In This Issue
• Transat Jacques Vabre: Apivia flying away as Charal counts the losses
• Clipper Team Zhuhai Retires after Injury
• Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar Competition
• 365 days and a new boat for Sebastien Destremau
• 2020 IRC European Championship at Cork Week
• Grant Simmer gives the low-down on the British AC36 campaign
• China Cup International Regatta
• Tom Slingsby helps launch SailGP Inspire Racing
• SSE Renewables Round Ireland Yacht Race
• Featured Brokerage:
• • Swan 115-02 Shamanna
• • J Boats J/110
• • Ker 40 - Hooligan VII
• The Last Word: Joey Bishop
Brought to you by Seahorse magazine and YachtScoring.com EuroSail News is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to
The 11th annual Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar search is on... Send us your thoughts and drink recipes...
Transat Jacques Vabre: Apivia flying away as Charal counts the losses
Charal has lost 264 miles in the Doldrums over the last two days to the new leader Apivia, which crossed the Equator at 16:00 UTC AND is speeding towards the finish line in Salvador de Bahia, less than 1,000 miles away. It is likely to go down as the statistic of this 14th edition of the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre - although that figure may still rise.
IMOCA
At the 15:00 UTC ranking, Apivia led by 143.95 miles and were making 14 knots in the unstable south-easterly tradewind. Charal, which had led by 120 miles when they entered the Doldrums at around 07:30 on November 5, was back in second, after briefly slipping to fourth in the morning. But every time they have looked like finally escaping the clutches of the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone, they have been sucked back in. All the boats behind Apivia had all slipped back into single digit speeds at the 15:00 UTC ranking.
Class40
For the leading Class40, the Doldrums is already on their minds. By 8° 38 North, Credit Mutuel had already slowed down considerably after their record-breaking runs of the last two days.
The first squalls and thunderstorms are heralding a compression of the third of the fleet. Lightning can strike twice and a Charal-like scenario is certainly not impossible.
The compression has begun and at the 15:00 UTC ranking, Britain's Sam Goodchild on Leyton, had made up almost 30 miles in the last 24 hours and was 52 miles behind Credit Mutuel. Aïna Enfance & Avenir was a further 24 miles behind in third.
Multi50
Groupe GCA - Mille et un sourires should be the first boat to cross the finish in the Bay of All Saints in Salvador de Bahia. They are expected on Friday, November 8 at 04:00 UTC (01:00 local time).
Withdrawal
Following the damage to the keel of MACSF (IMOCA), the skippers Isabelle Joschke (Germany) and Morgan Lagravière (France) have been forced to abandon the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre.
ETAs
Multi50
Groupe GCA - Mille et un sourires - Friday, November 8 at 07:00 UTC (04:00 local time).
Solidaires En Peloton - ARSEP - Friday, November 8 at 14:30 UTC
Primonial - Saturday, November 9 at 10:30 UTC
IMOCA
Apivia - Sunday, November 10 at 00:00 UTC
www.transatjacquesvabre.org/en/
Clipper Team Zhuhai Retires after Injury
07 November at 15:25
As Zhuhai is currently in a band of lighter winds, the decision has been taken for the team to stop racing and motor-sail towards Cape Town.
The team has officially accepted 11th place and one point for Race 3 and is expected into port late evening on Sunday 10 November.
After consultation with South African Telemed Services and Cape Town Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) it has been agreed that the fastest and most efficient method for Zhuhai crew member, Duncan Paul, to get ashore and receive the appropriate medical attention, is for the yacht to continue at best speed into Cape Town, the nearest port.
4 November at 2300 UTC
Skipper Nick Leggatt and the Zhuhai crew are making preparations for the possible medevac of crew member Duncan Paul, 64, following a fall which resulted in an injury to his ribs.
Nick has been in regular communication with physicians at PRAXES, the race's Global Medical Emergency Support Partner and Deputy Race Director Dale Smyth. As a precautionary measure the Clipper Race team has been working with the MRCC in Cape Town looking into the possibility of a medevac.
Wight Vodka Best Sailor's Bar Competition
For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, it's time to restock the liquor cabinet and drinks menu with some fall/winter seasonal drinks.
Here's an interesting one that pairs well with a fireplace and warm socks:
Cranberry Sauced Cocktail
2 oz Owl's Brew spiked Darjeeling tea
1 oz Wight Vodka
2 dashes Fee Brothers cranberry bitters
Garnish: Rosemary sprig
Add all ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake. Strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a rosemary sprig.
While you're savoring a few, think about your favorite bar... and then tell us. The winning bar gets a plaque, fame and fortune, a bottle of Wight Vodka, and a custom made 3D map from Latitude Kinsale.
Submissions open: eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars
365 days and a new boat for Sebastien Destremau
"If the start of the next Vendee Globe was tomorrow, I would turn around and go again " Sebastien Destremau said Sebastien Destremau three years ago as he was crossing the finish line of the previous Vendee Globe.
Exactly 365 days before the start of the 9th edition , Sebastien is officially launching his campaign with a new boat. "A year out from the start, there is obviously a lot to do to prepare the new faceOcean. But we are very lucky to be already qualified, to have bought a very good boat and for our team to have learned so much experiences last time around. "
The skipper has bought a high-performance Imoca to replace his old yacht used during the previous campaign. "We had to adapt our project to the new rules and I am happy to announce that a new faceOcean will enter Toulon's harbor in a few weeks. Our preparation for the 2020 Vendee Globe is up and running and I am very pleased to have this new boat. I am looking forward to write a new story during this iconic event. "
A very powerful boat :
Built in Brazil in 2005, faceOcean is a very fast boat. Already considered one of the best Imoca of his generation, the team is now, studying the possibility of integrating foils to the existing platform to make her even more powerful. 'We have to be very careful with the changes. For the moment we are weighing our options and the final decision is yet to be taken. Improving the performances of a yacht is an exciting project, however finishing the Vendee Globe is paramount to me. Everything is a balance between technical improvements, safety, performances, time and finances ".
2020 IRC European Championship at Cork Week
The 2020 IRC European Championship will be held at Cork Week as part of the unique celebration of the 300th anniversary of the Royal Cork Yacht Club. The 5th edition of the IRC European Championship will take place over five days of racing from Monday 13th July to Friday 17th July 2020. The championship is expected to attract a record fleet of highly competitive IRC rated boats vying for the overall win and class honours.
On Wednesday 8th July, prior to the IRC European Championship, the Morgan Cup Race will start from Cowes, bound for Cork. Organised by the Royal Ocean Race Club (RORC) since 1958, this will be the first time that the course has been set across the Celtic Sea to Cork. The 324nm race is expected to attract a substantial fleet and will be a weighted race within the world's largest offshore racing programme, the RORC Season's Points Championship.
Overall winners of the IRC European Championship
2016 Paul Gibbons' Quarter Tonner Anchor Challenge (Cork, Ireland)
2017 Guy Claeys' JPK 10.10 Expresso 2 (Marseille, France)
2018 Didier le Moal's J/112E J-Lance (Cowes, UK)
2019 Yves Ginoux's Farr 36 Absolutely II (San Remo, Italy)
For the 2020 IRC European Championship, competitors will enjoy wide-ranging and competitive racing afloat, as well as the Royal Cork's unique and historic celebration of their tricentennial.
"We're delighted to welcome the IRC European Championships back in 2020 where the fleet will enjoy a varied programme of races set in and around Cork Harbour," commented Cork Week Director of Racing, Rosscoe Deasy. "Shorter racecourses will be specially laid outside of Roches Point, a wonderful sailing area with open sea conditions and stable winds, while the famous 'Harbour Race' will bring additional navigational and tactical challenges. A 10-14 hour 'Coastal Race' is planned along the treacherously beautiful Irish headlands, providing a demanding test of crew focus and endurance. Admittedly the real test will be found ashore in Crosshaven where only the stoutest of hearts will be able to resist the siren call of the legendary Cork Week craic. It's going to be a great event!"
www.rorc.org
www.cork300.com/register-your-interest/
Grant Simmer gives the low-down on the British AC36 campaign
With the clock ticking down for all the America's Cup teams, INEOS Team UK CEO Grant Simmer gives the low-down on the British campaign so far.
Sailweb interview excerpt:
The most critical things they are working on 'right now' are maximising sailing time and the development of their first AC75 'Britannia', also studying the design decisions of the other teams.
Those two areas will lead to the design of their second AC75.
What are the key areas you think could win the 36th America's Cup?
The things that will win the next edition are the ability to sail the boat at close to optimum performance for the most time during the race, having the best foil package - rudders and foils will be important - and the ride control, how you control the ride of the boat.
You would lose, for sure if you had a catastrophic failure close to the Cup, these boats are highly loaded and pretty light so a major structural problem close to the Cup could definitely lose it for anyone.
By launching a test boat early, you had physical insight into the AC75 class, how risky therefore do you think Emirates Team New Zealand strategy, in not sailing a test boat, could prove to be?
I think Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ) will actually gain back the time of not having a test boat, they gain a bit during our shipping times and since the last Cup they've relied a lot on their simulator - like all the other teams - so I don't think it's that risky.
Gerald New interview with Grant Simmer: www.sailweb.co.uk
China Cup International Regatta
Shenzhen, China: Cheche Team from Spain flipped the switch on day two of the China Cup International Regatta in Shenzhen to dominate racing in the Beneteau 40.7 one-design fleet. Julio Bernardeau Navarro steered his crew to scores of 1,3,1 - by far the most consistent set of results - and has displaced the Uruguayan team Fjord III from the top of the leaderboard.
The previous day had been light and fluky, and Cheche had still scored a respectable 7th place in the lottery conditions. But in the more predictable medium airs of Thursday the Spanish really hit their stride.
Lying in second place after scores of 3,2,10 is Jono Rankine's Forever 9. The New Zealander has competed in eight editions of the China Cup, and always finishes in the top five, winning the event on one occasion. Rankine is certainly in the hunt for another victory but foresees a close battle with the top five, all of whom he believes are good enough to win overall.
Moving up to third place just one point behind Forever are relative newcomers to the China Cup, a British team skippered by Chris Jackson sailing Doubao. Tied on points with the Brits are the Aussies, Down Under Racing Team, skippered by America's Cup legend Skip Lissiman.
On Friday the regatta will reach the halfway stage, and principal race officer Simon James is satisfied with how things have gone so far. "The first day was tricky with so little breeze, but we've made up for it today and the forecast looks like we'll be able to hit our target of nine races across the week. For tomorrow we'll probably do a longer distance course, going round islands, and mixing it up a bit."
Teams from 32 countries and regions are competing in racing divisions which include the Beneteau First 40.7, IRC Class, Bavaria One Design Class, J/80 Class, HKPN Class and Youth One Design Class. -- Andy Rice
Tom Slingsby helps launch SailGP Inspire Racing
Olympic gold medalist and SailGP Season 1 champion Tom Slingsby returned to his home sailing club in New South Wales to help launch an innovative new program that aims to create a pathway into high-performance sail racing. The new initiative is part of SailGP Inspire - the global racing league's youth and community outreach arm. The newly launched Inspire Racing x WASZP program will use flying dinghies at SailGP events in Season 2 to help bridge the gap between youth sailing programs and professional pathways.
Coinciding with the Australia SailGP Team's national trophy tour, Slingsby hosted an on-water coaching session at Gosford Sailing Club with aspiring young local sailors on WASZP boats, providing a unique opportunity to experience the sensation of foiling for themselves - similar to the revolutionary F50 catamarans in which SailGP is contested.
The program, which will take place at a number of SailGP events in Season 2, is geared towards young competitive sailors with an interest in learning to foil. Applications for the first two SailGP Inspire Racing events in Sydney and San Francisco are now open for sailors aged 20 or under at the time of the event.
For details on how to apply for any of the SailGP Inspire programs, visit SailGP.com/Inspire
Wicklow Sailing Club secures SSE Renewables as sponsor of the Round Ireland Yacht Race
Wicklow Sailing Club has confirmed that SSE Renewables will be the new title-sponsor for the 704-mile Round Ireland Race that gets underway on Saturday 20th June 2020.
The highly-acclaimed race is part of the Royal Ocean Racing Club Season's Points Championship. The start and finishing lines for the newly-titled SSE Renewables Round Ireland Yacht Race are off the pier head at Wicklow Harbour.
First sailed in 1980, the non-stop handicap race regularly attracts crews from around the world and the current course record was set in 2016 by American George David on Rambler 88 in a time of 2 days, 2 hours, 24 minutes and 9 seconds.
The majority of competing crews entering the SSE Renewables Round Ireland are from around the world in addition to home-grown entries. Winner of the 2018 edition Niall Dowling from Dublin has confirmed his intention to enter the 2020 race.
Dowling's navigator Ian Moore, a leading international pro-sailor from Carrickfergus described the Round Ireland as "the Kilimanjaro of Sailing". Just completing the course itself is widely regarded as a personal achievement.
Wicklow Sailing Club and its team of volunteer organisers hope to increase entries from 55 boats to more than 60 for next year's race and grow the race further in future editions.
SSE Renewables is currently developing a major expansion of the Arklow Bank Wind Park offshore wind energy project close to the starting-line of the race. The project represents an investment of up to €2 billion and when completed will be able to generate up to 800MW, powering over half a million Irish homes.
The SSE Renewables Round Ireland Yacht Race 2020 will start from Wicklow Sailing Club on Ireland's East Coast on Saturday 20th June 2020.
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The Last Word
My doctor is wonderful. Once, in 1955, when I couldn't afford an operation, he touched up the X-rays. -- Joey Bishop
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