In This Issue
• Yannick Bestaven First At Cape Horn
• Dalin Second At Cape Horn
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• 2021 Sail Melbourne Regatta cancelled
• Luna Rossa reportedly alter boat design to match Team New Zealand
• To Win The America's Cup First Win The Prada Cup
• America's Cup: Afterguard analysis - NYYC American Magic
• Webinar: "The Best Handicapping System There Is", And How It Came To Be
• Industry News
• Letters to the Editor
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Vismara V50 Mills
• • NEEL 51 - Trimaran
• • LM46 Performance Cruiser
• The Last Word: Paul Lynde
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
Yannick Bestaven First At Cape Horn
Alone, surfing north eastwards in the grip of stormy winds and seas, passing 85 miles south of the famous solitary rocky islet, the huge whoop of delight from 48 year old Vendee Globe leader Yannick Bestaven when he finally passed Cape Horn Saturday afternoon marked in an instant his victorious end to the relentless Southern Oceans and the start of the 7000 miles climb homewards to Les Sables d'Olonne.
When Bestaven doubled the mythical lighthouse at 1342hrs UTC this Saturday afternoon 55 days and 22 minutes after the Vendee Globe start on Sunday 8th November it concluded a remarkably successful first time in the Southern Ocean.
A past winner of the MiniTransat and twice victorious in the two handed Transat Jacques Vabre in Class40, Bestaven - who had never raced south of southern Brasil before - has been in the top three of the fleet since the Kerguelen Islands and took the lead just before the longitude of Tasmania. He has consistently sailed fast on his well prepared and reliable 2015 VPLP Verdier design which he has preserved to ensure he starts the Atlantic climb with his boat and set up at 100% of potential or close to it.
As he rounded he was more than 160 miles ahead of second placed Charlie Dalin (Apivia) with third placed Thomas Ruyant about 458 miles, or one day behind Bestaven's cheers were as much of relief, successful deliverance from a very intense few days racing hard on the front of a low pressure system with his lead and his boat intact. The passage across the Pacific was punctuated by four days around Christmas in very light winds when there seemed to be a chance Bestaven and Dalin might be caught, but Bestaven - who grew up in Arcachon to the south of the French Atlantic coast - sailed impeccably, always pushing hard on fast, direct courses along the Antarctic Exclusion Zone.
Dalin Second At Cape Horn
Charlie Dalin, the 36 year old French skipper of Apivia, doubled Cape Horn early this morning at 0439hrs UTC in second place on the Vendee Globe. It is Dalin's first ever passage of Cape Horn and he rounded some 14 hours and 56 minutes after the race leader Yannick Bestaven on Maître Coq IV. He passed some seven miles south of the famous rocky island on the very tip of South America, passing into the Atlantic to complete his first time in the Southern Ocean.
With a margin of about 150 miles as he approaches the Islas de Los Estados (Staten Island), which lies 16 nautical miles off the Argentine part of Tierra del Fuego, leader Yannick Bestaven has struck an important psychological blow to the main pursuing pack who are now more than 500 miles behind him. That is one and a half days of racing time and he has his 10hrs 15mins redress in his pocket too. He still has 6,800 nautical miles to go and likely knows that in the eight editions of the Vendee Globe so far sailed, seven have been won by the sailor who was first at Cape Horn. In 2004-5 Jean Le Cam led at Cape Horn but was passed by winner Vincent Riou in the Atlantic.
But in saying that the weather for the early part of the climb up the Atlantic are far from easy. The next 130 nautical miles to the Falklands are relatively straightforward for Bestaven but then it is difficult. A high-pressure system with light winds on the Argentine coast will shifts slowly towards the Saint Helena thigh and join up at the end of the week as a new anticyclone bubbles up along the Argentinian coast next weekend. The route seems to involve a lot of zig-zags, east then back west, to climb north. And so there is still a huge uncertainty looming for Bestaven, and indeed Dalin.
Top ten at 28 Dec 2020 - 21h (UTC)
1. Yannick Bestaven - Maitre CoQ IV, 6641.49 nm to finish
2. Charlie Dalin - APIVIA, 147.44 nm to leader
3. Thomas Ruyant - LinkedOut, 339.58 nm
4. Damien Seguin - GROUPE APICIL, 384.91 nm
5. Benjamin Dutreux - OMIA - WATER FAMILY, 618.31 nm
6. Louis Burton 0- Valley 2 Office, 656.85 nm
7. Jean Le Cam - Yes We Cam!, 680.02 nm
8. Boris Herrmann - SEAEXPLORER - YACHT CLUB DE MONACO, 684.84 nm
9. Maxime Sorel - V and B-MAYENNE, 710.93 nm
10. Isabelle Joschke - MACSF, 753.81 nm
Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
Tuesday January 5th is the last day that we accept nominations for our 2020 award, our Top Ten will be announced this Friday.
Tonight we honor a frequently mentioned establishment, one known to anyone who's visited the British Virgin Islands (or sailed over from St. John as did your humble narrator, on a Mistral Superlight sailboard back around 1982).
Foxy's Tamarind Bar on Jost Van Dyke was founded in 1968.
In 1968, a young Philicianno ``Foxy`` Callwood saw the future on sailing yachts that came to call on the idyllic 4 square mile of Jost Van Dyke. In the shade of a Tamarind Tree, Foxy set up a bar for the specific purpose of welcoming sailors to his island home. Foxy's Tamarind Bar is often recognised as the birthplace of the BVI's Yachting tourism industry. Quick with a song, joke or story, Foxy has been welcoming visitors to 'his island' for 5 decades. He has received numerous awards for his contributions to heritage and tourism in the British Virgin Islands, including a MBE (Member of the British Empire) from H.M. The Queen of England, Elizabeth II.
Foxy's is (as far as we know) the only beach bar with its own burgee.
With their naturally socially distanced borders, the Caribbean islands have each been carefully rolling out their reopening plans to ensure that welcoming tourists doesn't also mean allowing the coronavirus to enter their countries.
The British Virgin Islands - a group of 60 islands east of Puerto Rico and west of Anguilla - is one of the latest, having reopened its borders to travelers on Dec. 1, albeit with strict restrictions in place, including multiple tests and a full four-day quarantine.
Information on how to get into the BVI's
Famous for their Painkiller, there's also a drink that Foxy's is well known for... the exact recipe's a state secret but this one is a very close approximation:
Dread Fox
1.5oz. Foxy's Fire Water Rum
4oz. Margarita Mix
1oz. Cranberry Juice
Mixing Instructions: Add all ingredients into mixing glass with ice. Shake well. Pour into glass with ice. Look out over Great Harbour. Raise glass and toast.
Nominate YOUR favorite bar... at eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars or email editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com
2021 Sail Melbourne Regatta cancelled
Australian Sailing in conjunction with the Royal Brighton Yacht Club (RBYC) regretfully announces that the 2021 Sail Melbourne regatta has been cancelled.
RBYC has been confirmed as a COVID-19 public exposure site, with known cases at the club on the 29th of December 2020 between 12.30-1.30 pm sitting outside in the restaurant. Anyone who visited the club at that time is encouraged to follow the health guidelines by getting tested immediately and quarantining for 14 days from the date of exposure.
For more information on public exposure sites and where to get tested visit the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) website
With borders closing rapidly , the organising committee made the difficult decision to cancel this year's edition of the regatta in the interest of public safety.
While the marina remains open, the clubhouse plans to reopen on Monday 3rd of January having received confirmation from the DHHS they are now able to do so post a certified deep clean of the club and its outer buildings. The deep clean was performed on Thursday 31st December.
Sail Melbourne Event Chairman and Past Commodore of RBYC, Paul Pascoe, said "We are disappointed to have to cancel Sail Melbourne for 2021. With many sailors travelling from around the country to attend the regatta it was crucial that we made an informed but timely decision to provide them as much notice as possible due to travel,"
"The primary focus is the safety of staff, visitors and members along with competitors health and welfare."
Held annually since 1992, this is the first time in 29 years that Sail Melbourne will not be going ahead.
A full refund will be returned for competitors who have registered for the regatta, with details to be shared directly with registrants in the coming days.
Luna Rossa reportedly alter boat design to match Team New Zealand
The America's Cup design warfare is in full swing with Luna Rossa altering its boat to match a Team New Zealand innovation.
The Italian sailing website Fare Vela reported it had spotted the changes around the cockpit area of their AC75 boat over the weekend.
"Luna Rossa has created the fairings to optimise the aerodynamics of the deck and reduce the drag of the crew," it reported.
"The new measure was hypothesised by several observers after seeing the best fairing on Te Rehutai."
There are also claims the Italians have altered their setup to give the grinders more leverage. -- Chris Rattue
To Win The America's Cup First Win The Prada Cup
Organised by COR 36, Challenger of Record, the PRADA Cup - the Challenger Selection Series - will be held from January 15 to the end of February 2021: the last day depends on the number of races that will be necessary at the winner to earn seven victories and overwhelm the other challenger.
This crucial event determines which foreign Challenger will take on the Defender Emirates Team New Zealand in the 36th America's Cup Match in March 2021. True to the established traditions of the America's Cup since 1970, year of the first "Challenger Elimination Series", strongly wanted by Baron Marcel Bich and imposed to the New York Yacht Club. From that edition the Challenger Series become an important event in the event.
The three Challengers come from Europe and the States. Each has a strong story to tell: from United Kingdom INEOS TEAM UK brings back on the great show the Royal Yacht Squadron, the club where the "Hundred Guineas Cup" was raced in 1851 under Queen Victoria's reign and eyes. The skipper is Sir Ben Ainslie, 5 Olympic medals winner, the only in history with four golds in a row. From the United States New York Yacht Club comes back to the Cup with American Magic and Terry Huchtinson as skipper. Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team by the Italian passionate "sailor" Patrizio Bertelli is the sixth challenge he runs. The challenge is signed by Circolo della Vela Sicilia and Max Sirena is the skipper.
The racing will consist of four round robin sessions starting on January 15, with the winner qualifying for the PRADA Cup Final. The remaining two teams will then compete in a first-to-four point PRADA Cup semi-final, with the winner also qualifying for the PRADA Cup Final. The first-to-seven-points PRADA Cup Final starts on 13 February, with the winner becoming the Challenger for the 36th America's Cup.
America's Cup: Afterguard analysis - NYYC American Magic
In the second of our exclusive articles examining the brains trust/afterguard line-ups for each of the four 36th America's Cup syndicates. we shine the spotlight on US Challenger NYYC American Magic.
According to what American Magic mainsail trimmer Paul Goodison told us in an interview on a recent episode of The Yacht Racing Podcast, the speed loop aboard the American's AC75 Defiant consists of himself, helmsman Dean Barker, tactician and skipper Terry Hutchinson, and flight controller Andrew Campbell.
"The main communication is the 'speed loop' between me, Dean, and Andrew - who's trimming the foils - about how we're making the boat go. Then from a tactical side Terry's inputting to help us get around the race course in the best shape we can."
Earwigging on the chat on board Defiant during the America's Cup World Series - Auckland regatta Barker appears to do most of the talking as he maintains an almost 'stream of consciousness' commentary of what he is seeing/thinking/feeling from the wheel as the race develops.
It is hard to say definitively as we were only hearing snippets of the on-board audio but we were surprised to hear very little verbal input from Hutchinson - although worth noting that as well as his tactician role Hutchinson also contributes to the grinding from a fixed position on the port side of the boat, directly in front of the port helming station. (It could also be that Hutchinson's audio was not included in the event's live feed coverage.)
Likewise flight controller Campbell stays fixed in position on the starboard side. Both he and Hutchinson act as Barker's eyes to leeward of the double-skin, end-plated mainsail and feed back on boat-on-boat positioning and other relevant information when required.
Full article: yachtracing.life
Webinar: "The Best Handicapping System There Is", And How It Came To Be
One of the key factors in the success of the Selden SailJuice Winter Series over the past 11 years has been the handicap numbers applied to the classes. This Sunday evening, at 5pm GMT on 3 January 2021, founder and chairman of the Great Lakes Handicap Committee, Andrew Craig, is joining Series co-organisers Simon Lovesey and Andy Rice to talk about the origins, the reasons, the controversies and the future of small-boat handicapping in the UK and beyond.
It's a Facebook Live session which you can join here: (it's archived!)
www.facebook.com/SeldenSailJuiceWinterSeries
At last weekend's gathering of winners both past and present of the Selden SailJuice Winter Series, multiple Endeavour Champion Nick Craig described the Great Lakes handicapping system as 'the best there is'. Which is not to say that it's perfect, because what handicapping system ever will be! But it's widely acknowledged that the Great Lakes is contributing to a much fairer handicap racing environment than used to be seen a decade ago.
To learn more about the Great Lakes before the call: http://greatlakes.org.uk
Since the inception of the Great Lakes, sailing clubs have been in touch with Andrew to find out how to implement their own numbers locally, and he will be sharing his advice and methodology for making this happen whilst avoiding the worst potential pitfalls of sailing club politics.
It's a thorny subject and one about which pretty much every dinghy racer has an opinion. So join us and see if you agree with the approach taken by the Great Lakes Group.
This Sunday evening, at 5pm GMT on 3 January 2021
www.facebook.com/SeldenSailJuiceWinterSeries
On the webinar we'll also be bringing the latest updates on the events in Selden SailJuice Winter Series, and how they are being affected by COVID regulations in England.
Industry News
Key Yachting is delighted to announce that Wayne Palmer and Hayley Quinn from Hampshire-based Thinking Space Systems have purchased the ownership of Key Yachting. With their head office in Romsey, Thinking Space Systems is a global provider of high-quality technical furniture.
"After 25 years, I am delighted to hand the helm over to Wayne and Hayley," commented Marie-Claude Heys, who founded Key Yachting in 1996 with her late husband Paul. "This year, as part of the logistics team from Miranda Merron's Vendee Globe campaign, it really made my mind up. The time is right for me to make a change, and I am keen to get back to my roots in offshore sailing." continued Marie-Claude, who competed in four Figaro campaigns and two Whitbread Round the World Races.
Wayne Palmer founded Thinking Space Systems in 2003, which has offices in Australia, Canada, UK and the USA. Wayne is a keen sailor having competed in two Fastnet Races and currently races his J/109 Flying Jackal. Hayley Quinn is an experienced qualified accountant with a passion for managing leisure focused businesses.
"From a design, engineering and manufacturing perspective, there are many similarities between Thinking Systems and Key Yachting," commented Wayne. "Hayley and I cannot wait to get started in the new year. Key Yachting has world class brands, and it is rare to be able to acquire a business that has been in the same ownership for so long."
Key Yachting Sales Director, Hannah Le Prevost will mentor the new owners into the business. "2021 is going to be an exciting year for all the right reasons," commented Hannah who has been an integral part of Key Yachting for 11 years. "We will continue our strong relationship with our business partners and above all with our past, present and future boat owners."
Key Yachting is the sole UK distributor for J Boats, Grand Soleil, Nautitech Catamarans and Tofinou.
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Boats Group has announced that a company backed by the Permira funds has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Boats Group from funds advised by Apax Partners. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Through its industry-leading brands - YachtWorld, Boat Trader, boats.com, Cosas De Barcos, Annonces du Bateau and Botentekoop - and integrated suite of data, marketing software and workflow tools, Boats Group's global marketplaces connect millions of buyers and sellers of boats. Headquartered in Miami, Boats Group provides over 4,000 brokers and dealers in more than 140 countries with a comprehensive suite of technology-based marketing and software solutions, enabling them to effectively reach in-market consumers, improve their overall profitability, and manage their operations.
Steve Kooyers, Partner at Apax Partners, said: "When the Apax Funds carved Boats Group out of Dominion Enterprises, we saw an opportunity to accelerate growth at a well-positioned marketplace by recruiting a world class management team, investing in product innovation, and leveraging our extensive history of online classified investments. It's been a pleasure to partner with Sam and the team to drive value for boaters, dealers, brokers and OEMs throughout North America and Europe."
Marcelo Gigliani, Partner at Apax Partners, added "The team's extraordinary execution is evidenced in Boats Group's consistent growth in traffic and engagement, which have further reinforced its position as the clear leader in all its markets. We wish Boats Group and its team the very best in the years ahead."
RBC Capital Markets served as financial advisor to Permira, and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP provided legal counsel. Evercore served as financial advisor to Apax Partners and Boats Group, and Kirkland & Ellis LLP provided legal counsel. The transaction, which is subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021.
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The six year old HP30 class continues to receive resounding endorsements from owners and is now firmly established, having grown every season. A minimum of 12 boats, including high-profile new names, are already lined up to race across 10 events in 2021.
As a Corinthian class, the HP30s are attractive because of the close racing on offer and the accessibility of the class compliant boats. The boats are straight forward, with no foils, or water ballast and construction materials are tightly controlled, as is the class rule, by the Class Technical Committee.
In 2021, as in previous years, there will be two racing series. The main prizes are for the core Championship Series of six events over the summer months. In addition, a Solent Series spans the whole season. hp30class.com/events
All but one of the existing teams remain in the fleet for the new season, with the notable exception of Farr30 Pegasus Dekmarx, whose owner has recently retired to France. That said the class continues to attract new teams and SB20 supremo Jerry Hill and co-owner Richard Faulkner who have just bought Farr 280#5, previously called FOMO, which will be joining the fleet in the near future. Other entries for the coming season include three other further Farr280s, five FarEast 28Rs, a Lutra 30, J/90 and McConaghy31. In addition a Swiss Farr 280, Dutch FarEast28R, and Cornish FarEast31R will join the fleet for the core summer series, bringing the fleet to an impressive fifteen boats.
The vision of racing powerful light displacement boats of similar speed potential is clearly attractive to owners outside the UK too and the class is delighted that working groups in Europe, the USA, Japan and Australia are now also looking to replicate the success of the UK fleet, to establish their own HP30 programmes.
For teams wanting to get involved, visit www.HP30class.com
Letters To The Editor - editor [AT] eurosailnews [DOT] com
Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.
*From Alistair Skinner: re: GET IT RIGHT BOYS!
With the America’s Cup a matter of week away I have been spending some time revisiting some of the AC History, notably Bob Fisher’s amazing book “AN Absorbing Interest”. Other than size, it is not a typical coffee table book. For a start it has less pictures than words and is in two volumes and not just one.
From there I went to the America’s Cup Hall of Fame website to see what they said about the only Brit who has achieved any real glory so far in The Cup’s nearly 170 year history.
One could reasonably expect the home of the names of all the America’s Cups greats to be on the money when it comes to accuracy - sadly no!
I’m talking about Charles (Charlie) Barr, one of Scotland’s sons, born in Gourock on the southern shore of the Firth of Clyde who was baptised into the America’s Cup as crewman to his brother John on the Scottish entry, Thistle. After that Cup Charlie stayed on in the USA, became a naturalised citizen and went on to successfully defend the America’s Cup three times, I feat that may have been equalled as a skipped since but never bettered. Charlie Barr also went on to set a trans-Atlantic record that stood for almost a century.
Now unless there has been a huge tectonic shift of San Andrean proportions Gourock is in Scotland. Not so according to the Hall of Fame which shows Captain Barr as “England”.
Now I am nationalistic but I am proud of our nation so was disappointed that the museum of America’s Cup heroes could get it so wrong. A little like calling an American a Mexican or Canadian perhaps.Having said that, when I went on to read what they said about Dennis Conner, rather than saying he equalled Barr’s record their first sentence reads Conner was the only skipper that raced for The Cup four times which meant he did something Charie Barr never did that being he lost an America’s Cup match beaten according to the Hall of Fame website by a boat and not her crew.
I suppose the basic error of not knowing the difference between England & Scotland some way goes to show that for some Americans the world ends just east of Rhode Island.
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The Last Word
Comedy is exaggerated realism. It can be stretched to the almost ludicrous, but it must always be believable. -- Paul Lynde
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