Brought to you by Seahorse magazine, Scuttlebutt Europe 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@scuttlebutteurope.com
Black Cat Wins Governor's Cup 2015
Dave Immelman and his team on Black Cat (Dudley Dix 38) have won the Governor's Cup 2015 after their nearest rival - Avanti - who finished ahead in the early hours this morning - declared they had switched on their engine for 95 miles and moved into the Cruising division.
Team Black Cat who thought they needed to beat Avanti on the water to be in with a chance of an overall win, crossed the finish line at 09.14.01 to a massive surprise when they discovered they were the overall winners.
After a windy start to the race from Simon's Town, South Africa on 27 December the fleet rounded Cape Point and settled in to a downwind blast off the African coast. This lasted several days before the St Helena High started to take effect and flit around unpredictably. Those who took the decision to sail north of the rhumb line, such as Banjo (Farrier F9AX) that took line honours and broke the race speed record on 6 January, generally benefited from a more consistent breeze.
While those who have finished are now settled into St Helena Yacht Club enjoying the warm St Helena hospitality, the remainder of the fleet continues to battle with the St Helena High. The final two in the Racing division - lechyd Da (Miura) and Spirit of Africa (Lavraonos 36) - still have 500 miles to go. They have until 1200 on Tuesday 13 January to make the extended deadline cut-off time.
http://governorscup.sh
http://www.facebook.com/Governorscuprace
The Gift. Gaes Lead To Cape Verde
Lining up to pass between the Cape Verde Islands, sprinting south between Sal Island and Sao Nicolau and then Santiago and Fogo, Anna Corbella and Gerard Marin on GAES Centros Auditivos are expected to lead the Barcelona World Race when the fleet negotiates the archipelago tonight.
Being ranked top of the table today is a fitting present for Marin who took a few moments to accept best wishes for his 33rd birthday. The Spanish duo, the only mixed male-female crew in the fleet, has profited short term from their early move to the west yesterday afternoon. But they have also been sailing fast throughout today in the right direction, whilst some of their nearest rivals are investing in miles to the west, seeking a future gain.
This morning's leader Hugo Boss, Alex Thomson and Pepe Ribes look set to go west of the island group, computed to be fourth for the meantime, whilst Cheminees Poujoulat in third trail Nutrogena who are second. Cheminees Poujoulat's Jean Le Cam should this evening pass the point which he and Bruno Dubois were dimasted in the last edition.
Ranking at 14:00 UTC Thursday 8th January 2015
Please note that some of these figures may be anomalous as they measure to a waypoint to the east of the fleet's current optimum course and do not measure in the direction of travel.
1. GAES Centros Auditivos (A Corbella - G Marin) 21805 miles to finish
2. Neutrogena (G Altadill - J Munoz) +approx +63 miles to leader
3. Cheminees Poujoulat (B Stamm - J Le Cam) +64.9
4. Hugo Boss (A Thomson - P Ribes) +132.6
5. Renault Captur (J Riechers - S Audigane) +139.2
6. One Planet One Ocean & Pharmaton (A Gelabert - D Costa) + 247.7
7. We Are Water (B Garcia - W Garcia) + 411
8. Spirit of Hungary (N Fa - C Colman) + 671
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International 14 World Championship
The second day of racing of the 2015 International 14 World Championship is shaping up to be a great day of competition on Geelong's, Corio Bay. The second race of the series is scheduled to start at about 2pm in a 10 to 15 knot southerly.
This morning's overcast conditions will do little to dampen the enthusiasm of the 67-boat fleet, particularly the British who hold the top five places after Race 1.
One team who expect a kinder day today are Ben McGrane and James Hughes. They finished third yesterday even after some man-made and some locally-made problems. They knew they were sailing slowly, but initially couldn't understand why. "It was the packing (in the centreboard). It pulled away on one side. It was a bit of drag.
"There was also weed everywhere and jelly-fish," McGrane said.
In the Australian Championship which is being run in conjunction with the World Championships, West Australia's Brad Devine and Ian Furlong hold first place. -- Tracey Johnstone
Mayflower II Restoration
The American-based historic replica ship Mayflower II arrived at Mystic Seaport on Sunday for a restoration at the southeastern Connecticut museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard.
The original 110 ft. overall Mayflower was the 15th century ship that transported mostly English Puritans, known today as the Pilgrims, from Plymouth, England to the New World.
There were 102 passengers and the crew on the Dutch Cargo class ship is estimated to be approximately 30 but the exact number is unknown.
The ship that first sailed in 1609 plied many routes but her most famous was from Southampton to America.
Restoration work will begin this month, honouring the Mayflower II's original construction and using traditional methods with the goal of restoring the ship to her original state when she arrived to Plymouth in 1957.
Henri Lloyd To Launch The Ben Ainslie Racing Merchandise Collection
Henri Lloyd and Ben Ainslie Racing are excited to bring the first elements of the official BAR Merchandise Collection to the CWM FX London Boat Show. The new merchandise will comprise men's and ladies' cotton polo shirts, short-sleeved T's including a junior version, a full-zip cotton hoody, technical jacket and a quick-drying peaked cap.
Henri Lloyd will be offering a kit personalisation service at the show, so you can add your name to the products - just like the BAR Sailing Team - and take it home with you on the day.
The range will be on sale from 9th Jan on the BAR stand (F002) at the Show, and online ( www.henrilloyd.com/BARshop ).
Industry News
Time Inc. (UK) Ltd., IBI's parent company, is to celebrate its new partnership with Dominion Marine Media (DMM), operator of the YachtWorld, Boat Trader, boats.com and Cosas De Barcos web portals, during a reception at next week's London Boat Show. The event will take place at 5pm on Wednesday 14th January at Time Inc.'s stand (#A090).
Both organisations' key customers and members of the media are invited to hear about all the new tools, features and initiatives the partnership will bring to the industry to help drive boat sales globally.
The strategic partnership between Dominion and Time Inc. (UK), a ublisher of print and digital properties including IBI, Yachting World, Motor Boat & Yachting, Yachting Monthly, Practical Boat Owner and leading European community website YBW.com, was launched in the final quarter of 2014, creating a wide range of benefits for both Time Inc. UK's marine audience and users of DMM's industry-leading sales portals.
The first of these, the superyachtworld.com digital marketplace, was launched in September 2014.
In the coming months, YachtWorld will power the 'boats for sale' sections across all Time Inc. UK's marine websites, under the YBW.com umbrella, bringing significant additional benefits to customers who list their boats on these websites. In the early part of 2015, YachtWorld and Time Inc. (UK) will launch a new dedicated yacht brokerage section on each of Time Inc.'s magazine websites, offering a selection of the very best used boats for sale in Europe from most of the continent's leading yacht brokers.
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The CWM FX London Boat Show will host world firsts from across the marine industry. The Ribeye PRIME, Bavaria Sport 400, Williams Sportjet 520 and Haines 360 will dazzle power enthusiasts whilst the sailing industry will witness the launch of the Dauntless Oyster 500. For those looking for the latest in luxury yachts there will be the world launch of the Sunseeker Predator 57 and Fairline's unveiling of the Shadow S, the first of its eight new models to be launched over the next three years.
From safety to navigation the CWM FX London Boat Show will display the latest innovations. The Parasailor, ISP's 170 Newton lifejacket and Andres Industries iPad cases will showcase revolutionary design whilst leading technology will shine at the launches of Digital Yacht's AquaWear WLN20 wireless gateway, Webasto's Air Top Evo 40 heater and Torqeedo's Deep Blue Hybrid propulsion system.
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The Andrew Simpson Sailing Foundation has been named as the official charity of the CWM FX London Boat Show.
Returning to the ExCel London from 9-18 January, the show will be supporting the charity for the second year in a row.
The foundation's key fundraising event Bart's Bash will also be showcased, with visitors able to see incredible footage from the global race and discover the date of the next Bash.
The charity's CEO Richard Percy said: "We would like to thank CWM FX London Boat Show for appointing us as the official charity of the show.
"Bart was a regular visitor to the show and loved meeting fellow sailors as well as newcomers to sailing.
"He was passionate about encouraging and helping other fulfill their aims. He would have loved the CWM FX London Boat Show which is all about adventure, meeting people and exploring new horizons."
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Claasen Shipyards in the Netherlands is celebrating thirty years of service to the yachting community in 2015. From Truly Classics to super Js, from flat-bottomed racers to the F-class Firefly, the yard has built up an excellent reputation for its 'high up wind, down to earth' approach.
Founded in 1985, Claasen Shipyards first made its name in the Dutch market for flat-bottomed yachts. By the mid-1990s the yard had started building yachts which combine traditional looks with ultra-modern underwater configurations: nineteen of these Truly Classics have been launched to date. Claasen has also been part of the J-class revival, launching Lionheart in 2010 and currently building 'SVEA', based on the 1937 design by Tore Holm.
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Landsail Tyres has been announced as title sponsor for the J-Cup 15, taking place from the Island Sailing Club in Cowes from 11th - 13th June 2015.
Entries are already flying in, and thanks to the support of Landsail, competitor berthing at Cowes Yacht Haven Marina will be free of charge for the duration of the regatta. The expectation is that many teams will wish to stay in Cowes and enjoy the lively atmosphere of the town and the hospitable nature of hosts the Island Sailing Club.
The fifteenth edition of the J-Cup will incorporate the Lifedge J/109 National Championships and the J/88 and J/97 National Championships.
www.islandsc.org.uk/racing.aspx
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BeneteauReports Q1 2014-2015 revenue of 106.8 million euros versus 89.8 million euros last year, up 18.9 percent
The company sees double-digit growth for boat business over full year on like-for-like basis.
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The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is starting the New Year by announcing sponsorship extensions with long-term partners Marlow Ropes, ChartCo and Ocean Safety ahead of the 2015-16 series, the tenth edition of the unique biennial global challenge.
The tenth edition of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race starts this August and will take almost a year to complete. At 40,000 nautical miles in length, it is the world's longest ocean race, also regarded as one of the toughest endurance challenges on the planet.
As the Clipper Race's official rope supplier, Marlow Ropes will once again provide each of the fleet's twelve Clipper 70 yachts with over 40,000 metres of high quality ropes which are made of modern, light weight fibres such as Dyneema.
Ocean Safety marks its sixth consecutive time as Clipper Race safety supplier and will continue to work closely with the race organisers to ensure that the safety standards of the 2015-16 circumnavigation are accurately met.
ChartCo, one of the world's largest stockists and distributors of nautical charts, navigational data and marine technical publications, is back on board for its fourth consecutive race as an official Clipper Race supplier.
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The name Knierim stands for everything that is top of the range in the boat builder's craft and it has been doing this now for exactly 50 years. In its second generation, the yard has focused on building individual high-tech yachts, including the then unique German America's Cup racer Germany I (2006).
The story began in 1965 on the real estate occupied by a former lifeboat shed on the Eastern bank of the Kieler fjord. Günter Knierim's yacht and boatyard serviced and repaired solid timber fishing cutters.
However, it wasn't very long before they concentrated on sporting boats. Plywood hulls were developed and even entire yachts laid down at Kiel. In the 70s, the quarter-tonne "Vagabund", with a chine hull, was the prototype for three successors. The first quarter-tonners, made from moulded plywood, the "Attacke" and the "Kninispri", followed and took the Mini Tonner world championship in the South of France in 1983.
In 1999, Gunnar Knierim, who won the Admirals' Cup in 1993 on Willi Illbruck's Pinta and had learned about refined composite technologies at the Admiral's Cup in New Zealand, took over as managing director. Two years later, he relocated the company to a colossal area on the Kiel Canal. To date, this courageous step has produced some 30 new builds, ranging from comfortable cruise ships for sailing round the world to high-tech racing yachts.
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