Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2021 i Yachting World

If the great privilege of bluewater cruising is the choice to sail wherever you please (weather and budget not withstanding!), then the flip side is that choice comes with a side of responsibility. When should you choose not to sail somewhere? Perhaps sometimes it is better to leave a place untouched, even by the fleeting impact of a yacht’s wake. In their must-read feature on page 22, round the world cruising veterans Janneke Kuysters and Wietze van der Laan look at where to sail in today’s post-pandemic world and come up with some inspiring and creative solutions. Besides the logistical juggles of reducing border crossings and making sure you can get a flight home promptly, one of their key considerations is the impact cruising visitors would have on the destination.…

Cruising in company The cruising rally circuit is booming, with organisers reporting big entry numbers as sailors opt to let someone else take the organisational strain. We have an A-Z guide – and find out why so many cruisers are casting off in company this year. What next for the Cup? The long-awaited protocol for the 37th America’s Cup reveals the future for the foiling AC75 class. We examine what, where, and when for the next event. Hallberg-Rassy 50 tested Toby Hodges takes the latest German Frers 50-footer from Hallberg-Rassy for a sail to find out how this iconic bluewater brand is evolving. Caribbean bounce back With a bumper crop of yachts set to transat this year, we check out how the 2022 Caribbean season is shaping up in popular…

In stressful times it’s tempting to cast off the bowlines and sail for the horizon. But the reality is that cruising in a post-pandemic world is complicated. The sailing community has been on a steep learning curve over the past 18 months. Cruisers are dealing with the new reality of sailing in a world where you have to be creative and adapt to constantly changing limitations. The list of ‘lessons learned’ is interesting. The most important one is: have access to information. With borders opening and closing at short notice worldwide, rules and paperwork requirements ever-changing, it’s imperative that you stay connected. Another important factor to think about is your impact on the destinations and communities that you cruise to. Many distribution systems have been disrupted, even for food. You…

Deciding on a crossing strategy will depend on the six factors already explained, plus the limitations of your boat, your crew and your time frame. You can reduce the impact of any of these factors by trying not to encounter too many at once: shipping + the shelf + heavy weather = high stress! Try to break them down by tackling them in stages: stay away from the shipping route in heavy weather, for example. SHORT-HANDED/SLOW BOAT If you’re double-handed or on a smaller yacht with an average speed of less than 6 knots then a Brest-A Coruña/Viveiro crossing makes more sense, staying clear of the shipping route to keep things simple (if wind angles allow). The shorter distance increases your chances of getting across in a limited weather window.…

I have long held that bluewater cruising yachts, especially those under 40ft, have much to gain from the way today’s smaller short-handed offshore raceboats are designed and set up. Many of these are pushed hard in conditions that keep most cruisers in harbour, yet easy handling and utter reliability, even in properly testing conditions, are essential attributes. But can a lightweight, powerful design really work as a serious cruising yacht? Traditionally key features for such boats include good directional stability and the ability to stand up to canvas in an increasing wind. Dark squall clouds to the south-west of La Rochelle promised the perfect opportunity to test the JPK 39’s ability to stand up to full sail when close-hauled in a rising breeze. Progressively flattening the mainsail was easy as…

We also looked at the more expensive and newer Spirit 1.0 Evo option from ePropulsion during these trials, which has hydrogenerating capability and the option of a remote throttle control. From a sailor’s point of view and for those who have the budget, this 2021 addition to the ePropulsion range makes it the standout option for a small outboard today. It’s the same 1kW/3hp direct drive motor providing the same range as the cheaper Plus model, although it weighs slightly more at 22kg. But then comes the clever bit. The propeller can free spin when not in use to start recharging the battery once you’re doing over 4 knots, putting in 40W and increasing this to 300W at 10 knots. In reality you want to be doing over 6 knots…

Emily and Dave Birch were in search of a yacht to take them on a sabbatical with their seven-year-old daughter. “We were looking for a yacht that would look after us and hold value if we looked after her. It put us into a market with big variations in price, but also usage. Some bluewater yachts have been lived aboard full time, regularly crossing oceans, while others had been sitting in a marina despite their ocean-going credentials. “Each scenario presented different challenges in terms of keeping seaworthy. Due to the pandemic, we also found ourselves in a period of unprecedented demand; we weren’t the only people wanting to sail off into the distance,” Dave recalls. They found Manketti, a rare 2005 Sparkman & Stevens-designed Hylas 49 berthed in Vigo. “The…

Ainslie banks on F1 connection Sir Ben Ainslie’s America’s Cup team INEOS Britannia has unveiled a major partnership with the Mercedes F1 team, which Ainslie and his backer Sir Jim Ratcliffe hope will reverse the fortunes of the British Challenger of Record after two unsuccessful Cup bids. The reveal was made amidst a dearth of official Cup news, due to the delayed venue announcement for AC37. That vacuum has been amply filled by plenty of speculation, and some of INEOS’s key signings were of little surprise. However, the breadth and depth of the partnership is significant, because it represents a wholesale shift from having F1 experts dip in as advisors to becoming wholly embedded in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team operation. Among the significant changes, the team will be moving…

After a year and a half of social distancing, it’s difficult to know how to greet people. When it comes to handshakes, anticipating whether the appropriate greeting is a fist pump, elbow tap or traditional handshake means that greetings often feel like a game of rock, paper scissors. Arriving at the INEOS press call and meeting with so many colleagues for real reinforced how much has changed in two years, and it was more than just the handshakes. On the face of it the announcement seemed straightforward; some new recruitments and a new base for the design team. But when that new location is the home of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 team in landlocked Brackley, Oxfordshire, it’s a sign that something bigger is at stake. The presence of Mercedes…

It’s that time of year when yachts and crews from northern Europe flock south, migrating to warmer climes. But like all good migration routes there’s an obstacle in the way: the Bay of Biscay. Biscay gained its notorious reputation because in the prevailing westerlies a square-rigged vessel could be ‘embayed’ for days. Failing to make sufficient ground to windward they’d drift inexorably closer to the French coast and potential disaster. However with 21st century forecasting techniques and a modern yacht it no longer needs to be the feat of endurance it once was – but it does still need preparation, strategy and a healthy dose of respect. In my dealings with Biscay over the years I’ve motored across in light airs with pilot whales for company, beaten across in a…

Nathan picked up our anchor in Roque Harbour in a light breeze, with a plan to sail to nowhere in particular. Maine’s vast cruising grounds tempted us with options in every direction. Miguel was at the helm, steering out of our idyllic overnight spot while crew Peter, Debbie, and John watched for lobster traps. We settled on making a course towards Portland, and the Maine coast disappeared in our wake as noon approached, promising an overnight sail in moderate breezes. September was just around the corner and the temperature gradually cooled the further offshore we sailed. My husband, Nathan, and I were mid-way through a training passage on our Compass 47, Ultima, and on our first overnight sail of the week. Usually, I’d stand a night watch by myself while…

Some yachts will always produce that instant spark of attraction. With others, the appeal may be slower burning, where facets or practicalities will help make the appeal more than skin deep. This new Ice 70 may just have that rare ability to combine both. The opportunity for a first quick sail after its debut showing at Cannes Boat Show confirmed to me that, for a multitude of reasons, this is a standout new large yacht. It has the looks to stop you in your tracks, the performance and finish quality to really impress, as well as something else too, something more enduring: homogenous and harmonious design. Why is that a big deal? Many yards have models at this market level, particularly in Italy. But a semi-custom or custom yacht will…

JAMES DEVOY ON DIESEL BUG Nearly two years of lockdown have left increasing numbers of yachts laid up and unattended around the world. The scramble to return home before travel restrictions started in 2020 meant some sailors had to abandon their boats wherever they could or risk being stranded. Even cruisers who remained with their yachts often found themselves immobilised in marinas. Restrictions are still ongoing in many areas, and organising maintenance remotely can be challenging. This has left an increasing number of owners returning to their yachts to find a sticky and slimy problem: diesel bug. WHAT IS DIESEL BUG? Diesel bug is a mixture of different microbes, bacteria and fungus that can live and thrive in the interface between water and diesel in your fuel tank. Like most…

Faced with the prospect of losing out on an Olympic Gold Medal, Anne-Marie Rindom had to dig deep to stay calm under pressure and move on from mistakes. She explains how to Andy Rice. After sailing a brilliant qualifying series during the Tokyo Games earlier this summer, a moment of indecision put Anne-Marie Rindom’s grip on the gold medal in jeopardy. But the Dane managed to put her mistake into perspective and did what she needed to do in the medal race to secure the Olympic title. That moment when it all looked like her regatta was unravelling, she now refers to as ‘Black Friday’. However, Rindom had worked hard on her mental processes going into the Games, and her resilience against setbacks, not least because she’d lost the European…

Ellen’s two looks I completely agree that B&Q/Castorama is one of the ‘World’s Coolest Yachts’. We had the pleasant task of assisting in finding her a berth in Shanghai when she was on her Asian Tour. However, Ellen MacArthur’s record-breaking circumnavigation [did not have two sponsors]. She had one, Kingfisher Plc. Kingfisher owned the two DIY retail chains of B&Q in the UK and Asia and Castorama in Europe which gave rise to Mark Turner’s idea of the two paint jobs, starboard for the Brits and port for the Europeans. I had the opportunity to meet Ellen and printed off a photograph of my first boat, which was the same as Iduna (Ellen’s own boat). Rather cheekily I wrote on the back “Every good skipper has owned a red Corribee.”…

The start of the Golden Globe Race is less than a year away and there are 27 competitors including my race favourite, Kirsten Neuschafer, the only female entry and our beloved Pelagic veteran of many years. As I have alluded to previously, I’m not a huge fan of these retro events. They attempt to recreate something that is not possible to achieve in the truest sense. They start out with an ideology and along the way many compromises are made to address safety and the realities of this day and age. Having said that, the interest of many would-be circumnavigators has taken hold and the event is a winning formula; hats off to Don McIntyre. One of those compromises is the media. You cannot run an event like this as…

DEPARTURE POINTS There are two main departure points for vessels heading south across Biscay: Falmouth and Brest. They are both major ports with all-weather access, good facilities and plenty of cruising options nearby if you need to wait for a weather window. ARRIVAL POINTS Making landfall after a long passage is always the most challenging part, and the more preparation you can do for it the better. Depending on your choice of route there are three options: GIJÓN AND VIVEIRO If persistent south-westerlies are a problem and you’re not in a major rush to get around Finisterre, then landfall further into the Bay may be preferable: Viveiro and Gijón have decent marinas with good facilities, though Gijón is a long way east. Both would be difficult to approach in winds…

America’s Cup yachts had become so extreme by 1920 that they didn’t race in anything more serious than a moderate breeze, but the racing designs of the day were not the only high-performance craft around. The big fishing schooners of the Grand Banks sailing from Gloucester, Massachusetts, and Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, were certainly fast and not bothered in the slightest by wind, so a movement arose to put on schooner races between the US and Canada, ‘to show what real sailors can do’. A newspaper in Nova Scotia donated a trophy that started a series of races between the wars that became legendary for hard driving in sometimes desperate conditions. The story is told with real pizzazz by Keith McLaren in A Race for Real Sailors. I couldn’t put it…

SVR-Lazartigue is the newest Ultim trimaran, designed for current solo around the world record holder François Gabart. Gabart gave François Tregouet an exclusive tour of this extraordinary machine. Launched in July after 150,000 hours of work, SVR-Lazartigue is the latest addition to the burgeoning Ultim 32/23 fleet. In addition to the complexity that’s inherent to these giant foilers, this rocketship design includes many unique innovations which are currently being extensively tested and fine-tuned. We were lucky enough to be able to explore some of them in detail with skipper François Gabart. Having boarded the team’s support RIB as they headed out from the MerConcept pontoon at around croissant-time, we searched for the blue giant among the squalls. François Gabart and Tom Laperche, who will be his co-skipper in this autumn’s…

If you’re looking to buy a pre-owned boat, working out how old to look for is a key decision. Will Bruton speaks to brokerage and refit experts to find out why 10- to 15-year-old yachts can be a sweet spot for diligent buyers With new build waiting lists growing at an unprecedented rate, buyers are turning to the used boat market to get on the water without the wait. But if you’re looking for a pre-owned yacht, what’s the best age to aim for? Ten to 15 years in the life of a yacht is a key juncture where some spending will often be needed to maintain value, but initial depreciation has levelled out. It’s also a part of the market with big variations in price. Two identical-looking prospects can…

‘They are the perfect blend of technology and beauty’ TOM SLINGSBY NOMINATES VERSION 5 IACC “I was obsessed with the Version 5 America’s Cup boats back in the early 2000s, I used to sit there and stare at the TV,” recalls Tom Slingsby. Version 5.0 of the IACC rule was issued in 2003 and governed the boats that were used for the 32nd America’s Cup in Valencia in 2007, the last Cup to use the IACC rule. The boats were lighter, faster, and carried more sail area with a deeper draught keel. Eleven Challengers raced from nine countries, including fleet racing in a series of Acts. The 32nd Cup was successfully defended by Alinghi. Each IACC yacht raced with a crew of 17, with a guest 18th man spot. “I…