sailing Week, to be held from May 29 to June 03.
ClubSwan 50 will be back to the Yacht Club Isole di Toscana for a great end-of-season, to attend the Swan One Design Worlds, to take place on October 10 to 14.
Patrick Corrigan, AM - Long-time 18ft skiff sponsorship
Click on image for photo gallery.
Anyone with an interest in sport knows that some level of sponsorship is essential for the success of an individual, a team, or an organising body.
The iconic Australian 18 footer class has been fortunate to have had many wonderful sponsorship supporters since the first major sponsor, TraveLodge Hotels, in 1965.
The most unique has been Mr. Patrick Corrigan, AM.
Patrick is an Australian businessman, focused mainly in the freight industry, is an art collector, jazz enthusiast and philanthropist, who was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia medal in the 2000 Queen's Birthday Honours List.
Fortunately for Sydney 18ft Skiff Racing, Patrick's love of the sport benefited the 18s many years.
His first became involved in 1969 when he sponsored Vic Robinson's previously unsponsored four-handed boat which was soon re-named Corrigans Express, and contested the 1969 World Championship on Sydney Harbour.
It came at a time when fleet numbers and development to maintain the high standards in the 18s, was heavily dependent on the sponsorship dollars from corporations and individuals.
Patrick's support continued early in the 1970s with another skiff for Vic Robinson, then another boat, branded Express Livestock for a young up-and-coming team, was added to become a two-boat sponsorship program.
His wonderful support of the class continued throughout the 1970s with a series of skiffs named Mitchell Cotts Freight for a variety of skippers. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers League Ltd.
Traditional Polynesian canoe prepares for voyage around Pacific
A traditional Hawaiian double-hulled sailing canoe called Hokule'a left Hawaii on Saturday for its next journey - which will begin in Southeast Alaska.
Long trips from Hawaii to New Zealand in 1987 and Easter Island in 1999 have proven Hokule'a is seaworthy, but the next journey will be its longest to date. Over the next four years, Hokule'a and her crew will circumnavigate the Pacific Ocean, covering about 42,000 miles in total. The incredible voyage will begin in Juneau, Alaska in June of 2023, but first, Hokule'a has to get there.
Hokule'a will first be shipped to Tacoma, Wash. where it will then be towed to Seattle and eventually brought to Southeast Alaska. On Sunday, Hokule'a was lifted from the waters of the Pacific Ocean and placed onto a Matson container vessel to be carried northeast to Alaska.
After five years of planning and preparations for the Moananuiākea Voyage, the Polynesian Voyaging Society (PVS) announced today that it will launch the circumnavigation of the Pacific upon arrival in Juneau, Alaska on June 10, 2023. During the four-year expedition, Hokule'a, Hikianalia and about 400 crew members will sail an estimated 43,000 nautical miles around the Pacific, visiting 36 countries and archipelagoes, nearly 100 indigenous territories and more than 300 ports.
The goal of the voyage is to ignite a movement of 10 million "planetary navigators" by developing young leaders and engaging communities around the world to take part in navigating the earth towards a healthy, thriving future. The voyage itself is a global educational campaign that will amplify the vital importance of oceans and indigenous knowledge through education and storytelling shared via a virtual "Third Canoe" called Wa'a Honua, meaning a canoe for the earth (waahonua.com). PVS and its educational partners are creating stories, and lessons for all ages with the goal of inspiring people to care for and make better choices for the earth.
Featured Charter
Alegria 67 Catamaran 'Semper Fidelis'. From 40,000 per week EUR. Located in West Mediterranean.
SEMPER FIDELIS' unique design has the kitchen located in the Babord hull, meaning grilled food can be enjoyed on the cockpit's plancha or taken to the table of the large aft cockpit, which can accommodate up to 10 guests. The boat is also characterised by its large flybridge protected from the sun, which allows meals under the midday heat to be enjoyed elegantly, and its 4 sunbeds close by to take in the unbeatable views at sunset.
Charter Destinations:
SUMMER : West Mediterranean
Corsica | Naples & Amalfi Coast | Sicily | Aeolian Islands | Sardinia
WINTER : West Mediterranean
Bahamas | British Virgin Islands | Antigua & Barbuda | Saint Martin & Saint Barth
See listing details in Seahorse Charters
Contact
Charter Department
Bernard-Gallay
Phone : +33 (0)467 66 39 93
Mail : or
Featured Brokerage
Balance 442. 915,000 tax not included USD.
Like many insurgent brands, Balance was born from our frustration. The catamaran market had simply become dominated by charter cats or racing cats, leaving few options for those seeking something in-between. We took our collective experience born from thousands of miles at sea to design and create truly balanced, handcrafted performance catamarans that would offer our customers years of blissful living and sailing.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
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2006 Swan 82-010 'Grey Goose'. 2,250,000 EUR VAT Paid. Located in Badalona, ES.
This Nautor Swan 82 FD “Grey Goose” is the perfect combination of performance cruising, easy and safe boat handling with a shorthanded crew and blue water sailing capability. While mostly being used as a fast cruiser, Grey Goose can be easily converted to an aggressive Maxi Cruiser Racer and perform in any race, inshore and offshore. With her previous owner, Germàn Frers, the designer of the Swan 82, was tasked to design a new keel, which brought down the center of gravity, improved acceleration, pointing angles and slot keeping dramatically, balancing the boat perfectly in the water. A new rudder was fitted, and the hull was faired with long boards to have the perfect hydrodynamics.
See listing details in Nautor's Swan Brokerage
Contact
Lorenzo Bortolotti
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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
See the RaceboatsOnly.com collection at seahorsemagazine.com/brokerage/
The Last Word
Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber. -- Plato
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