Zoom, Zoom, Zoom

The surfing has continued as have the gusty conditions, giving me a very wet and very wild ride. In fact, there was a moment earlier when Totallymoney.com resembled a submarine.

I was sitting in the cuddy, watching the world go by, when a strong gust of 38knots picked us up and we shot off down a wave at over 20knots. The bow started to dig in, we lost a bit of speed and next thing I know I’m watching the water rushing up the deck towards the cockpit and it filled it right up! I lifted my boots in the air to keep them dry, as I was sitting on the bean-bag and two seconds later the cockpit was empty once more.  Our surfing resumed as if nothing had happened. So there you are, a brief insight into watching the world go by on an Open 50, sailing fast downwind.

I’m now settling into my normal boat diet and had my first freeze-dried porridge this morning, which went down just nicely. I’m still struggling a bit with sleeping and I’m often feeling tired, but I’m gradually getting into the routine of taking short naps once again.

The current conditions really are great fun; I’m sailing fast but under complete control and Totallymoney.com feels just happy. I’ve set her up for the gusts of up to 40knots so that when they arrive, as they’re now doing frequently, I’m ready for them.

I’ve noticed more and more flying fish landing on the deck recently. There’s been a few times when they’ve woken me up during the night with the racquet they make flapping away on the deck, until a wave washes them away. They remind me of my solo transatlantic trip when I was 14. I was hand steering at one point during the night and this huge flying fish flew straight into my lap, giving me quite a surprise!

©Mike Perham2009

Marazzi Sailing: Penalised…

Just in: Marazzi Sailing are penalised for being over the TP52 Class crew weight limit in Race 1 of the Audi MedCup Circuit

As a result of being officially measured over the crew weight limit for the TP52 Class by a small margin, Switzerland’s Marazzi Sailing have been penalised three points from their aggregate score, effectively negating their opening race win at the City of Alicante Trophy regatta, the first event of the 2009 Audi MedCup Circuit.This decision by the International Jury dropped the Swiss team to fourth overall on equal points with Emirates Team New Zealand, and means Argentina’s Matador lead the standings in the TP52 class. The combined crew weight must be less than 1273 kilos. C

ity of Alicante Trophy, Overall standings after 1 race and Audi Med Cup Circuit 2009 standings after 1 race1. Matador (ARG) 2pts2. Bigamist 7 (POR) 3pts3. Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL) 4 pts4. Marazzi Sailing (SUI) 4pts5. Quantum Racing (USA) 5pts

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Photo by Jürg Kaufmann http://www.go4image.com/
Marazzi Sailing scores impressive win in first race ever in the Medcup circuit

The maiden race of the first ever Swiss TP52 team couldn’t have been any better. MarazziSailing scored a convincing victory, maintaining her lead from start to finish under very tricky and shifty conditions.

The team assembled by Swiss Star class champion Flavio Marazzi and German 3-time gold Olympic medalist and two-time America’s Cup winner Jochen Schuemann proved today they have all the credentials to be in the top of their league.

The opening day of this year’s AUDI Medcup was marked by long postponements as the hazy and cloudy skies didn’t allow for the breeze to develop. The race committee had to cancel the first attempted race when the breeze completely disappeared halfway through. Race officers were finally able to hold a complete race but the 13-strong TP52 fleet had to sail in a patchy breeze that topped 11 knots.

Despite a difficult start, the first ever Swiss team in the TP52 racing circuit perfectly stayed on top of the situation, thanks to a combination of correct tactical calls, well-executed crew work and good steering by Flavio Marazzi.

The key to the race was to stay in tune with the shifts that came aplenty. The Swiss boat was squeezed in the start line but a after a few tacks Marazzi steered her to the right side of the course, picking the right shift that put Marazzi Sailing in the lead. Halfway through the first beat, the boat’s afterguard, whose members include world top-notch sailors Jochen Schuemann, John Cutler and Rod Dawson, saw the coming left shift and strategically placed the TP52 boat, rounding the top mark 30 seconds ahead of second placed Matador.

The Swiss team could feel the breath of the Argentineans on their back but kept a comfortable lead, crossing the finish line 28 seconds ahead of them.

Flavio Marazzi, Helmsman MarazziSailing: “We couldn’t have started the Medcup in a better way. I’m very lucky to be surrounded by a good team and have a boat that sails well. We have shown that we are absolutely not a “B team” and we have all it takes to be one of the fleet’s top teams.

The key to today’s success was that all decisions were very good. Although we had a bad start, we tried hard and made the best of it. We picked the good shifts, we were on the side with more pressure, teamwork was nearly flawless and the end result was good.

Helming a TP52 is in fact easier for me, as it takes a lot of the work off my back. I’m used to taking all the decisions while on these boats the rest of the team takes the tactical decisions and I concentrate on my steering.

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1. Sébastien COL (FRA)
2. Mathieu RICHARD (FRA)
3. Ian WILLIAMS (GBR)
4. Torvar MIRSKY (AUS)
5. Adam MINOPRIO (NZL)
6. Philippe PRESTI (FRA)
7. Johnie BERNTSSON (SWE)
8. Damien IEHL (FRA)
9. Bjorn HANSEN (SWE)
10. Iain AINSLIE (RSA)

1. Claire LEROY (FRA)
2. Linda RAHM (SWE)
3. Lucy MACGREGOR (GBR)
4. Lotte MELDGAARD PEDERSEN (DEN)
5. Silke HAHLBROCK (GER)
6. Sally BARKOW (USA)
7. Katie SPITHILL (AUS)
8. Sabrina GURIOLI (ITA)
9. Elizabeth BAYLIS (USA)
10. Anna KJELLBERG (SWE)

ISAF Launches Structural Plan Review To Combat Increase In Yacht Structural Failures
The OSR Plan Review

ISAF Offshore Special Regulations

ISAF has launched a major new safety initiative in response to the growing number of structural failures, publishing details of the new ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Structural Plan Review.
The Structural Plan Review aims to combat an increase in the number of structural failures in offshore yachts and the safety concerns inherent with such failures. The ISAF Offshore Special Regulations (OSR) have been amended to strengthen the regulation surrounding hull construction and the aim of the Structural Plan Review is to implement compliance with these new requirements as quickly as possible.

Jason SMITHWICK, Head of the ISAF Technical and Offshore Department, explains, “ISAF has sent out a clear message that safety at sea is paramount and structural problems which can result in keel and hull failures must be addressed. The Structural Plan Review provides a clear framework for designers, builders and owners to ensure they comply with the recent updates to the Offshore Special Regulations. As part of the scheme we have published a series of documents which give a simple guide to the Structural Plan Review and the steps which need to be taken by different parties.”

ISAF has created a guide to the new scheme which includes procedural documents for owners, designers, builders and ISAF recognized notified bodies. A sample OSR Plan Review certification is also included as an illustration. The structural plan review will be undertaken by ISAF recognised notified bodies, organizations that are able to carry out assessments and issue CE certificates for the European Recreational Craft Directive and have been recognized by ISAF. A list of notified bodies with contact information is available to download from the Structural Plan Review page.

Full details of the OSR Plan Review and all the accompanying documentation are available to download here

Dee’s next adventure!

13 May 2009

This week has been an exciting week for the Aviva Ocean Racing team as Dee’s next challenge has been announced and Aviva has gone back in the water after a period of refit at the end of the Vendée Globe race. To read more about the refit log on to Project Manager, Joff Brown’s latest blog.

Dee has been back on shore for less than three months since the gruelling solo race but already has her sights on setting another world record. In June, Dee will attempt to break the speed record for sailing around Britain and Ireland and joining her onboard her yacht Aviva will be an all female crew, including fellow British yachtswoman and Vendée Globe race rival Samantha Davies.

Starting and finishing in Portsmouth, the route is almost 2,500 nautical miles around the British coastline featuring some of the world’s most technical waters with ever-changing weather conditions, tidal flows and adverse land effects.

Dee commented:
“It’s been over two months since the end of the Vendée Globe, so I am really looking forward to being reunited with Aviva and getting back out on the water. Although I haven’t sailed with a crew for a while, I think it will be great to have some company for this record attempt.”

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Bucking the trend

Washington aluminium builder says Q1 sales are up 269 per cent over last year

By IBI Magazine

Aluminum Chambered Boats (ACB) said that its first quarter sales were up 269 per cent over the same period a year ago. The Bellingham, Washington builder did not release sales figures, but said in a statement that it has a US$17m backlog of orders.

ACB President Jim Moore said the company has streamlined its production and shortened manufacturing time for its boats. “We were able to double our production capacity, and reduce the build time of most boats to 90-120 days,” said Moore in a statement. “The past several months of economic upheaval have put a damper on some companies and their ability to fill custom boat orders. ACB is healthy and extremely well positioned to take on new customers and additional orders.” Moore added that the backlog will “create steady work” for its 86 employees.

The company said its new Law Enforcement Vessel (LEV) as well as long-term government and commercial contracts contributed to the strong growth. “These new models meet the growing industry trend toward aluminum, collared, patrol vessels,” said Moore.

ACB will show several models next month at the Multi-Agency Craft Conference (MACC) in Norfolk, Virginia.

(13 May 2009)

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Rum Racing on Stewart 34′s

Enjoying a settling rum after another great sail

Rick Tomlinson / Volvo Ocean Race

Tuesday 12 May 2009 13:00 GMT

By Riath Al-Samarrai

“My eyes were like that,” says Michel Desjoyeaux, forming big loops with his fingers. “Wow, seeing so much, learning so much.”

It’s been nearly 24 years since the Frenchman, just 20 at the time, sailed the 1985-86 Whitbread Race onboard Eric Taberly’s Cote D’Or and made his bow in the world of global circumnavigations.

“A long time ago,” he says. “A big learning experience. I learned so much about sailing and about me. It teaches a lot about life when you do this kind of racing, going away for a long time, facing challenges. It was a very nice experience for me.”

And one that helped set the scene for him to become arguably the greatest solo yachtsman ever. “I do not look at myself that way,” he says. But many do.

“He is quite far and away the best and probably the best ever,” said Green Dragon’s Damian Foxall back on February 2.

A day earlier, when Desjoyeaux sailed into Les Sables-d’Olonne, he became the only man to win the gruelling Vendee Globe for a second time, proving once again that he reigns supreme when it comes to solo racing around the planet.

It added to an already congested CV that makes quite stunning reading. The Vendee Globe website abbreviated it to the following: “Winner of the 2004 Transat; Winner of the 2002 Route du Rhum; 2nd in the Orma multihull championship in 2004 and 2003; Three times winner of the Figaro single-handed event (1992,1998 and 2007); Winner of the Transat Ag2r in 1992 (with Jacques Caraes); Winner of the 2007 Transat Jacques Vabre 2007 (with M. Le Borgne); 3rd in the 2007 Transat B to B; 5th in the SNSM Record SNSM in 2007.”

Desjoyeaux, known by his rivals as “The Professor”, shrugs. “I like sailing.”

It’s a short but powerful sentence when considered against his presence in the race village this weekend.

“I love all sailing,” he says. “Not just single-handed.”

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Blue Arrow 1988 Americas Cup

YACHTING; BRITISH CAN’T RACE, BUT THEY’LL WATCH

By BARBARA LLOYD
Published: Sunday, July 31, 1988

When Dennis Conner’s twin-hulled catamaran and Michael Fay’s elongated sloop meet in the America’s Cup match Sept. 7, they are likely to encounter an uninvited guest.

The outsider will look strange compared with the two competitors. The birdlike craft is a product of British ingenuity, a 65-foot sailboat that banks like an airplane and falls over like a top. It was to be Peter de Savary’s hope for a 1988 America’s Cup challenge until a New York court closed the door last week on British involvement. De Savary, a British businessman, and the British Blue Arrow yachting syndicate he leads, have decided to ship the boat to San Diego anyway.

”We want to make sure everyone is battle-hardened for the next time,” David Redfern, a syndicate spokesman, said by telephone from London. ”If the America’s Cup stays in San Diego, we want to be familiar with the area. We’ve got a team of people, sailors, backup crew and others, ready to go.” The syndicate plans to send 50 people to San Diego next month.

The British boat will be flown to San Diego instead of traveling by cargo ship, as did New Zealand’s 133-foot monohull. The British sailboat comes apart for shipping like a Lego toy. The yacht is extremely narrow, about the width of a canoe, at 2 feet 7 inches. The hull supports an 80-foot crossbeam with flipperlike winglets at each end. The crossbar moves 1 foot fore and aft on hydraulic rams to stabilize the boat under sail. Designers call it a sliding keel. Flotation bags under each side of the crossbar keep the boat from tipping over at the dock. A woven trampoline stretches from the crossbeam to the stern of the boat to serve as a platform for the crew.

Derek Clark, chief designer, maneuvers the keel winglets by hydraulics, moving one up as the other points downward in the water. The winglet keels counteract the power of the wind in the sails to keep the ultralight boat upright. The craft reportedly weighs about 5,000 pounds; a standard monohull of that length could be expected to weigh close to 60,000 pounds.

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more images here

13 May 2009

OMAN SAIL EXTREME 40 TEAMS PREPARE

FOR INAUGURAL ITALIAN EVENT

iShares Cup begins in Venice on Thursday with Oman Sail debuting their second team.

The waterfront of Italy’s most romantic city will become even more attractive towards the end of the week as ten teams arrive for the first date of the iShares Cup Tour. The iShares Cup has been described as the sailing equivalent of cricket’s Twenty20 cup and takes place on Extreme 40 catamarans, one of the fastest and most exciting classes in the sport. Amongst the ten teams will be two from Oman, Masirah and Renaissance, with both sporting the branding of Oman as well as Omani sailors.

Masirah and Renaissance, Oman Sail’s Extreme 40 catamarans

Masirah is the flagship of the Oman Sail project in the iShares Cup and successfully competed last season and took fourth place overall in the season finale in Amsterdam. It was at this event that also saw the crew of Masirah display the colours of Oman on the podium for the first time. This season sees the crew of Masirah hoping to improve on their position from last year with a final position in the top three. As one of the only boats in the iShares Cup with the same crew as last year they will prove a strong team to beat.

“Mr. Multihull” Loick Peyron, skipper of “Renaissance” in the iShares Cup 2009

Renaissance is the second Extreme 40 representing Oman and is already creating headlines due to the inclusion of ‘Mr Multihull’, Loick Peyron, as skippe r and helmsman. Renaissance represents the development of global commerce based in Oman and is sponsored by local companies Renaissance Services and Suhail Bahwan Group. Loick Peyron was chosen to skipper Renaissance because of his status as one of the world’s best and most renowned sailors. He and his crew of fellow international sailors spent several months sailing their Extreme 40 with Masirah off Muscat and has become a spokesman for Oman and her natural beauty. Joining Loick Peyron on Renaissance are Julien Cressant, Peter Greenhalgh and Greg Homann.

Oman Sail’s Extreme 40 “Renaissance” training for the iShares Cup 2009

Joining both international crews in Venice will be two Omani sailors who have spent the past year training on the Extreme 40′s to bring themselves to an international standard. Mubarak Al Battashi and Khamis Al Anbouri both have Naval backgrounds and completed a thorough selection process to gain their places on the boats. They will alternate the boats they compete on as the iShares Cup travels from Venice, Italy to the other venues on the tour.

Speeds drop for the race leaders

In the latest 0620 GMT position poll this morning (13/05), the Portimão Global Ocean Race leaders have left the Trade Winds. Boris Herrmann and Felix Oehme on Beluga Racer maintain pole position, but speeds have dropped for the German duo and their blue Class 40 is currently averaging nine knots, 180 miles north-east of the Turks and Caicos Islands with 800 miles to the finish line in Charleston, South Carolina. In second place, Felipe Cubillos and José Muñoz have been attempting to find a solution to their damaged rudder reported on board stricken Class 40 Desafio Cabo de Hornos early yesterday and the Chilean duo have held onto the stronger breeze slightly longer averaging similar speeds as the German team and currently trail the race leaders by 147 miles.

On third place double-handed Class 40 Team Mowgli, Jeremy Salvesen and David Thomson are averaging the highest speed in the fleet furthest south with an impressive 12.9 knots, 90 miles east of Antigua, and the British duo are making gains as Beluga Racer and Desafio Cabo de Hornos slowdown 608 mile to the north. Meanwhile, the fleet’s solo sailor Michel Kleinjans has maintained consistently high speeds of between 10-11 knots over the past 24 hours on board Roaring Forty and currently trails the double-handed leader by 400 miles and leads the British double-handed team by 200 miles.

Since early yesterday (12/05) the focus for the fleet has been the damage sustained by the Chilean team. Within minutes of the rudder damage on board Desafio Cabo de Hornos, Cubillos and Muñoz sent an email to the Race Organisation and the rest of the fleet advising as to their status. Instantly, messages flew back from Beluga Racer, Team Mowgli and Roaring Forty. Despite the intense rivalry between the Chilean and German teams, the message from Beluga Racer was characteristically selfless. “This is very bad luck,” wrote Boris Herrmann to the Chilean duo. “Get safely to Charleston and let’s have a new race as nice as this on the final leg.” For the German team, the lack of the competition from Cubillos and Muñoz will be a great loss. “Thanks for this incredible race,” continued Herrmann. “You have put so much pressure on us. Only 70 miles – with the light winds ahead we are very frightened the same happens as on the last leg.”

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This post is tagged Adam Minoprio, Alicate Trophy, americas cup, audi med cup, Bigamist, Bjorn Hansen, blue arrow, brainaid, Damien Iehl, Emirates Team New Zealand, Iain Ainslie, Ian Williams, ISAF World Ranking, ishares, Johnie Berntsson, Marazzi, Matador, Mathieu Richard, michel desjoyeaux, mike perham, oman sail, Philippe Presti, portimao, Quantum Racing, Sailkarma, Sebastien Col, Torvar Mirsky, tp52