Innholdsfortegnelse for November 2020 i Yachting World

Surprise appearances by marine life are one of the great joys of sailing away from shore: a pod of porpoises playing in your bow wave is guaranteed to lift the mood of even the most jaded crew. It’s also humbling, a reminder that we are brief visitors to their world and always, always lucky to be there. A whale sighting, meanwhile, is humbling on another level. Peter Nielsen’s gripping account of how a casual encounter with a sperm whale led to a mid-ocean abandonment and ship-to-ship rescue is a cautionary tale of their power (see page 52). More extraordinary still are recent accounts of yachts apparently being attacked by a pod of orcas in the Bay of Biscay (page 12). Scientists are baffled as to why the whales are behaving…

This 80ft Juan K-designed red missile is the latest in Nautor’s Swan’s burgeoning ClubSwan one-design range, and plugs the gap between its popular CS50, the foil-assisted CS36 and the spectacular CS125 currently in build. Another ambitious and innovative project from the Finnish brand, the CS80 is aimed at becoming the ultimate in owner-driver one-design racing. Nautor’s group vice-president Enrico Chieffisaid they wanted to “introduce a new concept into the world of Maxis and invigorate owner participation on an international level.” An expert team has been assembled for the project, which includes Pure Design’s Giovanni Belgrano on the engineering and Nauta Design for the interior, while the builds have been subcontracted to raceboat specialists Persico Marine in Nembro. This 80-footer shares styling and shape similarities to the CS36 and CS125 and…

South Sandwich memories Skip Novak’s article on the South Sandwich Islands in Yachting World’s June 2020 issue is one of the first articles I have ever seen [on the islands]. But I did want him to know that there have been more of us to get to the South Sandwich Islands than you know. In the early 1990s, I was on a two month Antarctic journey on the Kapitan Klebnikov, giving us rare opportunities to go to places few have been. One of them was the South Sandwich Islands. Even being a passenger on the largest icebreaker in the Antarctic, to get to this arc of volcanic islands was not to be easy. The ice that year was 10ft thick and noone had been even close for many years. The…

How many times have you heard, or said: “You never know when you might need…?” It’s true that when cruising on the far side of the world, with few or no marine services to hand, self sufficiency is key. You need spare parts galore, a full range of tools, and basic materials to make things for the unpredictable gear failures. However, this philosophy can be taken to extremes. I always had an annual routine purging the contents of the original Pelagic back in the 1990s. This was a time when we were based from Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego, there were no spare parts available whatsoever, hardly any useful tools on offer and materials like stainless steel and aluminium were rare earth metals. We carried lengths of spare standing rigging…

The dense silence is broken only by the sound of snowflakes landing on my protective clothing, as my eyes struggle to adjust to the landscape that surrounds me. It is so beautiful, so diverse, and so beyond anything that I have ever previously seen. I am standing on the top of a small, low lying, snow capped island that is skirted by open ocean, islands and wide bays. Looking seaward, there is a cluster of huge icebergs that stretch north towards a horizon that’s now entering twilight. Below me lie wooden rowing boats, abandoned in 1915 and preserved under snow for the majority of the year but, for now, clearly exposed. These are small iceboats that originally serviced the whaling ship Governoren, which lies in the backdrop, wrecked in the…

DITCHING THE GAS For most of us, cooking with gas has been so much the norm both ashore and afloat that it’s easy to forget the march of technology has the potential to offer better alternatives. Induction hobs have yet to be routinely adopted in the sailing world, but that looks set to change. Ten years ago the idea of using electricity to cook on any serious cruising yacht would have been a non-starter. However, much has changed in the last decade, particularly the myriad of efficient and affordable ways to deliver large amounts of battery charge, even when cruising in remote locations, and the growing feasibility of fitting large lithium ion battery banks (see Yachting World October 2020). Equally, induction hobs have much to recommend them on a yacht.…

Self-sufficiency is a goal of many liveaboard cruisers who sail the world’s oceans, generating their own water and power. With limited space and the obvious challenges of salt, wind and motion, many would never entertain the idea of growing their own produce. Yet it can be possible: we spoke to cruisers who are successful gardeners to learn more about the possibilities of growing fresh herbs and vegetables on a yacht. Scurvy, the illness that historically dogged seafarers, is caused by a lack of Vitamin C, traditionally associated with long passages at sea without fruit or veg. Thankfully scurvy is not something most sailors need to worry about these days, however, fresh greens still only last a few days in most boat refrigerators, often suffering bruising from the movement. But with…

New Zealand and Australia have rejected pleas from cruisers seeking refuge from Pacific cyclones. In a formal reply to the Ocean Cruising Club in mid-September, both countries refused to lift a ban on foreign ships other than cargo or fishing vessels. Most of the yachts that were sailing across the Pacific when COVID-19 struck will now be trapped in areas where they may not be insured. New Zealand is, however, offering to exempt owners who commit to spending at least NZ$50,000 (€28,000) on refit and maintenance work. Meanwhile Australian officials said: ‘Travellers may wish to consider whether they may present as a significant economic activity for a State or Territory and seek their support.’ Around 700 yachts cross the Pacific each year, arriving from the US West Coast, Mexico and…

An unexplained spate of apparent attacks on yachts by killer whales off the coast of Spain has caused serious damage to several boats. The latest yacht to be damaged was a Hallberg-Rassy 36, which was en route to the UK from Spain and being sailed by a delivery crew from Halcyon Yachts when it encountered the aggressive whale pod. “Our delivery crew had just set off from A Coruña and were a couple of miles offshore when the crew suddenly felt the wheel being ripped out of their hands,” Peter Green of Halcyon Yachts told Yachting World. “At first they thought something had gone wrong with the autopilot but it carried on and then they saw the orca. It is not uncommon for them to come and play but this…

During a season of event cancellations, the 11th hour news that two boat shows scheduled to take place in Southampton in early September could not go ahead arguably proved the most frustrating for exhibitors and organisers. BOATS2020 and the more sail-based show at MDL’s Ocean Village marina in Southampton were designed as smaller exhibitions and substitutes for the previously cancelled Southampton International Boat Show. However, the announcement that both shows also had to cancel came only the evening before they were due to open, when exhibitors had stands and staff in place. Southampton City Council enforced the cancellations due to UK Government fears about the increased spread of COVID-19. “I’m disappointed and surprised on behalf of our [BOATS2020] exhibitors and show stakeholders, especially receiving the news so close to the…

Around the world in 40 days Two foiling maxi trimarans are lining up for a tilt at the Jules Verne Trophy this winter. Their target? An unreal sub-40 days around the world time. We look at what it takes to challenge for this most enduring of records. Slowing down in Denmark Tom Cunliffe swops mile-bashing for the slow life with a high-summer cruise around the sand-spits and islands of Denmark. His verdict: heavenly. Jimmy’s electric cat Renowned bluewater adventurer Jimmy Cornell gives an exclusive tour of his new Outremer 4E catamaran, aboard which he is aiming to complete a circumnavigation without using fossil fuels. On test: Elan GT6 Elan is making a statement with this ‘Grand Tourer’ 50ft Humphreys design, which is set up for cruising short-handed and has an…

‘You can get so lucky and find people who become lifelong friends’ As a boy, Darroch Tait always had his head in a book. He was fascinated by adventures and the discovery of new lands. In his early 30s he decided to quit his job as a teacher, buy a boat with his best friend and go sailing for a few years. He set off in his 35ft Trident Warrior Hitrapia in 2013 and cruised the Med, before Hitrapia dragged her anchor one night and was wrecked near Sagres. Tait didn’t want to abandon his plan. So he decided to walk the dock and find a skipper who would take him on as crew. It led to him being crew for a transatlantic crossing and then sailing round the world…

‘There is no chance that I can win this, so why race?’ The Vendée Globe is the longest continuous racecourse in sport. Like some of the world’s great marathons, it offers something very rare: the opportunity for competitors from a wide range of backgrounds to race one another. The Vendée Globe has a proud history of welcoming both the icons of the offshore sailing world as well as adventurers and rookies. The most experienced professionals, with multi-million Euro campaigns and leading edge designs, compete alongside more Corinthian entries with their big dreams and small budgets, older boats and hasty branding. Vendée Globe hopefuls may be dreamers, but they must also be skilled and self-sufficient sailors. Stringent entry requirements demand that anyone qualifying for a place will have thoroughly proven themselves…

It’s noon on Sunday, 23 August, and just another day in the life of our small crew sailing across the Pacific. The Atlantic 46 catamaran One Tree Island is making a steady 6-7 knots, heading south-southwest under a reefed mainsail and genoa, both well eased in the 12-knot south-easterly. It’s less sail than we’d like to carry, but we’ve learned to tailor boatspeed to sea state, and the 2m swell is topped by smaller whitecaps that make for an uncomfortably bumpy ride if we push harder. Panama is 2,500 miles astern, we’ve been at sea for 18 days, and even if we keep to this modest speed we’ll be in the Marquesas, 1,500 miles away, in less than ten days. Shoals of flying fish erupt, startled, from the water around…

Tested by DAVID HARDING Where we tested: The Solent. Wind: 12-20 knots with slight chop. Model: Moody 41DS, hull No12, with extras including electric in-mast reefing and genoa on outer forestay. Whatever your opinion of decksaloons, there’s something extremely civilised about being able to walk ‘inside’ from the cockpit, staying on the same level and looking out through big windows. Of course decksaloons are nothing new, and they come in all shapes and sizes. The one on Moody’s 41DS, however, is likely to win new converts, including people who might otherwise be tempted by a catamaran or even a motorboat. Opening to the cockpit via a push-and-slide door, it gives you a virtually uninterrupted 360° view of the outside world. You have the galley immediately next to the door, with…

As we make our way back from a summer of staycations, and contemplate a winter back at home workstations, the reality of the ‘new normal’ comes into focus again. Many of us saw our sailing seasons reduced significantly or, in the case of the racing circuit, all but disappear. And while the shutdown of our sport has been very frustrating, I can’t help thinking that among the sustained stream of grim news there are pointers to some positive outcomes in the future. As an example, sailing clubs in the UK, like so many around the world, were forced to close their doors. While they waited for the national restrictions to be lifted, many tried to figure out how they could resume activities while complying with government requirements. It was a…

JEANNEAU YACHTS 60 LOA 18.28m 60ft 0in • HULL LENGTH 17.41m 57ft 1in • BEAM 5.20m 17ft 1in DRAUGHT (standard keel) 2.55m 8ft 4in • BASE PRICE TBA • www.jeanneau.com Jeanneau’s current range of large yachts has attracted much acclaim since the Jeanneau Yachts 57 was launched a decade ago and a 64-footer was introduced in 2014. They offer buyers an enticing blend of superyacht features at around half the price of other yachts of a similar size. The latest model is once again a Philippe Briand design, one that benefits from an up to date high stability hull shape with reverse bow, chined hull, and integrated bowsprit. The high freeboard, along with a raised cockpit sole aft, clearly improves headroom and the feeling of space in the aft sections…

LIGHT TENDER A practical tender can be a very rewarding purchase. And while modern davits and tender garages may make for convenient ways to ship tenders aboard, keeping as much weight out of the ends of a yacht as possible remains prudent. This new carbon ASTender 340 should therefore offer broad appeal as it’s claimed to be the lightest tender on the market. Built in carbon PVC foam sandwich with vacuum-infused epoxy resin by AST Yachts and Composites in Germany, it weighs just 39kg which should make it easy to stow aboard or drag up a beach. Yet the stable hull shape design ensures it can still carry five people plus an outboard engine up to 15hp. It looks like a seaworthy ride with a V-shaped hull that is said…

Paja is a 30ft carbon daysailer designed by Paolo Bua for famously innovative owner Jack Setton The appeal of many slim hulled designs lies in their traditional charm, but building an ultra-modern, super-skinny dayboat in 2020 is something else entirely. Paja is beyond slender, she is closer to a blade than a board, with a beam of just 1.76m (5ft 9in). Her dimensions most closely resemble the Valhalla whaleboats that legendary naval architect and sailor Uffa Fox used to sail almost a century ago (with their LOA of 9.3m/30ft 6in and a beam of 1.7m/5ft 7in), and which he praises in his book ‘The Crest of the Wave’. “Those who have not sailed in a lightly-built whaleboat have missed one of the greatest joys of sailing,” wrote Fox, “for such…

HENRY BOMBY has raced a lot of miles through the night. He talks to ANDY RICE about how to keep your boat speed up after dark It’s when you find yourself caught out in 50 knots with the big kite up on a single-handed Figaro yacht as you’re trying to get round Cape Finisterre that you appreciate the time you spent getting some night sailing routines sorted. For Henry Bomby, that big night just off La Coruña was much scarier than anything he encountered in the Southern Ocean during the last Volvo Ocean Race. He’s also charged across the Atlantic aboard a MOD70 trimaran at speeds in excess of 30 knots. All are very different experiences of nighttime sailing, but there are some golden rules that apply across the board,…

‘This is one of the biggest hearted boats I’ve ever sailed’ NICK MOLONEY NOMINATES THE OPEN 50 “I’d been intrigued by short-handed sailing since the early days of the BOC Challenge and was blown away by the wide beam Finot-Conq designs that began to push the parameters of form stability. “I was in Newport the day the Finot-Conq Open 50 Cray Valley first went in the water in 1997 and remember saying to myself ‘I’d give anything to sail that beautiful boat’. “Roll forward to 2002, and Offshore Challenges entered two boats in the Route du Rhum. Ellen MacArthur would race her beloved Kingfisher Open 60 and Mark Turner sourced an Open 50 for my campaign. I could not believe it when Mark revealed to me what my boat would be.…