In This Issue
• Ichi Ban declared overall and handicap winner of the 75th Rolex Sydney to Hobart
• Comanche powers to clear line honours victory
• Roll Up for Antigua Sailing Week
• Clipper Race 5
• Murrays Mint Another Monkey
• Sail into 2020 celebrating Cork300 and ‘where it all began’ at Volvo Cork Week
• Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
• Slow going in ORCV Melbourne to Hobart Race
• Season's greetings from The Ocean Race!
• Lord Nelson tall ship for disabled people may get Bristol home
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Bavaria C57
• • Carbon Ocean 82 AEGIR
• • Swan 68-004 Explotadot
• The Last Word: Ram Dass
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
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Ichi Ban declared overall and handicap winner of the 75th Rolex Sydney to Hobart
New South Wales yacht Ichi Ban has become both the overall and handicap winner of the 75th Sydney to Hobart race.
Ichi ban was at sea for more than three days, after becoming overall and handicap race winner
It was also the handicap title winner in 2017
On Saturday, supermaxi Comanche claimed line honours victory
Ichi Ban arrived in Hobart on Saturday evening, after three days, four hours, 11 minutes and five seconds at sea.
It is the second time the yacht has taken out the handicap crown, first winning in 2017, and narrowly missing out last year.
Skipper Matt Allen said the win was "a great thrill" for the whole crew
A fleet of 157 yachts left Sydney on Boxing Day. Some boats are still expected to arrive in Hobart today, but forecast storms this afternoon are expected to make conditions difficult for those at sea.
Comanche powers to clear line honours victory
Comanche’s line honours win in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race this morning may not have fully erased the disappointment of her third place last year for co-owner and skipper Jim Cooney.
But the super maxi’s win over InfoTrack, Wild Oats XI, SHK Scallywag 100 and Black Jack – the four other super maxis this year – is helping Cooney to let go of some of the angst from 2018. At that time, Comanche finished behind the Oatley family’s Wild Oats XI (which claimed its record ninth victory) and was pipped for second by Peter Harburg’s Black Jack.
“I don't think it will ever erase the memory completely,” said Cooney after Comanche signed off on the 628-nautical-mile Cruising Yacht Club of Australia race in a time of 1 day 18 hours 30 minutes and 24 seconds – outside her 2017 record of 1 day 9hrs 15mins 24secs.
“Last year was very frustrating; having led all the way down the coast until we got to Tasman Island. You'll always remember that disappointment, but it’s faded a little bit after today.”
Built in 2014, Comanche first took line honours in 2015 under previous owners Jim and Kristy Clark, by beating Syd Fischer’s Ragamuffin 100.
Under ownership of Cooney and wife Samantha Grant, the 100-footer’s line honours victory in 2017 came after Wild Oats XI was penalised over a port and starboard incident with her and lost line honours and the record.
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/
Clipper Race 5
Race 5: The Whitsundays, Heart of the Great Barrier Reef, is unfolding as a close race, with the majority of the fleet surfing their way east, towards Tasmania within close proximity of one another. The sixth day of racing has been backed by favourable conditions, whilst lighter winds have proved trying for some as the team's positions are continually changing in the race around the Australian coast line.
The smooth sailing conditions, whilst challenging, can provide the new crew with a good opportunity to gain some valuable technical sailing experience. On board Seattle, currently placed seventh, Skipper David Hartshorn has had the new crew members helming under a starry night, until the stars disappeared, he reported: “Within a few hours there was 8/8 cloud cover, not a single reference point to help guide. Then the wind began to veer, and continued to veer, so to ensure we didn’t head towards St Georgia, we need to gybe. In the dark, first Spinnaker gybe, what could possibly go wrong? Well nothing actually. ‘SeaHawks’ conducted it with textbook precision, and I was really impressed and then we making excellent progress to Tasmania and clear of the emerging high pressure to the north.”
Whilst the smooth conditions are favourable for a while, the light winds can prove frustrating.
Currently top of the leaderboard is Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam. Skipper Josh Stickland said: “a day or so ago, I said that I was very much looking forward to going surfing, well, unfortunately in order to surf we need waves and currently its a fairly flat sea state.”
Chris Brooks, Skipper of Qingdao has questioned their tactical race decisions, saying: “Hopefully we can close down some gaps with Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam and GoToBermuda. Trouble is, their early right-hander saw them in more pressure, and they are now flying along at well over 12 and 13 knots whilst we remain pushing 11.”
Murrays Mint Another Monkey
Colin and Oli Murray successfully defended their grip on the Yorkshire Dales Brass Monkey after sailing their Norfolk Punt to victory in the third event of the Seldén Sailjuice Winter Series.
It was a sold-out, hundred-boat entry for the Brass Monkey with lots of quality in the fleet, but the light airs and drizzly overcast conditions played to the strengths of the Murrays’ Norfolk Punt. Principal race officer Phil Whitehead made the best of the difficult southerly breeze and set a long, 1.7 mile course that made the best of Grimwith Reservoir, with lots of offwind sailing legs. Unfortunately the fickle breeze meant only one race could take place.
On Great Lakes corrected time, the team from Invergordon Boating Club won by 61 seconds ahead of Wimbleball’s Simon Hawkes who had travelled all the way from the west country to compete in his K1 singlehanded keelboat, with Arran Holman’s D-Zero coming in third place. Hayling Island’s Jack Hopkins raced his Solo to fourth place, just ahead of Burghfield’s Nick Craig who yet again proves his multi-class versatility by sailing his Hadron H2 to fifth overall. There were nine different classes in the top 10 overall, with the D-Zeros occupying 3rd and 10th spots. The Norfolk Punt aside, the only other trapeze boat to make the top 10 was Josh Moran’s Musto Skiff from Ullswater.
After three of the eight events of this year’s Seldén Sailjuice Winter Series, Laser sailor Olton Mere’s George Sunderland is not only top Youth but top dog in the overall rankings. Moving up to second overall are the defending champions from last season, Simon Horsfield and Katie Burridge’s 2000 representing the Army Sailing Association. Burton on Trent’s Andrew Spencer, sailing a D-Zero, is in third overall.
The next event takes place Sunday, 29 December, with the Grafham Grand Prix. The RS Aero 5 has the most entries with 17 boats, followed by the D-Zero with 12 on the start line.
Sail into 2020 celebrating Cork300 and ‘where it all began’ at Volvo Cork Week
In 2020, the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Ireland will celebrate its 300th anniversary with an exciting series of events across Cork harbour, titled Cork300, and everyone is invited to join in the action and fun!
Founded in 1720, the Royal Cork Yacht Club is the oldest yacht club in the world and its tricentenary celebrations will take a look back at the origins of ‘where it all began’.
The Cork 300 events will centre around the world-renowned, biennial, Volvo Cork Week 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.
Volvo Cork Week 2020 is widely viewed as a ‘must attend’ regatta and is this year expected to attract a bumper fleet of entries due to its historic significance. It will 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.
Volvo The 2020 IRC European Championships, organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), will also be hosted by the Royal Cork Yacht Club during Volvo Cork Week 2020.
In addition to the vast array of sailing events planned for Volvo Cork Week and Cork300, a huge variety of food and entertainment events will take place throughout the season, ensuring Cork will be the only place to be in Summer 2020.
For more see www.cork300.com
Seahorse Sailor Of The Month
This month's nominees:
Iain Percy (GBR)
Finn gold medallist in 2000, gold medallist in the Star in 2008 then a silver medal in 2012, two-time Star world champion, now Artemis CEO, Percy has added the 2019 Star Sailors League Final to his glittering resume. Not surprisingly, Percy spent minimal time in the Star after the death of his close friend and Star crew Andrew Simpson in the Artemis capsize in 2013, so this result was all the more impressive against an extraordinary array of the world's greatest sailors
Pete Burling (NZL)
Where to begin... Pete Burling and partner Blair Tuke started the Olympic comeback proper at the 2019 49er Worlds with a race win before closing out their fifth title with just two finishes out of the top 10... in a pre-Olympic strength fleet of 88 boats and over 17 races. All while taking the minimum possible time out from their duties at Team New Zealand. A lot of the 49er crews flew home wondering what they'd all been doing since Rio 2016
Last Month's winner:
Andrew Pindar (GBR)
'A lot of people will say how much Andrew changed their life... well, without Andrew I wouldn't have met my wife!!! He knows how much he means to Emma and me but it's lovely to be able to say it here' - Mike Sanderson; 'Andrew supports so many people without ever needing to be in the limelight himself' - Emma Westmacott; 'An incredible supporter of women in sailing' - Tracy Parkes; 'This guy has done so much for sailing it's incredible' - Jon Roberson; 'A priceless asset to the sport' - Ingrid Abery; 'Short guy, lot of energy!!!' - Phil Lawrence; 'An amazing promoter of women's sailing' - Fiona Mills; 'One of the most humble, generous people I have ever known' - Ingela Berntson.
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
Slow going in ORCV Melbourne to Hobart Race
The ORCV Melbourne to Hobart Race continues to be a fascinating affair, with the two leaders in sight of each other off the west coast of Tasmania. But it was another frustrating night for all competitors, with light winds making progress very slow.
At 8am, Lord Jiminy held a narrow lead over Soiree Bleu but both were showing just a couple of knots of boat speed with more than 260nm still to sail.
The situation shows no signs of improving, with light winds of less than 10 knots forecast until at least mid-morning on Monday.
Further back, third-placed Archie has just passed the north-west tip of Tasmania while Alien finally has the island in sight. Both were doing a mere 3.2 knots.
Lisa Blair and Jackie Parry on d'Albora's Climate Action Now had another frustrating night but they and the four-plus-autohelm crew on Saltair at least have some way on this morning, sailing at 4.3 knots in a light nor-wester.
Season's greetings from The Ocean Race!
Here's a gift for the holidays - 10 minutes of epic drone footage for your enjoyment...
Lord Nelson tall ship for disabled people may get Bristol home
A tall ship that is adapted to give people with physical impairments sailing experience may become a permanent attraction in Bristol.
Since 1986, the 55ft Lord Nelson has made more than 16,000 accessible voyages carrying 20,000 people.
It allows people with physical impairments, including wheelchair users, to sail side-by-side with people who do not have disabilities.
The Jubilee Trust, which owns the ship, has run into financial difficulties and is hoping to save it from being decommissioned.
In one week in June, the trust raised £1m in order to survive, but said to cut costs the ship would no longer sail and it is currently docked in Bristol Harbour.
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The Last Word
We are all just walking each other Home. -- Ram Dass
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