Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2025 i Sailing Today

Years ago before GPS or Loran C made navigation a whole lot easier, I was headed up this coast on an overnight passage from the Strait of Messina to Camerota on the underbelly of Capo Palinuro. I was singlehanded in Tetra and this sea area was notorious for long surface drift nets laid to catch swordfish and tuna. The nets were laid at dusk and picked up in the early morning. I had been out with these fishermen when I first sailed Roulette down from the UK and even then the nets were 5-6km long. Since then nets have got longer with some boats laying nets over 10km long in giant zigzags anything up to 30-40nm off the coast. Nowadays the practice is banned or at least limited. All through…

As the sailing season gets underway here in Greece, everyone is keen to watch the harbour cinema on display every evening. Flot crews across the Med dust off wing mirrors and re-position fenders, nervously awaiting their guests first attempts in reverse, after a winter of going forwards on a yacht! One of my main responsibilities used to be running our Monday morning mooring practice session. Sail Ionian has always offered a free session with an instructor on the first day of a charter to any guest who has never Med-moored or is just a bit rusty. I always advise guests take advantage of it, no matter how advanced they are. There’s always something new to learn! While every helmsman is different and needs to practice certain elements more than others,…

Years in the planning, and looking set to become a biennial fixture, the much-feted Admiral’s Cup returns this summer after a 22-year hiatus. As a celebration to mark the centenary of host club, the Royal Ocean Racing Club, this initial reincarnation is both a nostalgic nod to the heyday of the yacht racing scene, and the catalyst for a new era in elite racing. The first Admiral’s Cup was held on the Solent back in 1957, devised by Sir Myles Wyatt (RORC Admiral at the time), to encourage US teams to compete here to boost standards of racing. Centred around the two pinnacle events of Cowes Week and the Fastnet Race, with a Channel Race added in between, the first year saw the home team excel in a windy Fastnet…

The Rolex Fastnet Yacht Race is the world’s largest offshore yacht race, with, as RORC Commodore Deb Fish puts it, “a distinguished history and fearsome reputation.” That sure sums it up well. But in reality, RORC’s flagship race needs little introduction – entries for the biannual 695nm marathon this year had surpassed 200 within just a couple of minutes of opening in a frenzy of popularity comparable to the scramble for Glastonbury – or Oasis – tickets. Final numbers are yet to be confirmed, but already a record 464 yachts are entered. As Deb explains, “This year’s race is particularly special, as 2025 marks the centenary of the Fastnet Race and the founding of the Royal Ocean Racing Club. The 2025 Fastnet will also be the final race for the…

If you are looking to extend your sailing holiday season to the absolute maximum, Turkey is an excellent choice because you generally get a couple more weeks of reliable sunshine compared to Greece, and it offers good value for money. Generally speaking you can expect eight or nine hours of sunshine a day and temperatures in the low to mid-20s even in April and October/November. In July and August, the temperatures can soar into the high 30s. It’s also worth bearing in mind that the local strong northerly wind – the Meltemi (or etesian wind) – can often take charge in afternoons in high summer. This local wind is less prevalent off-high season and, the area around Bodrum, is generally known to offer more gentle breezes. Its geographical position as…

TRIED AND TESTED Scanstrut Ultra - waterproof wireless phone charger Mobile phones – the drug of the nation. Love ‘em or loathe ‘em it’s difficult to do without them even when you’re at sea, and this new Scanstrut product provides another handy means to keep your phone topped up with power on the water. The Ultra features an IPX6 waterproof rating on both the front and back and, along with toughened glass construction, it delivers unmatched protection and performance at sea. Powered by a waterproof 12/24V wireless charging system, Ultra eliminates cable clutter while keeping smartphones fully powered and always within reach. Its strong magnetic grip ensures devices remain securely in place, even during high-speed rides or rough sea conditions. • £tbc • Scanstrut.com Musto BR3 Sport Jacket Waterproofs are…

Safety questions raised as Israelis seize British yacht Activist Greta Thunberg once more put sailing yachts firmly in the spotlight after she and a group of like minded sailors found themselves in the cross hairs of the Israeli security forces as they tried to raise awareness about the plight of the people of Gaza. In the process, she inadvertently raised a broader safety issue for cruising sailors. The Madleen, an 18m ketch owned by the activist group The Freedom Flotilla Coalition, sailed from Catania, Italy, loaded with what was described by the crew as a ‘symbolic’ amount of aid in early June with the stated intention of taking the aid to Gaza which is currently being heavily blockaded by Israeli forces as part of the ongoing conflict between Israel and…

“Human power is showing signs of coming back into fashion!” After a 22-year hiatus, who would have thought the Admiral’s Cup could return with so much good will and enthusiasm! The Royal Ocean Racing Club’s decision to rejuvenate the moribund team-racing event was a brave one, yet it seems to be paying off. I remember an up-and-coming professional sailor laying out his career goals 30 years ago: win an Olympic gold medal, win the America’s Cup and win the Admiral’s Cup. It doesn’t seem fair of me to mention his name, as he didn’t achieve the first two, although he was part of the winning Admiral’s Cup team in the late 80s. But the point is, this regatta used to be a very big deal, a pinnacle event. Little more…

On 19-20 July, visitors to Portsmouth will get front row seats to one of, if not the, hottest competitions in sailing right now: event 7 of the Rolex SailGP 2024-25 Championship, with Southsea seafront set to be transformed into a waterfront stadium. It’s the first time Portsmouth has welcomed the one-design foiling F50s (UK events were previously in Cowes and Plymouth), but the city is no stranger to such stadium-style competition, having twice hosted the America’s Cup World Series. Now, 12 teams sailed by the world’s best are set to battle at speeds of up to 50kts, if not more, in front of some 20,000 spectators across two days of competition. All within metres of the shore. SailGP is the series that has come to define close-quarters racing. In the…

This would be a very short article indeed if I just said “hard work” but actually that is very much part of the story: certainly it is impossible to become a champion without hard work. As we move into the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere there are a huge number of high level championships for different classes and the physical demands, skill sets etc for the different classes varies a lot but one thing is without doubt, all the champions will have worked very hard and that is why sailing, perhaps more so than most sports, really rewards experience. Sailing is full of clichés and the reason we have clichés is because they are sayings which are very often true. Some of my favourites include “Time on the Water…

When time is short or schedules clash, it is not always possible to sail the boat to where you want it for the season. That’s why there is a thriving ecosystem of yacht transport options that stretches from a few miles on the back of a truck to the other side of the world on a specially designed float-on, float-off ship. It’s certainly not a cheap option, but it might cost less than you think to position the boat for your next adventure. However you get your boat from A to B, you won’t reach contract stage without discussing the necessary customs clearance, and you may need a recent valuation of the boat for this. Some, like Peters & May, have their own team of experts to guide you through…

The silhouette of the Fastnet Lighthouse, the austere, wild and desolate 177ft seamark in the Atlantic Ocean at the southern tip of Ireland, that marks the turning point in the Rolex Fastnet Race, is one of those iconic images that, in a similar way to places like Cape Horn, is unmistakable. To have the opportunity to see it closeup, and experience the sound of the haunting echo of the waves crashing up against the Rock as you round it is, in many cases, one of the most alluring aspects. While the format and course changes of the Fastnet Race may have changed over the last 100 years, and evolved with new safety recommendations following the tragic storm-swept 1979 edition where 15 people lost their lives, this challenging race is still…

Last year, Sunsail celebrated an incredible milestone – its 50th anniversary. A half-century of helping adventure-lovers explore the world from the deck of an award-winning yacht is no mean feat. Such an achievement can only be accredited to the consistent vision that has guided the company over the decades, with each generation of leadership united by a clear goal – to deliver unforgettable sailing experiences for the sailing community and beyond. To mark the occasion, we caught up with Clive Norton, VP of Revenue Management and Fleet Planning at Sunsail, to reflect on the company’s roots, discussing the journey from launching a small fleet in the Saronic Gulf to becoming a world leading sailing holiday company. In this exclusive interview, we delve into Sunsail’s origins, its milestones and where it…

Swan 51 Nautor Swan is arguably the most iconic and evocative name in the sailing world and the launch of a new boat is always big news. The new 51 comes from the drawing board of long time design partner German Frers and is an interesting blend of speed, comfort and style. While this boat is clearly not a pure racer in the ClubSwan mould, there is a clear emphasis on performance and Swan state that this is; ‘a pure sailor, more a sportscar than a limousine’. The boat features twin rudders and a T-shaped keel with the option of a square topped mainsail and 3.2m keel. Down below, the boat looks well appointed and the owner’s stateroom is placed at the bow.nautorswan.com Ice 56 Ice Yachts is an Italian…

When I took my first brick-like Magellan GPS receiver out of its box back in the mid-1990s, I was in Wick, NE Scotland. The fog was thick enough to walk on. Filled with a confidence I had never had before, I put bravely to sea with ‘Ferdinand’ propped up in the cockpit, new batteries and all. I hadn’t proceeded half a mile from the pier head with my eyes penetrating all 25 yards of the North Sea within my vision when I realised there was more to safety than knowing where I was. I turned round, made it back inside the breakwaters and I’m still alive. The software then was often no better than it should have been and the hardware was downright clunky. On the face of things, all…

At a very formative moment in my life I was taken to watch the film Dead Poets Society. I was 13 and was told it was a comedy about an inspirational teacher who transforms the life of his pupils. I emerged from the cinema weeping – but lets pass over that. One of the key takeaways I took from the film was a brief dialogue from Mr Keating on the purpose of language. The exchange with his class of gawky adolescents much like myself went as follows: Keating: 'Language was developed for one endeavour and that is… Mr Anderson – come on, are you a man or an amoeba? (Anderson mumbles incoherently)… Mr Perry? ‘Umm... to communicate’. Keating: ‘No! To woo women.’ Now, perhaps some might argue it’s a line…

Many years ago when I first got into sailing journalism, I was fortunate enough to be given the chance to interview Sir Robin Knox-Johnston. As someone who had read In a World of My Own as a child, this seemed like a very big deal at the time and I spent a lot of time planning out my questions. One of my biggies was ‘Where is the most challenging place you’ve ever sailed?’ I imagined a reply that evoked the Mighty greybeards of the Southern Ocean or perhaps some tidal headache off Tierra del Fuego… ‘the Thames Estuary’ he replied with typical brusqueness. I was somewhat taken aback, but he had a point; it blends often hostile weather, hideous tides, shallows, complex buoyage and lighting, plus an awful lot of…

HANSE 345 | MERSEY JOY The Hanse 345 covers a lot of bases. She is large enough for extensive cruising and has a lovely, modern, well-appointed warm interior with mahogany joinery and maple floorboards with cream upholstery. Accommodation sleeps six and there is a large heads compartment with separate shower stall. The broker says moreover she is a joy to sail and can be easily handled by a couple, or singlehanded. Mersey Joy has had one set of owners from new and has 625 hours on the Volvo D1-30 diesel engine. She comes complete, in ready-to-sail condition, and includes many extras such as a dinghy and Mariner 2.5 outboard, and 7.5kg kedge anchor with chain. Year: 2013 LOA: 10.39m (34.09’) Beam: 3.48m (11.42’) Draft: 1.90m (6.23’) Displacement: 8,022kg Hull Construction:…

We’re having some time away from the boat. The trouble is though, we’re not very good at actually being away. Because, when on land, we come over all nostalgic and sentimental about both the boat and the sea, and simply cannot keep away. For example, on this particular trip the first thing we do is catch up with friends in Singapore. Within a day they are taking us to the local sailing club to get out on their boat. Likewise in New Zealand a few weeks later, an inland visit staying with friends soon finds us talking about yet another yacht and driving to go and see her bobbing at the dock in the nearby marina. In fact, on that same trip, we even wound up staying a night on…