Yachting News 4th August 2009

Aug 4th 2009
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Countdown to the Opti Worlds

The NZL Yachting Trust Opti Worlds Team have all assembled in Rio de Janeiro now for the start of the Optimist World Championship 2009. They are settled in to their accomodation, had 4 days of training in a mixture of conditions, have tomorrow off for rest and recuperation and a little bit of sightseeing, then a practice race day followed by opening ceremony and then into 2 races on the first day which will be 6 August. We are running 15 hours behind NZ time.
Early indications are that the Clube Naval Charitas in Niteroi will be a great host for the event with superb facilities and very challenging sailing conditions. The talk over here is that Niteroi is one of the most technically difficult venues to sail in the world and this is largely responsible for making Torben Grael such a great sailor. His home club is here and his daughter Martine has also just won the 420 ISAF Youth Worlds.
The NZL Yachting Trust Worlds Team

Naomi Mannering
Erica Dawson
Jack Collinson
Taylor Burn
Keith Inglis
For more photos and comments visit www.optimist.org.nz
The team would like to thank their major sponsor NZL Yacting Trust and all the individual supporters. Back with next report after Day 1 racing.

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World Debut of Crichton’s New Alfa Romeo at Copa Del Rey

Photo of Alpha Romeo by Chris Cameron, www.chriscameron.co.nz. Click on image for photo gallery.

Copa Del Rey Palma de Mallorca: Neville Crichton’s brand new Mini Maxi Alfa Romeo has fulfilled the expectations by winning both its races in the opening day of the 28th Copa del Rey Audi Mapfre. In his world debut, the Reichel and Pugh design, that came out of the shipyard just a few days ago, clearly demonstrated it was the best of the IRC fleet on a day that began with very light conditions.

The start of the first race for the IRC was postponed by 1 hour and 20 minutes, until the sea breeze built in the Bravo area, the most central of the three set up for the windward-leeward races.

“Alfa Romeo” took no risk and started to the left-hand side of the area, and was able to round the first top mark at the head of the group, maintaining this position till the end of the race. Bellamente was second and Container was third.17 knots of wind with a direction of 180, known as the Embat in the region, provided a fantastic show of Mini Maxis on the water during the second race, which was much tighter. “Alfa Romeo” was first again, followed by Bellamente just 17 seconds behind, and Container, again, was third. Hap Fauth’s american Bellamente is second in the overall classification, and Udo Schuetz’s Container remains third, confirming the leadership of the Mini Maxis in the group. CAM with H.R.H The Prince of Asturias Don Felipe de Borbon as helmsman is fourth.

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more Scuttlebutt photos here

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RAYC Southern 600 Series.

The Royal Akarana Yacht Club is pleased to announce a brand new long distance three race series for the upcoming summer season.

The first race in November is the 320 nm Round White Island race, followed by the 90 nm Balokovic Cup in February and finally in March the 150nm Brin Wilson Memorial race ending at Kawau Island with an evening prize giving on the lawn at mansion house bay.

This series has already prompted a lot of interest and leads nicely as a warm up series for the offshore races that the RAYC run each year.

For further information please contact Kevin Robertson at RAYC.

The Royal Akarana Yacht Club Inc.

PO Box 42 004 Orakei

Auckland 1745

New Zealand

Tel +64 9 524 9945

Fax +64 9 520 1380

kevin@rayc.org.nz.

The exciting new route for the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race has been unveiled today by race founder and legendary solo sailor, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston. The addition of an eighth leg to the race delivers a second Great Cape for the non-professional crews and, at 40,000 miles, Clipper 11-12 becomes the world’s longest round the world yacht race.

Sir Robin says, “The Clipper Race continues to go from strength to strength with more nationalities represented by the crew than ever before. Berths on Clipper 09-10 sold out three months before the race start, which is why we are well into planning for Clipper 11-12, even before the next race has departed.

“The popularity of the race grows as our crews recognise that there is more to life than the day to day routine. It’s by achieving the tough things in life that gain you respect and a sense of personal fulfillment.”

Clipper 11-12 will be the eighth edition of the biennial event which, for the previous two races has seen the fleet take an easterly route around the world, following the trade winds and delivering some exhilarating downwind racing. Keeping with this tradition and maximizing the potential of the Clipper 68s, the Clipper 11-12 Race will follow a similar route but with the addition of a challenging new leg, taking the fleet to New Zealand and the east coast of Australia for the first time in its history. The additional leg brings the total length of the race to 40,000 miles, making Clipper the world’s longest round the world yacht race.

Split into two races from Western Australia to the east coast via New Zealand,

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The Everest of the sea is a circumnavigation of the world. In fact twice as many people have climbed Mount Everest as have sailed around the world. And that is not down to cost either; the advent of the Clipper concept made sailing around the world less expensive than climbing the world’s highest mountain. It is a factor of just how tough the sailing challenge is. But, in life, why do something that is easy? Who will be interested? Far better to set the challenge of doing something really difficult and then enjoy the satisfaction that comes from the achievement.

Clipper is unique in that it is the only race around the world that is open to the non-professional sailor, and it has brought this to a wide cross section of society, from millionaires, to students and taxi drivers. These people have come from 27 different countries, making the Clipper Race truly international. The one quality that Clipper is looking for in crew is enthusiasm. With enthusiasm anything can be achieved.

Clipper has been organising races around the world since its first in 1996. Apart from 2004, when there was a one year delay whilst a new fleet of yachts was introduced, the race has been run every two years. Over the years Clipper Ventures has built up a highly professional and dedicated team to run the races, many of whom have been recruited from past Clipper crews so that they have a full understanding of what the event is about. This includes everything from crew recruitment and development, maintenance of the yachts, liaison with the ports, public relations and, far from least, the planning and organisation that goes into taking a race through every ocean of the world and into 14 different countries and ports.

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Britain And New Zealand Early Leaders At 420 Worlds

420 World Championships 2009
Riva del Garda, Italy

Recent Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship gold medallist Phil SPARKS and Ben GRATTON of Great Britain and New Zealand pairing Alexandra MALONEY and Bianca BARBARICH-BACHER top the standings after day two at the 420 Worlds on Lake Garda.
The second day of the qualifiers dawned with some doubts on the part of the Race Committee about the prospects for the day. Cloud is ominous for generating the Ora, without the heat to cause the air to rise and the southerly to kick in as usual around midday. So, wishing, at all costs, to avoid ‘chasing the wind’, involving many mark lifts in very deep water with the likelihood that the time taken would cancel out any benefit, the Race Committee determined on an initial one hour postponement and then to put the Worlds fleet on the water, with a view to completing three races in the North East of the Lake, by using the northerly Perler wind. If successful the ladies’ fleet would then be launched.

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SMITH Family Team Win 2009 Mirror World Championship

2009 Mirror World Champions – Tom and Andy SMITH
©Paul Todd/outsideimages.co.nz

Mirror World Championship 2009
Pwllheli, North Wales, Great Britain

The Father and son team of Andy and Tom SMITH are the 2009 Mirror World Champions after the British weather put paid to what looked set to be a spectacular final day showdown at the Pwllheli Sailing Club in North Wales.
Conditions on the racecourse were already pretty adverse when the competitors arrived at the regatta centre early this morning and the situation failed to improve as the day progressed. Principal Race Officer Mike PEARSON made several trips out to the race area by rib before finally deciding that the combination of high winds and huge waves was simply too unsafe to send the fleet afloat.

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Scuttleblog

Rule 53

There are too many sailing rules. It is a popular contention, and some feel it holds the sport back. Rules experts point out that despite the girth of the rule book, it is only the 14 rules in Part 2 that are relevant on the race course. To provide a simpler rules guide, Scuttlebutt posted in March 2009 an abbreviated rules publication by Ken Quant titled ‘The Basic Sailboat Racing Rules All Racers Should Know’. US SAILING also provides a simplified, pocket sized rules guide to help.

Now the America’s Cup defender, the Swiss Alinghi team, is coming to the rescue as well. For the next Match, they have decided to eliminate six rules from the rule book. Among them is Rule 53 – Skin Friction. The rule reads, “A boat shall not eject or release a substance, such as a polymer, or have specially textured surfaces that could improve the character of the flow of water inside the boundary layer.” Without this rule, what is it that we will see on these maxi multihulls?

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