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
Faultless First Round For Ian Williams
Marstrand, Sweden: Defending ISAF Match Racing World Champion Ian Williams (GBR) GAC Pindar has led his team through a faultless round at Stena Match Cup Sweden winning all 13 of his Qualifying races as the event rolls into the start of the Quarter Finals tomorrow. Stena Match Cup Sweden is the 3rd World Championship Event of the 2015 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT).
Joining Williams in the Quarter Finals are defending Stena Match Cup Sweden Champion Bjorn Hansen (SWE), Keith Swinton (AUS), Rueben Corbett (NZL), Taylor Canfield (ISV), Phil Robertson (NZL), Johnie Berntsson (SWE) and Simone Ferrarese (ITA).
Winning Qualifying gave Williams the first choice of his Quarter Final opponent. He chose fellow Tour Card skipper Reuben Corbett, leaving 2nd placed Bjorn Hansen to pick Wild Card skipper Simone Ferrarese.
Quarter Finals Pairing
Ian Williams (GBR) GAC Pindar vs Reuben Corbett (NZL) Corbett Racing
Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Nautiska Racing vs Simone Ferrarese (ITA) Ferrarese Racing
Keith Swinton (AUS) Black Swan Racing vs Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team
Taylor Canfield (ISV) US One vs Phil Robertson (NZL) Team TREFOR
Final Qualifying Results
1. Ian Williams (GBR) GAC Pindar 13-0
2. Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Nautiska Racing 10-3
3. Keith Swinton (AUS) Black Swan Racing 8-5
4. Taylor Canfield (ISV) US One 8-5
5. Reuben Corbett (NZL) Corbett Racing 8-5
6. Phil Robertson (NZL) Team TREFOR 7-6
7. Johnie Berntsson (SWE) Berntsson Sailing Team 7-6
8. Simone Ferrarese (ITA) Ferrarese Racing 6-7
9. Joachim Aschenbrenner (DEN) Aschenbrenner Racing 6-7
10. Eric Monnin (SUI) Team SailBox 6-7
11. Nicklas Dackhammar (SWE) Essiq Racing 6-7
12. Rasmus Viltoft (DEN) Team Viltof 4-9
13. Sam Gilmour (AUS) Neptune Racing 2-11
14. Anna Ostling (SWE) Team Anna 0-13
Two New Class Leaders
Photo by Max Ranchi, www.maxranchi.com. Click on image for photo gallery.
Barcelona, Spain: With the completion of a 62.8-mile lap of racing along the coast north of Barcelona, two new series leaders have once again risen to the top of the standings in two classes at the end of Day Four of competition at the 2015 ORC World Championship, hosted by Real Club Nautico de Barcelona. The complete lap was scored as two races for Class A by day's end, with Classes B & C still at sea approaching nightfall.
Taking advantage of a more favorable forecast to complete the two offshore races, the fleet was sent out two hours early today by race managers in an 8-10 knot northeasterly breeze to start a race 31.9 miles upwind to the turning mark off the town of Blanes on the Costa Brava. Times were taken here and scored for Race 5, while the fleet then continued without stopping back to a finish positioned where they started to be then scored for the complete lap as Race 6.
With the course being a long starboard tack fetch and the breeze dying slowly and shifting, the big and fast boats tended to stretch out ahead of their rivals, who were left to sail longer in the dying breeze.
Class leaders:
ORC A:
1. Xio, Marco Safafini, TP52, ITA, 15 points
2. Enfant Terrible Minoan Lines, Alberto Rossi, ITA, 15.5
3. Kuan Kun, Eduardo Wong, PER, 30
ORC B:
1. Movistar, Pedro Campos, Swan 42 CS, ESP, 15
2. Pez De Abril, Jose Maria Meseguer, Swan 42 CS, ESP, 29
4. Sideracordis, Pier Vettor Grimani, X-41, ITA, 30
ORC C:
1. Hansen, Michael Mollimann, X-37, DEN, 28.5
2. Low Noise II, Gioseppe Giuffre, Italia 9.98 F, ITA, 29.5
3. Solventis, Alberto Moro, ESP, 36.5
www.barcelonaorcworlds2015.com
www.orc.org
Dubarry Ultima - Classic Craftsmanship
It's been said of Ireland that it's a lovely country, just needs a roof. True, we get more than our fair share of rain from the storms that barrel in from the North Atlantic, but it's not so bad - it's not for nothing that we're known as the Emerald Isle.
In this part of the world we're also well used to making our living on the sea, in the sturdy Galway Hookers built by hand with traditional tools by local boatbuilders. These bluff-bowed gaff cutters have plied their treacherous trade on the often vengeful waters of the Bay for over 200 years. If ever there was a place where folk would appreciate a quality traditional sea boot - and had the craftsmanship to make one - it's here.
So it's here, in the town of Ballinasloe, a stone's throw from the Shannon and just inland of Galway Bay, that Dubarry started making boots in 1937. We've honed our traditional boot-making virtuosity, found sources of the finest quick-drying, long-lasting leathers, and perfected the technology behind a warm, waterproof classic boot with award-winning grip. What else could we call the world's best traditional sea boot, other than Ultima?
Dubarry Ultima - Where will you go in yours?
Transatlantic Race
Yesterday's second wave of starters in the Transatlantic Race 2015 have been enjoying substantially better conditions for their get-away from the US, compared to the first group that set sail last Sunday. While the latter endured a terrible first night thanks to a combination of light winds and lumpy seas, the former have made fast progress in 15-20 knot southwesterlies.
Frontrunner among yesterday's starters was the 100ft maxi Nomad IV, chartered for this race by Clarke Murphy, which since starting has covered almost three times the number of miles than any the first group managed over the equivalent period.
Meanwhile at the front of the fleet, the race's biggest boat, the 138' Mariette of 1915, continues to eat up the miles and this afternoon will be the first boat to pass the southwestern tip of the Ice Exclusion Zone. Far from mimicking the technique of the Volvo Ocean Race fleet when it left Newport in mid-May, where the boats all shaved the southerly limit of their ice exclusion zone, on this occasion Mariette is set to pass some 80 miles to the south of the Transatlantic Race's equivalent. This is to stay in the same strong southwesterlies that have propelled her east at full throttle for the last 48 hours.
With two staggered starts down, there is just one to go for the 2,800 Transatlantic Race 2015, and it is for the largest and fastest boats: the monohulls Comanche and Rambler 88, at 100 feet and 88 feet in length, respectively, and the multihulls Phaedo3 and Paradox, at 70 feet and 63 feet. All four vessels will rendezvous off Castle Hill Lighthouse on Sunday, July 5, with the multihulls scheduled to cross the line at 2 p.m. and the monohulls to follow a short while later.
Tour De France A La Voile
On Friday the twenty-eight Diam 24 fleet will start the first race of the Tour de France à la Voile 2015. They will be launched from 7am on the beach of Malo-les-Bains for the start of a 45 nautical mile long Coastal Race at 12.00.
For the first time since its creation in 1978, the competitors will not sail from one venue to the next. No more nights offshore sitting on the rail! Instead, they will launch the boat in the morning and bring it back on the Paddocks / pontoons at the end of racing, whether it is a coastal race, or a day of stadium racing.
There will be nine Acts, three in the English Channel, two on the Atlantic side and four in the Med. In each venue, the competitors will have two days of sailing, except for Dunkirk and Nice where there will be an additional day of zero scoring exhibition races on July 4th and 26th.
The weather forecast tomorrow in Dunkirk predicts a NNE wind from 7 to 10 knots early afternoon, increasing to 15 knots towards the end of the day and turning NE.
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Edinburgh Cup
Photo by Fiona Brown, www.fionabrown.com. Click on image for photo gallery.
Largs, UK: After two days of light airs trials and tribulations, the third race of the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust Edinburgh Cup was finally completed in Largs on the penultimate day of the regatta. A lack of breeze continued to dog the event meaning only one race was possible, but that one race has ensured that the championship is now valid and a Dragon Open British Champion will be declared.
The day kicked off with a light but fairly steady south-south-westerly and after just a short postponement to tweak the course the fleet was ready to go for the long awaited race three. At the first attempt their eagerness results in a general recall.
Once underway the fleet finally got to enjoy a full race in a 9-10 knot southerly.
As the boats came ashore it was in the expectation that Aimee now led the regatta by three points from Jerboa with Bear one point behind in third and Bocci Aoyama sailing JAP50 Yevis II fourth. But the day's drama was far from over and back ashore Cathy Sedgeworth's GBR509 Kismet lodged a port/starboard protest against Jerboa which Kismet won. As a result Aimee continues to lead the regatta on 7 points with Bear now second on 11 points, Yeavis II third on 17 points, Patrick Gifford's GBR515 Basilisk fourth overall and leading Corinthian on 22, Excite fifth and Jerboa now sixth.
The start time for tomorrow's final day of racing has been brought forward to 10.00 and the committee will attempt to sail the remaining three races before the 15.00 final start cut off. Once a fourth race has been sailed the single discard will come into play, something both Jerboa and Excite, who was OCS in race two, will be particularly looking forward to.
1. Aimee, J Bailey / P Andrade / K Tippel / W Hertage - Royal Yacht Squadron, GBR, 6.0
2. Bear, M Payne G Hamilton, D Small - Salcombe YC, GBR, 9.0
3. Basilisk, P Gifford M Spall, M Gifford - Aldeburgh YC, GBR, 15.0
4. Handsoff, M Holmes T Wilkes, T Wilkes - RCYC Burnham, GBR, 16.0
5. Yevis II , B Aoyama K Harsberg, N Igel Enoshima YC, JPN, 16.0
Full results www.scottishsailinginstitute.com
Melges 24 World Championship
Photo by Pierrick Contin, pierrickcontin.fr. Click on image for photo gallery.
Middelfart, Denmark. - What a day here in Middelfart! Thanks to some champagne conditions, PRO Hank Stuart brings at home three more races and now, after nine races and one discard, the situation among the 95 boats fleet starts to unravel.
At the top spot of the ranking there is now Chris Rast's EFG SUI684 (1-1-1) that gets three bullets and is now in front of former leader Andrea Rachelli's Altea ITA735 (25p-3-4), that had a great come back in seventh, closed in third position after starting with OCS. On the third level of the podium retains Bora Gulari's Air Force One USA820 (21p-2-7), that in race seven suffered the same problem of Altea.
Races valid for Melges 24 World Championship 2015 will resume Friday, at 11 am. Weather forecasts predict some light winds of 6-8 knots coming from the South.
The series will count on fourteen races and that after the end of the race number thirteen the standings will include two discards.
Seahorse August 2015
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
World news
Those scows (finally) take another step forward, it's the Jules Verne for Francis Joyon, birth of the Collectif Ultim, new Kiwi speedster (for Australia...), Tom Addis returns to the fray and a closer look at Mr Ehman's latest plans... Blue Robinson, Ivor Wilkins, Patrice Carpentier, Carlos Pich, Dobbs Davis
Rod Davis
Is busy homemaking in Bermuda...
ISAF column
John Craig and continuing improvements to the Sailing World Cup
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Teply Back On Top But Russians Win The Day At Silver Cup In Valencia
Ondrej Teply (CZE) is back on top at the Finn Junior World Championships for the Silver Cup in Valencia after two more races in moderate winds. Nenad Bugarin (CRO) is second with Stig Steinfurth (DEN) in third after all three were able to drop a letter score when the discard came into effect. Race wins went to Arkadiy Kistanov (RUS) and Anatoly Korshikov (RUS).
While most of Europe basked in the heat wave, and many sailing races were cancelled with no wind, racing was possible again in Valencia. The day began with another postponement, but filled in up to 12-15 knots for some great sailing conditions, though still pretty shifty at times.
The championship has just passed its half way stage. Two races are planned on each of Friday and Saturday before the final race on Sunday, and the way things have gone so far it will be the deciding race.
Top five after six races (one discard)
1. Ondrej Teply, CZE, 13
2. Nenad Bugarin, CRO, 19
3. Stig Steinfurth, DEN, 24
4. Pic Fabian, FRA, 27
5. Arkadiy Kistanov, RUS, 34
Launchings
Last year at the Foiling Week Andrew McDougall presented the development process that started back in 2010 to a keen audience and decided the TFW Forum would be the perfect place to let the WASZP hatch: "Foiling week just rocks, because it brings sailors and designers together to exchange ideas and of course race at a beautiful spot."
Today, Andrew McDougall launched his latest creation, the WASZP, at the foiling week. Compared to his Mach2 foiling Moth, this single-handed, one design foiler is accessible to a wider range of sailors in terms of cost, weight and skill. The choice of three rigs provides options for 40 to 100 kilo sailors and the adjustable wings that fold up for storage also translate into a stable platform for beginner foilers to advanced racers. The retractable alloy foils make launching and retrieving as quick and easy as any other dinghy. Sailors will find that even in non foiling conditions, this new boat is fast and fun to sail and race. The aim is to quickly establish the WASZP as an ISAF international manufacturer controlled class and make it a fun racing class with new disciplines.
More information on the WASZP www.waszp.com
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Cape Town based shipyard Southern Wind has announced the recent launch of superyacht Seawave, hull number four in this successful performance cruising series.
As with her sistership Farfalla, which has recently received an award at the 2015 edition of the World Superyacht Awards for the "Quality & Value" of the project, Seawave features a Rasied Saloon configuration, the second of its type in this mini-series. Seawave measures 104ft and flaunts an airy open-space saloon with bright panoramic windows on the coach roof.
Seawave will leave Cape Town by the end of July for her 7000 mile maiden voyage to the Med, where she will officially be presented as a world premiere at the forthcoming Cannes Yachting Festival (8th-13th September) and the Monaco Yacht Show (23rd -26th September). -- Charl van Rooy
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I caught a first glimpse of Hinckley's new the Bermuda 50 only a few days ago at the start of Block Island Race Week's around-the-island-race. And my first impressions (from another boat a short distance away as we maneuvered at the start of the race) was that Hinckley's first new sailboat model to be launched in over 10 years seems to strike the delicate balance of being respectful of tradition while embracing modern design.
And my guess is that's exactly what the company was hoping for when the Bermuda 50 was launched from Hinckley's boatyard in Southwest Harbor, Maine recently. Granted the 50's plumb bow, flush deck, and long bowsprit represent a significant design departure from previous Hinckley sailboat models, but then again, the Bermuda 40 was the modern trendsetter of its day. And since the Bermuda 50 is designed by Bill Tripp III, whose father, Bill Tripp Jr., designed the Bermuda 40, this new model mixes tradition and a more-than-a-little superyacht style and mystique in a pretty cool way. -- Bill Springer in Forbes.com
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Nautor's Swan is proud to announce a new addition to its extensive and highly successful SwanLine: the Swan 54. A pure bluewater cruiser designed by world renowned naval architect German Frers, who has been working alongside Nautor's Swan for more than two decades.
The Swan 54 is characterized by a moderate displacement hull and high performance lead keel, and is also available with variable draught (1.4 metres), an efficient daggerboard and twin rudders. The sail plan is designed for maximum performance, yet easy handling, with a generous foretriangle.
The deck layout has been developed to ensure comfortable sailing with limited crew and provide areas designed to best enjoy life onboard. The transom opens fully into a wide swim platform allowing direct access to the water.
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Feeling Yachts has relaunched. Sam Jefferson tested the new 44 and found she brought back fond memories of the 2005 version, yet has stood the test of time.
I was worried that reviewing a yacht that was largely designed over a decade ago might be a negative experience. I was wrong. The Feeling 44 was a fine yacht in 2005 and remains so in 2015. It is probably fortunate that back then this yacht was clearly a fair way ahead of her time or she might feel a bit tired. But by building on an established template, her builders have also been able to concentrate on refining her and I felt that they have succeeded in adding many touches that will appeal to bluewater sailors. In addition, she has that lifting keel and there are precious few yachts of this size with that option.
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