EuroSail News #4474 - 25 November

Details of the one day event can found in the Notice of Race -

ARC 2019 sets sail from Gran Canaria
A great adventure has now begun for over a thousand sailors from fifty-three nations who departed Las Palmas de Gran Canaria today to cross the Atlantic to Saint Lucia as part of ARC 2019, the world's largest transocean sailing rally. Following years of planning, months of preparations, and days of final checks crews were eager to start their 2,700nm sail to the Caribbean. Around Las Palmas Marina this morning, excitement and anticipation echoed as the pontoons were lined with crews wishing one another well for the crossing.

The ARC brings together one of the most diverse fleets of any sailing event, evident as the yachts processioned out of the marina. From the smallest boat in the fleet, Duffy, to the big-daddy Ulisses, one after another classic cruising monohulls and state of the art catamarans steadily made their way to the starting area. Friends and families of the sailors as well as local well-wishers and staff from the businesses around the marina lined the dock, cheering and dancing to the loud music blaring out in celebration of the start. To the delight of the spectators, several crews dressed up for their departure, danced on the foredeck as the gathered their fenders and lines and waved their nations flags to bid farewell to the Canarian hosts.

ARC meteorologist Chris Tibbs had promised the crews a classic ARC start, and the weather lived up to his expectations, with a pleasant NE breeze around 10-12 knots allowing boats to set asymmetric spinnakers on the start line. During the afternoon and evening, winds are expected to increase to around 15-20 knots, with stronger winds likely in the acceleration zone that lays to south of Gran Canaria.

While the ARC is a cruising rally, there is a start and finish line, and the boats are split into divisions according to size, type and competition. At 12:00 UTC the sound-signal for the first start was given by Sir Chay Blyth, from the Spanish Navy boat Meteor, as boats from the multihull and open divisions set off. Sir Chay has been in Las Palmas this week to meet crews and show support for friends sailing on Nizuc raising money for Parkinsons Research. First over the line mile-long line, leading the group of forty catamarans and two yachts sailing outside of competition, was Pierre Caouette's Outremer 5X Bio Trek.

Twenty six boats in this year's Racing Division were led across the start line by Ross Applebey's Oyster Lightwave 48 Scarlet Oyster followed by fellow British flagged charter boat Rocket Dog. Both are regular ocean crossers with the ARC, sailing with crews of mixed abilities led by a professional skipper. Third across the line was Volvo 65 Austrian Ocean Racing Project, crewed by a group of ambitious young sailors hoping to take on Ocean Race 2021/22 as the first Austrian team in history.

Fleet Viewer

www.worldcruising.com

Notice Of Race Published For The Peters & May Round Antigua Race
Kicking off the 53rd Antigua Sailing Week on Saturday, April 25, this separately scored race is open to spinnaker only classes of CSA, Multihull and Double-handed. Trophies will be awarded for line honours and best corrected time for overall CSA and Multi-hull around the 53 nautical mile course. For the fifth consecutive year, the Peters & May trophy will be awarded to the CSA yacht with the best corrected time. The trophies will be presented at the award ceremony the evening of the race in UNESCO Heritage site, Nelson's Dockyard.

To enter the Peters & May Round Antigua Race please visit our website . - www.sailingweek.com/enter-2020/

As the official shipping and logistics partner to Antigua Sailing Week, Peters & May once again look forward to working alongside new and regular clients shipping their yachts to and from the Caribbean on regular Transatlantic Sailings. Peters & May offer discounted shipping for any boat fully entered into Antigua Sailing Week with a further discount for a round-trip transatlantic shipment. With a selection of Westbound and Eastbound Sailings, the experienced team are able to provide a sailing to suit you - whether that be shipping your yacht to the Caribbean ahead of ASW or shipping her back to Europe or the US following the race. Peters & May are renowned for record breaking sailings, 2018 saw a popular 52 Yacht Sailing from Antigua to Southampton! View sailings below and contact the team for a quote: racing [AT] petersandmay [DOT] com

See the Peters & May TransAtlantic Sailing Schedule on our website

Visit Sanya, China Disqualified from Clipper Race 4 for Collision
Regarding the incident which occurred during Race 4 Start in Cape Town, the Clipper Race Committee has agreed upon the following

After investigating the Port / Starboard incident between CV25 Punta del Este and CV29 Visit Sanya, China, at the beginning of Race 4, the Clipper Race Committee has adjudged that CV29 Visit Sanya, China to be at fault after a clear breach of the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) 10 'On Opposite Tacks'.

As a result of this ruling CV29 Visit Sanya, China has been disqualified from Race 4. The team will officially receive a zero points score and is prohibited from entering into any Scoring Gate and Ocean Sprint for Race 4.

CV25 Punta del Este is exonerated from any breach of RRS 14 'Avoiding Contact' and has been awarded redress as follows. The team will receive an average points score of 9 points and this has been based on its finishing points to date over the three races completed so far and includes any Scoring Gate bonus points, as well as points gained from its Joker. The team will be entitled to enter the Ocean Sprint for Race 4 as per normal.

www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Brest Atlantiques - Early December arrival predicted
From Ronan Gladu, media man on Actual Leader.

"A nice day to eat up the miles ", straight to Brest, via the island of St. Helena .. As Yves says," we must enjoy it, because it will not last! "Indeed, we are moving inexorably to the "soft", the weak wind, with many transitions, until the Doldrums, which also looks very broad.The fleet is tightening so it's not over with a Macif ambush behind us !

The first "crystal ball" routes have fallen. And it's not easy in the North Atlantic. Either we bypass the Azores anticyclone almost to Newfoundland, to hang a depression to the point Brittany (estimate: 15 days!). Or we cross the Azores anticyclone to the east, upwind for days (estimate: 13 days). We predict an arrival between December 6 and 9 in Brest itself.

Morale is good on board: to have fun, Yves & Alex take turns at the helm.Yves had a mini-shower installed on the deck (a salt water pipe).

Full article in the December issue of Seahorse

Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar
Click on image for a larger view of the famed machine

From our friends at Harken comes this wonderful story. One more reason to treasure the memory of Olaf Harken and to celebrate life with Peter Harken at this week's Yacht Racing Forum where he is Monday's Guest of Honour at the evening reception.

For consideration for the Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar Competition: The Harken Factory Beer Machine.

For portions of the past five decades, this unassuming self-service electric steel and plastic refrigerated box has quietly stood watch, ready to refresh. Still around Harken's Pewaukee factory are some folks who remember when the Pepsi machine was repurposed to serve beer for after-hours consumption, originally by employees building the world's fastest '70s and '80s vintage Vanguard Olympic 470s and Finns.

The grand prix Olympic-aspiring customers often showed up and slept in their vans for weeks while their future gold medal-winning rocket ships were releasing from molds and getting rigged. In the intervening years, this functional blue beauty has continued to take the edge off many a Block Assembler or Custom Gear Machinist's day.

With all of Harken's mission-critical sophisticated machinery, in 2010 it was carefully moved from the vintage Wisconsin Avenue Pewaukee facility to its current World Headquarters location, all the while never missing a beat and never passing through a price increase.

12-ounce longneck bottles of domestic suds still cost a now corporately-subsidized 50¢.

Do you have a favorite bar? It could win this year's Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar and receive fame, fortune, a wall plaque, bottle of Wight Vodka and, courtesy of Latitude Kinsale, a custom made to order 3D map of anywhere in the world.

Send us your stories, drink recipes and the name of the best bar: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

New Zealand successfully defends Harken International Youth Match Racing Championship title
Click on image for photo gallery.

A Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (RNZYS) team skippered by Alastair Gifford has won the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club's (RPAYC) Harken International Youth Match Racing Championship on Pittwater this weekend, successfully defending the title won by fellow club member Jordon Stevenson last year.

In the final, Gifford's team of Henry Angus, Chester Duffett, Hunter Gardyne and Seb Lardies defeated the world ranked No. 20 team from Wales, skippered by Matthew Whitfield from Penarth Yacht Club. It means that Gifford pockets the $1200 winner's cheque, with $800 going to Wales as runner-up.

It did not go all Gifford's way. He had to fight back from a deficit of two down in the final, but the Kiwis fought back to win the next three matches in the best of five, to take the title.

Throughout the event, the winners lost only four matches, two in the round robin, and two in the final. In the semi-finals, they took on the RPAYC all-female team skippered by Juliet Costanzo and beat them 3-0, while Whitfield's Welsh team sailed against the other RPAYC team skippered by Alistair Read. The Welsh team won 3-1.

Ten international teams took part in the 27th Harken International Youth Match Racing Championship. Clubs represented were: RPAYC, Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron (Jed Cruickshank), Darwin Sailing Club (Finn Niemeier) and the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, (Hugo Stoner).

The international line-up was completed by Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club in New Zealand (Jonathon Barnett) and Ireland's Royal Irish Yacht Club (Niall Malone).

Special thanks to Harken, a leading manufacturer and marketer of quality sailboat hardware and accessories, which continues to support this event for a 22nd year. -- Di Pearson/RPAYC media

Full results: www.intyouthmatchracingchampionship.com.au

The cutting cutting edge - UBI Maior
For this driven team of Italian engineers the Hugo Boss project now added dramatic compactness to a long list of performance criteria

Over several cycles of gruelling and competitive ocean races like the Vendée Globe, Route du Rhum, Transat Jacques Vabres and others, the Alex Thomson Racing team has demonstrated a continued focus on technical innovation. With this team’s ambitious and innovative approach, it’s not surprising they chose UBI Maior Italia as their primary provider of blocks and associated deck hardware.

The innovations seen in the new Hugo Boss, which launched in September, are no exception and the ocean racing world is abuzz as the team prepares to race the boat for the first time in the Transat Jacques Vabre. The new boat features a distinctive new hull shape and centralised, enclosed cockpit design, from which Thomson will be managing the boat’s sailing systems while staying dry.

The punishing environment the elements produce in these races presents an extreme challenge to equipment reliability, and along with the phenomenally high competitive drive of the teams to push their limits to make gains, the result is a highdemand setting that would scare off most suppliers

18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 1
Click on image for photo gallery.

Sydney Harbour: A last minute crew change brought the 2010 JJ Giltinan Championship-winning team of Seve Jarvin, Sam Newton and Tom Clout back together again and the combination showed they had lost none of their 18ft Skiff handling skills when they brought Winning Group home an easy winner of Race 1 of the NSW Championship on Sydney Harbour today.

With the skiff's regular skipper John Winning Jr. unable to return to Sydney in time to compete, and Tom Clout's new skiff not ready to contest today's race, regular sheet hand Jarvin moved to skipper while Clout took his place on the sheet.

After trailing the leader Shaw and Partners Financial Services (James Dorron, Harry Bethwaite, Tim Westwood) over the first two legs of the course, Winning Group gradually edged away from the fleet before clearing out to cross the finish line 2m35s ahead of Shaw and Partners Financial Services.

The race behind the winner was close with six teams battling for second place.

In another impressive performance, following a second place overall in the Spring Championship, The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines (Aron Everett, Charlie Gundy, Ryan Wilmot) came back from seventh place at the first windward mark to finish in third place, 32s behind Shaw and Partners.

Finport Finance (Keagan York) finished fourth, ahead of Appliancesonline.com.au (Brett Van Munster), Smeg (Michael Coxon) and Rag & Famish Hotel (Bryce Edwards).

The race, which was sailed in a 8-10 knot SE wind, saw the fleet split into two separate groups on the windward leg from the start in Taylor Bay, across the harbour to Rose Bay.

In true champions form, the Winning Group's crew continued to dominate as they powered away for the easy victory.

Shaw and Partners, The Oak and Finport were together at Rose Bay before The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines headed for home in second place, but Shaw and Partners was just a little stronger over the final windward leg to the finish

A special mention has to go to Yvette Heritage and her team on Noakes Blue, which finished in eighth place, ahead of R Marine Pittwater, Yandoo (John Winning) and The Kitchen Maker-Caesarstone.

The Australian 18 Footer League's 2019-2020 Season continues next Sunday when the club will stage Race 2 of the NSW Championship. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers League

Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championship winners declared
Despite the rather melancholy weather, the competition was as stiff as ever in the 42nd running of the Sydney Short Ocean Racing Championship (SSORC), hosted by Middle Harbour Yacht Club (MHYC) over the weekend.

Gerry Hatton's Bushranger crew came down from 'The Alfreds' on Pittwater and conquered in IRC Division 1. Hatton is away, so Michael Fountain was left in charge of the Mat 1245, and after finishing third in the passage race yesterday, pulled out all stops with 1-2-1 results to beat nearest rival, Bob Cox's DK46, Nine Dragons by three points. Darryl Hodgkinson's Carkeek 40, Victoire, was third on countback after winning the passage race.

Competitors at the SSORC were put through their paces in a very shifty and light 6 to 10 knots of breeze for yesterday's passage race, followed by a soft 10-knot south-easterly on bumpy seas for the three windward/leeward races

Division 2 went to newcomer, Soozal, the King 40 skippered by Keiran Mulcahy who with his wife, recently imported the boat from California. He could not have been more pleased with the outcome of Soozal's Australian offshore debut.

Mulcahy, who next month takes on the 628 nautical mile 75th Sydney Hobart, said: "It turned out to be the right decision to bring the boat from California. Twelve years old and it races like a rabbit. It's proved itself over the last weekend."

In her first outing, Soozal cleaned up, scoring three wins from four races to defeat nearest competitor and local, Jack Stening and Colin Gunn's Sydney 36, Stormaway, which also finished bridesmaid last year. Stormaway won Race 2, to finish three points in arrears, while Chris Heraghty's Sydney 38, Risk, was third, a further two points behind.

MHYC, which is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year, expresses its thanks to sponsors: Helly Hansen, Club Marine, Oatley Wines, Short Marine, Vittoria Coffee and Key Sun Zinke for their support.

www.ssorc.mhyc.com.au

Featured Brokerage
2001 Beneteau First 40.7- Philosophie IV. 89,950 GBP. Located in Hamble, UK.

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Contact
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1996 Vismara Buzzi V60 Open. 150,000 EUR, Located in Sicily, Italy.

Quite possibly the most innovative and ground-breaking yacht ever to be launched. Employing much of the design and technology now regarded as cutting edge, but 20yrs ahead of her time. A totally unique opportunity.

Contact
GRABAU INTERNATIONAL
Lead broker - Alex Grabau
Tel: +44 (0)1590 673715
Email: alex [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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2006 Swan 100-103 'Hoppetosse'. Located in Palma de Mallorca.

Hoppetosse is a superyacht and masterpiece built by Nautor’s Swan and launched in 2006. She combines the performance of a racing yacht with world-class comfort and opulence. The Swan 100 FD's deck lines give the yacht a very impressive sleek and racing oriented look. The cockpit concept features two spacious L-shaped sofas with large cockpit tables on either side of the centre-line companionway. In addition the helmsman seats are extended aft to form another seating area on the aft deck. The coaming continues aft of the L-shaped helmsman seats awarding a sleek and elegant profile.

Contact
Lorenzo Bortolotti
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +377 97 97 95 07

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

The Last Word
Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once. -- Julius Caesar, Act II, Scene 2

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• MACIF Heads West
• Final curtain in Le Marin, 78 sailors safely in port!
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Rolex Fastnet Race announcement by the Royal Ocean Racing Club
• 49er, 49erFX and Nacra17 Oceania Championships
• Murrays' Punt Makes A Splash At The Dash
• Mirabaud Sailing Video Award - Classic Yachts in the spotlights
• Being with Benny
• OGR opens a CLASSIC Challenge to Whitbread Maxis and W60's
• Cruising Association Open Weekend
• Solaris Yachts Around the Island Race
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 82-010 Grey Goose
• • Grand Soleil 40
• • X41 - British Soldier
• The Last Word: Definitely not Shakespeare

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

MACIF Heads West
After nearly three weeks at sea, the three trimarans still racing on "Brest Atlantiques" continue their progression towards the equator, which they should cross Thursday. But while so far, all of them followed fairly similar routes, the trimaran MACIF has opted since Sunday for a path to the west, which Francois Gabart and Gwenole Gahinet hope will bear fruit by the end of the week.

In a video sent by Jeremie Eloy, the media man on board, the two skippers explained their choice: "Two options have emerged: one taken by our two competitors, which is to leave almost full north downwind in a weak wind, and a second which is to cross a ridge, fetch a front, namely a zone of wind a little stronger. The idea is to cross this front and win in the west to then recover the trade wind with a better angle. "

Aboard Edmond de Rothschild, which has a lead of 245 miles over Actual Leader (Yves Le Blevec / Alex Pella), launched in an outboard west, we follow closely the road followed by the trimaran MACIF, as confirmed by Franck Cammas to media man Yann Riou: "We saw MACIF gyber (to jibe) and go to the south-west. Obviously, he's taking a completely different option from the one everybody seems to have been following for a few days, because there's a 1000-mile front of our growing area, with wind behind him. South West. One of the models actually gives this optimum route, namely to pass through this front and make a round on the other side, it's not going to be a very simple road, there will be work for them. "

Race Tracker

www.sailingvideoaward.com/videos.html

Final curtain in Le Marin, 78 sailors safely in port!
The arrival of the final competitor, Georges Kick, on Saturday night through into Sunday, marked the official closure of the finish line for this second leg of the Mini-Transat La Boulangère 2019 between Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in the Canaries and Le Marin in Martinique.

Of the 87 participants that set sail from La Rochelle, including 8 women, 78 skippers completed this 22nd edition. On land, the prize-giving ceremony for the 2nd leg took place yesterday evening in Le Marin, in the presence of the organisation, the skippers and their families, as well as the race partners, rounding off the festivities in the finish village in Le Marin.

Upon making landfall in Martinique yesterday, Sunday 24 November at 05 h 43 min 25 seconds UTC, Georges Kick, the last competitor in the Mini-Transat La Boulangère 2019, officially closed the finish line for this second leg. Celebrated with great pomp by all the skippers on the pontoon in Le Marin, the arrival of the oldest competitor (64 years of age) in this edition marks the end of a particularly prolific transatlantic race.

The second leg lived up to expectations with a lot of downwind sailing apart from at the end, but that spiced up the race a bit. Even though it's always a bit annoying to sail 60 miles in 24 hours for three consecutive days, in sporting terms it was fantastic. The star players stepped up to the plate and didn't break much. There were three sailors who didn't set sail due to injury and the other retirements were a result of technical issues. Two boats were abandoned in this second leg. It's always distressing but in both incidents, each of the boats no longer had any form of steerage, which is the worst possible damage you can suffer."

With no less than 37 finishers in the space of 24 hours, the night of Wednesday through into Thursday really made life exciting for the organisation, who had to put in place additional on-the-water support to deal with the great slew of finishers.

22nd edition
87 skippers at the start in La Rochelle including 8 women
83 skippers made the finish in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
82 skippers at the start in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
78 skippers at the finish in Le Marin
37 finishers in 24hrs in Le Marin

Prototype:
1st Francois Jambou (865 - Team BFR Maree Haute): 12d 02h 27min 07s
2nd Axel Trehin (945 - Project Rescue Ocean): 12d 15h 18min 54s
3rd Morten Bogacki (934 - Otg Lilienthal): 14d 05h 26min 24s

Production:
1st Ambrogio Beccaria (943 - Geomag): 13d 01h 58min 48s
2nd Nicolas d'Estais (905 - Cheminant-Ursuit): 13d 21h 05min 44S
3rd Benjamin Ferre (902 - Imago Incubateur D'aventures): 14d 07h 34min 54s

www.minitransat.fr

Seahorse December 2019
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Decompression
It started with the racing code zero but already the benefits are spreading rapidly out through the superyacht world (and elsewhere...)

(Almost) a clean sheet of paper
Moving from Archimedean craft to foilers - and particularly to foils - demands a new mindset as much as it does a new approach to composite construction and engineering

Multiple challenges
Redefining the concept of a superyacht - the introduction of Dynamic Stability System (DSS), Cl Ellipse rigging from Carbo-Link and spars from Rondal - and suddenly life's even more full-on

The cutting edge of the cutting edge
For this driven team of Italian engineers the Hugo Boss project now added dramatic compactness to a long list of performance criteria

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Rolex Fastnet Race announcement by the Royal Ocean Racing Club
Some big changes for the next edition!

Press briefing & Q&A session
Tuesday 26 November
RORC Clubhouse at 20 St. James' Place
Broadcasting LIVE on Facebook at 13.30

Visit: www.facebook.com/royaloceanracingclub

49er, 49erFX and Nacra17 Oceania Championships
Glamour conditions greeted the 178 international teams on the opening day of racing at the 2019 49er, 49erFX and Nacra17 Oceania Championships. The three-day warmup regatta before next weeks world championships is hosted by Auckland's Royal Akarana Yacht Club. With the weeks leading up to the event being filled with strong winds and sunshine, the bar was set high and New Zealand certainly delivered.

The 49er class once again staked its claim of being one of the tightest fleets in Olympic sailing. Just ten points separate the top 13 teams after three races with the young American team of Andrew Mollerus and Ian MacDiarmid taking the top honours. France's Erwan / Pequin were the only team to record two wins and see themselves just one point behind the Americans, while the red hot Kiwi squad were lead by young guns Isaac McHardie and William McKenzie, finishing the day in third.

Day one in the 49erFX class was also lead by a team from the United States with Stephine Roble & Maggie Shea relishing in the conditions, claiming two wins and a third to lead by 7 points from Rio 2016 Gold Medallists Martine Grael & Kahena Kunze of Brazil, with reigning European and World Champions Annemiek Bekkering & Annette Duetz just two points further back.

It was the Ben & Nikki show in the Nacra 17 mixed multihull fleet. The reigning European Champions from Great Britain, Ben Saxton & Nicola Boniface rattled off three bullets from as many races in the building conditions to lead the fleet by 5 points. This show of dominance sets the scene for a thrilling selection battle with their fellow team mates John Gimson and Anna Burnet, currently 7th. The two teams have been trading wins throughout 2019 and a decisive win at the 2019 worlds could book the winning team a ticket to Tokyo.

Full results: 49er 49erFX Nacra17

Murrays' Punt Makes A Splash At The Dash
Colin and Oly Murray sailed their Norfolk Punt to victory at the Fernhurst Books Draycote Dash, the first of eight events in this season's Selden SailJuice Winter Series.

The conditions were predominantly light and overcast, with the Force 2 breeze occasionally gusting to Force 3 on Draycote Water. Starting under the black flag with three separate starts for Fast, Medium and Slow, the trapezoid course was always busy, with traffic avoidance and clear air one of the keys to success.

With the tallest rig in the fleet, the father and son duo in the Norfolk Punt made the most of the conditions where they were running at full power much of the time while most teams were still crouching. The Murrays finished 5th on corrected time in race one but then scored a hat trick of bullets in the next three races on Saturday.

Sunday was meant to bring the non-discardable Pursuit Race, although fog and lack of breeze meant that the results from Saturday's four races would determine the final positions in the Draycote Dash. So the Murrays were the winners, followed by some class acts who filled the top 10 places.

Steve and Sarah Cockerill raced their RS400 to second overall, 6 points behind the winners and 4 points ahead of the third-placed team in their World Championship winning GP14, Ian Dobson and Andy Tunnicliffe. There were six top-class GP14s present at Draycote, with Sam Watson/ Andy Punter finishing on equal points with Pete Gray and Geoff Edwards in 5th and 6th place respectively.

For fairly light conditions, Tom Morris and Guy Fillmore proved that an RS800 can be competitive even when they're not twin-trapezing, the Hayling Island crew coming fourth overall. Another high-performing boat from the Fast Handicap was the leading Fireball sailed by Martyn Lewis crewed by his son Daniel in 7th overall.

This event also served as the Inland Championships for the Hadron H2 class, with Richard Leftley finishing first in class, and 21st overall. There are a number of classes using the Series events for class regattas, including:

Hadron H2 - Inlands (Dash)
Blaze - Fire Cup (Datchet Flyer)
RS Aero - Winter Championships (Oxford)
OK - Winter Championships (Oxford)

The next event in the Series is fast approaching, with just a fortnight until the Datchet Flyer on on the weekend of 7 & 8 December.

www.sailjuiceseries.com

Mirabaud Sailing Video Award - Classic Yachts in the spotlights
The third edition of the Mirabaud Sailing Video Award was a great success, with thirty-four videos produced by professional directors and cameramen spanning ten different countries, which perfectly summarised an intense and beautiful sailing season. Manuel Llario (ESP) wins the main prize, awarded by the International Jury, while Jose Cigarrán (ESP) wins the Public Award. The "Special Prize" goes to Ricardo Pinto (POR).

The Main Prize was awarded by an international Jury composed of Nathalie Quere, Nic Douglas, Elena Otekina, Nicolas Mirabaud, Nico Martinez and Nacho Gomez-Zarzuela. The overall winner is Manuel Llario (ESP) and his video Feel Traditional Sailing. A beautiful tribute to classic yachts, filmed during the Puig Vela Clásica regatta in Barcelona (ESP). Manuel Llario worked with Vicente Jose Robles Ribalta (production), and both represent Tactic Audiovisual.

Yann Riou (FRA, polaRYSE) finishes second, very close from the winner, with his video Maxi Edmond de Rothschild taking off to Brest Atlantiques. Media man aboard the trimaran, he filmed Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier in action. Third of the contest, Ricardo Pinto (POR) filmed Greta Thunberg, Boris Herrmann and Pierre Casiraghi during their Atlantic crossing onboard Malizia and produced a video entitled: The Future is now!

Being with Benny
Being with Benny is the story of how Bob Miller, from a shattered childhood in rural Australia and only four years of schooling became one of the world's leading yacht designers. His creation Australia II won the America's Cup in 1983, ending the New York Yacht Club's 132-year hold on the world's oldest sporting trophy.

The lack of formal education worked for this self-taught genius. An intuition for fast sailboat shapes, an open mind and a hunger for new ideas led to his exploration of the winged keel concept, which crossed his path from aerospace research, while he was designing Australia II.

Miller, who changed his name to Ben Lexcen before designing Australia II, had previously designed three-handed lightweight 18-footers that changed the whole course of skiff design. His trapeze-powered Contender single-handed skiff won international class status. He designed successful ocean racers, including Mercedes III, Apollo, Ginkgo, Ballyhoo and Sydney-Hobart race winner Ceil III. He was also a champion sailor and represented Australia in the Olympic Games.

At the time of his sudden death on May 1, 1988, from a heart attack, when he was aged 52, he had captivated the Mediterranean rich and famous with his stylish designs of large yachts, power and sail.

The publisher of the book, Robert Deaves said, "It's an absolute privilege to publish this book for Bob. It is such a momentous and famous story that sailors everywhere know about. Bob's narrative is captivating and fascinating, not just the story of the design of Australia II and how it won the America's Cup, but also all the details about Lexcen's many designs and projects that led up to that. It is a important historical record of the events that changed the America's Cup forever."

boatswainbooks.uk/being-with-benny

OGR opens a CLASSIC Challenge to Whitbread Maxis and W60's
Don McIntyre, Chairman of the Ocean Globe Race announced at the Yacht Racing Forum today the addition of a "CLASSIC Challenge". This new class will open another eight entries to former Whitbread Maxis over 71 feet and W60 racing yachts from 1985 to 1997.

Retro and Classics will share host and stopover ports as well as starting dates. However, the unique, longer course sailed by CLASSIC sailors means additional hardship and less in-port time, making for a more challenging race. Crews will compete for the "Big Red Trophy" named after the late Sir Peter Blake's Steinlager II, the only yacht ever to win all legs, line honours, and on handicap.

With 15 confirmed entries in 5 months, the Retro Class, comprised of Adventure, Sayula and Flyer categories with 8 entries each, is already more than half-full. The addition of the CLASSIC Challenge and the 2 discretionary invitations will increase the number of available entries to 34, making the OGR one of the biggest fully-crewed round the world races of the last 29 years.

The latest entry is the Swan 51 "Eira", skippered by Sebastian Gylling from Finland. Upon entering the race, Gylling who owned multiple X-Yachts and Swan designs said the "race is what Mount Everest is to a mountaineer" and that he wants to compete "Because (he is) a romantic fool".

Unlike the Retro class, CLASSIC entries will be allowed full sponsor branding and no restriction on boat signage. Crews will have access to all usual electronics, including GPS, smartphones, satellite communications (to media only), satellite video feeds, drones, sat weather forecasts and computers, but not to weather routing programs.

The new class is already bringing excitement in the racing community, including Whitbread and V.O.R. legend Grant Dalton: "Those early Whitbread days really were full of passion and completely raw experiences. Every edition put up new challenges with the human element as important, if not more so than the boat. The stories and characters became legend and we had a lot of fun. I have lots of memories of "Fisher & Paykel", many of which are about coming only second! This new Classic Challenge in the Ocean Globe is going to excite a lot of people on and off the water. Imagine if Steinlager and F&P return!"

One notable reason for the appeal of this class is the number of yachts available at a competitive price, leaving a fair amount of budget for the mandatory refit.

oceangloberace.com

Cruising Association Open Weekend
In the absence of the London Boat Show in January, the CA has taken the initiative to open its doors to CA members and non-members as well as to a number of high-profile marine companies to exhibit their products and services at CA House.

The CA's 'Open Weekend', focuses on all things boaty and is being hosted at CA House in London's Limehouse Basin, on Saturday February 29 and Sunday March 1. Everyone is welcome to come along for an informative and fun day out for all boating enthusiasts.

The weekend gives visitors an exclusive opportunity to have one-to-one conversations with representatives from:

ASAP Supplies
Dolphin Sails
Gill
ICOM
Imray
Limehouse Basin Marina
Navionics
Ocean Safety
Raymarine

...and of course the Cruising Association whose staff and speakers will be on hand to chat and answer any questions. There will also be plenty of opportunity to socialise in a heated patio marquee where food and drinks will be available to purchase throughout the day.

Introduce your boating friends to the CA!
Visitors can get exclusive discounts on a range of products and the CA is also giving 10% off the first year's membership if you join on the day and pay by DD, so spread the word and do invite your boating friends along.

We have also put together a packed schedule of specialist speakers on a fascinating range of cruising-related topics on both days and are delighted to confirm Tom Cunliffe as our Saturday evening guest speaker.

Visit www.theca.org.uk/events/ca_open_weekend_290219 to review the full speaker and topics schedule in order to plan your day and then get your booking sorted.

Solaris Yachts Around the Island Race Over 200 boats turned up for the 26nm Solaris Yachts Around the Island Race under a perfect blue sky. Given the sheer number of boats, Race Officer David Norton set two start lines off of Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club's Kellett Island Clubhouse with the line closest to Kellett Island used for starting the one design boats and the outside line for HKPN, IRC and beach cat divisions.

The first start was at 0830hrs with the Pandoras and HKPN Monohulls setting off in a easterly breeze of around 4 to 7kts and the last division to set off was the only fast fleet boat Jelik at 1030hrs. All starts got away cleanly except for a few scoring OSCs including a 29er, a Dragon, an Impala, a J/80 and an Etchells.

The biggest yacht in the fleet was Frank Pong's 72ftJelik and the smallest was the only single handed entry RS Aero skipper by Giles Surman.

Two 420s led the fleet out of Lei Yu Mun Gap and were the first boats to round Cape D'Aguillar. As the entire fleet made their around Stanley head, it was a colourful sight to behold with hundreds of kites on the horizon.

Casey Law's 29er took the lead towards Ap Lei Chau until he was overtaken by the big boats at Cyberport. For the front fleet, they passed by Green Island and were greeted by some solid wind and strong tide in the harbour. Marcel Liedts' Zannekin took line honours followed by Robert Wiest, Victor Kuk and David Ho's Phoenix and Shawn Kang's Alpha +.

Unfortunately the wind softened in the afternoon and a wind hole developed around Middle Island. The majority of the fleet were sailing slowly downwind at the southern side of Hong Kong Island and in the end one third of the participating yachts could not reach Kellett Island before the cut-off of 1700hrs with Big Boat Blu being the last boat to cross the line to get a finish.

rhkyc.org.hk

Featured Brokerage
2006 Swan 82 'Grey Goose'. 2,950,000 EUR VAT Paid. Located in Valencia, Spain

This Nautor's Swan 82 FD "Grey Goose" has been built for two defined missions. One is luxurious and short handed family cruising with performance but without any stress on deck. The second mission is competitive racing in all conditions inshore as well as offshore and even transatlantic racing. She is not a pure race boat even more she demonstrates the real Swan DNA by accomplishing both missions in a perfect manner beeing comfortable, sea worthy and very fast. She has proven her outstanding performance in several racing events and in numerous family holidays cruises.

See listing details in Nautors Swan brokerage

Contact
Lorenzo Bortolotti
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +377 97 97 95 07

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

2006 Grand Soleil 40. 99000 EUR. Located in Tuscany, Italy.

TURAN is a much-loved and very lightly used Grand Soleil 40. She is the perfect value for money fast cruiser with low maintenance costs and she is able to host 5 guests for easy handling cruising. She is still under the first ownership.

Contact
Michele Antonini – Grabau International (Italia)
Tel: +39 333 74 89 281
Email: enquiries [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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

British Soldier, the 2018 RORC IRC Overall winner is for sale. POA EUR. Located in Gosport UK.

British Soldier, the 2018 RORC IRC Overall winner is for sale

Dry sailed and professionally maintained. Refit in 2019 including professional rigging check, hull coated with Nautix T-Speed, internal woodwork varnished and electrical overhaul. Fitted with carbon mast and IRC optimised A-Sails setup from a fixed bowsprit, enhanced with a furling Jib Top, IRC Code Zero and Genoa Staysail to increase reaching / light airs performance. Comes with symmetric spinnaker pole & spinnakers, ORC optimised Code Zero, training, delivery and cruising sails with furling head foil and full cruising inventory kept ashore in climate controlled store.

Available after the Fastnet Race 2019. Lying Gosport, UK.

www.rorc.org/news/news-2019/royal-ocean-racing-club-to-finish-the-rolex-fastnet-race-in-cherbourg

Contact
racing [AT] sailarmy [DOT] co [DOT] uk
07747 606391

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

The Last Word
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust into them. -- Anon.

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Rolex Fastnet Race will finish in Cherbourg
• Ben Ainslie's INEOS TEAM UK joins Great Britain SailGP Team
• Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar
• Latitude Kinsale's "Origins" Collection
• Revolutionary Thinking shared at the Yacht Racing Forum
• Spindrift 2 Back On Standby for Jules Verne Trophy Attempt
• Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
• America's Cup: Emirates Team New Zealand puts down a marker on wind limits
• Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta fleet is shaping up nicely
• Sam Goodchild: "The Solitaire Du Figaro Is The Best Race In Town"
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Marten 67 - "Caol Ila"
• • Johan Anker Flush Deck Cutter - Bojar
• • Windquest
• The Last Word: A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 1, Scene 1

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Rolex Fastnet Race will finish in Cherbourg
The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), organisers of the Rolex Fastnet Race, announced at a press conference today that the City of Cherbourg will host the finish of the Rolex Fastnet Race for the 2021 and 2023 editions of the biennial race. The move encourages and secures the future development of the race and will open it to more competitors; in 2019 the race had a waiting list of 150 boats.

The City of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, The Communaute d'agglomeration du Cotentin, the Conseil departemental de la Manche and Normandy Region have come together to support the race finish with a package that enhances the competitor experience with increased berthing, enhanced shoreside facilities, competitor functions and events in an exciting development for the race.

Speaking about the benefits of Cherbourg as the finish venue, RORC Commodore, Steven Anderson, said: "It is an exciting time for this iconic and extremely successful race. Finishing the Rolex Fastnet Race in Cherbourg will encourage and secure the continued growth of the Club's most prestigious event and provide an enhanced competitor experience. The enthusiasm of the French for offshore racing is legendary, and the City of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, The Communaute d'agglomeration du Cotentin, the Conseil departemental de la Manche and Normandy Region have been hugely passionate and committed partners in this initiative."

"The race has grown steadily over the past two decades and more and more people want to take part. We have had to limit entries in recent years because of berthing constraints, but Cherbourg offers significant additional berthing and improved facilities for competitors, so we will be able to take a larger number of entries and give more sailors the opportunity to compete in this very special race," continued Anderson.

Ben Ainslie's INEOS TEAM UK joins Great Britain SailGP Team
Ben Ainslie today joined the Great Britain SailGP Team. Beginning in the global league's second season kicking off in February 2020, Ainslie and a world-class squad of athletes will represent Great Britain in SailGP - sailing's newest and fastest championship that boasts the sport's largest monetary prize of US$1 million.

Ainslie's SailGP team will be fully announced early next year, utilizing a combination of athletes from INEOS TEAM UK - the British challenger for the America's Cup - and existing members of the Great Britain SailGP Team. The crew will pilot the revolutionary F50, which this year eclipsed the 50-knot speed barrier for the first time ever in sail racing, against at least five other national teams beginning in Sydney on February 28-29.

Current Great Britain SailGP Team grinder Matt Gotrel joins Ainslie as the second official team member of the 2020 squad. The 30-year old British Olympic champion rower will also join Ainslie and INEOS TEAM UK in their America's Cup campaign.

INEOS TEAM UK's family of partners - INEOS, Belstaff and Grenadier - will support the Great Britain SailGP Team, while AFEX joins the team as an additional Supporting Partner.

SailGP Season 2 premiers in Sydney (February 28-29), before returning to the U.S. for events in San Francisco (May 2-3) and New York (June 12-13). Cowes on the Isle of Wight in the UK was recently announced as the first European event of Season 2, returning August 14-15, 2020, after a hugely successful event during the championship's inaugural year. The remainder of the Season 2 schedule will be announced in the coming months.

ineosteamuk.com sailgpgbr.com

Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar
Tonight we revisit a previous winner, from 2017, the St. Thomas Yacht Club. Thousands of sailors have participated in the St. Thomas International Regatta and your humble narrator is guessing that 99.99% of them tipped a few cold drinks at the yacht club's wonderful bar. The food at the restaurant is restorative, the staff welcoming.

And in a first for our 11 years of drink recipes, this is the first that has CBD as an ingredient. Kids these days!

STYC's version of the Femme Fatale:

Fresh rosemary
Cucumber
CannabaSea CBD
Premium vodka (Wight Vodka if you have it, Grey Goose a decent second choice)
St. Germaine elderflower liquor
... and a splash of cranberry juice.

Know of another mellennial-inspired cannabinoid-infused concoction? Or just a superb version of an old classic?

Send us your story of your favorite bar: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

The winner gets a custom 3D map from Latitude Kinsale!

Latitude Kinsale's "Origins" Collection
In January we introduced a new version of the 3D Chart that is specifically designed for the individual gift market, this became known as "The Origins™ Collection". A typical scenario: you are looking for a unique gift for a friend, its a special occasion like a wedding and the budget is important, We have the solution…….. The Origins chart has 5 main attributes:

1: It is hand made to commission and presented in an elegant frame with simplicity in mind - typical of modern contemporary design.

2: The chart content is typically based on a person's origin - hence the name Origins™. So if it is a Christening/Baby gift or a wedding gift then the focal point is Home

3: The Origins™ collection because clients are using them as mementos of their favourite holiday locations. The client will commission a series of charts to show their various "Sailing holidays". Hanging on the wall in a group looks fabulous and it tells it's own story.

4: The Origins™ chart includes the option to customise by including a persons name in nautical flags and their date of birth.

5: The Origins™ chart is created with a budget in mind therefore is cost effective. The size of the framed 3D chart is 380*380mm. Price starting from €299.

www.latitudekinsale.com

Revolutionary Thinking shared at the Yacht Racing Forum
Click on image to enlarge.

Bilbao, Spain: The pace of change in the sport of sailing is moving quicker than ever, was one of the key messages to come out of this year's Forum. One of the sport's brightest minds, Stan Honey opened the two-day conference with an inspiring keynote speech that made a few predictions for the next decade. A winning navigator of the Volvo Ocean Race, the multi-Emmy Award winner has been even more successful in developing technology for sports broadcasting including the Liveline technology that revolutionised coverage of the America's Cup.

The advent of foiling will open up the opportunity to take all the big offshore records, Honey predicted. Smart phones are now becoming so powerful that the kind of Liveline technology that was only affordable by the America's Cup could trickle down to grass roots sailing. "We developed an electronic umpiring system for AC34, but the technology is becoming so affordable that my next prediction is that electronic umpiring will have a big impact across the sport."

Honey's other prediction that the already meteoric growth in doublehanded offshore racing will continue to rise, was echoed by other speakers at the Forum including Rodion Luka, founder of the L30 keelboat which is opening up doublehanded opportunities for aspirants to the new Olympic event for Marseille 2024, mixed doublehanded offshore racing. In similar fashion, Dawn Riley explained how Oakcliff Sailing has repurposed a fleet of Melges 24s for affordable two-up offshore competition.

Professional sailors need to be great storytellers as well as good athletes, was one of the key messages to come out of day one. If anyone can tell a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat it's Don McIntyre, who laid out his vision for the Ocean Globe Race, designed to mirror and honour the tradition of the glory days of the Whitbread Round the World Race. Meanwhile Johan Salen is re-envisioning the round-the-world concept with the Ocean Race, and he described the exciting future that encapsulates the VO65s and the outlandish foiling IMOCA 60s. Builder of the recently launched Hugo Boss IMOCA 60, Jason Carrington, reminded delegates that there is nothing cheap about high-performance, describing the giant foil that protrudes out of each side of Alex Thomson's 60 footer as like "having a Ferrari strapped to each side of the boat".

The Yacht Racing Forum has always been a pioneer and advocate of social and environmental change in the sport.

Next year's Yacht Racing Forum will take place in Portsmouth, UK, on 23-24 November, 2020.

www.yachtracingforum.com

Spindrift 2 Back On Standby for Jules Verne Trophy Attempt
Yann Guichard and his crew are on standby thius week, awaiting a favourable weather window to set sail on their third Jules Verne Trophy record attempt.

Since October 29th, the team had been focused exclusively on repairing Spindrift 2's rudder ever since a problem was detected while training offshore. "We have experienced another race against the clock, here at Spindrift racing. For the past 3 weeks, we have been focused exclusively on finding solutions to fix the multihull's rudder. I would like to thank the entire technical team for their hard work. We're now ready to set sail, and our eyes are turned on the weather forecasts. Our standby is extended until mid December " explained Yann Guichard.

The objective? Beat the existing round the world non-stop sailing record of 40-days, 23-hours, 30-minutes set by Francis Joyon in 2017. If the weather conditions along the route are favourable, it is an achievable goal. "We would like to be a day ahead of the record by the time we reach the Indian Ocean. Francis Joyon crossed this stretch of ocean in a record time and it will be difficult to beat," says Yann Guichard.

Spindrift 2 - Jules Verne Trophy Squad:

Yann Guichard - skipper
Erwan Israel - navigator
Jacques Guichard - watch leader / helm
Jackson Bouttell - helm / bow
Thierry Chabagny - helm
Gregory Gendron - helm
Xavier Revil - watch leader / helm
Corentin Horeau - helm / bow
François Morvan - helm
Duncan Spath - helm
Erwan Le Roux - watch leader / helm
Benjamin Schwartz - helm / bow ---
Jean-Yves Bernot - router

www.spindrift-racing.com

Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
This month's nominees:

Andrew Pindar (GBR)
The latest of many women's sailing initiatives, working with Dee Caffari and Theresa Zabell, Pindar is the backer of the review of women's participation in the sport presented to World Sailing in Bermuda. The ultimate generous enthusiast, he is immersed in most aspects of sailing, supporting and advising events and sailors such as multiple match race champion Ian Williams and the late quadriplegic record-breaking sailor Hilary Lister

David Raison (FRA)
The French designer, engineer and Mini Transat-winning sailor features heavily in this issue as this month two breakthrough Raison yachts won the Transat Jacques Vabre and Mini Transat on the same day. What is less widely appreciated is that Raison's successful scows are not just the product of a single good idea but many years of refinement using all of the modern design tools including CFD, plus some very smart gut instinct

Last Month's winner:
Takashi Okura (USA)
'My father!' - Riko Okura; 'A super-nice guy, excellent helmsman and a top team' - Will Ryan; 'Mr Okura works very hard to push the sailing team to such great results' - Barny Henshaw; 'Nice and smooth does it' - Ryan Godfrey; 'Well done, Mr Okura!' - Robbie Naismith; 'One of the nicest and most gifted sailors I have had the fortune to race with' - Ray Davies; 'Awesome to work with such a good owner and tight team' - Tammo Baldszun; 'Five wins in a row, enough said' - Brendan Simons; 'It is great to see it all come together for an owner and his team, especially when you've seen the hard work leading up to it' - Rob Weiland.

View past winners of Sailor of the Month

Seahorse Sailor of the Month is sponsored by Musto, Harken McLube & Dubarry. Who needs silverware, our prizes are usable!

Cast your vote, submit comments, even suggest a candidate for next month at seahorsemagazine.com/sailor-of-the-month/vote-for-sailor-of-the-month

America's Cup: Emirates Team New Zealand puts down a marker on wind limits
The unanswered questions on an upper end wind limit for the 36th America's Cup got a partial response from the Defender, Emirates Team New Zealand in a training session east of Browns Island, today.

Sailing in SW winds blowing 20-25kts, Sail-World caught the AC75 Te Aihe as she had finished the session and made her way back to her Auckland base, 12nm away.

Her training area, usually well away from prying eyes is known as "The Paddock" and was used extensively in the buildup to the 2017 America's Cup in Bermuda, as offered moderately sheltered flat water, reminiscent of Bermuda. The area is designated as one of two heavy air course areas for the 36th America's Cup. The amount of white water in the course was significant - a sea condition known locally as there being "plenty of [white] sheep in the paddock".

Initially Te Aihe sailed in non-foiling mode - heeling as would be expected of a rather tender boat, with her windward wing well above the crew. Surprisingly, given that the AC75 doesn't have a daggerboard, the AC75 seemed to sail better than expected, with sails sheeted wider in the fresh breeze. There was no sign of her staggering in the breeze or likely to capsize as some trolls and pundits had predicted would happen with the AC75.

A team spokesman said afterwards that the session was an "extremely successful day with wind rising to top end - no issues and some good laps".

One could take from that comment that the Defender would be looking to race in that windstrength on that course.

Previously the team response was that the upper wind limit would only be addressed after the AC75 had been sailed in a variety of conditions. -- by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World.com

Full interview in Tip & Shaft

Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta fleet is shaping up nicely
137’ Herreshoff gaff schooner Elena of London. Click on image to enlarge.

Changing the dates of the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta from the usual second half of April to the very beginning (1-7 April 2020) has enabled various past participants to come and join us again, notably the magnificent 137' Herreshoff gaff schooner Elena of London, the beautiful 86' 1939 Henry Gruber yawl Nordwind and the stunning 203' Andre Hoek designed Athos. Meanwhile we have had a lot of interest from new would-be participants from far and wide, such as the 120' schooner Goleto Gringo, built in 1886 and lovingly renovated in Argentina by its current owner, and gaff cutter Lady Free, a replica of a 1905 Colin Archer design, built in 1983, from Norway. Local owner Don Ward, who has taken part in the Regatta for many years, has a new entry: the 2004 Bill Dixon 40' sloop Freya, a frequent past winner on the Mediterranean circuit. We also welcome back regular competitors, such as Columbia, Rhea, Chronos, Mary Rose, The Blue Peter, Eros, Petrana and Seefalke to name but a few.

The Dragon Class, re-introduced in 2019 to great acclaim, already has two entries for 2020 (six more Petticrows are still available for charter - or bring your own!). Registration fees will be waived in 2021 for the winner of this exciting and highly competitive class, which attracts world-class sailors from all over the world to experience Antigua's superb sailing conditions.

Petticrow Dragon Class
We have strong interest in the Historic Class with new and returning boats. These are yachts designed and built before the end of 1976 of any material with any keel configurations, such as various Sparkman and Stephens designs, Nautor's Swan and Baltic Yachts.

www.antiguaclassics.com

Sam Goodchild: "The Solitaire Du Figaro Is The Best Race In Town"
Through talent, hard graft and building a broad based experience Sam Goochild has forged himself a diverse career, increasingly among the early picks for big multihull projects, IMOCA and Class 40 races. One year ago it was a disappointed Goodchild who had, again, suffered a Transatlantic breakdown - losing the mast of his Class 40 whilst among the leaders of the Route du Rhum. So when he finished the Transat Jacques Vabre on his third attempt in Class 40, second place on Leyton with Fabien Delahaye felt particularly sweet for the sailor who turned 30 on Tuesday, the day that Tip & Shaft caught up with him in Salvador de Bahia. Goodchild, whose career best on the Solitaire was 11th in 2013, confirms he will return to the Figaro for next year, racing in the Leyton colours.

You've had a few disappointments in your Transatlantic races, that must make this second all the sweeter?

It has been a while coming. In Class 40 it is third time lucky. What's nice is to have had the aim, to win and though we didn't quite get there, we sailed a pretty good race and have no regrets. So it's good to have that result under the belt and not to have been worrying about costs again, thinking what could go wrong and what you would do if it did go wrong?

So you move back to the Figaro for next year?

Yes, the Leyton project is finished with the Class 40. They've got a Multi 50 launching in February next year for Arthur (Le Vaillant). I'm going to campaign with the Figaro after they move up to the Multi 50. I am going back to France to get straight into it with preparation and training over the winter. Initially I'll be getting the boat as ready as possible, knowing it it's been a pretty difficult first year for the Figaro 3 class. There have been a few teething problems. We need to get the boat up to speed and then get training at the beginning of next year to go do the AG2R in April and then the Solitaire du Figaro at the end of August.

Who will you do the AG2R with?

I want to get home and have a think about it and decide what sort of profile sailor I want to sail with. I'd quite like to do it with Fabien. He needs to think about whether he's going to try to do it on his boat or whether we do it together on my boat. I'd quite like to pick someone who did the Figaro this year because obviously it's a new boat and they will have learnt a lot in the first 12 months of sailing.

Featured Charter
2010 Laurie Davidson One Off 69 - Pendragon VI

Available: Mediterranean 2019

Pendragon VI is a Laurie Davidson 69, designed to excel in both offshore and inshore racing. This all carbon mini maxi features a hydraulic lifting keel, retracting prop and twin rudders. Off the wind, in the right conditions, she can sail at 30+ knots!

In 2018 she set a new race record for the 151 Miglia of 15 hours, 30 minutes and 45 seconds taking off 55 minutes!

For full details please go to....bit.ly/LVY-pendragon-VI

Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 2392 161272
Email: info [AT] lvyachting [DOT] com

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
2009 Marten 67 - "Caol Ila" 1,500,000 EUR. Located in Sardinia.

Occasionally a jewel of a yacht is built. Coal Ila should be seen and sailed to truly appreciate her exquisite detail and thrilling performance. Simplistic arrangement allows for short handed sailing, as well as competitive fully crewed racing. Lifting keel arrangement, really ticks the boxes.

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
+64 277733717
+44 2380 016582
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com

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1937 Johan Anker Flush Deck Cutter - Bojar. 650000 EUR. Located in United Kingdom.

BOJAR is a boat of breathtaking and effortless beauty. She is also an extremely effective sailing boat: rarely off the podium at any classic regatta.

Contact
Barney Sandeman
info [AT] sandemanyachtcompany [DOT] co [DOT] uk
+44 (0)1202 330077
33 High Street
Poole, Dorset
BH15 1AB
United Kingdom

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

2002 Maxi 86. 700,000 USD. Located in the USA.

WINDQUEST is an immaculate Maxi 86 owned by one of the premier families in our sport. used only a few weekends a year, she lacks for nothing and is always a 1st to finish contender as well as a always in the corrected time hunt Call for her full details

Contact
William Jenkins
410 267 9419
410 353 7862
bill [AT] tysonline [DOT] com

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

The Last Word
Lord, what fools these mortals be! -- A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 1, Scene 1

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Picking the layline 2,500 miles out
• IDEC SPORT in a wild desert
• Robline in a nutshell...may we introduce the brand
• Lisa Blair to sail double-handed in Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race
• Oliver Tweddell Keeps Olympic Hopes Alive After Comeback From Injury
• Sharp to attempt world record for Around Isle of Wight
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Early Entries Presage Strong Fleet for ORC/IRC Champs
• Royal Cork Yacht Club opens entries for 'Volvo Cork Week 2020
• Vale Bill Steele
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Cookson 50 - Endless Game
• • Mighty Merloe - Orma 60
• • Swan 77-006 CALLISTO
• The Last Word: Julius Caesar Act 3, Scene 2

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Picking the layline 2,500 miles out
Day 5 Update: 0800 UTC, 27 November, 2019: After five days into the RORC Transatlantic Race the international fleet is experiencing shifty conditions with a light to moderate wind oscillating between nor' east and east. All of the teams are south of the rhumb line but different strategies are producing a range of tactics in the 3,000nm race to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in Grenada.

Richard Palmer, competing Two Handed with Jeremy Waitt on his British JPK 10.10 Jangada are currently provisional overall leader after IRC time correction. French Wally 100 Dark Shadow is 2,285nm from the finish and leading the fleet for line honours. Swedish VO65 Childhood 1 has sailed the most miles (945nm) and is the furthest south. Pata Negra is back in the race having made a pit-stop in El Hierro.

Giles Redpath's British Lombard 46 Pata Negra suspended racing on Day 2 (Sunday 24 November) and motored into El Hierro, the most southwesterly of the Canary Islands. The young crew, skippered by Andy Lis discovered problems with their watermaker and wisely took on enough water at El Hierro to last for the race. Pata Negra then returned to their last racing position, hoisted sails, and commenced racing. To add to the crew's problems, Andy Lis cracked a tooth requiring medical treatment. All teams in the RORC Transatlantic Race must carry the prescribed medical kit for a World Sailing Category 1 Race and at least two crew must have first aid training. Pata Negra crew Conor Totterdell put his skills learnt at the Dun Laoghaire RNLI to good use, turning the forecabin of Pata Negra into a makeshift dental lab!

idecsport.com/en/idec-sport-asian-tour/

Fleet Tracking

IDEC SPORT in a wild desert
That is how Christophe Houdet, Francis Joyon's faithful friend and one of the crew of four aboard IDEC SPORT for the Asian Tour, described the situation. Slowed down to horribly low speeds yesterday and completely stopped for around seven hours after six days of high speed sailing towards the southern latitudes, the giant trimaran has since then recovered and is racing again across the desert that is the Indian Ocean. After being completely alone in the middle of nowhere, the men on IDEC SPORT are getting ready to face the exact opposite as they approach the coast and the islands of Indonesia. From Friday onwards, IDEC SPORT will be in the heart of a whirlpool of activity, with her crew remaining cautious yet amazed by the sights around them over the final 1000 miles in the China Sea before they reach Ho Chi Minh City.

IDEC SPORT is heading due north towards the Sunda Strait, which marks the entrance to the China Sea. "Conditions are good although not the best," added Francis. "There were a lot of squalls last night with some powerful gusts, which menat we had to carry out manoeuvres all the time going from the gennaker to the J1 and back and we had to trim continually. The wind went up and down between 16 and 22 knots. We are keeping up speeds of between 28 - 30 knots. These conditions are expected to last until we reach the islands of Indonesia." Having already sailed more than 3200 miles in six days averaging more than 22 knots, Joyon and his men are now less than 2000 miles from their destination. They should be able to sail between Java and Sumatra on Friday morning and then enter the China Sea, the final portion of this new record between Mauritius and Vietnam.

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Lisa Blair to sail double-handed in Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race
Lisa Blair, a high-profile yachtswoman and adventurer on a mission to break records and leave her mark on the world, is joining the fleet for the Ocean Racing Club of Victoria's (ORCV) 2019 Melbourne to Hobart, and in doing so, will create history.

Blair's thirst for sailing and adventure was aroused when she crewed in the 2011/2012 Clipper Round the World Race. The Sunshine Coast sailor, who has called Sydney home since 2014, has since completed the ITL Solo Tasman Challenge from New Zealand to Australia.

Among other achievements, Blair took her environmental message aboard 'Climate Action Now' to the 2015 Rolex Sydney Hobart. Next was her aim to become the first woman to circumnavigate Antarctica solo, non-stop an unassisted, but was dismasted in storm conditions. Undaunted, Blair stopped, repaired and two months later finished, making her the only woman, and solo woman, to sail around Antarctica.

Blair did the 2017 Sydney Hobart with an all-female crew and in 2018, refitted her Hick 50. She sailed solo around Australia, Sydney to Sydney, and into the record books. The first woman to sail solo non-stop, around Australia, also set a world record for the fastest solo voyage on a monohull - 58 days.

Niggling at the back of her mind, though, is the unfinished business of sailing non-stop and unassisted around Antarctica. But she wants to do the Melbourne to Hobart 'Wescoaster' first, with her freshly rebadged boat, d'Alboras/Climate Action Now.

The 2019 Melbourne to Hobart Yacht Race starts on 27 December off Portsea Pier and takes the fleet down the rugged west coast of Tasmania and to Hobart. The annual 440 nautical mile race is open to fully crewed monohulls, with divisions for Four + Autohelm, double-handed and multihulls.

www.orcv.org.au

Oliver Tweddell Keeps Olympic Hopes Alive After Comeback From Injury
It will be a home affair for Melbourne's world class Finn sailor Oliver Tweddell when the Finn Gold Cup – the World Championships of the Olympic Finn class – starts in Melbourne in a couple of weeks.

Seven months out from the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, Royal Brighton Yacht Club will be hosting the season pinnacle event for the Olympic Finn class December 13 – 21 2019 and the world's best Finn sailors have arrived in Melbourne in preparation for the big event in two weeks and some warm-up regattas on Port Phillip in the lead up, starting on the weekend.

The Finn Gold Cup will also double up as the Tokyo 2020 Oceania qualifier and the last chance for Australia's Finn sailors to secure a quota spot for Tokyo next year.

Over 60 sailors from more than 20 countries including Rio 2016 Olympic champion Giles Scott (GBR), 2018 World Champion Zsombor Berecz (HUN) and World #2 Nicholas Heiner from the Netherlands will be contesting the world championships with the entry list reading like the who is who of Olympic Finn sailing and with many Northern Hemisphere sailors making the most of their opportunity to train and race in Australia's warmer weather in the lead up to the Tokyo 2020 Games and race for world champion glory at the same time.

Entries also include two-time Olympian, world #5 and former World Champion Max Salminen from Sweden as well as 2020 World Cup 1 silver medallist Josip Olujic (Croatia), Alikan Kaynor (Turkey), Germany's top Finn sailors and many more. See all current entries here: https://2019.finngoldcup.org/online-entry-view-entry

The 2019 Finn Gold Cup will also be the celebration of Tweddell's comeback to international sailing competition following a difficult break of his wrist earlier in the year which kept him off the water for several months.

The 2019 Finn Gold Cup will be the first event and one of the highlights of Melbourne's 2020 Summer of Sailing with Royal Brighton Yacht club hosting the class world championships in conjunction with the International Finn Class Association and the International Finn Association of Australia.

The world class event kicks off a series of Olympic sailing events on Port Phillip Bay with the club also hosting the 2020 Sail Melbourne International regatta in January (17-21 January 2020).

It will be the first time the event is coming to Royal Brighton Yacht Club, which is the perfect venue given the club's strong tradition with Olympic and off the beach sailing, its history as one of the host clubs for the 1956 Olympic Games, host to numerous World Championships as well as home of the annual Sail Melbourne International regatta and with the club boasting world-class waters to sail in.

Royal Brighton Yacht Club is also home to one of Australia's greatest yachtsman, John Bertrand AO, who skippered Australia II to victory in the 1983 America's Cup and who also won the bronze medal in the Finn class at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal.

www.2019.finngoldcup.org

www.summerofsailing.org.au

* Editor: Royal Brighton has as its Commodore Paul Pascoe, an International Judge, longtime IYRU / ISAF / World Sailing committee member and IT consultant, Hobie Class competitor, officer and promoter, bon vivant, beer tent gourmand and globe-trotting troublemaker. The Finnsters are in very good hands.

Sharp to attempt world record for Around Isle of Wight
Two-times world record holder Phil Sharp is on standby to attempt the Around Isle of Wight world sailing speed record and will also be raising awareness of the urgent action required to reduce maritime air pollution along the UK coastline, and in busy ports such as Southampton.

Sharp will be attempting the record single-handed aboard his newly electrified zero emissions vessel, OceansLab, for which he aims to break the existing benchmark time of 6h 29m 32s set in 2017 by skipper Alex Alley.

In attempting the record Sharp importantly aims to draw attention to the dangerous levels of air pollution around major ports and sea routes in the UK, which are four times higher than previously suggested, and the urgent need for policy makers and shipping companies to reduce coastal and in-port emissions to zero.

The Around Isle of Wight record routes through the UK's second busiest shipping zone where toxic emissions from ships (cruise liner and cargo) are a significant cause for health and environment concern. Research has shown that 30% of the pollution in UK port towns can come from ships, and that long-term exposure to the nitrogen and sulphur oxides (NOx and SOx) released has been linked to the deaths of around 40,000 people in the UK annually.

The record attempt is on standby, in Code Red status until a suitable weather window has been identified, at which point OceansLab will move to Code Amber and finally Code Green to declare an estimated start time. This record follows on from Sharp's successful Round Britain and Ireland world record that was set last year, and from his single-handed Cross-Channel outright monohull world record set in 2016.

Sharp will be delivering OceansLab to Southampton's Ocean Village this week where final preparations will be made ahead of the record attempt.

www.oceanslab.world

Seahorse December 2019
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Decompression
It started with the racing code zero but already the benefits are spreading rapidly out through the superyacht world (and elsewhere...)

The cutting edge of the cutting edge
For this driven team of Italian engineers the Hugo Boss project now added dramatic compactness to a long list of performance criteria

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Early Entries Presage Strong Fleet for ORC/IRC Champs
Newport, R.I.:Thousands of miles and 10 months of lead time are proving no deterrent for teams intent on ensuring their spot in one of the most anticipated sailing championships of 2020. In the few short weeks since entries opened, nearly 30 entries have registered for the 2020 ORC/IRC World Championships, exceeding organizers' expectations and laying a strong foundation for the regatta's triumphant return to the United States after a two-decade absence.

The 2020 ORC/IRC World Championship will bring top sailing teams from around the globe to battle on Rhode Island Sound and Narragansett Bay for one of three coveted world titles. The regatta will be scored using a combination of the two most popular rating rules in the sport, ORC and IRC, and racing will be a mix of around-the-buoys racing and longer, offshore courses. The competition will be held out of the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court from September 25 to October 3, 2020.

While the Teamwork crew will put in the miles to get its J/122 to Newport, there are many other teams committing to an even longer journey. Among the 28 entries to date are two each from Italy and Great Britain and one each from Germany, France and Canada. This geographic spread is crucial to the regatta as ORC championship rules state that the number of competitors plus the number of countries represented within the fleet must total 14 or greater for each class to confer a world title to its winner.

With an impressive surge of 12 entries from four countries, including Tilmar Hansen's TP52 Outsider from Kieler Yacht-Club in Germany, Class A has already met this requirement. This boat was brand new to Hansen at the last combined ORC/IRC Worlds in The Hague, Netherlands, in 2018, where he finished as runner-up to Karl Kwok's gold medal-winning TP52 Beau Geste from Hong Kong.

Outsider will have some strong competition in a brand-new Fox, Victor Wild's Botin 52 currently under construction, and Vesper, a competitive TP52 from Southern California skippered by David Team. All three boats should be among the fastest boats, according to rating, in Class A.

Another interesting development is the three IC37s that have entered Class B. This boat, created for one-design racing by the New York Yacht Club, has recently had some success under IRC, including an overall win in the Hamble Winter Series on the Solent. Another full season of one-design racing and, perhaps, some optimization for handicap competition could well make one or more of these IC37s a formidable competitor next fall. So far 10 teams have entered Class B.

And Class C is also shaping up well with six teams from three countries, including Kevin Brown's Farr 30 Notorious from Toronto and the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. His plan includes IRC and ORC racing in Florida in the SORC offshore series this winter, and says his boat "is in top form, getting ready for the Worlds now." -- Stuart Streuli, New York Yacht Club

Entry list on YachtScoring.com

nyyc.org

Royal Cork Yacht Club opens entries for 'Volvo Cork Week 2020
The Royal Cork Yacht Club, the oldest yacht club in the world, today launched its online entry system for the prestigious Volvo Cork Week 2020 regatta which will see hundreds of boats and thousands of yachtsmen and women from around the globe compete on the waters around Cork Harbour from July 13th - 17th.

The world-renowned biennial regatta, first held in 1978, is expected to attract a bumper fleet of entries and will this year incorporate The Irish Cruiser Racing Association National Championships, 1720 European Championships, the Beaufort Cup, a Classic Yacht regatta and the southern championships for the International Dragon Class.

All qualifying boats entered in Volvo Cork Week 2020 will automatically be entered into the ICRA National Championships, the pinnacle of the Irish inshore cruiser racing calendar which will see the Irish National Champion declared.

This year's Volvo Cork Week has extra special significance as it forms a key part of the Royal Cork Yacht Club's historic 'Cork300' celebrations marking what is the oldest yacht club in the world's tricentenary.

Volvo Cork Week Director of Racing, Rosscoe Deasy said: "I look forward to welcoming sailors from around the world to Cork Harbour in 2020 in celebration of the Royal Cork Yacht Club's tri-centennial year. We have a packed schedule and the season's centrepiece will be the renowned Volvo Cork Week in July. Notably, the 2020 regatta will also include championship events such as the IRC Europeans, the ICRA Nationals, the 1720 Europeans and the Beaufort Cup.

Volvo Cork Week will also host a dedicated Classic Yacht Regatta for the first time in 2020. Classic Yachts from around the globe will sail to Cork to celebrate 'Where It All Began' and partake in three days of racing in and outside Cork Harbour. This event will also provide a fantastic viewing spectacle for shoreline onlookers.

In addition to this, the International Dragon Class will return to Volvo Cork Week in 2020 following their very successful outing in 2018, to hold their Southern Championships in Cork.

The historic Kingstown to Queenstown feeder race from Dun Laoghaire to Cobh will take place on July 9th, enhancing the build up to Volvo Cork Week 2020 with a re-enactment of what is acknowledged as the first ever off shore race to take place in the British Isles, in 1860.

A competitive fleet will also set sail on an 800nm race from Heligoland, Germany, to Cork, Ireland, on July 4th competing for the Robbe and Berking German Offshore Trophy, arriving ahead in Ireland of the historic Volvo Cork Week 2020.

Online entry to Volvo Cork Week 2020 opens on www.corkweek.ie from 10:00hrs Thursday 28th November.

Vale Bill Steele
The Western Australian and Etchells communities were saddened to hear of the death of Bill Steele on Saturday, November 23, 2019. Bill, who was planning his 80th birthday celebrations for next February, suffered a brain aneurysm while at the helm of his Etchells Chelsea Lady and died two days later.

Another skipper, Doug Kerr, was just to leeward and, noticing Bill's boat had stopped, went alongside and called the rescue RIB with crew Skip Lissiman and Rob Rooke who quickly got him aboard and raced into a waiting Ambulance at the Royal Perth YC Annexe. He was kept on life support for a couple of days, but the damage to his brain was complete.

Bill's step-brother, John Fitzhardinge, wrote the following:

The human brain is an amazing thing, and Bill's allowed him to do a great many things, from representing Hong Kong in the Flying Dutchmen class at the 1972 Munich Olympics to being a successful navigator in Sydney Hobarts and China Sea races before electronic navigation simplified the life of a navigator.

Flying was a large part of his life. Firstly with the RAAF, then the RFDS in WA, followed by flying DC3' into short mountain-top strips in rain shrouded PNG, followed by a life with Cathay Pacific, later flying 747's on the first non-stop trans Pacific flights. He flew the last Convair into Saigon as the NVA advanced down the road to the airport (didn't stop the engines while they loaded the people on).

In later years his passion was sailing Etchells. An important part of his year was the annual Etchells Worlds held in various parts of the world. Bill made a major contribution to the world administration as a world Governor of the Class.

Bill supported the young guys in the Elite sailing programme in a mutually beneficial arrangement where he paid them to crew with him. The crew with him on Saturday was Sam Gilmour on main, Lucas Cunningham, and Brad Moore on jib.

Bill's final memories will be sailing Chelsea Lady last Saturday afternoon in the ocean off Freo in the Syd Corser Etchells Regatta in a lovely breeze, at the forefront of the fleet.

Bill will be sadly missed by the WA sailing community, but all can take heart from the fact that he died doing what he loved.

www.mysailing.com.au

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* From John Burnie: re: Fastnet finish in France

Following the RORC’s decision to change the finish of the Fastnet Race your last word on EuroSail News #4476 - 27 November was clearly prescient. (Lord, what fools these mortals be! -- A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 1, Scene 1). I state my view on the RORC announcement here:

As founders and creators of the RORC Caribbean 600, Stan Pearson and I invited the club (and the Antigua YC) to take over and manage the race based in Antigua - which incidentally we could have kept entirely to ourselves had we so chosen. We felt strongly however that the RORC was the right institution to entrust the race to. Having worked hard to establish the event, Stan and I then spent a good deal of time resisting daft ideas emanating from the RORC and its committees - such as starting the race on another island, running the event every two years - even reversing the course has been suggested. I am dumfounded at the RORC's inclination to meddle in matters of such importance with what is clearly seen as ill judged consideration. This was an extremely radical decision to take with regard to the Fastnet - as such it merited a full and frank consultation with all the members of the club, particularly the many loyal and serial participants of the race. Committees and Commodores come and go - their temporary influence should not be allowed to prejudice the future of such an iconic heritage as the Fastnet Race without full and unequivocal approval of the members.

* From Paul Newell: re: Fastnet finish in France

So the organisers think it's a good idea to have 400+ boats go play in the shipping lanes as they close the finishing line with it's strong tides and associated tidal gate?

Are they mad?

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The Last Word
The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interrèd with their bones. -- Julius Caesar Act 3, Scene 2

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Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild in the pot
• Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride
• Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar... the search for 2019 is on!
• Catherine Pourre and Pietro Luciani win the 2019 Class40 Championship
• 56th Congressional Cup To Open World Match Racing Tour Season
• IMOCA Globe Series
• The View From Bilbao - Yacht Racing Forum 2019
• Between a Rock and a Hard Place
• How To Grow Volunteers At Your Sailing Club - RYA Webinar
• Royal Recognition For Boating's Unsung Heroes
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Brokerage:
• • IMOCA 60 AUSTRIA ONE
• • Ker 39 - VENCOM
• • Beneteau First 40.7- Philosophie IV.
• The Last Word: A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 1, Scene 1

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild in the pot
After crossing the equator last night, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild began the crossing of the Pot-au-Noir, with a comfortable lead over his pursuers. But the trimaran MACIF is seeing the fruits of its western option and is getting closer to Actual Leader.

17 days and a half after leaving it, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild re-entered the northern hemisphere last night at 3:13 am (French time) in a leading position he has held continuously since the evening of 14 November, shortly after the passage of Rio. Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier, on Wednesday at 16h 2795 miles from Brest, attacked the doldrums, which should not slow them too much.

Almost 500 miles ahead of Actual Leader (Yves Le Blevec / Alex Pella) and 800 on the MACIF trimaran (François Gabart / Gwénolé Gahinet), the two skippers of the Verdier plan launched in the summer of 2017 have the cards in hand, concentrated with their router Marcel Van Triest first on the doldrums, then on the evolution of the weather situation in the North Atlantic, and more particularly on the Azores anticyclone, whose positioning will determine the end of their journey and their date of arrival in Brest,

Behind the leader, the trimaran MACIF, after spending about four hours idling last night in a zone of very weak winds, has picked up speed since Wednesday morning, with an average of 28.8 knots in four hours between the 12h rankings at 4 pm, the scenario that François Gabart and Gwénolé Gahinet were waiting for.

The doldrums are also less severe in the west, the two skippers trimaran MACIF could, compared to Actual Leader, located further east, doubly see the fruits of their choice, which will boost their morale before attacking the last quarter of "Brest Atlantiques".

www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride
The Clipper Race teams have many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving, on the racing front; a slight break in the tough squally conditions that they have been facing over the last 48hrs.

Qingdao maintains its lead in Race 4: The Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride, for another day, with Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam in second as the two leaders continue to ride out the weather and extend their lead over the chasing pack.

Squalls bringing wind speeds topping 80 knots were seen across the fleet. Following a particularly nasty one, Nick Leggatt, Skipper of Zhuhai said: "Our navigation software, TIMEZERO by Maxsea, allows us to download all of our track data to a CSV file so that we can analyse our performance second by second. I had a look at the numbers. Starting from 05:09:04 UTC the wind speeds recorded were 70, 70.6, 71.1, 71.2, 72.2, 72.3, 73.4, 80.8, 81.8, with a sustained period before and after that in excess of 64 knots!

Adding: "Since then, things have been decidedly pedestrian. Mostly severe gale 9 and sometimes as mundane as gale 8."

Whilst tough, these conditions have also brought ample opportunity to both set and break new boat speed records. After a tough night WTC Logistics Skipper, Mark Burkes, who had his Race 4 top speed broken by Will Michelmore's 29.7 knots, is looking ahead to what the next few days could bring and reports: "The next few days should see some lighter conditions of 25 - 30 kts but then a potentially complicated routing conundrum seems to be presenting itself."

Fleet arrival in Fremantle is estimated 9-14 December

* All repairs have now been completed on Punta del Este and Visit Sanya, China and both yachts will be departing from Cape Town today. Visit Sanya, China slipped lines at 13:15 Local Time (11:15 UTC) from the V&A Waterfront and will be followed by Punta del Este which is slipping at 17:00 LT (15:00 UTC) from the Royal Cape Yacht Club. There is a clear sense of excitement among the crew ahead of their departure, with both teams eager to get back to racing.

Whilst in Cape Town, all repairs were carried out to the highest standards and, as per normal protocols, the repairs have been inspected and signed off by an independent surveyor.

In preparation for departure, both teams have had time for additional sailing in the beautiful Table Bay, honing their skills and completing essential MOB training drills. A Le Mans practice start was also on the agenda in advance of the offshore start between the two teams.

In order to maximise time, the teams, skippered by Jeronimo Santos-Gonzalez and Seumas Kellock, may motor-sail through the first night and conduct a Le Mans start between themselves as soon as possible at first light on 29 November.

Both teams will be match racing against each other for the Roaring Forties Match Race trophy.

Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar... the search for 2019 is on!
Featured tonight, a bar that's nominated every year: The club bar at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club.

This report from a well-known sailmaker:

Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club..because of the location, the ferocity of your drinking buddies, the view of Kowloon and the city rising up behind you and the fact that the YC bar sells the beer at wholesale.

From another frequent visitor:

The main bar is stunning, a perfect mix of teak, mahogany, brass, burgees, half-hull models and trophies. It's central casting's idea of the perfect upscale yachtie bar and they got it exactly right.

Have a favorite bar? This year's contest equally weighs stories/submissions, drink recipes and voting (starting mid December).

Pour out a tall warming drink and put pen to paper as it were... at eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

This year's winner receives the usual accolades AND a custom made 3D map from Latitude Kinsale.

Catherine Pourre and Pietro Luciani win the 2019 Class40 Championship
Click on image to enlarge.

The French-Italian pair Catherine Pourre and Pietro Luciani follows British sailor Phil Sharp as Class40 2019 champions. At the helm of their Mach3 Earendil designed by Sam Manuard, Catherine and Pietro have shown great consistency at the top of the charts to take the win. The Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre, particularly competitive this year, is about the only race where the duo did not perform at the top. Very well positioned on a western course, they had to deal with technical issues, only to finish strong within the top ten of the race after a remarkable remontada. Claiming no less than three victories, Frenchman Aymeric Chappellier who did not compete in the Rolex Fastnet race, takes second place. Newcomer in the Class, Charles-Louis Mourruau having retired from the Transat Jacques Vabre completes the podium.

2019 standing
1. Earendil - Catherine Pourre - Pietro Luciani : 1003 points
2. Aina Enfance et Avenir : Aymeric Chappellier : 953 points
3. Colombre XL : Charles Louis Mourruau et Estelle Greck : 615 points

General ranking

6 races accounted for the 2019 championship :
RORC Caribbean 600 (10 entries)
Défi Atlantique (12 entries)
Normandy Channel Race (13 entries)
Les Sables - Horta (13 entries)
Rolex Fastnet Race Race (19 entries)
Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre ( 27 entries)

The Class40 Championship is a point race competition rewarding the teams that follow the program. This program includes transatlantic races and shorter offshore races.

www.class40.com

56th Congressional Cup To Open World Match Racing Tour Season
Four-time past Congressional Cup Winner Ian Williams, GBR (Team GAC Pindar). Click on image to enlarge.

London, UK: The 56th edition of the Congressional Cup, organized by Long Beach Yacht Club in California, will play host to the opening event of the 2020 World Match Racing Tour season April 29 - May 3, 2020. An expected field of ten teams will battle for the Congressional Cup trophy and a share of the USD75,000 prize purse. The announcement marks the return of the Congressional Cup to the World Match Racing Tour after a two year hiatus.

Founded by Long Beach Yacht Club in 1965, the Congressional Cup is commonly referred to as the 'granddaddy' of match racing, and is the oldest continuously-held sailing match race regatta in the world. The event has long set the standard for top-level match racing, and pioneered the concept of on-water umpiring, used by match racing events around the world including the America's Cup.

The list of Congressional Cup past winners reads a who's-who of international match racing and America's Cup champions including Ted Turner, Dennis Conner, Ed Baird, Dean Barker, Taylor Canfield, James Spithill, Paul Cayard, Terry Hutchinson, Francesco Bruni, to name a few. Six-time match racing world champion and four-time past winner of the Congressional Cup Ian Williams is the reigning event champion.

Each year, the world's top ranked match racing sailors return to Long Beach in a bid for the prestigious Congressional Cup trophy, and the equally sought after Crimson Blazer, sailing's equivalent to The Masters Green Jacket in pro golf.

The five-day regatta will feature ten world class teams including six Tour Card skippers plus the top two finishers of the Ficker Cup, the official qualifier event to the Congressional Cup also run by Long Beach Yacht Club 24-26 April, 2020. The remaining invitations are awarded to the winner of the US Match Racing Grand Slam Series, and the immediate past winner of the Congressional Cup. Skippers competing at both events will earn points to the World Match Racing Tour annual leaderboard, giving the sailors the opportunity to accumulate points towards the 2020 Match Racing World Championship title.

www.thecongressionalcup.com

www.wmrt.com

IMOCA Globe Series
A lot happened in the 2019 season to the sailors in the IMOCA class. There were three events on the calendar in the Globe Series: the Bermudes 1000 Race (solo), the Rolex Fastnet Race (double-handed) and more recently the Transat Jacques Vabre (double-handed). The latter won by Charlie Dalin and Yann Elies, brought together a record line-up of 29 IMOCAs. In the World Championship rankings, Paul Meilhat remains on top before what looks like being an exceptional 2020 with three solo races on the programme: The Transat, the New York/Vendee and of course, the Vendee Globe.

The Top 10 in the Globe Series:
1. Paul Meilhat : 206 points
2. Yann Elies : 192
3. Boris Herrmann : 180
4. Fabrice Amedeo : 169
5. Vincent Riou : 157
6. Damien Seguin : 143
7. Sam Davies : 140
8. Jeremie Beyou : 132
9. Kevin Escoffier : 131
10. Nicolas Lunvent : 131

Full rankings: www.imoca.org/en/standings

The View From Bilbao - Yacht Racing Forum 2019
Having attended the annual gathering of the world yacht racing fraternity for the last five years, this year's Yacht Racing Forum event staged in Bilbao over two days has been widely reported as one of the 'best ever'.

It was certainly well run, Bernard Schopfer and his team at Maxcomm pulled together a professional, well planned and at times inspiring event, so yes it likely has been one of the best, so far.

The Bilbao location, facilities and close proximity of quality, reasonably priced accommodation undoubtedly made life easier, helping create an improved community feel. Also pleasing to see a number of friendly locals helping out with the organisation - all volunteers from the local yacht club; Real Club Maritimo del Abra and motivated to be involved with yacht racing's good and great, with the event providing an end of season buzz locally and hopefully encouraging those that race, or might be tempted to, in the Biscay province of Northern Spain.

For infectious enthusiasm, few can better Don McIntyre, founder and chairman of the 2018 Golden Globe Race. Announcing the addition of a new class for the Ocean Globe Race planned to take place in 2023, a retro event, growing in popularity based on the 1973 Whitbread Round the World Race with 16 entries already confirmed, with the possibility that this could well be the largest Round the World Race in the last 30 years, as Don confirms 'creating modern day heroes'.

It was good to learn more about World Sailing Trust's, Women in Sailing Strategic review. Privately funded and being published on 4th December as part of the Access to Sailing programme, the project lead Vickie Low is eager to point out that although a review it importantly includes recommendations, so a must read for those organising and planning the future of our sport.

I was impressed by all of the work completed by Luca Rizzotti, founder of The Foiling Week in six short years. Established in 2014, women's and children's dedicated sailing was introduced in 2016, learn to fly courses in 2017, in partnership with the Andrew Simpson Foundation, and now running a forum and awards event, the first medical research into foiling injuries and electric foiling design. Credit for now developing a foiler that could be used by sailors both with and without disabilities to offer access to all to this fast growing sector.

There was dialogue aplenty surrounding two-handed racing, one of the sport's growing sectors. Nearly 90% of those at the Forum are in favour of two-handed offshore sailing at the Olympics, so the industry is obviously acknowledging that this is how an increasing number of people wish to race.

Keith Lovett's full report in Sail-World.com

Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Between a Rock and a Hard Race takes the reader on a four-year journey through the eyes of the Finn class athletes who campaigned for and took part in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. It begins on a hill in Weymouth and follows the highs and lows of most of the sailors as they journey towards Rio. It provides some fascinating analysis of managing an Olympic campaign, with extensive comments from many sailors, including all three medalists, as well as the coach of the eventual gold medalist.

Much of the content is adapted from Finn Class press releases issued between 2012 and 2016, but these have been woven into a tight narrative with exclusive extra content and insight into the challenges the athletes faced to stand on the top of the podium.

At 269 pages and 105,000 words, it is probably the most in-depth book ever released about Olympic sailing, and the challenges the athletes faced to stand on the top of the podium.

boatswainbooks.uk/between-a-rock-and-a-hard-race/

How To Grow Volunteers At Your Sailing Club - RYA Webinar
Is your sailing club one of the 52% of RYA Affiliated clubs who are telling us that a 'lack of volunteers' is the number one constraint to increasing membership? Or perhaps you feel your club is in a vulnerable position due to a small number of people doing the majority of the work?

The RYA has taken an extensive research project to find out why volunteering is such a challenge for many of us and what we can do about it. On Thursday 05 December at 7.00 pm, members of RYA Affiliated sailing clubs and other organisations are invited to hear the insights from this research by joining a free RYA webinar focused on volunteering.

RYA Director of Sport Development, Alistair Dickson explains: "Our sport always has been and probably always will be reliant on the support of passionate and motivated volunteers. Our research has been a real eye opener in terms of understanding what motivates or prevents people from volunteering and how clubs can amend their volunteer management processes to match".

As well as hearing these findings, club members will also have the opportunity to listen to the experiences of other venues who have managed to successfully increase their number of volunteers.

"As in our previous webinars, we'll be joined by an expert panel to discuss the findings and you'll have the chance to ask questions which can be answered live. If you can't join us, please sign up anyway and you'll be able to hear the recording after the live show" Alistair concluded.

The webinar will be about an hour long and is a continuation of the RYA's Futures Webinar Series.

Find more information and book your place now.

Royal Recognition For Boating's Unsung Heroes
Some 47 volunteers were recognised for their exceptional dedication and achievements in boating at the RYA Volunteer Awards on Friday (22 November) by Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal.

The awards were presented to volunteers from as far afield as County Down to Torquay at the prestigious annual awards ceremony held at One Great George Street, Westminster, London.

The RYA Volunteer Awards are divided into four categories: RYA Awards, RYA Community Awards, The Francis Elkin Award and the Family Award.

Nominations are now invited for the 2020 RYA Volunteer Awards. For more information visit http://www.rya.org.uk/go/volunteerawards

* From Andrew Palfrey:

Just a short response to the nice obit piece for Bill Steele.

Bill was also part of the UK sailing fraternity, particularly Cowes where he and his lovely wife Annabelle (the Chelsea lady, after which his Etchells were named) were regular visitors. Really interesting guy. It was amazing to read of his exploits as a pilot for RAAF, particularly the bit about evacuating people in Saigon with he NVA closing in. I regret not having asked him about those times over a glass of red. I most admired him for the years of selfless service to the Etchells class and to the sport of sailing in general. But like most people out of that mould, there are many layers beyond that in a life well-lived. God got a good bloke earlier in the week!

A few of his sailing mates will be raising a glass to Bill at the RORC clubhouse in Cowes this coming Friday evening. Sail on mate!

* From Gordon Davies IJ:

In reply to Paul Newell.

I have been involved as a race official in many French offshore races. In recent years the major TSS have been clearly defined as no go areas, with clearly defined penalties for entering these areas. Race Management closely monitors boats routes and does not hesitate to protest if necessary. I would expect the RORC course to follow this precedent.

In any case, it is unlikely that the 'Prefet Maritime' would approve a course that enters any of the TSS.

PS The original home port of Jolie Brise, winner of the first Fastnet was Le Havre. Would this not be a suitable destination for the centenary race in 1925? The port has a proven record of hosting large sailing events as was demonstrated by the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre earlier this year.

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The Last Word
Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; and therefore is winged Cupid painted blind. -- A Midsummer Night’s Dream Act 1, Scene 1

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• The North South Divide
• Phil Sharp sets world speed record for the Around Isle of Wight
• Give a Christmas Gift from Latitude Kinsale
• 18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 2
• Victory For Jean-Christophe Mourniac & Antoine Rucard in the Cata Cup
• Brest Atlantiques
• 5.5 Metre 70th Anniversary Yearbook
• Women's Match Racing French National Championship
• IDEC SPORT in Indonesia
• Government Bill to Allow Chartering of Foreign Owned Superyachts in Australia
• Updated Editions of CA Cruising Guides For 2020
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Vismara C57 Catamaran
• • Custom 42 - "Kuka Light"
• • JPK 11.80 - Courrier Recommande
• The Last Word: Celebrating Lawrence Ferlinghetti

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

The North South Divide
Whilst all of the competing yachts are south of the rhumb line in the RORC Transatlantic Race, there is over 900nm of latitudinal separation in the fleet. Jangada is furthest north and Childhood 1 furthest south. Childhood's deep dive south has paid dividends to take the lead for line honours, Jangada leads the race overall after IRC time correction and Pata Negra have come from behind to overtake Kali. After nine days at sea the RORC Transatlantic Race fleet are now well offshore in the vast expanse of the Atlantic Ocean - the next sighting of land will be the Caribbean.

With 1,220nm to the finish at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in Grenada and leading the fleet is the Swedish VO65 Childhood 1. The young team is into the breeze and surfing in the Atlantic swell, but it was some time coming, as skipper Bouwe Bekking reports

Bouwe Bekkingfs's prediction of more breeze south has come true, with Childhood I surfing at over 15 knots towards the finish, with the team's current ETA on Thursday 5 December. The French Wally 100 Dark Shadow is in excess of 200 miles north of Childhood 1 and estimated to be a day behind.

Richard Palmer's British JPK 10.10 Jangada is racing Two Handed with Jeremy Waitt and the slowest rated boat in the race is currently leading after IRC time correction. Jangada's biggest rivals, quite literally, are Childhood 1 and Dark Shadow. Jangada have chosen a more direct route to the finish, minimising the number of miles to sail, but taking more of a risk of losing the wind.

Giles Redpath's British Lombard 46 Pata Negra is skippered by Andy Lis with a young crew. Having made a pitstop early in the race, Pata Negra has overtaken Benedikt Clauberg's Swiss First 47.7 Kali. Next in their sight is Jangada which is over 200 miles ahead. However, Pata Negra's last recorded 24-hour run was 241nm, 100 miles more than Jangada. -- Louay Habib

Race Tracker

Phil Sharp sets world speed record for the Around Isle of Wight
Subject to ratification by the World Sailing Speed Record Council, Phil Sharp has set a new record for single-handed monohull up to 40 foot for the Around Isle of Wight aboard Class 40 race boat OceansLab.

At 08:24 UTC this morning Sharp crossed the start line for the record attempt off the Royal Yacht Squadron, Cowes and completed the circumnavigation at 13:29 UTC. Subject to official ratification, the record will have been secured in 5 hours 5 minutes and 4 seconds, averaging a speed of 9.8 knots (18.1 kilometres per hour).

The time to break was established in 2017 at 6 hours 29 minutes 32 seconds averaging a speed of 7.7 knots (14.2 kilometres per hour) by Alex Alley aboard Class 40 Pixel Flyer. Sharp adds this to his two existing records, the crewed Around Great Britain and Ireland, and the single-handed Cowes-Dinard.

Sharp commented on his record breaking adventure: "It feels fantastic to now have three world records! Today was a very cold, fast, adrenaline packed sprint. My objective was to aim for 5 hours, which was always going to be tricky when dealing with gusty conditions solo and at times today the gusts really were quite severe, which kept me on my toes.

"Today's record was about raising awareness for the need to accelerate clean energy innovation in the maritime sector. OceansLab is a platform demonstrating vital and scalable clean technologies like solar, battery, electric and fuel cell systems that can be embraced to decarbonise the sector. Industry targets need to be accelerated to better fall in line with climate change targets. We need to start introducing these technologies and replace fossil fuel systems in order to reduce harmful air pollutants. Inshore and commuting ferries would be a good start, and where levels of air pollution such as in Southampton are too high and hazardous to the health of local communities. Clean technologies exist now that can improve the quality of the air we breathe, change can and needs to happen now."

oceanslab.world

Give a Christmas Gift from Latitude Kinsale
There is still time to order that unique Christmas gift. Memories of that special occasion or holiday captures in a 3D chart. The 3D ORIGINS design ticks all of the boxes and has the WOW factor that is a lifetime gift !

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Ireland and UK - Orders accepted up to December 16th
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A Gift Certificate
If you are unsure about the location but know that the recipient would love the idea then this is a great gift. They can be ordered directly from the website. You will receive a nicely presented certificate posted out in time for Christmas or I can send by email.

If this newsletter has you thinking what would fit nicely in your home or a special family gift, just email me with details of your focal point & location and I will respond immediately with ideas. Together we can create the perfect piece for you!

Ok, that is it for now. The holiday season is drawing near so now is the time to act and remember that I can ship to any location in the world.

Yours Sincerely,
Bobby Nash
Latitude Kinsale
bobby [AT] latitudekinsale [DOT] com
Latitude Kinsale +353 21 4772784

* A 3D map is the grand prize in this year's Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar competition. Help YOUR favourite bar win the prize: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 2
Click on image for photo gallery.

Sydney Harbour: The Winning Group team of John Winning Jr., Seve Jarvin and Sam Newton gave a brilliant exhibition to dominate the fleet and take out Race 2 of the NSW 18ft Skiff Championship on Sydney Harbour today.

After leading narrowly over the first lap of the course, Winning Group raced away over the second windward leg from Clark Island to the Beashel Buoy to defeat Shaw and Partners Financial Services (James Dorron, Harry Bethwaite, Tim Westwood) by 2m59s.

Spring Championship winner appliancesonline.com.au (Brett Van Munster, Phil Marshall, Kurt Fatouris) was just another 2s behind Shaw and Partners, in third place.

Rag & Famish Hotel (Michael Coxon) finished in fourth place ahead of the new Tech2 skiff (Jack Macartney) which was having her first race today.

Incredibly, the next four teams The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines (Aron Everett), The Kitchen Maker-Caesarstone (Jordan Girdis), Yandoo (John Winning) and Smeg (Micah Lane) were all separated by just 3s. with one sec. separating each skiff.

After a slow start to the season, The Kitchen Maker-Caesarstone team showed better pace and the Tech2 skiff is certain to be much better following an impressive 5th place after getting a slow start off the line.

Points standings after the two races so far are Winning Group on 2, Shaw and Partners Financial Services on 4, appliancesonline.com.au on 8, The oak Double Bay-4 Pines 9, Rag & Famish Hotel on 11, and Smeg on 15.

The Australian 18 Footer League's 2019-2020 Season continues next Sunday when the club will stage Race 3 of the NSW Championship. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers League

Victory For Jean-Christophe Mourniac & Antoine Rucard in the Cata Cup
Sunday, November 24, the fourth and final day of the St. Barth Cata Cup, was decisive, with four boats still in contention for the top prize before the last two races. There was still a huge sense of suspense as the boats set sail, and even more so at the end of the first race when Gurvan Bontemps and Benjamin Amiot (Eden Rock St Barth) found themselves with the same number of points as Jean-Christophe Mourniac and Antoine Rucard (Eden Rock Villa Rental), after their victory in race n°6. The tension, already palpable, increased to the max after the start of the seventh and final race, with Argentineans Cruz Gonzalez Smith and Mariano Heuser (Architectonik) and the French duo of Orion and Antoine Martin (Mext Cardio) still on the attack. Under pressure, Mourniac & Rucard, who were in the leaders' spot as of Saturday evening after the race around the island, did not waver, winning the last race, and as a result, the overall regatta.

Final top five:
1. Jean-Christophe Mourniac / Antoine Rucard, 18 points
2. Guven Bontemps / Benjamin Amiot, 22
3. Cruz Gonzalez Smith / Mariono Heuser, 22
4. Tripp Burd / Charles Tomeo, 33
5. Orion Martin / Antoine Martin, 38

Full results: stbarthcatacup.com

Brest Atlantiques
Maxi Edmond de Rothschild now seems on track to arrive first in Brest next Wednesday. The battle for second place is raging between the MACIF trimaran and Actual Leader, separated by only thirty miles Sunday. The duel should last until Brest.

Leading the "Brest Atlantiques" since November 14, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, pointed Sunday at a little more than 1500 miles from the finish, should finish in three days with his great Atlantic, Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier being expected in Brest Wednesday morning at the earliest, in the afternoon at the latest. "They will progress behind the anticyclone that goes back to Europe, they will never have too much wind until the end, maximum 20-22 knots, with a flow of south which will then pass to the east, these are ideal conditions to finish ", says Christian Dumard, the race management's weather consultant.

800 miles ahead of their pursuers, more than half of the road they have to go, the two skippers Maxi Edmond de Rothschild should be able, once the archipelago of the Azores is reached Monday, to sail the last 1000 miles on a direct route to Brittany, by making the most of a boat that will have covered the equivalent of two-thirds of a world tour.

Behind, the fight for second place promises to be fierce until the end between the trimaran MACIF and Actual Leader who, since Saturday, make a road to the northwest/

"MACIF will arrive first south of the anticyclonic bubble, it will quickly slow down Monday and Tuesday, so the distance will tighten between them, I think they will be very close to each other in two days, it is possible that they see each other at some time. " The race should last up to Brest, where both" Ultim "are expected between Friday and Saturday, the question is in what order.

evenements.ffvoile.fr/cfmrf/resultats.aspx

5.5 Metre 70th Anniversary Yearbook
To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the International 5.5 Metre Class and the 100th Scandinavian Gold Cup later in 2019 the International 5.5 Metre Association has published a commemorative yearbook.

Edited and compiled by Robert Deaves, it is packed full of stories about the people, the boats and the races that have defined this once Olympic class, as well as a recap of the 2018 season.

With contributions from many of the sailors who have been and are still involved in the class the Yearbook is an attractive, 144 page, A4, photo heavy book that will immediately appeal to all those who have sailed or still sail a 5.5

boatswainbooks.uk

Women's Match Racing French National Championship
Caen, France: Pauline Courtois sailing with Maelenn Lemaitre, Louise Acker and Nathalie Corson, have won the Women's Match Racing French championship in Caen for the third time, this time beating the crew of Margot Riou in the Final.

Final results:

1. Pauline Courtois, Maelenn Lemaitre, Nathalie Corson, Louise Acker
2. Margot Riou, Clementine Hilaire, Tiphaine Ragueneau, Blandine Jaffrain
3. Margot Vennin, Juliette Dubreuil, Clarisse Assie, Chloe Salou
4. Elodie Bonafous, Anne Guillou, Noemie Bessec, Sophie Faguet
5. Charlotte Yven, Lola Billy, Jeanne Lebouvier, Helen Noesmen
6. Louise Comont, Charline Grevet, Caroline Petesch, Elena Circiello-Vaillant
7. Mathilde Pillon, Maiwenn Deffontaines, Lucie Conin, Stanisiere Plum

IDEC SPORT in Indonesia
Eight days after setting sail from Mauritius, Francis Joyon, Christophe Houdet, Bertrand Delesne, Antoine Blouet and Corentin Joyon have reached the Sunda Strait, the gateway to the Karimata Strait, that narrow stretch of water between the Java Sea and the China Sea, close to the islands of Sumatra, Java and Borneo.

They arrived there in a very decent time after sailing the 2900 theoretical miles of the Great Circle Route from Port Louis. The IDEC SPORT maxi trimaran had to sail more than 4200 miles out on the water tracing a parabolic curve towards the south of the Indian Ocean to avoid having to face the trade winds upwind, as they would have shaken up the crew and the equipment and punished the boat for no good reason.

Francis and his men preferred to go for speed rather than the straight line, averaging more than 22 knots on this long route, where they sailed down close to 37 degrees South. A different sort of adventure began this morning as they sighted the islands of Indonesia for the first time. It coincided with the wind dropping right off and the arrival of a strong head current, which caused the giant trimaran to drift towards Krakatoa. Last year, the spectacular eruption of this volcano hit the headlines.

The final stretch of the voyage as they tackle the crossing of the South China Sea towards Vietnam is likely to be tricky for IDEC SPORT. After the light winds off Indonesia, they should pick up a strong NE'ly air stream powered up by Cyclone Kamuri. Gusts in excess of forty knots are forecast ahead of the bows of IDEC SPORT. The final 900 miles or so look like being a bit of an effort, sailing upwind in strong winds. "If only the mist would rise, we would be able to take advantage of the magic of the area," sighed Francis, who estimates they will arrive in Ho Chi Minh City early in the morning (European time) on 3rd December.

www.idecsport.com/idec-sport-asian-tour/

Government Bill to Allow Chartering of Foreign Owned Superyachts in Australia
Foreign owned superyachts will soon be able to charter in Australian waters thanks to a new bill introduced by the government.

The Special Recreational Vessels Bill 2019 was introduced by the Australian government on November 27.

The legislation is set to reverse restrictions that have previously prevented the foreign owned superyacht fleet from operating commercially in Australian waters unless the vessel was fully imported.

Superyacht Australia, which represents the Australian superyacht industry, estimated the move could create close to 12,000 jobs and contribute around $1.64 billion to the country's economy by 2021.

Additionally, it will support the jobs of around 14,000 crew while also benefiting small businesses tasked to undertake yacht maintenance, refits and repairs, it said.

While Superyacht Australia chief executive David Good commended the government for introducing the bill, he warned: "Now is the critical time to act."

He pointed to upcoming "huge events" taking place in the Pacific, such as the Tokyo Olympics in 2020 and the America's Cup in 2021.

www.boatinternational.com

Updated Editions of CA Cruising Guides For 2020
The newly updated 2020 editions of the Cruising Association's three main inland waterways cruising guides, Cruising the Inland Waterways of France and Belgium, Through the Netherlands via the Standing Mast Routes and The German Rhine, have been published by the CA's European Inland Waterways Section (EIWS) in time for the Christmas season.

All three editions reflect the 200+ updates that have been posted by EIWS members up to October 2019 on the CA's unique CAptain's Mate app. The publications also include a 25% discount offer on the first year's CA membership when paid by DD to anyone purchasing one of the guides up to 31 December 2020.

Members have access to the online editions of the guides, which contain hyperlinks to the CAptain's Mate app, enabling users to access the most up-to-date information on mooring locations.

All three publications are available via the Cruising Association online shop at https://www.theca.org.uk/catalog/735 or from the print-on-demand publisher Lulu at http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/CA_European_Inland_Waterways

The CA is Britain's leading organisation for cruising sailors and motor boaters with 6,400+ members worldwide. It provides global support, regulatory and technical advice and is an invaluable resource of cruising information.

www.theca.org.uk

* From Paul Newell:

In reply to Mr Gordon Davies

I think he missed the point. It's not the TSS that's the problem. Just because you don't go into a TSS does not mean that you are safe.

The Fastnet Race has had all the weather imaginable over the years therefore it is just as likely that there will be little or no wind in any given race as there is a gale.

My point is that you are not safe just because you happen to slide down an eastern or western face of an English Channel TSS. It might save you from disqualification but the density of commercial traffic approaching and leaving a TSS is not suddenly diminished just because it's not in a TSS.

And now you have, hypothetically, little or no wind, a strong ebb (or flood) tide and a gaggle of yachts making little or no headway through the water but are trying to cross the shipping lanes even though they may be well outside of any TSS. Very slow moving small objects crossing fast moving traffic. AIS and/or radar might be compulsory for the participating yachts but if the lookout on the tanker/contaner ship/cross channel fast cat etc. is not keeping a good lookout or are confused about what they are actually witnessing, then what? The caliber of some ships crews has been noted, on occasion, as being poor at best.

I feel that it is courting disaster. It may well be that the race officers have thought this through and that I'm worried for the sailors unduly, but if just one yacht is mown down then they, the race organisers, can't say that they weren't warned.

PS: This is not a snipe at Mr Davies. I accept and applaud his point about monitoring and penalising transgressors. Rule breakers should be brought to book. This is about the inherent safety of the race itself.

PPS: Container ships are known to not slow down in fog and continue on at speeds of up to 28kts even when they cannot see their own bows. At night this situation is compounded by the dark. I have encountered unforecast fog whilst crossing the Channel shipping lanes on more than one occasion.

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The Last Word
Paper / may burn / but words / will escape.
Celebrating Lawrence Ferlinghetti, 100 Years -- City Lights storefront

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Brest in Sight
• Wight Vodka's Best Sailors Bar Nominations Open
• You're Invited! St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
• SSL Finals 2019: Who Will Be 2019's Star Of The Sailing World?
• 73rd Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race Open for Entry
• Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
• World Sailing Show: Programme 11
• Jules Verne Trophy: Tuesday Night Departure For Spindrift 2
• Champions to unite for 5.5 Metre Gold Cup and World Championship 2020
• America's Cup World Series details published - confirmation to follow
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Sly 53 - Steve Wonder 2
• • Cannonball For Sale
• • Mariquita
• The Last Word: Mark Twain

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Brest in Sight
The arrival is imminent for the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild! Having managed to sail Monday morning in front of a depression in the Azores, the Ultim trimaran led by Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier is now direct route to Brest, where it is expected Tuesday night / Wednesday early morning. Behind, the trimaran MACIF and Actual Leader engage in a battle for every mile.

Passing this morning the archipelago of the Azores, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has maintained high average speeds: 30.5 knots over 4 hours between 8am and 12am, 31.5 knots between 12h and 16h. They benefit from a southerly southerly sustained wind of 20 knots allowing them to make from now on a course downwind to the finish line from "Brest Atlantiques", located between Toulinguet Point, in Camaret-sur-Mer, and Pointe Saint-Mathieu, in Plongonvelin.

Given the speeds displayed by the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, and even if his skippers may be able to lift their foot from here to the tip of Brittany so as not to take reckless risks, they could end up in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, after about 28 days at sea. Needless to say, on board, Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier must be extremely focused on the smooth running of their trimaran Ultim and on the maritime traffic at the approach of the European coast.

Behind, the heat is still on the agenda for the skippers trimaran MACIF (Francois Gabart / Gwenole Gahinet) and Actual Leader (Yves Le Blevec / Alex Pella) who, as expected, have slowed down greatly since Monday morning by an anticyclonic ridge.

Fifty miles separate the two boats in the standings of 16h Monday, the gap could be virtually reduced to nothing by Tuesday,

Wight Vodka's Best Sailors Bar Nominations Open
From a recent note from one of our favorite PR people comes this hearty recommendation. Many beloved bars in the Caribbean were wiped out or severely damaged in hurricanes. Here's one that's bounced back:

The Beach Bar, Nanny Cay, Tortola, BVI

At the end of the day, The Beach Bar at Nanny Cay is THE place where everyone gathers. It was a central hub and lifeline to many following hurricanes Irma and Maria. A superb bar to chill after work or to meet friends to watch the sun go down, along with their famous Painkiller Cocktail. Friendly service and welcome to both visiting sailors and 'locals' alike - this has to be the ultimate bar for yachties set on a beautiful beach. There's also the Grill shack for BBQs and The Galley restaurant on the beach. Feel the sand between your toes, sit at the bar or swing seat and watch the world go by....

While we don't have The Beach Bar's recipe, here's the traditional Painkiller:

2 oz Dark Rum (Pusser's recommended)
4 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Orange Juice
1 oz Coco Lopez, Cream of Coconut
Nutmeg, for garnish

Fill large (beer or water) glass with ice. Pour all ingredients except the nutmeg into glass. Stir with long spoon until ingredients are mixed. Grate whole nutmeg on top of drink or sprinkle with ground nutmeg.

Mix up a batch, and then type away telling us about YOUR favorite. This year's winner gets a custom 3D map for the pub wall from Latitude Kinsale.

You're Invited! St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
Sailing to the Caribbean this season on the RORC Transatlantic Race, Atlantic Rally for Cruisers, Caribbean 1500, Salty Dawg Fall Rally to the Caribbean, or North Atlantic Rally to the Caribbean? Or, is your vessel arriving to St. Thomas or nearby Tortola or Antigua via Peters & May or DYT? You're invited to race with us in the 2020 STIR.

This 'Crown Jewel of Caribbean Yacht Racing' offers something for everyone. STIR 2020 offers classes for CSA (Caribbean Sailing Association-handicap rule) Racing, Cruising and Bareboats; Large Multihulls; Beach Cats and One-Design over 20-foot LOA. The one-design IC 24's may be the largest one-design fleet of any Caribbean regatta! Charter an IC24 from the St. Thomas Sailing Center (stthomassailingcenter.com) or other types of hot yachts from race charter companies like Caribbean Races, Caribbean Yacht Racing, Global Yacht Racing, LV Yachting, OnDeck, and Sail Racing Academy.

Stay and play! The flagship Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas re-opened last month and is walking distance to STYC. Plus, there are some 2,500 rooms on St. Thomas, including hotels, bed and breakfasts, resorts, timeshares, and villas. Airbnb listings number over 1,000 on St. Thomas. Airbnb ranked St. Thomas its No. 1 destination in 2018.

Save Money! Receive a 50% discount! Pay in full for only US $150 between now and 1700 AST January 31, 2020. Entry fees increase to US $300 between February 1 and March 25, 2020. Registration for IC24s and Beach Cats US $200. www.stthomasinternationalregatta.com, Email: stycisv [AT] gmail [DOT] com, Call (340) 775-6320.

SSL Finals 2019: Who Will Be 2019's Star Of The Sailing World?
On the start line in Nassau Tuesday will be the most international and diverse line-up as the Qualification rounds get underway at the Star Sailor's League Finals, to determine who will be 2019's 'Star of the Sailing World'. As ever the line-up pits Olympic sailors - past, present and future - with America's Cup and Volvo Ocean Race winners and champions from all manner of classes at World, European and continental levels.

Across the 23 teams taking part, 22 nations are represented including for the first time Spain (in seven time round the world race sailor Roberto Bermudez de Castro, who campaigned the Star boat for Athens 2004, sailing here with Miguel Fernandez Vasco), Uruguay (in former Snipe World champion Ricardo Fabini, runner-up at this year's Pan-American Games, sailing with Argentinean Federico Calegari) and South Korea (in three time Olympic Laser sailor and triple Asian Games champion Jeemin Ha, in safe hands sailing with Star veteran Mark Strube).

In terms of age, grand-daddy this year is yacht racing legend Paul Cayard, back sailing here with his Athens 2004 crew Phil Trinter. The renowned Louis Vuitton Cup and Whitbread Round the World Race winner, himself a former Star boat World Champion from 1988, turned 60 this year, but far from hanging up his sea boots, he finished fourth this year at the SSL Breeze Grand Slam and sixth at the Star Worlds in Porto Cervo in June. While several up-and-coming Olympic contenders are competing this year including 25-year-old British Laser sailor Lorenzo Chiavarini (sailing with German Kilian Weise), the youngest is Finland's Oskari Muhonen (sailing with Ukrainian Vitalii Kushnir). He is one of only four people to be a two time winner of the Finn Silver Cup (for under 23-year-olds).

Present Olympians are best represented by Croatia's Tonci Stipanovic, the Laser silver medallist from Rio 2016, sailing here with Finn sailor Tudor Bilic. Given that the last two SSL Finals have been won by Paul Goodison, a former Laser gold medallist and Jorge Zarif, the Finn Gold Cup winner, Stipanovic should be in with a good chance.

While Zarif is busy campaigning for Tokyo 2020, his crew Brazilian Pedro Trouche will defend their title, sailing with the event's sole Kiwi, 2006 Star World Champion Hamish Pepper.

Three Match Racing World Champions are competing, including Britain's Ian Williams (sailing here with former Star World Champion Steve Mitchell), who achieved this accolade a record six times. Then there is US Virgin Islander Taylor Canfield (sailing with Arnis Baltins), the present M32 catamaran World Champion, who won the title in 2013 and the 2017 champion, Australian Torvar Mirsky, sailing with Ireland's Robert O'Leary (brother of London 2012 competitor Peter). -- James Boyd - Sailing Intelligence

www.starsailors.com

73rd Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race Open for Entry
Newport Beach, CA: The Notice of Race and Registration page for entry are now available for the 73rd edition of the 2020 Newport to Ensenada International Yacht Race. These can be found on the event's new website at http://www.nosa.org, with the start date scheduled for Friday, April 24, 2020.

First raced in 1948 with entries that included Hollywood stars like Humphrey Bogart, Spencer Tracy and Errol Flynn, this classic ocean race is held annually and organized by the Newport Ocean Sailing Association (NOSA). The event is unique among international distance races in being open to entry for a large and diverse group of sailors and boat types, and annually attracts hundreds of boats and thousands of participants in both the race itself and the popular pre- and post-race social events in Newport Beach and Ensenada, Mexico.

This success is in part because the Newport to Ensenada Race has actually been organized into three races in one event, each with its own merits but starting at the same time off Newport's Balboa Pier:

(1) The main Newport to Ensenada Race (N2E) is a 125-mile offshore overnight race intended for all boats over 21 feet in length. Scoring will be using PHRF or ORR ratings for monohulls and ORCA ratings for Multihulls. An Unlimited Class is also available for very fast boats interested in elapsed time scores only. PHRF classes will be divided into ULDB and non-ULDB entries depending on their PHRF Performance Factor. There is also a CRUZ class option to enter, where PHRF and ORCA CRUZ entries may use their engines at night for a time penalty calculated from their engine log. PHRF CRUZ entries may also enter in Spinnaker or non-Spinnaker divisions.

(2) The Newport to San Diego Race (N2SD) is a 60-mile race intended for those teams in boats over 21 feet in length interested in a coastal offshore experience without the length of the race to Mexico. Eligibility and scoring options are the same as the main N2E race, except no ORR class is offered.

(3) The Newport Sprint to Dana Point Race (N2DP) is a 14-mile race intended for entry-level and small-boat sailors racing monohull one-designs or boats with PHRF or Portsmouth handicaps, or multihulls racing with ORCA handicaps. High Performance one-designs over 13 feet in length may also race subject to approval from NOSA.

More info found on the event website at www.nosa.org

Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
Toronto, ON, Canada

The Royal Canadian Yacht Club is recognized as a Top 50 Platinum Yacht Club (2020-2021) and operates year-round from two facilities. The Club has a reputation for excellence in the promotion of every aspect of yacht racing and cruising. From Club Fleet Championships to International Events, RCYC attracts sailors from all over the world. Our sailing programs include Racing, Adult Sailing, Junior Sailing and Clinics led by experts throughout the year.

Reporting to the GM/COO, the Director will champion the Club's vision to be one of the top sailing clubs in the world. In collaboration with the GM/COO and key stakeholders, the Director will develop and implement a strategic plan that includes best-in-class programs and coaching to meet the needs of Sailors of all levels - from beginners to elite Olympic Athletes. The Director will ensure that Sailors have access to the services and support needed to pursue both the pure enjoyment of sailing, and to achieve excellence in their performance in the sport.

For more information please view the full posting: DIRECTOR OF SAILING

Qualified candidates can apply at the following email by January 6, 2020: connectwithus [AT] lighthousesearch [DOT] ca

World Sailing Show: Programme 11
Four of the world's fastest oceanic boats take on a brand new race around the Atlantic. But will all the boats survive? We have the race covered. There's also the latest footage of Italy's Luna Rossa America's Cup team foiling their AC75 in the Mediterranean. The longest and toughest double-handed transatlantic race is the Transat Jacques Vabre we bring you all race action. World Sailing have announced the new windsurf class for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games - see it in action. The 20 year dominance in the Wave discipline ended in Maui at the last PWA World Cup event. There's action from Hawaii as we reveal the new world champion. Francis Joyon breaks the first of four world records on his IDEC Asian Tour and the winners of the annual World Sailing Awards.

00:50 Brest Altantiques
07:56 PWA Aloha Windsurfing
10:15 News: IDEC Sport, Awards & eSailing
14:03 Transat Jacques Vabre
20:02 Olympic Windsurf
21:32 Luna Rossa AC75

Jules Verne Trophy: Tuesday Night Departure For Spindrift 2
Spindrift 2 is preparing for a new attempt on the Jules Verne Trophy, the round the world record that starts and finishes in Ushant, leaving the three capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin, Horn) to port. The reference time is the current record set by Francis Joyon and his crew in 2017, of 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds. With their optimised maxi trimaran and a crew of eleven, skipper Yann Guichard is aiming to start this new attempt on the night of Tuesday 3 to Wednesday, 4 December.

Yann Guichard and crew will cross the line during the night of December 4th, in front of the Créac'h lighthouse (Ushant) to begin the 21,600 mile route (following the Great Circle, which is the direct route chosen by the WSSRC, the international organisation that ratifies sailing records), with the aim of beating the record of 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds. Based on its performance on a previous attempt, the black and gold trimaran could have the record on target, especially given recent technical improvements to the trimaran, including setting rudder fins to better sustain the Spindrift 2 at high speed.

Yann Guichard and his crew have tried to beat the record on two previous occasions: in 2015 (47d 10h 59') with Dona Bertarelli, who became the fastest woman around the world, and in 2018 (where the team was forced to abandon their attempt following rudder failure close to the Kergulen Islands). However now, once again, the North Atlantic has a favourable weather window that could allow a passage to the equator in about five days.

Spindrift 2 - Jules Verne Trophy Squad:
Yann Guichard - skipper
Erwan Israël - navigator
Jacques Guichard - watch leader / helm
Jackson Bouttell - helm / bow
Thierry Chabagny - helm
Grégory Gendron - helm
Xavier Revil - watch leader / helm
Corentin Horeau - helm / bow
François Morvan - helm
Duncan Späth - helm
Erwan Le Roux - watch leader / helm
Benjamin Schwartz - helm / bow ---
Jean-Yves Bernot - router

spindrift-racing.com

Champions to unite for 5.5 Metre Gold Cup and World Championship 2020
With boats belonging to international entrants arriving in Australia, the temptation to take part in the upcoming 5.5 Metre Class World Championship proved too strong for some big names on home soil, who have now signed on the dotted line for the event, to be hosted by the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club (RPAYC) on Pittwater this summer.

To be held from 9-13 January, the Championship and its lead-in events are expected to attract around 27 boats; 13 Moderns, nine Evolutions and five Classic 5.5 Metre boats.

On noting the talent that would contest the Worlds, Phil Smidmore OAM and Rob Brown OAM, members of Australia II's winning team at the 1983 America Cup, have put their hands up.

Smidmore, a former winner of the 5.5 Metre Scandinavian Gold Cup the Worlds twice and mast man on Australia II, will crew on Skagerak for Steve Brajkovich. Brown, a former Australian Etchells champion, three-time 18 foot skiff J.J. Giltinan (unofficial Worlds) champion and multiple 18s Australian champion, is to helm Alpha Crucis.

Among the big names heading to Pittwater from overseas are the Worlds' winners from the past three years and the top three from the 2019 Worlds: Kristian Nergaard from Norway (Artemis XIV), Mark Holowesko with his New Moon 2 and Gavin McKinney (John B), both from The Bahamas.

There are also entries from Germany, Great Britain and Switzerland, However, the Australians have been putting in practice on home turf and will be lying in wait...

For those wishing to emulate some of the 'legends' in the 5.5 Metre there is still time to buy a boat. Please see boats for sale at: www.5.5class.org/boats-for-sale -- Di Pearson/5.5 Metre Worlds media

Notice of Race and all information: www.rpayc.com.au/sailing/5-5m-world-champ-2020

America's Cup World Series details published - confirmation to follow
America's Cup organisers have followed the line of the previous trophy holder by meeting an arbitrary Protocol publication deadline without publicly revealing any specifics.

The Protocol, or regatta rules, for the 36th America's Cup required the dates and venues for three America's Cup World Series events to be "announced on or before 30 November 2019."

That condition was apparently satisfied by the issuance, early Saturday afternoon NZT, of a pithy two-sentence statement by America's Cup organisers.

"2020 is shaping up to be an exciting America's Cup year as anticipation builds leading up to the first competitive action for the teams and their amazing new AC75 foiling monohulls during three America's Cup World Series events - the first of which will take place in Cagliari, Sardinia as previously announced.

"The venues and dates for the remaining two ACWS regattas have been finalised by the Defender and the Challenger of Record and full details will be publicly released over the coming weeks in coordination with the associated Host Cities and commercial partners."

It is expected that Portsmouth (UK) and Auckland will be confirmed as the remaining two venues for the America's Cup World Series, where all entered teams will race their AC75 America's Cup class yachts. The first ACWS event was announced for Cagliari, Sardinia from April 23-27, 2020. -- Richard Gladwell's full article in Sail-World.com

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

The Last Word
If you pick up a starving dog and make him prosperous he will not bite you. This is the principal difference between a dog and man. -- Mark Twain

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• SSL Finals: Early Lead For Eivind And Revkin After Day One
• 49er Worlds - Day One
• New era of live sailing coverage at 2019 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships Dec 3 - 8
• Full pelt in the Atlantic
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• Jules Verne Trophy: Start At 20h 55' 54" (UTC)
• Kyle Langford joins Shirley Robertson in her Sailing Podcast
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Janet Grosvenor receives RORC Lifetime Achievement Award & Honorary Life Membership
• Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • William Fife Iii 19 Metre Gaff Cutter - Mariquita
• • Mylius 60
• • Black Pearl - Carkeek 47
• The Last Word: Oscar Wilde

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

SSL Finals: Early Lead For Eivind And Revkin After Day One
For the opening day of competition at the SSL Finals to determine 2019’s ‘star of the sailing world’, Nassau laid on perfect conditions with glorious sunshine, an ultra-shifty northwesterly and flat water out on Montagu Bay for the 23 crews from 22 nations.

Among the diverse fleet of former, current and future Olympic sailors plus many from other disciplines such as match racing, the Snipe and 5.5mR, day one’s two races belonged to last generation Olympic Star boat sailors.

At the end of day one Melleby-Revkin lead by a point. “Being leader after the first day doesn’t mean that much, but it is nice to have confirmation you’re on the pace. Hopefully we can keep it together for the week,” said Melleby. “Today we had 30-40 degree shifts, sometimes 50. It was just a matter of getting off the starting line and playing the shifts immediately so you can get ahead. But the more shifty it is, the more we like it!”

If the London 2012 Star sailors hold most of top 10 positions, but with US duo Paul Cayard and Phil Trinter seventh and the youngest pairing of 25-year-olds Scot Lorenzo Chiavarini and Germany's Kilian Weise in ninth, the greatest surprise is that third place is currently held by the youngest sailor in the fleet, Finland’s two time Finn Silver Cup winner Oskari Muhonen aged 22, sailing with Ukrainian Vitalii Kushnir.

Top 10 results after two races:
1. Eivind Melleby NOR / Josh Revkin USA, 6
2. Diego Negri ITA / Frithjof Kleen GER, 7
3. Oskari Muhonen FIN / Vitalii Kushnir UKR, 13
4. Fredrik Loof SWE /Brian Fatih USA, 13
5. Hamish Pepper NZL /Pedro Trouche BRA, 14
6. Iain Percy GBR / Anders Ekstrom SWE, 14
7. Paul Cayard USA / Phil Trinter USA, 14
8. Mateusz Kusznierewicz POL / Bruno Prada BRA, 15
9. Lorenzo Chiavarini GBR / Kilian Weise GER, 15
10. Tonci Stipanovic CRO / Tudor Bilic CRO, 24

49er Worlds - Day One
Erik Heil and Thomas Ploessel opened day one of the World Championships with a stunningly consistent performance while some of the other big guns failed to fire.

Two 49er races were completed after wild weather lashed the race areas off Auckland, New Zealand. With wind speeds up to 37 knots recorded on the race course earlier in the day, the sensible decision was made to keep all sailors ashore until sailable conditions arrived. After a delay long enough to cause even the most seasoned veterans to assume they were having a day off, the 49er fleet were sent out for two rounds of qualifying races.

With over 400 athletes competing from 40 nations and with the broadest ever suite of live coverage in Olympic sailing history capturing every race, the 2019 Hyundai World Championships will be the most important event on the sailors calendars prior to Tokyo 2020.

International fans can view the racing live at 49er.org/live or on Sky Sport 9 for those in New Zealand.

* 49erFX and Nacra 17 sent home without racing

Athletes and fans alike will have to wait an extra day for the 49erFX and Nacra 17 fleets to hit the water. With daylight disappearing, the 49erFX and Nacra 17 fleets were sent home before getting a shot at the water. Both fleets will be first on the roster for day 2, with four scheduled races in each fleet, to try and catch up on the qualifying series.

Top five results, 49er class
1. Erik Heil/ Thomas Ploessel GER 2-1; 3pts
2. Kevin Fischer/ Yann Jauvin FRA 1-4; 5pts
3. Bart Lambriex/ Pim van Vugt NED 3-4; 7pts
4. Dominik Buksak/ Szymon Wierzbicki POL 7-1; 8pts
5. Erwan Fischer/ Clement Pequin FRA 3-5; 8pts

Full results available at: 49er.org/event/2019-world-championship/#49erresults

To watch the racing live: 49er.org/live

New era of live sailing coverage at 2019 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships Dec 3 - 8
New Zealand streaming platform SidelineApp is the official international broadcaster for the 49er | 49erFX | Nacra 17 World Championship currently taking place in Auckland, New Zealand.

SidelineApp’s innovative approach allows sailing fans to sign up for a tournament package of 14.95(euro) which allows LIVE streaming access to the full regatta along with unlimited On-Demand access.

The 2019 Championship features world renowked sailors, including Peter Burling and Blair Tuke (NZL), British 2017 49er world champions Dylan Fletcher and Stuart Bithell, and in the FX class, Martine Grael and Kahena Kunze (BRA), Rio 2016 gold medal winners, and reigning European and world champions Annemiek Bekkering and Annette Duetz (NED). The Nacra 17 multihull repeats the gold medal standard - Argentina’s hero Santiago Lange and his crew Cecilia Carranza Saroli from the Rio 2016 Games and 49er Olympic gold medallist and SailGP skipper Nathan Outteridge combining with his sister Haylee (AUS) in the foiling multihull.

SidelineApp’s world championship package includes tracking, 2D and 3D gfx, commentary with analysts and sailing experts, special guests and interviews from the sailing world.

Ready to soak up the action?

Visit sidelineapp.com to sign up and subscribe.

Full pelt in the Atlantic
Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in Grenada is all set to welcome the early finishers in the RORC Transatlantic Race. VO65 Childhood 1 is expected to finish on Wednesday 4th December and will win the IMA Trophy for Monohull Line Honours. French Wally 100 Dark Shadow, skippered by Yerin Hobson is 400 miles behind Childhood 1. The fleet is reporting superb conditions, surfing at high speeds in tropical heat.

Richard Palmer's British JPK 10.10 Jangada, racing Two Handed with Jeremy Waitt is also in big breeze. Jangada passed the halfway mark on the tenth day of racing.

Giles Redpath's Lombard 46 Pata Negra has being blasting through the Atlantic swell, recording 260nm in the last 24 hours.

Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina is all set for the first finishers in the RORC Transatlantic Race. The luxury superyacht marina has 227 berths for yachts up to 300 feet and is located in the beautiful lagoon just outside St. George's, the capital of Grenada. Having undergone a refurbishment this year, the marina now has 90 new berths ranging from 12 metres to 22 metres on two new piers. The 'Spice Island' as Grenada is known, has superb beaches and the north of the island is unspoilt rainforest rising to 1000 metres above sea-level with spectacular waterfalls.

Track the fleet

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
What competition would be complete without a solid Irish entry? Ireland, the sea, sailors in foulies and rough sweaters downing pints and whisky in centuries old establishments. Iconic imagery and memories that are almost primordial. Woven into the fabric of that seafaring nation.

From one of our favorite journalists comes this entry:

Cronins, Crosshaven, Cork, IE

Here's what makes it so great...
A family run pub that has been serving great food and drink to the sailors and boat builders of Crosshaven for decades.

Is there a special drink they make?
Got to be a pint of Murphys. Their local stout, a touch sweeter than others but with the amount they put through the pub it is always fresh and creamy. In July 2020 the Royal Cork Yacht Club will be celebrating their 300th birthday. The craic in Cronin's will be incredible! www.croninspub.com

Sip a stout and put fingers to keyboard.. tell us about YOUR favorite bar and help it win this year's contest, our 11th Annual. The winner will receive a bottle of Wight Vodka, a wall plaque, fame and fortune, and a custom made to order 3D map from Bobby Nash of Latitude Kinsale.

shirleyrobertson.com/podcast/

Jules Verne Trophy: Start At 20h 55' 54" (UTC)
Spindrift 2 crossed the start line of the Jules Verne Trophy on Tuesday December 3 2019 at 20h 55' 54" UTC to begin their 21,600 miles around the world record attempt. The Objective: to beat the existing record of 40-days 23 hours 30 minutes and 30 seconds and cross back over the line again before 20h 27' 25" UTC on January 13, 2020.

The twelve crew of the black and gold trimaran crossed the line in front of the Créac’h Lighthouse (Ushant) in a very moderate 15k easterly breeze. The relatively calm conditions are a change from the stronger conditions normally associated with a start of a round the world attempt but by daybreak, as Spindrift 2 approaches the Spanish coast, Yann Guichard and his crew should benefit from these constant winds that will veer to northerly strengthening to 25-30 knots and gusting along the Portuguese coast.

It is expected that Spindrift 2 should cross the Bay of Biscay and arrive at the Equator in a little over five days. Once into the Southern Hemisphere, the crew will be able to sail more or less directly to South Africa with a view to cross the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope in less than thirteen days. Once at the entrance to the Indian Ocean, the black and gold trimaran, will be able to assess its performance against the existing record and the potential of completing the 21,600-mile course in record time.

Ratification: World Sailing Speed Record Council, http://www.sailspeedrecords.com
Time to beat: 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds
Average speed: 22.84 knots
Date of current record: January 2017
Holder: IDEC Sport, Francis Joyon and a 5-man crew
Start date for Spindrift 2: 3rd December 2019 at 20h 55min 54sec UTC

To beat the record, Spindrift 2 needs to complete the course before 20h 27' 25" UTC on January 13, 2020.

spindrift-racing.com

Kyle Langford joins Shirley Robertson in her Sailing Podcast
Shirley Robertson’s next podcast guest has crammed an awful lot of high end sailing into a very short period of time. Thirty year old Australian Kyle Langford first won on the international stage as Youth World Champion in the Tornado, but since then he’s won an America’s Cup, an RC44 World Title, lost an America’s Cup, completed the Volvo Ocean Race and won in the inaugral SailGP Series - as well as a several years racing on the Match Racing circuit and the Extreme Sailing Series. All in a single decade!

Aged just 24, Langford burst onto the international sailing scene as wing trimmer for Oracle Team USA as they tried to defend the America’s Cup of 2013. It was a Cup that would re-define the sport, a Cup match that saw a punch drunk Defender climb back off the canvas, dodge a few knock out blows and bounce back from an impossible seven point defecit to famously clinch the trophy in dramatic style. The young Langford played a key role in their success, and he’s very candid about how it all unfolded.

Robertson has spent much of her broadcasting career following Langford’s career, and the chat between the pair reflects this. Langford is honest and insightful as he discusses the controversial build up to that 2013 Cup, and is then equally revealing as he reflects on the subsequent loss of the Cup, in Bermuda in 2017.

Kyle Langford is Episode 8 of Shirley Robertson’s Sailing Podcast and is available through all popular podcast platforms. For any further details, questions regarding the Podcast itself or more information on Shirley Robertson please mail podcast [AT] shirleyrobertson [DOT] com

On Spotify

On TuneIn

iTunes Store

Seahorse December 2019
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Update
Of flaps and wings and things, the (inevitably) prettiest AC75 goes afloat in Italy (obviously), Tanguy Bouroullec and his flying Pogo 4 are very much in touching distance, SailGP sort of surprises and an insider's (deep) disappointment. Terry Hutchinson, Jack Griffin, Patrice Carpentier, Rob Kothe, Carol Cronin, Giuliano Luzzatto

Twenty years and twenty boats
It's already promising to be one heck of a party Rob Weiland

New discipline new audience
Things are moving as details are developed for the introduction of offshore racing at Paris 2024. Matt Sheahan

Rotation is the key
The extra degree of freedom given to the foils in the latest Imoca rule may make these boats competitive inshore as well. Juan Kouyoumdjian

Special rates for EuroSail News subscribers:
Seahorse Print or Digital Subscription Use Discount Promo Code SB2

1yr Print Sub: €77 - £48 - $71 / Rest of the World: £65 www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/subs/

1yr Digital Sub for £30: www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/digital

Discounts shown are valid on a one year subscription to Seahorse magazine.

Janet Grosvenor receives RORC Lifetime Achievement Award & Honorary Life Membership
Click on image to enlarge.

At a glittering Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) annual awards ceremony in London, Janet Grosvenor was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award and made an Honorary Life Member for her immense contribution, both to the Club and the sport itself.

RORC CEO, Eddie Warden Owen acknowledged her commitment: "We are honouring a person who has given her life to the RORC," explained Warden Owen at the ceremony. "When Janet applied for the job as a receptionist in 1969 she never expected it to be a job for life, but as always in these situations, the Club evolved, her roles changed, and so did she." Janet, whose name is synonymous with the RORC, started as Membership Secretary and ended up as RORC Racing Manager.

"I could not have imagined what a wonderful tapestry of a working life I would go on to have," exclaimed an emotional and amazed Janet after receiving the award. To have my contribution to the Club acknowledged with a Lifetime Achievement Award and Hon. Life Membership of the Royal Ocean Racing Club is an enormous honour. Sailing is a great sport, with interesting people from all walks of life and the job involved worldwide travel - one cannot wish for more! The changes over the years have been enormous, so it has never been dull!" she explained.

Janet learnt to sail and logged her qualification miles to become a RORC member in 1978. She has served under 17 Commodores, nine Admirals and countless Committee Members; has rubbed shoulders with Royalty, Prime Ministers and celebrities from all over the world, and represented the RORC on countless committees, including the RYA's Offshore Racing Group, and served as the RYA's representative on World Sailing's Oceanic and Offshore Committee - receiving recognition from the RYA for the work she has done for the sport.

www.rorc.org

Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
Perth’s Mounts Bay Sailing Club has been swarming with activity over the last few weeks as a number of the world’s best sailors arrive ahead of the 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds, which run from 9-18 December.

Among the fleet are some of the most recognised names in the sport with Olympic medallists, SailGP champions and America’s Cup veterans across the board.

Some of the sailors headlining the fleet make up a large part of the Australian SailGP team, with Tom Slingsby, Kyle Langford and Kinley Fowler all poised for good results.

A Perth local, Fowler said the event created a big opportunity for bragging rights amongst the three of them, as well as with other SailGP sailors from other teams.

“We are a pretty competitive group on the Australian SailGP Team, so there is definitely going to be some punishment for having a bad regatta,” Fowler said.

“In the past we have put a lemon sticker on the sail of the worst performing team mate after each day of racing. I ended up with three lemons on my sail that regatta, so I have a lot of room for improvement from there."

The event will also see a number of cross-country SailGP rivalries on the water, as United States SailGP helm Rome Kirby competes, along with Perth local and Kirby’s SailGP team mate, Tom Johnson.

The main event kicks off on 12 December with a practice race for the Worlds, followed by qualifying racing on 13-14 December, a reserve day on 15 December and finals racing from 16-18 December.

Stay tuned to all the digital coverage during the event via the Moth Worlds Facebook page ( facebook.com/mothworlds ), and via Down Under Sail either at www.downundersail.com or facebook.com/downundersail

Also make sure you are following the Moth Worlds Instagram account at instagram.com/mothworlds

Featured Charter
Swan 80 - Umiko

Available for:
Caribbean 2020

The Swan 80 was designed by German Frers and is recognised around the world as one of the greatest performance cruising yachts ever conceived – an iconic yacht that offers exhilarating sailing whilst not compromising on comfort and luxury.

Umiko was built in 2000 by Nautor’s Swan. She has been continually maintained and has had numerous upgrades throughout her life.

In 2017 she underwent a refit including a full paint job, extensive servicing on all moving equipment, new OYS rigging and the addition of latest generation navigation equipment. Umiko is equally as comfortable on the racetrack as she is cruising.

Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 2392 161272
Email: info [AT] lvyachting [DOT] com

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
William Fife III 19 Metre Gaff Cutter - Mariquita. 2750000 EUR. Located in United Kingdom.

This is a chance to enter classic yacht racing at the highest level. Since her restoration in 2004 MARIQUITA’s results have kept improving such that she cannot now stop winning.

Contact
Barney Sandeman
info [AT] sandemanyachtcompany [DOT] co [DOT] uk
+44 (0)1202 330077
33 High Street
Poole, Dorset
BH15 1AB
United Kingdom

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2015 Mylius 60. 1200000 EUR. Located in Genoa, Italy.

Huge spec, professionally maintained, and very well-presented Mylius 60 with carbon rig and winged racing boom. Almost every possible option ticked including generator, watermaker, air-con, bowthruster, electric racing winches and so on.

Contact
Michele Antonini – Grabau International (Italia)
Tel: +39 333 74 89 281
Email: enquiries [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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Black Pearl - Carkeek 47 750,000 EUR. Located in Valencia.

BlackPearl is frequently seen at the front of her class in the Caribbean 600, Rolex Fastnet Race and Rolex MiddleSea race to name but a few.

Contact
Contact: Marc Lagesse
+34 662 510 597
marc [DOT] lagesse [AT] gmail [DOT] com

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

The Last Word
If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all. -- Oscar Wilde

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Negri and Kleen Go Turbo At The SSL Finals
• Day 2 - Hyundai 49er, 49erFX & Nacra 17 World Championships
• Visit Harken France at Salon Nautique Paris
• Spindrift 2 Is Forced To Abandon The Jules Verne Trophy Record Attempt
• IDEC Sport Asian Tour / Act 2: Welcome to Vietnam!
• Comparing the AC75s - Francois Chevalier
• Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
• Scandinavian Gold Cup and 5.5 Metre World Championship
• International Fleet Lining Up For Cape2Rio2020 Ocean Race
• Industry News
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Reichel Pugh 60 - Wild Joe
• • SW100RS Cape Arrow
• • First 40 - Sailplane
• The Last Word: Gilbert Gottfried

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Negri and Kleen Go Turbo At The SSL Finals
Big conditions for day two of the SSL Finals, the event which sets to determine the ‘stars of the sailing world’, once again largely benefitted the ‘old hands’. Competitors ventured out on to Nassau’s Montegu Bay with its shallow, warm, Bahamas Tourist Board turquoise water, but today this was being whipped up by brisk winds, at times approaching 20 knots, from a similar northwesterly direction to yesterday.

For a second day, the stand-out team was the Italian-German duo of Diego Negri and 2017 SSL Finals winning crew Frithjof Kleen whose 1-2-4 scoreline today has enabling them to pull out a lead of nine points after five races and one discard.

During the second race the wind dropped to around 10-12 knots and in this Anglo-Swedish duo, Star boat legends Iain Percy and Anders Ekstrom, played the shifts well to lead around the top mark. But Negri-Kleen were chasing them, although reassuringly they followed them around the starboard leeward gate mark. Despite Negri-Kleen’s superior downwind technique, Percy-Ekstrom hung to take their first win making amends for losing yesterday’s second race when they were pipped at the post by Hamish Pepper and Pedro Trouche.

Tomorrow another three races are scheduled to start again at 1100 local time, when the wind is expected to be lighter. The consensus is that this could create a fresh set of winners.

Top 10 results after five races:
1. Diego Negri ITA / Frithjof Kleen GER, 8
2. Mateusz Kusznierewicz POL / Bruno Prada BRA, 17
3. Paul Cayard USA / Phil Trinter USA, 19
4. Eivind Melleby NOR / Josh Revkin USA, 20
5. Iain Percy GBR / Anders Ekstrom SWE, 23
6. Oskari Muhonen FIN / Vitalii Kushnir UKR, 23
7. Hamish Pepper NZL / Pedro Trouche BRA, 24
8. Fredrik Loof SWE / Brian Fatih USA, 29
9. Xavier Rohart FRA / Pierre-Alexis Ponsot FRA, 32
10. Eric Doyle USA / Payson Infelise USA, 37

Day 2 - Hyundai 49er, 49erFX & Nacra 17 World Championships
Day two of the 2019 Hyundai 49er, 49erFX and Nacra 17 World Championships brought solid breezes across all courses, still with plenty of wind shift and surprise to keep the 400-odd competitors on their toes. After being held ashore on day one due to too much breeze, today was the first opportunity for the 49erFX and Nacra 17 sailors to put some scores on the board. For the 49er Men, some clarity is beginning to emerge on the leaderboard as qualifying passes the halfway stage.

Nacra 17 - the Battle of Britain
It has been a feature of the Nacra 17 fleet in Championships to date that the favourites rise to the challenge and begin the series strongly. None more so than the never-ending saga for British nomination to the Tokyo Olympics between Ben Saxton with Nicola Boniface and John Gimson with Anna Burnett. The two British teams fighting for the selection are lying first and second overall on the leaderboard, both with two dominant days to start the regatta. However there are four teams at the top, all within a point of each other.

49erFX - some surprises at the top
On the other side, it has been a feature of the 49erFX fleet that the top guns stumble at least once carrying deep scores and setting up a high scoring championship in the women’s skiff. So far only two teams have scored top 10 finishes across all four races in the 49erFX and it is not a surprise to see Ida Nielsen with Marie Olsen (DEN) and Martine Grael with Kahena Kunze (BRA) showing consistent form so far. While Paris Henkin and Anna Tobias (USA) started their championship with a lowly 18th from their half of the qualifying draw, the Americans soon discovered their mojo, winning the next two heats and ending the day with a 5th. This places USA at the top of the scoreboard of a 49erFX World Championship for the first time in their careers.

49er - Austria in the lead
In the 49er Men, Austria’s Benjamin Bildstein and David Hussl have been knocking on the door of greatness for some time. Could Auckland be their week? Along with the Swiss team in fifth overall, the Austrians are the only crew to have kept all their qualifying race scores inside the top 10. Today’s stellar results of 1,5,2,2 launch Austria to the top of the rankings, a single point ahead of local heroes and reigning Olympic Champions, Peter Burling and Blair Tuke.

Anna (Tunnicliffe) Tobias has her best ever day in a 49erFX
The 2008 Laser Radial Gold medallist Anna (Tunnicliffe) Tobias now crews for 2016 Olympian Paris Henken (USA). The duo have not been full-time sailors on the circuit. Paris is still attending university and Anna is competing at the very highest levels in Crossfit. Over recent months they have been gearing up for this Championship and with two bullets and a fifth-place today they must be very pleased with how their US trials are beginning.

Anna has raced the 49erFX on and off since 2013. While she has had occasional success over the years, today’s results with Paris are a significant improvement and their best ever day in the 49erFX.

www.idecsport.com/en/idec-sport-asian-tour/

To watch the racing live 49er.org/live

Visit Harken France at Salon Nautique Paris
Salon Nautique Paris is the year’s best opportunity to see Harken’s newest, most innovative thinking.

Make sure to take a look at the new Harken CLR Mooring Winch. The CLR™ is a flush-stowing, powered, mooring and docking assist winch appropriate for sail and power boats. The CLR occupies 40% less horizontal and 50% of the vertical space required and weighs just 33% of its competition while delivering comparable mechanical advantage. CLR is being offered by a growing lineup of production boat builders as available equipment.

Ask about new developments in REFLEX™ furling for cable-free code zeros. REFLEX was originally designed for applications well beyond racing. But the product, with its stacked free-rolling Delrin® bearings, is proving to be a perfect solution for today’s cable-free code sail revolution. Harken now offers tack plates that web directly to 75% mid girth designs. The plates slide directly into the REFLEX drive unit and results in the longest available luff length yet developed. Teams have reported hundreds of perfect furls of cable-free sails from Doyle and North in competition, with zero negative experiences.

Visit Harken in Hall 2.1 Stand A60, December 7-15.

harken.com

Spindrift 2 Is Forced To Abandon The Jules Verne Trophy Record Attempt
At 20h UTC, Yann Guichard, Spindrift 2’s skipper, made the decision to turn around and end the current Jules Verne Trophy record attempt.

A difficult decision following a sudden loss of control, which required the intervention of two sailors at the wheel to recover the situation.

This malfunction has damaged the steering system which makes the boat unsafe to be sailed in heavy weather conditions. All the crew members are safe and sound. Nevertheless, the multihull’s condition does not allow it to continue its world record attempt. The trimaran is currently returning to la Trinite-sur-Mer in Brittany, France.

spindrift-racing.com

IDEC Sport Asian Tour / Act 2: Welcome to Vietnam!
Francis Joyon and his crew completed Act 2 of the IDEC Sport Asian Tour during the night setting a reference time for the voyage between Mauritius and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. After setting a new solo record time for the Mauritius Route last month, the holder of the Jules Verne Trophy and winner of the last Route du Rhum arrived in Vietnam at 3 hrs, 27mn 54s UTC on Wednesday 4th December, after 12 days, 20 hours, 37 minutes and 56 seconds of sailing between Mauritius and Vietnam.

Francis Joyon left Mauritius on 21st November accompanied by Christophe Houdet, Bertrand Delesne, Antoine Blouet and his son, Corentin, to set a new reference time on a highly unusual route for modern ocean racers taking them from Mauritius to Ho Chi Minh City across the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.

After 12 days, 20 hours, 37 minutes and 56 seconds during an adventure full of contrasts and surprises, IDEC SPORT moored up this morning in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saïgon), at the end of a route that in theory was around 4000 miles long, but in reality because of the weather systems, Francis and his men sailed 5400 miles from the Indian Ocean to the China Sea. High speeds, periods of flat calm conditions, the long swell of the Southern Ocean, the nasty choppy seas in the enclosed China and Java Seas, a maritime desert and busy shipping routes, the freezing cold of the Antarctic and the unbearable heat of Indonesia. It was certainly a big adventure as expected by the five sailors, who were hypnotised by the marvels and unusual sights of the seascapes of the Far East.

Comparing the AC75s - Francois Chevalier
Naval architect Francois Chevalier has taken his best shot at drawing the lines of the AC75's from photos. He analyses the hull shapes in the December issue of Voiles et Voiliers.

The outlines show the static wetted surface and the relative positions of the foil cant axis of each yacht. The beam distance of the cant axes is fixed at 4.1 meters by the class rule. The outlines on the right show the differences in beam of the four yachts.

Defiant: Narrowest hull, lowest foil cant axis. Hull shape like a big windsurfer.
Britannia: The biggest deck area. Relatively low foil cant axis. Slightly more v-shaped hull than Defiant
Luna Rossa: Losange-shaped static wetted surface, long narrow keel.
Te Aihe: Chines. Torpedo-shaped static wetted surface. Highest foil cant axis.

From Jack Griffin's CupExperience newsletter

Voile and Voilers article

Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
Toronto, ON, Canada

For more information please view the full posting: DIRECTOR OF SAILING

Qualified candidates can apply at the following email by January 6, 2020: connectwithus [AT] lighthousesearch [DOT] ca

Scandinavian Gold Cup and 5.5 Metre World Championship
Baragoola. Click on image to enlarge.

Martin Cross has the following update:

Things are progressing well and boats have started arriving from overseas. We are expecting 27 boats for the Worlds, with 13 Moderns, 9 Evolutions and 5 Classics.

It looks like we will have two 1983 America's Cup sailors joining the fleet with Phil Smidmore crewing on Skagerak (Mastman on the 12m and former winning crew in the Gold Cup and Worlds in 5.5m) and Rob Brown helming on Alpha Crucis (apart from Australia 2 crew also a multiple Worlds winner in the 18ft Skiff).

We also have an excellent race team. Dennis Thompson is the PRO and one of the top race officers in Australia. Jamie Clark is the head of the Jury, and he is joined by Richard Slater (current Chief America’s Cup Judge) and Steve Hatch who has officiated at Olympics and the America's Cup.

Many of the Australian Evolutions and Classics have been renovated and are gleaming and ready to go. The competition in the Evolution fleet will be intense as we have some fast former World Championship and Gold Cup winning boats going head to head.

Most intriguing will be the showdown in the Classics between Carabella (Italy) and the renovated Baragoola (Australia - shown above). Which really is the fastest Classic? -- Robert Deaves

Entry lists and more information can be found here: www.rpayc.com.au/sailing/5-5m-world-champ-2020

International Fleet Lining Up For Cape2Rio2020 Ocean Race
Cape Town, South Africa: With just a month to go before Table Bay once again bids her formidable farewells (in the thick of the season of south east gales) to a healthy fleet of twenty-five ocean going yachts on the next Cape to Rio Ocean Race, the various sailing teams and their yachts are arriving from around the world.

The largest yacht ever entered in the long colourful history of the race arrived in Cape Town yesterday morning, after an epic delivery from Genoa in Italy, via Tenerife, Cape Verde and Ascension Island. The beautiful Almagores II, is a 102-foot luxury super yacht built in Cape Town in 2012 by the multiple award-winning Southern Wind Shipyard, based in Athlone. She has been based in the Mediterranean ever since, and this is her first visit back to her birthplace.

Another exciting entry is the lightning-fast Italian 70 foot maxi trimaran Maserati, skippered by the seasoned and very accomplished Giovanni Soldini. Maserati is a serious challenger for the line honours record, and is aiming to complete the 3600 mile course in just 6 - 7 days. She arrived in Cape Town on 12 November, sailing from Hawaii, via Hong Kong and Singapore.

Love Water, a local team sailing on an 80foot maxi trimaran chartered from Lorient, France, will provide Maserati with stiff competition and also have their targets firmly set on breaking the race record. They have just passed the mid-Atlantic island of Fernando de Noronha en-route with their delivery from Portimão in Portugal, to Cape Town. They should arrive in Cape Town within the next 10 days.

Other entrants are currently delivering their boats from the Philippines, Germany, Brazil and Argentina. Locally, boats are coming from the Vaal Dam in Gauteng, and from various ports up the Southern African coast, including Durban, St Francis, False Bay and Luanda, Angola.

Many countries are represented in this edition of the race, including Argentina, Brazil, Australia, USA, Italy, Angola, Germany, and of course South Africa. Normal entries closed on 2 December 2019. There are two race starts: the first, for boats that are either smaller or slower, on 4 January 2020; and the second start, for the bigger faster boats, on 11 January 2020. The race ends with a prizegiving in Rio on 2 February 2020. There is also a celebratory Freedom Sail around Robben Island on 16 December 2019, where all recreational vessels in Table Bay are invited to join the freedom armada sailing (or motoring) around the famous island. The Freedom Sail will start and end in Granger Bay where spectators can view the race from ashore.

cape2rio2020.com

Industry News
The world's largest indoor boat show, boot Dusseldorf, will return in 2020 with a sporty new look and a redesigned layout to make planning visits even easier.

At the forefront of the makeover is a newly designed Hall 1, home to medium-sized yachts between 10 to 20m with inboard motors from manufacturers such as Jeanneau and Beneteau as well as Dutch steel yachts from Linssen. Also new this year is Hall 5 showing the best of luxury tenders, chase boats and shadow boats.

“In the context of our arrangements for allocation of the space in the new Hall 1, we reviewed the entire configuration of the different areas covered by boot exhibits. There was a very clear focus on exhibitor satisfaction and visitor service”, explained boot director, Petros Michelidakis.

Hall 3 hosts recreational motorboating for beginners, with the 'Start Boating' initiative offering boating newbies advice. Hall 4 features motorboats over 10m from the likes of Axopar, Nimbus and Sessa whilst Halls 5, 6 and 7 showcase tenders and superyachts from Sacs, Wally, Frauscher and others.

Fans of watersports will enjoy 'Beach World' in Hall 8a, whilst a large selection of RIBs, dinghies, accessories and equipment will be on show in Halls 9, 10 and 11, the latter also home to the 'love your ocean' campaign promoting sustainable solutions and products.

Travel is the focus of Halls 13 and 14 whilst the world's biggest diving exhibition gets underway in halls 11 and 12. Also new this year is an increased focus on sailing with three Halls (15, 16 and 17) with three halls dedicated to the sport featuring major players, ship yards and renowned figures such as Sir Robin Knox-Johnston.

boot Dusseldorf runs from 18 - 26 January 2020. Tickets are available now.

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Key Yachting, the UK, Ireland, and Channel Islands distributor for J Boats, enjoyed a glamorous evening at the Royal Thames Yacht Club on Monday night, for Chelsea Magazines’ British Yachting Awards. Marie-Claude Heys, Hannah Le Prevost, and Gemma Dunn, represented Key Yachting and were joined by J Boats President Jeff Johnstone, and a small guestlist of British J Boats owners.

The second edition of the event, Key Yachting were thrilled to receive two awards on the night.

The new J/99 was crowned Racing Yacht/Sportsboat of the year, a tough category. Voted for by readers of Sailing Today and Yachts & Yachting, presenter Rob Peake stated that upon her launch the winner had proved an instant hit in a string of successes for the shipyard. Accepting the award with Marie-Claude, Jeff Johnstone described how the boat was inspired by the growth of the double handed racing scene, particularly in the UK. He continued by saying that Paul Heys was instrumental in driving the yard to fill a growing need. This is the first award for the boat, which is currently nominated for four international awards, including the prestigious European Yacht of the Year.

The final award of the evening was a new category, Lifetime Achievement. This was awarded to Paul Heys, and accepted by Marie-Claude. Before the presentation Jeff delivered a wonderful and emotive speech, detailing the success of the “consummate salesperson”, who unlike other yacht brokers, relished gatherings of owners to compare notes and stories, because this was how the J family in the UK was established and flourished. Jeff himself stated “The boat has little to do with it, it’s all about people. Energy breeds energy, and Paul was the energiser””

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Sea Magazine and Boating World, two publications owned by the Duncan McIntosh Company, stopped publication last week, according to several West Coast publications.

Sea Magazine had covered boating in the Western United States for more than 100 years, according to the Duncan McIntosh Co. website. The company bought Boating World magazine in 2006.

The Duncan McIntosh Co. was founded in 1979 as a publishing company and producer of Southern California boat shows.

The company also produces the Newport (Calif.) Boat Show, the Los Angeles Boat Show, Southern California Boat Show, San Diego International Boat Show, and Fred Hall Shows.

www.tradeonlytoday.com

* US-based marine publishing and marketing veteran Arnie Hammerman says he is in the process of taking over the publishing of SEA magazine from Duncan McIntosh Company Inc, as well as Boating World. Both magazines ceased publication last week.

ibinews.com

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The Hamburg Boat Show is closing down, at least in its present form. Organizers said the 2018 and 2019 editions were successful, but the 2020 event in June will not be held for “economic reasons.” Organizers are discussing about launching an event in the autumn.

The Hamburg Boat Show replaced Hanseboot 2017 after it ended a 57-year run, with the goal of becoming the largest boat show in Northern Germany. Organizer DBSV said it forged a “north-south” alliance of boat builders and other exhibitors with the Hamburg Messe and Congress convention center to support the boating industry in northern Germany. “But the experiment is now finished for the time being after two years in the planned form,” said a story in SegelReporter.com.

"After two events, which were very positive for the majority of our exhibitors and visitors, we now have to tell them with a heavy heart that for economic reasons there can no longer be a continuation in this form," said Torsten Conradi, president of the German Boat and Shipbuilders Association (DBSV), which organized the event.

www.tradeonlytoday.com

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Pictured at right: Gunfleet 58. Click on image to enlarge

2020 marks a mammoth year for UK based yacht builders Windboats, with the celebration of 100 years of building world-class sailing and motoryachts. This amazing milestone reached by only a handful of marine businesses is a cause for celebration of the company’s history, its global success and its exciting future.

From modest beginnings Windboats has grown from strength to strength, having crafted a variety of quality vessels ranging from small wooden boats to 72ft luxury cruising yachts and motorboats.

Windboats is a boatyard with a rich and interesting history. Established in 1920 by Graham Bunn, a master craftsman and yacht designer, the yard quickly developed a reputation for excellence in boatbuilding and produced one of the finest fleets of hire boats in the Norfolk Broads. The fleet became known as the ‘Windboats’.

In 1945 the yard was purchased by Donald Hagenbach, who led Windboats to become one of the founder members of the Ship & Boat Builders National Federation, later becoming it’s President. The business diversified into building aluminium boats in 1957 and soon after started using ferro cement construction under the trade name ‘Seacrete’ which was later awarded the Lloyd’s 100A1 certificate. The business changed hands for the third time in 1974, purchased by Windboats’ own Production Director and Naval Architect, Trevor James. One of his many successful designs was the 65ft research trawler built for the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, handed over by Queen Elizabeth II in 1976.

Windboats moved into GRP yacht production in 1983, commencing a 30 year association with Oyster Marine, one of the world’s top marques in luxury sailing yachts. The yard went on to build nearly 300 Oyster yachts ranging in size from 35-72ft.

www.windboats.co.uk
www.hardymarine.co.uk
www.gunfleetmarine.com

* From Ben Remocker:

By now you know that we're in the middle of the (49er, 49er FX and NACRA 17) World Championships and that for the first time ever you can watch it all . Here is my personal appeal to subscribe.

For years we've been trying to bring you the action from our regattas and we've had advances and retreats along the way. But we've never been able to bring you all the sailing and what could be better than that? We've had quite a few people sign up to watch, but we're not yet at our targets that will ensure we can do the same level of coverage at our World's in Geelong.

There is still time. Please sign up now and let's bring the same comprehensive coverage to our Geelong World's as this one. If we can get just a few more subscribers, we can build on this momentum and share the journey to Tokyo with our fans.

Over the next three days we'll bring you every gold fleet race, every Olympic qualification battle, and every personal best. Let's make sure this isn't just a one time thing.

I know that nobody likes paying for content, but this is sailing. We acknowledge that 15 euros is not nothing. But it is manageable and with a little effort we really can build something together. Please share the signup link and encourage everyone to sign up.

Featured Brokerage
2002/2018 Reichel Pugh 60 - Wild Joe. 630000 EUR.

Wild Joe was originally built as Wild Oats IX with full carbon/nomex construction. As times move on so has Wild Joe which is now fitted with a new DSS foil system installed early 2018. That coupled with her new Doyle Sails package and upgrades across the board, the boat is bang up to date once again.

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
+447759 424900
+442380 016582

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2011 SW100RS Cape Arrow. 4,600,000 Under Leasing EUR. Located in La Spezia, Italy.

Beautifully maintained Southern Wind 100 with Raised Saloon configuration, Cape Arrow was delivered in 2011 and is presented in excellent condition

Contact
Southern Wind Shipyard (Pty) Ltd
Salita Dinegro 7/1
16123 Genoa Italy
sales [AT] sws-yachts [DOT] eu
Tel. +39 010 570 4035

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First 40 - Sailplane 79,000 excl VAT GBP.

"Sailplane- The Solent’s top First 40 is now for sale

Contact
Please call or email Rob Bottomley for further details & inspection.
07799696748
grebottomley [AT] gmail [DOT] com

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

The Last Word
If someone else is paying for it, food just tastes a lot better. -- Gilbert Gottfried

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• RORC Transatlantic Race: Childhood 1 wins the International Maxi Association (IMA) Trophy
• 49er, 49erFX, and Nacra 17 WORLDS DAY THREE - LIVE ALERT
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• Young Talent Shines Through on Day Three of SSL Finals
• Royal Albert Dock Confirmed As Clipper Race Finish
• Supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, on the mend - repaired mast to be stepped this Sunday
• Chasing the dream - Andres Lage qualifies for Tokyo 2020
• For the Record
• World Sailing Trust release Women in Sailing Strategic Review
• World Sailing Race Officials announced for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 90-703 'B5'
• • Botin 65 - High Spirit
• • Race For Water - MOD 70 Trimaran
• The Last Word: Breece D'J Pancake

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

RORC Transatlantic Race: Childhood 1 wins the International Maxi Association (IMA) Trophy
Swedish VO65 Childhood 1, skippered by Bouwe Bekking, has taken Line Honours in the 2019 RORC Transatlantic Race. Childhood 1 crossed the finish line outside Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, Grenada in an elapsed time of 11 days 11 hours 34 mins 49 secs. The International Maxi Association Secretary General, Andrew McIrvine, presented Bouwe Bekking and the team with the IMA Trophy for Monohull Line Honours.

The rhumb line for the race course from Marina Lanzarote to Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina is approximately 2,900nm. However the optimum route taken by Childhood 1 took the team far south, racking up nearly 4,000nm in the race. The majority of the crew were young sailors with ambition to take part in The Ocean Race 2021-22.

Childhood 1 crew: Bouwe Bekking, Antonio Cuervas Mons, Ysbrand Endt, Pablo Garcia Mujica, Julius Hallstrom, Edmond Hilhorst, Steven Melkman, Pelle Norberg, Simbad Quiroga, Aage Reerslev, Pieter Tack, Jelmer van Beek, Jorden van Rooijen and Laura van Veen.

Childhood 1 is a new project racing for children's rights, raising awareness and funding for the Childhood Foundation. One of the project leaders Pelle Norberg was part of the crew for the RORC Transatlantic Race.

Fleet Tracking

49er, 49erFX, and Nacra 17 WORLDS DAY THREE - LIVE ALERT
Starting now we have 49erFX Gold and 49er Gold getting into the business end of the championship. For Nacra 17 fans the third course covered is the Nacra 17 Silver fleet.

Starting later this afternoon will be the Nacra 17 Gold along with the 49er and 49erFX fleets.

The forecast is for building breath into the upper teens so should be fantastic racing!

All these races are live on sideline via 49er.org/live

Head to the regatta website for result and race highlights from day 1.

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
Sometimes the best drinks are simple and straightforward. As in the case of the Lime Squash, a favored beverage at last year's winner, Cloggy's in Falmouth Antigua.

Cloggy's was a huge favorite of the many journalists and photographers covering Antigua Sailing Week last year. There's no organization better at judging bars and drinks that SINS (Society of International Nautical Scribes). The usual criminals have spent decades honing their craft at seaside pubs and bistros and can be relied upon for good recommendations (and for honoring your presence by allowing you to pick up the check).

Here's the simple, and simply wonderful Lime Squash from Ton and Vanessa;

Wight Vodka
4 small or 2 medium-size limes
3 tablespoons honey
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) carbonated water (mineral water, club soda, etc.)

For the maximum juice, roll the limes over the counter back and forth with the palm of your hand. Cut the limes in half and juice them by hand or with a juicer. You should have 1/2 cup (4 ounces) of juice. Put the juice and honey into a bowl and mix well with a wire whisk or fork. Pour the mixture into a pitcher. Add vodka. Add the carbonated water and stir until all of the ingredients are well combined. Taste and adjust it for the desired sweetness. Serve it over ice. You can substitute lemons or mix lemons and limes.

Best accessorized with a straw hat, flip flops, and an Adirondack chair.

Pretend it's summer again, sip a few, and then tell us about YOUR favorite bar. The winner this year gets a custom 3D map handcrafted by Bobby Nash of Latitude Kinsale. You can see one on the wall at Cloggy's.

Young Talent Shines Through on Day Three of SSL Finals
A lighter 6-12 knot day on Nassau's Montagu Bay brought a fresh set of winners among the 23 competing teams on day three of the SSL Finals, the event determining 2019's 'stars of the sailing world'.

Star of the day was Australian Torvar Mirsky, sailing with Ireland's Robert O'Leary. With the wind due north, the 2017 Match Racing World Champion was unbeatable upwind, leading at the top mark in all three of today's races. However it was only in the second when they converted this to their first bullet.

Generally the lighter conditions favoured the youngsters. While Mirsky-O'Leary were the class act, scoring just one point more today were Scottish Laser European Champion Lorenzo Chiavarini and his German crew Kilian Weise, whose 3-3-6 left them in seventh (following yesterday's two DNFs).

Also going well today were Brazilians Haddad and Boening who posted a 2-7-7, leaving them 10th. "For sure the light conditions were better for us, but we were really aggressive with our plan to stay on the right side on the upwinds, where the big puffs and shifts were coming from," explained Haddad. As to beating the heroes of the sport he added: "It is something that we don't think about on the water, but when we look at the results and are ahead of many of them, it is a great feeling."

Another three races are scheduled Friday starting at 1100. These will be the last of the qualification round. After this the top 10 alone will be heading on to Saturday's Finals rounds.

Top 10 results after eight races and one discard:
1. Mateusz Kusznierewicz POL / Bruno Prada BRA, 33
2. Iain Percy GBR / Anders Ekstrom SWE, 43
3. Diego Negri ITA / Frithjof Kleen GER, 46
4. Eivind Melleby NOR / Josh Revkin USA, 46
5. Xavier Rohart FRA / Pierre-Alexis Ponsot FRA, 51
6. Oskari Muhonen FIN / Vitalii Kushnir UKR, 52
7. Lorenzo Chiavarini GBR / Kilian Weise GER, 54
8. Paul Cayard USA / Phil Trinter USA, 55
9. Torvar Mirsky AUS / Robert O'Leary IRE, 57
10. Henrique Haddad BRA / Henry Boening BRA, 63

www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Royal Albert Dock Confirmed As Clipper Race Finish
The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race has announced the Clipper 2019-20 Race Finish will be held at Royal Albert Dock (RAD) in the heart of the capital's Royal Docks. This comes as the event's new partnership with Royal Docks and RAD, London's new international destination for business and leisure, is revealed.

After the teams have raced 40,000 nautical miles around the planet, RAD will play host to the Race Finish festivities. This unique waterfront location, situated between three DLR stations, London City Airport and the new Crossrail station at Custom House, is expecting to attract people from far and wide to come and absorb the fun atmosphere. Royal Albert Dock has a growing reputation for delivering spectacular events, such as the EFG London Jazz Festival Summer Stage and the Cristal Palace (the closing gala for the Greenwich and Docklands International Festival) as well as international business and tech conferences.

The Royal Albert Dock development, masterplanned by world-famous Farrells Architect, is set to create over 30,000 jobs and generate £6 billion to the London economy, is benefiting from £1.7 billion investment from developers ABP (Advanced Business Park). This is London's newest international business district, with the first phase already completed of the 4.7 million sq ft office, residential, retail and leisure facilities on the 35-acre site, and the first project to be undertaken outside of China for ABP - which specialises in revitalising sites into thriving business districts.

Supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, on the mend - repaired mast to be stepped this Sunday
The 30m supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, which was badly damaged during a coastal race three weeks ago, is now on schedule to be on the start line for this year's Rolex Sydney-Hobart yacht race.

Owned by the Oatley family, the state-of-the art racing maxi is recognised as the most successful yacht in the 75-year history of the 630-nautical mile classic. The race will start on Boxing Day, December 26.

On November 8 Wild Oats XI's 45-metre high carbon fibre mast fractured at deck level when the yacht was leading the fleet in the 150 nautical mile Cabbage Tree Island race out of Sydney.

The yacht was charging downwind at 32 knots when the carbon fibre mast failed at deck level. Incredibly, through great skill on the part of the crew, the wildly gyrating mast remained aloft while the yacht was guided to shelter in Newcastle Harbour.

After returning to Sydney the following day an around-the-clock local and international effort has seen the extensive repairs completed ahead of schedule. This included repairing the mast and replacing a large section of the yacht's deck.

The result of that effort will become evident at 7.30am this Sunday (December 8) at Wild Oats XI's waterfront base at Woolwich Dock, on Sydney Harbour. The yacht will be moved from the large shed where it was housed then the repaired mast will be lifted by a crane and put back into place.

If everything goes to plan there is a remote chance the yacht will be under sail that afternoon. -- Rob Mundle

Chasing the dream - Andres Lage qualifies for Tokyo 2020
For much of his life, Andres Lage from Venezuela has been chasing a dream - to sail at the Olympic Games. That dream finally became real last week after he qualified for Tokyo 2020 in the Finn Class following the South American Continental Qualifier, held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from 25-30 November.

The 10-race regatta was won by Antonio Moreira, from Pablo Guitian and Pedro Lodovici. Lage placed fourth, but that was enough to secure a place at Tokyo 2020 with a day to spare.

It had been a long and tough journey for the 27-year old, a story of perseverance against adversity and of lows and highs. He has been helped by many people along the way, most recently by long time Finn sailor Michael Kurtz.

Back in 2001 Kurtz formed a friendship with French Finn sailor Guillaume Florent and helped him the through two campaigns, ending up with the bronze medal in Beijing 2008. In Lage, Kurtz saw a similar talent and stepped in to help the Spanish based Venezuelan with equipment and support to be able to get to the Continental Qualifier in Rio and to be as prepared as possible for the most important regatta of his life to date.

Lage has also been a recipient of the Finn Class development programme, FIDeS.

With the South American Qualifier now finished, there are just four places left to be decided for Tokyo 2020. In two weeks time the Oceania Qualifier takes place in Melbourne at the Finn Gold Cup, then the North America Qualifier will be at the World Cup in Miami, followed by the African and European places at the World Cup in Genoa.

The full version of this article is on the Finn class site.

For the Record
The WSSR Council announces the establishment of a new World Record:

Record: Port Louis (Lorient) to Port Louis (Mauritius)
Yacht: "IDEC Sport". 103 ft Trimaran. Singlehanded.
Name: Francis Joyon. FRA
Dates: 19th October to the 8th November 2019
Start time: 09;11;32 on 19/10/19
Finish time: 03;26;17 on 08/11/19
Elapsed time: 19 days 18 hours 14 minutes and 45 seconds
Distance: 8100 nm
Average speed: 17.08 kts

Comments:. Benchmark: IDEC. Francis Joyon. FRA. Nov 2009. 26d 4h 13m 29s

John Reed
Secretary to the WSSR Council

World Sailing Trust release Women in Sailing Strategic Review
The World Sailing Trust is pleased to release its Strategic Review into Women in Sailing, a report that explores gender balance and makes a case for change to address disparities within the sport.

Announced on International Women's Day 2019, the Strategic Review forms part of the Trust's Access to Sailing work and focuses on increasing gender diversity across the sport. The document provides insight from 4,500 respondents aged 11-83 from 75 nations with a variety of experience across the sport. Respondents' backgrounds vary from dinghy and keelboat sailors with offshore and inshore experience to Member National Authorities, Class Associations, Race Officials, volunteers and event organisers.

Authored by Vicky Low, the report brings together all of the findings and is supplemented by discussions and interviews with numerous stakeholders within international sailing and sport. To address the disparities within sailing, the report also identifies nine recommendations to balance the playing field.

These recommendations include:
Diversity and inclusion working group
Gender Charter
Equality policy
Increasing participation and creating space for women to compete
Gender equality for officials
Gender design working group
Female coaching programme
Fast track leadership programme
Women's mentoring programme

Outlined in further detail within the report, these recommendations will be put forward to World Sailing, Member National Authorities, Class Associations and the global sailing community.

Women in Sailing Strategic Review.

World Sailing Race Officials announced for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games
World Sailing, the world governing body of the sport, is pleased to announce the names of the Race Officials who have been appointed for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Sailing Competition.

The 60 International Race Officials from 31 nations are spread across the Technical Delegates, Race Management Team, International Jury, Technical Committee with an additional Event Disciplinary Investigating Officer.

Full list of Tokyo 2020 Race Official Appointments and the selection procedure.

Tom Duggan of the USA will head the Race Management Team as the Principal Race Officer (PRO) and Spain's Maria Torrijo will act as the Deputy PRO. Both Duggan and Torrijo attended the READY STEADY TOKYO - Sailing Olympic test event and hold several years of international experience across the sport.

Duggan and Torrijo will lead a team of six Course Representatives, responsible for running the racing for each of the Olympic classes, with 12 further International Race Officers supporting the team.

Great Britain's John Doerr will Chair the International Jury with Spain's Andres Perez Alvarez as Vice Chair. They will make up a 27-person International Jury who will ensure the Racing Rules of Sailing are properly applied to ensure a fair competition.

In addition, Australia's David Tillett has been appointed as the Event Disciplinary Investigating Officer (EDIO) and will be responsible for investigating complaints of misconduct.

The Technical Committee will bring together 11 International Measurers and will be Chaired by Dimitris Dimou of Greece with Belgium's Jurgen Cluytmans acting as Vice Chair. The team includes International Measurers will specific expertise on the six pieces of Olympic Equipment that will be in Enoshima. They will be responsible for ensuring that each boat complies with the Class specific rules.

Alastair Fox and Jon Napier from World Sailing will lead the International Race Official team as Technical Delegates to ensure a fair competition and level playing field for the 350 sailors racing across ten Olympic Events to compete on.

sailing.org

* From Paddy Smart

Ben Remocker's heartfelt plea to us to pay to watch TV coverage of 49er, 49er FX and NACRA 17 worlds, though well intentioned, does not just throw light on the fact there is simply not much interest in watching racing, even among sailors (racing and non-racing).

Who thought that conditional access to coverage of this event would be a flyer? Are they optimists and dreamers or misguided realists? I don't want to knock this attempt to raise the profile of our sport but things like this and World Sailing's TV show (polished as it is, it gives us features on events we've already seen 3 weeks earlier) show program-makers have not just been slow to evolve, their output appears to still have primordial soup gathered around its webbed feet....

Sailing is a challenging spectator sport, to put it mildly. "What about golf?" (someone always says in response). What about it? It's so different on so many levels there is no comparison.

Stakeholders and producers need a new approach just to get sailors to watch, let alone pay to watch, should that day ever come. There are good reasons why Sailing La Vagabonde and its type, along with event "moments" like starts/finishes of big offshore races are popular and fleet racing one design dinghies, even at world championship level, is not.

Perhaps sailing should forever remain a sport that is most enjoyable to do, rather than watch.

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The Last Word
I'm going to come back to West Virginia when this is over. There's something ancient and deeply-rooted in my soul. I like to think that I have left my ghost up one of those hollows, and I'll never really be able to leave for good until I find it. -- Breece D'J Pancake

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Percy-Ekstrom claim 2019 SSL Finals in three-way photo finish
• Hyundai 49er, 49erFX & Nacra 17 World Championships
• Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• Qingdao clinch narrow victory in Clipper fourth race
• 2020 Tour Voile
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Sail Melbourne Summer Of Sailing
• For the Record
• Eight bells - Patrick Pym
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Beneteau First 40.7
• • Vismara Buzzi V60 Open
• • Swan 100-103 'Hoppetosse'
• The Last Word: Charles Dickens

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Percy-Ekstrom claim 2019 SSL Finals in three-way photo finish
After an ultra-light wind Quarter and Semi-Finals, the wind on the Nassau’s Montagu Bay finally filled in to provide the best conditions for the four boat finale to the 2019 SSL Finals, the event that seeks to determine the ‘star of the sailing world’.

While the Quarter and Semi-Finals had shown the rich get richer, both with run-away winners, this was not the case in the Final.

Star World Champions Poland’s Mateusz Kusznierewicz and his Brazilian uber-crew Bruno Prada dropped off the pace on the first upwind, and it was Norwegian-US duo Eivind Melleby and Josh Revkin who led around the top mark ahead of France’s Xavier Rohart and Pierre-Alexis Ponsot with Anglo-Swedish duo Iain Percy and Anders Ekström third. The top three running out of pressure on the first run allowed Kusznierewicz-Prada to recover and as the leaders all rounded the port leeward gate mark, Kusznierewicz-Prada split right. Halfway up the second beat it was all even again between the four.

Comitted to the left paid for Percy-Ekstrom giving them a tiny lead at the top mark ahead of the French and Melleby-Revkin. They and Rohart-Ponsot gybed early on the final run, but, as the breeze went soft, Melleby-Revkin looked threatening in their own breeze. Coming into the line the lead trio were all overlapped pumping frantically. Initially Rohart-Ponsot appeared ahead but Percy-Ekström finished first. The Olympic legends were crowned SSL Finals champions - 2019’s stars of the sailing world.

Final top ten
1. Ian Percy (GBR) - Anders Ekstrom (SWE)
2. Xavier Rohart - Pierre-Alexis Ponsot (FRA)
3. Eivind Melleby (NOR) - Joshua Revkin (USA)
4. Mateusz Kusznierewicz (Pol) - Bruno Prada (BRA)
5. Lorenzo Chiavarini (GBR) - Kilian Weise (GER)
6. Diego Negri (ITA) - Frithjof Kleen (GER)
7. Henrique Haddad - Henry Boening (BRA)
8. Oskary Muhonen (Fin) - Vitalii Kushnir (UKR)
9. Paul Cayard - Phil Trinter (USA)
10. Eric Doyle - Payson Infelise (USA)

Hyundai 49er, 49erFX & Nacra 17 World Championships
Challenging Auckland wind and waves played their part in determining the outcome of the Hyundai 49er, 49erFX & Nacra 17 World Championships. We have three winners, but anyone watching the groundbreaking live coverage will know that there were no runaway winners from this epic regatta.

49er: Germans Make Kiwis Sweat For Their 5th World Title
Peter Burling and Blair Tuke have won a fifth world title to add to the four consecutive victories they enjoyed between 2013 and 2016. This will be one of the sweetest victories, however, not least because it’s on home waters, but also because of how hard the Kiwis were forced to work for this gold medal.

49erFX: Brazilian Capsize Confirms Dutch Victory
The 49erFX Championship was a prize fight between the Olympic Gold medallists Martine Grael & Kahena Kunze and the reigning World Champions Annemiek Bekkering and Annette Duetz. The Brazilians used some downwind magic in the first race of the morning to pull in front, but the Dutch sailed perfect beats in race two. The overall lead changed in both races with the Dutch ultimately taking a 2-point advantage into the Medal Race. In other words, no advantage at all, under the double-points format of the Medal Race.

With the rest of the fleet hurtling toward the leeward gate the Dutch played it fairly safe and rounded but the Brazilians, hot on their tail, couldn’t release the spinnaker halyard and ended up in a spectacular capsize with Grael jumping clear of the boat as they flipped over the leeward mark.

Essentially the race for gold was over at that point, with the Dutch guiding their boat safely around the course to claim their gold.

Bekkering and Duetz are now the only two-time 49erFX World Champions in the history of the skiff class, and they won the European Championship earlier this year as well. While Grael and Kunze are never to be ignored, the Dutch may have taken over their status as favourites for Tokyo 2020 next summer.

NACRA 17: Italians Prevail In 3-Way Catfight
The Nacra 17 Medal Race was a three-way battle for gold, with only 3 points separating Bissaro/Frascari (ITA 5), Cenholt/Lubeck (DEN 71) and Waterhouse/Darmanin (AUS 2). Each of these three teams took different paths up the first beat, none of which worked out tremendously. However it was the Italians who were ahead of the Danish, with the Australians back in last place. The Italians shifted over in the second upwind and forced the Danes backwards with a tight cover on DEN 71. The Danes had one final chance to make the pass they needed on the final downwind, but the Italians were not to be denied and took Championship victory by just a few boat lengths.

Final top five

49er
1. Peter Burling / Blair Tuke, NZL, 86 points
2. Erik Heil / Thomas Ploessel, GER, 92
3. Dylan Fletcher-Scott / Stuart Bithell, GBR, 130
4. Diego Botin / Iago Lopez Marra, ESP, 131
5. Logan Beck / Oscar Gunn, NZL, 143

49erFX
1. Annemiek Bekkering / Annette Duetz, NED, 96
2. Martine Soffiatti Grael / Kahena Kunze, BRA, 110
3. Ida Marie Baad Nielsen / Marie Thusgaard Olsen, DEN, 124
4. Helene Naess / Marie Ronningen, NOR, 127
5. Tina Lutz / Susann Beucke , GER, 128

NACRA 17
1. Vittorio Bissaro / Maelle Frascari, ITA, 93
2. Lin Cenholt / Cp Lubeck, DEN, 96
3. Jason Waterhouse / Lisa Darmanin, AUS, 103
4. John Gimson / Anna Burnet, GBR, 109
5. Tara Pacheco / Florian Trittel Paul, ESP, 111

Director Of Sailing - Royal Canadian Yacht Club
Toronto, ON, Canada

For more information please view the full posting: DIRECTOR OF SAILING

Qualified candidates can apply at the following email by January 6, 2020: connectwithus [AT] lighthousesearch [DOT] ca

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
Tonight's featured establishment is one that has been around for many years, is always nominated as one of the best in the world. Bayview Yacht Club is also one of the first yacht clubs to have an extensive presence on the internet, with a website that's gone through many iterations since the mid 90s.

It also holds one of the two big factors in this year's award... drink recipe and story. One of our favorites:

"I met my wife at Bayview racing Melges 24s. She was racing on a boat from out of town and I assumed she was also from out of town. Our tactician knew better and told me so. After racing I drank more than my share of beer from her boyfriend’s cooler in the parking lot and left, only to wind up kissing her for the first time in the same parking lot about 3 months later."

Their famed drink was created by the late Jerome Adams who served old and new friends for decades. The Hummer:

The recipe:
1-1/2 oz. Bacardi
1-1/2 oz. Kahlua
2 scoops vanilla ice cream
A couple of ice cubes
It works best if you blend and then let sit in the freezer for a bit to make sure it is milkshake consistency.

Fire up your blender, and then tell us about YOUR favorite bar ... with a story and a recipe please. This year's winner will receive a custom made-to-order 3D map from Latitude Kinsale. A serious prize for a serious sailors bar.

www.sailmelbourne.com.au/home/

Qingdao clinch narrow victory in Clipper fourth race
After a three-week game of cat and mouse across the Southern Ocean, between the two leading Clipper Race teams, it was Qingdao which clinched a narrow victory. The team, flying the flag for China’s sailing city, pipped closest rival Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam to the finish line in Fremantle, Australia, crossing the finish line at 18:41:35 UTC on 7 December.

In the final days of their race, the frontrunners Qingdao and Ha Long Bay Viet Nam, hunkered down to play their last strategic moves around incoming weather systems. Crossing the finish line just a little over an hour behind Qingdao, Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam claimed a well-earnt second place on the Race 4 podium, crossing the line at 19:54:07 UTC.

The race for the final podium spot went to Imagine your Korea which, under the lead of Clipper Race Skipper Dan Smith, enjoyed its first podium result of the 40,000 mile circumnavigation so far.

The race for remaining positions is still well and truly on, with every point helping to increase the teams’ overall leaderboard rank.

clipperroundtheworld.com

2020 Tour Voile
Click to enlarge for 2020 course map

The Tour Voile will again be the major event of next July. The 43rd edition will be introducing new features unveiled today at the Nautic Paris Boat Show.

In keeping with a tradition going back no fewer than 33 editions, Dunkirk will host the start of the 2020 Tour Voile. The competitors will be thrown in at the deep end, with two days of nautical stadium courses and a coastal raid course along the Flemish dunes. The teams will then set sail for Normandy for the next two Acts.

First comes Dieppe in the Seine-Maritime department, which will be hosting the Tour Voile for the 29th time, followed by Barneville-Carteret in Manche. This special Act will mark the grand return of the offshore leg so sorely missed by the crews. The sailors will tackle this leg for the first time on board their Diam 24 one design yachts to make their way to Erquy in the Cotes-d'Armor department, which will host Act 4. The Grand-Ouest marathon will come to an end in the Gulf of Morbihan, specifically in Arzon.

It will then be time for the crews to head to Serre-Ponçon in the southern Alps for an unprecedented Act that promises a thrilling showdown - the Tour Voile's first ever on an inland body of water. Finally, Nice will host the seventh and final act for the seventh year in a row. Just a few weeks after kicking off the Tour de France bicycle race, the Baie des Anges will hail the champions of the Tour Voile at the end of a 100% nautical stadium course Act.

The Super Final, always as decisive as it was in 2019, when the duel between Beijaflore and Cheminées Poujoulat went down to the wire, will be held on Sunday 19 July.

What's New In The 2020 Tour Voile
- Changes to the heat format to increase sailing time and to make heats more open to new entrants and easier to understand for spectators: fleet race format, upwind starts and a larger course
- A rejuvenated youth classification, with the age limit lowered from 26 to 23 years old.
- A rookie classification for teams with crews made up of a majority of members sailing on board Diam 24 od yachts for the first time.
- DBOX yacht transportation for all teams: the Organisation will now take care of handling and transportation to reduce the logistical burden on teams during transfers and boost security.

www.tourvoile.fr

Seahorse January 2020
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Update
Busier than you think, but a huge amount to go, Mule to Defiant, a (pleasingly) smooth transition, speaking to le homme himself, keeping the Hobart fleet safe and Juan Kouyoumdjian's little rocket really starts to rumble. Plus Guillaume Verdier's secret green weapon. Rob Kothe, Dave Kellet, Terry Hutchinson, Jack Griffin, David Raison, Axel Capron

Just plain wet
Ainhoa Sanchez

Thinking big
... but it's still about working with what you have. Rob Weiland

Missed opportunity
When World Sailing gathered in Bermuda in November it looked as if many of those prayers were about to be answered... Ian Walker

Thrillingly close
The second edition of The Nations Trophy attracted teams from 14 countries... and an impressive turn-out of the world’s best sailors

Paul Cayard - Right again
Young and dumb vs old and smart

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Sail Melbourne Summer Of Sailing
Melbourne will once again be the focus of the Olympic sailing world as over the summer of 2019 / 2020 through the continued support of the State Government of Victoria will host six of the ten Olympic Class World Championships.

The 2019 Finn Gold Cup will kick off the summer in December, before being followed by the RS Aero World Championships (BRYC), the Australian Youth Championships (SSCBC), the annual Sail Melbourne International Regatta (also at RBYC), then the 2020 Laser Standard and 2020 Radial World Championships (SYC), the 49er / FX and Nacra17 World Championships (RGYC) in Geelong and closed out with the Laser Masters World Championships in March in Geelong.

Port Phillip will be jumping with world class sailing from the juniors right through to the Tokyo 2020 Olympians.

For the Record
The WSSR Council announces the establishment of a new World Record:

Record: Around the Isle of Wight. 40ft Singlehanded.
Yacht: “Oceans Lab” Class 40.
Name: Phil Sharp. GBR
Dates:.1st December 2019
Start time: 08; 24; 39 UTC
Finish time: 13; 29; 43 UTC
Elapsed time: 5 hours 5 minutes and 4 seconds
Distance: 50 nm
Average speed: 9.83 kts

Comments: Previous benchmark: “Pixel Flyer” Alex Alley. GBR. June 17. 6h 29m 32s
This record speed will also set a benchmark for the 60ft category.

John Reed
Secretary to the WSSR Council
sailspeedrecords.com

Eight bells - Patrick Pym
It is with great sadness that we inform club members that our friend Patrick Pym has died at the age of 83. Our deepest condolences go to his wife Mary and all his family. A long standing member of Hamble River Sailing Club, Patrick was one of the six HRSC members selected for the 1972 Great Britain Olympic sailing team, competing in the Finn single-handed class. Always a highly competitive sailor, in later years Patrick’s contribution to club sailing aboard the Quarter Tonner ‘Needlework’ helped ensure racing of the highest standard.

Funeral details will be posted here when known, and a full obituary will be published in due course. -- Jonty Sherwill

* From Peter Sweetman:

Am I alone in thinking that whilst the IOC is criticised for limiting participants to 350 that someone has failed to notice that year by year the number of officials increase.

Is it really necessary to have sixty Internationally appointed officials plus a far larger contingent of locally recruited officials, even knowing the importance of the Olympic Regatta.

A jury of 29 members seems preposterous, you only get eleven if you murder somebody!

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1996 Vismara Buzzi V60 Open. 150,000 EUR, Located in Sicily, Italy.

Contact
GRABAU INTERNATIONAL
Lead broker - Alex Grabau
Tel: +44 (0)1590 673715
Email: alex [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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2006 Swan 100-103 'Hoppetosse'. Located in Palma de Mallorca.

Contact
Lorenzo Bortolotti
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +377 97 97 95 07

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

The Last Word
I do come home at Christmas. We all do, or we all should. We all come home, or ought to come home, for a short holiday - the longer, the better - from the great boarding school where we are forever working at our arithmetical slates, to take, and give a rest. -- Charles Dickens

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Pata Negra - all smiles in Grenada
• Russia banned for four years to include 2020 Olympics and 2022 World Cup
• Italy shines at sunny Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series Act 2
• 18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 3
• Barton Races Aero 7 To Datchet Flyer Victory
• Delivering the dolphins : How Team NZ built their own boats
• Give a Christmas Gift from Latitude Kinsale
• New €50,000 sailing incentive scheme aims to get more under-25s on board
• In Paris, the IMOCA class continues to campaign for the Ocean
• Melges 24 World Championship 2020: Registration Open for Charleston Bound
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Cookson 50 - Endless Game
• • VPLP 72ft Trimaran Tritium
• • Dazcat 1795 New Boat
• The Last Word: Howard Zinn

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Pata Negra - all smiles in Grenada
Day 17 - Monday 09 December, 2019. Giles Redpath's British Lombard 46 Pata Negra, skippered by Andy Lis, finished the 2019 RORC Transatlantic Race on Monday 09 December in an elapsed time of 15 days 22 hrs 58 mins 13 secs. The team on Pata Negra received a warm welcome on the dock this morning at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina from RORC CEO, Eddie Warden Owen, Marina Manager, Charlotte Bonin - who provided ice cold beers, and Nikoyan Roberts from the Grenada Tourism Authority who presented the young crew with a basket of local goods.

Pata Negra had to make a pit stop early in the race due to a watermaker malfunction, however, they are still in with a chance of winning the race overall under IRC, having posted the best corrected time of the finishers to date.

Next to complete the race from Lanzarote to Grenada will almost certainly be Richard Palmer's British JPK 10.10 Jangada. Richard is racing Two Handed with Jeremy Waitt and Jangada is estimated to not only finish the race on Tuesday 10 December but to be 20 hours ahead of Pata Negra after IRC time correction. To win the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy, Jangada must finish the race by 20:51 UTC Wednesday 11th December, 2019.

This was the first time any of the Pata Negra crew (Conor Totterdell, Cat Hunt, Will Harris, Amy Seabright, Andy Lis and Calum Healey) have been to Grenada and the young team, aged 20-27 years old, enjoyed a full breakfast at Port Louis Marina and chilled out at the marina pool. Over the next few days they intend to unwind and explore the island. -- Louay Habib

*|YOUTUBE:[$vid=JYtK2HjKAQM, $max_width=500, $title=N, $border=N, $trim_border=N, $ratings=N, $views=N]|*

Russia banned for four years to include 2020 Olympics and 2022 World Cup
Russia has been handed a four-year ban from all major sporting events by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

It means the Russia flag and anthem will not be allowed at events such as the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics and football's 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

But athletes who can prove they are untainted by the doping scandal will be able to compete under a neutral flag.

Russian prime minister Dmitry Medvedev said the ban was part of "chronic anti-Russian hysteria".

"It is obvious that significant doping problems still exist in Russia, I mean our sporting community," he said. "This is impossible to deny.

"But on the other hand the fact that all these decisions are repeated, often affecting athletes who have already been punished in one way or another, not to mention some other points - of course this makes one think that this is part of anti-Russian hysteria which has become chronic."

WADA's executive committee made the unanimous decision to impose the ban on Russia in a meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, on Monday.

www.bbc.com/sport/

Italy shines at sunny Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series Act 2
The Mediterranean winter lived up to its reputation with sunshine, blue skies and finally a steady breeze topping out at 13 knots filling in the final day for the 230-plus sailors to enjoy four back-to-back races on a flat sea in ideal conditions. A fleet of 38 J/70s and eight Melges 20s were out on the water representing 13 nationalities for the second act of the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series of monthly regattas.

In the flagship J/70 fleet, Italy's Federico Leproux (Alice) was the most consistent to win the second act of this five-act series, beating YCM member Ludovico Fassitelli's Junda - Banca del Sempione, helmed for this event by Brazilian Mario Sorensen, into 2nd followed by the Cypriot boat led by Sergei Dobrovolskii (Amaiz) in 3rd. Despite getting off to an excellent start with 1st place in the first race, Act 1's victorious team led by Britain's Charles Thompson (Brutus) dropped to 4th overall but topped the ranking in the Corinthian category.

For the Melges 20s, Alexander Novoselov's Victor pipped Alexander Mikhaylik's Alex Team to the post with two race wins, although both were tied on 13 points, with Leonid Altukhov's team (Leonid Altukhov) completing the podium.

It was the Melges 20 class which started the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series back in 2013, instigated by Valentin Zavadnikov, and is always a close contest with only 10 points separating the eight-strong fleet.

After a short festive break, it all starts again in the new year with Act 3 of the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series, 16-19 January 2020, followed by Act 4 which is part of the Mediterranean season-opener the Primo Cup - Trophee Credit Suisse 6-9 February, and Act 5 closing the series 5-8 March 2020.

www.yacht-club-monaco.mc

18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 3
Click on image for photo gallery.

Sydney Harbour: After two outstanding wins in the first two races of the NSW 18ft Skiff Championship, Winning Group went into today's Race 4 on Sydney Harbour as a hot favourite to extend her lead in the championship and didn't disappoint her supporters when the team brought the skiff home a clear winner in the 15-knot ENE breeze.

Winning Group continued her outstanding performances in the championship when John Winning Jr, Seve Jarvin and Sam Newton cleared out from the rest of the fleet over the final lap of the three-lap Easterly course to win by 2m1s from Yandoo, sailed by John Winning, Matt Coutts and Mike Kennedy.

The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines (Aron Everett, Courtney Mahar and Charlie Gundy) gave another strong performance to finish 1m10s behind Yandoo, in third place.

Following another slow start, appliancesonline.com.au (Brett Van Munster) again finished strongly to take fourth place, ahead of Smeg (Micah Lane), Shaw and Partners Financial Services (James Dorron) and Rag & Famish Hotel (Bryce Edwards).

Winning Group now leads the championship pointscore table with a perfect score of three points, followed by Shaw and Partners Financial Services of 10, The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines and appliancesonline.com.au on 12, Rag & Famish Hotel on 18. Yandoo and Smeg are then equal next on 20 points.

Friday's Supercup (three short-course races) will start at 5pm. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers league

Online Registration at YachtScoring.com

Barton Races Aero 7 To Datchet Flyer Victory
Leo Yates. Photo by Tim Olin. Click on image for photo gallery.

Pete Barton raced his RS Aero 7 to victory at the Datchet Flyer, the second round of the Selden Sailjuice Winter Series. It's the first time that an Aero has won a Sailjuice event outright. Barton, from Lymington, was very consistent through Saturday's three races, finishing 2,2,1 in the moderate breezes around a trapezoid course.

The Pursuit Race got going on the Sunday morning in breeze gusting over 20 knots. When the wind kicked up to over 30 knots, there was carnage across the race course and it was becoming dangerous for the competitors and the rescue crews, and the race had to be abandoned. The outing wasn't a complete waste, however, as the SailRacer GPS trackers were recording boat's maximum speeds. One of the top performers was that man again, Pete Barton, recording sustained speeds of over 14 knots in his RS Aero and hitting a peak speed of 17 knots. But with Sunday abandoned, it would be Saturday's races that determined the overall outcome of the competition, attended by a maximum entry of 100 boats representing 42 different dinghy classes from 52 sailing clubs.

Finishing in second place overall was the Datchet Wayfarer sailed by Andrew and Tom Wilson who won the middle race of the day. Scoring equal points were the GP14 of Pete Gray and Shandy Thompson along with the RS800 of Hugh Shone and Fiona Hampshire, the first trapeze boat on the leaderboard. However it was the GP14's 2nd place in the final race that broke the tie and gave Gray and Thompson the final spot on the podium.

After two of the eight events completed, it's former Sailjuice Winter Series winner Pete Gray who holds the top spot. Currently there are four former Series winners in the top 10, proving that some people just can't get enough of cold-weather competition!

Overall Series scores

Delivering the dolphins : How Team NZ built their own boats
America's Cup defenders Emirates Team New Zealand have done things differently by building their own boats for the first time, and so far, it's paying off.

Since October last year, the craftsmen have been head-down, tail-up in the bespoke boatyard that Team New Zealand set up on Auckland's North Shore (its exact whereabouts is a closely guarded secret, protecting it from prying eyes and drones).

The defenders of the Auld Mug have done things differently this time around. It's the first time Team New Zealand have built their own boat - and hired their own boat builders to do the job.

It means the team have more control over the build. And as chief operating officer Kevin Shoebridge explains, it gives them the manpower to create something quickly, without having to wait for a commercial yard to fit the work in. "We can change the plan overnight, and just do it," he says.

But the quality of the build remains the same. Many of the team have come from the Cookson Boats yard, which built all eight of Team New Zealand's boats between 2000 and 2013.

www.newsroom.co.nz

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Ireland and UK - Orders accepted up to December 16th
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Ok, that is it for now. The holiday season is drawing near so now is the time to act and remember that I can ship to any location in the world.

Yours Sincerely,
Bobby Nash
Latitude Kinsale
bobby [AT] latitudekinsale [DOT] com
Latitude Kinsale +353 21 4772784

* A 3D map is the grand prize in this year's Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar competition. Help YOUR favourite bar win the prize: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

New €50,000 sailing incentive scheme aims to get more under-25s on board
A new attempt at scaling up participation in sailing by under-25s will be launched this week by the Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) with a total fund understood to be upwards of €50,000.

The scheme is intended to bridge the gap between junior programmes - which are in a healthy state - and a fall-off in numbers before adult participation later in life. Clubs can apply to the ICRA to be included in the scheme.

The basic requirement is that clubs commit to the purchase of a suitable boat as the vehicle for their own local scheme.

An initial capital grant of €1,500 will be made available, with further funding intended for coaching support, mentoring and other supports.

A successful applicant will receive larger amounts in the initial years, which will gradually reduce as their scheme becomes established.

Expressions of interest will be sought, with a deadline of two weeks' time for submission. Club meetings will then be held in January before a formal application, adjudication and awarding of grants in time for the 2020 season.

The scheme is modelled on Howth Yacht Club's (HYC) Under-25 scheme that started just over six years ago and led to a series of graduates who have become long-term participants in adult sailing.

Clubs that are not yet ready to participate can apply for support in the following new entrant rounds in either 2021 or 2022. Expressions of interest should be emailed to: U25 [AT] cruiserracing [DOT] ie -- Dave Branigan in the Irish Times

www.irishtimes.com

In Paris, the IMOCA class continues to campaign for the Ocean
At the Nautic boat show in Paris (from 7th to 15th December), the IMOCA class will continue to assert its involvement in sustainable development. It will be present on a stand located in the Blue Zone (Hall 1) where several skippers will present their campaigns for the ocean.

This presence at the Nautic follows on from the measures taken during the Transat Jacques Vabre in which various boats collected data for scientific research in partnership with the IOC/UNESCO (Intergovernmental oceanographic commission).

This year, the Paris boat show has launched an area dedicated to the ecological transition and solidarity (Hall 1) porte de Versailles in Paris. Throughout the show, various sailors will attend to present concrete measures in favour of the ocean and sustainable development. Phil Sharp, Alexia Barrier, Louis Burton, Fabrice Amedeo, Paul Meilhat, Benjamin Dutreux and Stephane Le Diraison have already confirmed they will be attending. On Wednesday 11th December, a conference will be held at the stand during which the IMOCA class will present its commitment to the ocean. Following on from that, a partnership will be signed between the IMOCA class and UNESCO's Intergovernmental oceanographic commission.

"It's great that the Nautic has taken into account this aspect of sustainable development," declared Paul Meilhat, one of the most committed skippers. "There is plenty of room for progress, but this is a good start, which the world of ocean racing has been looking forward to. As a class, this means working with race organisers, but also events like the Nautic, which brings together all those involved once a year. Everyone is aware that there are a lot of changes to make to reduce our impact and we need to get started immediately to avoid being too late. It's nice that the IMOCA class is part of the change."

imoca.org

Melges 24 World Championship 2020: Registration Open for Charleston Bound
November 25, 2019 - Charleston, S.C. USA: The 2020 Melges 24 World Championship will take place on 1-9 May 2020, in Charleston, South Carolina. Organized by the International Melges 24 Class Association (IM24CA) in conjunction with, U.S. Melges 24 Championship Events, Inc. and Regatta Management, the 5-day regatta is predicted to be one of the most well-attended Championships in recent Melges 24 Class history.

Charleston, South Carolina is best known for hosting one of the longest-running, most-successful yacht racing events in North America - Sperry Charleston Race Week. In 2020, it will celebrate an impressive 25th anniversary, and in turn for the Melges 24 Class, serve as a monumental warm-up to its World Championship happening a few days later.

"Race week has always provided the best of all worlds - entertaining and exciting shoreside activities, superior race management, bountiful sponsorship, and the ability to provide great racing in a variety of conditions - offshore and in the harbor," says 2020 Regatta Chairman Randy Draftz. "What has also made it successful is that we listen to the sailors. We want what they want - the best racing, under the best conditions, on the right race course. We plan to do the same for the 2020 Melges 24 World Championship."

Teams are encouraged to get signed up as soon as possible. March 1st is the early entry deadline. The drop-dead entry deadline is 17 April 2020.

melges24.com/Worlds2020/

Featured Brokerage
2004 Cookson 50 - Endless Game. 625000 EUR. Located in Naples, Italy.

Contact
Ben Cooper
Telephone: +44(0) 1590 679222
ben [DOT] cooper [AT] berthon [DOT] com

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2002 VPLP 72ft Trimaran Tritium. 395000 USD. Located in San Francisco, USA.

TRITIUM is a modified Orma 60 Trimaran - stretched to 72 feet. Originally built by offshore veteran, Jean Le Cam, the boat was updated by Artemis Racing for testing of AC wing and dagger foils. The boat was modified - with floats lengthened to 72 feet - and cross beams reinforced, for the new loads.

TRITIUM competed in the 2013 Transpac, where it was First-to-Finish and had the fastest elapsed time. It remains one of the fastest offshore vessels in the Pacific and is ready for new record attempts. She is very well built and seaworthy.

Contact
info [AT] bernard-gallay [DOT] com
+33 (0)467 66 39 93

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

Dazcat 1795. Circa £3m GBP.

Designed with longer distances in mind, whether racing or cruising, this Dazcat is built to handle all conditions. Her power and lightweight carbon strength and stiffness guarantees you’ll always travel fast in comfort and safety. Her deck layout means you’ll be able to sail from the comfort of the cockpit and her super-spacious, bright and comfortable interior ensures she’ll carry everything you need for any adventure.

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www.multihullcentre.co.uk

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

The Last Word
I suppose the most revolutionary act one can engage in is ... to tell the truth. -- Howard Zinn

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds / Australian Moth Championships
• HMS Prince of Wales commissioning ceremony held in Portsmouth
• Robline in a nutshell...may we introduce the brand
• Smoke On The Water
• Sir Ben Ainslie blasts America's Cup costs
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors' Bar
• Foiling for (almost) all - Wilson Marquinez
• Brisbane to Hamilton Island Yacht Race 2020 start date confirmed
• Jimmy Spithill given ambassador role for new trans-Tasman yacht race
• Industry News
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Gieffe 53
• • BoatTwo
• • BoatThree
• The Last Word: Daniel Berrigan

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds / Australian Moth Championships
Mounts Bay Sailing Club -Perth, Western Australia: Well it has finally arrived, after all the by play and preparations it was time for the 120-strong Moth fleet to flex its muscle on the Swan River with yesterday's opening races of the Australian Moth Championship.

The racing on day one was delayed as the sea breeze took a while to fill in, with Perth's summer living up to all expectations with hot weather and pumping sea breezes.

Race 1 started in about 12-15 knots and the breeze started to kick from there. On an absolutely ideal race track for foiling the boats were ripping along at speeds of up to 25-30 knots.

The Australian SailGP boys had a solid start to the event with Kyle Langford recording a 2, 1, 2, 2 score card and Tom Slingsby having a great start to his campaign with a 1, 2, DNF, 3 scoreline in the yellow fleet, while Scott Babbage charged into contention with a 3, 3, 1, 1 to round out a day that was dominated by Australians.

In the blue fleet Matt Chew and Rob Greenhalgh were duking it out trading wins all day, however they certainly didn't have it all their own way with names like Tom Burton, Josh Mcknight, Joe Turner and Will Boulden all snapping at their heels.

The most amazing thing about the racing at the moment is that any sailor, on any platform, with any number of set-ups could win a race, with Bieker, Exocet and Mach2 manufactured boats all scattered through the top 10, and all running a variety of different set-ups.

It really has become a refined art to personalise your boat to your strengths and all platforms are providing similar attributes to each individual in order to make them work.

This puts the Moth class in an exciting place as many older boats are becoming competitive again with some upgrades and good sailors at the helm.

Today's racing is an early start time with a race to beat the heat and it will be interesting to see what the breeze does with easterlies forecast.

Post racing it is into the Opening Ceremony with December 12 a rest day before the Chandler Maclod Moth Worlds cranks up on December 13.

HMS Prince of Wales commissioning ceremony held in Portsmouth
Our favorite knight, Sir Robin Knox-Johnstone. Click on image to enlarge.

The Royal Navy's £3.1bn new aircraft carrier has been commissioned at a ceremony in Portsmouth attended by the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall.

They inspected a royal guard made up by the ship's company, as part of the event at the city's naval dockyard.

The Duchess of Cornwall, who is the ship's sponsor, told the gathering of about 3,000 people that it is "the beginning of an exciting new era in our long naval history".

The hoisting of the white ensign officially designated the ship as part of the Royal Navy's operational fleet.

The carrier, which is taller than Nelson's Column and has a flight deck the size of three football pitches, will have at least 700 people serving on board and the capacity to hold around 1,600 personnel.

A service was conducted by the chaplain of the fleet, with music from the Band of the Royal Marines.

The carrier is the eighth Royal Navy vessel to bear the name HMS Prince of Wales.

The 65,000-tonne warship was united with its sister ship, HMS Queen Elizabeth earlier this month, when the older of the pair returned from the US, where it had been carrying out trials of its F35B Lightning jet fighters.

The two 919ft (280m) long aircraft carriers are expected to be in service for the next 50 years and are the largest and most advanced warships ever built for the navy.

www.bbc.com

Robline in a nutshell...may we introduce the brand:
R...like Rebellious
Breaking out of used habits. Breaking ground with innovative, pioneering Robline ropes. The colours of the new Robline logo illustrate and emphasise this spirit. We wanted to break out of the “Blue” in sailing and in general the watersports industry. We wanted to make a statement using cucuum and monsungrey as our new colours - Standing out of the mass with both our products and our spirit.

Read more soon!

www.roblineropes.com/en/

Smoke On The Water
Photo by Andrea Francolini, www.afrancolini.com. Click on image to enlarge.

Grinders Coffee SOLAS Big Boat Challenge abandoned due to safety concerns

For the first time in the 26-year-history of the Big Boat Challenge, the race has been abandoned due to safety concerns following the settling of thick smoke from the Australian bushfires over the Sydney basin and a serious lack of visibility.

"It was really suggested to us from harbour control that perhaps we shouldn't be racing" said Race Officer, Denis Thompson.

"The smoke haze has been in most of the morning - it's coming from bushfires north-west of here" a harsh reality of the situation at present for the Australian's currently under threat from the fires.

Now known as the Grinders Coffee SOLAS Big Boat Challenge, the race was set to have six entrants, including The Oatley Family's Wild Oats XI, 11-time-winner of the race, miraculously back after three weeks of repairs following the CYCA's Cabbage Tree Island Bluewater Pointscore Race in November. -- Nic Douglass

www.sailorgirlhq.com

Sir Ben Ainslie blasts America's Cup costs
Sir Ben Ainslie has hit out at the costs of contesting the America's Cup, saying it is hindering the spread of the sport's glamour event.

Ainslie, heading the British syndicate for a second time as they navigate towards Auckland 2021, speaks from a position of strength as he enjoys the backing of Britain's wealthiest man, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, for his Team INEOS UK challenge.

But having such financial security doesn't stop Ainslie's concerns with Auckland 2021 having just defender Emirates Team New Zealand and three, possibly four, challengers.

"We should be looking at 10 teams - that would be ideal," Ainslie told The Financial Times, pointing the finger at the highly technical new foiling 75-foot monohulls introduced for the next edition.

"If you ask any of the team principals, they would agree this particular boat is too expensive. For a new team looking to get involved, it is quite daunting."

Sir Ben says, however, it is a "common misconception" that the biggest budget wins. That is borne out by the success of Team New Zealand, founded in 1993 and three-times winner of the cup. It is backed by commercial sponsors rather than a wealthy individual. Sir Ben says big budgets allow teams to try out "some crazy design ideas, because you can test so many different parameters". However, "having a budget to stick to means you can focus on where you are going to get bang for your buck".

https://www.ft.com/content/cfc0d884-f004-11e9-a55a-30afa498db1b

www.stuff.co.nz/sport/

Wight Vodka Best Sailors' Bar
For those of us in the northern hemisphere, this time of year evokes seasonal flavors. Apple, cinnamon, pumpkin.

I, for one, have had quite enough of pumpkin spice, and putting that in coffee is a sure sign of the impending apocalypse. Adding it into a cocktail is marginally permitted in my opinion.

But apples and cinnamon? Bring it on.

This drink recipe combines some great fall flavors. Best accessorized with a fireplace, a big yellow dog and a good book.

Spiced Apple Martini
2 parts Wight Vodka
1/2 part fresh lemon juice
2 parts sparkling apple cider
1 tablespoon cinnamon sugar
Dried apple slice

Rub a lemon wedge on the outside lip of a martini cocktail glass, then roll in the cinnamon sugar.

Add the first two ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into a martini cocktail glass.

Top with sparkling cider and garnish with an apple slice.

Sip a few... and then tell us your tall tale about your favorite bar, help them win all the prizes this year in our 11th Annual Wight Vodka best sailor's bar competition.

Foiling for (almost) all - Wilson Marquinez
Widening the appeal... fast yes, but the 69F is also optimised for easy handling

The thrill of foiling above the sea under sail need not be limited to America's Cup or Open 60 boats sailed by professionals. One perfect example of this "foiling for everyone" is the 69F concept developed by the yacht designers Wilson Marquinez (MW Naval Architecture, Buenos Aires), with the initial idea going back to 2016: a foiling monohull sportsboat that should be as simple as possible so that it can be enjoyed by a wide spectrum of sailors; young or old, advanced or beginners.

These ideas were discussed with Luca Dede from One Sails and pro yachtsman Maciel Cichetti. The emphasis was on safety and slow "take-off" speed, so that this boat can foil even at low true wind speeds. What they created was a performance design using the latest technology for a monohull one-design class with a sleek hull that already sails fast in conventional mode, without foils.

Despite this, the desired low takeoff speed was a real challenge.

Brisbane to Hamilton Island Yacht Race 2020 start date confirmed
Following the success of the inaugural Brisbane to Hamilton Island Yacht Race in 2019, Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron in association with Hamilton Island Yacht Club have set the 2020 race start from Brisbane's Moreton Bay for July 31.

Prominent ocean racing yachtsman Gavin Brady and the international crew on Karl Kwok's MOD70 trimaran, Beau Geste (Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club), set a blistering multihull race record time of 1 day 2 hours 11 minutes 43 seconds for the debut event. Their course time and average speed of just over 20kts for the 530 nautical mile stretch is an awesome benchmark likely to stand for many years. At the finish, Brady said: "It's a really nice racecourse and Hamilton Island is a great destination to sail to. This event has a bright future."

The Oatley family's RP66 Wild Oats X, skippered by Hamilton Island CEO Glenn Bourke, also rode the wild south-east tradewinds from start to finish, clocking a time of 1 day 10 hours 46 minutes 53 seconds and establishing a monohull race record that will be equally tough to beat.

Owner/skipper of the IRC division 1 overall winner Ichi Ban, Matt Allen, recapped at the finish: "It was a really quick, exhilarating race - a navigator's delight. We had a lot of water over the deck and helming a tiller Botin 52 downhill doing an average 19 knots was a challenge. The guys are pretty sore."

Feedback from competitors on the first ever Hamilton Island Race Week feeder out of Brisbane was overwhelmingly positive and organisers are confident of the event's place alongside other bluewater events of note listed on the Australian racing calendar. "It's great to see Queensland putting on a race with a bit of distance; it's definitely a winner," said the skipper of the Beneteau First 45 Banter, Mark Jacobsen.

RQYS is committed to providing the option of the Brisbane to Hamilton Island Yacht Race or the shorter, coastal Club Marine Brisbane to Keppel Tropical Yacht Race which starts at the same time.

The Notice of Race for the second annual Category 2 race (with AS Special Regulations Part 1), which feeds into Hamilton Island Race Week August 15 - 22, will be available early 2020.

grandprixyachting.com

Jimmy Spithill given ambassador role for new trans-Tasman yacht race
Jimmy Spithill has been named an ambassador for the new Sydney to Auckland yacht race to be sailed in the run-up to the 2021 America's Cup.

Now he joins New Zealand round the world sailor Bianca Cook as the two people fronting the trans-Tasman race that departs Sydney on January 30, 2021 and should finish in time for sailors to be part of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's 150th celebrations.

The club is the holder of the America's Cup and has organised the Sydney to Auckland race with the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club in Australia's biggest city

"I think for a lot of competitive sailors between the two cities, we have flown over that piece of water many times. However, I imagine very few have actually sailed it, or ever had the chance to race Sydney to Auckland," Spithill said as his ambassador's role was revealed.

"Having raced up and down the coast of Australia in the Sydney Hobart and Sydney Gold Coast races, along with New Zealand's Coastal Classic, both coastlines offer really challenging, tactical racing. Combining a bit of both will make it a really fascinating event, with a great ending of watching the Americas Cup.

"I hope to see a lot of Aussies on the water in New Zealand come 2021."

www.stuff.co.nz/sport/

Industry News
Oyster Yachts is to take on 150 additional tradespeople across its yards in Southampton, Wroxham and Ashmanhaugh.

The additions will increase the boatbuilders' headcount to more than 420 staff and will include laminators, boat builders, joiners, electricians and engineers.

"This represents a hugely exciting time for Oyster," said owner and CEO Richard Hadida. "It is wonderful to see the brand returned to its former glory, with a full order book and a dedicated team of people in Wroxham, Southampton and Ashmanhaugh building beautiful sailing yachts, using the best of British craftsmanship.

"We look forward to welcoming many more onboard in the coming months."

The company currently has a full order book, a transformation since it was bought by Richard in March 2018. One of the latest models is the 565 60ft yacht that is designed for a couple or young family to easily sail.

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After a reasonably well-attended weekend, the prospects for weekday visitors look less promising if disruption continues

Despite the difficulties caused by widespread transport strikes across France and in the capital over the weekend, organisers of the 2019 Paris Nautic Boat Show were surprised to welcome a large number of visitors over the opening two days.

According to the Federation des Industries Nautiques (FIN), the attendance figure for Saturday and Sunday was down by only 10% compared with last year as visitors showed determination to get to the exhibition by one means or another during the weekend. However, Monday was less well attended and if the strikes continue through the week the adverse impact on attendance is likely to be considerable.

The industrial action is being supported by various major national unions in response the government's proposed pension reforms. Another statement is expected from the government tomorrow and it is hoped this might help to end the strikes and get more public transport moving again.

The Paris show is one of only two consumer boat shows in the world counting more than 200,000 visitors (under normal conditions). Dusseldorf ranks number one, with a reported 250,000 visitors in 2018, followed by Paris with 204,000. Genoa comes in third with 188,000 reported visitors last year.

The nine-day Paris event runs through Sunday, 15 December.

www.ibinews.com

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ELG Carbon Fibre has recycled more than 1.2 tonnes of waste from British America's Cup challenger INEOS Team UK.

The waste comprised of pre-impregnated and cured parts from the current campaign which ELG has reprocessed into thermoset and thermoplastic compounds and non-woven mats.

The mats have been used to produce two cradles for the race boat Britannia and moulds for the hull regions of the team's test boats have also been manufactured using the same technology.

"As an America's Cup team, we hope to lead the way showing other manufacturers you can avoid putting materials in landfill, close the loop and reuse the fibres with stunning results. This is a game changing approach to marine manufacturing that we are delighted to be part of."

Britannia was officially launched last month at the INEOS Team UK's headquarters in Portsmouth. The 75ft foiling monohull represents a new type of race boat that requires a stable cradle to support the boat in transit.

The cradle was manufactured using vacuum infusion, although ELG materials can also be used in prepreg and liquid compression moulding processes.

ELG's products were also incorporated into the hull mould, which again was made using a vacuum infusion process.

Featured Charter
The Project - Sigma 38. A racer-cruiser with a brand new suit of racing sails and a highly experienced skipper: Andy Budgen. Available for full-boat charter (max 8 ppl) and ideal for everyone from sailing enthusiasts to complete beginners.
Barbados Sailing Week / 16th - 24th January
Grenada Sailing Week / 26th - 31st January
St. Maarten Heineken Regatta / 5th - 8th March
St. Thomas International Regatta / 25th - 29th March
BVI Spring Regatta / 30th March - 5th April
Bequia Easter Regatta / 9th- 13th April
Antigua Sailing Week / 26th April - 1st May

Join us on board the beautifully-maintained Sigma 38 for the 2020 Caribbean Racing Season.

Contact
Andy Budgen
email: budgenandy [AT] me [DOT] com
Tel:+44( 0) 7866 589824
monstermarine.co.uk

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
2008 Gieffe GY 53. 290,000 EUR. Located in Rosignano, Italy.

Stunning E-glass rocket ship from 2008 with an almost total refit in 2016 to bring her totally up to date. Ultra-stylish, yet ultra-practical and set up for effortless short-handed fast cruising.

Contact
GRABAU INTERNATIONAL
Lead broker - Alex Grabau
Tel: +44 (0)1590 673715
Email: alex [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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2014 Archambault A35R - "Chenapan 3". 170000 EUR. Located in France.

"Chenapan 3" is an A35R, or "mk 2" version of the very successful Archambault 35 design. Built and launched in 2014 she is the only epoxy build to date. Many upgrades. New carbon mast and boom, foil changes, deck layout changes, interior upgrades and construction changes make her the boat to have

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com
+447759 424900
+442380 016582

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2019 Oyster 565. 1,450,000 GBP.

The Oyster 565 is a yacht for all oceans; a sub-60-foot sailboat that will go places and show you something new about the world. It’s a yacht for people who want to own their adventures; choose their destination, set their course and their sails, pick their anchorages and then bring her safely home.

The At just short of 60 feet overall length, our Oyster 565 blue water sailing yacht is perfectly set up for a couple or young family to easily sail and maintain together. It’s designed to circumnavigate the planet (should you want to) in comfort and style, all thanks to Oyster’s design and engineering brilliance.

Contact
Richard Gibson
SALES DIRECTOR - UK
richard [DOT] gibson [AT] oysteryachts [DOT] com
+44 (0) 7590 183240

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

The Last Word
You have to struggle to stay alive and be of use as long as you can. -- Daniel Berrigan

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Two Handed Jangada win the RORC Transatlantic Race
• SailGP announces Denmark SailGP Team
• Notice Of Race Published For The Peters & May Round Antigua Race
• Wanted: sailors and boat owners to take on exciting new offshore Olympic event
• The stuff AC75s are made of - Wessex Resins
• Sydney Hobart Classic Yachts Regatta
• Yann Elies: "The Vendee Globe Will Leave Without Me"
• Clipper Race 4: Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride
• American Magic returns to Pensacola
• Smoke threat to Sydney to Hobart
• Featured Brokerage:
• • JPK 1180 - "Yes!"
• • Chessie Racing
• • Elliot 1850 Schooner - Zindabar
• The Last Word: Galileo Galilei

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Two Handed Jangada win the RORC Transatlantic Race
Richard Palmer's British JPK 10.10 Jangada was presented with the RORC Transatlantic Trophy in Grenada at a ceremony and prize giving banquet held at Camper & Nicholsons Victory Bar and Restaurant. Racing Two Handed with Jeremy Waitt, Jangada scored the best corrected time under IRC to win the race overall and completed the 3,000nm race in 17 Days 10 hrs 11 mins 06 secs. Jangada is the first Two Handed team to win the antique sterling silver trophy, as well as the smallest boat to do so.

For Jangada the decisive strategy was using weather forecasts to decide on the optimum route to Grenada, as Jeremy Waitt explains: "It was a progressive strategy; going to a certain point and then making the decision based on the forecast, trying to pick a route through. The big decision came on day 5, whether to stay north up against the high pressure or dive south for more breeze. By day 7 there would have been no get out, we would be committed. It was always going to be a bit of a gamble, but we managed to pick our way through a few light patches and when we got into the breeze we kept pushing. Jangada kept moving and although the boats to the south were faster, they were going a long way to get to the breeze. We think we got the navigation right and it's great to be here and to have won the race."

About 1,000nm from Grenada, Jeremy Waitt fell overboard while re-setting a twisted spinnaker. Jeremy was clipped onto the boat using a tether which is a requirement for all RORC offshore races. The sea state was up and had Jeremy not been tethered to Jangada, he would have disappeared from sight very quickly: "A wave caught us and I went straight over the side," explained Waitt. "I was being dragged at seven knots and that is a moment when you think about a few things, when you are in the middle of the ocean. The survival gene kicks in fairly quickly and it was a good bit of team work to get back on board. I have a few bruises but I don't think Richard was too impressed as I was slowing the boat down! When I was safely back on board, Richard said, 'shall we have a cup of tea?' I replied, let's get the spinnaker back up first!"

Benedikt Clauberg's Swiss First 47.7 Kali was the final boat to finish the RORC Transatlantic Race. Crossing the line at 19:28:19 UTC on 11 December, the crew were in time to join the prizegiving party and also celebrate finishing the race for the second year in a row.

Details of the one day event can found in the Notice of Race -

SailGP announces Denmark SailGP Team presented by ROCKWOOL to join world-class lineup for Season 2
Copenhagen, Denmark: SailGP today announced the addition of the Denmark SailGP Team presented by ROCKWOOL ahead of the global championship’s second season. ROCKWOOL will serve as the team’s main partner, with multi-time around-the-world sailor Nicolai Sehested at the helm and Olympic silver medalist Jonas Høgh-Christensen as team manager. The Danes join six other national teams competing in the fastest sail racing in some of the world’s most iconic cities.

ROCKWOOL has agreed to a three-year partnership with SailGP, with option to extend for a further three seasons. With ROCKWOOL’s support, the Danish team will compete in the global league that kicks off in Sydney in February 2020, and continues to destinations in the United States, UK and other venues to be announced.

Sehested, 30, has had significant success across a variety of major sailing events, highlighted by two Ocean Race campaigns as a helmsman. He’s also been the skipper and founder of Ewii Racing (formerly TREFOR Racing) in the World Match Racing Tour since 2010, with more than 30 podium finishes.

Høgh-Christensen is a four-time Olympian in the singlehanded Finn class (2004-16) - including in 2012, when he took the silver medal - and a five-time world championship medalist. On the business side, he spent seven years in marketing, commercial and operations with entertainment company Live Nation, and co-founded peer-to-peer boat rental platform Boatflex.

The seventh supercharged F50 catamaran - World Sailing’s 2019 Boat of the Year - was launched last week in New Zealand with a test team from around the league. Once the new F50 is commissioned, Sehested will take the reins for a two-week training period in January - during which the remainder of the team will be determined - in the lead-up to the Season 2 opener of SailGP on February 28-29 in Sydney.

sailgp.com

To enter the Peters & May Round Antigua Race please visit our website . - www.sailingweek.com/enter-2020/

See the Peters & May TransAtlantic Sailing Schedule on our website

Wanted: sailors and boat owners to take on exciting new offshore Olympic event
The RYA is on the hunt for sailors and boat owners interested in the new double-handed mixed offshore event that will debut at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

This exciting discipline will see mixed pairs battle it out over a 4 day offshore race in a new showcase for the sport.

With planning for Paris 2024 already underway, the RYA has registered an entry for a British team in the 2020 World Sailing Offshore World Championship (OWC), held in conjunction with the Rolex Middle Sea Race.

The RYA would now like to hear from any motivated and experienced sailors interested in trying double-handed offshore sailing, and they are also keen to hear from any boat owners who may either be looking for a racing partner or prepared to loan or charter a suitable boat to others.

Jack Fenwick, RYA Keelboat Manager, is hoping to bring interested parties together in early 2020 with a view to running doublehanded offshore taster sessions and training next spring.

"Double-handed offshore sailing could appeal to a wide range of people from professional sailors to existing or former international sailors, or perhaps even those just graduating from our RYA British Keelboat Academy," he said.

"At this stage we would like to hear from as many people as possible to try and build a database of interested parties. We would particularly like to hear from yacht owners who might be looking for partners to get afloat and give it a try."

In a vote of confidence for the existing RORC racing series, the RYA has announced that selection for the OWC, taking place in Malta in October 2020 in L30 yachts, will be based solely on the popular RORC Channel Race which starts from Cowes on August 1.

Ian Walker: "We need to strike a balance between keeping the rating band as narrow as possible to minimise the impact of the boats' rating differences on the results and making the selection as accessible as possible for a range of suitable existing boats. We will confirm the rating band after any revisions to the IRC rule for 2020."

The official selection policy will be published by 1 March 2020 but anybody interested in getting involved in double handed, mixed offshore sailing is warmly encouraged to register their interest by sending an e-mail containing details of their sailing experience, aspirations and their boat (if they have one) to: keelboatracing [AT] rya [DOT] org [DOT] uk

If more than 20 nations enter the OWC then there will need to be a country qualification event in Europe in May / June 2020. Britain would then need to send a representative team to aim to qualify a place for Britain for the OWC in Malta and an announcement will be made on how these representatives will be selected once the details are announced by World Sailing in due course.

www.rorc.org

The stuff AC75s are made of - Wessex Resins
Wessex Resins’ epoxy pushes the performance boundaries even further… just in time for the next America’s Cup

In the high-speed, high-stress world of the America’s Cup, keeping the beast in one piece is clearly a big challenge. Structural attachments that require an adhesive bond need a strong yet also toughened epoxy adhesive to transmit loads between components. Achieving both strength and toughness can be tricky. The Pro-Set ADV- 176/276 super-toughened epoxy adhesive, from Wessex Resins and Adhesives, delivers just this.

‘It might be good to have a very strong bond but you don't want one which just lets go without any warning,’ says Ineos Team UK’s manufacturing manager Michel Marie.

Over the years, as resins have been developed to be tougher, they have also needed to be more flexible so they can withstand a certain amount of displacement without breaking the bond.

clipperroundtheworldrace.com

Sydney Hobart Classic Yachts Regatta
The inaugural Sydney Hobart Classic Yachts Regatta was held over the weekend with great success.

Sydney Harbour went back in time over the weekend, as a fleet of 36 classic yachts set the stunning scene for the 75th Sydney Hobart celebrations during the Classic Sydney Hobart Yachts Regatta from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia.

The two-day passage series was an invitation-only event for yachts that had raced in any previous Sydney Hobart Yacht Race that were launched prior to 1976. The breath-taking yachts were stacked with historic and champion sailors, including sailing legend Sir James Hardy on his family-yacht Nerida, as well as Sydney Hobart veteran, Peter Shipway, who was part of the organising authority and sailed onboard S&S 47, Love & War for the regatta.

“It was fantastic really. The start on Sunday when all the fleets started together was magnificent. To see all those boats from all those eras – the 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s – all there was extraordinary,” commented Shipway. “It was like a time warp going back to see them on the water. And most in pretty good condition. Some in really super condition… And they were all sailing well, though obviously some faster than others.”

The Classic Sydney Hobart Yachts Regatta could be likened to a big reunion of ‘who’s who’ in Sydney Hobart history who were spread among the iconic classic yachts.

“To see all those boats going down the harbour from Manly in a nor’easter was great,” continued Shipway. “We were blessed with the weather, we only had one course each day that allowed for a bit of upwind work, downwind sailing and a bit of reaching, so there was a bit for everyone. The breeze didn’t get over 12 knots, so it certainly helped the older boats.”

rolexsydneyhobart.com

Yann Elies: "The Vendee Globe Will Leave Without Me"
It was the surprise candidacy that appeared at the close of registration on November 1st. Yann Eliès announced his intention to commit and begin the construction of a new boat to be on the starting line in November 2020. Everyone knew that the schedule would be extremely tight.

A month later, Yann Elies decided to throw in the towel. To be ready on time, ie with a qualified boat on July 1st, it was necessary to be able to start the yard immediately, but it proved impossible. The initial goal of building a new unit in eight months was no longer held.

VG: Yann, you finally decided to give up. I guess it's not an easy decision to make?

YE: " Obviously, especially since we will have tried everything to achieve it.We found a partner, but the time to finalize the contracts, it appeared that the construction time had become too short. We were in extremely tight timing. "

VG: Why did you decide to build a new boat?
YE: " In a way, we had our backs to the wall, and when that opportunity came, there was no more IMOCA boats available which were competitive." Given my previous Vendée Globe, I could not see myself with a project with discounted ambitions. The solution of the new boat was high risk, but it was consistent . "

VG: So, what are your prospects for the coming years?

YE: " I'm just spoiled for choice: in April, it will be the start of the Transat AG2R, in Figaro, one of the few events that are missing from my list.La Solitaire is also a race to which I remain particularly attached and it would be an opportunity to go get a fourth title. I could also be tempted by the Transat CIC in Class40 or Multi50. I have fond memories of the Transat Jacques Vabre 2013 that I won with Erwan Le Roux on his trimaran. "

www.imoca.org

Clipper Race 4: Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride
Dare To Lead has crossed the finish line into Fremantle this morning at 10:07 UTC and the team to claim seventh place in Race 4: Marlow Southern Ocean Sleigh Ride. The team clinched victory in the mini-match race that was raging between nearest challengers Seattle with Skipper Guy Waites, First Mate (AQP) Hugues Stellio and all the Dare To Lead crew leading celebrations on arrival.

The competition has been fierce between Seattle and Dare To Lead during 4,750 mile-long race and reporting on the final day Guy, Skipper of Dare To Lead, said: “At the last sched we had extended over our match race rivals aboard CV22 Seattle by 70 nautical miles, a more comfortable position than we had imagined following the mixed fortunes of the windhole but we won't drink all the beer... honest!”

A warm welcome awaits Dare To Lead in Fremantle and Guy and the crew are looking forward to the hospitality: “We are preparing ourselves for ‘civilisation’ and of course the Fremantle Sailing Club's famous sausage sizzle!”

American Magic returns to Pensacola
New York Yacht Club American Magic, Challenger for the 36th America’s Cup, has returned to Pensacola, Florida, for a second consecutive winter training season. In 2018, American Magic became the first America’s Cup team to train on the Gulf Coast of Florida since 1970. From December 2018 to May 2019, the team sailed a groundbreaking 38-foot test boat, nicknamed the Mule, on Pensacola Bay before returning to Rhode Island for the warmer months.

American Magic and the Mule returned to the Port of Pensacola in November, but have now been joined by the team’s new AC75 racing boat, DEFIANT. The boat was launched in early September in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and was the first boat of its type to both sail and foil. The 75-foot monohull carries a crew of 11, and will race in multiple America’s Cup World Series events in 2020. While the team plans to build a second AC75 prior to the Prada Cup, the America’s Cup Challenger finals, in 2021, training and racing onboard DEFIANT will be a crucial stage of the team’s campaign to win the oldest trophy in international sports for the United States.

“Returning to Pensacola for a second winter was an easy decision for us because of the fantastic bay, our familiarity with the area, and the hospitality of the community here,” said Terry Hutchinson, Skipper and Executive Director of American Magic. “The testing we have planned for DEFIANT this winter will be helped by the natural foiling venue we have here. The bay is wide, flat and windy, and the Port of Pensacola has helped us establish an ideal base for over 100 team personnel and their families. Pensacola will be a big part of our future success.”

“The City of Pensacola is honored to again host American Magic and welcomes DEFIANT to her winter training base at the Port of Pensacola,” said Mayor Grover Robinson. “The community has rallied around the team and stands ready to help in any way we can as they begin testing on beautiful Pensacola Bay, a premiere sailing venue.”

American Magic will remain in Pensacola until March, when the team will head to Italy for the first America’s Cup World Series event in Cagliari.

whatsupnewp.com

Smoke threat to Sydney to Hobart
Sydney to Hobart officials are scrambling to formulate a plan for the 'worst-case scenario' as bushfires threaten to cause the postponement of the Boxing Day race start.

Following the cancellation of the Big Boat Challenge on Tuesday due to smoke haze that cut visibility on Sydney Harbour to 0.1 nautical miles, Cruising Yacht Club of Australia Commodore Paul Billingham admitted rescheduling the bluewater classic was now on the table in the event of a repeat of Tuesday's conditions.

"Have we planned for what would happen if we have a smokebound harbour? No, we haven't. So we're working on that," he said. "With 160-odd boats we are expecting on the start line, we have a full exclusions zone on Boxing Day.

"That said, safety will be the priority and it's certainly in the race instructions and the sailing instruction that we can postpone if we need to."

Billingham said that while they "hope not to" postpone the race, the possibility was being given thought following the unprecedented abandonment of the Big Boat Challenge.

"We don't yet have the long-term weather that's reliable enough to sort of make a decision or even expect what it might be on Boxing Day, but that's part of our planning of the next week or two, to see what we need to do," Billingham said.

www.smh.com.au

Featured Brokerage
2018 JPK 1180 - "YES!" 300000 GBP. Located in Cowes, UK.

YES! the upgraded JPK 1180 is now for sale. This boat represents an outstanding opportunity for someone wanting the chance to win the worlds most iconic races, both inshore and offshore. Available immediately and offering large savings compared to building new. This is the 1180 to have!

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com
+447759 424900
+442380 016582

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Chessie Racing. 2,250,000 USD. Located in United States.

CHESSIE is equipped with a lifting keel and twin rudders – driven by the shoal-draft requirement Her owner chose a Hall Spar, deck-stepped, swept-spreader rig for simplicity and location (the rig sits above the lifting keel box, which offers a nice structural solution) She has a 75HP (the biggest Yanmar engine with a saildrive) which drives the boat at 10.5kt with a Gori three-blade folding prop (which is surprisingly low drag when folded) The boat has a Cariboni MagicTrim mainsheet, Harken electric winches, a Reckmann recessed furler headstay, a removable furling staysail, a self-tacking jib, a Hall furling boom and a square-top main plus runners for racing. Chessie is easy to steer and has good stability.

Contact
William Jenkins
410 267 9419
410 353 7862
www.tysyacht.com

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1998 Elliot 1850 Schooner - ZINDABAR. 545,000 GBP. Located in Bay of Islands, NZ.

Greg Elliot is a legend in the Southern Hemisphere where his fast, lean and utilitarian yachts are perfect for making fast passages through the vast expanses of the Pacific Ocean. They are superb seaboats and there design and execution is simple and robust. ZINDABAR is a good example of his craft and has been substantially updated in this ownership. A big refit in 2009 has been followed by a number of smaller upgrades to ensure that she remains ocean ready.

emirates-team-new-zealand.americascup.com

Contact
Ben Cooper
+44 (0) 1590 679 222
ben [DOT] cooper [AT] berthon [DOT] co [DOT] uk

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

The Last Word
I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use. -- Galileo Galilei, Letter to the Grand Duchess Christina

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
• Youth America's Cup Announced
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• CanAm Series 1 Wrapup - International 2.4 Meter Class
• Rolex China Sea Race 2020: International Entries from Afar
• Azzurra Welcomes Tactician Michele Paoletti Aboard
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Cape2Rio competitor LoveWater arrives in Cape Town
• Golden Globe Race: heading towards 2022
• Industry News
• Featured Brokerage:
• • G L Watson 36 Ft Cutter 1894
• • SWAN 40-148 Solenia
• • X41 - British Soldier
• The Last Word: John Lennon

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
With the stage set for the start of the 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds today, sailors are now primed and ready for a big week of racing that will see a new Moth World Champion crowned at the Mounts Bay Sailing Club in Perth.

Yesterday the Down Under Sail broadcast team caught up with a number of competitors from the event as part of the 'Moth Worlds Preview Panel Show' to talk about how their preparations are going for the major event.

You can watch it here...

Joining our commentary duo of Marc Ablett and Jody Shiels on the panel were Australian SailGP Team members Tom Slingsby and Kyle Langford, international competitors Kyle Stoneham (GBR) and Hiroki Goto (JPN), as well as Perth locals Will Boulden and Nick Deussen.

Langford talked to us about the preparation that has gone into his campaign with his Bieker boat and the development work that had been undertaken with Doyle Sails. He talks about the stresses of running his own campaign, which is worlds away from being on a professional team where logistics, shore support and management is handled by a larger team.

Tom Slingsby then spoke to Marc Ablett about clinching the overall win in the Australian Moth Nationals and Pre-Worlds event on December 10. He said that while he is somewhat superstitious, it was great to be able to draw first blood and know he's going quick heading into the big event.

Qualifying racing for the Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds kicks off today, with the finals planned to start on 16 December.

www.mothworlds.org/perth

Youth America's Cup Announced
AC9F. Click on image to enlarge.

A reinvigorated Youth America’s Cup regatta is announced today which will be raced in a brand new class of foiling mono-hull, the AC9F, in 2020 and 2021.

The Youth America’s Cup is a joint initiative between the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (RNZYS), the China Sports Industry Group (CSIG), and Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ). The multi-leg event will begin with a fleet racing seeding event in China in November 2020 and then a match racing event in Auckland from February 18th- 23rd 2021 with the finals held between March 8th- 12th 2021 right outside the RNZYS in the shadow of Auckland’s iconic Harbour Bridge.

In line with the original America’s Cup Deed of Gift it is designed to be a ‘friendly competition between yacht clubs of all nations’. Unlike previous editions, multiple entries from various countries will be allowed.

The age restriction for the crews is they must be between 18-24 years of age. To encourage diversity at this high level the teams will consist of a mixed crew of four sailors on each boat, including two females and two male sailors with a maximum crew weight of 311kgs.

“The Youth America’s Cup is something we have been eager to see established since we won the America’s Cup and also introduced foiling monohulls to the America’s Cup with the AC75. The Squadron has presented a concept that we believe will add something special to the 36th America’s Cup.” said Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton.

The AC9F is a nine-metre foiling monohull which has been designed by New Zealand boat building company Yachting Developments (YDL) with valuable input from the Emirates Team New Zealand design team, Southern Spars, North Sails and significant support from the wider New Zealand Marine Industry highlighting the industries commitment to innovation. The fleet of one-design boats will be built primarily at YDL in Auckland.

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
We have two bars nominated from the island of Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands: Foxy's and the Soggy Dollar. Tonight we feature the Soggy Dollar. Named due to the inevitable condition of currency when you swim from a boat to a bar.

If there’s one place that defines the Caribbean beach bar, one place that draws rum-loving pilgrims from around the world, it’s the Soggy Dollar Bar.

Tucked away in White Bay on Jost Van Dyke, the legendary Soggy Dollar Bar was built and became the birthplace of the original Painkiller rum drink. The bar is famous among Caribbean travelers for its unblemished casual vibe and pristine white sand, dock-free beach. Patrons swim from their boats and spend a few Soggy Dollars enjoying this perfect concoction of flavors and atmosphere.

But after closing due to damage from Hurricane Irma, the legendary spot on Jost Van Dyke’s White Bay has officially relaunched to serve up painkillers.

“While Maria and Irma brought total devastation to Jost Van Dyke and the BVIs and USVI, somehow the little Soggy Dollar Bar stayed intact while the rest of our entire resort was destroyed,” Soggy Dollar owner Jerry O’Connell told Caribbean Journal. “Over the last 120 days, with generator power only and with remarkable determination and resilience, six of our dedicated employees have rebuilt the Soggy Dollar Bar and we opened for business just prior to the new year.”

The bar, restaurant and signature Soggy Dollar boutique are already open, while the bar’s popular live webcam is up and running.

caribjournal.com and soggydollarrum.com

The infamous and correctly named PainKiller was created at the Soggy Dollar:

How to make the Painkiller cocktail:
2 oz British Navy Style Rum
1 oz Fresh orange juice
4 oz Fresh pineapple juice
1 oz Cream of coconut
Garnish: Freshly-grated nutmeg, 1 pineapple wedge
Glass: Hurricane or snifter

Add all the ingredients to a shaker and fill with ice.
Shake vigorously and strain into a Hurricane glass or goblet filled with ice.
Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg, and a pineapple wedge if desired.

While you're knocking a few down, tell us about YOUR favorite bar... help them win this year's award, with the Grand Prize of a custom 3D map from Latitude Kinsale

www.rolexchinasearace.com

CanAm Series 1 Wrapup - International 2.4 Meter Class
Port Charlotte, Florida: The first of five sailing events concluded today at the Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club. Twenty two boats from Canada and the United States sailed 4 races on day one, but were left ashore with no wind on day 2.

American Paralympic sailor Dee Smith held onto a one point lead over Canadian Olympic sailor Allen Leibel. Smith was quoted as saying "I was lucky enough to win because my mistakes were smaller than my competitors". American Jeffry Linton rounded out the top three.

As mentioned above, the International 2.4 meter class winters in FL and runs 5 different events from December to March. Can Am 2 starts Friday December 13. After the new year, CanAm 3-5 run each month through March. The class welcomes newcomers with great hospitality and high quality charter boats. If interested in joining us, please contact our class president, Tony Pocklington, captiva_24 at yahoo.com.

Full results can be found at: www.regattanetwork.com

Rolex China Sea Race 2020: International Entries from Afar
Of the 13 boats currently entered into the 30th edition of Rolex China Sea Race, six international entries hail from as far afield as Russia, Philippines, Japan and the United States and mark the first sign ups for this biennial blue water classic.

Bryon Ehrhart’s American entry J/V Maxi Lucky is back for the 565nm Category 1 offshore race having completed the Race before in 2014 on his TP52 and taking 2nd place IRC Overall.

The new 72ft Lucky took part in series of maxi events across the Mediterranean including Rolex Capri Sailing Week, Rolex Giraglia, Palermo to Monaco and the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup and took Monohull Line Honours in the recent Hong Kong to Vietnam Rally 2019 setting a new course record for the 673nm race in an impressive time of 41h30m20s.

The current Monohull Record in the Rolex China Sea Race was set by RP66 Alive in 2016, finishing the 565nm race in 47h 31m 08s and Lucky will certainly be setting her sights on setting a new race record for the 2020 edition.

Representing Russia is Cookson 12 Megazip owned by Alexey Mashkin. Alexey is a veteran of Rolex offshore races including the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, the Rolex Giraglia, the Rolex Middle Sea Race and the Rolex Fastnet Race. Megazip took 3rd place in IRC Racer division 1 in the 2016 Rolex China Sea Race and are intending on improving on their previous result.

Two Beneteaus from Phillippines and Japan join their first Rolex China Sea Race. The Beneteau First 40 CR Hurricane Hunter from Manila Yacht Club competed in the 50th Anniversary of the Rolex Middle Sea Race and from there the boat was shipped to Hong Kong and subsequently sailed to Manila last January. Owner Albert Altura will be competing in his second China Sea Race, the first China Sea Race he participated in was as a 19-year-old in the 1986 race on Sunset Strip who placed 4th Overall in the IOR division. Japan entry Beneteau First 40.7 Thetis 4 is active in long distance racing around Japan and will extend their journey to Palau in the upcoming 1726nm Japan to Palau Good Will yacht race, China Sea will be their next destination for exploration.

Chinese entry Seawolf 2 return for their fourth Rolex China Sea Race, having completed a series of coastal and short offshore races. This all-Chinese team has shown steady improvement throughout the blue water races, the Ker 42 climbed from 3rd place IRC Overall in 2016 to 2nd Place IRC Overall 2nd place in 2018. Seawolf 2 is on the hunt for their first IRC Overall Championship.

2020 will also see the return of some well experienced Rolex China Sea Race participants including Ambush who has competed in five previous races and Alpha + who took 2nd Place IRC Racer Division 0 in 2018.

Azzurra Welcomes Tactician Michele Paoletti Aboard
Porto Cervo, Italy: Michele Paoletti will be Azzurra’s new tactician for the 2020 52 Super Series.

Today, just before a training session was about to begin in the waters off Valencia, the name of Azzurra’s new tactician was announced. The job will go to Michele Paoletti who will be sailing aboard a TP52 again after his successful bids in the MedCup where he won the championship in 2005 as tactician aboard Mutua Madrilena.

Born in Trieste in 1974, Michele Paoletti competed for Italy in the Sydney 2000 Olympics in the Soling Class together with Nico Celon and Dede De Luca. He also won the European Match Race Championship in 2001. Up until the year 2003 Paoletti competed at a very high level in the Laser class and subsequently on a Finn he won two national championships and has campaigned both for the London and at the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games.

Paoletti also participated in the 32th America’s Cup in Valencia as strategist aboard Mascalzone Latino. His CV lists wins in various keelboat world championships from the IOR Quarter Ton Class to the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup. Paoletti also won many titles in One Design circuits such as the Melges series. Aboard J/70s he has sailed and won as tactician in three European Championships including the last one held in Malcesine, Lake Garda in 2019. Just this past December 8th he won as tactician the J/70 South America Championship in Punta de l’Este.

Santiago Lange, Azzurra’s tactician in the past two seasons, has left the team to prepare with Cecilia Carranza for his Olympic bid in Tokyo 2020 aboard their foiling catamaran Nacra 17.

Best wishes to Lange and Carranza and a warm welcome to Paoletti aboard Azzurra.

www.azzurra.it/en/

Seahorse January 2020
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

World news
The Verdier/VPLP battle, Charal blink, but the Figaro stars shine everywhere, a Raison walkover, Enright and Bidegorry's promising start, Chris Dickson uncovers a new calling, Alex Pella - a 'secret' talent, irrepressible Nock. Plus the USA 'discovers' shorthanded racing. Carlos Pich, Patrice Carpentier, Alex Pella, Ivor Wilkins, Blue Robinson, Dobbs Davis, Alex Thomson

Kiwi rocket
Julian Everitt looks back at one yacht designer's career that though turbulent was never going to be a flash in the pan: Bruce Farr

Designed to last
Iain Mcallister is a John G Alden customer, aficionado, expert... and enthusiast

Making sense of it
Andy Claughton suggests there is a hint of paradox about the AC75 America's Cup class

Back to grassroots
11th Hour Racing’s pro-sailing ambassadors are partnering with a variety of marine conservation groups... and already with impressive results

Special rates for EuroSail News subscribers:
Seahorse Print or Digital Subscription Use Discount Promo Code SB2

1yr Print Sub: €77 - £48 - $71 / Rest of the World: £65 www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/subs/

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Cape2Rio competitor LoveWater arrives in Cape Town
Hopeful Cape to Rio 2020 yacht race winner, LoveWater, sponsored by JSE listed HomeChoice International Ltd and skippered by Craig Sutherland is expected to arrive in the V&A Waterfront this evening after a long delivery of around 7500 nautical miles from Portimao, Portugal via Brazil which started on 23 November 2019.

This 80ft long, 64 ft wide, French owned, racing trimaran has been specifically chartered with the intent to win the Cape to Rio yacht race for South Africa and to attempt to smash the current South Atlantic crossing record of around 10,5 days set in 2014 by a few days, if weather conditions permit, from the start in Table Bay on 11 January 2021.

The trimaran is one of the top 10 fastest ocean crossing yachts in the world currently and the race crew consists of six South African's, a Frenchman, Antoine Rabaste and a Brit, Brian Thompson. The South African crew consisting of Ken Venn, Phil Lambrecht, Mike Clarke, Mike Minkley, Rick Garratt (Founder of HomeChoice International Ltd) and Craig Sutherland are all from Cape Town.

In the 2014 edition of the race, the core South African crew with 11 Rio races already under their belts, aboard their 60 ft monohull Explora, ended up third boat into Rio on that attempt behind an Italian and Australia entry.

The yacht will be moored at Quay 6 in front of the Table Bay Hotel in the V&A Waterfront from this evening until the start of the race on 11 January 2020 and is expected to attract many interested viewers.

www.instagram.com/lovewater2020
web.facebook.com/lovewater2020

cape2rio2020.com/

Golden Globe Race: heading towards 2022
The Golden Globe Race delivers this rare alchemy: be an event of international scope and keep a family and fraternal spirit. This duality gives a unique personality to this old-school round-the-world race where the sailors’ human qualities take precedence over technology. After the success of the first edition, returning for a new challenge was almost an evidence.

The Paris Boat Show is the traditional meeting place for all sailors. It is here that we rewrite the epic tales of the past year and imagine the beautiful adventures to come. What better place to officialise the partnership that will associate Don McIntyre, the town hall and the urban community of Les Sables d'Olonne for the Golden Globe Race 2022? On Wednesday, December 11, the main personalities of 2018 met to lay the foundations for the next edition. Several 2022 competitors were able to exchange with Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, the brilliant winner of 2018. With the enthusiasm already generated by the race, there is confidence the next edition will meet expectations from racers and audiences alike.

Don McIntyre, organizer of the Golden Globe Race:
"What a pleasure to see the enthusiasm of the City of Les Sables d'Olonne to join the 2022 edition of the Golden Globe Race as an official port and logistics partner. We will continue in the tradition of the relationship of trust that was created during the 2018 edition. This adventure has been a success at all levels; it was also the bearer of true human relationships. This event is more than a race: it is the longest, slowest and most committed individual challenge, of all sports combined. There is no better homeport than Les Sables d'Olonne. With 25 candidates from 11 different nationalities, we are expecting the most exciting event of 2022.

www.goldengloberace.com

Industry News
British Marine is to move its head office to Ocean Village, Southampton.

The move will free up the entire current HQ, Marine House in Egham, that will be put up for rent - currently the ground floor is being marketed to rent.

It is anticipated the new office in Tagus House will be operational by Spring 2020 with 30 out of BM’s current 36 staff transferring locations. Replacements will be recruited for in the coming months.

The move is being carried out so BM can achieve its 2025 strategic plan to be a member first organisation, explained commercial director Dean Smith.

“[We have] aspirations of developing the British marine industry by driving improvements in product and service quality, marine careers, training, government representation and overall consumer participation in UK boating,” he said.

“Relocating British Marine’s head office to Southampton by Spring 2020 enables the organisation to remain accessible to its members and positions the organisation in the area in which 65% of the leisure marine workforce are located.”

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Exhibitor registration has now opened for the 2020 Barclays Jersey Boat Show. Organised by Ports of Jersey and sponsored by Barclays, the maritime event will take place over the early Spring Bank Holiday weekend between Saturday 02 and Monday 04 May 2020.

Frequently lauded as the largest free entry show in the Channel Islands and regularly attracting more than 30,000+ visitors over the three days, this will be the 13th year the event will take place in and around the award-winning St Helier Marina and adjacent Weighbridge Place and Liberation Square.

Ports of Jersey is delighted to confirm that Barclays has agreed another three-year title sponsorship of the maritime festival.

The Royal Navy will once again play a major role in the show along with several other popular activities, including demonstrations both on and off water, an outdoor and active zone, an entertainment programme and an environment zone complementing the variety of exhibitor stalls along the quayside together with food and refreshment concessions.

Along with commercial sponsorship, the Barclays Jersey Boat Show relies upon exhibitor contributions to stage and support all activities and will remain a free-entry event. For the first time, exhibitors and caterers can now book their space at the show online via jerseyboatshow.com. Ground arrangements on behalf of exhibitors as well as sponsorship opportunities are being handled by Jersey’s largest outdoor events specialists, 3D Events.

www.jerseyboatshow.com

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North Sails has opened a new loft in Lorient, France. The new location will allow the company to welcome a large number of its clients who are based in the "Sailing Valley", a strategic area in Brittany dedicated to offshore racing and technological innovation.

"Our approach to be in close contact with the leaders in sailing and innovation in the Lorient area perfectly complements the links that we already have with our partners and collaborators who are our neighbors in Vannes," comments Gautier Sergent, director of North Sails France. "The desire to settle in Lorient has long been a subject of discussion within North Sails," he continues. "We are pleased that this initiative has finally materialized."

"Today more than 80% of offshore skippers, from all classes including mini, Figaro, Class 40, IMOCA, Ultim and more, are present in Lorient," explained Eric Gallais-Hamonno, production manager with North Sails. “It was clear we needed an outpost there, not only to strengthen the relationships with our existing clients but to also develop our local network and access new markets, such as cruising and local IRC.”

The North Sails loft has a new 500m2 floor dedicated to service (after-sales service, modifications and repairs). "This will allow the floor space in Vannes to manufacture more efficiently and serenely," says Thibaut.

The Vannes loft will remain the production site for North Sails, and service for customers in the Vannes region. Thibaut Agaugue will be in charge of service in Vannes and Lorient and can be available as needed. The loft in Lorient also has office space and a 50m² meeting room to receive a team of five or six people (service, commercial and design).

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The 2020 South Coast Boat Show will take place over the weekend of 15-17 May, at Southampton’s stunning Ocean Village Marina. Now in its second year the show, organised by the South Coast Boat Dealers Consortium, is carefully curated to attract serious buyers.

On show will be global power and sail brands, perfect for those who are looking to purchase a brand-new vessel immediately, or within the next 6-18 months.

Due to exhibitor berthing selling-out in 2019 and requests for a shoreside exhibition area, the organisers have responded with additional berths for top-end brands, and a land-based marine exhibition space for ancillary services such as associated gear, finance, insurance and more.

Raymarine is proud to come onboard as the headline sponsor.

southcoastboatshow.com

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Groupe Beneteau today announced that Paul Blanc will become general manager of the Jeanneau brand. Blanc will report to Gianguido Girotti, Deputy CEO in charge of Product and Brand Strategy, according to a statement. He will assume the general manager position of Jeanneau in April 2020.

Blanc is currently Asia Pacific sales director for the Jeanneau and Prestige brands as well as managing director of the Groupe Beneteau Asia Pacific office in Hong Kong. Blanc moved to China in 2001 to study mandarin. After a career start in Beijing in the automotive sector, he joined Jeanneau and Prestige teams in 2010. He established the Jeanneau Prestige regional office in Hong Kong and was last year appointed managing director of Groupe Beneteau Asia Pacific office in Hong Kong.

Groupe Beneteau also announced that it was asking its board of directors to appoint Jean-Paul Chapeleau as deputy CEO in charge of Industrial Studies, Purchasing and Product Development.

Chapeleau is currently general manager of Jeanneau and Prestige. He is also an adviser to the CEO on the Group’s Management Board.

Featured Brokerage
1894 G L Watson 36 FT Cutter. 300,000 EUR, Located in United Kingdom.

PEGGY BAWN is a rare thing indeed. The number of surviving vessels from pioneering Clydeside yacht designer George Lennox Watson’s lifetime (1851-1904) can be counted on a careless carpenter’s fingers.

Long gone are his huge America’s Cup challengers and “Big Class” racing yachts, and only two of the fleet of palatial steam yachts – the superyachts of their day – from his Glasgow drawing boards are known to survive, in fabulous condition although barely recognisable from their original appearance.

It is left to PEGGY BAWN to carry the flame for Watson’s groundbreaking mid-1890s work in setting the standard for moderation in sailing yacht design, work that has never been challenged – only endorsed by those who followed his lead through the 20th century, especially Olin J. Stephens, who was a self-confessed Watson fan.

See listing details in Nautors Swan Brokerage

Contact
Barney Sandeman info [AT] sandemanyachtcompany [DOT] co [DOT] uk
+44 (0)1202 330077
33 High Street
Poole, Dorset
BH15 1AB
United Kingdom

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1999 Swan 40 'Solenia'. 250,000 EUR VAT Paid. Located in Argentario - Tuscany, IT

Beautiful model of Swan 40.

The hull n. 48 launched in 1999 and finally on the market!

40-148 was built with very special specifications by the first owner and then excellently maintained that probably one of the most Swan 40s in the world.

Contact
Stefano Leonardi
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +39 0766 20602

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British Soldier, the 2018 RORC IRC Overall winner is for sale. POA EUR. Located in Gosport UK.

British Soldier, the 2018 RORC IRC Overall winner is for sale

Available after the Fastnet Race 2019. Lying Gosport, UK.

Contact
racing [AT] sailarmy [DOT] co [DOT] uk
07747 606391

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

The Last Word
Reality leaves a lot to the imagination. -- John Lennon

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Slingsby and Burton flex their muscle on final day of Moth Worlds qualifying
• Finn Gold Cup
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• Francis Joyon Has Left Vietnam And Is Heading For China
• 18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 4
• Aston Harald Composites is back to the production of M32
• Thrillingly close race - Nautor Swan
• CanAm Series 2 Wrapup - International 2.4 Meter Class US Nationals
• Irish Sailing Seek Expressions of Interest for Offshore World Sailing Championships 2020
• The 10th edition of the Defi Azimut
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Volvo Open 70 - Ocean Breeze
• • Swan 77 RS - Bandolero
• • MTC28 - Carbon Trimaran
• The Last Word: Orson Welles

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...

Slingsby and Burton flex their muscle on final day of Moth Worlds qualifying
Photo by Martina Orsini / IMCA. Click on image for photo gallery.

It was all to play for today at the 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds with positions very much up for grabs to make the cut for Gold fleet racing that kicks off after tomorrow's lay day.

The fleets will be split for Monday's finals racing allowing the first chance to see the best sailors all on the same course for the first time.

It will be the first time since the nationals that we will see some sailors on the same course, with Tom Slingsby (AUS) putting on a clinic on the Yellow course, while Tom Burton (AUS) and Kyle Langford (AUS) have been duking it out on the Blue course.

Slingsby solidified his position as the championship favourite after a stellar effort today that saw him claim three race wins from as many races, with plenty of daylight behind him in most instances.

His nearest competitors Francesco Bruni (ITA), Brad Funk (USA) and Matthew Chew (AUS) all had solid days as well, but were just unable to get near the current SailGP champion helm.

mothworlds.org/perth/

Finn Gold Cup
Mebourne, Australia: The 2019 Finn Gold Cup was officially opened by John Bertrand AO at Friday evening's opening ceremony at the Royal Brighton Yacht Club in Melbourne, Australia. More than 60 Finn sailors from 22 nations have gathered in Melbourne for the penultimate class world championship before next summer's Olympic Games.

As well as being the Oceania qualification event for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, the Finn Gold Cup is also being used by many teams as either a qualifying event or an indication event towards selecting who will go to Tokyo, both for those countries already qualified as well as those who will try to qualify their country in the two remaining Continental qualifiers in 2020.

After weeks of preparation and training on Port Philip, the 62-strong fleet from 23 nations is ready for action. The training conditions have been awesome so far but are predicted to get even better as the event begins with a change to warmer and sunnier weather and reliable sea breezes. But it never pays to predict to far ahead in Melbourne.

The practice race on Sunday afternoon was sailed in a shifty 5 to 12 knots and as usual no one took it particularly seriously, but it marked the end of training and the start of the competition. While race leaders Nils Theuninck, from Switzerland and Markus Whitley, from Australia pulled out at the gate, Jesse Kylanpaa, from Finland took the win from Mark Jackson, of Australia.

One of the favourites next week is Nicholas Heiner, from the Netherlands. He won the last major regatta, the Sailing World Cup in Enoshima, in August. A Dutch sailor has never won the Finn Gold Cup, but after a very close third in 2017 and a sixth in 2018, Heiner has got closer than most. Despite winning in Enoshima in 2017 and 2018, a major win still eludes him, though he has been threatening to take one for the last two years.

Racing is scheduled to being at 13.00 on Monday 16 December

2019 Gold Cup Practice Race Top Five
1. Jesse Kylanpaa, FIN
2. Mark Jackson, AUS
3. Peter Wallace, AUS
4. James Bevis, AUS
5. Greg Clark, AUS

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
After review of the submissions, stories, and recipes received here in the past month, we've chosen the final top ten bars that will now enter the voting phase of the competition.

In alphabetical order, they are:

Beach Bar, Nanny Cay, Tortola, BVI
Clarke Cooke House, Newport Rhode Island USA
Cronin's, Crosshaven Ireland
Pier View, Cowes IOW, UK
Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club, Hamilton Bermuda
Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, Hamilton Bermuda
Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club
Soggy Dollar, Jost Van Dyke, BVI
St. Francis Yacht Club, San Francisco, California USA
St. Thomas Yacht Club, Red Hook, St. Thomas USVI

Voting is now open... and please keep sending drink recipes and stories about these ten bars. The winner is decided on all three factors and will be announced mid-January.

The winning bar will get a custom made 3D map created by Bobby Nash of Latitude Kinsale.

Here's some information on the Clarke Cooke House, a pub recommended by sailors on no less than three separate continents:

Clarke Cooke House- Sky Bar/ Bistro (also known as the "Candy Store") with bartender Ricky (a.k.a. "five-oh").

By far the best sailor's bar in the world. It combines great food, amazing historical atmosphere, and a laid-back, entertaining bartender in the form of Ricky... whom I have known since he first worked at CCH in 1979! Owner David Ray is an avid sailor, owns a classic 65 foot Hinckley yawl parked in front of Bannister's Wharf, and was creator of the "Candy Store Cup."

The atmosphere is very cool since the walls are festooned with yacht club burgees, dozens of framed photos of famous offshore racing yachts and America's Cup contenders as well as half-models of such famous yachts donated lovingly by their owners to David Ray.

Upstairs dining includes the "America's Cup" room with half and full models of many famous America's Cup defenders and challengers...it is really a sailing museum for Newport that includes an awesome bar and great food!

Francis Joyon Has Left Vietnam And Is Heading For China
Act 3 of the IDEC Sport Asian Tour started early Saturday morning for Francis Joyon and his crew, who left Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City) at 0255hrs UTC and crossed the start line off Port Saigon in light winds and calm seas. The maxi-trimaran is heading to China and the city of Shenzhen, some 870 nautical miles away. This marks the end of this new series of records launched by the winner of the last Route du Rhum.

Conditions were fine this morning for the start, but the wind is expected to freshen in the coming hours. They will have to be cautious during the first part of this course to avoid the many islands, fishermen and shipping in the China Sea.

IDEC SPORT is due to arrive in Shenzhen between Wednesday and Thursday setting a new crewed reference time for this new record. The fourth and final Act of the IDEC SPORT ASIAN TOUR will take place in mid-January. It will be the legendary Clipper Route between Hong Kong and London.

www.idecsport.com

18ft Skiffs NSW Championship, Race 4
Click on image for photo gallery.

Sydney Harbour: The Smeg crew of Micah Lane, Ricky Bridge and Peter Mackie sailed beautifully in the 12-16 knot NE wind to take out Race 4 of the NSW Championship, but it was the second-placed Winning Group which has wrapped up the championship with still one more race to be sailed after the fleet resumes racing on January 12.

Smeg led the fleet at every rounding mark and finally crossed the finish line just 7s ahead of Winning Group (John Winning Jr., Seve Jarvin and Lachlan Gilmore, who was replacing the injured Sam Newton).

Tech2 (Jack Macartney, Charlie Wyatt, Rhys Mara) battled with both Smeg and Winning Group throughout the race and came home a very good third, 22s behind Winning Group.

The extremely consistent, and ever-improving The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines (Aron Everett) was fourth, followed by Shaw and Partners Financial Services (James Dorron), Noakesailing (Sean Langman), Noakes Blue (Rory Hunter), The Kitchen Maker-Caesarstone (Jordan Girdis) and Birkenhead Point Marina (Tom Anderson).

Despite each team being allowed a discard of the worst performance, Winning Group has a score now of only five points from the four races, and no other team can get a better score from the final race.

After each team discards the worst result to date, the table shows Winning Group on net 3 points, followed by Shaw and Partners Financial Services on 9, The Oak Double Bay-4 Pines on 10, Smeg on 12, Appliancesonline.com.au (Brett Van Munster) on 12 and Tech2 on 17.

The Australian 18 Footer League's racing will now go into recess for the Christmas-New Year period. Racing will resume on Sunday, 12 January when the club will stage Race 5 (final) of the NSW Championship. -- Frank Quealey, Australian 18 Footers League

Aston Harald Composites is back to the production of M32
Aston Harald Composite diversified from the M32 product one and a half years ago, with a focus towards the automotive and marine industry. The customer stock has been growing due to well-reputed companies such as Koenigsegg and Nautor's Swan.

Hakan Svensson, CEO of Aston Harald Composite: "The M32 was the first product of Aston Harald Composite. With the M32, we could show the world what this company was able to produce, and from that day, we have attracted all different companies with high demand in carbon fiber structures and products. Now we have also invested in a new carbon fiber press, putting us in front of the market as one of the leading carbon composite factories in the world. We see the M32 class growing around the world and the production of M32 boats is back on at the factory. The aim is to finalize 14 new M32s at the beginning of 2020."

The decision to begin the production of 14 new boats is coming from a growing M32 class around the world. As of October, the last new M32 # 62 had been delivered, so it's a natural step for the company to start up production again of new boats and spare parts.

At the same time, the production of the new M32s starts, the second batch of the new masts are in the lamination process. The first batch of 12 masts was delivered for the North American Championships in November. The upcoming masts will go to existing owners and be sold with the new M32 boats. With the new M32 boats and masts produced, Aston Harald can deliver a brand new boat with the new mast design from either Hono, Sweden, or Newport, Rhode Island, on the day of order.

astonharaldcomposite.com

Thrillingly close race - Nautor Swan
The second edition of The Nations Trophy attracted teams from 14 countries... and an impressive turn-out of the world's best sailors

The second edition of The Nations Trophy, from 8 to 12 October, was a storming success that cemented the position of Nautor's Swan's biennial headline event as one of the world's foremost owner-driver one-design yacht regattas. Many top professional sailors came to race alongside impressively skilled amateurs. To quote North Sails' president Ken Read, the tactician aboard the ClubSwan 50 Cuordileone, 'It is a testament to a lot of people taking the event seriously'.

Not only that but it marks the welcome return of nation-versusnation yacht racing, which used to be a hallmark feature of many classic regattas. With 14 countries represented in The Nations Trophy, the concept clearly has broad international appeal. The previous winners, Spain, were back to defend their title against teams from Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

CanAm Series 2 Wrapup - International 2.4 Meter Class US Nationals
Port Charlotte, Florida: After three magnificent days of sailing with winds from all points on the compass and ranging from 2 knots to 15 knots, the US 2.4 Meter class crowned a 2019 National Champion. American Dee Smith won the 9 race series followed closely by Canadian Allan Leibel. US Class president Tony Pocklington rounded out the podium finishes.

21 boats sailed and were largely overlapped the entire way around the course, finishing within seconds. Full results can be found here: www.regattanetwork.com

The talented fleet was treated to wonderful hospitality by the Charlotte Harbor Yacht Club on and off the water. Several of the competitors new to the class and the CanAm series commented on how easy the venue is with a 10 minute sail out to the racing course, the great meals, flowing kegs and well stocked bar.

The winter sailing series is just getting started. The fleet will be back on water for CanAm #3 starting January 25, 2020. More details about the schedule can be found here: www.us24meter.org

Irish Sailing Seek Expressions of Interest for Offshore World Sailing Championships 2020
World Sailing has recently announced the criteria for selecting teams for the Offshore World Sailing Championships scheduled to be held in Malta from 10 - 22 October 2020. This is a newly established event for a double-handed mixed crew.

Irish Sailing would like to hear from anyone who is interested in entering a team into the event. Please note in particular the Athlete Qualification Event Requirements under section 5 of the notice. While Irish Sailing is very supportive of, and will facilitate the process for the selection of a team, it should be noted from the outset, that Irish Sailing has no budget for this event and all costs will be borne directly by the teams competing.

Once we have an indication of the level of interest, we will establish a process for the selection of a team to represent Ireland.

Please submit your expression of interest before 5th January 2020 to offshore2020 [AT] sailing [DOT] ie stating the names of your team members (one male, one female) and a brief CV of experience.

afloat.ie/sail/

The 10th edition of the Defi Azimut
The Defi Azimut, which will be contested in Lorient from 9 to 13 September 2020, was presented early this afternoon on the Brittany stand (Paris Boat Show). The final race meet before the Vendee Globe, the expected 30 IMOCAs will battle it out over five days of competition comprising speed runs, 48 hours offshore singlehanded save for a compulsory on-board media man and the Tour de Groix record. As such, this atypical event is a spectacular introduction to the heroes of the big planetary looped circuit.

"Over 70 sailors have already participated in the Defi since we launched it in 2011. This year, a record participation of exceptional champions is expected: winners of the Vendee Globe, the Route du Rhum, the Transat Jacques Vabre and the Solitaire du Figaro… and that's something we're very proud about", says a delighted Jean-Marie Corteville, organiser of the Defi Azimut and President of the eponymous company that provides computing solutions. "In 2010, we wanted to get the locals, who are inspired by the IMOCAs, even more involved in proceedings by organising a big parade to celebrate the solo sailors, who will come along and challenge one another", he added.

www.defi-azimut.net/en

www.imoca.org

Featured Brokerage
2008 Volvo Open 70 - Ocean Breeze. 495000 EUR. Located in Amsterdam, Holland.

Ex - TELEFONICA BLUE and SANYA LAN. Now subject to a huge refit, including a set of 7 unused sails, new generator, batteries, wiring, NDT tested and all recommendations undertaken. She really is ready to go, with spare rig, 2 x 40 ft containers, high and low cradles and a support trailer. Results recently for the Volvo 70 class yachts in the major offshore races are very strong. Please do call for full details of this very real opportunity.

See listing details in Nautor's Swan Brokerage

Contact
Ben Cooper
Telephone: +44(0) 1590 679222
ben [DOT] cooper [AT] berthon [DOT] com

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1997 Swan 77 RS 'Bandolero'. 1,600,000 EUR. Located in Canary Islands, Spain.

Designed by German Frers, the Swan 77 is known for blending superb sailing performance with luxurious interior accommodations typically found only on much larger vessels. BANDOLERO takes this one-step further, being the only yacht in this class incorporating a pilothouse featuring a second completely protected steering station as well as protected on-deck seating aft. A versatile five-stateroom layout, both American and European power capability, and the completion of an exhaustive one year refit in May 2012 make her ready to travel anywhere in the world reliably and in top condition.

Contact
Giorgio Passarella
Nautor's Swan Brokerage
T. +377 97 97 95 07

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MTC28 - Carbon Trimaran. 68,000 GBP. Located in South Devon, UK.

For Sale. Custom Carbon trimaran. MTC28 By Nic Bailey. Outstanding, lightweight, inshore, minimalist flying machine.

Contact
Wiz (Stuart) Deas on 07973 951120

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

The Last Word
Popularity should be no scale for the election of politicians. If it would depend on popularity, Donald Duck and The Muppets would take seats in senate. -- Orson Welles

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Finn Gold Cup: Kiwis dominate opening day
• IDEC SPORT expected to reach Shenzhen tomorrow morning
• Pro Tip: The Harken Catalog - Online Version Is Obsessively Updated For Accuracy
• Belt and Road International Sailing Regatta, China Beihai Stop
• Wild Oats XI on overnight qualifier for the Rolex Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race
• View from the top - North Sails
• Bacardi Winter Series
• What does sailing mean to Sir Robin?
• Gulf Stream Resources Stretch Back to 2002
• World Sailing Trust partners with SailGP Inspire
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 80 - Island Fling
• • Raceboats OnlyHH 42/05 - Power Of Love
• • Botin IRC 52 “Fox”
• The Last Word: Walter Lippmann

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... VOTING IS OPEN FOR THE TOP TEN

Finn Gold Cup: Kiwis dominate opening day
Andy Maloney and Josh Junior, from New Zealand, share the early lead at the 2019 Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne, Australia after two races on Monday, the first day of the championship, with a race win and a fifth placing each. Nenad Bugarin, from Croatia sits in third.

The day began wet and overcast but improved through the day to leave a pleasant 8 to 12 knot breeze on Port Philip, with clearing skies and for many here the first real taste of summer with rising temperatures and blue skies.

The 60-boat fleet got two races in after an hour delay to give the breeze a chance to fill in and by 2 p.m. the first race started in a 9-12 knots southerly breeze which later settled around 10 knots.

Race 1 got away first time with Spain's Joan Cardona and Alejandro Muscat leading the fleet. Junior had a mixed first upwind, but gradually pulled through to challenge the leaders, rounding the second windward mark in second place, and then moving ahead on the final downwind to take the win from Muscat and Cardona.

It took two attempts to get Race 2 away, but the fleet got away cleanly in a slightly reduced breeze. Maloney led throughout the race with Croatia's Bugarin and Milan Vujasinovic, Fabian Pic from France and Nicholas Heiner, from The Netherlands in the mix just behind. Maloney took a confident win from Bugarin and Heiner.

Top Ten Results after 2 races
1. Andy Maloney, NZL, 6
2. Josh Junior, NZL, 6
3. Nenad Bugarin, CRO, 10
4. Alejandro Muscat, ESP, 11
5. Milan Vujasinovic, CRO, 11
6. Fabian Pic, FRA, 13
7. Tom Ramshaw, CAN, 15
8. Nicholas Heiner, NED, 16
9. Joan Cardona Mendez, ESP, 18
10. Giles Scott, GBR, 22

www.idecsport.com/idec-sport-asian-tour/

IDEC SPORT expected to reach Shenzhen tomorrow morning
After setting sail on Saturday morning from Ho Chi Minh City in the south of Vietnam, the IDEC SPORT maxi-trimaran may reach the finish line of this new record to Shenzhen (China) tomorrow morning at dawn European time. This unusual route for an ocean-racing sailboat, which on paper is 870 miles long, presents a series of difficulties for Francis Joyon and his crew comprising his son, Corentin, Antoine Blouet, Christophe Houdet and Bertrand Delesne, who have coped perfectly well so far, and may well be finishing in advance of schedule.

Sailing mostly close to the direction opposing the winds into the powerful NE'ly monsoon with its choppy conditions and steep waves in the heart of the Paracel Islands, a disputed territory, Francis and his men have done remarkably well and can look forward to an early finish to this third Act of the IDEC SPORT Asian Tour, sailing on a single tack straight towards Shenzhen between Hong Kong and Macao.

"Yes, we were a bit faster than planned," said Francis Joyon, who admits he is pleased to have got away from the difficulties of the first 36 hours of dangerous sailing after the start from the Vietnamese coast. "We had to carry out more than twenty changes of tack along the coast," he told us. "Our idea was to avoid the stronger winds offshore. In spite of that, we had to deal with sailing upwind in more than 35 knots. The boat slammed a lot in heavy, choppy seas. The sky was very grey and dull and in the reduced visibility we had to zigzag around all sorts of traps, a lot of fishing boats, nets that were drifting and a lot of small lights which we didn't identify as a boat or an island. It was a bit stressful. Since then, we changed tack and headed east, before going back on the starboard tack to head due north towards China. It is looking a bit brighter and we caught sight of the sun today."

IDEC SPORT is expected to cross the line off Shenzhen during the night. They will then head for a marina in Hong Kong to start to prepare the long return voyage back to Europe, during which they will be attempting to smash the legendary Clipper Route record between Hong Kong and London.

Pro Tip: The Harken Catalog - Online Version Is Obsessively Updated For Accuracy
Sailors consider the annual Harken print catalog something of a sailing bible. But it's pretty much the same every year right? FALSE! Please take a close look inside the new 2020 version available where you buy Harken. You'll find lots of new features including pathways to videos never seen before.

Power Users: One major catalog upgrade will never see the printed page. The Harken online catalog... not harken.com, the actual catalog layout we make available online in .PDF format, has been massively upgraded. Drag your mouse to turn pages. Click on any bold heading in the table of contents and jump directly to that section. Or, just click the magnifying glass icon in the function box, enter a product name and go directly there. This catalog is available in multiple languages. If you're collaborating on a rigging project, you can email a product page. Or you can download and print pages at any time. Best of all, it's constantly updated by the obsessive Chief Pewaukee Accuracy Officer. Take a look now!

English
French
German
Italian
Spanish
Polish

Belt and Road International Sailing Regatta, China Beihai Stop
For the first time in history, connecting China, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, this sailing regatta brings together over 400 sailors from 20 countries and regions in the world, including China, France, the UK, the United States, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Hong Kong China.

Beihai was the China stop of this month-long racing event. A 3-day competition in 5 categories such as Hobie Getaway, Hobie T2, that attracted over 1000 spectators.

Next stop of the event will be Singapore, with youth teams participating.

Wild Oats XI on overnight qualifier for the Rolex Sydney-Hobart Yacht Race
The supermaxi yacht, Wild Oats XI, will today take another significant step forward in its challenge to be on the start line on Boxing Day for the 75th annual Rolex Sydney-Hobart race.

Little more than a month ago the 30-metre long sloop suffered major structural damage while contesting the 180-nautical mile Cabbage Tree Island race out of Sydney. The yacht's 45-metre high carbon fibre mast fractured at deck level and as a result a large part of the deck structure failed.

Miraculously, through great skill, the crew was able to stabilise the broken mast and reach shore before the yacht suffered any additional damage.

Today Wild Oats XI will take the next step towards being on the start line for the big race. It will undertake a 24-hour offshore passage off Sydney so it meets one of the many qualification requirements for yachts entered in the Hobart race.

"We will be in full race mode and treat this passage as we would if we were racing," said Mark Richards. "The entire race crew will be on board, including our navigator, Juan Vila, who has just flown in from Europe."

Richard revealed that Wild Oats XI will start in the Hobart race a remarkable 1200 kg lighter than it was last year when it took line honours in the classic.

"We have replaced 2 large daggerboards with a small, and considerably lighter, rudder just forward of the mast," he explained. "The few trials we have done using this new appendage indicate that it will be an advantage when sailing upwind."

Wild Oats XI is recognised as the most successful yacht to have contested the Sydney-Hobart race since the inaugural event in 1945.

Launched in 2005, the supermaxi has claimed line honours on 9 occasions, won on corrected time twice, and twice set a race record time. -- Rob Mundle

View from the top - North Sails
North Sails' director of design and engineering JB Braun explains an innovative engineering solution that brings top-down furling to Load Sharing Sails

'Continually pushing the leading edge forward, North Sails has collaborated with Future Fibres to engineer the next refinement to Helix sails – a cord that allows all the performance benefits of Load Sharing Technology and the reliability that comes from top-down furling for sails with mid-girths greater than 60 per cent. This load sharing system is exclusive to North Helix sails,' says Braun.

'The latest advancement in Load Sharing Technology is the Helix Luff Cord, co-engineered by North Sails and Future Fibres. This exciting new product was designed and manufactured by North Sails' partner Future Fibres, who took their vast experience and technical expertise in torsion cable and furler integration to the next level on this shared R&D project. Designed to work exclusively with North Helix sails, the innovative product brings top-down furling back to self-supporting code sails. The cords are built to the precise tensile stiffness which allows for optimal load sharing between the cable and the sail. As the sail trim changes, the cord to sail load ratio remains the same. The onboard benefit is a safe and reliable top-down furl, while reaping the benefits of a free-flying, forward-projecting Helix sail.

Bacardi Winter Series
The J70 and Melges 24 Class are all set to feature in this exciting line-up of racing in Miami this winter, kicking off with the Bacardi Invitational Winter Series, before the season finale at the renowned Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta, 1-7 March, 2020.

Hosted between Shake-a-Leg-Miami, Biscayne Bay Yacht Club and the USSC, the first race weekend for the Bacardi Invitational Winter Series will be December 14-15, 2019 with the next face-off on January 25-26, 2020.

Post-race, the venerable Bacardi Rum brand, the locally-headquartered 'king of hospitality' which has sponsored the Bacardi Cup since its inception, will greet and host competitors each evening, with great food, music and plenty of Bacardi rum. The nightly parties make sure the fun continues long after the finish line, as teams and supporters are welcomed to unwind shore side and recount the day's racing highs and lows.

TThe 93nd Bacardi Cup and Bacardi Cup Invitational Regatta will complete its final event of the series March 1-7, 2020, with Star Class racing from the 2-7 March 2020, and the J70, Melges 24 and Viper 640 Classes racing from 4-7 March, 2020.

Final Top five:

J70
1. Geoffrey Pierini, USA, 6.0
2. Joel Ronning, USA, 8.0
3. Trey Sheehan, USA, 9.0
4. Henry Brauer, USA, 11.0
5. Bruno Pasquinelli, USA, 13.0

Melges 24
1. Bruce Ayres , USA, 7.0
2. Brian Porter, USA, 12.0
3. John Brown, USA, 12.0
4. Wes Whitmyer Jr, USA, 13.0
5. Richard Reid, CAN, 18.0

bacardiinvitational.com/winterseries1/

What does sailing mean to Sir Robin?
Episode 10 of 80 Seconds with Sir Robin Knox-Johnston

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston is a household name in the world of sailing and beyond, but did he ever have a driving ambition to become one of the world's most recognised and accomplished sailors? Also, what have his achievements meant to the sport as a whole since his non-stop solo circumnavigation in 1969?

In what is the penultimate episode of the 80 seconds with Sir Robin Knox-Johnston video series we focus on why sailing has such appeal to him and what it is that keeps him pointing Suhaili's bow to the horizon, heading out to sea. This episode is a must watch for anyone thinking about giving boating a try, as understanding what impact sailing has on such a legendary sailor should provide that final inspiration you need to get out on the water.

Watch this month's video directly by clicking on this link.

Ten episodes are now available to watch with Sir Robin and Dee discussing key topics from the world of sailing as they cruise around the Solent. The 80 seconds series was created to celebrate Sir Robin's 80th birthday with a new episode launched every month over the course of 2019. The series was filmed back on one of the first days of spring 2019 in the calm waters of the Solent.

Subscribe to watch the full video series on the MS Amlin Yacht YouTube Channel or via the website

Gulf Stream Resources Stretch Back to 2002
Oceanographer, navigator and CCA member Frank Bohlen has studied ocean and near-shore currents his whole career. His detailed analyses have been a fixture for Newport Bermuda racers since 2002, and all of his tutorials are available for review in the website archive.

If you're a navigator, preparing for the 2020 race - or wish you were - don't miss the Newport to Bermuda Race Gulf Stream and Weather section.

bermudarace.com/resources/gulfstream/

World Sailing Trust partners with SailGP Inspire
The World Sailing Trust has joined forces with SailGP Inspire to become the official charity of SailGP's community and outreach program.

The partnership will use sailing as a force for good, bringing access to the sport, education and sector career experience to a wide audience through SailGP and the World Sailing Trust's international reach.

The partnership creates the opportunity to increase participation outside of SailGP's championship calendar to take the Inspire program to new locations and broaden its reach.

The World Sailing Trust will support SailGP Inspire to raise funds for its outreach program as part of the Trust's Youth Pathways work, which helps young people gain access to sailing and develop their skills. Together, the World Sailing Trust and SailGP Inspire will work with local partners to identify areas of opportunity, tailoring outreach work to local communities.

"We are really excited to partner with SailGP Inspire, the first project within the Trust's Youth Pathways program," said World Sailing Trust Chair Dee Caffari MBE.

SailGP Inspire's founding partners RS Sailing, WASZP, Rooster and MarkSetBot will provide resources to program sites to further the outreach of the initiatives and help build a legacy in each of the communities visited.

The World Sailing Trust has closely aligned its goals with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and World Sailing's Sustainability Agenda, both setting specific targets to be achieved by 2030.

For further information contact Hannah Hoare, Head of Fundraising at the World Sailing Trust on Hannah [DOT] Hoare [AT] worldsailingtrust [DOT] org.

There is more information and the opportunity to sign up for updates via the Trust's website - www.worldsailingtrust.org

Featured Brokerage
2001 Swan 80 - Island Fling. 2200000 GBP. Located in Hamble, UK.

The iconic Swan 80 ISLAND FLING is the sixth of the seven Flush Deck versions built. Recently she is cruised for a few weeks in the summer and tucked away for ten months. A very good opportunity to step up to Swan's classic elegance, comfort, safety and performance.

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Yachts
+447759 424900
+442380 016582
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com

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HH 42/05 - Power Of Love. 199950 GBP. Located in Ipswich, Suffolk - UK.

Judel/Vrolijk HH 42 rocket ship built by Hudson Yacht and Marine, in 2015, of carbon. Good sail wardrobe, carbon rig and she is an excellent performance sailboat with a good silverware collection and ready to do a lot more.

Contact
Ben Cooper
Telephone: +44(0) 1590 679222
ben [DOT] cooper [AT] berthon [DOT] co [DOT] uk

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Botin IRC 52 “Fox”. $1,395,000 USD.

FOX now available for sale The current IRC rating of 1.415 makes FOX a highly optimized 52 to race anywhere.

Contact
Keiran Searle
Email: KS [DOT] Sailing [AT] gmail [DOT] com
Cell: +1 949 423 8432

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

The Last Word
When all men think alike, no one thinks very much. -- Walter Lippmann

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Slingsby clinches Moth World Championship with a day to spare
• Josh Junior stays consistent to lead Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne
• Join an International fleet for Island Water World Grenada Sailing Week 26-31 January 2020
• SailGP lineup to shift for Season 2
• The Ocean Race 2021-22 announces stop in China
• 2020 Rick Tomlinson Portfolio Calendar
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar competition
• Not every mad dog is an Englishman...
• Industry News
• Featured Charter
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 80 - Island Fling
• • HH 42/05 - Power Of Love
• • Botin IRC 52 “Fox”
• The Last Word: Will Rogers

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... VOTING IS OPEN FOR THE TOP TEN

Slingsby clinches Moth World Championship with a day to spare
Photo by Martina Orsini / IMCA. Click on image for photo gallery.

After a near-perfect score card at the end of the penultimate day of racing, Tom Slingsby has clean swept another day of racing to clinch his maiden Moth World Championship with a day to spare.

The win at the Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds came after a solid sea breeze that saw the race committee commit to running the additional fourth race to get ahead of schedule.

Racing was also live streamed by Down Under Sail, well supported by broadcast partners CST Composites and Mach2 Boats.

After the first day of Gold Fleet racing yesterday, the question going around the rigging area was 'who is actually capable of knocking off Slingsby?', and today proved that if he had any kinks in his armour, they were not easily exposed.

After a total of 13 races in the event so far across qualifying and finals, Slingsby has won the last 12 with the only blemish on his score card being a second place in the opening qualifying race behind Queenslander Matt Chew.

Going into the last two races Slingsby sits on 11 points, with Australian SailGP team mate Kyle Langford in second on 22 points with a 6-2-2-3 record in today's racing.

Langford said he was happy with how he sailed however the plan of beating Slingsby just hadn't worked out.

"I said going into this event that the only person I wanted to beat was Slingers, and I mean deep down I'm sad that he won but he was a class above everyone else," he said.

"Winning every single race is pretty impressive, he's outclassed everybody so well done to him."

Just three points behind Langford is Olympic Laser gold medallist Tom Burton, who was one point better than him today with a 2-5-3-2 score card that will see the final day create a huge battle for the podium.

mothworlds.org/perth/

Josh Junior stays consistent to lead Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne
New Zealand's Josh Junior has taken a 14-point lead at the top of the Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne, Australia, after another solid day on Port Philip with a fifth and a first. Nenad Bugarin, from Croatia, is up to second with Andy Maloney, from New Zealand, down to third. The first race of the day was won by defending world champion, Zsombor Berecz, from Hungary.

The fleet was held ashore an hour to wait for the wind and once everyone got on the water it was only 6-8 knots southerly for the first race before the wind died down again, causing another wait between the two races of the day. The sailors only got back ashore at seven p.m. but managed to get two races in.

The talk all week is of some extreme weather arriving mid week. Scott explained "We've got heaps of heat coming and I think we could see 40 degrees tomorrow, though I don't know if that is a good thing for the sea breeze or not. The days we've had that in the past during training, more often that not we've just hidden and not gone out, so it's going to be a tough day tomorrow if that does come through."

The 10 race opening series continues until Friday, with the final race and medal race scheduled for Saturday 21 December.

Results after 4 races
1. Josh Junior, NZL, 12
2. Nenad Bugarin, CRO, 26
3. Andy Maloney, NZL, 27
4. Nicholas Heiner, NED, 28
5. Giles Scott, GBR, 30
6. Alejandro Muscat, ESP, 35
7. Tom Ramshaw, CAN, 41
8. Zsombor Berecz, HUN, 48
9. Nils Theuninck, SUI, 49
10. Milan Vujasinovic, CRO, 50

Join an International fleet for Island Water World Grenada Sailing Week 26-31 January 2020
An international fleet of over 30 yachts in 5 classes are bracing themselves to battle it out for the 8th edition of Island Water World Grenada Sailing Week 2020. With some of the most idyllic sailing conditions in the world. The regatta has gained the reputation of being friendly and intimate, with a focus on sharp and competitive racing out on the water and camaraderie between crews on land...many of the racers return year after year to join a regatta that celebrates the long tradition of sailing in the islands, but also retains much of the West Indian charm. The organising committee have finely tuned and improved the courses tailor made for each class. Of course it is not all about the sailing, there are some fabulous parties lined up with the final night party at a new location. Racers and party goers are invited to the 'Aquarium' on Magazine beach, a stunning location surrounded by style, sand and palm trees - there couldn't be a better place for the Mount Gay Red Cap Grand Finale party to be!

Grenada Sailing Week is proud to have been awarded bronze as part of the 'Sailors for the Sea' clean regatta program. But this year are taking this further and are ticking off the 'steps to sustainability' with the 'Sailors for the Sea' program and going for gold with the help of the 'Green Team' lead by Richard Beadle of Premier Marketing Grenada.

With two host venues, four days or racing and six nights of parties this is an event you don't want to miss.

NoR is posted online www.grenadasailingweek.com

Email: info [AT] grenadasailingweek [DOT] com
Facebook: GrenadaSailingWeek
Twitter @grenadasailweek

SailGP lineup to shift for Season 2
SailGP today announced the addition of the Spain SailGP Team to the global championship's Season 2 lineup. Replacing China, Spain will join Australia, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Japan and the United States in the world's fastest sail racing as the league visits six iconic venues across the globe in 2020.

China was one of SailGP's six league-funded teams for its inaugural season, and finished third overall. The F50 catamaran used by China will transfer to Spain, which will begin competing at the start of the 2020 season in Sydney (February 28-29).

SailGP CEO Sir Russell Coutts said: "We're thrilled to welcome Spain to SailGP and very much look forward to the new team's involvement in the league.

"Though the China SailGP Team had a successful first season, we were unfortunately not granted the permissions necessary to continue operating the team within our existing structure. With numerous active discussions around future teams, we were fortunate to be in the position to make an immediate substitution, allowing us to deliver on our promise of seven teams for Season 2 as our global championship continues to grow.

"SailGP remains interested in continuing to support both a Chinese team and the development of a sailing academy in China as planned if a future agreement can be reached.

"The members of the Chinese team have been strongly committed to SailGP, and they represented the team, the league and the country very well. We wish everyone involved all the best and look forward to our continued work with some members of the team."

The lineup for the Spain SailGP Team will be announced in Madrid in late January following training in New Zealand.

Tickets for Sydney SailGP are on sale at SailGP.com/Sydney.

The Ocean Race 2021-22 announces stop in China
The 2021-22 edition of The Ocean Race will make one stop in Asia, with the city of Shenzhen proudly serving as the host city for the iconic, fully-crewed, offshore race.

Located directly north of Hong Kong, in an area known as the Great Bay, Shenzhen has been among China's most prosperous and fastest growing cities for the past 30 years. As a home to many top multinational companies and manufacturers, as well as leading Chinese companies, it is an important hub for many race stakeholders.

The Ocean Race has been visiting China since the 2008-09 edition. Now, it will stop in Shenzhen, also known as China's Silicon Valley, and home to a population approaching 20-million, ranking it among the top five most populated cities in the country.

"This is the fifth consecutive edition of the race where we have brought a stopover to China," said Johan Salén, the Managing Director of The Ocean Race.

"In 2018, the Chinese-flagged Dongfeng Race Team won the race, in the closest finish in history, and the stop in China was important in increasing the local fan-base for both the team and the event."

The 2021-22 edition of The Ocean Race will feature two classes of boats – the innovative, foiling, IMOCA 60 class, along with the one-design VO65 boats that produced the close and compelling competition of the last race.

www.theoceanrace.com

2020 Rick Tomlinson Portfolio Calendar
Click on image to enlarge

Now in its 32nd year the ever-popular Rick Tomlinson Portfolio Calendar features 12 spectacular images from recent assignments around the world.

Action and art has always been the Portfolio Calendar theme and this years pictures include action from the 8M Worlds, SailGP and the 49ers in Weymouth, plus art from the Round the Island race and a beautiful Solent sunset. There is something for everyone in the 2020 Portfolio edition.

Large format Size 56cm x 42cm

Price £19.95 +p&p

Available online on www.rick-tomlinson.com

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar competition
One of our top ten nominated bars this year is the St. Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco. Your humble narrator has visited many times, including the boats.com launch party there nearly 20 years ago. Here's what another boats.com alum has to say:

St. Francis Yacht Club's bar is located literally right on the water, overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz, and the western entrance to the famous San Francisco Bay... sailboat racing on evening beer can races is literally "stadium sailing" right in front of the vast expanse of floor to ceiling glass windows on the north facing bar/ restaurant....truly an amazing place to sit for lunch or dinner and watch the sunset as sailboats and foiling kiters fly by all the time.. very entertaining!

One of the club's many specialty cocktails is the Sloe Gin Fizz.

Sloe Gin is a liqueur made from the sloe berry, while gin is an alcohol distilled from grain and flavored with juniper berries. Sloe gin is a reddish colored liqueur. The sloe (or blackthorn bush) berries are too sour to eat raw, so they are made into a liqueur. Waste not... etc.

It's a lighter drink, alcohol content ranges from 15-30%. This makes for a great hot day drink, tall glass and lots of ice.

To make a sloe gin fizz the way they did in the 50's:
2 oz Sloe Gin
1 tablespoon of simple syrup
3/4 oz of lemon juice
3/4 oz of lime juice
Add to Boston Shaker with Ice
Shake well.
Pour into a glass and top with club soda, serve.

A sail around the bay and under the Golden Gate, a couple of drinks at St. Francis, followed by an hour or two at City Lights Bookstore in North Beach, then a walk around the corner to the House of Nanking and have chef Peter Fang choose your dishes for you. That is, quite simply, as good as it gets in San Francisco, or anywhere else.

Voting for our top ten is now open: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

... and we welcome more stories and drink recipes from the top ten!

Not every mad dog is an Englishman...
Meanwhile, in adventure news, Colin O'Brady, the current record holder of the fastest times for the Exploder's Grand Slam and the Seven Summits and the first person to cross Antarctica solo and unsupported, has embarked on a new and equally audacious endeavor, dubbed "The Impossible Row" involving the Southern Ocean and sailing's greatest landmark.

On Friday, December 13, O'Brady and a team of two other adventurers departed from Cape Horn for the open waters of the Drake Passage, the bow of their ocean-going rowboat aimed at the Antarctica Peninsula.

If they succeed, they will become the first people to row this body of water, which is widely regarded as one of the planet's most treacherous patches of brine. Interested readers can follow the Impossible Row (including a position tracker and lots of onboard media) here: www.colinobrady.com/theimpossiblerow

Sail-World wishes O'Brady and his team the best of luck as they attempt to ply these frigid and storm-tossed waters, and we look forward to watching the Youth America's Cup 2020-2021 unfurl.

May the four winds blow you safely home. -- David Schmidt

https://youtu.be/kwQPbHCohc8

Industry News
Click on image to enlarge

Emirates is pleased to announce its appointment as official 'Presenting Partner' of the Emirates America's Cup World Series (ACWS) event in Portsmouth, taking place in June 2020.

As Official Presenting Partner of the ACWS Portsmouth, Emirates has helped secure the event during which world-class America's Cup sailors will return to the Solent for a thrilling preliminary regatta from 4 to 7 June 2020 as part of the competition to win the oldest sporting trophy in the world.

The 2020 America's Cup World Series will see all participating teams race their AC75 America's Cup class yachts. The first ACWS event will take place in Cagliari, Sardinia from April 23 to 26 2020, the second in Portsmouth, then concluding in Auckland as part of the Christmas Race from December 17-20. The ACWS is then followed by the Prada Cup Challenger Selection Series which will determine which foreign yacht club will take on the Defender of the America's Cup, Emirates Team New Zealand, in the 36th America's Cup Match presented by Prada from 6 to 21 March 2021 in Auckland.

Having raced at the two previous ACWS events in Portsmouth, Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton said, "Portsmouth was a fanatically supportive city for the ACWS in 2015 and 2016, so we are looking forward to getting back there. The difference this time is the racing will be in the new AC75's which will be a spectacle like nothing seen before on the Solent.

With the dates now also confirmed for the ACWS to climax in Auckland between 17-20 December next year, as part of the Christmas Race, we are now really set up for an intriguing year in 2020 as the run in to the main event in 2021."

Portsmouth is home to INEOS TEAM UK, led by Sir Ben Ainslie, and I am sure fans will show huge support to the British team when they race in front of their home crowd on the Solent in their quest to challenge for the 36th America's Cup. When Portsmouth hosted the events in 2015 and 2016, 250,000 spectators enjoyed the spectacle, the events delivered £15.6m in media value and £38.7m in economic benefit.

www.americascup.com

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Discovery Yachts has filed notice of its intention to appoint insolvency experts and could enter administration.

The news comes less than two years after the company raised around £2.2m through crowd funding and just months after the company officially opened its new UK HQ at Lymington Yacht Haven Marina.

It is understood the notice has been filed in order to protect the company from a lawsuit bought by a customer and that discussions are taking place with a potential investor.

However those who invested money through the crowd funding could be left out of pocket. The legal move may only affect the holding company with staff and customers unaffected.

The company is headed by MD Sean Langdon who completed a management buyout following the retirement of founder and chairman John Charnley.

In June 2017, Discovery Yachts announced it had acquired the Southerly range of swing keel sailing yachts for an undisclosed sum.

In June 2018, Werner Schnaebele increased its shareholding in Discovery Yachts Group by 20% from Sean Langdon, in addition to a 10% shareholding acquisition in the group during the crowd funding.

Sean and his management team are understood to have retained more than 35% of the company.

The company employs 120 staff.

Crowd funding websites state that investors should implement a diversification strategy when building an investment portfolio in order to cushion any losses.

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Catana Group, world number three market of recreational catamarans, strengthens its industrial organization, by taking control of Magic Yachts shipyard in Bizerte, Tunisia, created in 1999 by Wally and specializes in yacht building.

While the Paris Boat Show 2019 in full swing, the surprise came this morning's announcement Catana Group, manufacturer of Bali and Catana catamarans, the Magic Yachts takeover.

This acquisition comes for the French group after 5 years average annual growth of 50% a year from 2019 to 2020 showing an order book which should enable it to exceed the threshold of EUR 100 million turnover.

Magic is a mythical Yachts shipyard, established in 1999 by Wally in Bizerte, the builder of sailboats and yachts of great luxury in Monaco and bought in 2012 by a consortium of Italian entrepreneurs

Located in the free zone of Bizerte, Magic Yachts has an exceptional industrial site by the sea of almost 30 000 m2, of which more than 10 000 m2 of modern buildings and an experienced workforce.

The expertise of Magic Yachts is renowned in all areas of high-end boat building (sailboats and motorboats up to 40 meters, including catamarans), mastery of all composite technology (infusion, injection , cooking pre-impregnated, epoxy, carbon), modeling, tools, carpentry, steel, refit vessels up to 45 meters, etc.

Following the agreement signed, Catana Group will acquire 75% stake in Magic Yachts through the company Haco, Tunisian production subsidiary of the French group, which already provides 20% of the Group's production.

This acquisition will be final after the lifting of the last suspensive conditions, no later than the end of March 2020, but the collaboration between the two companies has already intensified.

yatta.club

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Cowes Week Limited is delighted to announce that the Official Charity for the 2020 edition of the regatta will be Greig City Academy's, Scaramouche Sailing Trust. This six year old school sailing club, which became a charity last year, is an amazing initiative which gets young people from North London into the sport which everyone at Cowes Week, be they organisers, spectators, volunteers or competitors, loves so much.

Jon Holt on behalf of Greig City Academy commented: "It's wonderful for our charity to have the support of Cowes Week but it's also a great opportunity for all of our sailors to meet thousands of other passionate enthusiasts for this great sport. The sailing community have really taken us into their hearts and we really appreciate the support we receive and we look forward to making many new friends during Cowes Week 2020. Our sailors will be on hand racing a variety of boats and will be giving talks throughout the week about the Academy, our adventures and what it means to them as individuals."

Cowes Week entry opened on Monday 16 December.

gcasailing.com

www.cowesweek.co.uk

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McMichael Yacht Yards and Brokers has signed an agreement with the Bermuda Race Organizing Committee to be an Official Sponsor of the 2020 Newport Bermuda Race. The company, based in Mamaroneck, N.Y., Huntington, N.Y., and Newport, R.I., brings with it three generations of accumulated offshore and race-prep experience to support the fleet. Its relationship with the Bermuda Race goes back over 80 years to when the company began operations in 1935. Read full press release.

bermudarace.com

Featured Charter
Gran Soleil 50 - Sidney II

Available for:
Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) - Individual Berths Available
Caribbean 2020

Sidney II was designed by Judel and Vrolik and built by Cantiere del Pardo in Italy. She is a true thoroughbred yacht and eats up ocean miles with ease, thanks to a good selection of sails including asymmetric and symmetric spinnakers. A joy to sail, Sidney II is fast, manageable & comfortable with plenty of space below deck.

The deck layout offers a spacious cockpit and with sporty twin steering wheels and a closed transom offering plenty of room behind the wheel for easy crew movement during racing and abundant space above and below deck.

For full details please go to...http://bit.ly/LVY-sydneyII

Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 2392 161272
Email: info [AT] lvyachting [DOT] com
bit.ly/LVY-sydneyII

Featured Brokerage
2001 Swan 80 - Island Fling. 2200000 GBP. Located in Hamble, UK.

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Yachts
+447759 424900
+442380 016582
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com

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HH 42/05 - Power Of Love. 199950 GBP. Located in Ipswich, Suffolk - UK.

Contact
Ben Cooper
Telephone: +44(0) 1590 679222
ben [DOT] cooper [AT] berthon [DOT] co [DOT] uk

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Botin IRC 52 “Fox”. $1,395,000 USD.

FOX now available for sale The current IRC rating of 1.415 makes FOX a highly optimized 52 to race anywhere.

Contact
Keiran Searle
Email: KS [DOT] Sailing [AT] gmail [DOT] com
Cell: +1 949 423 8432

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

The Last Word
Alexander Hamilton started the U.S. Treasury with nothing, and that was the closest our country has ever been to being even. -- Will Rogers

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Challenging conditions to finish off 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
• Battle lines forming for 2020 RORC Caribbean 600
• Make Your Match! St Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
• Emirates Team NZ AC75 Capsize
• Howth Yacht Club Returns to New Sydney-Hobart Challenge
• Reasons to to go racing - Oyster Yachts
• Roll Up for Antigua Sailing Week
• The R/P 100' Canting Keel Super-Maxis
• 2020 GC32 Racing Tour announced
• Launchings
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 105 RS Child of Lir
• • Classic 6 Metre - Antinea
• • Chessea
• The Last Word: P. J. O'Rourke

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... VOTING IS OPEN FOR THE TOP TEN

Challenging conditions to finish off 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds
With much more interesting breeze conditions, the final day of the 2019 Chandler Macleod Moth Worlds saw a real shake up on the course.

The battle for second place was on between Kyle Langford and Tom Burton after Tom Slingsby took out the overall championship after yesterday with two races to spare.

The day's racing was live streamed by Down Under Sail and supported by broadcast partners CST Composites and Mach2 Boats, with Slingsby keeping his Moth under cover and joining the media team in the commentary box for the day.

In the first race, Langford was slow off the start line and struggled in the lighter winds after deciding to sail with a bigger foil.

After the first upwind leg he was caught in no wind and was unable to get the boat foiling, leaving himself out the back and giving Burton the opportunity to strike.

But both sailors ended up dropping the race with Burton finishing in 14th, leaving the battle to be decided in the final race where Burton needed to win with Langford in sixth or worse to claim the runner up honours.

The day proved to be a better one for the Europeans with lighter conditions helping Italian Francesco Bruni to a 1-2 and moving into fifth position overall.

Final top ten:
1. Tom Slingsby, AUS, 14 points
2. Kyle Langford, AUS, 28
3. Tom Burton, AUS, 34
4. Scott Babbage , AUS, 47
5. Francesco Bruni, ITA, 52
6. Brad Funk, AUS, 72
7. Robert Greenhalgh, AUS, 75
8. Matthew Chew , AUS, 76
9. Thomas Johnson , AUS, 104
10. Josh Mcknight, AUS, 107.3

mothworlds.org/perth/

Battle lines forming for 2020 RORC Caribbean 600
The 12th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's RORC Caribbean 600 will start on Monday 24th February 2020 from Antigua. Already the early entries are nudging towards an eclectic mix of 50 boats, with competition expected to be as red hot as ever. Previous overall and class winners are already committed to the thrilling 600-mile race around 11 Caribbean islands.

Last year's overall winner, American Volvo 70 Wizard will have a stellar crew led by David and Peter Askew. Wizard will be attempting to retain the RORC Caribbean 600 Trophy, a feat never achieved in the 11 previous editions of the race. Winning IRC Zero will be Wizard's first goal and to do so, they will need to beat 2013 overall winner, Ron O'Hanley's American Cookson 50 Privateer, which was runner-up to Wizard last year. IRC Zero will also include Joe Mele's American Cookson 50 Triple Lindy. A trio of canting keel round the world racing yachts; VO65 Childhood 1, VO70 I Love Poland and Volvo 70 Telefonica Black will also compete in the class.

Entered for the RORC Caribbean 600, but still awaiting class clarification, is one of the most famous round the world racing yachts, Farr 58 Maiden, which made history in 1989 as the first all-female crew to sail around the world in the Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race, coming second overall. The largest yacht entered to date is the Swan 95 Lot99 sailed by Jeroen Van Dooren.

Entries in IRC One include the 2018 class winner Philippe Frantz with his NMD 43 Albator. Giles Redpath's British Lombard 46 Pata Negra is also entered and was third in class last year, and second in 2018. Bernie Evan Wong's RP37 Taz, class winner in 2017, will be proudly flying the Antiguan flag. Bernie has skippered a yacht in all previous 11 editions. Kevin McLaughlin's American Xp55 Rye will see the father and son team return. Their best result was third in class with Spice in 2018. Adrian Lee was the overall winner in the first RORC Caribbean 600 in 2009 and this year will be racing his Swan 60 Lee Overlay Partners.

The closing date for entries to the 2020 RORC Caribbean 600 is 10th February 2020, so there's still time to sign up! HERE: https://rorc.sailgate.com/

Further information can be found on the race website at: caribbean600.rorc.org or contact the RORC Race Team: E: racing [AT] rorc [DOT] org, T: +44 (0)1983 295144. -- Louay Habib

Previous Winners: Rorc Caribbean 600 Trophy - IRC Overall
(Best corrected time under IRC)

2019 - David and Peter Askew, Wizard, Volvo 70 (USA)
2018 - George David, Rambler 88, Maxi (USA)
2017 - Hap Fauth, Bella Mente, JV72 (USA)
2016 - George Sakellaris, Maxi 72, Proteus (USA)
2015 - Hap Fauth, JV72, Bella Mente (USA)
2014 - George Sakellaris, RP72, Shockwave (USA)
2013 - Ron O'Hanley, Privateer, Cookson 50 (USA)
2012 - Niklas Zennstrom's JV72, Ran (GBR)
2011 - George David, Rambler 100, JK 100 (USA)
2010 - Karl C L Kwok, Beau Geste, Farr 80 (HKG)
2009 - Adrian Lee, Lee Overlay Partners, Cookson 50 (IRL)

Make Your Match! St Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
Need crew? Want to crew? Like to charter? STIR is now partnered with UK-based Tendrr , an online destination site for sailing opportunities in Europe and now in the Caribbean, including the U.S. Virgin Islands. Use Tendrr yourself. Or, use this matching site to find the perfect way to get family and friends out racing too. It's a great holiday gift for hot STIR competition in the New Year!

Team all set? Register now on yachtscoring.com. STIR 2020 offers classes for CSA (Caribbean Sailing Association-handicap rule) Racing, Cruising and Bareboats; Large Multihulls; Beach Cats and One-Design over 20-foot LOA.

The one-design IC 24's may be the largest one-design fleet of any Caribbean regatta! Charter an IC24 from the St. Thomas Sailing Center. IC24s are available for $2200 with good sails, $2700 with new sails, for the 3-day STIR, practice day and 30-day Bluewater Membership at the St. Thomas Yacht Club. To reserve an IC24, Email: dave [AT] stthomassailingcenter [DOT] com or call (340) 690-3681.

Other companies offering yachts to charter for STIR include Caribbean Races, Caribbean Yacht Racing, Global Yacht Racing, LV Yachting, OnDeck, and Sail Racing Academy.

Save money! Pay only US $150, or 50% off the regular entry fee until January 31, 2020. Plus, enter by December 31 and your boat's name could be randomly drawn to win FREE customized long-sleeve high-performance T-shirts.

'We Love It Here!, You Will Too!'

stthomasinternationalregatta.com, Email: stycisv [AT] gmail [DOT] com, Call (340) 775-6320.

Emirates Team NZ AC75 Capsize
Emirates Team New Zealand became the first team to capsize their AC75 yacht in an incident this morning.

The incident was dismissed by the team as "A little whoopsie on the Waitemata, upright again and back into it. All part of learning..."

Speaking with a team spokesman, the incident happened off North Head at the entrance to the Waitemata Harbour as the team set up for another training session.

Winds were only about 10kts at the time.

Howth Yacht Club Returns to New Sydney-Hobart Challenge
Back in 1991 when the world seemed a much simpler place, a three-crew Irish team - using shrewdly-selected offshore racing boats chartered in Australia - took part in the then-popular International Southern Cross Series, which was built around a programme of inshore and offshore races of varying length culminating in the 630-mile Sydney-Hobart Race itself.

Australian ex-Pat John Storey (he was born in Meath) was at the heart of it with his own Farr 43 Atara, where his skipper and the Team Captain was Harold Cudmore. In fact, Cork provided much of the muscle, as the late Joe English skippered the "small boat", the David 36 Extension – a former Sydney-Hobart overall winner - while the mid-sized team member was known as "the Howth boat", as her crew was built around Kieran Jameson and Gordon Maguire.

The boat herself was the Davidson 40 Beyond Thunderdome, a name expressive of way-out Australian culture at the time – think Mad Max when Mel Gibson was in his popular prime – and the very fact of having an Irish team in the Southern Cross challenge on the other side of the world also caught the mood of the moment, for back home the economy was starting to get a move on after the glacially sluggish 1980s.

WM Nixon's full article in Afloat:

afloat.ie/blogs/

Reasons to to go racing - Oyster Yachts
No wonder the Oyster Palma Regatta is so often oversubscribed. A great learning experience, a brilliant party, a stepping stone to far horizons, an essential networking event and a whole lot more...

Among the boats lined up along the dock outside the Real Club Náutico de Palma, not one had been designed purely for racing. Yet as the 30-strong fleet turned the weather marks during the four days of racing to head downwind, the number and speed of spinnaker sets said it all when it came to judging just how competitively owners and crews were taking the Oyster Palma Regatta.

But while Palma may stand out in the Oyster world, there are other group activities that bring these yachts and their crews closer into line with regular racing circuits. This year's Oyster event in Antigua followed the culmination of the 2017-19 Oyster World Rally, a fully supported Oyster rally around the world.

See listing details in Nautor's Swan Brokerage

Roll Up for Antigua Sailing Week
The 53rd edition of Antigua Sailing Week is just over four months away with the early entry fee (up to 30% discount) expiring on January 3rd, 2020. Entries are approaching 50 boats for the Caribbean's most famous sailing regatta, and the event looks set to be a cracker not to be missed. The Class of 2020 is already shaping up to be a heady mix of sailors and boats of all shapes and sizes from North America, Europe, and the Caribbean.

The largest entry to date is Peter Harrison's British Farr 115 Sojana, which will be defending the Lord Nelson Trophy won for a second time last year. The smallest yacht currently entered in the CSA Division is the Beneteau First Class 10 Pepsi Max, entered by Sophie Langlois Squarcioni from Guadeloupe. A bevvy of round the world race boats is expected to be competing, the first entry of that ilk is Volvo 70 Green Dragon, sailed by Steve Travis from CYC Seattle. The first multihull entry is Stephen Cucchiaro's American Gunboat 60 Flow.

Carbon fibre flyers have been a regular sight and Antigua Sailing Week, and new to the regatta will be Christian Zugel's American FAST40+ Tschuss. Jules Mitchell's NSA Spirit has won class for the last two years and to score a hatrick will need to take victory against Joshua Daniels National Sailing Academy team and Ashley Rhodes' Whiplash in a newly created Sportsboat Class. Proven winners in the CSA Classes abound in the early entries including; Ross Applebey's British Oyster 48 Scarlet Oyster, Bernie Evan Wong's Antiguan RP37 Taz, Pamala Baldwin's Antiguan J/122 Liquid, and Chris Body's British J/122 El Ocaso, which will be sailed by Tony Mack's Team McFly.

Early entries in the Dream Yacht Charter Bareboat Division include over a dozen entries from German and Swiss teams organised by KH&P Yachtcharter including at least three former class winners; Gerd Eiermann, Alexander Pfeiffer, and Thomas Sparrer. Also competing in the Bareboat Division will be the the winners of The Road to 2020, the invitational challenge winners are Phil Walters - August Sky (USA), Stevie Beckett – Cobra (GBR) and Max Rieger – Mothership (GER).

To register for the discounted rate of US $11 per foot ending on January 3rd 2020 visit www.sailingweek.com/enter-2020/

www.sailingweek.com

The R/P 100' Canting Keel Super-Maxis
In 2019, the Reichel/Pugh Design Team had the opportunity to further develop the performance of their 100' Super-maxi designs Wild Oats XI and Black Jack 100. Each team wanted to increase performance in the areas where they felt would have the most impact. For Wild Oats XI, this meant strengthening the light-wind capability, with a particular emphasis on light air performance, balance, and weight savings, while for Black Jack 100, the efforts were more focused on off-wind performance in the bigger breeze. After previous work with Wild Oats XI on the bow modifications in 2015 and with Black Jack 100 for the extensive refit in 2017 and a new keel in 2018 the Reichel/Pugh team was well-positioned to offer a competitive advantage to both teams, with work getting started early in 2019.

The Wild Oats XI research began with an extensive design study to evaluate the current performance of the boat in terms of speed, but also balance and maneuverability. The design efforts were led by Reichel/Pugh naval architect David Oliver, in close collaboration with John Reichel, leading CFD specialist Giorgio Provinciali, foil engineer Paul Bieker, and structural engineer Skip Miller from CCG. Beyond this design team was an extensive network of specialist suppliers, boatbuilders, and project manager Paul Magee who did a phenomenal job ensuring all parties had the information needed and critical decisions were made by the team. No small task with so many moving pieces in play.

The design work began with a full assessment of the existing boat and appendages, including the rudder, canting keel, twin daggerboards, and forward bow 'flap'. Critical aerodynamic research came from North Design Services, whose RANS testing allowed for precise yaw and balance calculation with the various sail sets and appendages accounted for. Once the design team had a clear picture of where the boat was in 2018 and understood what effects needed correcting, they set about testing a variety of options to achieve the desired performance improvement.

Full article: www.reichel-pugh.com

2020 GC32 Racing Tour announced
For 2020 the GC32 Racing Tour will once again visit five top venues, chosen to offer the best wind and flat water conditions for foiling catamaran competition.

As the 2019 season ended, so the 2020 will begin in Muscat, Oman. The first event will take place over 25-29 March from Muscat's Al Mouj Marina with its adjoining luxury residential development and shopping centre, a stone's throw from the Omani capital's new airport. With local organiser Oman Sail having been both a venue host and racing catamaran team owner for more than a decade, another high quality event is anticipated with the local team expected to be pushing hard to right their disappointing fourth placed finish from November's GC32 Oman Cup.

Prior to this year's GC32 Oman Cup, teams are set to gather in nearby Mussanah for two informal training sessions.

From Oman the GC32 Racing Tour returns to Europe and one of its favourite venues: Riva del Garda, at the northern-most corner of Italy's Lake Garda, has been a regular venue on the GC32 Racing Tour since 2016 and hosted the class' first World Championship in 2018, after it became officially a World Sailing-recognised class in 2017. Riva del Garda famously offers reliable, frequently strong winds and flat water, combined with the breathtaking backdrop of the Dolomites. The GC32 Riva Cup will take place over 27-31 May.

The GC32 Racing Tour will once again visit Lagos, Portugal, situated at the southwesternmost tip of Europe and fast becoming recognised as a top venue for leading yacht racing events. In 2019, the GC32 class staged a successful and well received World Championship out of the ancient Algarve port with a line-up of ten teams including Sir Ben Ainslie's INEOS Rebels UK and NORAUTO, skippered by Volvo Ocean Race winner Franck Cammas. In 2020, the GC32 Lagos Cup will take place over 24-28 June.

The 2020 GC32 World Championship will be hosted by Villasimius in southeastern Sardinia over 16-20 September. This will be also be the fourth time that the GC32 Racing Tour has visited this southeast Sardinian jewel, and a favourite Italian tourist destination. Here the GC32s are hosted at the Marina di Villasimius with a racing ground next to a nature reserve located off Capo Carbonara.

For its fifth and concluding event of the 2020 season, taking place over 21-25 October, the GC32 Racing Tour will visit an exciting new venue, also renowned for its reliable wind conditions and flat water. The location of this will be announced in due course.

www.gc32racingtour.com

Launchings
After five weeks of frenetic repair work, sometime around-the-clock, the supermaxi yacht Wild Oats XI has been declared ready to race in the Rolex Sydney-Hobart race on Boxing Day.

The declaration came from the skipper, Mark Richards, after the 30-metre long, silver-hulled racer completed a compulsory 24-hour qualification course off Sydney this week.

Wild Oats XI's race preparation problems started on the evening of November 8, while competing in the overnight Cabbage Tree island race out of Sydney. The yacht was leading the fleet when the 45-metre high carbon fibre mast suddenly fractured and consequently caused a significant part of the deck structure to fail.

Quick action by the crew prevented additional damage and the yacht was able to reach safe haven in Newcastle.

In the ensuing five weeks a remarkable and well-orchestrated repair schedule that involved getting replacement parts from Europe, Asia and New Zealand, has led to the supermaxi being declared race ready. -- Rob Mundle

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Using 2 mobile cranes, KM Yachtbuilders has turned the aluminum hull of a new Pelagic 77 watched by polar sailing expert Skip Novak, Pelagic Yachts rep Jordi Griso and Chilean entrepreneur and adventurer Nicolas Ibanez Scott.

A centerboarder, rather than a full lifting keel, the 23.5m yacht will be a modern schooner with a 6.2m (20ft) beam, 2 carbon masts to split up the sail area, manual winches and furlers and 2 150HP Yanmar engines for redundancy. There will be a comfortable living area, a large galley and 6 double cabins forward of the pilot house with 2 heads and showers shared among them. The interior features bamboo furniture.

Delivery is set for late 2020. After mid-2021 North Atlantic sea trials, the Tony Castro-designed Pelagic 77 will be sail down to Puerto Williams, Chile, for use as private yacht but also for educational purposes.

The Pelagic 77 is an evolution from the 23m (76ft) Pelagic Australis that Novak conceived and designed for expedition sailing, mainly in high latitudes. This implies enhanced autonomy, ease of handling and simple systems a yacht crew can operate in extreme conditions without specialist help.

www.kmy.nl

www.jachtbouwactueel.nl

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Revelation 480, the first yacht in her class to be built, has been completed at our Marchwood shipyard. She's now undergoing final preparation before being shipped and premiered at Boot Dusseldorf 2020, the world's largest indoor yacht exhibition.

Over the past few months, Discovery Yachts has lavished great care and applied meticulous attention to detail on this fabulous new lower saloon model and now she's ready to be revealed to all.

The Revelation 480 is a luxurious and contemporary cruising yacht with a voluminous interior designed for easy living. As only to be expected with Discovery, this new model combines modern techniques with minimalist styling; all hand-crafted using build-foundation skills exclusive to the Group.

The new Revelation class is specifically designed to give owners space and tranquillity while living aboard the yacht. Whether cruising in the Pacific, Mediterranean or the Caribbean, this yacht ensures the journey is completed in style and comfort. The 480 is the first model to have 20 port lights which when combined with the broad window arrangement in the saloon, facilitates vast amounts of incoming light – resulting in spectacular exterior views, especially when at anchor.

discoveryyachtsgroup.com

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Work is underway on the first HH88. Phase one of the design process is complete and we have moved into manufacturing. This exciting new HH is being designed by our long-standing partners Morrelli & Melvin and is destined to be a luxury charter yacht (after the owner has had his fun for the first couple of years). As a luxury charter yacht, she will accommodate ten guests and four crew in complete comfort, including a fully enclosed air-conditioned flybridge, a six-person fresh water jacuzzi on the flybridge, and a variety of lounging and dining areas. Interior design is a coordination of our own in-house designers and the owner.

With accents of carbon and illuminated granite coupled with our immaculate workmanship she will be a true super yacht and a yacht that is sure to turn heads even at the Monaco Boat Show in 2022. The hull mold is female and construction is 100% carbon fiber. At 54 tons she may not be designed to fly a hull, but cruising at 18 knots under sail is fast enough for most when enjoying a martini.

hhcatamarans.com

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Three young engineers from the Swiss engineering school EPFL have decided to design the fastest sailboat over a 500m track and enter sailing history. This speed record is currently hold by Paul Larsen who achieved the average speed of 121km/h over the 500m track. To achieve their challenge, they want to use the power of usual kite wings in their SP80 project.

SP80 plans to go much further by achieving 80knots (148km/h) using a boat with shaped hulls, propelled by a kite wing while the overall stability is reached thanks to super ventilating hydrofoils.

This project is support by EPFL and then follows the steps of the famous Hydroptere, which was developed in collaboration with the university from 2006 to 2009 and. Numerous teachers previously involved in either Hydroptère's or Alinghi's adventures also give their support to SP80, gathering all the ingredients needed to create great innovation and to develop new technologies.

The project was officially launched in Neuchatel on the 25th of October 2019 during the celebration of the 20 years anniversary of its first partner, P&TS SA. Since then, SP80 continues to be present on different events.

The founders of the project will be present at the Yacht Racing Forum on the 25th and 26 of November 2019 to show their ideas to great names of the sailing world.

www.sp80.ch

Featured Brokerage
2014 Swan 105 RS Child of Lir. 7,900,000 VAT Paid EUR. Located in Calpe, Spain.

Swan 105 CHILD OF LIR was commissioned by an experienced owner who sought a modern performance cruiser utilizing the very latest technology while maintaining a high level of comfort and the ability to sail with minimal crew. Nautor’s Swan was chosen as the builder and the design is a unique collaboration of Frers Naval Architecture and Beiderbeck Design. Drawing on a long and successful experience, Frers developed a hull form and sail plan that allowed for excellent performance and sea keeping abilities while Beiderbeck implemented their forward-thinking expertise to create an innovative arrangement that maximizes volume and comfort on deck and throughout the interior. Special attention was paid to the low noise level throughout the Yacht. There is a special night mode generator to guarantee restful sleep.

Contact
Nautor's Swan Brokerage - Thomas Perry
brokerage [AT] nautorswan [DOT] com
Tel. +377 97 97 95 07
nautorswanbrokerage.com

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1928 Classic 6 Metre - ANTINEA. 55000 EUR. Located in Hanko, Finland.

Considered to be one of the most beautiful Classic 6 Metre yachts ever built. ANTINEA (FIN-24) was built by the renowned Råholmens Båtvarva to designs by Einar Olofsson in 1928 and has been sympathetically restored and refitted by her current owners.

Contact
Jonas Renlund - Grabau international ( Scandinavia)
Tel: +358 408 098688
Email: enquiries [AT] grabauinternational [DOT] com

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1997 Chessea Volvo 60. 320,000 EUR. Located in Sete, South of France.

Ex Chessie Racing, ex Assa Abloy, ex Big One, this Volvo 60 was refitted with new deck giving a higher headroom of 1.93m. She has fantastic performances (up to 30 knots). She successfully entered the 1997-1998 Whitbread Race and came second at the 2001-2002 Volvo Ocean Race.

www.laserinternational.org

Contact
Bernard Gallay Yacht Brokerage
info [AT] bernard-gallay [DOT] com
www.bernard-gallay.com
Tel +33 (0) 467 66 39 93

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

The Last Word
When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be bought and sold are legislators. -- P. J. O'Rourke

Editorial and letter submissions to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: gb [AT] beesonstone [DOT] com or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html

In This Issue
• Junior keeps lead at Finn Gold Cupp
• Snipe Class Announces Hall Of Fame Inductees
• Ocean Safety to demonstrate safety equipmentp
• Season #2 Of The Great British Sailing Challenge
• Paris 2024 Mixed Keelboat Offshore Equipment
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• New Laser ClassBuilder Approvals
• Resurrected Windrose rises to meet first Rolex Sydney Hobart
• Entries open for IRC European Championship as part of Cork 300
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Sparkman & Stephens 52 Ft Sloop 'Ciclon'
• • MAT 1180 'Gallivanter'
• • Farr 52 'Furtif 2'
• The Last Word: Clint Eastwood

The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... VOTING IS OPEN FOR THE TOP TEN

Junior keeps lead at Finn Gold Cup, while Scott and Berecz move up
New Zealand’s Josh Junior has maintained his lead at the Finn Gold Cup in Melbourne, Australia after three races on Thursday in a moderate sea breeze. He will take a 13-point lead into the final day of the opening series on Friday. Olympic champion, Giles Scott, from Britain, is up to second while defending world champion, Zsombor Berecz, from Hungary is up to third. Race wins went to Ed Wright, from Britain, Berecz and Scott.

After no racing on Day 3, three races (Races 5-7) were scheduled on Thursday. Following a cool change overnight, temperatures had dropped down from 40C to 22C and with winds picking up considerably from Wednesday’s dead calm to a reasonably stable breeze of 13-17 knots. All three scheduled races were completed with plenty of opportunity for sailors to move up the leader board or to consolidate positions.

Friday will be an interesting day with a strong wind warning from the north and temperatures in the mid 40s. Three more races are scheduled to conclude the opening series before Saturday’s final race and medal race.

Results after 7 races
1. Josh Junior, NZL, 16
2. Giles Scott, GBR, 29
3. Zsombor Berecz, HUN, 34
4. Nicholas Heiner, NED, 34
5. Andy Maloney, NZL, 35
6. Nenad Bugarin, CRO, 55
7. Joan Cardona Mendez, ESP, 61
8. Tom Ramshaw, CAN, 61
9. Jake Lilley, AUS, 63
10. Nils Theuninck, SUI, 65

Full results
More photos here: www.flickr.com/photos/finnclassphotos

Snipe Class Announces Hall Of Fame Inductees
The International Snipe Class has a long history of which very few other classes can boast. The boat was designed by Bill Crosby in 1931 and 88 years later, 32000+ boats have been built with fleets in over 30 active nations.

It is a history of people, sailors, champions, enthusiasts, promoters, sailmakers, builders and organizers.

The past is strongly linked to the present: all the inductees have helped to promote and grow our Class in many countries and continents; many of these people are still strongly linked to the Class or have been, when they were alive, to form a large family, the Snipe Family, from great-grandparents to grandchildren.

For this reason, the "Snipe Class International Racing Association Hall of Fame" was created.

The SCIRA Hall of Fame honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the Snipe Class and Snipe competition.

The Class is honoring three categories: Sailing, Technical Design and Contributors, --people who made significant contributions to the Snipe Class.

SCIRA Commodore Pietro Fantoni stated “The Snipe Class is strong today because of this first list of inductees: William F. Crosby, Hub E. Isaacks, Ted Wells, Id Crook, Carlos & Jorge Vilar Castex, Axel & Erik Schmidt, Earl Elms, Jan Persson, Bibi Juetz and Gonzalo Diaz.

This first list is impressive. All of us Snipe sailors and friends of the Snipe Class - and I can add, friends of the sport of sailing - have to thank them and their families and celebrate their induction for their victories on the water, their contributions ashore and for how they promoted our beloved Class.."

For this very first year a maximum of ten inductees were considered (eight next year and five from the year after). The 2019 inductees are among those who have undoubtedly contributed to make the history of the Snipe Class.

Full bios and additional photos & videos can be viewed here: www.snipe.org/class/hall-of-fame

Ocean Safety to demonstrate safety equipment at February Servicing and Safety Open Workshop
At Ocean Safety, specialists in the worldwide supply, distribution, service and hire of marine safety equipment, we once again invite you to familiarise yourselves with your essential on-board safety equipment when we open our doors to boat owners and crews at our Southampton UK headquarters for two one-day Servicing and Safety Workshops on 15 and 16 February 2020.

You’ll need to book your day and time in advance if you want to watch your liferaft and lifejackets being opened and inflated. After that you can leave them with us to be fully serviced and certificated before the new season starts. This is a great opportunity to understand more about the how these vital products work, so that you are well prepared in case of emergency.

There will be an action packed programme of product demonstrations between 10am and 4pm each day from our safety experts including a chance to see liferafts being inflated, take part in a live flare demonstration and explore the full man over board range of man overboard products. For the full programme of activities, please check on the Ocean Safety social media channels.

To get further information and to book your time slot email Service [AT] oceansafety [DOT] com

oceansafety.com

Dates For Season #2 Of The Great British Sailing Challenge
Like its sister circuit, the Selden SailJuice Winter Series, season #2 of the Great British Sailing Challenge offers handicap racing for dinghies and small craft of pretty much all shapes and sizes...

The Fernhurst Books Draycote Dash took place in November, marking not only the first event of the Selden SailJuice Winter Series but also the 2019/2020 edition of the Great British Sailing Challenge (GBSC).

Competitors in the Selden SailJuice Winter Series are automatically entered into the inaugural season of the GBSC, which concludes next autumn at a100-boat invitation-only Grand Final.

The dates are now out for the events and clubs that have signed up to the 2020 spring/ summer season of the GBSC. If you’re interested in hosting an event at your club, whether for 2020 or even 2021, please get in touch...

Dates for the GBSC 2020 events already agreed are as follows, with a couple more awaiting confirmation:

Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club: 4th-5th April 2020
Weston Grand Slam, Weston Sailing Club: 11th-12th April 2020
Paignton Open for Single Handers (P.O.S.H.), Paignton Sailing Club: 9th-10th May 2020
Grafham Sailing Club: 23rd-24th May 2020
Rutland Sailing Club: 13th-14th June 2020
Wilsonian River Challenge, Wilsonian Sailing Club: 20th-21st June 2020
Bala Long Distance, Bala Sailing Club: 20th-21st June 2020
The Ullswater Ultimate, Ullswater Yacht Club: 15-16 August 2020
Grand Finals, Venue To be Confirmed: September/ October 2020

www.sailingchallenge.org

Paris 2024 Mixed Keelboat Offshore Equipment - Request for Information from Manufacturers
The Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Competition will, for the first time ever, feature a Mixed Two Person Keelboat Offshore Event that will test the mental resolve and physical attributes of the sailors competing.

At World Sailing's 2019 Annual Conference in Bermuda, World Sailing's Council, the main decision-making body of World Sailing, approved the decision-making process for the selection of Equipment for the Event.

The criteria for suitable Equipment for the Olympic Offshore Event will be published no later than 31 December 2020 and the Equipment will be selected no later 31 December 2023. With regards to the qualification events, a list of Equipment that meets the qualification criteria shall be published no later than 31 December 2020. It is expected that the criteria will give the widest possible choice of suitable equipment, giving many manufacturers the opportunity for their equipment to be selected.

World Sailing has issued a Request For Information (RFI) from Manufacturers, MNAs and Class Associations to assess what options currently exist in the market. A 2024 Offshore Equipment Working Party will then use that information to form the criteria for selecting the Equipment for Event at Paris 2024.

Whilst it is envisaged to be a non-foiling, non-canting keel production boat, Offshore Special Regulations Category 2, between 8 and 11m, proposals close to these criteria are also welcome with detailed explanations and justifications.

Replies to the RFI should be sent to World Sailing's Technical and Offshore Department (technical [AT] sailing [DOT] org) by Friday 15 January 2020.

RFI Document (PDF)

sailing.org

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
Voting is open now for the top ten. We pick the winner based on best stories, number of votes, and drink recipe. This one's a wonderful concoction, plenty of vitamin C. And vitamin R. It comes to us from The Beach Bar at Nanny Cay, Tortola BVI.

Their signature drink is a variation on the famous Pain Killer, called Peg Leg's Pain Killer and the recipe is:

Cruzan Coconut Rum
Mount Gay Rum
Coco Lopez
Mango Puree
Orange Juice
Pineapple Juice
Floated With Pusser's Rum

Sure to knock the edge off any sailing aches or bruises!!

Vote for your favorite bar and please send us more recipes. Your humble narrator aims to test them all personally over the holidays. Someone's got to do it. It's a calling.

The winning bar gets a custom made 3D map from Latitude Kinsale. If you wanted a map for someone special, or yourself, it's too late for the holidays, Bobby Nash is all booked up until mid January. But he's headed to BOOT Dusseldorf. You can catch him there at Hall 7 D09. The display will include pieces from the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, Holland, the Baltic and the gorgeous piece of the Maldives. Also on display will be a selection of the new Gold coast charts and a chart table.

Vote and send drink recipes: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars

New Laser ClassBuilder Approvals
In November 2018, World Sailing approved its Olympic Equipment Strategy, which requires that any interested party who meets the necessary technical qualifications must be able to manufacture and sell Olympic equipment.

In order to comply with this policy, on September 27th of this year, ILCA announced it was accepting preliminary applications for the appointment of new builders of class legal boats and equipment. ILCA is pleased to announce that 29 applications were received and have now been reviewed by the evaluation panel. 18 applicants were determined to meet the minimum requirements to move forward in the process and those potential builders are now being invited to participate in a more detailed, formal license application assessment. Applicants will receive a copy of the Approved Builder License Agreement and the relevant portions of the ILCA Build Manual, which will allow them to fully evaluate the business opportunity and develop a formal business plan.

On December 6, Laser Performance was also issued an Approved Builder License Agreement, which would allow the company to be reappointed as an approved manufacturer of class legal boats and equipment. ILCA has not yet received a response to the agreement from Laser Performance, but we are hopeful to see a signed contract in the near future in order to avoid any delays in equipment supply.

All new builder applications were submitted on a confidential basis, so ILCA cannot publish the names of the potential builders at this time. However, ILCA can reveal that, of the 18 builders invited to proceed with the new builder approval process, there are five from Europe, five from Asia, four from North America, three from South America and one from Oceania. The next step is for a panel of experts to review the formal applications and business proposals received in order to further narrow down the list. By the nature of this process and in compliance with relevant antitrust regulations, ILCA cannot determine the number of builders that will be eventually approved, nor can we specify the geographic location of the successful candidates. More information about the approval process and the technical and business qualifications required can be found here.

Resurrected Windrose rises to meet first Rolex Sydney Hobart
Windrose in 1963. Click on image to enlarge.

A 60-year-old timber Sparkman and Stephens design that has never competed in a major bluewater race south of the equator is primed to join the 75th anniversary Rolex Sydney Hobart fleet setting off from Sydney Harbour at 1pm on December 26, 2019.

Windrose owner Ashok Mani is the first Indian-born owner to enter the annual 628 nautical mile offshore challenge. Mani sailed dinghies out of Royal Bombay Yacht Club as a child and left India age 18 with the merchant navy. He studied his Masters at the Australian Maritime College in Launceston and has lived and worked all over the world, including Singapore, where he and Windrose are currently based.

Skipper for Windrose’s first Rolex Sydney Hobart is Sam McCracken (GBR), at 19 the youngest in the large fleet. McCracken first knocked back the offer to skipper, but a persistent owner and fatherly advice to ‘do it and do it well’ sees the qualified Yacht Master taking his place among a seasoned group.

Commissioned by Jacob Isbrandtsen in 1959 for the express purpose of winning the Admiral's Cup for the USA, Windrose and teammates Figaro and Cyan accomplished that mission in 1961 under the burgee of the New York Yacht Club - the first time the Admiral’s Cup left British shores. Once sold by Isbrandtsen, Windrose entered a lengthy cruising stint under various owners, notably Bonnie and Steve Bojorquez, custodians of the eye-catching yawl for 28 years, from 1980 to 2008.

In 2014, Mani came across the neglected hull, instantly recognising the beautiful hull lines of the one-off Sparkman and Stephens design, the only one ever built with a clipper bow. He had the boat hauled out and resurrected in Thailand, a team of shipwrights and boat builders taking two years to refurbish and bring the classic back to near-original race mode, while retaining most of its unique features.

Windrose will race under the Tamar Yacht Club burgee, the club near to where Mani’s family live and run Iron Pot Bay Vineyard, with a mixed age and gender team representing Ireland, the UK, Australia and Holland. Among the 11 crew are family combinations - Sam and dad Neil, and Lisa and Tyler Ratcliff (18 years-old).

www.facebook.com/Windrose1959/
www.rolexsydneyhobart.com/tracker/

Entries open for IRC European Championship as part of Cork 300
Online Entry is now open for the 2020 IRC European Championship which will take place in Crosshaven, Ireland during Volvo Cork Week as part of the unique celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Royal Cork Yacht Club.

The 2020 IRC European Championship will be held over five days of racing from Monday 13th July to Friday 17th July during the biennial Volvo Cork Week regatta. The championship is expected to attract a record fleet of highly competitive IRC rated boats vying for the overall win and class honours.

Last month, the Royal Cork Yacht Club, the oldest yacht club in the world, launched its online entry system for the prestigious Volvo Cork Week 2020 regatta which will see hundreds of boats and thousands of yachtsmen and women from around the globe compete on the waters around Cork Harbour from July 13th - 17th.

On the 8th July, prior to Volvo Cork Week and the IRC European Championship, the Morgan Cup Race will start from Cowes, bound for Cork. Organised by the Royal Ocean Race Club since 1958, this will be the first time that the course has been set across the Celtic Sea to Cork. The 324nm race is expected to attract a substantial fleet. A new trophy for Line Honours has been donated by His Royal Highness, Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales. -- Louay Habib

www.corkweek.ie

Featured Brokerage
1944 Ciclon Sparkman & Stephens 52 Ft Sloop. 195,000 GBP. Located in Cyprus.

Launched in Cuba in 1944, Ciclon was rarely off the podium. Of course beautiful and fast, is it time now to reintroduce her to her sisters?

Contact
Barney Sandeman
info [AT] sandemanyachtcompany [DOT] co [DOT] uk
+44 (0)1202 330077
33 High Street
Poole, Dorset
BH15 1AB
United Kingdom

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2017 MAT 1180. 225000 GBP. Located in Hamble, UK.

"Gallivanter" is the newest MAT 1180 and benefits from the experience gained throughout the MAT's lifespan to produce the most competitive all round package out there. This design is a dual-purpose inshore/offshore machine, with a plug and play setup on offer when switching between the disciplines.

Contact
Sam Pearson - Ancasta Race Boats
+447759 424900
+442380 016582
sampearson [AT] ancasta [DOT] com

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2002 Farr 52 FURTIF 2. 180000 EUR. Located in Toulon, South of France.

FURTIF 2 (ex Goldfinger) is a fantastic full carbon racer built in 2002 and refitted in New Zealand by the current owner.