Asko Appliances Wins First Race In Aussie 18 Championship

Monday - January 7 2008 - 0820 PST - Australian 18ft Skiff Championship - Race 1 - Former champion Hugh Stodart successfully began his campaign for a second title with a come from behind win in Asko Appliances in Race 1 of the 2008 Australian 18ft Skiff Championship on Sydney Harbour today.

Stodart, with regular crewman Niall Kinch and replacement Tim Webster trailed in second place for more than half the course before going on to a comfortable 51secs win over John Harris Rag & Famish Hotel with NSW champion Gotta Love It 7 (Seve Jarvin) a further 18secs back in third place. Fiat (Michael Coxon) finished fourth, with Club Marine (Adam Beashel) fifth and defending champion Macquarie Real Estate (Micah Lane) sixth. Coxon timed his start to perfection and led the fleet across the harbour to Bradleys Head where Fiat led narrowly from Asko Appliances and Gotta Love It 7. The RHS of the course proved more successful in the light winds and the young Gotta Love It 7 crew did best to lead Asko by 10secs at the windward mark. Fiat fell back to third (45secs from the lead) with Rag & Famish Hotel fourth and Club Marine in fifth.

The wind was very much in the east as the fleet sailed to the wing mark under spinnakers with many skiffs barely moving as they entered Rose Bay. Gotta Love It 7 was equal to the conditions and increased her lead over Asko at the end of the first lap. Asko closed the gap to within two boat lengths after the first tack of the next windward leg.

Jarvin and his crew were again up to the challenge as they maintained their lead back to the windward mark. The race had developed into a match race with Gotta Love It 7 just 6secs ahead of Asko as the pair began the spinnaker run down the middle of the course. Fiat was still third, ahead of Rag & Famish, Club Marine and Thurlow Fisher, but the group were a long way from the ltwo leaders.

The spinnaker run was critical and saw the race take a dramatic change. Asko was further right on her line to the leeward mark and grabbed a 20secs lead from Gotta Love It 7 when that team didn't appear to cover their rivals. Rag & Famish did a similar move and took over third from Fiat.

A freshening breeze over the final windward leg brought about a major change as Asko opened up a race winning margin of one minute as they headed for home. The Rag also showed great pace to grab second place 10secs ahead of Gotta Love It 7. Placings remained unchanged on the run to the finish.

For more great action shots of these exciting sailing machine go to 18 Footers. Photos courtesy of www.18footers.com.au

PV-2 Stretching Her Lead

Monday - January 7 2008 - 0755 PST - There are a few tough days ahead for Hugo Boss as the race leader, Paprec-Virbac 2 has hooked into a nice Southern Ocean low and is running away, while Hugo Boss is stuck in very mild conditions - in every sense of the word. Describing their current situation, the words of Jean-Pierre Dick on Paprec-Virbac 2 and Alex Thomson on Hugo Boss couldn't have been more different.

"There is a lot of rain and gusty winds, up to 35 knots. It's very difficult to sail the boat," Jean-Pierre said. "It's very, very cold here, so just checking the sails and adjusting the sheets is torture. It's terrible really."

The consolation is a boat speed approaching 20 knots. Meanwhile, Hugo Boss is in the same 'Furious Fifties', but struggling to make 5 knots on a sunny, warm, windless day.

"Our situation hasn't really changed for the past few days. We're still catching up to this ridge of high pressure and sailing along with the ridge," Alex Thomson said on the video conference today. He then switched the camera to an outside view, showing a beautiful, sunny, blue sky, the sea calm and nearly flat. It certainly looked like anything but the Southern Ocean. We asked Alex if it was frustrating.

"We're not too fussed about it. There's nothing we can do about it. We stopped for 48 hours in New Zealand. We could sit and complain that we're so unlucky and he's so lucky but the fact is we stopped and you can't expect to be right up next to him a week after you stop," Thomson said. "We'll wait and see what happens after Cape Horn."

Behind them, the rest of the fleet has picked up the pace as well. Temenos II is trying to fend off the advance of Mutua Madrileña, who has picked up 75 miles over the last 24 hours. Javier Sansó and Pachi Rivero are now just over 100 miles behind Temenos II.

"We are quite happy to have the wind again. I think we've lost about three days to the high pressure," complained Dominique Wavre, from on board Temenos II. "In a way it's nice to have Mutua pushing us, but in a way it's very frustrating. He gained 200 miles so easily because we had bad timing coming out of Wellington. We don't feel there is a lot of justice in it! But it will be better in a few days."

For more pics and position reports go to BWR.

XS Racing Racing

Sunday - January 6 2008 - 1340 PST - Winning XS boat Cat Attack (pictured), a Reynolds 33 skippered by owner/designer Randy Reynolds came out on top in the first XS race of the year yesterday. Reports were calling for catastrophic conditions in the 22 mile race from LA to Malibu, but it ended up light and variable with no rain. Way to go weather man! Photo Pat Reynolds.

Coville Calls it Quits

Sunday - January 6 2008 - 1050 PST - Precisely 5 minutes after beating the 24 hour distance record and whilst sailing at the latitude of the Kerguelen Islands, Thomas Coville, in the midst of attempting to solo-sail around the world faster than anyone before, went up on deck to reduce the sail area and discovered that he had lost the crash box from his starboard float. Even though it's too early to say whether it's the result of impact or not Thomas, who saw two icebergs measuring several hundred metres long yesterday, observed that there were some growlers - pieces of partially submerged ice, around the boat. Acting as a kind of bumper, the crash box is there to avoid breaking the whole boat in the event of impact with something and also ensures the float’s watertightness. The trimaran is currently rerouting to Cape Town (South Africa) some 1,300 miles away.

We can imagine the skipper's disappointment after just beating - at 0H45 UTC - the single handed 24 hour record. Thomas covered the 619.3 miles at an average of 25.8 knots. In so doing he beats the record held by Francis Joyon (616.03) by three miles. The record is currently awaiting approval from the WSSRC. It should be noted that Thomas broke the record during his 20th day at sea, just like Francis Joyon, whilst in the same zone of the Indian Ocean, with a fairly similar weather pattern, ahead of a depression.

Joyon Responds to Coville's Retiring

Sunday - January 6 2008 - 1050 PST - Sunday, January 6 09h58: Reactions of Francis Joyon, following the abandonment of Thomas Coville:

"Firstly, as is the tradition, I congratulate Thomas who just broke my 24-hour record, which shows the great potential of the boat, and his desire to push hard in these difficult latitudes. In terms of the damage to Sodeb'O, - this is the fear for all solo sailors - damage that requires the abandonment, on a journey so long and difficult. Thomas, I imagine must be deflated, and I am disappointed to lose a competitor and the kind of sportsman he represents."

This report brought to you by www.R33.com, builders of the new 2008 Reynolds 33 catamaran.

Hugo Boss Gaining on Leader

Saturday - January 5 2008 - 1149 PST - Hugo Boss has spent Saturday making up miles on race leader Paprec-Virbac 2 in the Barcelona World Race who are battling upwind deep in the Southern Ocean. Paprec-Virbac 2 is now all the way down at 55-degrees south latitude, while Hugo Boss is enjoying relative comfort at 49-degrees. Neither is setting records, but Boss remains three knots faster at 11.6 knots.

Behind, everyone else is slow as well. Temenos II and Mutua Madrilena are trying to get down into the Southern Ocean, but are faced with unfavourable conditions, while Educacion sin Fronteras is still slogging towards Cook Strait and just over 250 miles behind Mutua

Mutihulls at the Heineken Regatta

Saturday - January 5 2008 - 1135 PST - The Formula 40 "Soma" will be returning to defend her back-to-back "Fastest Round the Island" trophy this year for the Heineken Regatta. Heineken Regatta has always had great competition in the multihull class, with boats like Playstation, ORMA 60's, and Formula 40's making apperances in year's past.

This year's line up should be just as good. Perennial favorite "Triple Jack" will be there. As will the Gunboats. The real question is whether or not the Gunboats will be there to play...or not. After being shut out of competing head to head in Antigua Race Week last year, Soma is hoping to share a class and a start with the Gunboats this year.

"It was a major disappointment last year in Antigua" Soma's owner, Nils Erickson, said. "The race committee agreed to let the Gunboats form their own class, creating a one boat "racing" class for us. We didn't bother competing as a result."

Soma is a 23 year old Formula 40 originally built for Randy Smythe, and later sailed by Ken Read. Soma was found derelict in Texas and rebuilt in 2004. Soma now does daysails for tourists in the US Virgin Islands. Photo and story courtesy of Nils Erickson.

Xtreme Forecast for XS Racers

Friday - January 4 2008 - 0952 PST - Nasty weather is being forecast for the first XS Race of the season here in Southern California. Many XS skippers are currently making their way to the Los Angeles starting line where the Berger Series is set to begin tomorrow morning. There are some sailors who have even flown in from Florida to compete. For any racers on the West Coast who want to mix it up in what could be some challenging conditions, sign up at Del Rey Yacht Club and choose the XS class. There's still a little time left. Photo Pat Reynolds.

Joyon Slows But Maintains Confidence

Friday - January 4 2008 - 0940 PST - Francis Joyon, in his pursuit of the solo round the world speed record aboard his 97-foot trimaran IDEC slowed down a bit yesterday, but is hopeful to soon reach the trade wind area he is approaching. Joyon said it was good to be able to catch up on rest and do some maintenance on the boat while things were calm. The 51-year old skipper is feeling positive about his quest as he is still about almost 3000 nautical ahead of Ellen MacArthur's record setting mark.

"I can't complain - I have a boat at 100% potential," said Joyon. "The game is to follow the shifts, to take advantage of the edges in order to gain maximum northward." Photo Vincent Curutchet / DPPI / IDEC. This report brought to you by www.R33.com, builders of the new 2008 Reynolds 33 catamaran.

Paprec-Virbac 2 Holding Strong

Friday - January 4 2008 - 0902 PST - Barcelona World Race leader Paprec-Virbac 2 had picked up a Southern Ocean low pressure system today, with winds of 30 to 35 knots and a lumpy sea state. Although uncomfortable, it's a welcome breath of wind for the leader, who had seen second-placed Hugo Boss chipping away at their lead. And this low pressure should carry Paprec-Virbac 2 the bulk of the way to Cape Horn, still some 1700 miles away.

"It's very windy indeed with the low pressure coming in. It's not very big, but very deep so it's making quite strong winds," was the way skipper Jean-Pierre Dick described the state of affairs. "It's making the sea very chaotic. We're expecting North-Northeast and then South winds that will bring freezing conditions. It's not going to be very much fun for the next three days. We'll have to fight hard to keep the boat in good condition and keep the lead."

Indeed, Hugo Boss made more gains overnight, but today has been better for Paprec-Virbac 2, who have just about held their position over the past 24 hours, dropping just 10 miles. Photo Th.Martinez/Sea and Co/Barcelona World Race.

Morning Light to Arise in October

Friday - January 4 2008 - 0854 PST - We haven't seen the official press release from the Morning Light production team, but word on the street says the Disney produced film about a young inexperienced crew taking on the Transpac will be coming out on October 17 of 2008. Disney spoke to the folks at Harken about the film:

"Well it needs to be a good movie first, that's our primary aim, because if it is a lousy movie about sailing, it's just another problem for sailing. Leslie DeMeuse (co-producer) and I both agreed it wasn't going to be about the boats, but the people who sail the boats. It is about these kids coming together and finding ways to work together and become a team. That [story] could be set against a lot of different backgrounds, we just happen to be doing it on a sailboat." Photo Pat Reynolds.

Spankin' New!

Friday - January 4 2008 - 0845 PST - The Aviva Ocean Racing team have hit the New Year running with Dee Caffari and the boat team down in Wellington, New Zealand test sailing the recently completed 'Aviva'. Dee will be competing on this newly built Open 60 during the 2008/09 Vendée Globe and will spend the next few months coming to grips with the increased power the new generation boat possesses. They are most certainly not for the faint hearted!

Dee's first sail onboard 'Aviva' saw blue skies, sunshine and 15 to 25 knots of wind from the north. Great conditions for 'Aviva' to show what she was made of. However, the fun was short-lived and just a day later, windy Wellington lived up to its reputation with gale force winds in the harbor forcing the team to remain alongside and focus on the inevitable "snagging list" that comes with commissioning a new boat. Sails and other presents from the UK are still arriving and the boat team continue to be extremely busy in the limited time they have before Aviva is taken apart and shipped back to Europe.

Wellington has been a flurry of activity with several Open 60 yachts competing in the Barcelona World Race checking in for a pit stop. This week Temenos, Hugo Boss and Mutua Madrilena have all put in an appearance.

Within Arms Reach

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 1456 PST - With the top seven boats split by just eleven miles in terms of distance to finish, the fight for those all-important podium positions is really heating up in the Clipper Round the World Race. Several skippers have reported they can see other Clipper yachts close by which is intensifying the competition. With the other yachts so near the crews can see the effects of everything they do. If an evolution goes well they can see the boat behind get further away but if the crew make a mistake they will be quickly overtaken.

This is the sixth Clipper Round the World Yacht Race and so far the racing during the 07-08 event has been second to none and the closest boat-on-boat racing yet. With the one design fleet and evenly matched and trained crews the Clipper Round the World Race is the only global event that provides such close ocean racing.

The fleet is due to muster in Batam, Indonesia, on approximately January 17, with a coordinated arrival at the new Marina at Keppel Bay in Singapore on Saturday January 19.

Another Multihuller's Testimony

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 1100 PST - From XS reader Nils weighing in on the Mono vs. Multi debate:

Just a quick note. We sail on a 23 year old, under funded Formula 40 with one spinnaker (cruising, borrowed from a monohull). Last year, we raced ABN Amro One in St. Martin in 20-25 knots. They beat us across the finish line 2 out of 3 ocean races, but it was pretty close. It was ridiculous to me that the world's fastest, modern monohull (with full crew) had to press to get around our little cat.

Ice Where it Ain't Oughtta Be

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 1054 PST - Thomas Coville came upon a field of icebergs this afternoon that was not expected at that latitude. Coville, who is sailing around the planet on the 105-foot trimaran Sodeb'O, hopes to break the speed record set by Ellen MacArthur and/or Francis Joyon who is also pursuing the record as this moment.

Thomas seems to be entering early into the south and it is currently impossible to determine whether this is an old and big iceberg isolated or whether there will be others , which makes navigation quite dangerous.

The skipper of the maxi trimaran was calm when the land crew spoke earlier today, saying he is currently in fairly strong conditions with large seas and winds around 30 knots. The water temperature has fallen to 6 ° C .

It's Getting Ugly...Again

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 1000 PST - The Golden Gate Yacht Club released a document called the "Memorandum of Law", which is basically (from what we can tell) an angry document that pees all over Alinghi's new lawyer's allegations and generally dismisses all of their current legal action as frivolous petty stall tactics.

"SNG'S MOTION IS TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE - AND MUCH TOO INACCURATE," it reads in an exerpt from the document. "A litigant is perfectly free to change counsel after an adverse ruling on summary judgment, as SNG has here. But, a movant cannot change earlier submitted sworn testimony, misrepresent the issues raised on the cross-motions for summary judgment, and change its theories and arguments. That is precisely what SNG has done in a transparent effort to manufacture a factual dispute."

GGYC goes on to state: "SNG's Motion Contradicts Its Prior Sworn Statements - This Court concluded that 'GGYC is Challenger of Record.' (Decision at 18.)' SNG now resorts to fabricating reasons for the Court to revisit its November 27, 2007 Decision, claiming that the description of the challenging vessel's dimensions contained in the Certificate accompanying GGYC's Written Notice of Challenge did not comply with the requirements of the Deed of Gift.

In his sworn affidavit, submitted by SNG on its motion for summary judgment, Hamish Ross, the General Counsel of SNG's representative racing team (Alinghi), stated that "on the certificate provided with GGYC's bid, the dimensions of the vessel GGYC proposes to race include a length on load water-line of 90 feet and a beam at load water-line of 90 feet. These dimensions can only be for a multi-hulled vessel -presumably, a catamaran." SNG's previous counsel, White & Case, made the same assertion in SNG's September 21,2007 brief in support of SNG's motion for summary judgment. From Mr. Ross's affidavit, it is clear that (1) SNG considered the content of GGYC's Written Notice of Challenge and Certificate well before seeking summary judgment; (2) SNG knew and acknowledged that the Notice of Challenge and Certificate described the challenging vessel as a multi-hull vessel; and (3) SNG expressly raised the issue of the content of GGYC's Written Notice of Challenge and Certificate on its summary judgment motion. Mr. Ross's unequivocal assertion that 'these dimensions can only be for a multi-hulled vessel' constitutes a judicial admission.

In the PIts

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 0915 PST - There is good news from the pit lane in Wellington where Temenos II had stopped to assess the damage to their keel. This was a problem that skipper Dominique Wavre feared could put his boat out of the Barcelona World Race, but on Wednesday night, word came that the experts had looked at the keel and pronounced it ready to go.

In a statement, the team said: "The (damaged area) was sanded and then examined with magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound by the keel constructor. This examination didn't reveal any damage or any serious cracks. The metal is rusted but the corrosion remains superficial. As a result there is no deep attack on the metal. They have already begun the repair."

It's the best possible result for Dominique and co-skipper Michèle Paret, who said, "It's a very great relief for us. We are really very happy to be able to continue the race."

And Temenos II will be able to re-join the race with its third place position more or less intact as on Wednesday evening, fourth-placed Mutua Madrileña (pictured) announced it would make a 'tactical stop' to resolve some issues and tune-up their boat ahead of the second Southern Ocean leg.

"It has all been decided at the last moment that finally we have to make a stop; we have too many little things to fix," said skipper Javier Sansó this morning on the video conference just after pulling alongside the dock in Wellington. "This stop is strategic, as our mission is to finish the race well in good condition. It was a hard decision to make because we are in a good position now."

Meanwhile, out on the race course, Paprec-Virbac 2 has finally escaped from the 'minefield' of ice it had been racing through for the past several days. The team reported sighting nine icebergs before passing through the ice safety gate overnight. Today, the race leaders are further north and in warmer, presumably iceberg-free waters. To see a video report on the race click herePhoto onEdition.

Cool Boat Designs - Santa Cruz 37

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 0900 PST - This comes from the folks at Santa Cruz Yachts.

The Santa Cruz 37's modern hull form represents our latest thinking for stellar performance in a variety of conditions. It is optimized for greatest speed potential at heel angles associated with blast-reaching conditions. This hull form also has the benefits of being relatively slippery in light air, as well as providing increased waterline for maximum upwind speed, and a comfortable ride. The SC 37 will get you anywhere quickly. Emphasis has been put on developing a strong, stiff structure. And a strong hull is a safe hull. The hull and deck will be vacuum resin-infused, carbon fiber bi-axial and unidirectional reinforcements featuring structural PVC foam cores of varying densities based on load requirements.

The primary frame/interior structure will be resin-infused to produce high strength–to–weight ratio panels and exacting tolerances, and will feature localized carbon unidirectional reinforcement along critical load paths. KYD has done all preliminary engineering to the ISO 12215 Standard, and final details will insure the yacht is capable of being CE certified for Category “A” offshore use.

The SC 37 will feature cutting edge performance with an efficient hull and sail plan, plus high stability. The result–a highly stable and easily managed yacht capable of speeds in excess of 20kts with limited crew. Performance not just for racing but for the pure joy of sailing. Ballast/displacement ratio is close to 50% (advantaged under IRC) with a lightship displacement of 8,514 lbs.

We have designed the rig and sail plan in conjunction with leading sail makers to produce a versatile and easily managed sail plan which is also IRC, and family, friendly.

Gunboat Fleet to Race in Heineken Regatta

Thursday - January 3 2008 - 0845 PST - As many as six Gunboat catamarans will inject a shot of adrenaline into the multihull division of the 2008 Heineken regatta. The boats, built in Cape Town, South Africa, and sailed to the Caribbean on their own keel, are gaining worldwide popularity as an alternative to a performance monohull. Gunboat company founder Peter Johnstone had no doubt when he chose the Heineken Regatta to showcase his spectacular boats.

"Gunboat is developing a premier owner based class and we have selected the best venues and events in the world because our owner's demand that. The Heineken Regatta has clearly established itself as one of the best all round regattas in the world," said Johnstone.

Performance is what counts and Gunboats, designed by Morrelli and Melvin have it to excess. Something you would expect from the company who designed Steve Fossett's Playstation, the 125-foot record-breaking catamaran that took the 2003 Heineken Regatta by storm. With hulls made of composite racing materials, Swedish built carbon fiber mast and spars, and Kevlar rigging, the boats are light and fast but what sets these boats apart is that most of their owners bought them to cruise with the family as well as to race. Adding a generator and other live aboard comforts may marginally affect their performance, but the designers claim that when sailing light a Gunboat 48 can tack through 80 degrees, and one owner is said to have touched 29-knots while on a broad reach.

Multi-Envy

Wednesday - January 2 2008 - 1450 PST - By Bob Hodges U.S. A-CLASS ASSOCIATION President (weighing in on our Multi vs. Mono topic).

My sailing experience began in Finns (I was too light) and then moved to Lasers followed by Snipes (all boats I owned). In the mix for me was some Lightning, Thistle, and MORC/PHRF racing (on other folks boats). The high performance bug bit me when I started racing sailboards and then made the switch to multihulls when I got burned out on unlimited pumping in sailboard racing. I did do one successful year of Laser master racing but the idea of hiking my butt off to go 4-5 knots just did not appeal anymore (not when I could comfortably fly from a trapeze wire at 10-11 knots). Many sailors who come into the Tornado and A-Class fleets (the two boats I have raced) came from dinghy backgrounds like me. I also own and race a Corsair Sprint 750 which I find both fun and athletically challenging to race. It's quite fun to pass much larger monohulls around the course with 10-14 bodies onboard while we race with 2-3 onboard. It makes me wonder if monohull criticism against multihulls is more based on envy.

The criticism of multihull sailors from the monohull side seems to come primarily from those who have never raced or even sailed a multihull (at least in my experience). The recent ISAF decision to take the multihull discipline out of the Olympics seemed to be crafted by monohull sailors that fall into that group. There is now certainly sentiment in the multihull ranks to break away from "traditional yachting" much like snowboards have broken from Alpine skiing or rowing is different from whitewater slalom in the Olympics. My US SAILING membership dues are coming up and I am really questioning whether I want to remain a member of what I believe has evolved into a very biased and hence compromised governing body. I hope they can change but I am not optimistic. Mitch Booth recently stated that national and international governing bodies need to be just that (governing bodies) and quit trying to dictate the sport to their particular agendas which only creates turmoil.

On the question of safety, I can only speak from my experience racing the A-Class and the Corsair. The A-Class will not turtle (the mast floats) and is as easy to right as a Laser (sometimes easier). The Corsair and Farrier trimarans in the worst case become floating platforms but you really have to get caught in violent weather or really screw up to flip one. As a result, the safety record for the Farrier and Corsair boats is excellent.