In This Issue
• Rolex Middle Sea Race Day Five
• Joyon Already Looking At The Doldrums
• BYOB or Charter! St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
• Itajai returns as host city for The Ocean Race
• Mills and McIntyre up for top gong
• Drama for Israeli Olympic windsurfing
• Catamaran Cup Leg 3: Spetses - Astros
• Portuguese take the podium in the European Sailing Championship Adapted in Portimao
• Launchings
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Tore Holm 53 Ft Bermudan Cutter
• • 1983 Newport Offshore Shipyard Frers 59 Alloy Custom
• • Black Pearl - Carkeek 47
• The Last Word: Preet Bharara
Brought to you by Seahorse magazine and YachtScoring.com EuroSail News is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com
Rolex Middle Sea Race Day Five
The fifth day of the 40th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race has been a bountiful one on the docks of the Royal Malta Yacht Club, as yachts start to finish in numbers and tales of the race are shared. The strong winds to the west of Sicily have, as predicted, begun to affect the contest for the overall prize. Rambler's near 24-hour tenure at the top was ended by Black Pearl's arrival early this morning. The turnovers then came thick and fast and, at press time, the ClubSwan 42 BeWild is sitting atop the pile. With 84 yachts on the course, including three yet to round Favignana at the halfway point of the racetrack, there is plenty of racing left.
The Rolex Fastnet Race winners Richard and David Askew, with the Volvo 70 Wizard, were the second yacht to finish, arriving just after midnight on Wednesday morning. Never really in contention for the overall race win after a less than perfect start followed by a difficult opening passage to the Strait of Messina, the American maxi finally asserted her ocean-racing pedigree in the open water after Favignana. On what has been a fetch from Lampedusa, Wizard was able to stretch away from a group formed of R'92 Pendragon (HUN), Wild Joe (HUN), Aegir (GBR) and Aragon (POL), which had been snapping at her heels. These four yachts eventually finished in a 50-minute window between 05:00 and 06:00 CEST. The first three within 8 minutes of each other.
When Black Pearl (GER) crossed the line at 08:24 CEST, the crew were clearly elated to have completed the course and to have topped their class (IRC 2) in the process. There was a sense that too many boats were still at sea for any thoughts to turn to greater glory. Theirs had been a hard race, especially the second half. "This boat is built for reaching and downwind more than upwind, so whenever we go upwind it is like a rodeo. You get bounced around, it's hard to catch a nap and it's even harder to cook. Boiling water becomes a hazard," explained owner, Stefan Jentzsch.
Half an hour later, the first of the two Cookson 50s arrived. Franco Niggeler's Kuka 3 (SUI) beat Brian McMaster's Riff Raff by 30 minutes on the water. Then, just as the lunch crowd was gathering on the deck of the RMYC, the ICE52 PrimaVista-Lauria, skippered by Italian Olympian and round the world sailor, Pietro D'Ali, and whose crew included Olympian and 49er World Champion, Gabriele Bruni from Sicily, crossed the line. Already winners of the Rolex Middle Sea Coastal Race, PrimaVista-Lauria slipped into the overall lead of the Class 3 and more significantly event by 40 minutes.
The twists and turns are far from done. Boats due in later this evening are in with a chance of podium places if the wind holds, particularly between Comino and Marsamxett Harbour where it has been directly on the nose and slow-going for the tired crews.
18:00 CEST IRC Class Analysis
Based on Provisional Results/Tracker Positions
IRC 1 (distances where stated are from finish)
George David Maxi Rambler (USA)
Fabio Cannavale Baltic 78 Lupa of the Sea (ITA)
Przemyslaw Tarnacki Marten 72 Aragon (POL)
IRC 2
Stefan Jentzsch Carkeek 47 Black Pearl (GER)
Eric de Turckheim NMYD54 Teasing Machine (FRA)
Gerard Logel IRC52 Arobas2 (FRA)
IRC 3
Pietro D'Ali ICE52 PrimaVista-Lauria (ITA)
Frederic Puzin Mylius 15 Corum Daguet2 (FRA)
Daniel Adrián Sydney 43GTS Adrian Hoteles Macaronesia (ESP) 5nm
IRC 4
Podesta Family First 45 Elusive 2 (MLT) 7nm
Renzo Grottesi ClubSwan 42 BeWild (ITA)
Arto Linnervuo Xp-44 Xtra Staerk (FIN) 15nm
IRC 5
Gery Trentesaux JPK 11.80 Courrier Recommande (FRA) 12nm
Tom Kneen JPK 11.80 Sunrise (GBR) 30nm
Peter Gustafsson J/111 Blur (SWE) 36nm
IRC 6
Jaques Pelletier Milon 41 L'Ange de Milon (FRA) 61nm
Ludovic Gerard JPK 10.80 Solenn (FRA) 116nm
Timofey Zhbankov JPK 10.80 Rossko (RUS) 114nm
IRC DH
Daniel Martín Figaro II Inteman (ESP) 149nm
Martin Hartl/Harald Wolf J/109 2Hard (AUT) 201nm
Fabiijan Roic Akilara 40 Crazy (CRO) 126nm
Joyon Already Looking At The Doldrums
It is one of the magical things about modern multihulls. They make the distances covered seem so banal. After four days of racing in his attempt against his own Mauritius Route record, Francis Joyon sped past the Canaries, and is now being pushed along in a lively NE'ly trade wind towards the Cape Verde Islands. Well positioned in a 25-knot air stream, he is clocking up the miles at high speed heading due south, waiting for that crucial moment this evening when he will gybe again to get around the west of the Cape Verde Islands and aim for a way through the infamous Doldrums, the Intertropical Convergence Zone, which have been particularly active over the past few days
"I think I may lose some time to the south of Cape Verde," admitted Francis without any hint of being worried. His steady progress since the start last Saturday means he now has a lead of more than 330 miles over his own pace set in 2009. IDEC SPORT has continued to accelerate and step up the pace. Her average speed has been almost 23 knots since the start and Francis looks like having his best day by this evening.
He is also taking advantage of more pleasant conditions, something which is rare in such attempts. The sun is out and it is warm off Mauritania. "You get very wet on the boat and I was in waterproofs, but once the sun appeared, the temperature rose aboard IDEC SPORT. The wind is now more regular in direction, with gusts reaching 27-28 knots." The wind angle and strength are ideal to allow him to get the most out of his maxi trimaran, which has been hovering close to thirty knots since last night. "I'm spending some time at the helm just to enjoy it. I have been inspecting the boat, but my team did a great job and I intend to bring to them in Mauritius a boat in excellent condition. During the night I crossed paths with a small yacht heading for the Cape Verde Islands. We talked a bit over the VHF and we discovered we had some friends in common..."
BYOB or Charter! St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR) - March 27-29, 2020
Bring your own boat (BYOB) or charter! Chartering makes it easy to fly in, jump on a race-ready yacht and set sail. Over half dozen outfits are offering vessels to charter either by the boat or crew spot for STIR 2020. Try an IC24, a highly competitive converted J/24. The St. Thomas Sailing Center's package includes the 3-day STIR, a practice day and 30-day Bluewater Membership at the St. Thomas Yacht Club. Prices are $2200 with good sails and $2700 with new sails.
For something bigger, Antigua & Barbuda-based Ondeck is chartering its Beneteau 40.7 (Ortac) and Farr 65 (Spirit of Juno). Beyond this, the J/120, J-aguar, is available from CaribbeanRaces.com as is the J/122, El Ocaso, from CaribbeanYachtracing.com
Charter the Beneteau First 40.7, Escapado, from SailRacingAcademy.org or either the Beneteau First 47.7 (EH01) or Grand Soleil 43 (Jua Kali) from PerformanceYachtRacing.com There's a race charter for every type of sailor from LV Yachting : Swan 80 (Umiko), Volvo Ocean 65 (formerly Vestas 11th Hour), GP42 (Phan), Figaro 3 (production foiling one-design monohull), RP45 (Katsu), JPK 1180 (Sunrise), Sunfast 3600 (Jellyfish), Grand Soleil 50 (Sidney 2), Sigma 38, Beneteau First 40 and TS5 (Blackjack; 52-foot performance catamaran).
Register now for STIR 2020 at Yachtscoring.com
Pay US $150, or 50% off the regular entry fee, between now and January 31, 2020. Also, sign up for the March 26 Round the Rocks (RTR) race. Entry $50 per boat.
We Love It Here' You will too!
Email: stycisv [AT] gmail [DOT] com, Call (340) 775-6320
www.stthomasinternationalregatta.com
Itajai returns as host city for The Ocean Race
The Ocean Race 2021-22 will stop in Itajai, Brazil, marking the fourth consecutive time the city on the Santa Catarina coastline will host the iconic event.
n 2017-18, Itajai was among the most visited stopovers in the race, with over 440,000 race fans coming to the Race Village after the final Southern Ocean leg of the race.
With Brazilian Olympic champion Martine Grael taking part in the race for the first time, fans had an additional reason to show their support.
"It's fantastic that we return to Itajai, following three successful stopovers in the previous editions," said Richard Brisius, Race Chairman of The Ocean Race. "In 2018, seeing the response of the home crowd to Martine Grael was a powerful reminder of what this sport - and The Ocean Race - means to our fans in Brazil."
"I'm very excited to hear that The Ocean Race will be returning to Itajai. This is great news for Brazilian sailors and race fans," said Torben Grael, Brazil's five-time Olympic medallist, who skippered Ericsson 4 to victory in The Ocean Race 2008-09, and is now a board member of World Sailing.
In 2018, Grael, the most decorated Brazilian Olympian of all time, was among the fans on shore at the Race Village to welcome his daughter Martine's arrival after a long Southern Ocean leg and saw first-hand the excitement the race generated.
"With a possible Brazilian entry in the next race, this interest could grow even more," said Grael, who also skippered Brasil 1 in the 2005-06 event.
The Ocean Race is scheduled to start from its home port in Alicante, Spain in Q4 of 2021 and finish in Genoa, Italy in June of 2022. The full Race Route will be confirmed in the coming weeks. Itajai, Brazil joins the sailing hotspot of Aarhus, Denmark and The Hague in The Netherlands as confirmed host cities, along with Cabo Verde, which will be the first West African stop in the history of the Race.
Mills and McIntyre up for top gong
Click on image to enlarge.
Hannah Mills and Eilidh McIntyre have been nominated for Team of the Year in the Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year Awards.
The British Sailing Team pair received the nod for the prestigious award in recognition of a stellar season that saw them crowned 470 world champions in the Olympic venue of Enoshima in August as well as winning a string of medals including silver at the Olympic test event.
The Sunday Times Sportswomen of the Year awards have been running since 1988 and celebrate Britain's female sporting heroes from grassroots sports to elite competition.
Mills, from Cardiff, Wales, and McIntyre, from Hayling Island, Hants, will face stiff competition for the Team of the Year award.
Other nominees in the category include the England women's football team, the England women's netball team, the England women's rugby union team, Britain's modern pentathlon squad and Europe's Solheim Cup team.
Voting closes at 12pm on Monday November 18. The winners will be announced at a star-studded awards ceremony at News UK's London offices on the evening of Thursday November 21.
To vote for Mills and McIntyre
Drama for Israeli Olympic windsurfing
Israel is a world-leader in windsurfing. Their boys and girls youth sailors were top three at the 2019 Youth Sailing World Championships, and their top men and women have a history of medaling at elite windsurfing world championships. Windsurfing is an event the country specializes in but a recent report by The Times of Israel has taken the spotlight off the water:
(October 23, 2019) - Israel's top windsurfer, considered to be a contender for a medal in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, has become embroiled in a scandal that could hurt her chances after it was revealed that she has been in an eight-month affair with the coach of the Israeli women's team, who was fired over the relationship.
Other windsurfers and their parents have now banded together, complaining to sporting authorities that 20-year-old Katy Spychakov's romantic involvement with French coach Pierre Loquet, 37, had earned her preferential treatment, one-on-one training sessions and an unfair advantage in the race for the single spot representing Israel at the Olympics.
That race is all but decided, with Spychakov - the silver medalist in last month's World Championships - enjoying a comfortable lead with only one qualifying event remaining, the 2020 World Championships. The gap can only be closed if another Israeli windsurfer takes gold and Spychakov is unsuccessful.
Now, competitors are calling for all previous progress to be deleted and for the Olympic race to be restarted, just nine months before the Tokyo games kick off. The Israel Sailing Association has rejected outright their original demand to immediately suspend Spychakov from all activity.
As the affair was revealed yesterday, the association immediately announced that Loquet had been fired.
The association has formed a committee that will now discuss how to determine whether Spychakov's relationship with Loquet had positively affected her professional achievements at the expense of the other windsurfers.
Catamaran Cup Leg 3: Spetses - Astros
The third racing leg of the Catamarans Cup 2019 took place from Spetses to Astros.
Further to the skippers meeting at 09:45, all boats sailed to Astros and following their arrival a warm ceremony took place at 20:30 in the spectacular seaside of Astros so that everybody would get the chance to relax before the last leg of the race.
Portuguese take the podium in the European Sailing Championship Adapted in Portimao
Five days of competition where 113 athletes from 10 countries competed for the title of European Champion in four classes - Hansa 2.3, Hansa 303 Singles and Doubles, and Liberty at the 2019 European Adapted Sailing Championship in Portimao.
A week of intense competition that put athletes to the test with less favorable conditions in the early days, with little wind and lots of sun, and ended with strong wind, some rain and fog on the last day of the racing.
Hui Naval Club athlete Rui Dowling was crowned European Champion in class 2.3 - a class of smaller vessels - followed by Andre Bento (National School of Adapted Sailing), who took the silver medal in the same class. Third, the Dutchman Akko Van Der Deen took the bronze.
In 303 Singles, Joao Pinto - athlete of the Naval Club of Portimao - took home the Bronze in the first international race after 4 years out of sailing. Gold and silver went to Piotr Cichocki (POL) and Chris Symonds (AUS), respectively. Polish duo Piotr Cichocki and Olga Gruzdien took the title of European champions in 303 doubles, followed by Natalia Hillman-Bermejo and Allan Hillman (GBR) and French duo Gilles Guyon and Olivier Ducruix. A class that has been up for grabs until the last minute.
In the first competition of its kind for the servo-assisted Liberty Class, the podium was invaded by the Dutch, Vera Voorbach, Wilma Van Der Broek and Hanneke Deenen taking all three steps.
Associacao Teia D'Impulsos and Marina de Portimao Yacht Club have said they will try to bring the 2021 Adapted Sailing World Cup to Portugal.
Launchings
Building the state of the art full Neo570C carbon cruiser racer. We had a look into the second phase of the construction at the Bari yard with CEO Paolo Semeraro and designer Shaun Carkeek.
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Do not touch! That's written on the note on the bow of the #Pelagic 77. Her hull is almost completely sanded down, all by hand. Very much a job that requires patience and skills. Oil on fingertips and hands will leave prints on the freshly sanded hull. Aluminium will oxidize over time and that will form a natural protection layer.
The hull will be turned on November 1 at KM Yachtbuilders, Makkum.
"We're proud to be the elected builders for this new Pelagic which will added to the legendary fleet and wish to share this milestone with you. Representing Pelagic Yachts, Skip Novak himself will attend and will gladly answer any questions you might have. Our team of builders and engineers is available for questions as well."
www.facebook.com/KMYachtbuilders
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The new IMOCA 60 yacht Hugo Boss was designed and built in a partnership comprising of the Alex Thomson Racing technical team, naval architects VPLP, and boat builder Jason Carrington. Industrial designer Karim Rashid, meanwhile, devised the boat's unique brand identity. These leaders in their fields worked towards a singular objective: to create a groundbreaking yacht capable of winning the 2020-21 Vendee Globe.
Every part of the yacht, which weighs 7.6 tons, has been intricately designed and custom-built with two key factors in mind: weight and reliability. Made almost entirely from carbon fiber for lightness and durability, the boat's black hull has been streamlined at the bow, and the iconic BOSS logo has been created from silver carbon, making it an integrated structural element for the first time. The boat's hydrofoils have been radically redesigned for speed, while the cockpit has been moved inside the boat to offer greater protection from the elements - something never before seen in this sport.
The boat also features a unique shade of fluorescent pink, never previously used in the IMOCA class. Karim Rashid emblazoned the boat's coach roof, keel, and rudders with this color, while a pattern inspired by the weave of carbon fiber is featured on the boat's foredeck and sails.
The yacht will race for the first time on October 27, 2019 when Alex Thomson competes in the Transat Jacques Vabre race from France to Brazil.
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Cannes Yachting Festival served as the backdrop for Volvo Penta's unveiling of a new take on its Saildrive system - an electric Saildrive prototype. Offering the prospect of onboard comfort, near-soundless, low vibration operation, and silent mooring, the initiative is a collaboration with long term boat building partner, Fountaine Pajot. A twin installation of the electric prototype has been fitted to a Lucia 40 catamaran.
The unveiling of the electric prototype comes amid increased interest in emission-free boating and maturing of electromobility technology. More than just the electric propulsion element, Volvo Penta has taken a 'full systems' approach, working closely with Fountaine-Pajot to understand customer usage patterns of the complete boat. The electric prototype is based on Fountaine-Pajot's extensive customer usage database, which accurately defines drive cycles for a wide range of user profiles.
The technology behind the electric Saildrive is based on Volvo Group's proven designs for electromobility - and many components are shared. Li-ion battery packs power an electric motor, which in turn drives the Saildrive propeller. The system offers more power and torque at low speeds compared to a similar diesel engine.
The onboard amenities - including air-conditioning - can be powered from the system's battery packs - in silence for up to 12 hours.
Depending on speed and sea conditions, the technology has the potential for up to four hours/20 nautical miles of zero-emission electric cruising, perfect for when operating in sensitive or restricted areas.
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"Quite simply, the Hylas H48 is 2019's Best Full-Size Cruiser Under 48 Feet." Says "Boat of the Year" Judges.
"As a long-range voyaging vessel, the judges found it irresistible...the stainless work is just incredible...you could sail by yourself without any problem. Impressive,"
The new H48 boasts wide, clean decks, ease of handling, deck-saloon windows for optimum light and visibility, and a classic, spacious center cockpit. Available in 3-cabin, 2-heads or luxurious twin stateroom layout. "Yes, it's more expensive than the other boats in this class. But there's real value there too. It's solidly put together. It's a very elegant-looking boat. For a couple who want and can afford this style of bluewater cruiser, it's a sweet ride."
www.hylasyachts.com/sailing-yachts/h48/
Featured Brokerage
1937 Tore Holm 53 ft Bermudan Cutter. 650,000 EUR. Located in France
HAVSORNEN is a very fine example of Scandinavian design and boat building from Tore Holm at the peak of his powers with the build supervised by him in his family yard. Well maintained by her present owner, including a major winter refit 2016-2017, she has excelled on the Mediterranean regatta circuit and has also proven herself a very capable cruising yacht. Her seaworthy hull provides good headroom below, and the interior finish is a delight.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
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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1983 Newport Offshore Shipyard Frers 59 Alloy Custom. 160,000 EUR. Located in Viareggio, Italy
Beautiful aluminium one-off from German Frers with benefit of comprehensive recent refit. TEMPTATION offers a fantastic opportunity to own a piece of yachting art with a great pedigree.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
Contact
Michele Antonini
Tel: +39 333 74 89 281
Email: michele [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.
See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly
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
Much of what passes for argument in the public square these days would be laughed out of court. -- Preet Bharara
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