Innholdsfortegnelse for March 2023 i Yachting World

Andrew Bishop has retired from his role as managing director of World Cruising Club, after 25 years at the helm of the ARC rally and associated events. Bishop has handed over to Paul Tetlow, who rejoins World Cruising Club after managing St Katherine Docks in London for a period, and having previously been event manager for the WCC’s World ARC. His wife Suzana, a familiar face to many ARC participants, continues as operations director. Andrew Bishop, together with Jeremy Wyatt, expanded the WCC’s roster of events, creating the World ARC, then adding the ARC+ in 2013 and the ARC Baltic, and seeing thousands of cruisers off on their first transocean adventures, as well as welcoming old friends and repeat participants back to Las Palmas year after year. Reflecting ahead of…

When Jim Clark was being guided through the early design and build discussions for his 100ft yacht Comanche with skipper Ken Read, Read asked Clark whether he really understood what he was getting into. The owner’s response was candid and unequivocal: “Well no, not really, but it sounds like fun. Let’s do it!” There were likely similar conversations had by all 10 or so owners that have at some point taken custodianship of the five grand prix 100-footer yachts (formerly known as super maxis) still on the sailing scene in Australia today. And while their motives for racing a 100-footer are varied, all share several traits with Clark; highly successful in business, fiercely competitive and – unsurprisingly – each has very, very deep pockets! Remarkably, the five current 100-footers have…

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{Essex-based designers Holman & Pye were responsible for creating enduring British designs including the Twister, Bowman and Oyster models as well as the Rustler 36.} I used to do a lot of skydiving,” Simon Mitchell told me. “While you’re still in the aircraft you have options but, once you leave the door, gravity takes over and you hope you make a safe landing at the bottom. But you can’t guarantee it.” He likens the process of completing Cass, his blue-hulled 40-footer, to “financial skydiving”. But while with skydiving it’s the landing that’s tricky and the falling that’s supposed to be fun, in Cass’s launch, although the process might have been painful, the end result is, as Mitchell puts it, “an extraordinary statement of craftsmanship which needs to be told.” In…

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The Ker GTS43 Alegria Republic punching through the Bass Strait during the 2022 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race (see report on page 46). Owner/skipper Rodney Jones described conditions as ‘brutal’ with 40-knot winds and ‘cold, confused seas from every direction’, though having photogapher Carlo Borlenghi overhead in a helicopter was a highlight. They won Division 2 in ORCi and came 2nd in IRC. Dreamy days mid-ocean on the Bali 5.4 Oceano, enjoying some leisurely sailing under parasailor during last December’s ARC rally. See our report from its sister rally, the ARC+, on page 38 for cruisers’ Atlantic experiences. Photo by Mateusz Kubik/World Cruising Club…

The Cruising Club of America named the winers of its prestigious awards in January 2023, with Japanese ocean sailor Kenichi Horie and Golden Globe skipper Kirsten Neuschäfer among those receiving accolades. Kenichi Horie, Japan’s best known ocean sailor, was awarded the 2022 Blue Water Medal for his lifetime of ocean-crossing achievements. On his most recent voyage last year, he sailed solo from San Francisco to Nishinomiya, Japan, at the age of 83, in an 18ft yacht. Very few sailors can genuinely be called a national hero, but Horie truly is one. For six decades he has crossed the world’s oceans, always in very small vessels and often single-handed. He has circumnavigated three times: once westabout, once eastabout, and once longitudinally. Of these two have been solo, non-stop voyages, and his…

Despite sustained lobbying, HMRC (His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs) confirmed before Christmas that UK yacht owners who had purchased yachts in the EU prior to the Brexit transition period, would not be eligible for Returned Goods Relief. This means that UK-based owners, who had bought and kept their yacht in the EU, will be liable for VAT a second time if they decide to bring their yachts back to the UK. The policy implementation has been characterised by confusion and inconsistency since the outset. In April 2019 HMRC stated that UK owned boats would retain their UK VAT paid status, whatever their location on the day the UK left the EU, with owners able to claim Returned Goods Relief. That position was reaffirmed in November 2020, but reversed mid-December 2020,…

Golden Globe down to five Just five skippers are still racing in the Golden Globe Race non-stop around the world competition. Of the 16 entrants who started from Les Sables d’Olonne in September, nine have retired, with American skipper Elliot Smith (pictured) retiring into Fremantle in January after rigging failure. A further two have moved into the ‘Chichester’ division after stopping for repairs. World Cruising Club’s popular Ocean Cruising Seminar returns on 25-26 March 2023 in Guildford, UK. The weekend seminar is suitable for any sailors considering the transition from coastal cruising to bluewater passagemaking. Industry experts will cover topics including refitting a yacht for offshore cruising, choosing communications equipment, sourcing and interpreting weather forecasts and heavy weather sailing techniques. For tickets and further information see worldcruising.com/training The Cruising Association…

The words ‘muscles’ and ‘sails’ are often included in the same sentence, such is the physical nature of our sport. But what I hadn’t expected to hear in a recent techie chat was talk of a sail that had its own muscle power. The conversation was about a new type of wingsail that could provide solutions to several of the issues that have held such configurations back so far. Low drag, minimal mast compression and low loads are just three of the key advantages a wingsail offers over the conventional approach of a single skin sail and have been well known for some time. Plenty have tried to make the idea work, yet none have hit the big time. When the America’s Cup world threw big bucks at wingsails for…

NOMINEES: Astus 22.5 //Ecoracer 25 //Ace 30 Always the most diverse category, once again this did not disappoint with its contenders comprising a plywood IRC scow, a trailable trimaran and a recyclable sportsboat! The Ace 30 may look a little uneasy on the eye to many, however others (including Fireball sailors perhaps) will be drawn to its purposeful lines, stiff construction and innovation. This is the first scow for IRC racing and short-handed events. It’s also a blast to sail, a 2.7 tonne lightweight flyer, which boasts rapid acceleration. Curves and contours are worked into the scow bow to help reduce slamming and provide rigidity to the bow sections. It has a very stable hull shape powered by a raked carbon rig, which, when in 15+ knots wind (cue full…

As the 30-seater inter-Caribbean turboprop aircraft banked to starboard, through my small window I caught a first glimpse of Tortola and the Sir Francis Drake Channel. I felt my pulse quicken. This idyllic stretch of water was where I had my first Caribbean sailing experience back in 2004. As an 18-year-old, I’d recently moved up from racing dinghies to yachts and was instantly captivated by the quality of sailing, the warmth of the water, and the sweetness of the rum. Now, 15 years later, I’ve returned with my wife, Ruth, whose sailing experience consists of navigating the Solent in inclement weather, and her parents, who have never set foot on a yacht before. As the chief organiser of this adventure, my main objective had been to find a winter sun…

AIRMAR SMARTBOAT What is it? A monitor for all onboard systems, including legacy products. Who’s it for? Anyone wanting to display engine data, tank levels and much more on MFD screens, especially owners of older boats. An increasing number of today’s new yachts come with digital switching that allows equipment to be monitored or controlled remotely from onboard multifunction displays (MFDs) and mobile apps. The monitoring aspect, which can include battery start, tank levels, number of bilge pump actuations and engine data is particularly useful. Until now, however, retrofitting such a system on older or smaller yachts has often posed numerous problems. Airmar’s SmartBoat system is intended to solve these issues with a single product that can be used to easily connect multiple analogue or NMEA0183 sensors into a NMEA2000…

‘We used to sail for 200 days a year, all around the world’ SAM GOODCHILD NOMINATES THE MOD 70 “In terms of complexity for speed, there isn’t anything else which has such a good ratio. We’ve been over 40 knots [boatspeed] on them, and with Phaedo we used to sail for up to 200 days a year, all around the world, with just two shore crew. We were sailing offshore with just five people, so you’ve got super high performance for relatively easy upkeep. “We’d be doing the Caribbean regattas against boats like Comanche, they’d have 20-something people on the rail and we had five, doing circles around them! Then we did all the transatlantic races – for me it’s an amazing boat. “The MOD 70s are robustly built, but…

Record entry for 50th Fastnet The Rolex Fastnet Race looks set for another record-breaking fleet for its 50th running in 2022. When entries opened on 11 January, 300 boats signed up within the first 10 minutes, and 400 in less than half an hour. ‘Pro’ classes including the Ultimes, IMOCA 60s, Class40s and more, can enter until April. The 2023 Fastnet starts on 22 July in Cowes, and finishes in Cherbourg. Who’d have thought that someone could invent a boat that made the VO65 feel like a palace? writes Andy Rice. Even Annie Lush, who broke her back in the last Volvo Ocean Race when she was firehosed by a wave of white water across the deck of the VO65 Team Brunel, wondered whether that brutal experience on deck might…

The world’s largest indoor boat show Düsseldorf’s ‘Boot’ returned in January after a two year Covid-impacted absence. It was at a slightly reduced capacity and there were some notable big yards missing, including Hanse Yachts and X-Yachts in the sailing halls. There were also very few multihulls exhibited, which does not reflect the current market. However, this in no way seemed to detract visitors and the footfall appeared impressively high for the first five days that we attended. The concentration of sailing yachts into one main hall also helped for a lively atmosphere with many yards reporting a high ratio of serious buyers visiting. Key attractions were the new yachts making a world debut, including two new 50-footers from Contest Yachts (the 49CS and 50CS). We previewed most of these…

Reading Golden Globe skipper Tapio Lehtinen’s account of his rescue in the Indian Ocean by fellow competitor Kirsten Neuschäfer brought back memories of that discomfort you feel after an emergency at sea. The ‘what-ifs’ and ‘if-onlys’ after such an event can be haunting – and I’ve never had to sit in a liferaft while watching my boat sink. I can only imagine the feelings Tapio would have gone through: not just the sense of grief and loss of a place of safety, a home, a much-loved companion in his yacht Asteria – but also, perhaps, the sense of failure. I’ve learned the hard way that what we do in the aftermath of disasters is what shapes us most. It’s so easy to berate yourself in the moment and waste energy…

It’s the dream that never fades. The desire to sail across the Atlantic seemingly doesn’t wane, no matter what the state of the global economy or geopolitical upheavals. Post-pandemic, it is a boom time. Nowhere do you see this more clearly than in the annual ARC rally, which has spawned two parallel events to satisfy demand: the ARC+ rally from Gran Canaria to Grenada via Mindelo in Cape Verde; and the new ARC January early in the New Year. Between them, 278 yachts will have sailed across by the time you read this. The organisers, World Cruising Club, are simultaneously running two World ARC circumnavigation events. Of all these, the ARC+ rally is the quiet success. Although eclipsed by the publicity generated by the original and bigger event, it has…

Nestled under the towering castillo on the tiny Balearic island of Cabrera is a simple tapas bar, known as the Cantina. Overlooking the dinghy dock and a short dusty road to nowhere, its terrace is a place where sailors sit to contemplate the stars, the swinging anchor lights, and life in general. Can one week change your life? That’s a whole lot of pressure to put on a holiday. But for a surprising number of graduates of the Nautilus Sailing catamaran cruising course, that’s exactly what their one week aboard is: a first step to catamaran ownership or liveaboard adventures. Over olives and white sangria my crew mates were considering their next life move, and they were resolute that it would involve buying a catamaran, and making that leap. Of…

You might not appreciate it at first glance, but this could well be the best performance production yacht we’ll see for some time. This realisation creeps up on you slowly, and is further confirmed the more time you spend aboard the new First 36. I’m far from alone in thinking this. On page 28 you’ll see the First 36 won the highly competitive performance category in this year’s European Yacht of the Year competition – and with unanimous votes from the 12-strong jury. The First 36 is neither brash nor sexy. Rather, it’s modest, simple even, but, as you soon discover, ergonomically brilliant. It’s not perfect of course – a comparatively small and fiddly heads compartment ensures that – but it is a superb marriage of design, engineering and industrial…

{Orcas have targeted yachts under power and sail: 40% of those vessels targeted were damaged; serious damage occurred in 14% of the cases} Late in November last year, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s Farr 65 pilothouse cutter, Sanjula, was being sailed 10 miles west of Cape Finisterre in Spain when it was surrounded by orca whales. The collisions began immediately. “A pod of seven to 10 orcas surrounded Sanjula and then began to barge into its rudder. This eventually broke a steering connecting rod. The engine was switched off and the boat lay hove-to while the emergency steering was rigged,” he reported. “After 10 minutes the orcas moved away, no longer finding a hove-to yacht interesting – but that is only an assumption. The boat sailed to Vigo for repairs.” The incident…