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Boklunder Melges 24 European Championship
Photo by Pierrick Contin, www.pierrickcontin.com. Click on image for photo gallery.

Boklunder Melges 24 European Championship Aarhus, Denmark: The penultimate day of the Boklunder Melges 24 European Championship saw three excellent races sailed in light but predominantly consistent breezes ranging from 5 - 9 knots. With just two more races scheduled to be sailed on the final day, and having led this regatta throughout, Carlo Fracassoli on ITA 803 Gullisara today put himself within touching distance of overall victory. After securing a comfortable victory in the first race of the day, Fracassoli stumbled a little with a thirteenth in the next race, but came back strongly with a second place in the third and final race of the day.

With a 22 point lead and just two more races left in the schedule for the final day of the championship tomorrow, the remarkably consistent Fracassoli is now looking all but invincible. The battle for second place is a much closer one however, with Bolzan holding a tenuous single point advantage over Flavio Favini on SUI 782 Blu Moon. Fourth going into the final day is Fiala who is 18 points clear of Tonu Toniste on EST 790 Lenny in fifth.

Back ashore the crews relaxed in the afternoon sunshine at a post racing Oysters and Beer party thrown by the Dutch Melges 24 Class who will host the next Melges 24 European Championship in 2013 in Medemblik.

Top five after 5 Races

1. Carlo Fracassoli, ITA, 20 points
2. Alberto Bolzan, ITA, 42
3. Flavio Favini, SUI, 43
4. Petr Fiala, CZE, 50
5. Tonu Toniste, EST, 68

Top three, Corinthian Division:

1. Tonu Toniste, EST, 18 points
2. Tiit Vihul, EST, 25
3. Oyvind Peder Jahre, NOR, 28

www.2011melges24europeans.dk

Vials and Turner Dominate the Racing at Flying 15 Worlds
The Flying 15 worlds fleet completed one race on Wednesday which was won by Graham Vials and Chris Turner. Second were Ian Cleaver and Steve Milne, third Brett Dingwall and Jonathan Clark. Vials and Turner now have a 15 point lead ahead of Mike and Gemma McIntyre, with two more races possible. The second race of the day was abandoned.

The Derwent Water pair continued their low scoring path to the Flying 15 World title despite the light, fickle wind out in Hayling Bay Wednesday. The fleet launched early and then spent over four hours waiting for the wind to settle for any reasonable amount of time. It wasn't until around 13:00 hrs that it rose above 5 knots.

The Classic/Silver fleet completed two races today. First Classic race won by Bobby Salmond and Robert Till GBR627. Second race by David Morgan and Lorena Walden GBR2663. Overall Salmond and Till lead from Morgan and Walden. In the Silver fleet, Hachez Veronique and Pitou Vanderpoel BEL2818 won the first race, Mike Pelegrin and Erwan Gouriou FRA3164 the second race. Malcolm and Alex Hall lead the Silver overall. - Gerald New

Top ten
1. Graham Vials / Chris Turner, GBR, 9 points
2. Mike Mcintyre / Gemma Mcintyre, GBR, 24
3. Andy Mckee / Richard Jones, GBR, 28
4. Jeremy Davy / Simon Childs, GBR, 30
5. Greg Wells / Mark Darling, GBR, 31
6. Russell Peters / Tim Hall, GBR, 33
7. Grant Alderson / Dean Mcaullay, AUS, 35
8. Alan Bax / Bill Masterman, GBR, 38
9. Steve Goacher / Phil Evans, GBR, 44
10. David Tucker / Matt Summers, AUS, 49

www.hisc.co.uk

The Future Kings and Queens of Sailing
They have arrived. In the cool summer breezes of San Francisco Bay, the sailors and their entourages from around the world have trickled in to practice, measure in, and register for what may be one of the most memorable events of their teenage years - the Laser 4.7 Worlds. As of this writing, there are 165 girls and boys from 28 countries (and 25 coach boats), most with more than one representative gathering at the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco, CA.

Regatta Chair Kevin Reeds, who many know from the Rolex Big Boat Series, is responsible for running the event for the Club and managing the 111 volunteers who, thanks to practice and preparation, are operating like a well oiled ma- chine. "The Members of the Club are excited about the opportunity to host the Laser 4.7 Worlds and look forward to the Laser Masters Worlds, " says Reeds. Racing will begin on Thursday, July 28.

The Laser 4.7, Slalom, and Masters Worlds schedule: Laser 4.7 Worlds: 7/26 - 8/2; racing will commence on 7/28 Heavy Weather Laser Slalom: 8/4 & 5; this is a fun heavy weather event just off the deck of the StFYC. Laser Masters: 8/6 - 8/13 racing commences on 8/7, and 8/10 is a lay day.

www.sflaser.com

Dubarry Storm - Sailing Style In On The Street
Dubarry Storm There's something cool about sailing, taking on the elements from the Solent to St Tropez, but how do you carry that cool onto the streets? Try wearing offshore oilies to your favourite restaurant and you're likely to end up hungry and sectioned. Dubarry Storm gives you all the cache of the crew in a way that doesn't mark you out as a madman. With polarfleece for warmth, a durable waterproof shell, inner storm flap and chin guard, Storm keeps you warm and dry in six snazzy colourways.

Dubarry Storm - the calm within the Storm.

www.dubarry.com

International Lightning Class Association World Championship
Buzios, Brazil: One race was completed today in the International Lightning Class Association World Championship. This put the regatta back on schedule due to the high winds and seas that delayed racing on Monday afternoon. The Chilian Team of Tito Gonzalez sailing with his son, Diego and Cristian Herman convincingly won the race and is now the sole leader of the regatta with 12 total points. Strong winds of 20+ kts and seas initally postponed racing this morning but then subsided by mid morning and allowed PRO, Claudio Buckup to run a perfect 5 leg windward-leward course in 15-17 kt winds.

Going into todays race the top four positions in this regatta were very close. These teams continued to show their talent and finished in the top 4 today. Behind Team Gonzalez, the USA team of David Starck sailing with his wife Jody and Ian Jones took a 3 today and are second overall with 14 total points. The Brazilian Team of Claus Biekarck, Gunner Ficker and Marcelo Batista da Silva continue to sail consistently and finished 4th to have a combined total of 15 points. Thomas Sumner, Felipe Brito and Fillipe Gil also from Brazil followed up their two bullets yesterday with a 2nd in todays race, condencing the points total even further. They are right on the heals of Stack and Biekarck in 4th place overall with 16 points.

Racing continues tomorrow with an 11 am warning, two races scheduled.

Top five:

1. Tito Gonzalez Mas / Diego Gonzalez Parro / Cristian Herman Sanhueza, CHI, 12 points
2. David Starck / Jody Starck / Ian Jones, USA, 14
3. Claus Biekarck / Gunner Ficker / Marcelo Batista da Silva, BRA, 15
4. Thomas Sumner / Felipe Brito / Fillipe Gil, BRA, 15
5. Cristobal Perez / Philipp Goyeneche / Ignacio Perez, CHI, 25

Follow live coverage of racing at www.lightningclass.org

British Win at German 18ft Skiff Grand Prix
Photo by Christophe Favreau, www.christophefavreau.book.fr. Click on image for photo gallery.

German 18ft Skiff Grand Prix After two days of waiting ashore, due to extremely strong winds, the fleet finally got onto the water to contest the mSE German 18ft Skiff Grand Prix at Travemunde.

Experienced British skipper Jarrod Simpson was the master of the light and shifty winds and took the championship with two wins and a third placing in the three races contested by the 10-boat fleet.

Another Brit, Jamie Mears finished second with one win, a second and a third, while Germany's Mike Keser finished third with one third and two fourths.

Following the championship races, the fleet went back to shore to prepare for the Travemunde Sailing Arena 'presentation'.

European 18ft Skiff Association Secretary and 18ft Skiff skipper Norbert Peter described the 'presentation':

"We staged a series of six 10-minute races (including heats and a final) on the River in sight of the town.  The river was only 60-100 metres wide and approximately 100,000 spectators were lined up along the shore".

"The spectators loved the new format and the sailors were electrified and hot for the high-voltage sailing on the small area.  It was a good new way to bring the excitement of 18ft Skiff Racing and its magic to the spectators".

www.18footer.org

The Notice of Race for the Normandy Channel Race 2012 is Available
The Notice of Race for the 3rd edition of the Normandy Channel Race is available from today on the website http://www.normandy-race.com

As announced back in May at the end of the last edition, the 2012 dates have been moved back with the race village in Bassin St Pierre in Caen set to open on Thursday 30 August. The race start will take place on Sunday 2 September, with a planned finish the following weekend on 8 / 9 September; a programme which fits in nicely with the Class40 event schedule for 2012 (Transatlantic Solidaire du Chocolat in March, finish of the Global Ocean Race around June, Quebec - St Malo in July).

This programme will also enable the finish to tie in with another festive and cultural event in the port of Caen, "Presqu'Ile en fete".

The course remains in its now classic style, namely an action-packed race between Normandy, the South coast of England and Ireland, again under the sporting management of Sylvie Viant. The event programme will be presented in detail in the autumn.

www.normandy-race.com

Junior Offshore Group Anniversary Regatta in Falmouth
At right: Sopranino. Click on image to enlarge.

Sopranino Inaugurated in December 1950, JOG was formed by a group of passionate sailors who wanted to race offshore but were too small to qualify to race in RORC (Royal Ocean Racing Club). To celebrate 60 years of JOG racing, the club are holding an anniversary regatta week in Falmouth, with a series of round the cans and passage races, between Monday 24th and Friday 29th July 2011. With nearly 30 boat entries across Classes 3, 4 & 5, the club are looking forward to a fun week of high standard racing in the beautiful Cornish surroundings and some fun celebrating and swapping stories over a series of social events.

One of the original (1951) JOG race boats, the 19'8" yacht Sopranino, sail number θ1 (theta one) will be on display at the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club throughout the regatta. She has been kindly loaned by the Isle of Wight Classic Boat Museum.

JOG are delighted to announce that founding JOG member and skipper of Sopranino Mr Patick Ellam, and his partner in offshore sailing adventures (in Sopranino), Mr Colin Mudie, will both be attending the JOG 60th Regatta Gala Dinner on Friday 29th July 2011.

Speaking of the JOG 60th anniversary regatta , club secretary Mr Peter Chartres said "I am delighted to see strong entry levels for what I hope will be a fun race week that celebrates what JOG does best; sail competitively and then celebrate together after races to share the stories. It's what I call the spirit of JOG. We feel very honoured to be able to welcome the veteran JOG illuminati of Patrick and Colin. I am sure some of our members will be suitably impressed with their feats when they see Sopranino close up and realise that these two stalwart gentlemen tackled a journey that covered half the world. She's tiny in comparison with our Class 5 yachts of today."

www.jog.org.uk

ISAF World Sailing Rankings
The ISAF World Sailing Rankings for 27 July 2011 have been released.

The next release of the ISAF World Sailing Rankings will be on 5 October and will include the RS:X European Championship in Bulgaria and the Star Europeans in Ireland.

World Ranking Leaders - 27 July 2011

Men's One Person Dinghy (Heavyweight) - Finn
Ed Wright (GBR)

Women's One Person Dinghy - Laser Radial
Evi Van Acker (BEL)

Men's One Person Dinghy - Laser
Nick Thompson (GBR)

Men's Two Person Dinghy - 470
Mathew Belcher and Malcolm Page (AUS)

Women's Two Person Dinghy - 470
Ingrid Petitjean and Nadège Douroux (FRA)

Men's Skiff - 49er
Nico Delle - Karth and Nikolaus Resch(AUT)

Men's Keelboat - Star
Robert Scheidt and Bruno Prada (BRA)

Men's Windsurfer - RS:X
Nimrod Mashich (ISR)

Women's Windsurfer - RS:X
Blanca Manchon (ESP)

Visit the ISAF World Sailing Rankings homepage at www.sailing.org/rankings for more on the latest Ranking release and dates for all Ranking releases.

Sail Faster And Smarter!
Speed and Smarts Speed & Smarts is a bi-monthly newsletter packed with tips to improve your racing performance. It's written by winning AC tactician David Dellenbaugh, and each issue has 16 pages full of instructional advice on tactics, strategy, speed, boathandling and rules (plus there's no advertising!).

Whether you race a one-design or big boat, at the top or bottom of your fleet, you'll find lots of valuable ideas in Speed & Smarts. In fact, when you consider the cost of other go-fast items you can buy, this newsletter gives you extremely good "bang for your buck."

View a sample issue at www.speedandsmarts.com/BackIssues/SampleIssue

Subscribe at www.speedandsmarts.com

IRC 2012 Keel Fin Materials
At a recent meeting of the IRC Technical Committee, the subject of the rating cost of different keel fin materials was discussed. Specifically, the Committee addressed keel types 10, 11 and 12.

The Committee noted that in recent years IRC treatment of keels generally has changed and improved significantly. The Committee are concerned that complexity for owners and designers should not increase and should preferably decrease. The Committee also consider that keel fin design decisions should be based on the most appropriate solution (in both technology and cost terms) for any particular boat as opposed to driven by rating considerations.

Owners are therefore advised that the Committee are considering changes to the IRC treatment of different fin materials including but not limited to iron, solid steel, hollow steel and composites.

While no firm and final decisions have yet been taken, it is likely that in future the difference in IRC TCC for the use of different fin keel materials for keel types 10, 11 and 12 will vary less than at present. -- IRC Technical Committee.

ircrating.org
rorcrating.com

Unfinished Business... Finished!
Click on image to enlarge.

Guy Waites Guy Waites tried unsuccessfully to complete the Jester Challenge last year in his Contessa 26 Red Admiral, he suffered quite a severe breakage many days into the challenge but managed to successfully nurse his boat back to the UK.

Guy considered his crossing unfinished business; after repair, he sailed from Plymouth at end May. Aboard his Contessa 26 "Red Admiral" he arrived in Newport, Rhode Island at 22:06 on Friday 22nd July, crossing the Atlantic in 43 days.  He was given the warmest of welcomes by the members of Newport Yacht Club and is being given every assistance to get Red Admiral ready for the return journey home.

Business complete! -- Heather Wood

worldwidewaites.blogspot.com

The Search for the Ultimate RS Champion
The RS Games, one of this summer's most exciting dinghy racing events, has revealed the details of a unique Champion of Champions competition, which will be hosted during the multi-class championship. The Sailboat Deliveries Champion of Champions competition will be open to anyone who is taking part in all or part of two or more of the nine Championships that make up the RS Games.

The prize will be appropriately prestigious - a free boat delivery to Lake Garda, Italy, for the 2012 RS Eurocup. Sailboat Deliveries specialise in delivering racing dinghies to European events.

Scoring for the competition will be done on daily results, and will be adjusted to reflect the size of each individual fleet. To reflect the fun, sociable nature of this event, points will also be awarded by the Protest Committee for participation in certain social events, such as the RS Sailing Games Night and Geeta's Indian Fancy Dress Party.

Participants who meet the eligibility criteria and wish to enter the Sailboat Deliveries RS Champion of Champions event should contact Heather Chipperfield, RS Class Association Secretary,

For Sailboat Deliveries RS Champion of Champions participants who wish to enter part of a championship, a daily pro rata entry fee will be charged. Entries for the Sailboat Deliveries RS Champion of Champions event should be declared in advance of the event.

The RS Games takes place at Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy on the 15-26th August 2011. Entries remain open in all nine classes; RS100, RS200, RS300, RS400, RS500, RS600, RS700, RS800 and RS Vareo. Further information and details of how to enter the RS Games can be found under individual class pages at www.rs-association.com

Industry News
For the 4th time in a row, Bearing Sportswear is the proud supplier for the Staff & Volunteers for the 47th Delta LLoyd 24-Uurs Sailing Regatta.

These high quality polo shirts will be supplied in white, so that all the staff & volunteers will be well recognized.

Bearing Sportswear is also offering the participants the possibility to order such a limited edition shirt with customized printing.

These limited edition polo shirts can be reserved by pre-order only via a selected partner : www.lines4boats.nl , where you also can add the desired printing name.

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Garmin Ltd., has been selected to be the exclusive official supplier of marine navigation, marine communication, and marine sensor equipment to the 34th America's Cup.

A full suite of Garmin electronics, which includes the GPSMAP® 7000 series of touchscreen multi-function displays (MFDs), will outfit the fleet of support boats used for the AC45 World Series, AC72 World Series, as well as the Louis Vuitton Cup, the America's Cup Challenger Series and the America's Cup Finals.

In collaboration with the America's Cup Event Authority (ACEA), Garmin has developed tools that enable the most responsive management of the fleet of mark and marshal boats than ever possible before. America's Cup mark and marshal boats can now be tracked and dispatched in real time. If conditions permit, this technological addition will give officials the ability to change the race course faster than has ever been possible in the past.

This agreement, which includes the America's Cup World Series; the Louis Vuitton Cup, The America's Cup Challenger Series; and the America's cup Finals in 2013, will provide key products, including Garmin's 12- and 15-inch GPSMAP 7000 series MFDs, to the support boats throughout the various stages of competition.

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The Grand Pavois, International in-water boat show, will be held from the 14th to the 19th of September in the Port des Minimes in La Rochelle. More than 850 exhibitors will attend the boat show on a 100 000 m2 display ground. 300 boats will be exhibited on the water among 700 displayed to the boat show. The visitors will enjoy the themed spaces and Bulgaria - City of Varna will be the guest of honour of the 39th edition. "The one for real fans", the Grand Pavois gives the unique chance to test boats at sea before the purchase. The Grand Pavois is one of the 5 top international in-water boats shows.  

Faithful to its reputation, the Grand Pavois will be once again an interesting and crucial "launching pad" for multihulls. This year it will stand out once again with 46 boats and 35 afloat, plus the boatyards that will present designs of many future projects. The vast majority of yards will introduce new 2012 at the international event, from the 14th to the 19th of September.

The major international trademarks will attend with 2Win, African Cats, Alliaura Marine, Astus Boat, Barramundi Boatyacht, Billie Marine, Catana, Corsair Marine, Fountaine Pajot, Futura Yachts, Hobie Cat, Indido Yacht, Jaunin Production, Lagoon, Mariner Travel, Multisailing, Nautitech, Neel Trimarans, Philonautic, Rider Marine, XL Catamarans. Also come to discover new yards like La Rochelle's Bamba Yachts that will introduce its first vessel.

www.grand-pavois.com

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Tender

Herreshoff Designs' T/T Adele has been selected as a finalist for the prestigious ShowBoats Design Awards 2011 in the Tender Design Award category. The winners will be announced to an audience of superyacht owners and the build and design teams responsible for the shortlisted yachts on the final day of the Superyacht Design Symposium in Palm Beach, Florida. The anticipated awards ceremony concludes two days of design-focused events in advance of the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show.

Built by Taylor & Snediker Woodworking, of Pawcatuck, Connecticut, T/T Adele is a classic Herreshoff tender based on Nathanael Greene Herreshoff's Columbia Lifeboat (built for the 1899 Cup Defender COLUMBIA).

The classic tenders are built using Herreshoff construction methods and standards which faithfully reproduce the fit and finish of the original Herreshoff yacht tenders. For shape, construction and elegance, Herreshoff lap strake tenders such as T/T Adele are in a class by themselves.  They were included as standard equipment for the golden-era super yachts launched by the Herreshoff Manufacturing Company at the turn of the 20th century.

Featured Brokerage
Featured Brokerage Boat 2007 Dragonfly 920 Extreme. 139,450 GBP. Located in Chichester, West Sussex, UK.

The Dragonfly 920 Swing Wing is a design that fills the gap between the Dragonfly 800 and the Dragonfly 1000 Swing Wing trimarans. Having built more than 330 boats, Quorning Boats has irreplaceable experience which is reflected in their technique of production. The Dragonfly 920 is trailerable by only 2.5 m of beam. She rests on a launching trolley that can be winched up and down on a roadtrailer. This technique brings the boat down in a comfortable position when stepping the mast and getting the boat ready for launching.

Brokerage through Harbour Boat Sales: www.yachtworld.com/harbourboatsales/

Complete listing details and seller contact information at uk.yachtworld.com

The Last Word
Nothing is politically right which is morally wrong. -- Daniel O'Connell

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