In This Issue
Harry Price maintains lead in Governor's Cup match racing | Contender World Championship | Three Days in Sibenik Will Decide the 2017 Melges 32 European Championship | Harken Tech Team on Duty at 2017 Copa del Rey, MAPFRE Regatta | Fight to be first home | Impetuous Claims Swan 42 U.S. National Championship | What's in the August Edition Of Seahorse Magazine | Australian team joins GC32 Racing Tour | Newport Trophy Regatta to Host Ten Historic 12 Metres | Youth Olympic Games qualification window opens | Featured Brokerage
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
Harry Price maintains lead in Governor's Cup match racing
Newport Beach, California, USA: Australia's Harry Price, 2015 Governor's Cup International Youth Match Race Champion, took significant strides towards joining seven other sailors as two-time winners of the oldest youth match racing regatta in the world at Balboa Yacht Club, Newport Beach, California.
His perfect 13-0 record leads the fleet of 12 entries from Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and the United States, putting him two points ahead of local favorite, BYC's Christophe Killian, as the second day of the competition was completed.
Spectators were looking forward today to the last match of the first round robin (in which every boat sails against each other boat) as it featured Price against Killian. The two had not sailed against each other since last year's Governor's Cup, when they raced against each other in the petit finals for third place in the 2016 Cup. Killian got the better of Price last year, and today's race between the two was also close. Again today Price prevailed, preserving his perfect record in the first round robin.
However, with nine races to go in the second round robin, no one's place in the all-important semi- finals is secure, with the possible exception of Price. Two veteran GovCup sailors are two points behind Killian's 11-2 record - New Zealand's Leonard Takahashi and prior Governor's Cup semi- finalist Chris Weis from Del Rey YC Marina del Rey, California both on 9-4.
Balboa Yacht Club has been hosting the Governor's Cup since 1967 when then California Governor Ronald Reagan donated the trophy emblematic of this prestigious and longest running international youth match racing championship. Raced off Newport Beach in the Pacific Ocean July 17-22, 2017, this year's 51st edition is sponsored by Farmers & Merchants Bank, and features 12 teams of the worlds top youth match racers, representing AUS, GBR, NZL and USA.
Contender World Championship 2017 - Day Three - Plenty of racing and then a "Jagerbomb Train"
The Danish wind arrived and the clouds parted to give the 107 Contender sailors perfect conditions to complete three races at the 2017 Contender Worlds.
Jesper Nielsen (DEN 2352) took the first race closely followed by Jason Beebe (AUS 2482) and fellow Dane, Jacob Kristensen.
Beebe then took control of the other two races picking up first place in both taking the overall lead from Mark Bulka, reigning World Champion.
Søderborg Yacht Club gave their thirsty guests a demonstration of the classic "Jagerbomb train trick" along with a generous BBQ to soak up their beverages.
Top Five Standings:
Jason Beebe AUS, 6 points
Mark Bulka AUS, 7
Jesper Nielsen DEN, 16
Simon Mussell GBR, 21
Ben Holden GBR, 23
Three Days in Sibenik Will Decide the 2017 Melges 32 European Championship
Sibenik, Croatia: Starting on Thursday, July 20 and running through Saturday, July 22, the next Melges 32 European Champion will be decided over what is currently forecasted to be three, very hot days.
Just last week the Melges 20 European Championship completed, and Sibenik proved to be a spectacular race track in both windy and light air conditions. The flat water sea state allows teams to experience more horsepower, demanding extremely accurate and in most situations, cunning tactical decisions. It's the perfect set-up for top Melges 32 teams serious about winning the highly-coveted European title and trophy.
Sixteen teams from seven nations are in attendance representing Czech Republic, Germany, Italy (highest number of participants), Monaco, Russia, Sweden and Turkey.
Thus far, three Melges 32 World League events have taken place - Portovenere and Scarlino were won by Matteo Balestrero on GIOGI, and Riva Del Garda went to Edoardo Lupi/Massimo Pessina on TORPYONE. The 2017 European Championship will be the fourth, an incredible lead-up to the season's grand finale - the World Championship in Cala Galera, Italy on August 22-26.
Racing commences on Thursday, July 20 with a first warning of 13.30.
Official Yachtscoring Event Website
Harken Tech Team on Duty at 2017 Copa del Rey, MAPFRE Regatta
The Harken Tech Team will keep the fleets race-ready and flying during the 2017 edition of the Copa del Rey, MAPFRE regatta, Mallorca, Spain. Service will be available onsite from Monday July 31 through Saturday morning, August 5, with emergency spare parts on-hand to keep your gear primed and rolling. A Harken contact number will be posted at the race office.
Fight to be first home
While the Judel-Vrolijk 115 Nikata will be the largest yacht competing among the 350 or so yachts starting the Rolex Fastnet Race on Sunday 6 August, the battle for line honours glory looks set to be between two titans of the grand prix racing world.
Finnish Whitbread Round the World Race legend Ludde Ingvall returns having previously put in one of the most exceptional performances in the 92 year history of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's flagship event.
Firstly in 1985, the same year Simon le Bon's Drum famously capsized, Ingvall raced on the Whitbread maxi Atlantic Privateer when it won her class. But the race which has gone down in history was a decade later, when he skippered Nicorette, the former 1989-90 Whitbread Round the World Race maxi Charles Jourdan but much modified, to line honours, finishing a massive 24 hours ahead of the next boat. But significantly that year Nicorette not only claimed line honours but victory on handicap as well.
That race, 22 years ago, was the last occasion someone won the Rolex Fastnet Race line honours and handicap 'double'.
This time Sydney-based Ingvall is back with another weapon, and again one which is heavily modified. CQS was originally built in 2004 as the 90ft canting keel Simonis Voogd-design Nicorette aboard which Ingvall claimed line honours in that year's Rolex Sydney Hobart. During 2016, this boat underwent major surgery extending her to 100ft by fitting a new bow. Small wings were added at deck level to widen her shroud base to accept a larger, more powerful rig and she was also fitted with retracting lateral Dynamic Stability Systems foils to provide lift to leeward.
Since competing in the Rolex Sydney Hobart race, CQS has arrived in Europe and, weekend before last, set a new course record in Sweden's AF Offshore Race (Round Gotland), breaking the existing record which Ingvall had established on his previous Nicorette.
CQS will face stiff competition from American George David's Juan Kouyoumdjian-designed Rambler 88. She may have a shorter waterline but in her long career racing Jim Clark's 100ft Comanche, this has seemed to have made little difference: In the 2015 Rolex Fastnet Race, Rambler 88 crossed the finish line just four and a half minutes behind Comanche.
According to tactician Brad Butterworth, their fight with CQS is likely to come down to the weather. "If there is any breeze it will make a big difference as to who wins across the line. If there are any powered up situations then Rambler will do pretty well, but if it is light airs running or even upwind, it will be a struggle. The modern maxis like Comanche and Rambler have huge wetted surface so when they are not heeled you are carrying a lot of viscous drag around with you."
The Rolex Fastnet Race starts from the Royal Yacht Squadron, Cowes at 1100 on Sunday 6th August.
Impetuous Claims Swan 42 U.S. National Championship
Newport, Rhode Island, USA: If everything had gone to plan, Paul Zabetakis and his Impetuous team would be celebrating their first Swan 42 National Championship and the opportunity to represent the host club in the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup in September. While the former is something Zabetakis has chased for more than a decade, not earning the latter gives his win in the 11th Swan 42 National Championship a bittersweet quality.
As it has been every year since the class was founded in 2007, the Swan 42 National Championships was hosted by the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court. Also run at the same time were the IRC East Coast Championships and the inaugural New York Yacht Club Multihull Regatta.
In 2015, Zabetakis' Impetuous team finished second in the fourth Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup. The past two seasons have been focused on moving to the top step of the podium. But just days before the start of the National Championship, which also served as the second half of the qualification series for the Club's berth in the Invitational Cup, a family medical issue cropped up forcing Zabetakis to miss the first three days of the event. Tactician Bob Slattery served as the team's helmsman in his absence. But since Slattery isn't a member of the New York Yacht Club, Zabetakis was forced to withdraw his team from the Rolex NYYC Invitational Cup selection series.
In a full range of conditions and in atypically inclement weather, the Impetuous team shown brightly, winning four of seven races and never finishing worse than fourth in a tightly-knit 10-boat fleet.
William Edward's crew from the Royal Thames Yacht Club finished second, with the Southern Yacht Club team led by helmsman Marcus Egan in third. Both of those teams will be competing at the Rolex New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup in September.
Swan 42 (One Design - 10 Boats)
1. Impetuous, Paul Zabetakis , Stuart, FL, USA - 1 -2 -1 -1 -4 -1 -3 ; 13
2. Mutiny, William Edwards , Wimbledon, London, GBR - 6 -1 -3 -7 -3 -3 -2 ; 25
3. Southern, Southern Yacht Club , Mandeville, LA, USA - 4 -8 -5 -2 -5 -2 -1 ; 27
Seahorse August 2017
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
Update
Pistol Pete, upset Norwegians, tradition still rules (the Cup) - but not the (Cup) answers you might expect from one successful America's Cup sailor. Terry Hutchinson, Ivor Wilkins, Ray Davies, Jack Griffin And Corinne Rolland-Mckenzie
In praise of flexibility
Is there now the critical mass needed to get a bit more ambitious with some new formats for international offshore events? Rob Weiland
Smashed it!
Well, that was a week and a half. Pete Burling, Ivor Wilkins, Grant Dalton
Rod Davies
Team New Zealand's match racing coach (natch) asks if you like living off the smell of an oily rag?
Seahorse build table - More splash less cash?
Fast and (more) affordable. Ben Rogerson
Sailor of the Month
No-compromise dedication to the task at hand
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Australian team joins GC32 Racing Tour
Round three of the 2017 GC32 Racing Tour is now just three weeks away when, for a second consecutive year, the one design foiling catamarans take to the Bay of Palma as an invited class at the 36th Copa del Rey MAPFRE.
Last year, thanks to organisers Real Club Nautico de Palma, the GC32 Racing Tour boats became not just the first multihulls ever to compete at the Mediterranean's premier multi-class regatta, but the first new generation flying boats to do so.
For Copa del Rey MAPFRE, the GC32 Racing Tour will be at full strength with ten boats competing. Among them will be the latest team to sign up for the circuit that offers the 'best foiling experience' to its participants.
Simon Delzoppo's .film Racing is an exciting campaign: It is the first Australian team to join the GC32 Racing Tour, adding to the circuit's international roster, with teams from afar afield as the USA, Japan and Argentina. Delzoppo is planning to compete on the GC32 Racing Tour for 2017's three remaining events before rolling into a full campaign next season.
Once a co-owner of Ludde Ingvall's 2004 Rolex Sydney to Hobart line honours winning maxi, Nicorette, his greatest love is catamarans, especially racing cats such as the Nacra 5.0, 5.5 and 5.8, in which he won a US Nacra Nationals in 1989. After a break to focus on his successful internet domain name businesses, he resumed sailing on an F18 catamaran.
Newport Trophy Regatta to Host Ten Historic 12 Metres
Newport, Rhode Island, USA: As the second "Americas fleet" event in the ROAD TO THE WORLDS Waypoint Series, the Newport Trophy Regatta will take place July 20-23 in Newport, R.I. Hosted by Ida Lewis Yacht Club, the event is for 12 Metre yachts, which are collecting points in a global series leading up to the next 12 Metre World Championship, scheduled for Newport in July of 2019. With ten teams competing, the scene will be reminiscent of the America's Cup days of old here in Newport, where from 1958 to 1983, 12 Metres were the weapon of choice in the contest for the Auld Mug.
The skipper's Meeting is Thursday night at 7 p.m. at Ida Lewis Yacht Club, and first warning signals are at 11 a.m on Friday through Sunday of racing. Eight races are scheduled.
Yachts will be divided in to Grand Prix, Modern and Traditional classes and will sail on Rhode Island Sound or Narragansett Bay. Sailing are New Zealand (KZ-3) and Laura (KZ-5) in Grand Prix, Freedom (US-30), Defender (US-33), Challenge 12 (KA-10), Intrepid (US-22) and Courageous (US-26) in Modern; and Columbia (US-16), Weatherly (US-17) and American Eagle (US-21) in Traditional.
Waypoint Series standings have been tallied based on previous events held in Newport (the Metrefest Newport Regatta held in June), Germany and Denmark.
Youth Olympic Games qualification window opens
The qualification window for the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games (YOG) has opened after the Techno 293 Plus World Championships kicked off in Brittany, France this weekend.
More than 160 sailors from 31 countries have registered for the Techno 293 Plus Worlds as they bid to book their nations spot on the Men's and Women's Windsurfer start line at the 2018 YOG.
Follow the latest news from Brittany here - worlds2017.plus.techno293.org
The Buenos Aires 2018 YOG will feature exactly 100 sailors aged 15-18 sailing across five events from 1-13 October 2018.
The Men's and Women's Windsurfer, remains on the YOG programme after memorable competitions at the Singapore 2010 and Nanjing 2014 editions. However, for Buenos Aires the Techno 293 Plus is being used in place of the standard Techno 293. The Techno 293 Plus has a bigger rig that allows for the wider age range of sailors in Buenos Aires.
Buenos Aires will see the introduction of innovation within the sport with Men's and Women's Kiteboarding, IKA Twin Tip Racing and a Mixed Multihull, the Nacra 15, added to the programme of events to provide thrills and spills at YOG itself and qualification events.
At Buenos Aires 2018, the Windsurfer fleets will sail slalom and fleet racing courses whilst the Kiteboarding fleets will race on short track boarder cross with obstacles on the racing area. The Nacra 15 sailors will qualify for Buenos Aires 2018 on the standard boat however, a unique Flying Nacra 15 will be introduced for the YOG itself. The Nacra 15s will sail fleet racing courses close to the shore.
In total, there will be places for 88 sailors through the qualification system with the host country automatically qualifying six athletes, one in each boat. Six further Universality Places will be made available to eligible National Olympic Committees. -- Daniel Smith, World Sailing
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