In This Issue
• A dogfight the whole way up
• Tom Dolan solo round Ireland record attempt Wednesday
• Royal Thames Yacht Club: Position Open
• Waiting Game at Santa Maria Cup
• 52 SUPER SERIES Saint Tropez Sailing Week
• Solid Trade Winds on ASW Day 3
• Howth 17s' Quasquicentennial Race On Thursday May 4th
• New Winners in "La Larga" of PalmaVela
• World Sailing Show focuses on start of World Cup
• Featured Charter: J122 - Noisy Oyster
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Arcona 430
• • Wally 100ft Y3K
• • L30 One Design
• The Last Word: Matshona Dhliwayo
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
A Dogfight The Whole Way Up
On Monday evening (UTC) Team Malizia led 11th Hour Racing Team across the equator, as The Ocean Race returned to the northern hemisphere.
But the margin was slim - just over two minutes separated the leading pair.
"Hopefully we're going to cross in first... by about 200 metres I would say," said Will Harris from on board Malizia. "It's going to be a dogfight the whole way up (to Newport) I think.
"We've sailed down the Atlantic, all the way around and back up. That's a big part of 'around the world' done now."
See 11th Hour Racing Team and Team Malizia
"We're back in the game with the Malizians...again," said Charlie Enright on board 11th Hour Racing Team, as his team crossed back to the north.
Both boats were moving well as they made the transition, and the impact of a very weak doldrums pattern hasn't been too obstructive to progress towards the finish in Newport, Rhode Island. The ETA in Newport remains May 10.
Solo sailor Tom Dolan plans to start solo round Ireland record attempt Wednesday morning
Ireland's leading solo sailor Tom Dolan expects to leave the Dun Laoghaire start line early morning Wednesday as he sets off to attempt to set a new solo record for sailing around Ireland.
After waiting in Greystones for ten days since his boat Smurfit Kappa-Kingspan arrived from its home in France, Dolan has been rewarded with a great weather window, winds of 25-30kts around the south of Ireland, but there is a danger that if he drops off the frontal weather system he could be left with little wind.
The target time was set in 2015 by the Belgian Michel Kleinjans on a Class40 at 4 days, 1 hour and 53 minutes and 29 seconds. Dolan considers that if things go perfectly he might be able to go under three days.
The first 24 hours are critical, it will be windy from Tusker Rock to the Fastnet and beyond, 25 gusting to 30kts you will do the whole south coast of Ireland on one gybe and then the west coast on the other and the seas should be perfectly flat for a lot of the time."
The 688 miles course requires Dolan to average more than 7.2kts. He does not plan to pace himself against the Belgian's record, rather to push as hard as feels reasonable. The course distance is very similar to a longer leg of La Solitaire du Figaro - the annual French pinnacle solo race.
Note: in order to comply with the rules of Irish maritime affairs prohibiting single-handed sailing for several years around Ile Verte, the skipper will be accompanied by a mediaman, Romain Marie. Under no circumstances will the latter affect the performance of the boat.
Royal Thames Yacht Club: Position Open
Background: The Royal Thames is a thriving club of over 1,500 members with a very strong cadre of younger members. The Club has a strong reputation for running first class competitive events and for fielding teams that compete in fleet, team and match racing. It hosts the Cumberland Cup (the oldest sailing trophy in the world) for international team racers, the Carmela Cup (UK national team racing championships) the British American Cup (team racing UK vs USA) and we host from time to time other prestigious international sailing events such as the Global Team race regatta.
The Club has an enviable record in achievements overseas such as the only overseas team to have won the New York Invitational Cup (international fleet racing), has won the BA Cup vs the US (at QMSC) and is regarded as the strongest team racing club in Europe. The Club also runs racing events that attractive to our members owned yachts open to external entries.
Position Title: Director of Racing.
Overview: the RTYC Director of Racing's primary duty is to organise regattas and special events for RTYC both at Queen Mary Reservoir in a new fleet of 12 Sonars and support boats and in the Solent supported by our own dedicated committee boat and mark laying RIB. Solent race events include both our own fleet of 6 J/70s (plus 6 owned by RYS) and on the water and social events for other fleets of yachts both for RTYC members and for non members. The position is supported by a full time office assistant and 3 bosuns (2 at QMSC and 1 in Cowes and reports to the Chief Sailing Officer, Richard Ambler with a dotted line responsibility to the Chief Executive, Vanessa Clifford, the Rear Commodore Sailing, Jon Redding and the Captain of Racing, Christine Shrimpton.
The coordination of the resources that underpin our events, such as the volunteer race team, the umpire team as required, the bosuns and all the resources at the event and the running of the event itself is the primary role of the job holder.
The Club also organises participation in overseas events for which the coordination of the teams will be required.
The position is partly office based in Knightsbridge, partly based at home and, during events, in Cowes and Queen Mary. Willingness to work weekends in lieu of weekdays as required is essential.
Experience and Skills:
- Race management. Demonstrated experience in race management including acting as PRO for race events
- Rules of Sailing. Familiarity with competitive sailing including the rules and on the water support operations
- IT skills. Fluency in basic computer systems
- Running events. Demonstrated ability to run events and coordinate the numerous inputs including volunteer race teams
- Qualifications. Desirable to be Power Boat Level II
Send your CV to Richard Amlber at the Royal Thames YC:
Waiting Game at Santa Maria Cup
Annapolis, USA: Sweden's Anna Ostling and her WINGS Team ended the second day of the 2023 Visit Annapolis & Anne Arundel County Santa Maria Cup leading the first Round Robin stage with equal points to USA's Nicole Breault/ Vela Racing. Both skippers and their teams went on to win their first 3 races of the second Round Robin stage with a total 10 wins and only 2 losses. The Santa Maria Cup is the second stage of the 2023 Women's World Match Racing Tour.
It was a waiting game for the competitors and race committee today as the forecasted breeze of 9-14 knots failed to materialize causing a four-hour delay ashore. The breeze eventually filled in the late afternoon to allow the conclusion of the first Round Robin stage, and the first three flights of the second Round Robin stage.
Conditions were patchy with multiple lead changes as teams challenged against wind shifts and the ebb current out of the Severn River right in front of historic Annapolis Naval Academy.
Racing continues tomorrow from 0900 Eastern Daylight Time with the remainder of the qualifying round robins before moving onto the knockout stages.
Results
1. Anna Ostling 10-2
2. Nicole Breault 10-2
3. Celia Willison 7-5
4= Megan Thomson 6-6
4= Allie Blecher 6-6
4= Bridget Groble 6-6
7. Sophie Otter 5-7
8. Brooke Wilson 5-7
9. Janel Zarkowsky 4-8
10. Kristine Mauritzen 1-11
52 SUPER SERIES Saint Tropez Sailing Week
As if to prove how open this 11th season of the 52 SUPER SERIES is shaping up to be, the two short, sharp single lap practice races on the Gulf of Saint-Tropez today were won by different boats, Thailand's Vayu and last year's runners up, Hasso and Tina Plattner's Phoenix team which has a new tactician in Argentinian Santi Lange.
The final dress rehearsal before Wednesday's start to the 52 SUPER SERIES Saint Tropez Sailing Week, light and shifty breezes meant opportunities for all with 11 boats racing on a tight race course. And on the last day before points racing starts for real there was a final warning -as if it were needed - that small mistakes and being at anything less than 100% off the start line makes life very difficult.
Quantum Racing powered by American Magic which has a new afterguard - Harry Melges IV steering, Victor Diaz de Leon as strategist-navigator and John Kostecki as tactician - not unexpectedly showed they need time to gel together.
Racing starts 1300hrs CET Wednesday. Follow it on the live tracker with commentary from the water.
Solid Trade Winds on ASW Day 3
Antigua: Solid trade winds over 15 knots blessed the third day of Antigua Sailing Week. With racing now past the halfway stage, the action was as hot as the air temperature, with teams pulling out all the stops. Reggae in the Park Race Day was full-on as sailors will wind down tonight for Reggae in the Park, followed by Lucky Eddi's Lay Day tomorrow.
The CSA Racing Classes started off Windward on the third day of racing at Antigua Sailing Week. In full view of race fans at Shirley Heights, the pocket rockets in CSA 5 enjoyed multiple-leg windward leeward racing in full view of the race fans. In today's first race the high performance keelboats and multihulls were set top marks up to five-miles offshore. The wet beat to windward was rewarded by pulling the trigger for a memorable sleigh ride in salt spray back to Antigua. The Club Classes and Bareboats raced off Rendezvous Bay. Courses included a technical windward leeward element, with the added excitement of exhilarating reach legs to Old Road. The RS Elite Class raced inside Falmouth Harbour on a tight and shifty windward leeward course.
Racing in CSA 5, Tristan Marmousez's Archambault Surprise GFA Caraibes - La Morrigane is from Martinique and has won five races to lead the class by five points. Jean François Terrien's J/109 Sang Neuf, also from Martinique is second. The National Sailing Academy 1720 NSA Spirit, with a young Antiguan crew, is skippered by Jules Mitchell and is lying in third.
This year is unfinished business for GFA Caraibes - La Morrigane; last year they came second to NSA Spirit. "We are full of passion to win and we are here for revenge," commented Tristan Marmousez. "Last year we lost by two points, but now we have made a very good start. However, as the lowest rated boat in the class we have to fight for everything to stay with the other boats on the water. Today there was a lot of current, so we went really close inshore to avoid it."
Tonight is the big party night at Antigua Sailing Week with the 12th edition of Reggae in the Park. Over 2,000 sailors, Antiguans and visitors to Antigua & Barbuda will be dancing the night away to a sizzling line-up of top Reggae artists from Jamaica. Live on stage in the historic Georgian Nelson's Dockyard will be British MOBO Awards nominee Lila Ike, Grammy Award nominee Jesse Royal, and Billboard Reggae Chart Topper Protoje. Competitors will enjoy Lucky Eddi's Lay Day tomorrow with fun and games off Pigeon Point Beach.
Howth 17s' Quasquicentennial Race On Thursday May 4th
Just get one good strange and distinctive word in your publicity material, and the news will spread like wildfire. Howth 17 Class Captain Dave O'Shea has discovered that the word for 125th Anniversary is Quasquicentennial, and he posted it this morning in the notice for the 125th Anniversary Race coming up this Thursday (May 4th). The magic word is spreading like wildfire in cyberspace, with a remarkable number of comments and fresh input from London, which suggests that life there is still far from emerging from the easy-going WFH mindset, but that's a problem for Mr Sunak and his mates.
Meanwhile, the problem in Howth is whether the present volatile weather will be providing reasonable conditions at 19:00 hrs on Thursday when two races will be sailed - one for the original five 1898 boats, and the other for "the others" - boats built between 1900 and 2017.
A reference to the June 1998 Afloat Magazine reveals that the Centenary Race was won by Norman Wilkinson's Leile, which also won the first race in 1898, so there's unreasonable pressure on current owner Roddy Cooper.
WM Nixon's full editorial in Afloat magazine
New Winners in "La Larga" of PalmaVela
In the early hours of the morning, the first double-handed crew team arrived in Palma. At 2:00 am, the Valencian team "Brujo" skippered and owned by Alberto de Castro, crossed the finish line after sailing the 200 nautical miles of the PalmaVela Offshore Race in 36 hours and 32 minutes. The first team in both real and compensated time, were thus confirmed as winners of the A2 (0-3) class, with a more spacious arrival for the rest of the fleet.
It was nearly 5:00 am when Tito Moure's "Smerit" claimed a new podium position in "La Larga", improving on their result in 2022, with second place this year. Third place went to "Libelula", a Swan 65 from 1974, owned by Placido Arango, and skippered by Borja Pella. The oldest boat in the class finished in 43 hours and 27 minutes.
The first boats in the ORC 1 class crossed the finish line at approximately 4:00 am, within a margin of 12 minutes, and after 39 hours of racing. Once compensation had been applied, the winner of "La Larga" 2023 went to the RCM Sotogrande skippered by Gabriel Medem, "Aviador". The team managed to gain an advantage of 21 minutes over the Catalan team, Joaquin Verona's "Intrigue." The podium was completed by Dutchman Frans van Dijk's "Caveman IV," representative of the RCN de Palma, after 39 hours and one minute of racing.
Four hours later the Race Committee boat was to be heard once again on the Bay of Palma, opposite the Palacio de Congresos, signalling the arrival of new teams as they crossed the finish line of the offshore race of PalmaVela. This time, the boats were mainly from the ORC 2-4 class.
World Sailing Show focuses on start of World Cup
The latest episode of the World Sailing Show catches up with the first event of this year's World Cup, with in-depth coverage of the Princess Sofia Regatta in Mallorca, the first stop in a busy 16-month period which also includes the Sailing World Championships and the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
All 10 Olympic Classes took to the waters of Palma, meaning this was the perfect chance to lay down an early marker for the season - but it didn't always go to plan for the pre-event favourites. This month's episode of the World Sailing Show also goes behind the scenes with the leaders in every class to hear about their preparations for the road to Paris 2024.
Elsewhere, as Wingfoiling continues to show why it has become one of the most exciting and fastest growing discipline in all of sailing, the World Sailing Show joins the action at the first event of the IWSA World Cup in Abu Dhabi.
Featured Charter
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Noisy Oyster is a great example of the all round performance you expect for J boat's; easy to handle, quick and responsive, powerful and stable with race winning potential. Available to charter in the Mediterranean.
See listing details in Seahorse Charters
Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 2392 161272
Email:
See the the Seahorse charter collection
Featured Brokerage
2011 Arcona 430. 299000 GBP. Located in Southampton.
Sparkling, One owner, 3-cabin, 2-heads Arcona 430 complete with carbon rig and lots of recent updates including new rigging and sails.
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2009 Wally 100ft Y3K. 4,300,000 EUR. Located in Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
The magnificient cruiser-racer Wally 100ft Y3K is available for sale.
Designed by German Frers as a cruiser-racer with all-round performance, Y3K is a state-of-the-art example of a Wally Yacht, with a powerful sail plan, flush decks, an aft Terrace-on-the-Sea, large volumes, and timeless interiors designed by Christian Liaigre accommodating up to 8 guests.
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L30 One Design. POA EUR.
The L30 boat concept was developed by Rodion Luka – Olympic medalist (2004), Worlds Champion (2005) in 49er Class and Volvo Ocean Race 2008-2009 participant. Rodion has a 35 years’ experience in One Design racing, being a European and Worlds medalist in Laser Radial, JOD35, SB20 and 49er as well as well experience in Platu25, Melges24, J70 and RC44. He joined up together with Andrej Justin, designer of RC44 to make outstanding boat which combines good all round offshore performance, easy logistic, strict one design and is affordable for wide range of sailors all around the World with the price ready to race around 100k euro.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
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l30class.com
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The Last Word
You don't need a medal to do what's right. -- Matshona Dhliwayo
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