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A Good Start
The Mini Transat got underway on Tuesday, October 29 at 9:19 (local time ) in a building wind of about 12 knots, gusting up towards 30.

Numbers 816 (Richard Hewson, RG650.com), 198 (Sebastien Picault Kickers) and 667 (Benoit Marie, benoitmarie.com) claimed the best starts. Everything went well under clear skies and with farily rough seas (about 1.50m swell). The committee boat end was favoured.

Two incidents to note - 850 ( Stan Maslard, Sefico Group ) returned to port to a technical problem. The repair is underway. - A collision between 587 (Craig Horsfield) and 791 (Annabelle Boudinot) forced both boats return to port. The two competitors do not yet know whether they will be able to return to the race.

More returns to Douarnenez for various reasons and problems: a sore arm for Bruno Simonnet (El Nono) ripped solent jib for Bert Bossyns (Netwerk) and autopilot problems for Carlos Lysancos (Reyno de Navarra) .

Top ten 29/10/2013 at 21:00

1. Ian Lipinski, Pas du futur sans numerique, 1163.5 nm
2. Renaud Mary, www.runo.fr, 1164.5 nm
3. Aymeric Belloir, Tout le Monde Chante Contre le Cancer, 1165.4 nm
4. Simon Koster, Go4it, 1166.9 nm
5. Jonas Gerckens, Netwerk 2, 1167.8 nm
6. Clement Bouyssou, No war, 1169.3 nm
7. Jean-Baptiste Lemaire, Oeuvre du Marin Breton, 1170.4 nm
8. Justine Mettraux, Teamwork, 1170.5 nm
9. Julien Marcelet, Region Nord Pas de Calais, 1171.3 nm
10. Yann Le Pautremat, Prepa Nautic Echo Mer 1% pour la planète, 1171.5 nm

www.minitransat.fr

Team Dongfeng Announced As Chinese Entry In The Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15
Wuhan, China: A team from China backed by Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle and run by OC Sport will race in the next edition of the Volvo Ocean Race in 2014-15.

Team Dongfeng will have the interests of Chinese sailing at its core with a significant number of Chinese in the final race crew as well as its support team.

Team Director Bruno Dubois announced the launch of the new campaign in the Hubei province city of Wuhan on Wednesday (Oct. 30).

Team Dongfeng is the third campaign so far to announce its participation in the 12th edition of the world's leading crewed offshore race that starts on October 4, 2014 with the Alicante In-Port Race before the departure from Spain to Cape Town for the first leg a week later. The team will represent China.

Seven Volvo Ocean 65 boats are currently being constructed in readiness for the next race.

OC Sport, which will run all aspects of the campaign, is one of the most respected companies in the sport of sailing and responsible for the successful Extreme Sailing Series as well as numerous race campaigns over the past 15 years including those of record-breaking British female sailor, Dame Ellen MacArthur.

It is, however, the first time that OC Sport and its Executive Chairman, Mark Turner, has been involved in running a Volvo Ocean Race campaign and so fulfils a long-standing ambition for him, and for Team Director Bruno Dubois, who both competed in the 1989-90 race.

"We are aiming for a successful race entry with a Chinese team, not just a successful entry – this is an absolute at the heart of this very exciting and challenging project," said Turner. Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle will be the title partner of the campaign, but will be supported by a number of other commercial partners which OC Sport is now seeking to allow the campaign to realise its full potential.

volvooceanrace.com
www.ocsport.com

New Skipper For Team Garmin In Clipper Race
Clipper Race veteran and Chief Instructor Ben Bowley (30) is to take the helm of Team Garmin in the next stage of the current edition of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race from South Africa to Western Australia, where a permanent replacement will be appointed following the departure of the team's current skipper in Cape Town.

British skipper Ben, boasts a wealth of big boat ocean racing and coaching experience in addition to his Clipper Race credentials. He will arrive in Cape Town tomorrow to meet Team Garmin and prepare for Race 4 to Albany on the southern tip of Western Australia.

Clipper Race founder and Chairman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston said: "Ben is a very competent skipper and Chief Instructor, so is already familiar to many of the crew from the extensive pre-race training. He will hand over to a permanent replacement in Albany. The need to replace a skipper in the race from time to time is not unusual. Leading an amateur team in the world's longest ocean race is very demanding."

Ben Bowley replaces Australian Damian Parnham who has decided to leave the race in Cape Town.

https://www.clipperroundtheworld.com

18ft Skiffs: 3-Buoys Challenge, Race 3
Click on image for photo gallery.

Sydney Harbour, Australia: Jonathan Whitty, James Hozack and Aron Everett made it two-in-a-row victories when they steered their Panasonic-sponsored Lumix 18ft Skiff home an easy winner of Race 3 of the 3-Buoys Challenge series on Sydney Harbour today.

Lumix took the lead mid way up the first windward leg of the course then had little difficulty maintaining the lead for the rest of the course before scoring a 2m24s win from Race 1 winner Smeg (Nick Press, Dan Phillips and Dave Ewings).

Fisher & Paykel (Grant Rollerson, Peter Nicholson and Geoff Bauchop) was a further 1m7s back in third place, ahead of Thurlow Fisher Lawyers (Jack Macartney), Rabbitohs-Kenwood (Brett Van Munster) and Yandoo (John Winning).

Today's windward-return course was set for a north-east breeze but the first of several wind shifts arrived shortly after the start and split the fleet into two distinctive groups.

With little work required over the next two laps of the course, the race became a little processional as Lumix set a cracking pace.

At the bottom mark on the second lap her lead had been extended to 2mins as Smeg moved up into second place.

The leading positions didn't change over the final lap of the course. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers League

Video coverage of the race can be seen on www.18footerstv.com

www.18footers.com.au

New - D12 99 and D12 Max 99
Photo by Pedro Martinez, www.martinezstudio.es. Click on image for photo gallery.

Throughout our history Marlow have always embraced innovation, technology and advancement in materials and that philosophy continues at METS 2013 where we will be showcasing our all new D12 99 and D12 Max 99 products.

Manufactured using new Dyneema SK99, these new products join our Grand Prix Series as the highest strength for weight products on the market. 20% stronger than SK78 and 7% stronger than SK90, SK99 is the strongest fibre ever made by DSM.

Our Grand Prix Series customers rely on us to manufacture performance running rigging that can make the difference between winning and losing - whether it needs to be lighter, thinner, stiffer, softer. Winning margins are miniscule, but our partnership with DSM Dyneema means one thing that can be relied upon is the performance of the rope to get the most out of the crew and the boat.

Our network of Grand Prix Riggers demand the best for their customers and we deliver.

Visit our stand 03.031 in the British Pavilion at METS to find out more about D12 99 and D12 Max 99.

www.marlowropes.com

ISAF Revolution Proposed For Olympic Class Circuit Competition
A revolutionary proposal designed to change the nature of Olympic class sailing competitionsat all levels is to be presented to the ISAF Council in mid-November 2013 in Oman.

This proposal will have a major impact on the current Olympic Class World Championships which will if this proposal if accepted, be completely restructured. Under this proposal the existing World Cup circuit will be dismantled as current venue contracts expire and a completely new set of events will replace them.

There are clearly going to be a lot of interest groups who stand to win or lose if this proposal is accepted.

Over the last decade some of the ISAF decisions have been not been as good as they could have been.

Some plainly very ordinary ISAF Olympic Class decisions have been reversed after outcry so it is hoped that MNA's, Council delegates and Classes and individual Olympic campaigners will spend the time to understand this new proposal. -- Rob Kothe and the Sail-World team

www.sail-world.com

The presentation to ISAF here (PDF): www.sailing.org/tools/documents/

Bloody Mary
Queen Mary SC has launched its dedicated website for the The Virtual Rigger 41st Bloody Mary scheduled to take place 11 January 2014. The Bloody Mary Pursuit Race is the largest inland dinghy race held in the UK with 338 entries for the 2013 event . Open to all dinghy classes with a PY number equal to or lower that the International Topper, it takes the form of a two and half hour Pursuit Race with the slowest boat starting at 12:00 noon and the faster boats starting progressively later depending on a handicap rating which is set by the Race Committee.

The Bloody Mary is one of the eight events in the GJW Direct SailJuice Winter Series 2013/14, now in its fifth season. This Winter Dinghy Handicap Championship kicks off with the Draycote Dash on the weekend of 23/24 November 2013. -- Gerald New, SailWeb

The following regattas constitute the GJW Direct SailJuice Winter Series 2013/2014:

Draycote Dash, Draycote Water Sailing Club - Saturday 23 & Sunday 24 November 2013
Datchet Flyer, Datchet Water Sailing Club - Saturday 14 & Sunday 15 December 2013
Brass Monkey, Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club - Friday 27 December 2013
Grafham Grand Prix, Grafham Water Sailing Club - Sunday 29 December 2013
Oxford Blue, Oxford Sailing Club - Saturday 4 January 2014
Bloody Mary, Queen Mary Sailing Club - Saturday 11 January 2014
Steve Nicholson Trophy, Northampton Sailing Club - Saturday 25 January 2014
John Merricks Tiger Trophy, Rutland Sailing Club - Saturday 1 & Sunday 2 February 2014

www.sailweb.co.uk

France Women's Match Racing Championships
St Quay Portrieux, France, Anne-Claire Le Berre (FRA) and her team (Mathilde Geron, Sigrid Langeau, and Alice Ponsar) won the 2013 Championnat de France de Match Racing Feminin (French Women's Match Racing Championship) in Saint Quay Portrieux after the last day of racing was shortened due to high winds.

At the end of the Round Robin Le-Berre held the overall lead and as high winds approached the decision was made to send the teams ashore at 10:15 local time on the final day.

The Race Committee took the decision to call the day off at 13:30 ensuring Le Berre was crowned French Champion.

Final positions

1. Anne-Claire Le Berre, Mathilde Geron, Sigrid Langeau, and Alice Ponsar
2. Julie Bossard
3. Pauline Courtois
4. Morgane Fountaine
5. Christelle Philippe
6. Lucie Scheiwiller
7. Camille Lecointre
8. Sophie Riot
9. Jeanne Le Goff
10. Nolwen Lemaitre

ISAF: www.sailing.org/news/36265.php

Cool Tech Stuff...
The "Wind Tunnel" app is a software for iOS devices, running on iPhones, iPods and iPads. It turns your iPad/iPhone into a wind tunnel simulator! Draw obstacles and watch the fluid flow around. Experiment with different sizes, shapes, aerodynamic profiles and see what happens!

algorizk.com/windtunnel/
https://itunes.apple.com

* The Vaavud wind meter is a deceptively simple anemometer which slots into the head phone jack on your iPhone or Android. Magnets spin in the vane which are picked up by the phone and converted into wind data.

In 2013, Vaavud, a Danish company, funded by a micro-funder "kickstarter" system launched their windvane. I was able to get my hands on a couple of units to test, and it's an outstanding bit of gear. All you have to do is download their (free) App, slot in the wind meter and starting measuring wind speed. In keeping with the gear review philosophy on Sailing With Kids, I handed (nervously) my phone over to our 11 year old Helmsman to test.

Peter was able to download the App in a few minutes. Slotting the wind vane into the jack, he then was quickly and easily able to collect data. The App itself follows Vaavud's minimalistic approach and is easy to use. Pressing the units will change from mph to knots. A single button starts and stops the data collection. -- Barrie North

sailingwithkids.net

World Yacht Racing Forum
Taking place in Gothenburg, Sweden, The World of Sailing and Yacht Racing is a fast growing sport and full of new opportunities. WYRF and YRDTS will bring together over 400 industry leaders and decision makers for two-days of debate and discussions giving participants the opportunity to contribute, learn and share strategies with industry leaders, peers and colleagues. The WYRF brings innovative thinking and exclusive insight to the major issues and opportunities facing the growing yachting industry.

Over 250 people attended the 2012 edition of the World Yacht Racing Forum and Yacht Racing Design and Technology Symposium in Gothenburg, Sweden. They heard from speakers including Ben Ainslie, Knut Frostad, Guillaume Henry, Mark Turner, Pat Shaughnessy, Juan Kouyoumdjian, Manolo Ruiz de Elvira, Bill Tripp, Ian Walker, Dawn Riley, Dan McLaren, Richard Brisius and many more.

Register your place today! bit.ly/16kVa79

For more information visit: bit.ly/14yiI55

Industry News
Esenyacht, the Bodrum-based builder of specialist custom superyachts, has appointed UK-based ClearLine Communications ( www.clearlinecommunications.co.uk ) to manage its worldwide publicity and support it with other marketing activities.

Esenyacht, formed just a few years ago and led by General Manager Deniz Can, completed the 36-metre luxury sailing yacht Glorious in 2011 and is now midway through the build of a 50-metre sailing yacht due for completion in 2014.

The yard prides itself on an approach to building and refitting superyachts that combines northern European quality with a commitment to building yachts that are genuinely handcrafted down to the finest details. This represents a deliberate departure from the more usual superyacht model of complex supply chains and assembly-orientated production techniques.

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Lewmar has announced the immediate appointment of Harcourt Schutz as its new USA General Manager, based in Lewmar's Guilford, CT office.

Harcourt has been with Lewmar for 13 years and has occupied various roles during that time, up to and including his recent position as Head of Sales. All of these have provided him with solid experience of Lewmar's business, products, market and staff in both the USA and UK.

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Dax Labs LLC today announced that the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut has denied three summary judgment motions of marine manufacturer Lewmar, Inc. in a trademark infringement and unfair trade practices case.

Lewmar claimed in its motions that it did not breach the covenant of good faith and fair dealing when it manufactured an imitation of a patented sailboat winch handle known as the "OneTouch®," and took other actions designed to deprive Dax Labs LLC of the benefits of a 2006 licensing agreement with Lewmar to manufacture and sell Dax's award-winning winch handle. In rejecting all three of Lewmar's motions, the Court cited evidence supporting Dax's claims that Lewmar engaged in intentional bad faith conduct, including the manufacture of a competing winch handle known as "LiteTouch."

Trial on the remaining issues in the case is currently scheduled to begin later this year.

www.reuters.com

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2013 marks the 50th Anniversary of the year in which the New Zealand Sailor of the Year was first presented. Today Yachting New Zealand is delighted to announce those to be presented an Award in 2013 revealing those in the running for Orbit Corporate Travel Sailor of the Year.

Just who will be presented the Sir Bernard Fergusson Trophy in this milestone year will be unveiled on Friday November 29th at the 2013 Volvo Yachting Excellence Awards at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron in Auckland. Back in 1963 it went to Harry Highet, designer of the iconic P-Class yacht.

On November 29th the Orbit Corporate Travel Sailor of the Year, Volvo Young Sailor of the Year, B&G Coach/Official of the Year and the President's Award will all be revealed. 2013 will also see a one off Award, the Partridge Jewellers Diamond Anniversary Prize included in the programme marking and celebrating the 50th anniversary. -- Jodie Bakewell-White

yachtingnz.org.nz

Featured Brokerage
2003 Nautor Swan 70. EUR 2,100,000. Located In Sweden.

A superlative sailing sloop. Extremely fast when you want and comfortable proportions for more relaxed sailing.

She has a grand history of regatta victories and has been maintained in the very best manner. A full sail wardrobe and racing equipment compliment this Swan 70. Recent engineering work has "Zeroed the engine hours" and a new generator is in place. New sails and new light weight carbon sail locker refurb means BLUE PEARL is ready to get going.

Brokerage through Camper & Nicholsons International: www.yachtworld.com/campernicholsons/

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

The Last Word
Only Socrates knew, after a lifetime of unceasing labor, that he was ignorant. Now every high-school student knows that. How did it become so easy? -- Allan Bloom

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