the yachting year - 2015 uk

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PLUSCruising in ice l GB’s America’s Cup bid l Sailing meets F1 l Boats of the year l Reviving the houaris l Gear guide 2015

FEATURINGEllen MacArthurJimmy Cornell l Grant Dalton

T H E S A I L O R S’

A N N U A L

YOUR yachting calendar

2015

YACHTINGYEAR

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THE YACHTING YEAR 2015 | 3

WELCOMEAS EDITOR OF Sailing Today, I see a fair bit of the sailing world come across my desk through pictures, event reports and articles from contributors. Better still, during the summer months I’m out sailing the boats

behind the stories and meeting their owners.So it’s quite a challenge to simmer this down to a

handful of the most exciting stories of the past 12 months to go into � e Yachting Year. With our brief to inspire and inform adventurous sailors, there’s heaps of material to choose from. I enjoy the opportunity to sit down and � ick through the year’s coverage.

A real joy, though, is to pore through the pages of sister titles Classic Boat and Yachts & Yachting. Each sees the boats and events that I do through a di� erent lens – the exhilarating, high-octane world of the racing sailor and the aesthetic appeal of yesterday’s boats, which CB readers yearn to bring back to glorious life.

� ere were more than 3,600 pages of expertly-written copy to comb though, but I’ve pulled out the features that I think de� ne a fascinating year. � ere’s been no shortage of action and intrigue, notwithstanding the absence of high pro� le events such as the America’s Cup and the Fastnet of 2013.

Take, for instance, Ben Ainslie’s bid to mount a British America’s Cup challenge (pp38-42), on the heels of a dream to become the � rst British winner of the Auld Mug. Or marvel at the largest gathering of Tall Ships on the � ames in a generation (pp44-50), which drew over a million spectators to Greenwich. For the armchair explorer, there’s the Reverend Bob Shepton’s award-winning transit of the infamous Northwest Passage in a little 33� Westerly (pp52-58).

We also speak to Dame Ellen MacArthur, one of Britain’s most successful singlehanded racers on sailing her 20� Corribee (pp60-61) and Grant Dalton, who

came so close to victory in last years’ America’s Cup, but was, ultimately, on the wrong end of ‘sporting’s greatest comeback’ (pp22-25). We see where

Formula One and sailing collide (pp68-70) and sail aboard Alcyon, the restored and striking houari of Marseille – surely a more extraordinary bowsprit has never been built?

And don’t overlook our guides to the newest boats, gear and events for 2015. I hope you agree this is the very best of sailing. I think it captures the essence of joy a� oat and should keep any keen boatsman going until the spring!

“there’s been no shortage of action and intrigue”

FEATURINGEllen MacArthur l Jimmy Cornell l Grant Dalton l Ben Ainslie l Denis Dowling l Annalise Murphy

CHELSEA MAGAZINES

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EDITORIALEditor Sam Fortescue +44 (0)20 7349 3752 [email protected]

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© The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd 2014. All Rights Reserved. ISSN 2052-5982

No part of this magazine may be reproduced without permission in writing. Every care is taken to ensure he accuracy of information in The Yachting Year, but no responsibility can be accepted for the consequences of actions based on the advice portrayed herein. The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd makes every e� ort to ensure that the advertising contained in this magazine is delivered from responsible sources. We cannot, however, accept any responsibility for transactions between readers and advertisers.

For the Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd full set of terms and conditions please go to chelseamagazines.com/terms-and-conditions

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CONTENTSMarvellous MaldivesExploring the paradise islands

Reviving the houarisAlcyon harks back to an era

of extreme racers

Grant DaltonMr Tough Guy on leading an America’s Cup bid

Jimmy CornellThe cruising guru is o� for one last rally

Ellen MacArthurStill sailing small boats after quitting racing

Bring home the silverAssessing Ben Ainslie’s America’s Cup bid

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Taming the ice fl owsBob Shepton’s award-winning Northwest

Tall StoriesFirst hand tales from those who sailed on Tall Ships in 2014

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6 | THE YACHTING YEAR 2015

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Waterborne Formula OneHow F1 outfi ts are turning their skills to racing boats

Antigua to NYCTwo friends take a

traditional Carriacou

sloop further than

ever before

Annalise MurphyInside the head of Ireland’s great Olympic sailing hope

Caribbean secretsEight famous sailors reveal their top Caribbean anchorages

BEST NEW BOATS2015’s hottest new racing, cruising and classic boats

TOP GEARThe very latest gear, gadgets and must-have sailing kit

OBJECTS OF DESIREOur picks of the most refi ned and crave-worthy ephemera

EVENTS GUIDE 2015Get to grips with the coming year using our sailing calendar

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Clipper RaceAmateur sailors go round the world72

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01983 294051 | www.ratseysails.co.uk | [email protected] SAILMAKING SINCE 1790

Photo © Beken of Cowes

Ratsey & Lapthorn – supplier of sails to Shenandoah for many years

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Cocos Keeling IslandsThis extraordinary gull’s eye view of Prison Island was taken by a participant of the

Oyster World Rally using a GoPro camera mounted on a kite. If you look carefully, the string is visible at centre-frame at the top. The island is part of the Cocos Keeling

Islands, a territory of Australia in the Indian Ocean.Photograph by Yves Ernst

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Further information and entries, please contact, Mary Scott-Jackson, [email protected], Tel:+44 (0)1983 245100

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Racing Sunday 19th July to Friday 24th July | Parade of Classics Saturday 25th July


http://www.britishclassicyachtclub.org/regatta

Grounded

Summer dazeThe already light winds dropped as the JP Morgan Round the Island Race fleet rounded the Needles, creating a near mirror-smooth sea and ending the race for many, who barely had steerage in the zephyr. Great viewing, though!Photograph by Joe McCarthy

Phantom ran aground while racing during the Panerai British Classic Week. She grounded on Hamstead

Ledge – a notorious shoal that has claimed several boats over the years.

Photograph by Guido Cantini/Panerai

Lead balloon

Sultan of swing

Classic Kelpie is a 75ft two-masted schooner which emerged from restoration in Falmouth in May to race in the Pendennis Cup. Here her bowman struggles to

control the ‘ballooner’, an assymmetric kite set on the foremast.Photograph by Emily Harris

On the tail of Hurricane Bertha, the MOD70 Oman-Musandam, smashed the record in the Round Britain and Ireland Race in August 2014. Here she’s flying two hulls, riding on her foils at more than 40 knots.Photograph by Lloyd images/oman sail

CrosshavenUnbeatable performancecomes as standard

Photo: Sander van der Borch

With 40,000 miles of ocean-bashing experience built in, it’s no wonder Crosshaven has become the sailing boot by which all others are measured.

�e best teams demand the best kit, and this is why Team Brunel have chosen Crosshaven for the 2014/15 Volvo Ocean Race.

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CRUISEWhen Liz Cleere and Jamie Furlong left India on the spice route to Madagascar, they didn’t expect to see the Maldives

sToRY LIZ CLEERE

Cardamom

We had been told the best view of the Maldives is from an aeroplane. You can see its pearl islands scattered across a sapphire sea stretching for a thousand miles. But I beg to

differ. After days of passage-making, that first view of palm trees on the horizon and the unmistakable sweet, tropical smell of land, arouses the kind of joy only a sailor can experience. Furling away the sails, we brought Esper closer to the shore and looked for a suitable place to anchor. Jamie had marked an area on the charts wide enough for us to have some manoeuvrability. We felt confident making a slow entrance between the reefs because on an previous voyage from Egypt to Oman we had become old hands at sailing through coral. So we stuck to our tried and tested formula: me at the wheel and Jamie at the bow. No charts or navigation aids can beat the human eye, especially when you are wearing polarised sunglasses which cut through the surface of the water to spot those jagged shallow rocks. We found a hazard-free area and swapped places. Jamie brought the boat into the wind. I kept an eye on the bottom as he moved us slowly forward. When we were above a white patch of sand clear of any coral, Jamie selected reverse and I

released the windlass. In 8m of water, we let out 50m of chain. We had arrived in Uligamu, the northernmost port in the Maldives. It was 0800hrs and we had just completed a 270nM sail from India.

Incredible IndiaJamie and I had tied up at Cochin International Marina, Kerala, in May 2010. “We’ll keep the boat here until the southwest monsoon breaks, then head out in October,” we’d said.

But we grew roots and it wasn’t until March 2013, that we waved goodbye to incredible India. In the build-up to our departure, we made preparations to sail for the first time in three years. Life was intense aboard Esper as we checked and double-checked every piece of equipment. Hauling out our cutter-rigged ketch was not possible in Cochin, so we would wait until we reached the more yacht-friendly Maldives for hull maintenance. But we needed to do something about the growth which had built up during our three years in Kerala’s brackish backwaters. Shortly before departure, we employed a local company with two divers, fierce brushes and industrial compressors. It took them two hours to scrape the hull clean.

India’s cruising yacht repair facilities are less than basic, but they have a recycle and mend culture, which

Above: Esper anchored between the

bommies in Naalaafushi


makes them skilled ‘general’ technicians. With the help of a local engine expert, we had installed a new non-marinised 100A alternator a year earlier and it was producing a good charge. But now the engine wouldn’t start. While Jamie was away, our expert came back and made some modi� cations. He was unable to explain what he had done, but it worked, so we le� it at that Our next setback came when the Sterling split battery charger stopped working. We had returned it to the UK with the promise that Jamie’s parents would bring the replacement unit with them to the Maldives. � en, just as we were ready to go, the starter switch stopped working again. Time was running out, if we didn’t leave India now it would be too late in the season to catch our passage west. We weighed up the problems and decided that starting the engine using the screw-driver-across-solenoid trick would have to do. With no charging unit in place save for the alternator, we would rely on our generator if the charging system failed.

On a cloudless day in early March, Jamie put the engine in gear and we cast o� our lines. � e waving arms of our friends gradually became specks. Dolphins escorted us past Cochin’s famous Chinese � shing nets as we le� the harbour. In the distance a dazzling blue sky met the sparkling sea and we felt the familiar prick of anticipation and excitement.

Above: Island Hideaway, on the island

of Dhonakulhi

Left: headling east for over a

thousand miles

Left, below: A ‘juvenile masked booby’

bird takes a rest

Uligamu

MALE

Addu Atoll

Eight Degree ChannelDhonakulhi

Kulhudhuffushi

Dhigurah

Dholhiyadhoo

Makunudhoo

Hulhumale

Kardiva Channel

Vaimandu Channel

One and a Half Channel

Equatorial Channel

Equator

Suvadiva Atoll

Haddummati Atoll

Kolumadulu Atoll

Mulaku AtollNilandu Atoll

Male Atoll

Ari Atoll

Fadiffalu Atoll

Malosmadulu

Atoll

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CochinMumbai

Singapore

Hong Kong

Maldives


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Mauritius bound The plan was to spend two months in the Maldives, putting Esper through her paces and giving her a thorough shakedown. If we had any doubt about her seaworthiness, we would return to India. But we hoped we would be heading across the equator to Chagos in May before the southwest monsoon gained strength. From Chagos we would use the south equatorial current and favourable winds to reach Madagascar.

Pirate activity in the Arabian Sea had diminished in the past months and along our route. But we were not complacent about the potential danger and kept a dialogue with the naval force about our plans, promising to notify them of our position each day. If it looked like the situation was hotting up, we would change our route to South Africa via Mauritius, outside the danger zone. This meant we monitored pirate activity daily via the ICC piracy reporting centre and MSCHOA websites.

Indian waters are thick with fishing vessels, from one man paddling a dugout canoe to groups of ocean-going trawlers. You have to pick your way across the 20m and 30m contour lines towards clear waters. In the daytime, it is difficult enough to work out how the boats are moving and what is trailing behind them, but at night,

Top: dawn over the Bay of Bengal

Above left: strong cocktails taste even

better next to turquoise water...

Above right: coral is widespread in the

reefs around the Maldives

the hazards take on a whole new dimension. Like some kind of 70s disco, the sea sparkles with

coloured lights. Showing scant regard for the COLREGS’ lighting configurations, red and yellow flashes compete with green and blue flickers; white lights vary from yellow flamed oil lamps in canoes, to blinding arc lights from trawlers. We were well-lit with navigation and steaming lights correctly displayed, but we also made use of the boat’s bright signal torch on a couple of occasions to let the more erratic trawlers know that we were there.

By early morning, and with an hour’s sleep between us, the sea was free of traffic. Any kind of wind remained elusive throughout the trip, so we motor-sailed. We saw turtles, sea snakes and swimming crabs. Hundreds of flying fish hurled themselves across our path, some landing on deck to provide an instant snack for our cat, Millie. Dolphins danced round us most of the way, and were particularly welcome during solitary night watches, when their torpedo shapes shone with phosphorescence. The moon reflected off a flat, silver sea. We took four hour watches, leaving the steering up to a combination of tiller pilot and auxiliary rudder, part of the Windpilot windvane self-steering mechanism attached to the yacht’s transom. Everything was running pretty smoothly. Except it wasn’t.


Jamie checked the ammeter and noticed the charge did not correlate to what we should have expected from our year-old alternator. The batteries were not charging sufficiently. Then the engine blower stopped working. Unaware of this, we carried on until the compartment overheated and set off the fire-extinguisher, covering everything in goo. From that moment we motored with covers off the engine to keep it cool, making the second-half of our journey louder and hotter than we would have liked.

Dropping the hookWe made it and anchored in one of the most beautiful sailing destinations in the world. Boat maintenance could wait for one day. Soon a group of the friendliest officials we have met on our travels chugged out to us in a small fishing boat. Representatives from Customs, Immigration and the harbour master came aboard, all mirror-shades, pressed white uniforms and polished shoes. As bits of paper flapped across the table, they jostled for position in our small cockpit. The check-in process took 20 minutes.

“We used to have yachts coming through all the time,” they said, “But now the piracy situation has killed off yachting tourism.” Jamie told them pirate attacks seemed to be on the wane and promised to encourage other yachtsmen to come to Uligamu. With

this level of efficiency and stunning anchorages, who wouldn’t want to come here?

When sailing in the Maldives, yachts are required to have an agent, and we were lucky with our choice. Asad, a representative from Seline, was a friendly and helpful chap. He left his Samsung Galaxy with us, so that we had instant web access and invited us to his wedding to be held later that week.

The next day, Jamie studied the two-page circuit diagram. With Asad’s assistance, he found two local electrical engineers. Over five hours, they compartmentalised the circuit and tested each part in turn, starting at the ignition switch. It was only after dark that one of the guys realised something was missing, something pretty important to the successful operation of our charging system: the ‘expert’ in Kerala had removed the negative return. Jamie blamed himself for not watching what had happened in India; it was a simple lesson of ‘learn to do it yourself ’.

With it fixed, we enjoyed a few days of island life. Formed from white coral fragments, the sand was littered with colourful shells and tiny hermit crabs. Palm trees provided midday shade and an onshore breeze made the heat bearable. On our last day, it was a privilege to attend Asad’s wedding, along with the rest of Uligamu’s population, all 490 of them.

About 250nM away, Malé was our new destination.

Above: the beautiful coral sand beach

at Uligamu

Far left: women relaxing in Mafushi

Left: Kulhudhuffushi at rush hour –

the most populated island in the

northern Maldives

EspErOyster 435 ketch

designed by Holman and Pye

LOA: 43ft 6in (13.2m)

Beam: 13ft 8in (4.2m)

Draught: 6ft 6in (2m)

Displacement: 30,000lb (13,608kg)

Sail area: 850sqft (79.9m2)

Builder: Ego Dridge/ Oyster Marine

Top 5 pieces of

on board kitKyocera solar panelsFixed to either side of guard rail on the stern, flipped up like 'wings' when in use

Schenker Modular 30M watermakerProduces 35 litres of water per hour, giving us freshwater showers every day

CSB200 Class B AIS transponderKeeps track of 99 per cent of commercial traffic in the busiest shipping lanes

Windpilot Pacific Plus Vital mechanical windvane steering with an auxiliary rudder

Rocna 33kg anchorHeavy to pull out after the windlass failed but it gave us vital peace of mind

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©Rick Tomlinson/RORC. Jens Kellinghusen’s Ker 51, Varuna. Overall Winner IRC 2014 Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race.


Deserted islands Dhonakulhi, the resort paradise of Island Hideaway, was our next port of call. The Maldives is dry, no alcohol may be brought into the country, but its expensive ‘resort’ islands – officially designated ‘deserted’ by the government – are allowed to sell alcohol to foreigners. As Jamie’s birthday was looming, we thought a night in a swanky bar would make a good present, so we called ahead to ask permission to visit and were made welcome.

After clearing Uligamu’s reefs, we unfurled the mizzen. The wind quickened, we cut the engine and let out the yankee. At last we were sailing. A 30-knot squall freshened things as we approached Dhonakulhi, so we kept the wind at 30° and let it push us off course, to avoid hitting the reef. In 10 minutes it had blown through and we were back on track.

Island Hideaway is the most luxurious and yacht-friendly resort island we found in the Maldives. It provides free mooring buoys in the deep channel between the beach and reef, or $200 per night facilities in its own marina. We chose a buoy. Phoning ahead helps, but some of the resorts we visited were a little snooty about yachts. One wanted $75 each to set foot on the island, while others didn’t welcome private yachts at all. Our planned one night at Island Hideaway morphed into three days. We were given access to all its facilities; there is no charge, so we felt it only fair to eat on the island now and again and make use of the bar.

We took the opportunity to visit all kinds of islands during our trip south. At Kulhudhuffushi, capital of Haa Dhaalu Atoll, we tied up alongside the new harbour wall for $12 a night. Here we discovered the coffee-shop culture of the Maldives and delicious tuna-based pastries known as ‘short eats’.

Fruits of the deepAt Dhigurah, one of three perfect desert islands connected by a spit of sand, we watched white terns skim the waves. At Dholhiyadhoo we were befriended

by Abu Sy, the Maldivian project manager of a new resort being built. In the evening he came aboard for coffee, and learning that we were big fish-eaters, phoned a friend on a deep-sea fishing boat, who made a detour to come alongside in the darkness to drop off a red snapper the size of a dog. Content to take photos of Millie, who was swooning at the sight of such an enormous dinner, the fisherman would not accept any payment from us.

At Makunudhoo Island, a resort where we anchored but were not allowed to land, we had the most spectacular snorkelling of our trip: 20 minutes with a giant Hawksbill turtle so close we could have touched it.

Leaving Makunudhoo provided a new challenge. With the anchor clear of the bottom, I turned the wheel to port, but it would not budge. We dropped the anchor straight back, ending up swinging over a sharp bommie of coral a foot below us. Jamie dived down and discovered a community of large barnacles wedged between the skeg and rudder. Thankfully chipping them off was not too much work and it was not long until we were on underway once more.

Outside the atolls the wind picked up and we had great sailing. On our only overnighter during this first part of our Maldives trip, we set off with clear skies. As night fell and the horizon faded to black, the stars began to disappear and storm clouds slowly hemmed us in. In front, either side and behind us,

the Indian Ocean put on a spectacular light show. Thunderstorms are a regular hazard at this time of year in the tropics. Obeying Faraday’s law, we crammed our handheld GPS, satphone, mobile phones and laptops in the oven. All night we watched the storms,

but were lucky on this occasion that no lightning came sufficiently close to be a concern.

Finally, three weeks after leaving India, we arrived in Malé and dropped the hook in Hulhumalé. It was time to get down to some work. From here we would haul out and have a good look at the hull before heading to Africa – and on to Madagascar.

Above: Uligamu, one of the inhabited

islands of Haa Alif Atoll

Above right: Yet another of many

perfect sunsets

GuidesIndian Ocean Cruising Guide – Rod Heikell, ImrayAtlas of the Maldives: a Reference for Travellers, Divers and Sailors – Tim Godfrey, Atoll EditionsWorld Cruising Routes - Jimmy Cornell, ImrayMaldives Cruising Guide - Max Molteni, Edizioni Il Frangente (comes with useful map)

Navigation equipment • B&G ship's chartplotter• OpenCPN, a free chart plotter for PC/Linux/iOS• Google Earth • Comar CSB200 Class B AIS transponder

“Island Hideaway was the most luxurious and

yacht-friendly resort island we found”

“This is a Boat.” Oliver Berking

They do still exist – wooden jewels. We create traditional yachts using traditional craftsmanship methods and nothing but wood.

Replicas of classic yachts, restorations and individual new builds. The most famous projects from our shipyard are the 12-metre yachts

Sphinx and Johan Anker’s fi nal draft No. 434, which remains unnamed, various classic 6-metre craft, and the Robbe & Berking Com-

muter, a tribute to the legendary motor yachts from New York in the 1920s.

W W W.C L A S S I C S . R O B B E B E R K I N G .C O M

YA C H T S


MR TOUGH GUYGrant Dalton

Passion underpins the Kiwi attitude to sport. It captured the hearts of sailors and spectators around the world and earned Emirates Team New Zealand a huge groundswell of support during the 34th America’s Cup. � e Cup may have slipped from their grasp, but the passion and determination of the man who led the team, Grant Dalton, made a lasting

impression. Dalton’s Kiwi-and-proud crew took on Goliath when they faced Oracle Team USA’s global campaign, made up of sailors cherry-picked from around the world with a near unlimited budget, and gave them the toughest competition imaginable – a true re� ection of their team leader, one of toughest competitors in sailing.

� e managing director of Emirates Team New Zealand is a man of many parts – the 56-year old not only ran the $100-plus million campaign from start to � nish, but also sailed aboard the 72� foiling cat as a grinder, the most physically demanding position on the boat. � is was typical of Dalton – in 2007 he had been in the ‘sewer’, packing sails throughout the campaign in Valencia.

At that time, he explained his thinking: “I am a sailor, that is what I do, and being on the boat completely allows me to run the place, to react, to have discussions about why we didn’t sail well on the last regatta and do something about it, and hopefully I am pulling my weight.”

Dalton is a sailor of determination, a determination that is infectious, as he demonstrates in every team with which he is associated. It dates back to his � rst big chance. ‘Dalts’ was rejected by Peter Blake for a job in the 1977-78 Whitbread Round the World Race but was given a chance by Cornelius van Reitschoten (a� er repeated application letters) aboard Flyer. He was as green as the sheep pastures of his homeland when he arrived on board.

Writing of his � rst night years later, Dalts says on passage from Rotterdam to Southampton, ‘Conny’ handed him the wheel. He realised: “If I had refused the wheel, I would have been sacked at the � rst stop.” One thought � lled his mind: “You’ve been lucky, and this is your chance. If you don’t do it right you won’t get another one.”

For the next race, Dalton tried to raise the � nance for a challenge of his own, but the responses he received from potential sponsors indicated he was too young and inexperienced to be given charge of a multi-million dollar project. But a� er his success aboard Flyer, which had had a close race for three of the Whitbread legs with Blake’s Ceramco New Zealand, he was invited to be a watch leader on Blake’s challenger for the 1985-86 Whitbread, Lion New Zealand.

In the interim, Dalton had worked as a salesman for Feltex ropes and su� ered considerable ragging about this, notably a� er receiving a ‘Dear

The 2014 Yachts & Yachting Lifetime Achievement Award honours his incredible career STORY BOB FISHER

John’ letter from his erstwhile girlfriend when the boat’s log recorded: “Dalts tried to hang himself last night but the Feltex rope broke.”

One moment in the race particularly stands out. As Lion was roaring through the Southern Ocean, with the heavy ‘chute on two halyards, one jammed, and the guy and the sheet unclipped themselves. � e huge red and white kite streamed from the masthead like a � ag. Ed Danby was sent alo� , but halfway up he became unclipped and had to lower himself hand-over-hand by the halyards on the side of the mast. Someone still had to go alo� as Danby was shaken. Dalts didn’t hesitate and went to the masthead to tie a retrieval sheet to the head of the spinnaker before spiking the halyards.

A� er the race, Blake wrote of his watch leader: “At times he over-drove the boat to advantage, at others he pushed Lion beyond the limits. But he could not be faulted in his enthusiasm for the job he had to do, nor could one question his courage. � e time he went to the masthead in the middle

of the night, spending some time up there in a full gale, with the boat jumping all over the place, was something I wouldn’t have liked to do. Yet Dalts took it in his stride.”

Cup learning curveAs soon as he was ashore from the 1986 Whitbread, Dalton was invited to a trial for the New Zealand team in Fremantle for the America’s Cup. He jumped at the opportunity to represent his country.

All appeared well two weeks before the team for KZ7 was announced, when he was told he would be pitman. � en, just before the � nal announcement, Michael Fay called to tell him he was not on the boat. � at didn’t please Dalts who told Fay that he was leaving, to which Fay replied: “If you leave now I’ll make sure you never

get a Whitbread boat...”He reconsidered, stayed and learned massively from the campaign, noting

that KZ7 had not been optimised for the strong wind conditions and was easily beaten by Conner’s Stars ‘n’ Stripes. “For me,” he said, “that America’s Cup campaign proved invaluable experience.”

While in Fremantle, Dalton’s � nancial partner and Feltex boss John Mandeno, had begun researching ways of � nancing a Whitbread campaign. It was here Dalts got his grounding in obtaining sponsorship. It also resulted in well-organised backing for the Farr Maxi ketch Fisher & Paykel. In the 1989-90 Whitbread Race, Dalton’s Fisher & Paykel staged a head-to-head battle with Peter Blake’s Steinlager 2.

Blake’s red ketch had the upper hand, winning every leg, but Fisher & Paykel spent longer than any boat at the front of the � eet, with most of the 35 hour de� cit lost in the � rst few days. It was a never-to-be-forgotten

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Three decades at the top


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battle that put Dalton at the forefront of racing and drew the comment from him: “Watch me next time.”

Dalts now knew the secret to tackling sponsors and next time spread his network across seven groups, ranging from Toyota to ANZ Bank, the Apple and Pear Marketing Board to BP, under the name New Zealand Endeavour.

That Dalton and his crew won the race, despite losing the mizzen mast on the Southern Ocean leg into Fremantle, speaks volumes for their skill and dedication. Dalts had achieved his ambition and won the Whitbread.

In the final Whitbread Race, in 1997-98, he sailed the Whitbread 60 Merit Cup to second place behind Paul Cayard’s EF Language. Four years later, in the first Volvo Ocean Race, Dalton’s Amer Sports One finished third.

Shake up at homeAs the Volvo drew to a close, there was considerable upheaval in Auckland. The successful Kiwi America’s Cup crew of 2000 had been plundered by Ernesto Bertarelli and now formed the nucleus of the Swiss Alinghi team. The Swiss went on to win the 2003 Cup easily and it was obvious that Team New Zealand needed a leader.

Dalts had shown no interest in the previous America’s Cup and it was only after a call from his friend and navigator Mike Quilter, that he decided to become involved. He says: “Mike phoned to say that he would like to talk with the directors of Team New Zealand on my behalf because he felt, as I did, that it cannot end this way.”

A meeting was arranged, of which Dalts recalls: “We agreed that it was not going to work because I felt that the first order of business was that they [the directors] had to go. They rang me a little while later and said, ‘No, thanks very much we don’t agree with you,’ and so that was the end of that. Then a Minister of the Government rang me and I went back with him to the directors, and subsequently they said yes and resigned.”

The turnaround didn’t happen because the NZ Government was set to put money into the team – that had already begun under the earlier regime, but Dalts was sought because he had the experience of running campaigns, knew about the management of a sailing team and had a background in accountancy. Dalton agrees with this: “The reason why the original directors did not want me to do it was because they thought I would come along and slash the place and destroy it. There was certainly a risk of that, because the public were screaming, if you remember, they were ready to burn the place down. And probably if they had not been screaming so loudly I might have been less cautious as I came in.

“I am not sure how much the background of the other campaigns really translates, although it is still the same basic ingredients: money, people, designers, boat, sailors. Blake really showed them that if you can master one you can do the other. It is the same, basically.”

The team was about to go into debt, which Dalton only found out after he started the campaign. He knew there were several ‘team mates’ who had given money to the cause and Grant gathered their names. “I rang one of them, Matteo di Nora, who I had never met, and I said, ‘Look mate, we don’t know each other, but I need your help and if you do, it will be fine’.” Di Nora put in half a million dollars. “It kept us going for a few months and subsequently he is almost my best friend as he has ploughed tens of millions of dollars into the team.”

The 2007 Emirates Team New Zealand won the Louis Vuitton Cup and chased defenders Alinghi hard, eventually losing the Cup in the last race by one second. Dalton has kept ETNZ’s head above the water and in the public eye through some tough times. Entering a team for the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race was a double-edged sword – simultaneously managing Volvo, TP52 and America’s Cup campaigns.

Dalton knew, however, just what he was taking on and his ultimate aim remained to win the America’s Cup. “I only took the job on for that reason. I did not take it on to have a lovely shot and fail. I look back now, it was not long ago, how little I knew about the nuances of the game of the Cup. I

knew nothing. I still really didn’t until after 2007, at the end of the Cup it all suddenly fell into place for me and I started to understand, because as Kiwis we see good in people, so it took a while to work it all out.

“In 2003 the boats broke, they weren’t reliable. They weren’t particularly fast. People had lost trust with the place, so it was really important that we did not break. So I look back now and the

mistakes of 2007 are obvious to me. I did not understand because normally I just went to the Farr office and bought a boat. I did not know nearly enough about the technology.”

Those days are far behind him now. In San Francisco, they dismissed the other challengers in the Louis Vuitton Cup with consummate ease and in the Cup races were at match point with Oracle Team USA. It seemed impossible for the Kiwis to lose from that point, and more so when the 13th race was run for the first time, with ETNZ over a mile ahead until the time-limit expired.

Dalts admitted that the defenders were improving almost daily but there was nothing left in the Kiwis’ tank. When his team lost, there were no recriminations, only regrets. He is one who would like some degree of nationalism to return to the teams, but admits that to change that would mean having to win the Cup first.

Whatever happens next, there’s no doubt this remarkable leader wants to be the defender of the Cup. He’s said it before: “Watch me next time.”

Above left: as well

as team leader,

Dalton is always a

very hands-on

member of the

crew

Above right:

celebrating (left)

victory in the 2007

Louis Vuitton Cup

“You’ve been lucky, and this is your chance. If you don’t do it right you won’t

get another one”

For more Y&Y awards 2015 nominations go to www.yachtsandyachting.co.uk

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THE HOUARI OF MARSEILLEHer closest living relatives are the American sandbaggers Bull and Bear, replicas of a type of boat that used to sail the shoal waters of New York Bay. But what’s she doing in France and why are French maritime historians aboard?

STORY DAN HOUSTON

THE HOUARI OF Alcyon


About 10 minutes into a fairly promising day of sailing, we’re limbering up in light airs for the start of the Saturday race at Monaco Classic Week, when a RIB roars up with a corpulent fellow in a linen blazer and boater, who steps

nimbly aboard and, kicking his sandals into the cockpit, makes for the foredeck after the most cursory of greetings.

The boarding creates a quiet fuss aboard. The gentleman’s authoritative demeanour puts me in a quandary… I wonder: “Who is this guy?” As he starts giving orders and getting our foredeck man – the renowned rigger Patrick Moreau – to do stuff. I conclude that this must be the real owner of Alcyon.

Edith Frilet – who until about two minutes ago I thought had this wonderful extreme-rigged yacht built in memory of her great grandfather – is remonstrating quietly with husband Marc, who is helming. She seems as consternated as I am; he, however, is placatory.

Things soon settle down. Even on this little ship the foredeck seems quite remote from the cockpit, but our good angle for the start line gets compromised when we are shoved up to windward of it by a vessel cutting up onto us and we have to wear ship around to cross it a few minutes late. The stream of orders from the foredeck

Previous page: hooray for the hourai

– Alcyon recreates the 1870s

Above, main: “like sailing on a soup

bowl”, but she needs that width to

hold up that vast rig

Above, inset: the dead-eyes look

authentic and original but the lanyards

are made of Dyneema

abates and we settle into the race – heading west along the coast from Monaco, where this boat was making her debut on the scene of the classic Med regattas.

Cloud of canvasTo say Alcyon is extreme would be an understatement. She’s like a soup bowl carrying a pillowcase of rig. With her length overall of just 22ft 11in (7m) but boom and bowsprit extending out to 68ft 11in (21m), the cloud of canvas overhang is absolutely nuts – she looks like a boat that you’d really expect to see in black and white, when our yachting ancestors were zealously over-rigging yachts to win silver on sunny summer regatta days.

But this is because she is based on the lines of the famous New York sandbaggers – the dishy racers so admired by the racing crowd of New York Harbour in the latter half of the 19th century. These boats had in turn developed from the shoal draught oyster boats of the area, a vernacular design of 20ft to 30ft (6.1m-9.1m) length overall, which had evolved with the need for speed in those waters. Getting home with the first catch got the best price at the fish quay, so rigs grew and the dishy hulls evolved to be stable enough to hold them upright. With the catch aboard, the oyster boats would famously dash back to harbour with their crews apparently moving the sacks of oysters from one side of the boat to the other as

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Above: bronze fittings and

no-nonsense period blocks

extra ballast when tacking. This practice, but using bags of sand as a more efficient ballast, was taken up by yachtsmen and sandbagger racing became established as a sport along the east coast of the United States and even on the west coast in San Francisco.

French captains sailing out of the busy and prosperous port of Marseille in the 1860s, leaned on their bulwarks and seeing these sandbaggers zipping up and down the harbour, decided to recreate the type back home. They took dimensions and began a small fleet, known as houaris – to be used solely for pleasure yachting, racing in the azure waters outside the city and its environs like the Île de Porquerolles, and attended nearby regattas.

In old daguerrotypes of the craft one can see the famous 32ft (9 7m) booms and huge jibs, which gave the houari its radical slanting look. Hollow bow sections show a very sharp entry while wide counter sterns earned them the somewhat derogatory nickname of “a Marseille ass”. One can imagine the emerging sporting scene with the owners and captains in their Olympic moustaches, linen suits and boaters, their crew very likely five or so salt-infused Cape Horners co-opted to handle the vagaries of the crazy rig during the sudden and unpredictable winds of a mistral.

There’s no chance of such a wind today though, with southern Europe enjoying high summer in mid September, and at last I’ve found out that our “owner”

A happy ship at the end of the raceThe crew of Alcyon during our sail aboard, left to right: Daniel Charles, photographer Nigel Pert, rigger Patrick Moreau, Edith Frilet, Mathieu Frilet,

Jean-Yves Bequignon, Patrick Girard and Marc Frilet. Note the wide cockpit and equally wide side decks – afforded by the hull that is more than

half as wide as the boat’s length, which is needed to create enough stability to counter the force of the huge rig.

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is in fact a guest – the French yachting historian Daniel Charles, who turns out to be very charming, after that brusque beginning. And this boat is amazing. I feel quite privileged too because it’s only the eleventh time Edith and Marc have sailed Alcyon, which came out of Daniel Scotto’s yard in Marseille earlier in the summer. “Please don’t judge our sailing,” they had disarmingly asked when they agreed to take CB aboard. “We are still very new to this boat and no-one has sailed with a rig like this in France in 100 years!”

Indeed, with the passing of the days of the windjammer, the houari marseillais as a type gradually lost its appeal and by the early years of the 20th century was consigned to a few fading photographs. They were forgotten and even when the replica 28ft (8.5m) sandbaggers Bull and Bear were launched in 1995 and 1996 respectively by the Independence Seaport Museum’s Workshop in Philadelphia, creating a stir in the classic boat restoration movement, nothing registered in Marseille about that link, which had created the colourful but short-lived reign of the houaris.

Restoration storyEdith and Marc were sailors and cruisers of a variety of different craft, usually based in Marseille, who’d restored an old fort on the island of Porquerolles, the place where


Edith learned to sail as a child. But it wasn’t until relatively recently that Edith by chance discovered, through her sailing friend and maritime historian Noëlle Duck, some of her family history, and that her great grandfather, Emilien Rocca, had owned a boat, Alcyon, built in 1871 as a houari, to race out of the prosperous city port. Rocca was a yachtsman who owned several boats, including Zingara, which he sold to the famous French poet Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893) – who renamed her Bel Ami a� er his successful second novel of 1885.

Emilien Rocca raced the original Alcyon through the 1870s with around 20 others of the type and in 1887 helped found the Société Nautique de Marseille.

� e class gained special recognition from the Yacht Club de France. Papers existed and so with a bit of digging, Edith was able to research the type and some of Alcyon’s history. “� ere were also photos in old boxes at home that I hadn’t really looked at and we had aquarelles of the boat that we had kept but had no idea what she was or that she belonged to anyone in the family. My aunt was able to help with explaining some of the family story, too.”

Having the wherewithal to build a boat from scratch, three years ago, Edith and Marc, an international

business lawyer, engaged the services of local naval architect Gilles Vaton, who would be able to draw a lines plan. “We gave him our archives and we were able to take lines from a model we discovered at the Chamber of Commerce. We had photos of Alcyon’s undersides and her dimensions so we were con� dent we could do this accurately. But we also had a lot of advice from various experts about what we should and should not do and we got confused by some of the ideas – in the end we decided we just had to do it our way,” Edith says, relating the familiar headaches some owners have to face when recreating such cra� from the past.

� e Frilets then engaged Daniel Scotto, of Chantier Scotto, again in Marseille, who built the boat with the strip plank (cedar) epoxy-saturation technique system. “I think we have to thank Daniel Scotto for getting the boat to look right,” Edith says. “And that was the most important thing for us because we were keen to do this for Marseille. We wanted to recreate this piece of yachting history that had been so forgotten, but which is a part of the maritime story of the port.”

Earlier photos show the houari as having quite a radically raked rig, something Edith thinks may be in� uenced by the local lateen-rigged working boats,

Above: Daniel Charles and Edith Frilet

refl ected in a porthole

LENGTH OVERALL

22ft 11in (7m)LENGTH OVER SPARS

68ft 11in (21m) BEAM

11ft 10in (3.6m)DRAUGHT

6ft 1in (1.9m)DISPLACEMENT

11,000lb (5 tonnes) SAIL AREA

1,614sqft (150m²)

ALCYON

Main: The sail plan and her lines

showing the radical shape of her

hull and the extreme sail area.

Inset: the boat faithfully

recreates her original

namesake, seen here

both drawn and

photographed

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‘We wanted to recreate this piece of yachting history that had been

so forgotten’Edith Frilet


called pointus, which were used up and down the south French coast. But Alcyon isn’t as raked as some… “Nor is she so extremely rigged,” Edith says. “We reduced the rig size by about 10 per cent because we wanted to be able to handle her ourselves, or with our son Mathieu.”

It’s hard not to gulp when you consider this rig could be some 10 per cent larger. In a blow I can imagine you’d have to bowse everything down and go under a trysail and staysail; I am sure the hull form would be prone to quite a lot of heave as well. But the boat is not really meant to be judged in those terms – she’s a recreation from a quite fabulous 30-year chapter in yachting’s past and her form and purpose reflect that elegantly.

On our day of racing we joined Edith and Marc and their four crew, including son Mathieu. The rig is quite intriguing, being gunter, with the gaff sliding up a track screwed to the mast. Two massive metal turning blocks are in place to take halyards and lines back to the cockpit, which will make for safer sailing in winter conditions – the Frilets plan to sail over the winter in the traditions of the original houaris where the regatta season began in September and ran through to April or May.

Game performerWith the rig being so extreme it’s almost impossible to judge the performance of the boat this early into her life, though there were times in the light airs off Monaco when she hinted at a promise of being quite gamey, accelerating quickly on light puffs of wind and surging pleasantly on a fine reach with a confidence-inducing sense of stability. Unlike the American sandbaggers, the houaris did not have centreboards, having instead a radically raked keel, from aft of her mast with around 6ft (1.8m) draught, which added to the already impressive stability.

They were also cabin boats, with small cuddies under deck houses abaft the mast, whereas sandbaggers were open boats in the tradition of the fisheries from which they were derived. Alcyon’s own cabin has seat-bunks either side with a chart table aft to starboard and lockers for her gear. There is even a quarter berth to port and some lounging space forward of the mast. The wide beam creates more space than one might expect.

And this beam, at 11ft 10in (3.6m) is more than half her overall length of 22ft 11in (7m), which is even more

extreme than the original American sandbagger Annie, currently at Mystic Seaport. Dating from 1880 this renowned racer has a beam of 12ft (3.7m) on a length overall of 28ft (8.5m) and a draught of just 2ft (0.6m). Her length over spars was 68ft (20.7m), although today she sails with a cut-down rig, and with a crew of nine or 10. In her heyday she would have been raced by the same number of crew, some of whose job it was to lug her 50lb bags of sand from one side of her centreboard case to the other to help keep her upright after each tack. Annie’s sail area is quoted as being 1,300 sqft (121m2) but that’s likely to be her current cut-down rig.

So one can see that there are substantial differences with the French Marseille houari, which, if anything added a keel in order to create an even more extreme sail-area-to-length-overall ratio, while preserving the necessary stability. And these craft would need to be stable, the winter conditions provide quite hairy sailing in these southern waters where the mistral might barrel out of the coastal valleys with speeds of 75 knots – easily enough to overwhelm a boat that is inherently unstable.

And it doesn’t seem that the houaris were considered unstable, by their owners or local sailors. Indeed, Edith has her own theory as to why the type disappeared after 30 years of wowing the crowds along the Cote d’Azur, where the regattas extended from Marseille to Cannes and San Remo. “British yachtsmen were coming to the south of France during the wintertime and they had British rules for yacht racing. Gradually the British rules and British styles of yacht overwhelmed older rules and older classes, like the houaris,” she says. It’s interesting to note that the heyday of the sandbaggers was also curtailed in the late 1890s as American yacht clubs developed measurement rules and handicapping systems.

The wind in our race has faltered. It is time to switch on the 20hp diesel and turn the boat for port. Aboard the mood is relaxed and convivial; plastic glasses are produced as some cool Moët arrives on deck. We can toast the wonderful, wacky Alcyon knowing that with a bit of tweaking here and there she will be an impressive example of a late-1800s racing yacht. With her oversized rig and radical lines Alcyon is recreating the sight that turned heads in the sandbaggers’ era, but once again, and specially-so, from Marseille.

Above: this looks like one of Nigel

Pert’s famous fisheye photos but it’s

not… it’s just a really long bowsprit

Top: the substantial deck-mounted

turning block to bring halyards aft

Middle: blesséd are the

cheesemakers

Bottom: consulting the chart is more

2013 than 1871

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“Jimmy developed an entrepreneurial instinct,

known as Mr Fix-it”

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OCEAN MINDEDJimmy Cornell

For one of the big names of cruising sailing, Jimmy Cornell lives in a surprisingly un-nautical flat overlooking the British Museum in London. The 73-year-old lives on the top

floor, at the wrong end of a punishing 100 steps. “Like climbing a mast every day, but without the harness,” he jokes.

The Romanian-born sailor (he was named Dragos by his parents), is best known for launching the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers in 1986. Long before he escaped Romania in 1969, Jimmy developed a powerful entrepreneurial instinct, and was known as Mr Fix-it by the film production company he worked for in Bucharest.

But he feels that the ARC has lost its way, with a stripped-down racing boat setting a new course record last year. He also believes the rally is too expensive. Not that the cost is discouraging sailors. Demand for places has pushed the ARC to expand with a new format via the Cape Verdes this year. And it’s not just the ARC, either, as other organisers have launched Atlantic rallies, including Jimmy himself, with his Atlantic Odyssey.

“How do you compete with the ARC? The only way is to give everything to the sailors. Everything I got from sponsors I’ve passed on. The maximum cost is €500 (c£415), with under-16s free and a free haul-out.” The first Atlantic Odyssey left Lazarote in November and is feeding Jimmy’s three-year circumnavigation – the Blue Planet Odyssey.

There are those who look askance at the explosion in ocean rallies, and particularly the ubiquity of things like the ARC. But Jimmy is adamant: “I think it’s a very good thing – I’m very pleased it is happening. People like to feel part of an organised event. There are other people nearby in case of trouble, satellite tracking for families at home. But the main attraction for people is the safety factor, even if they don’t admit it.”

Cruising guru and father of rallying, Jimmy Cornell is embarking on one last epic circumnavigation

sToRY SaM ForTeScUe

Jimmy’s role in promoting the global growth of sailing rallies has not been without its drawbacks. He has been blackballed from a well-known cruising sailing club because of it. “In spite of all my cruising,” he says ruefully. “But why shouldn’t people go if they want to?”

He has also come in for criticism since his announcement in 2012 that he would take a fleet of boats through the Northwest Passage as part of his Blue Planet Odyssey. Arctic explorer Bob Shepton, who this year became the first to complete the Northwest Passage in both directions in a GRP cruiser (see p50), even wrote to Jimmy to urge him to keep “caravans” of boats out of the Arctic.

“I’m not taking a rally through the Northwest Passage,” Jimmy says quickly when I put these concerns to him. “My aim

is to get through in one season, and you can’t do that unless you are absolutely disciplined. It would be impossible to arrange support, hence no rally as such.”

He will leave Nuuk in Greenland with just three or four other boats to transit in company. There is no organised element to it. “This is an undertaking by a number of like-minded people. It’ll be like the Second World War convoys – if you get left behind, you get left behind.”

After the Northwest Passage, which he’s sailing with his daughter Doina aboard, Jimmy plans to strike off south to Hawaii, then on to Micronesia, Guam and Japan if there’s time. He says he’d like to return via the northern Indian Ocean. I raise an eyebrow – northern Indian Ocean as in Horn of Africa and Suez? Jimmy nods. “This will be in 2016. A lot can change, but I don’t know whether it will be safe. However, I won’t take a risk on it.” If the pirates are still active, he will take the Cape of Good Hope route.

The main bulk of the rally will pass through the Panama Canal and take the southern Pacific route, through the Torres Strait and up to rendezvous

Above (left to right): Doina, Gwenda, Jimmy and Ivan in Fiji in 1978


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with the northern fleet in Singapore. With individual starts in Cape Town, Sydney, Rio, New York, Vancouver and San Francisco, the logistics are daunting.

Add to that the fact that the rally is performing some useful scientific experiments en route and you get a sense of how busy Jimmy is at the moment. The first leg, the Atlantic Odyssey, has already reached the Caribbean, releasing drifter buoys that will monitor atmospheric and oceanographic conditions and relay it via satellite to UNESCO scientists.

In fact, Jimmy is very proud of the Odyssey’s focus on climate and the environment. “We are making the point that there are sailors who are concerned by the environment. By sailing to low-lying atolls at risk from rising sea levels, we can raise awareness about the central issues and threats facing our oceans today.”

The rally aims to minimise its own environmental impact, by cutting the packaging that boats carry; which often finds its way as rubbish onto beaches or landfills on remote islands.

Jimmy has had a boat specially designed for the trip by French aluminium specialists Garcia Yachting in Cherbourg. He has poured a lot of himself into the specification and the design of the Exploration 45, which will then become a production yacht. “They’ve sold four of them already,” Jimmy tells me.

Oddly for a world-girdler, the boat only has a centreboard – all her 4.3-tonne ballast is in the bilges. Jimmy dismisses any stability concerns. “My last boat was a centreboarder, an Ovni, and I was knocked down near Tower Bridge by a gust coming off one of the tall buildings. The spinnaker was touching the water, but the boat came straight back upright. Centreboard boats obviously can have stability.”

So confident is he about the stability of the boat that he has even added a low coachroof, extending aft from the companionway to protect the front

part of the cockpit. He is particularly keen on this feature. She also has a deck saloon design which means there are 270° views from the raised chart table.

“She’s got electric winches, a chain locker just for’ard of the mast to concentrate weight in the centre of the boat and two collision bulkheads. All for less than €500,000.”

Jimmy and Garcia believe this will be one of the most flexible and capable production boats available – at home in the high latitudes and in the Tropics. “In my view, the French build the best aluminium boats in the world,” he says.

The day after we speak, he’s jumping in the car to drive to Cherbourg with a boot-full of kit for the yard to fit. Does he think there’s too much technology in sailing? “I am not a purist,” he says without hesitation. “Captain Cook would have been the first to install GPS if he could have done, so you shouldn’t knock people who install technology.” He admits, however, that it can breed a false sense of security.

This is to be his last big trip. Jimmy says that he doesn’t have another circumnavigation in him after this, and anyway, his wife Gwenda is firmly against it. “She’s quite annoyed with me,” Jimmy admits. “I’m trying to sweeten it by saying we’re going to some nice places. But when you’ve been together for 50 years, I know I am being selfish.”

His attitude is all or nothing. After this, he’s planning to hang up his seaboots for good. “I’ll never be interested in coastal cruising, and I would never keep a boat in a marina just for drinking G&Ts. I love being at sea by myself in the middle of the ocean, where I feel at ease and very satisfied. Think of a night watch, where all you’ve got is the sound of the sails and the wind and the water. I’m always puzzled when people say that’s the bit they don’t like.”

Above: sketch of

Aventura IV, built by

Garcia Yachting

Left: cruising in

Antarctica in 1999

Right: Jimmy’s first

boat, the GRP ketch

Aventura

“We are making the point that there are sailors who

are concerned by the environment”

For more cruising stories and Jimmy Cornell’s blog, go to www.sailingtoday.co.uk

http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk


THE SILVERBring home

Sir Ben Ainslie launched his assault on the America’s Cup in some style, with the Duchess of Cambridge in attendance at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, adding lustre to the cluster of British businessmen who will back his

campaign. The sum attached to the campaign (£80 million) drew gasps from those present, but for aficionados of the event there were raised eyebrows querying the amount for its paucity.

The Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) challenge is nevertheless not short of talent in two major areas – design and sailors. Ben has been able to attract the best in both thanks to his reputation in the America’s Cup – as number two in Emirates Team New Zealand in 2007 and as tactician for Oracle Team USA last time – plus his Olympic haul of medals. There are other teams that have a better success rate in the Cup, but the key questions remain: are they better sailors? And are they better organised?

The senior yacht club in the country, the Royal Yacht Squadron, has faith in this challenge. The BAR attempt

Can a British team win the America’s Cup in 2017? Helen Fretter finds out more about the

challenge ahead and speaks to two of the team’s top designers

comes under the auspices of Squadron Racing Limited, a properly constituted (in AC terms) yacht club that is an offshoot of the RYS.

The team that Ben has assembled is formidable, from the board members, through the design team to the crew. Sir Charles Dunstone, Sir Keith Mills, Chris Bake, Lord Michael Grade and Lord Irvine Laidlaw are all well known in yachting circles, and more importantly, in the commercial world. They, along with others, will be responsible for the fund gathering.

Perhaps even more important, is the design team that Ben and his initial appointee, Andy Claughton, have been able to recruit. There was un-muted surprise when the names of Dirk Kramers and Clay Oliver were announced – both have been associated with the Cup for years, while so too have many of those hired for their expertise in design and computer modeling.

There is no hiding behind some appointed management for Ben Ainslie. Not only is he the helmsman, he is also the skipper, and makes that firmly clear at the launch of the campaign. p

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Main:The AC45

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Since that time Ben has indicated he remains keen to steer his team to America’s Cup victory, but could relinquish this position should another member of his team prove themselves more adept.

Whatever happens, those who will orchestrate the team that Ben leads are key. No America’s Cup team would be complete without a couple of Kiwis – in this instance Jono Macbeth as sailing team manager and Andy McLean to lead the liaison between the sailing and design teams. Andy Hindley, part of the race management team with Oracle last time, becomes chief operating and finance officer and James Stag will be the shore manager. There’s a great deal of hands-on experience among these names.

The following week another piece of the jigsaw began to slot into place, with plans for an impressive BAR HQ approved. A team statement said: “Ben Ainslie Racing was delighted to receive approval for the team’s new base on the Camber in Portsmouth. We are particularly grateful for the support of the city’s residents.” Although their base is not yet up and running, the team have already been out training in their foiling AC45 in the Solent.

£80m Ben Ainslie Racing launchAt the BAR launch, Ben explained the team had an £80m budget. Around 40 per

cent of this has already met by private investors and now commercial partners are required to raise the other 60 per cent. This means that BAR needs to drum up

at least £48m to be able to take part in the America’s Cup. Ben acknowledged that “it’s not a Larry Ellison budget” (widely reported to be in the region of £100m for the 2013 Cup), but it’s no small fry either compared with other sporting events, such as the following:

£50m Test match cricket In 2012, Investec paid a reputed £50m as title sponsor of England’s Test match cricket for 10 years.

£120m Premier League Barclays’ title deal with the Premier League cost £120m over three years.

£44m 6 Nations ChampionshipThe RBS title sponsorship of rugby union’s 6 Nations Championship, is reportedly £44m for a four-year deal.

£200-250m Formula One In Formula One the budgets for Red Bull and Ferrari are reported to have been £200m-250m for 2013, with McLaren’s around £160m and Williams’ £90m.

Sports sponsorship

in numbers

Ben now needs to

raise £48m to get

the team to the

start line of the

America’s Cup

PHOTO: GILLES MARTIN-RAGET/ACEA*


THE SILVERBring home

We caught up with BAR designers Dirk Kramers and Jason Ker to get their reaction to the AC62

Dirk Kramers’ shift from part of Oracle’s Cup-winning team to BAR was a genuine surprise to many. A stalwart of the AC since 1977, he has been a key part of no fewer than six winning designs, most recently Alinghi in 2003

and 2007, and as chief engineer to Oracle in 2013. However, he says it was not a difficult decision to

move to a first-time entry. “It’s a new challenge,” he says. “Usually when you are with a team for a long time, or teams that have existed for a while, you tend to end up in particular ways of doing things, and I like change.” Uncertainty is a big part of Kramer’s job right now, as he explains: “One of the problems is that the defender still retains the right to change the class rule, in any respect, right until [2015]. So the difficulty we have now is trying to focus on a certain direction.’

Same differenceKramers and Ker both feel we’re less likely to witness the same kind of dramatic performance improvements in the AC62 as both ETNZ and Oracle achieved during the Cup races with the 72s. Ker comments: “There’s still going to be a lot of learning to do, but I just don’t think it’s going to be as dramatic as that cycle. The first cycle of any new rule is like that, and although we are a different rule this time, it’s more or less the same concept. So we’re definitely going to see improvements, but I think it will be important to get it right straight out of the box.”

Kramers says: “Whereas the last Cup was a complete adventure as to where we might end up in design and foil design, this one will be more of a refinement. But, it’s difficult, as soon as you say that, you come up with a different idea [and think] wait a minute, that might work! So we’ll continue to look under all the rocks we can, and we might find something different.”

Some elements of the AC62s will be identical: “The wing shape is actually one-design. So that is fixed and there are strict controls about what you can do with that. For the platform there is a window in which you can locate your cross-structure, your beams and your end plates and so on. So when you look at the boats side-on they’re all going to look pretty similar, because they’re all

going to have their masts in the same place, the wings will look identical in profile, but it’s going to be in all the details that the differences will be.”

Trial runsWhilst the 72s achieved breath-taking speeds last time, Kramers says that there could be major gains in control this time around. “I’d say [the biggest potential for improvement is] probably stability on the foils. We were very much on the hairy edge last time, and it’s really a miracle that we didn’t see any major crashes or breakdowns in the last Cup races. I think a lot of the focus is going to be on control and safety and broadening the wind range.”

After the fatal Artemis crash, the rule now incorporates new safety requirements, as Dirk explains: “Sailors now have to operate out of cockpits

instead of sitting on top, so falling off the boat in a pitchpole or similar is going to be less likely, and there will be similar safety measures like breathing apparatus, climbing harnesses, all these kind of things. There are also requirements for flotation bags in the wing in case the boat capsizes. After the tragedy last year, steps have been made and those will continue.”

Other changes include the reduction in crew numbers to just eight. Kramers comments, “It’s a significant drop in the amount of horsepower provided. The fitness level of the grinders is going to take a big jump. Having said that, where that will take us is to improve the efficiency of the control systems.”

To get around the single AC62 rule, we can expect to see some of the potential ideas being trialled on other boats. “A lot of the development for this Cup is going to have to happen in development boats. All the teams, I think, are progressing on designing and building those boats now. It could be either a boat

that’s 10m or shorter, or it can be a modified version of the AC45. It looks like the majority will get AC45s on foils and test them. This test-bed boat is BAR’s immediate priority, as Kramers reveals: “It’s probably no secret that we’re modifying a boat [that started] sailing at the beginning of the fall, so that’s what we’re working on right now.”

Foiling AC45s have since been confirmed for the 2015 or 2016 America’s

Cup World Series – for which dates have yet to be announced.

“We were very much on the

hairy edge last time”

Top: Dirk Kramers was a

surprise inclusion in the BAR

design team

Above: Jason Ker was less of a

surprise but brings huge talent

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StorieSThe pride of sailing a Tall Ship brings out the best in young people, as we discovered in Greenwich when 40 ships converged on the Thames

Tall

Photo Emily harris


I usually sleep fine on a boat hearing the lapping of the waves and the rocking back and forth. But the first night on board Lady of Avenel…I could hardly sleep. There was barely a sound and the boat was so still on the flat calm waters of Falmouth harbour. I was excited and anxious to get going – this was my first time on a Tall Ship and what an experience.

The first day we all climbed up the rigging, to the first yard-arm. There was lots of anxious pacing before the race start, but first we had the parade of sail; hundreds of vessels of all sizes, wee dinghies bobbing around the Tall Ships and RIBs tearing by. There were about 1,000 boats out in Falmouth harbour that day – and it certainly looked like there was that many.

First night watchThe watch system was four hours on and eight off. My first watch was 8:00pm until midnight. We saw the sun go down followed by the moon, as well as dolphins. We felt relaxed.

I hit the sack tired and cold. From then on the days started to merge.

When the going was slow we fished and I managed to catch mackerel. I quickly became adept at killing and gutting them. We had them for lunch, cooked brilliantly by Spike – de facto mate and old sea dog who was full of stories.

We settled into the rhythm of life on board with briefings in the morning and learning the ropes.

The bosun did a great job with the food, but we could have done with some biscuits and nibbles on our night watch. On day two, with the wind veering to the northeast and after a few confused tacks, it quickly became apparent that we would not make the finish line in time. This put everyone in a bit of a glum mood, but it meant we were able to go up in the rigging to pack away the three squares... every cloud has a silver lining.

Going with the tide and against the wind meant we had good fun out on the bowsprit as she rose and fell some 10ft. The graveyard shift was the one we were dreading: midnight until 4:00am under power. Luckily for us, we passed through the Solent and I was helming as we passed one particular ship. We had to overtake very close to her starboard side and having been ordered to steer to the degree I could not even look up from the compass binnacle as we passed it less than a stone’s throw away. This soon made everyone feel much more awake and alert!

As we entered the mouth of the Thames there was plenty to do; cleaning and getting the flags set.

I was climbing up and down the mast so much that Stefan began calling me ‘monkey’.

I was very proud of our harbour stow of the staysail and squares. Then something fun. Having been told to tidy the galley, I hoovered up a pancake and polished off a crumble. London felt hectic after being at sea and navigating the tube system home was very different to being given a bearing to steer.

archIe houston

age: 15

shIp

Lady of aveneLtype

BRIGANTINE

Barquent ne


Top: The crowsnest makes a comfy

perch on Lady of Avenel for Archie

Above: Lady Avenel at Falmouth

Top right: Jess Foulkes perched in the

netting at T.S. Pelican’s bow

Right: 50 boats paraded up the

Thames past Greenwich

‘The biggest event in London since the 2012

Olympics’

Jess FoulkesAge: 19

ship

T.S. PeLicAnType

BARquENTINE

i sTArTed sAiling dinghies when I was 15 and have always had a love of the water and sailing. I first sailed on T.S Pelican in 2011 as voyage crew and I was then recommended to return as a volunteer. I am currently in my second year of studying medicine at university and in my holidays I now sail regularly as a ‘watch leader’, taking responsibility for a watch during our time at sea, ensuring they understand the ship’s routine and guiding them in all aspects of life on board, such as sail handling, helming and so on.

Day 1Today was the joining day for our new voyage crew. As a watch leader it is part of my duty to assist the new crew with their familiarisation of the ship, by helping them settle in their cabins and introducing the basic principles of seamanship and helming. For this regatta from Falmouth to Greenwich we have 28 serving and retired military personnel from the charity Turn to Starboard sailing with us, which provides support through sailing to those affected by military operations. The opportunity to work with such a wide variety of people from different backgrounds is one of my favourite aspects of sail training.

Day 2After breakfast we prepared the ship to depart Falmouth. We broke the sails out and this was the new crew’s first experience of working aloft on the yards. It was a new experience for all of the trainees and one

which, certainly for a majority of them, pushed them out of their comfort zone. I guided the voyage crew on how to ‘step on’ in a safe fashion for both the port and starboard yards.

Winds were light leaving Falmouth so we set every sail that we had available. Falmouth Bay was full of spectators and it was one of the most fantastic spectacles I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. It is something that will stay with me for a very long time to come.

Day 3Today the voyage crew has to carry out their first night watches. We work four hours on, eight off with three watches.

The voyage crew has a steep learning curve as the day before they were only just being introduced to helming and today, they are actually doing it on a 148ft (45m) racing Tall Ship, in the middle of the night across the busiest shipping channel in the world. My responsibility was to make sure that everybody on the team is included and the watch duties are being fulfilled.

It was exciting as we worked as a team to try and gain speed. With a bit of help from the tide we managed 8.1 knots, which, on Pelican is quite a feat.

Day 4During the night, the racing took a downturn. The wind had changed from a lovely southwesterly to a northeasterly (the direction we needed to head in).

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Clockwise from right: Working aloft;

Pelican used to be a trawler, but was

modified in 1955 with square rig;

Crews parade through Falmouth’s

streets; Dutch-flagged brig Mercedes

Despite our best efforts, the tide and wind were against us. Over the entire night we had only made one mile in progress. It was at this point that the decision to retire from the race was made, so that we could reach Greenwich in time for the regatta. The crew was ordered to stow sails and I positioned myself once again in the middle of the yard and helped the voyage crew stow them correctly.

It was great to see them encourage and help those who were not as comfortable on the yards and it was really rewarding to see a sense of community had already manifested itself on the ship in such a short amount of time.

That evening my watch was asked to stow the sails on the bowsprit. I explained the principle and then let them handle it themselves. It was wonderful to see them using all the skills that they had learnt over the past few days to carry out the task. Sitting on the bowsprit watching the most beautiful sunset with a group of people that I had already started to regard as good friends was one of the best moments of the trip.

Day 5Today we taught the voyage crew how to splice rope. All of the crew got incredibly into it. More and more old rope had to be dug out of the bilge as the ship went a little rope-work-crazy for a while. It was embarrassing how long it took me to pick up splicing compared to how quickly my watch picked it up.

Day 6We found ourselves on the 12-4am watch as we passed Calais. It was quite tense keeping a lookout for traffic. The wind had picked up to 25 knots and combined with the opposing tide it made the sea lumpy.

When I awoke we were already on the Thames and the wind had shifted meaning we could sail up the river.

On arrival, we headed to the nearest pub in time to see the spectacular fireworks display over the Thames

Looking back on the week, I can easily identify the challenges that I’ve had to face, such as leading a group of people who all lead for a living and the challenge of keeping them busy and engaged with the tasks at hand.

Tall ships by class

Class A: All square-rigged vessels and all other vessels more than 40m LOA, regardless of rigClass B: Traditionally rigged vessels (gaff-rigged sloops, ketches, yawls and schooners) with an LOA of less than 40m and a waterline length of 9.14mClass C Modern-rigged vessels with an LOA of less than 40m and with an LWL of at least 9.14m, not carrying spinnaker-like sailsClass D Modern-rigged vessels with LOA less than 40m and an LWL of at least 9.14m carrying spinnaker-like sails

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Emily harris


suzy cooperAge: 15

ship

dar mlodziezyType

full RIG THREE-mAsTER

i firsT sTArTed sailing when I was around five years old and for the past 12 years I have grown up in, under and around boats. The feeling of being afloat and around water is both second nature and second to none for me. However, as I have discovered this summer, there is a huge difference between pootling up and down a river for an hour or so in a dinghy and sailing a 100m Tall Ship in the ocean for a week at a time.

On board the Dar Mlodziezy, I was up on deck every day in my work overalls at 8am sharp. This was for the raising of the Polish flag and the greeting of the captain with a hearty ‘dzien dobry’. After that, I was on watch. This means doing all manner of jobs, from setting and hoisting sails to shaving soap for cleaning the deck. The best job, of course, is climbing the rigging because there is no feeling quite like looking down at the ship from 80ft (25m) up in the air; absolutely terrifying.

After watch, it was lunchtime (finally) which was always some interesting form of potatoes and meat. Protein quickly became our main food group whilst on board. We had the afternoons to nap and relax and

hang out with the rest of the crew before dinner and in to the watch again at 8pm.

After setting off from Falmouth in a beautiful flotilla of boats of all different shapes and sizes, the race began. Over the next three days, the crew worked tirelessly day and night, constantly trying to make the most of the very light wind. To deal with this, we had to constantly pull the ropes to set and reset the sails to catch each and every gust. Our efforts were not in vain though… we finished first across the line at the Isle of Wight, winning the Class A race. The cheers on board were quite unmatchable. After this everyone relaxed and we sailed to Greenwich with our spirits soaring.

Even if we had not had the added bonus of winning, the experience was still so special and entirely irreplaceable. Being with so many people in such a small space can be both challenging and intense, but it does ensure you make friends that you’ll have for the rest of your life. Given the chance, I would grab the opportunity to sail on a Tall Ship again with both hands. I would recommend you do the same.

Get afloat most Tall ships are used for

sail training but you don’t have to be under-18 to get afloat:

Jubilee Sailing Trust www.jst.org.uk

Tall ships with disabled access

Classic Sailing www.classic-sailing.co.uk

Tall ships and trad boatsTall Ships adventures

www.tallships.orgfurther afield in a range of

boatsSailing dreams

www.sailingdreams.co.ukCutters to full-riggers

Above: An estimated 100,000 people

joined the Tall ships on the water in

falmouth

Far left: suzy Cooper

Left: fireworks in falmouth provided a

good send-off for the Tall ships

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http://www.jst.org.uk

http://www.classic-sailing.co.uk

http://www.tallships.org

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IN AMUNDSEN’S FOOTSTEPSYJA Yachtsman of the Year, Bob Shepton, may be the first man to sail the Northwest Passage in both directions in a GRP yacht

sToRY bOb ShEPTOn


He who said to me “Oh, the Northwest Passage, it’s easy nowadays” should have come this year. The Canadian Coastguard estimated there was 30 to 40 per cent more ice in the Arctic than in recent years, and the winds were contrary.

This was the expedition that nearly never was. There was no spring in Alaska, the ice staying later and the rivers frozen longer than for the previous 96 years. Then crewmember Richard had great trouble getting his US visa. He eventually joined us in Nome, Alaska, late in July. Richard rapidly became our Mr Fixit, probably saving the engine and the expedition on several occasions. Then there was Karen, an experienced RYA instructor and Steph our busy bee, not averse to telling the skipper off. David was on a steep learning curve, having never sailed beyond the Norfolk Broads.

Setting sail from Nome early 30 July, we made our way towards the Bering Strait. At one point the engine stopped, but Rich immediately applied his technical skills, cleaning the air filter. The RYA instructor was heard to ask the skipper: “You do clean your air filter every time you winterise the engine, don’t you?” The skipper remained silent, for obvious reasons.

Steph, who was on watch as we passed through the Bering Strait, was enchanted to see America to starboard and Russia to port. We made our way the 200nM up towards Point Hope, sometimes motoring and sometimes sailing, helped by a strong north-going current. Then, with strong winds forecast, we tucked in to the curve of the coastline by Point Hope for shelter.

Hunkering downAt first we anchored close in, but we had to abandon this at 2am when a strong southeasterly threatened to Calling at Ingia Fjord, Greenland

at the end of the transit

Richard at Hudson

Bay hut in Fort Ross


promptly ran aground. Frantic spinning of the wheel and revving of the engine to get off; we turned round and retraced our steps.

We now settled into a long haul, motoring against the wind, but at least it was in open water, the ice having receded northwards. We continued on past Prudoe Bay and Cape Haklett until we received a strong wind warning, still easterly, from the redoubtable Peter Semiotuk, who does so much to help those passing through these waters.

The problem with the north Alaskan coast is there are few places to hide and all I could see was Barter Island to the southeast. A barge skipper guided us to a very shallow spot, quite far from the shelter of the shore, so I decided to go five miles to the west side of the Island. It was still shallow, but we rode out the gale for two nights and a day here. To Steph’s disappointment, I decided not to visit Herschel Island when we turned east again, with its park ranger, old whaling station and sauna. More strong winds were forecast and I did not want to be in the shallow approach to Tuktoyaktuk in a lively sea. We stayed in deeper water until we came to the fairway buoy, then followed the line of buoys in – with some difficulty in the dusky night (we were well into August by now).

In Canada now, Tuk was a friendly and interesting place, but there were difficulties. Diesel was readily

drive us ashore. We went out to sea and hove-to for the rest of the night and into the next day before it moderated somewhat and we could make our way back. This time we went further east along the coast to an area charted as 4m deep, where we could anchor further from the shore.

We were forced to remain here for nine days by continuous strong northerlies that whipped the shallow Chukchi Sea into short, big seas. It was frustrating but not dangerous; the ice had cleared from these parts some time ago. When at last the wind relented, we put out early in the morning for the long haul past Cape Lisburn and up towards Point Barrow in the far north. We enjoyed a day’s sailing with favourable winds and towards Barrow we encountered fields of scattered ice floes and growlers, which was a good introduction for the crew. We used the radar but, really, eyeball navigation was more effective.

Though we had tried to calibrate the autohelm at Point Hope, we hadn’t got it working properly. Point Barrow was ice free and we put into the lagoon with 1m under the keel to try and fix the problem. Last year, we’d entered through the gap in the chain of islands to the southeast and we tried to exit this way. But when we began to work northeast over the sand banks, making for a point marked as 2.7m deep on the chartplotter, we

Top: ancient no.6 gold dredger at

Nome, Alaska

Above: Steph at work on a

freshly-caught salmon for another

delicious meal

Above right: a mixture of fresh snow

and frozen spray... and this was meant

to be summer


Dealing with the ColDSome form of heating below is a great asset. Diesel stoves such as Reflek or Dickensen seem popular. Otherwise, the principle is layering clothing. Pay special attention to extremities: winter climbing mitts proved popular. And for feet, seaboots are useless; some form of fur-lined or extra insulated boots are important (mine were £26 from the factory seconds shop – fine).

Warm hats – Steph added a caribou fur to her hood in 2013; great ideaOuter clothing – a good set of Goretex climbing trousers and jacket probably work better than the heavier and more expensive sailing-specific equivalents.Sleeping bags – a down sleeping bag was a definate asset despite the ‘damp cold’ environment

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available, but there was no engine oil or propane gas for cooking. Locals apparently drove 80 miles down an ice road for oil, but in the end, the Mayor found a 5-gallon drum of synthetic oil for the princely sum of C$175. Just as we left, Steph, who likes to talk to everyone, happened to find a man who would sell us an old propane bottle.

First sight of iceMotoring the 100nM east to Cape Bathurst, the next key for getting through the Passage, we encountered a long tongue of ice coming down from the north. We came up to it at night and hove-to, drifting until daylight. The old adage that you cannot tell what ice is really like till you get up close still holds true, and we probably followed its edge further south than we really needed to.

On the other hand, I saw a gap that seemed to lead through a thin section and Karen took us through. It lead to open water and saved us a long trek south, allowing us to make for the shallow Snowgoose Passage. Another big band of 2/10ths ice stretched south, but 2/10ths is not difficult to weave through in calm conditions and we moved steadily towards Summer Harbour on Booth Island.

Ships small and large anchor here and we spent the night half-waiting for David Cowper in Polar Bound, with whom we’d been in contact, but he was delayed by

C A N A D A

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Hudson Bay

Cambridge Bay

NomeA L A S K A

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Amundsen Gulf

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Tuktoyaktuk

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L a b r a d o r

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Clyde RiverAasiaat

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Nome BarrowBarrow Cambridge BayCambridge Bay Pond InletPond Inlet Aasiaat

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Above: our route through the

famous Northwest Passage

Below: we could hardly believe

what the boat passed through


thicker ice. We had another long haul in Amundsen Gulf, making good progress in calm conditions. We kept well offshore round Lady Franklin Point (we had hit a rock here last year) and so into Coronation Gulf. Then we closed the shore to film the seabed as part of a project for a marine biologist friend interested in Arctic flora.

Heading northeast, now, we got into the channel system for Cambridge Bay (so many British names in the Arctic). The leading marks are hard to pick up and there are a lot of them for different local destinations. On the final approach, we passed a smart little sailing boat and at the jetty, there was also an ocean-going rowing boat with an Irish crew. Both had been attempting the Passage, but it was not the year for a novel transit and they had sensibly both decided to give up.

Most things were available in Cambridge, including propane and engine oil. Here we met up at last with David and had a tour of his specially-designed Polar Bound. We restocked – ‘retail therapy’ Karen and Steph termed it. The settlement is about halfway, psychologically if not in terms of distance. We had already done almost 2,000 miles, but worse was to come.

Word reached me that Victoria Strait was open and I hassled the crew to leave quickly. It would save us

many miles to cut through there and spare us threading the shallow, tricky passages around Gjoa Haven. We got away that evening, though some of the crew were still catching their breath and made it through the Strait by way of Icebreaker Channel, which must be exceptional. We enjoyed pleasant motoring in calm, sunny conditions, but that night rather concentrated the mind, as the odd growler began to appear in the dark water. We took the risk and continued, under sail by now.

Locked in the iceWe spent a pleasant night anchored in a cove on the western side of the Tasmania Islands, though we struggled to disentangle our tripping line from a big floe that kept going back and forth across our bows – at one stage Richard leapt on to the floe to disentangle it. Next morning Karen dropped our tuk into the water trying to push a floe away and had to take her gloves off to fish it out. Her wet hands froze and took a long time to recover.

Passing the infamous Magpie Rock at the west end of the Bellot Strait, a fair tide swept us through; the previous year we were doing six knots and standing still over the ground. Round the corner at Fort Ross,

Old Westerlys like mine were strongly built and, in dealing with some osmosis, two more layers of epoxy resin were added. My son had made me a solid fibreglass cuddy instead of a sprayhood (a real boon), and an aft gantry carried a solar panel, radar antenna, with a wind generator alongside. Other useful gear:• Plenty of anchors• A tuk (ice pole), ideally two• Lots of fuel filters• A laptop and satphone for receiving ice reports

High latitudesPreparing a GRP boat

Reading an ice chart

Ice charts are available online from Environment Canada at ec.gc.ca with egg symbols providing key detail about ice characteristics.

The top figure shows the concentration of ice in a given area in tenths, 2/10ths covered, 3/10ths and so forth. The second figure refers to the stage of ice development, from ice rind (1) to thick first-year ice (4). The last number refers to the forms of ice, from pancake ice (0) to vast floes (6) or icebergs (9). Useful, once you’ve learned how to interpret it.

Four to 5/10ths would be pushing it in a small boat, especially a glassfibre boat such as ours. It depends on whether the ice is new (comparatively thin) or old ice (can be metres thick).

Above: Dodo’s Delight approaches

an ice wall

Left: how the Inuit used to live

Far left: Inuit children await us

in Arctic Bay


we caught up with Polar Bound again and our Swedish friends in Anna, at last.

Now things began to get critical. A friend at home was compressing the Canadian ice charts and emailing them via satphone. But these showed a lot of ice coming down Prince Regent Inlet and we could not get out. We had to wait but time and season were getting on.

There was a gale one night; the Swedes re-anchored but we fled south to shelter in a cove and had a trying time getting our anchor to hold – kelp is a terrible thing. “This is Arctic sailing,” David assured us later aboard the lovely, warm Polar Bound – our heating was inadequate for the cold we were experiencing this year.

After eight days, the sun came out. The ice chart showed a long dagger of ice stretching down Prince Regent Inlet, but it might have been possible to reach more open water through it at one point. We set sail across along the 72nd parallel, weaving through 10 miles of 2/10ths ice. Strong winds kept us penned in Fitzgerald Bay for two nights and a day, but they cleared more ice away, so we could make our way north in open water.

It was difficult to know what to do on these very dark nights and I chose to heave-to and drift. Poor Steph on her watch thought the white line ahead was sky; it turned out to be an ice floe. Panic, a quick starting of the engine and full throttle in reverse. The radar was not very helpful, so we just turned round and motored for a while, before settling down to drift again.

The next day Karen did a splendid job of negotiating the huge field of brash and growlers in heavy swell, and we continued up the Brodeur coast on the east side. The next morning we were surprised to find ourselves suddenly pushing through fields of pancake ice. This can be the first sign of the sea freezing over, but I kept my concerns to myself. With the forecasting turning bad again, we motored 50nM south to Arctic Bay settlement for the weekend. Whilst it raged in Lancaster Sound, we had fine weather and calm conditions to refurbish the boat – and ourselves.

Gales were forecast again for Bylot Island and Baffin Bay when we emerged. More decisions. We started

down Navy Board Inlet in a lively northerly and sought shelter in Tay Bay, despite its sandbanks and shallows. When we came out two days later, I had never seen Navy Board Inlet looking so beautiful. Fresh snow covered the hills almost down to sea level, with clear skies and sunshine. We could have been in the Alps except for the water. We goose-winged down the channel, then broad-reached where it turns east. Gradually the wind died away until the motor went on – all the way over to Pond Inlet.

I had not intended to stop here. It is an open roadstead and all supplies must be carried out in the dinghy. But we needed both water and fuel for a long motor down the east coast of Baffin, passing shelves of ice, which had calved off the huge Peterman glacier in the far north. We called at Clyde River to refuel, then motored east to Aasiaat in Greenland.

Sting in the tailComing into Aasiaat, the engine died, and as we coasted in, a metal arm sticking out from a fishing boat swept our wind generator into the sea. Once again Richard showed his technical skills. He and Pele from Anna, fished it from 6m down. He stripped it down, the local boatyard straightened the pole, and it is up and running again as before.

It is possible, looking back, to be left with a slight sense of anti-climax: we never got into any significant or pressing danger. But a pleasing aspect of this must be that for once we obviously made the right calls. I cannot claim that it has always been so, and in places, as the Duke of Wellington said of Waterloo, ‘it was a damn close-run thing’.

Prince Regent Inlet iced up soon after we were through, as did Admiralty Inlet, and we managed to duck the worst winds.

Only three yachts completed the west-to-east crossing this year. Records? It is just possible Dodo’s Delight is the only GRP boat to have passed both ways through the Northwest Passage and in consecutive years. Who knows, and come to that, who cares?

Above: in pack ice off Bylot Island,

Above right: anchored off Greenland’s

awe-inspiring coast after our transit

DoDo’s DelightWesterly Discus, 1980

LOA: 33ft 3in (10.1m)

LWL: 28ft 5in (8.7m)


Draught: 5ft 5in (1.7m)

Weight: 15,097lb (6,848kg)

Engine: Mercedes 42hp


Arctic Adventure ToursJoin “Arctic Flyer” for bareboat and skippered charter to the beautiful Lyngen Alps, or further afi eld to the stunning Lofoten and Svalbard archipelagos. And enjoy the spectacular wildernesses of Northern Norway this year!

For further information:Email. [email protected]. 00 47 90609606 • 00 47 45635288www.arcticadventuretours.no As seen on Trip Advisor


http://www.arcticadventuretours.no


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CORRI QueenEllen MacArthur

When one of the biggest names in British sailing gives up the sport – just like that – you have to take notice. And all that on a point of principle? Even more remarkable. And yet it is now almost five years since Dame Ellen MacArthur bowed out of seriously competitive round-the-world racing, right on the

cusp of reaching her greatest potential – and Britain’s best chance of finding a foil to the dominance of the French – to focus on making the world more sustainable.

“I possibly got out before I peaked,” she agrees slightly impatiently. “I do miss the big stuff – I’d never had enough of it. But I don’t regret retiring. The hardest thing was to not try the Vendée Globe again [in 2008-2009]. We had the money and the boat and were ready to go.”

Since then she has been busy building up her Cancer Trust charity, which gets young cancer patients out sailing, and promoting a Foundation devoted to changing the way the world does business. But fortunately, she hasn’t given up sailing altogether, as she told ST in an interview at London’s BT Tower, where she does much of her fundraising.

“I love cruising with others. There is something wonderful about sharing special moments with others, be that seeing a beautiful sunset or sunrise, or the excitement at seeing what lies the far side of a bend in the river. I always missed that sailing solo.”

From her childhood, it was cruising sailing that first enthused Ellen. She famously saved up her school lunch money to buy her first boat in 1994 – a 20ft 9in (6.3m) Corribee Iduna, which she has trailed up to Scotland in the past and still sails today. Certainly, she has the cruising sailor’s aversion to large crowds and busy anchorages. Ellen describes her ideal cruising weekend as going anywhere “quiet and peaceful”. In a sentiment that many readers will recognise, she adds: “That wonderful feeling of peace as the morning mist rises off the water is very special.”

Despite her record-breaking stint in the custom-built 75ft (22.9m) trimaran B&Q/Castorama, she says she’s a huge fan of small boats. “Small boats can take you to tiny anchorages and the top ends of creeks – you can escape. I regularly venture out in a tiny dinghy and I absolutely love it. Small boats also cost less to buy and maintain.”

She doesn’t shy away from getting her hands dirty either, and does all the maintenance work on Iduna herself – “everything from glassfibreing new

Ellen MacArthur reached the lonely pinnacle of solo racing, but her heart still lies in sailing little Corribees

sToRY saM fortescue

cockpit drains in, to grinding off the side-deck non-skid areas when it was riddled with bubbles and epoxying it.”

When Ellen says she’s given up racing, it’s not entirely true. She tries to do the Round the Island Race every year on one of her Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust boats. But it’s clear that the bigger joy is actually talking to the young people on board, not getting her hands on the wheel. “During the Round the Island, I’m in the galley always trying to get something interesting into a sarnie.”

With its two boats and four charter boats, the Trust is able to take around 350 children out each year – equivalent to seven per cent of those diagnosed with cancer in the UK. She wants to double that by 2016, taking on new boats and chartering others. Ellen describes the Trust’s effect as “pressing reset on the kids’ lives”. The fact that everyone on board has had cancer takes the stigma out of it, and removes barriers to much-needed normal interaction between the kids. Then the teamwork element takes over. “It’s much harder to create this environment off a boat.”

Ellen’s other focus is on promoting the so-called circular economy – lowering the impact of the world’s appetite for new goods. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation aims to promote a model where resources aren’t

consumed, but borrowed. The Foundation is working with manufacturers to design goods that can be mended, reused or in the worst case, recycled. It now employs 35 people and is working with household names such as Apple and Philips.

“The Foundation has been a success because I’ve put my heart and soul into it,” Ellen says with real intensity. Eyes half closed, she reels off an impressive list of stats and figures relating to global trade, taken from a report produced for her Foundation by McKinsey. “One trillion US

dollars of benefit are available right now.” Perhaps wary of being labelled an eco-militant, she quickly adds: “It’s not

about behavioural change at all.” As Ellen dashes off to get ready for the next round of fundraising

activity, I’m left with a strange sense of her restlessness. It seems very much as though the competitive instinct that drove her to succeed at solo racing has now been wholeheartedly diverted into her two charitable concerns. But her desire to experience the world’s quiet moments of tranquil majesty remains undimmed. Trips in her Coribee, Iduna or her dinghy both allow her to escape from the busyness (and business).

As she puts it repeatedly: “I love it.”

‘The Trust is able to take around 350 children

out sailing each year. Ellen wants to double

that by 2016’

NEW YORKMost people would run a mile from setting sail on a 2,500-mile, non-stop, open-ocean adventure in a classic wooden workboat. But these two daredevil sailors are made of sterner stu� . Here’s their inspiring story

STORY BRITTANY MEYERS PHOTOGRAPHS DENIS DOWLING

Antigua to


Denis Dowling and Dubi Klein battled 40 knot sustained winds, huge ocean swells and torrential, blinding rain for hours off the coast of North Carolina. They were in an open wooden boat called Summer Wind in conditions that would

test any vessel and crew to the limit – yet they had never felt more alive. The pair had sailed Summer Wind further than any Carriacou Sloop had ever gone before. “I don’t ever want to go to sea in a plastic boat again,” was all that Denis could think about, who was now in love with the wooden boat.

He recalls: “There was this distinct and very real feeling that we were doing it together, that Summer Wind would take care of us.”

He and Dubi, expert sailors in their own rights with well over 150,000 nautical miles accrued between them, agreed that this was the first time they had ever really been sailing. And by this we mean a 2,500nM journey all the way from Antigua in to New York City.

Wood is goodIn an age where plastic boats are the norm, to see a classic wooden boat with a design dating back to the late 1800s is truly something to behold. The Carriacou Sloop has race-like lines, is low to the water with extreme deadrise, flush decks and a squat, wide transom. In many ways the Carriacou Sloops were ahead of their time. With a solid timber for a spar – usually harvested from a forest in Grenada – and an oversized and powerful main, they are also fast and efficient sailers. Historically they were used for inter-island commerce carrying produce and livestock. As many as 130 of these West Indian sloops were working during their heyday in the early to mid-1900s. Sadly, only 17 are left in working order today, while the rest are rotting away on beaches of the islands they once served.

I meet Denis at Nanny Cay Marina in Tortola on the British Virgin Islands and it didn’t take long to spot him. He was, of course, working on the deck of Summer Wind, readying her for their journey. Sporting a tattered straw hat and sun-bleached dreadlocks, he greeted me with a warm smile and an invitation aboard. It was immediately apparent that Summer Wind was his passion: he had


Reality bitesOn 23 June 2013, after the final frantic provisioning and preparation, Summer Wind glided out of Nanny Cay under full sail and headed out to sea. Denis and Dubi’s spirits were high; it seemed an incredibly auspicious start for an epic journey. As they got out of the lee of the islands, however, conditions changed. Night began to fall and the winds and seas picked up considerably. “It was like the ocean said, ‘wake up boys’,” Denis recalls. “It became clear that we needed to reef immediately.”

Reefing a mainsail is pretty easy, if a little cumbersome, but reefing the main of a Carriacou Sloop, however, is an entirely different beast requiring one crew member to man the tiller and massive

flogging sail, while the other wrestles the sail and halyard at the mast. There are no halyard winches, no lazy jacks and certainly no roller furling aboard. Add bucking

seas, breaking waves and gusting winds to the mix and you have a wrestling match.

With the main finally reefed and Summer Wind more manageable, Dubi took the first watch while Denis crawled below to get some rest. Almost immediately she took a huge wave over the quarter, pooping the entire cockpit and thoroughly drenching Denis in his bunk. Soaking wet, uncomfortable and apprehensive about what lay ahead, doubt crept into his mind. “Are we in over our heads? Should we be doing this?” he wondered to himself. But there was no turning back.

“The first few days were a huge learning curve and I’d be lying if I said it was easy. There was an overall feeling

Below, left: Dolphins were a welcome

sight along their route

Bottom left: Dubi showing off the

Carriacou’s decidedly cramped

below-decks accommodation

Below right: rough seas brought a

sharp sense of reality

Bottom right: Denis enjoys a quieter

time at the helm

completely rebuilt her from the keel up and she was beautiful. Denis had island-hopped from Antigua to St Maarten with no instruments or modern systems (besides an engine), using only dead reckoning, the Southern Cross and local knowledge.

While his seamanship and a welcome dose of serendipity got him that far, he knew that Summer Wind needed some basic systems for the offshore journey to New York. The first job was to build a berth for sleeping when off watch. Next was a refit: her propeller needed to be re-pitched, her exhaust system rebuilt, hand pumps installed, and dead-eyes and chainplates needed replacing to make her seaworthy. Furthermore, while Denis is a purist, a solar charger was added to run the recently installed VHF, GPS, running lights and, of course, stereo. Other than an EPIRB and a tiller pilot, these were the only items that would modernise Summer Wind’s century-old features. No heads, no galley, no seats, no dodger, no bimini and no freshwater system.

After a month of 12 to 18-hour days, Denis and his first mate Dubi crossed the final items off the to-do list. The original plan was to island-hop to Florida, but with the threat of hurricane season and the other hazards from staying close to shore, he and Dubi grew sceptical. Aside from that, they were without a dinghy and the added expenses of marinas, meals and accommodation was becoming daunting. So, at the very last minute they decided to head offshore and make the journey in one fell swoop; a potentially riskier endeavour, but one they were more comfortable with. They would sail non-stop to West Palm Beach, Florida, a trip they estimated would take 10 days.

“Every piece of nautical knowledge in my arsenal

was put to the test”

Gustavia

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New York

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West Palm Beach

Tortola


of total exhaustion. We were really, really tired, but we were committed,” Denis says. The ocean was taking a toll on them. Even going to the heads was an ordeal that involved strapping oneself to the mast while hanging overboard as the boat bucked and yawed with the waves. Sleeping, even in the custom-made quarter berth, was uncomfortable. Their ice block melted in four days and their food started to spoil. It was relentless and the boys were bruised and battered.

As sturdy as the Carriacou Sloop is, comfort is not her forte; they’re exposed, rustic and lively in a blow, and require a tremendous amount of energy and stamina to sail, let alone live on. “I have never been challenged like that before.,” Denis says. “Every piece of nautical knowledge in my arsenal was put to the test and used.”

But something magical happens when you are faced with a great challenge: you adapt. By day five, Denis and Dubi not only found their groove, but a brotherhood. The journey became more spiritual. Euphoria replaced exhaustion and their bodies adjusted to the boat and the ocean. “It felt so natural,” Denis reminisces, “This boat had been built by hand, on a beach with local materials. She had a spirit. She was alive.”

On day seven, the weather took an ominous turn. The skies grew dark and the winds picked up considerably. With no way to access weather reports, Denis was concerned: “I worried that perhaps something was brewing. It was hurricane season and we were out there, so I asked for a sign. Something, anything, to tell me that we would be all right.” They

Top: no wonder Denis has a beaming

smile when wahoo this size is on the

lunch menu

Middle: Denis captured this shot of a

truly wonderful sunset

Bottom: the iconic shot of Summer

Wind in New York harbour, taken by

Alexis Andrews for Vanishing Sail

were 200 miles east of the Bahamas and, as if summoned into existence by his very thought, a bright yellow butterfly – one that, coincidently, matched the yellow paint on Summer Wind – suddenly appeared. It was the sign he needed.

After passing north of Nassau in a building weather system, they made landfall in West Palm Beach as expected. After a couple weeks of respite and re-provisioning in Florida, they continued their sail up the east coast, almost exclusively under sail, stopping only in Beaufort, North Carolina, for, ironically, a weather forecast.

New York, New YorkOn 5 August 2013, 44 days after departing Tortola, Summer Wind sailed triumphantly, into New York Harbour. The moment would be captured by Alexis Andrews for his upcoming project Vanishing Sail – a documentary about the history, near extinction and modern resurgence of these incredible boats. Alexis told Denis he wanted an iconic image for the film, which is precisely what he got (below).

Docked and settled, Denis called the boatbuilder Alwyn Enoe, to let him know they’d made it. Summer Wind had become so more than just a boat on this odyssey; she’d become a living entity with a soul and a spirit, such is the magic of a hand-crafted wooden ship. “Summer Wind is real strong, you know?” Denis told Alwyn over the phone. And with a wise and knowing chuckle, Alwyn replied with a Caribbean flair and said: “I know.”

FACTORIs Formula One technology set to change the face of sailing?STORY GEORGIE CORLETT

Speculation was rife when Red Bull Formula One team’s legendary designer Adrian Newey admitted, in the middle of 2014, that he found the America’s Cup a tempting prospect. Meetings between Ben Ainslie and Newey at the Abu Dhabi

Grand Prix did little to quieten the rumour mill.But the parallels between high performance sailing

and ultra-tech motorsport already exist, and not just in the multi-million dollar race-machines, huge � nancial commitments and high-intensity race series of the 34th America’s Cup.

Air and seaFrom a developmental perspective, the two sports are already closely aligned; composite materials such as carbon � bre, Zylon and Kevlar have revolutionised the creative scope available to both marine and automotive designers. Computer modeling has long replaced expensive and time-consuming tank and wind tunnel testing, in turn opening up time and budget for R&D.

� e 3D virtual design methods used to model, test and optimise components o� er designers and engineers the capacity to redevelop parts, even during a race series. For example, Red Bull’s RB9 car, made up of over 6,500 parts, can undergo some 1,000 design changes in a week and up to 30,000 changes in a season. In sailing there are few classes which would accommodate that level of adaptation, but during the America’s Cup, Oracle Team USA reportedly � led for a new certi� cate every race for the � rst 15 races.

Technologically, the sports are also steering ever-closer courses. One of the stand-out similarities is in the use of foils. Formula One’s Drag Reduction System (DRS) allows a driver to alter the angle of the rear aerofoil at certain points on the track, speci� cally where the car is traveling in a relatively straight line. By lessening the angle of the foil, which otherwise forces the car’s rear tyres onto the track to promote grip, it reduces air resistance and the car can accelerate more quickly for a brief period.

On board the AC72s, the ability to alter foil angle is not only fundamental to adjusting the angle of the sail to the wind, but essential to making the boat ‘� y’ on its hydrofoils. � is innovation is the culmination of design developments that range from the canting keels of the Volvo 70s and Open 60s to radical multi-hull hydrofoilers such as ‘L’hydroptere’.

Methods of energy reclamation and storage also feature as major innovations for both sports. For F1, the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS) stores energy – otherwise lost through heat generated by the brakes – as electrical energy which is then returned to the drive sha� via an electric motor at the press of a button.

On board the AC72s, stored energy also played a big part – although it wasn’t so easily come by! Of the 11 sailors on board, 10 could be grinding, and of those 10, four were doing so in order to pressurise a number of hydraulic cylinders that li� ed the hydrofoils in and out of the water. � e hydrofoils enter and exit the water at high speeds due to the sudden release of the energy stored as pressure by the grinders, giving the helm three seconds to set the foil using a button on the wheel.

Chris Draper, helm of Luna Rossa Challenge, explains that the control systems for all the hydraulic functions have taken technology directly from the race track: “F1 are light years ahead,” he says.

Where next?In engineering terms, the most valuable asset o� ered by F1 is a huge increase in the reliability of component manufacture and testing. Ever greater precision, thanks to triple or quadruple testing to the point of breakage, or by using ultrasound and X-ray technology to assess potentially devastating fractures at a microsopic level, is standard practice in Formula One. Laser-sensed measurements are also a common tool, which means that build quality can be assessed without the need for human touch, with measurements taken in microns.

In a partnership between SAP Extreme Sailing Team and the McLaren Technology Centre, the sailors were given the opportunity to see how this technology is employed. Extreme 40 and America’s Cup sailor Pete

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“The F1 philosophy of questioning everything can

be taken forward into sailing”


Cumming believes that it’s not only the tools and expertise that might directly crossover, but also: “The F1 philosophy of questioning everything can be taken forward into sailing. The designers bring fresh thinking and approaches combined with increased precision, especially in one-design racing – a team with this benefit will make huge leaps forward.”

Data loggingFresh thinking is central to another partnership, this time using F1 knowledge to make an impact on the offshore racing scene. Caterham Composites had previously worked in partnership with Alex Thomson Racing, transferring their experience and technology onto a Vendee Globe campaign, and their ultimate goal is to work with an America’s Cup team. Time will tell how durable the partnership is, but Caterham Composites CEO Mike Gascoyne has been experimenting with data loggers on a custom-built RC3 Class 40, which will measure hull and keel loads and intelligently filter the data. Inside the rig, cables draw real time sailing load data from rigging and furling forestays by Future Fibres.

Mike sees the capacity to forewarn skippers of potential problems, before they cause catastrophic failure, as the main advantage in developing this data logging system. The hope is that future systems, used in R&D to better identify tolerances for components, will ultimately increase the reliability and therefore reputation and appeal to sponsors of offshore sailing.

The use of sensors in sailing is not completely new – another company at the forefront of motorsport, Cosworth, worked with the British Olympic sailing team in the run up to the 2008 Games. The focus of this was the Pi Garda data logger system, which records data from sensors ranging from GPS and windspeed to strain gauges. This can then be used for performance comparison against theoretical targets, analysis of tacks against wind shifts and many other features.

Similarly, back in the 2010 America’s Cup ‘BMW Oracle Racing’ had some 250 sensors across their then-revolutionary wing sail, giving out 90 million bits of data per hour of sailing. Competitors in the last Volvo Ocean Race and Barcelona World Race have used similar sensor systems.

Increasingly accurate data needs to be presented differently and again sailing may learn from Formula One. Instead of multi-function displays that both driver

and sailor can easily become too preoccupied to scrutinise in any detail, Caterham developed minimal displays which rely on lights as well as numbers or text as a more efficient interface. This move towards simplicity is a direct cross-over from Caterham’s Formula One experience. Similar technology was put to good use in AC34, when members of Team Oracle USA wore displays mounted on their wrists.

The human elementWith developments made possible by technology from materials

reliability to media presentation, the gap between F1 and sailing looks set to narrow further. One man hoping to help make this happen is Sir Keith Mills. Having bought the IMOCA global commercialisation rights earlier this year, he plans to follow in Bernie Ecclestone’s footsteps and use the F1 model to increase the profile of the Vendée Globe and Barcelona World Race. He hopes to bring the races to a larger audience, and in doing so to attract more teams and further investment. Central to this will be using modern broadcast technology to capture and distribute footage as it happens.

As Sir Keith has identified, sharing as much of the sailor’s experiences with viewers is key to making sailing appealing as a spectator sport. The ‘superhuman’ effort is a factor F1 audiences are familiar with – the average F1 race requires physical exertion on a par with running a marathon. The AC34 brought it home to sailing fans, with live onboard sound capturing the exhaustion of the grinders, whilst teams also dealt with high G-forces from sailing at high speed.

The next step may be in the use of simulators, which have been used for many years to test and analyse Formula One engineering. But the one thing all this physical and mental training shows is that despite all the technology, the human element is still key. Gascogyne says: “Just as in F1 there is no technology that can tell a driver how late he can brake into a corner, or how much speed he can carry through a corner, there will never be any technology to replace the skipper’s feel of the boat, sail choice or how to combat the physical demands of offshore sailing.”

Left: Caterham

worked with Alex

Thomson Racing,

applying its

technology to his

Vendee Globe

campaign

Below: Hydraulic

control systems in

the foils of the

AC72s use

technology taken

directly from

Formula One

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The race of theirRacing round the world isn’t only for the professionals, but would you spend a year of your life – and your life’s savings - doing just that? We discover the appeal of the Clipper Round the World Race

sToRY HElEn FrETTEr

Lives

Above: the 12 Clipper 70s were new

for the 2013/14 race and are the

‘raciest’ boats to date


Ditching preconceptions is what the Clipper Round the World Race is all about. For non-sailors, it’s about proving that it is possible for ‘ordinary’ people to sail around the world. But for those who are already sailors, the challenge is to dismiss the idea

that paying to sail is somehow a ‘soft’ option.The ultimate paid berth is a round-the-world slot on

a Clipper Round the World Race (and it comes with a hefty price of around £43,000). These days the Clipper holds a unique position as being the only round the world race open to amateur sailors (the Global Challenge held its last event in 2005). Meanwhile the Clipper has not only endured, but shares an increasing amount in common with the pinnacle of professional round-the-world yacht racing: the Volvo Ocean Race.

A year before the first ever one-design Volvo Ocean Race set off, the Clipper fleet departed London in its own brand new fleet of 12 one-design 70-footers. And while the Clipper route includes the Cape of Good Hope and the Southern Ocean, but omits Cape Horn in favour of the Panama Canal, these days both races have adopted a Pacific Ocean stage with Chinese stopovers on what is rapidly becoming the accepted early 21st century track.

Universal appealSo who spends more than an average annual salary to go sailing? Well, there are professionals looking for a break from high-pressured careers, students seeking a unique gap year, mums, retirees and a whole range of people simply looking to have an adventure. There are also the sailors who’ve always had a yearning to experience the Southern Ocean as well as complete novices who have never stepped on board a yacht. The 2014 race included crew aged between 18 and 73.

Despite these straitened times, there is no shortage of applicants. A grand total of 650 people will take part in the 2013-14 race, including 120 people signed up for all eight legs. Race director Justin Taylor says: “The race is going from strength to strength, it’s the ninth now and we were sold out on this particular race and are now taking bookings for the next, and the race beyond that.

“We generally find the average age is mid-40s, have been in their chosen field for 20 years and have

the means to pay for it. Others remortgage their house, and we’ve seen a lot of people using redundancy payments in the economic climate we’re now in. There might be an average age, but is there an average person? No, you just can’t pigeonhole the crew that way, they really are from all walks of life.”

One of the key factors of the Clipper Race’s success is that it attracts sailors with a hugely diverse range of experience levels. But how do you race with people who have never even sailed before?

Back to basicsThe first stage in the application process is an interview. Neil Bennett, just returned from racing the first four legs on Great Britain, recalls: “My interview was with David Cusworth, the crew recruitment manager, and his first line was that he was going to try and persuade us not to do it. They only really want people who know what they’re letting themselves in for and are prepared to put everything into it. He went through the horror stories; the heads, some of the seas you’d be in. It didn’t put me off. As soon as I got on one of the yachts, I thought, ‘Yes, definitely!”’

Once signed up, the next part is a four-stage training process. It’s designed to cater for the very novice sailor, but more experienced sailors must attend these training weeks as well; there is a ‘Clipper’ way of doing things, which may not be how things are run on the average racing yacht.

Graduates of the training say it is a great leveller and gives novices confidence that they will be able to contribute. It also ensures that everyone is approaching every situation in the same way. Whereas Volvo teams have ‘playbooks’ to detail likely manoeuvres, the Clipper handbook lists ‘evolutions’, or sailhandling routines. Racing with inexperienced crew in potentially severe conditions means every team member has to know exactly what happens next when it comes to putting in a reef or changing a headsail.

Delicate balanceThere were 12 teams in 2014’s Clipper Race, each sailing at any one time with up to 23 crew, of mixed experience and all ages. Every single person makes a hefty financial commitment to be there, so getting the


Above: the race offers people the

opportunity to experience ocean

racing – from amateurs to racers

Far left: the 2013-14 race was held in

12 new 70ft one-designs

left: apart from the skipper, all crew

are amateur sailors, with around 40

per cent new to the sport before

signing up

balance of skills and personalities right on each boat is crucial. The teams are initially allocated by gender, age, fitness and general ability level, as Justin Taylor explains: “There are some crew who are Yachtmasters with their own boat and then 40 per cent of our crew have never been on a sailing boat before they start training with us.

“But we also look at more subjective factors: their temperament, their competitive drive, their reasons for doing it – do they want to win at all costs, or are they looking for something else? We try to sift through all that and allocate crews based on all those principles. We tend to find that we get it right most of the time, and all the crews are very equally matched.”

Neil Bennett agrees that most people on his boat had the same goals. “We were quite lucky in that the vast majority of us wanted the same thing, which was a

good adventure,” he says. “If we’re in a position to do well then we’ll try really hard, but we didn’t want to go all-out and miss the experience by being too competitive. And I think we did that actually; when we had the chance to do well everyone put extra effort in.

“At points there was friction. You had some of the guys who were ultra-competitive and wanted to push stuff, whereas other people were thinking we were a bit overpowered, that we should maybe rein back a bit. But it never really got to the point of having an argument; the skipper would be the voice of reason. When we weren’t doing well you could see how annoyed people were. There wasn’t anyone who didn’t want to do well.”

Pete Stirling, skipper of Jamaica Get All Right adds: “Most crew respect the fact that in order to be competitive the crew and the boat need to be pushed.


CLIPPER 70

LOA: 75ft 6in (23m)


Draught: 9ft 10in (3m)

Displacement: 69,887lb (31,700kg)

Ballast: 26,445lb (12,000kg)

Mast height: 95ft (29m)

Mainsail: 1,326sqft (123.2m2)

Headsail: 1,813sqft(168.4m2)

Asymmetric: 3,555sqft (330.3m2)

More often than not the crew will tell me I’m not pushing hard enough, rather than the other way round.

“I believe most people don’t realise how truly competitive they actually are until they find themselves in a competitive environment. As long as a few of the crew – and in particular the skipper – are competitive, the non-competitive crew will ultimately step up their game as well.”

Although the Clipper is a race situation, if conditions are suitable then even newly joined ‘leggers’ will take their turn on the helm. “We certainly don’t have a ‘win at all costs’ attitude,” Justin adds.

As such, there’s a strict system of penalties for damaging sails or the boats, designed to discourage teams from pushing the limits.

All of the above puts a huge premium on the skippers. “It’s not an ordinary skipper’s role: it’s probably 10 per cent sailing the boat and 90 per cent managing the whole thing and the crew,” says Justin.

Pushing limitsThe 2013-14 race proved as challenging as any, including a sweltering Doldrums crossing and a punishing Southern Ocean stage which saw 80-knot gales and sizeable waves batter the fleet. So how do inexperienced crew handle severe conditions? “The challenge of sailing across oceans such as the Southern Ocean is a big task no matter how experienced you are,” replies Matt Mitchell, skipper of Mission Performance. “The conditions down there are

enough to test any sailor to their absolute limit, not only because of their severity, but because of the sheer relentlessness of them. When the conditions are really bad, a sense of humour will go a long way.”

Neil says he was able to face the severe conditions because the crew environment was so mutually supportive: “As a team, we were pretty close knit so people didn’t get too nervous. If someone got a bit worried they’d sit them down and talk them through it, and we were a very huggy crew! Even when we got hit by the wave and had injuries on board, one of the guys was a bit frayed round the edges for a few days but he was soon back up on the helm, back to his normal self. There were points when we’d have arguments, but when the shit hit the fan the team would pull together every single time and it was amazing to watch.”

Is the Clipper’s biggest appeal because it’s a great adventure, or because it’s a great race?

“It’s a race, absolutely,” says Justin. “You just have to listen to the crews when they’re given a penalty that changes their standings to see that.”

But the race is also much more, as Neil affirms: “I ticked all my sailing boxes in the first couple of legs, so my goal changed to just enjoy being there. The sailing’s great, yes, but it’s the people and the friendships that you make. I’ve made friends that even if I wanted to get rid of I don’t think I’d be able to!

“It was worth every single penny. It was terrifying at points, absolutely shattering the entire time, but one of the best things I’ve ever done.”

Top and Above: a welcome return to

London passing under Tower Bridge

Bottom right: Great Britain

crewmember Neil Bennett had not

sailed for 10 years before the race but

recently completed four legs, including

some as watch leader

Clipper race legs

The Clipper Round the World Race

is the world’s longest sailing race,

encompassing 40,000 miles over

eight legs and 15 races.

The 2013-14 edition started from

London before racing to Brest, then

across the Atlantic to Rio. Leg 2

took the classic route from Rio to

Cape Town, before the Southern

Ocean third leg from South Africa

to Albany, Australia.

Leg 4 comprised three races –

from Albany to Sydney, the Rolex

Sydney-Hobart, and on to Brisbane.

The fifth leg skirts the Pacific, from

Brisbane to Singapore, then on to

Qingdao, in China.

Leg 6 is a monster 5,800-mile

stage across the Pacific from

Qingdao to San Francisco on the

USA’s west coast. Leg 7 is the

American stage, racing south to

the Panama Canal, then up to

Jamaica, and then north past the

southeastern states to New York.

The final leg crosses the North

Atlantic from New York to Derry/

Londonderry in Ireland, the

Netherlands, and back to London.

A neAr -missAnnalise MurphyIreland’s Laser Radial star tells how she moved on from bitter disappointment at the 2012 Olympics to European glory

sTORY GeorGie Corlett


“i remember thinking they were the four easiest races of my life; I just went around the racecourse and never really saw anyone,” says Annalise Murphy. The Irish Laser Radial sailor captured hearts and fired imaginations with her flawless start to the 2012 Olympic regatta: four straight wins placed her firmly in the spotlight. Ireland’s first gold medal in Olympic sailing seemed to

be within reach. Then aged only 22, Annalise reflects: “You go to your first Olympics just hoping to have a solid performance and to be able to see where you can improve for four years’ time. To go out and win all four races, I really didn’t expect to do that.

“I was pretty relaxed because I felt I had done everything I could to prepare and I didn’t really have any pressure on me at that time; I just wanted to enjoy the event. I was in my own little bubble; I didn’t think people would really notice other than perhaps to think there’s an Irish girl sailing at the Olympics.”

A groundswell of support rose for the girl who appeared to be taking everything in her stride. Even the notoriously tricky Nothe course seemed unable to shake her, as she clocked another memorable victory in front of a growing ‘green army’ who flocked to ‘Murphy Mount’. Back in Ireland, some 250,000 people tuned in to watch Annalise’s performance, and her Facebook and Twitter accounts – managed at the time by her brother – received countless messages of support.

The outsiderBut as the series wore on, her victory count began to wane. She says: “I was racing against so many good girls and they weren’t going to make it easy for me.” By the third day of competition, three of the most experienced sailors in the fleet began to make their intentions clear: China’s Xu Lijia, 2008 Olympic bronze medallist; the Netherlands’ Marit Bouwmeester, 2011 world champion; and Belgium’s Evi van Acker, another 2008 Olympic veteran. By the final day’s medal race, any three of the four could have walked away with the medals.

As she began the last day’s racing, Annalise was lying third overall, with just one point separating her and joint leaders, Xu Lijia and Marit Bouwmeester. Despite her early confidence, the nerves kicked in as she slowly realised just what was at stake. “At the time I thought, why does there have to be there four of us, why can’t there be three of us? I couldn’t help but think, what happens if I’m the person who finishes fourth... maybe it was a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

Rounding the windward mark in first, panic set in as she then suddenly found herself swallowed up by the middle of the fleet. A game of snakes and ladders ensued. Annalise regained places before slipping agonisingly from the front of the 10-boat fleet to cross the line in fith, without a medal.

“I was heartbroken,’ she says. “I had been in a medal position all week and until the last downwind of the medal race, so to come away with a fourth place felt so unfair. I couldn’t believe it. At the time I thought the world had ended. I thought I had given up my one chance to win anything. I felt sorry for myself, as if I had been hard done by, as if nobody else finishes fourth in the Olympics.”

Fast-forward to 2014, and Annalise’s world is far from over. With two years let until Rio – her next major goal – she now looks back at the 2012 Games as a critical learning experience. The raw emotion that she felt in the immediate atermath has given way to a self-awareness that has added strength to her sailing. “It took me a while to realise that that was just the start of things to come. Once I realised that, I didn’t experience the same kind of nerves. I learned not to get so upset when I’d have a bad event. I’m now able to say, ‘okay, these are the mistakes I’ve made… I’ve done badly in this race because of this or that’.”

Replacing negativity with logic has, she believes, turned her sailing career around. The 2012 experience has also taught her to take one goal at a time.

olympic heritage Describing herself as sporty, talkative and determined, Annalise comes across as energetic yet laid back. For as long as she can remember, Olympic sailing has been a part of her life – although it didn’t become a personal goal until quite late on.

Both Annalise and her older sister, Claudine, were encouraged and inspired by their parents to sail from a young age; no surprise when you consider mum Cathy (née McAleavey) competed for Ireland in the 470 women’s class at the 1988 Olympics, with dad Con as her coach. Annalise says: “It was a big part of my life growing up knowing my mum was an Olympian, but she never pushed me into sailing; I just used to crew for her in her Hurricane 5.9. I was completely fearless and did it purely because it was fun! Both my mum and dad have been able to give me really good advice about the Olympics, which was a huge help.”

Following in her mum’s Olympic footsteps was, at first, the dream of her older sister. Annalise, almost “by default” she says, would end up competing at various championships in her wake, the initial incentive being the sheer fun had by tagging along. But, by the age of 16, Annalise began to step out of Claudine’s shadow and find her own competitive edge.

“We got along really well when she was doing well and I was terrible, but then as I started catching up to her, I was doing everything that she was

doing, but I was doing it three years before she got to do it.”

She recalls one particularly fiery moment: “We were doing a British qualifier event, and we both went for the windward mark at the same time and had this full-blown argument. We went from doing pretty well to being last and second-to-last; we were just trying to kill each other.”

Fortunately the sibling rivalry fizzled out as the two sisters made a pact to put their differences aside. For Annalise, a fourth in the Europeans and a fith in the 2008 World Laser Radial Youth Championship marked another advance in her game. Seeing fellow Irish Radial sailor Caira Peelo qualify for the 2008

Olympics at the senior competition of those same worlds was the catalyst Annalise needed: 2012 really could be her turn.

Upping her gameA summer of highly structured training with her sister paid off and she finished eighth the next year in the senior fleet, at the Laser Radial worlds in Japan. “I was hoping to finish in the top 40 so when I finished in the top 10 I didn’t know what to do. That was pretty cool to see that really hard training and really focusing for a whole summer was able to get me such a good result.”

Then, despite objections from her parents, the determined 19-year-old put her studies to one side to concentrate on full-time sailing. Sailing with a squad of five girls under the guidance of coach Ian Clingham, the levels of professionalism required for an Olympic campaign began to sink in.

Among the specialists working with the squad was a sports psychologist. At first, Annalise had reservations, but slowly began to see the dividends as she realised that a new approach could be needed now sailing was no longer just for fun. The psychologist posed a theory that Annalise’s trend of getting a good result in the first race and a worse result in the second race might be down to her getting distracted between races, chattering to friends. For Annalise, that was a tough suggestion to swallow – a big part of the fun of sailing was gossiping with the girls. “Just to prove her wrong I decided I won’t talk to anyone, but that won’t be the reason (the results change). The next day I went out and had two seconds and I thought, hmm... that’s suspicious!

“In a way it was hard to accept because I felt like I was abandoning some of my friends. I realised then that I was a full-time sailor; I had to try and treat it

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*above: Annalise was in a medal position all week at the London

2012 Olympics – until the last downwind leg of the medal race

http://www.lAuRENCEjpHoToGRApHY.Com




professionally. It made a really big difference to how I sailed and the results went from being between 20th and 10th to finishing in the top 10 consistently.”

Annalise also stepped up her physical fitness training; from hating the prospect of going running or cycling, she now regularly participates in half marathons and triathlons. “If you’re really fit, you don’t have to worry that you’re going to feel tired in the last few days (of a regatta) and not perform well,” she says.

Irish gloryIn 2013, Annalise got the chance to put all these lessons into practice with the Laser Radial European Championships. This time, not only was she taking on the world’s best Radial sailors, she was doing so in front of a home crowd. The venue was Dublin Bay, jointly hosted by Royal St George YC and the National Yacht Club. These were waters that she knew well, having sailed from Dun Laoghaire all her life, but as she recalls with a laugh: “Part of me felt that I had a home advantage here, but then people don’t even realise just how difficult it is to sail in Dublin Bay!”

What’s more, her competition was going all-out to prove themselves in the pecking order post-Olympics. With so many friends and family there, the last thing Annalise wanted to do was disappoint. Handling the pressure was going to be crucial. “I was terrified that I’d come last in every race, but I knew that if I kept everything smart and didn’t do anything crazy I’d be okay.”

And that’s exactly what she did. Despite one close call in a dying breeze and adverse tide just metres from the finish line, which saw her slip to mid-fleet, Annalise concluded the series with an otherwise unblemished scoreline of first and second places. With Marit Bouwmeester, Britain’s Alison Young (fifth at the 2012 Olympics) and Belgium’s Evi Van Acker all chasing hard for the top spots as they went into the final day, the onus was on Annalise to keep a step ahead. With a markedly different attitude to the Olympic medal race of two years ago, she set out with a resolutely calm approach, deliberately avoiding any major changes to her routine or strategy. “I knew I could only sail my best and give it everything,” she says. “I thought, if at the end of the day I don’t win, it won’t be down to the fact that I held back. So I just went out on the last day and did everything I normally would – I didn’t think about it too much.”

Her tactics paid off and as she was jubilantly carried aloft in her Laser up the slipway, the enormity of her achievement sunk in. “It was surreal winning the Europeans, especially as it was in my home club where I learnt to sail. It’s pretty rare that you get an opportunity to do that. I felt great – and slightly relieved too!”

Round twoThe win earned Annalise a nomination for the RTÉ Sports Person of the Year Award, and together with her dramatic Olympic debut, cemented Annalise as a household name in Ireland. She has since appeared on a number of Irish chat show programmes and characteristically takes it all in her stride, saying: “It’s good that I got to raise the profile of sailing in Ireland.”

The interest in Irish sailing at Olympic level has been given an additional boost by recent sponsorship from Providence Resources PLC, which has agreed a full support package for Annalise – together with Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern (49er), and James Espey (Laser) in the run-up to Rio. Annalise has also secured personal sponsorship from Gul.

Things look very different this time around. Not only has the Europeans win boosted her confidence, but she will be aiming for the Olympics with more experience and maturity. Midway between the two Games, the fleet dynamics are undergoing a shake up, making her main adversaries difficult to predict at this stage. “But it’s still two years away from the Olympics so a lot can happen,” she explains. “If I look back at the two years before London I was still finishing in the teens and 20s. It all changes much closer to the Olympics and it’ll be interesting to see who actually comes through.”

Fellow Olympic veterans, Xu Lijia, Marit Bouwmeester and Alison Young have all set their sights on Rio too. Annalise has already spent several weeks in Brazil and is all too aware of the challenges the Rio racecourse is likely to bring. “It’s not like Weymouth where it’s windy every day, but equally

it’s not a drift pond with no wind. They get systems coming through so they might get a windy couple of days, then a few light days, but they also get a lot of sea breeze days with medium winds. It’s a pretty interesting place to sail, with different conditions every day.”

Hence Annalise’s training schedule currently places a big emphasis on handling and speed across a range of conditions. Whenever possible, she trains at home with the Irish boys’ Laser Radial squad, which she says is refreshing because, “they are just so much more angry than girls”. Winter training takes place in Cadiz, where Annalise sails against an international group of girls. With the main event still some way off, they’re not afraid yet to help each other along. “Everyone is still pretty good friends at this stage and we all get along really well so it’s quite fun to be a full-time sailor at the moment.” No doubt her legions of fans will be watching closely for clues as to whether Annalise Murphy might well be the one to bring home Ireland’s first sailing gold.

Left: Annalise

applied all the

lessons of her

career – including

those from the

heartbreaking final

day of the Olympics

– to win the 2013

Laser Radial

European

Championships in

Ireland

“It was surreal winning as it was at my home club

where I learnt to sail”

To see Y&Y Awards 2015 nominations go to www.yachtsandyachting.co.uk

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“Kelpie of Falmouth”

JAMES LAWRENCE SAILMAKERS LTD

BESPOKE SAILMAKERS

22-28 Tower Street, Brightlingsea, Essex CO7 0ALTel: 01206 302863 • Fax: 01206 305858 • Email: [email protected] or [email protected]

Made with pride

in Great Britain

Photo : © emilyharrisphotography.co.uk



Caribbean anCHOraGeSWe asked eight famous sailors for their favourite West Indian anchorages. Here’s what they saidsToRY SAM JEFFERSON

Top


Above: Sunset

behind Îlet à

Cabrit in the

leisurely

Îles des Saintes

Laura Dekker still holds the record for being the youngest sailor to ever circumnavigate the globe. Now 19, she still lives aboard her famous yacht, Guppy, in New Zealand. Given that she started and � nished this trip in Sint Maarten in the Caribbean, what better person to ask about suitable anchorages:

“

I found the main anchorage (Bourg) in the Îles des Saintes very nice, as it’s sheltered, with no swell, good holding and is beautiful. It’s not an anchorage that you would go to in order to be alone as it can get busy and sometimes it can be hard to � nd a spot. However, the water is clear and the village and local area is lovely to walk through. It’s a little piece of France in the Caribbean”

Navigation and general informationBourg de Saintes is the main anchorage of the Îles de Saintes, a cluster of tiny islands just to the south of Guadeloupe. Being an open roadstead, the approach is very simple, but it can get busy and you are required to take a mooring if one is available. If all the buoys are taken you may anchor, but, if possible, try to tuck in relatively close to shore, as there can be a mean swell further out. Once ashore, you � nd yourself in a town little changed since the French took charge and this is a small and truly charming corner of France many miles from the motherland.

LAURA DEKKERÎles des Saintes

GUADELOUPE


After becoming the first female skipper in the Clipper Round the World Race, Hannah Jenner has gone on to manage several successful racing campaigns on various yachts and is currently working aboard Olin Stephens’ legendary yacht Dorade. In addition to this, she has enjoyed more than her fair share of Caribbean cruising in her time.

“My choice is Admiralty Bay, Bequia, because of the surrounding scenery, its green hills, as well as the typical gingerbread-style cottages on the seafront. The town is also immediately accessible with gems such as The Bequia Bookshop and the Frangipani Bar, not forgetting Doris’s delicatessen that keeps foodies well provisioned in the Grenadines.”

Navigation and general informationLying in the heart of the Grenadines, Admiralty Bay is a huge, well-protected bay. A strip of sand backs on to the island’s main town, Port Elizabeth. Shelter here is excellent and the approach is straightforward. There is plenty of room to drop the hook either side of the central ferry channel. There are also mooring buoys, but swim down to check them, as they are not reliable. Head ashore for the laid-back bars, restaurants and shops.

HannaH JennerAdmiralty BayBequiA

In between writing some of the most highly respected and informative cruising almanacs around, writer and journalist Rod Heikell also spends a fair amount of time exploring various corners of the world in his yacht, Skylax. He is therefore in a good position to make an informed choice.

“Sitting snugly between Guadeloupe and Martinique is Dominica, all tropical rainforest cascading down the slopes to sandy beaches with the weatherboard houses barely visible through the thick jungle cover. It is one of the least developed of the Leeward Islands.Portsmouth (Prince Rupert Bay) is the best and arguably the only

rod HeikellPortsmouthDomiNicA

decent anchorage on the leeward side of Dominica. From the north you come in around Prince Rupert Bluff Point into a wide bay, sheltered by the headland and anchor on a gently shelving sandy bottom.

The Indian River tour is one of those things you should do once even if it is a bit busy. We went with Martin on Providence and his knowledge and love of the place is infectious. Before you get into the river you have to skirt the coasters that were washed up on the shore by Hurricane George in 1998 and Lenny in 1999. There are also a few coasters just under the


British & US Virgin Islands

Bahamas

Leeward Islands

Windward Islands

Iles de Saintes, Guadeloupe

Portsmouth, DominicaCane Garden Bay, Tortola

Tobago Cays, Grenadines

English Harbour, Antigua

Admiralty Bay, Bequia

Staniel Cay, Exumas

Marigot Bay, St Lucia

water o� the town, though they are south of where most yachts anchor and close enough to the shore not to trouble those anchoring o� .

Once into the river, outboards are banned and Martin rowed his heavy old boat slowly upstream. Trees overhang the river and birds fl it around all over the place. We were even lucky to see a big old iguana dozing in the afternoon sun halfway up a palm tree.”

Navigation and general informationBeing a veteran of many pilot guides, Rod has given you pretty much all the info you require to get there. The approach is simple either from the north or south, but things can get a bit roly-poly in this charming anchorage if there is a swell running as it is quite open to the south and west.

Tracy Edwards may be best known for her exploits as the � rst ever female skipper in the 1989-90 Whitbread Round the World Race (now the Volvo Ocean Race), but before she found fame, she spent many years working aboard a whole range of luxury yachts plying the Mediterranean and Caribbean, so she is in a good position to give us a steer on her top spot.

“English Harbour on Antigua is my choice. It may seem like an obvious one, but it has a special place in my heart. It is where we arrived a� er my � rst ever Atlantic crossing at the age of 21 on a yacht called Southern Star with a range of interesting characters – oh, and a parrot called Rocky! � is was in 1984 and the Copper and Lumber Store Hotel was a ruin and much of

TRACY EDWARDSEnglish HarbourANTIGUA

the Dockyard had not yet been rebuilt to its former glory. Mavis the laundry lady would sit next to the customs o� ce and collect our charter laundry and give out weather reports. All of the crews used to go and pick up our mail from there as soon as we got back from charter. Jol and Judy and the Nicholson family always had a welcome smile. We used to play cricket at Galleon Beach on Sundays and then hitch rides up to Shirley’s Heights with our own rum punch as it was deserted up there then. Roger the juggler would entertain us as we all strained to see the green � ash – which we never did!

Navigation and general informationA lot has changed since Tracy was there in 1984, but the essence remains. Nowadays, this well sheltered deep-water harbour can accommodate yachts, but still retains much of the ra� sh, down-to-earth heartiness and a frisson of the old romance. The narrow, winding entrance is well marked and the channel is safe almost right up to the shore. Plenty of anchoring room.

Admiralty Bay,

where tropical

rainforest

meets the sea

Prices, plans, products, and availability are subject to change without notice. Illustrations are artist’s renderings only and may differ from completed product. Use of recreational facilities and amenities may be subject to separate club membership requirements, payment of fees, and/or other restrictions.

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Multi-millionaire Peter de Savary � rst came to prominence as the backer of Britain’s 1983 America’s Cup challenge, Victory 83 and his establishment of Port Pendennis Shipyard in Falmouth has provided a fantastic boost for the superyacht industry in the UK. He has a long association with the Caribbean and has competed in races throughout the islands, in addition to sponsoring the Grenada Sailing Festival.

“My choice is Staniel Cay. � is anchorage is in beautiful, pristine turquoise waters over white sand with excellent swimming. It is one of my favourite places because it is an authentic and attractive Caribbean island and the anchorage is only a dinghy hop away from intriguing local facilities. All in all, it provides a thoroughly enjoyable few days at a safe and sheltered anchorage.”

Navigation and general informationLying 75 miles southeast of Nassau in the heart of the Bahamas, the Exumas are a labyrinth of low-lying islands featuring stunning white sands, turquoise waters and incredible snorkelling. Staniel Cay is at the heart of the Exumas and is generally viewed as a yachting hub, with many yachtsmen gravitating to the cool verandahs of Staniel Cay Yacht Club for a refreshing beverage or two. The approach both from east or the west is relatively straightforward, although a shallow draught is always a plus in the Bahamas. As ever, eyeball navigation skills are extremely useful here. Holding is good o� the Staniel Cay Yacht Club, but beware of a rock reef running o� from the yacht club pier. There can also be strong currents running through the channel, so make sure you are confi dent with your holding before going ashore.

PETER DE SAVARYStaniel CayBAHAMAS

Mike briefl y held the record for being the youngest person to sail around the world single-handed, but at least he remains the youngest ever sailor to cross the Atlantic single-handed – a feat he achieved aged just 14. On arrival across the pond, he was able to extensively explore many of the Caribbean’s fi nest anchorages and he has chosen a real beauty:

“Tobago Cays, situated in the Grenadines, has got to be my

favourite Caribbean anchorage of all time. I recall motoring up the narrow channel a few years ago with an incredible feeling of awe.

MIKE PERHAMTobago CaysGRENADINES

To give some perspective to this, when we were dropping the anchor we had to be careful not to hit any sea turtles while the hook was on its way to the bottom. You wouldn’t want to give any turtle a throbbing headache! The anchorage is surrounded by fi ve small uninhabited islands, which are a perfect setting to watch the sun go down. I’ll always remember this anchorage for its unspoilt beauty and the countless amount of wildlife I saw swimming underneath me.”

Navigation and general informationTobago Cays is an archipelago comprising Petit Rameau, Petit Bateau, Baradol, Petit Tobac and Jamesby. The islands are well protected from swell by Horseshoe and World’s End Reefs. They are, however, very open to the wind and this can get boisterous at times. Tobago Cays is part of the St Vincent Grenadines, so if you are coming up from Grenada you will have to clear in to St Vincent at Union Island. The best approach is between Mayreau and Baleine Rocks. When it comes to dropping the hook, try to the north and south of Baradel and in the narrow cut between Petit Rameau and Petit Bateau, although currents can be strong in this area. Common sense must prevail.

Staniel Cay has

a wonderfu

yacht club and

great swimming


For many years, the sight of Don Street and his yacht Iolaire was almost a � xture in the eastern Caribbean. In his 50 years of exploring the islands, he has contributed signi� cantly to the accurate charting of them. His Imray-Iolaire charts are always a popular choice with yachtsmen cruising the area. His choice re� ects his many years of experience:

“One of my favoured anchorages has to be Petit Tabac, behind World’s End Reef in the Tobago Cays. � is is an ideal anchorage for shoal-dra� monohulls and catamarans. If you have a good dinghy or RIB you are within easy dinghy distance of the reef itself. If your crew is really interested in snorkelling or diving, World’s End Reef will keep them occupied for days.

As it is approached, bear o� , pass to leeward of Egg Reef, and head for the west end of the reef of Petit Tabac. Pass to leeward of the reef, then round up and work your way east as far as your draught permits into sheltered waters.”

Navigation and general informationAs Don has very kindly supplied plenty of navigational information, all that needs to be added is that this very isolated reef forms the outermost eastern edge of the St Vincent Grenadines and is a beautiful, desolate reef swept by the trade winds, but protected from swell. There is no island to land on, but if you enjoy snorkelling, you can lose days on end in this magical spot.

DON STREETPetit TabacGRENADINES

Sir Chay Blyth may be best known for his exploits in his yacht British Steel, when he became the fi rst person to sail single-handed westwards around the world against the prevailing winds. He then set up the Global Challenge, a race for amateurs around the world against prevailing winds in one-design, steel-hulled yachts.

He has visited the Caribbean many times, most notably

upon completion of the Route du Rhum transatlantic race.

SIR CHAY BLYTHMarigot BayST LUCIA

MIK

E GREE

NS

LAD

E /

ALA

MY

“There are so many options out there, but one of my favourites is Marigot Bay, St Lucia. It’s a fabulous spot, well protected with stunning scenery all around. I believe that they fi lmed part of Dr Dolittle there! It’s approached via a narrow entrance, but opens up into a perfectly sheltered haven, all swaying palms and lush hillsides. Back in the day it was a deserted spot, but I think it now has a small marina and a few hotels sprouting up.”

Navigation and general informationSir Chay has certainly picked well. Situated on the NW coast of St Lucia, this peach of a bay was famously described by the novelist James Mitchener as the most beautiful bay in the entire Caribbean. Certainly, this stunning spot is the archetypical Caribbean haven, providing excellent shelter in all conditions and beautiful scenery into the bargain. The downside is that it can often get very busy these days, particularly in the outer bay.

The approach is narrow, but very well marked. The best guiding mark for the entrance by day is a distinctive house with a red roof on the cli� at the southern side of the entrance.

You can’t land on

Petit Tabac but you

can anchor up and

swim in water like this


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Our pick of the year’s most impressive new boats from the editors of Classic Boat, Sailing Today and Yachts & Yachting

Rustler 37Plushed up

The Rustler 36 was the final conclusion of a train of thought stretching back to the 1960s and Kim Holman’s Twister and later Rustler 31. It’s in production to this day and still selling, but the new 37 is… sort of… her replacement, though Rustler’s Adrian Jones has no plans to cease production of the 36. She’s a foot longer and a lot plusher below, with double cabins fore and aft as well as the spacious saloon from the 36. The long fin keel and canoe body is still fairly traditional (think 1960s again) and formed for comfort rather than speed. Above decks, the new boat has a more modern rig, with all controls led to the cockpit and single-line reefing.

www.rustleryachts.com

Discovery 55 Mk IITweaking success

Rather than launch a whole new model, Discovery has opted to tweak its successful 55 and call it a Mark II, as some of the quality Scandinavian builders do. The new version will look more like the flagship 67. Key changes include bigger wrap-around windows with slimmer mullions in the raised saloon, flush deck hatches and the option of a vertical portlight in the aft cabin. There is a choice of ‘hot tub’ or open helm positions and the companionway is more watertight. The interior cabinetry has all been redesigned as well to save weight. Two of the new Mk II’s are in build, one with high-tech PBO rigging.

www.discoveryyachts.com

BEST boats

Dragonship 80The next generation

This giant 80m trimaran was designed for Pi Yachts as the flagship in a range of luxury

charter yachts. Folding amas reduce her beam by a useful 10m in harbour. Accommodation is

for 12 guests in six cabins, plus a crew of 17 accommodated in the amas. The balanced rig

sports rotating masts and wingsails.

www.pisuperyachts.com

http://www.rustleryachts.com

http://www.discoveryyachts.com

http://www.pisuperyachts.com


SK2Canting keel sportsboat

With a hull the size of a large dinghy, a large rig and a narrow easily-driven shape, the SK2 promises blisteringly fast performance. Stability is considerably enhanced by the 80kg bulb on the keel that can be canted to windward for maximum effect. And because it weighs in at only 210kg (hull and keel) it is towable and easy to launch.

www.sk2sailing.com

Django 6.70Pocket cruising rocket

With a hull shape derived from the renowned mini-transat racer and a sail plan to suit, it is obvious that priority has been given to the performance element of this pocket racer/cruiser. However, she does actually feature quite a roomy interior, which, with a little TLC would be eminently suitable for weekend cruising. Available with a fixed or lifting keel, she has twin rudders and a very beamy stern giving her masses of form stability as well as enough room below for two cosy double quarter berths and a V- berth forward! A little pricey for her size, but fun with a capital F.

www.marehaute.fr

Kelpie Restored and ready

This twin-mast schooner rigged beauty was ‘new’ in 1928, but she has only just been relaunched after a meticulous restoration. Designed by Francis Sweisguth and built at Harvey Gamage’s shipyard in Maine, she saw hard service as a submarine patrol boat during the Second World War and suffered at the hands of a hurricane. After an 8,500nM passage from San Francisco, she arrived in Falmouth in late-2012, for extensive work at Gweek Quay. The rig was restepped at Port Pendennis just nine days before she was due to compete in the Pendennis Cup in late May.

www.gweekquay.co.uk

Spirit 74Sleek spirit of tradition

The latest Spirit yacht from the eponymous yard in Suffolk is a departure from the usual Spirit look, with its modern and innovative ‘fan’ light set into the top of the coachroof and the modern portholes let into the cabin

trunk. It’s brave but won’t suit everyone – design departures like this are, after all, highly subjective. The

rest of the yacht is a corker in anyone’s book, particularly the huge, oval, American-style cockpit and luxurious solid-wood interior. Being a Spirit, she ought to be fast too... these boats have modern underbodies

and her builder reckons the Spirit 74 can exceed 20 knots in the right conditions.

www.spirityachts.com

http://www.spirityachts.com

http://www.sk2sailing.com

http://www.marehaute.fr

http://www.gweekquay.co.uk


Truly Classic 51Capacious classic

Alexa is the 35th yacht in the Truly Classic range from designer Andre Hoek. She was built by Metur Yacht in Turkey in cold-moulded wood and is the seventh 51-footer (15.5m) in the range. She is a sturdy, capacious yacht with a classic 1930s look and a refreshing lack of complexity – so there’s less to break down. Accommodation comprises two aft guest cabins and a day heads; an open-plan saloon and an en-suite cabin. The rig is a bermudan cutter with furling headsails sheeted to electric winches on an aluminium mast. She has an 80hp engine and can be sailed by two.

www.hoekdesign.com

Garcia 45Ready to go anywhere

Launched in April 2014 for ARC founder and renowned circumnavigator Jimmy Cornell, the new aluminium Garcia 45 is designed to deal with the Northwest Passage.Strong, fast and easily handled, she is suited to both high latitude and tropical sailing. Features include a deck saloon with 270° views, an inside steering position, lifting centreboard and ballast tanks.

www.garcia-yachting.com

SpeedDream II Fastest boat quest

This is the latest iteration of an ongoing quest to build the world’s fastest sailing boat. The 100ft (30.5m) SpeedDream II is on the drawingboard, following the launch of a 27ft (8.2m) test version last year. If built, it will feature a light, easily driven hull with a wave piercing bow and flying keel. Mike Golding has been recruited as skipper, while Merfyn Owen, co-founder of Owen Clarke Design and David de Premorel from the Finot-Conq Group, will bring their collective design experience to the project. An extensive CFD analysis has been completed and the design team, led by Vlad Murnikov, is now working to refine the hull and deck lines, rig configuration and appendages.

www.speeddream.org

Euphoria 54Mediterranean elegance

This German Frers-designed boat should hit the water in February 2015. Built by the state-of-the-art Turkish Sirena

Marine yard, she promises to be a high spec, luxury performance cruiser. Vinylester injection moulding keeps the hull light and

strong, while the carbon rig option offers power. The mainsheet is attached ahead of the companionway and

control lines are led via halyard channels to the large cockpit.

www.euphoriayachts.com.tr

http://www.euphoriayachts.com.tr

http://www.hoekdesign.com

http://www.garcia-yachting.com

http://www.speeddream.org


Spirit yacht gafferTradition meets today

The gaff-rigged Spirit of Callisto won a Concours d’Élégance award in her first big outing at the Antigua Classics last year. She’s the 54th boat built by Spirit Yachts (four more are currently in build) and she’s strip-planked in Douglas fir and epoxy-sheathed outside. The hull is, “relatively traditional but with an excellent power-to-weight ratio resulting in sparkling performance”. She’s not just for regattas though – the 42-footer (12.8m) has six berths in three cabins and an RCD ‘A Ocean’ rating. Maintenance should be light thanks to modern coatings used throughout.

www.spirityachts.com

Solent WhisperFine point of sailing

The search for practical, affordable and safe foiling cat has come a step closer with the unveiling of the 5.9m carbon-foam sandwich multihull, Solent Whisper.

Born out of a research project by Ron Price, a senior lecturer at Southampton Solent University, the Solent Whisper has eschewed the curved foils seen in the America’s Cup, instead using all four adjustable, retractable T-foils and two dagger boards and two rudders. Ron hopes to use smart design to shave off some more weight, keep the construction time down and the cost at around £15,000.

www.solent.ac.uk

Farr 280Affordable grand prix

The latest one design from the Farr office is a bang-up-to-date 28-footer aimed at exactly the same market the Farr 30 was. The aim is to provide grand prix features in an affordable package focused on inshore racing with a crew of five or six people. The hull has a reverse stem, long chine and wide beam carried right aft. The double-spreader carbon rig has twin running backstays to accommodate the square-head mainsail. A large asymmetric spinnaker is flown from a fixed carbon bowsprit. The Farr 280 will have rigorous manufacturing controls and measurements checked pre-delivery.

www.farrdesign.com

Saffier SE33Luxury Dutch daysailer

While this might be a luxurious daysailor, that doesn’t mean it lacks muscle. The SE33 has a powerful rig, a fast underwater hull shape and a modern T-bulb keel. She measures 31ft 5in (9.6m), with a

cockpit said to fit 10 people comfortably and a drop transom to allow swimming. The companionway is protected by an integrated windscreen-style sprayhood and there is room below to sleep four, with a

small cooker, running water and room for a heads.

www.saffieryachts.com

http://www.spirityachts.com

http://www.solent.ac.uk

http://www.farrdesign.com

http://www.saffieryachts.com


Hardware for traditional shipsand classic yachts

Webshop: www.toplicht.de Free catalogue: „The little Brownie“

Hamburg ✯ GermanyPhone: +49 (0)40 88 90 100Fax: +49 (0)40 88 90 1011

[email protected]

toplicht

Excellence in Design & Development

For technical support, instructional videos and products go to bartonmarine.com

http://www.toplicht.de



Aerial videoGive your boat the star treatment

We see a lot of images of yachts in this line of work and to this day the most impressive are usually those that have been taken from the air. Perhaps this is mostly down to the rarity of such images which is, in turn, down to the cost of

hiring a helicopter for the day. In recent years, however, radio-controlled, camera-wielding drones have been developed and a day of filming or

photography from the air is now well within the individual’s grasp. £900 buys you a full day of drone flying, plus image or video editing (but does not include

expenses). Relatively speaking, that’s a bargain.

www.aerial-photograph.co.uk £900 per day

Foldable fishing rodFor the catch of the day

Our tester went bass fishing with this rod in his pocket! Folded down, it is only 1ft (30cm) long. Unfolded it’s a well

made, sturdy 5ft (1.55m) 1.1lb (500g) rod with a housed reel that delivers a powerful ‘straight line’ cast. The whole thing can be folded up without breaking down the tackle. It’s not a professional rod, but it’s a world better than the instant rods of the past and it suits us sailors particularly.

www.instantfishermanuk.com £45

GEARItems for you and

your boat

Top

Copper paraffin canAvoid spillage

Here’s a lovely traditional kerosene can made from copper sheet, welded and soldered, polished and protectively lacquered. Not only is this ideal for its original function of filling your paraffin lamps, but it can be used to store

edibles such as olive oil. Shown here is the smaller model (of two).

www.toplicht.de £102

http://www.aerial-photograph.co.uk

http://www.instantfishermanuk.com



Sail-Gen water generatorPowerful power supply

The Sail-Gen water generator comprises a rigid-welded aluminium frame with a carbon fi bre drive shaft and a cast alloy impeller. The makers claim at passage speeds of 5-6 knots the Sail-Gen is capable of matching typical electrical

power consumption, meaning much less running of the engine. Available in either 12V or 24V models.

www.duogen.co.uk £1,990

Quba iPad casesPerfect protection

Finally an iPad case that is neither brightly coloured nor massive and rubberized. These

cases from Quba follow their tradition of making things from old sail cloth and, although they do

o� er a case for iPhones in their traditional numbered Dacron sailcloth style, we really like

these more traditional looking ones.

www.quba.com £29

Gill marine tool

Every crew should have one

There are those who argue that a good knife is a more important safety device for sailors

to have aboard than a lifejacket. Whether this is the case or not, there is no getting away from the fact that a decent knife is essential. Gill knives are always solid. In

addition to the blade, this tool also features a shackle key and a harness rescue tool.

www.gillmarine.com £20

NavLink UK for MacBooksLaptop navigation

NavLink is already available in the Apple Store for your iPhone or iPad but it’s now been updated so it works on a MacBook. We can think of many times that this would have come in very handy for us in the past. It

means you can now take your MacBook on board and turn it into a fully functioning chartplotter.

Apple Store £20

Rollable sail batternsFlattens

Those who attended the Southampton Boat Show might have seen these new battens on display at a range of sail manufacturers’ stands. The batten can roll up, but when unrolled it pops into a rigid shape thanks to its unique

design. This allows it to be inserted into a roller-furling mainsail horizontally, controlling the leech shape more e� ciently.

www.pf-technologies.com £contact your sailmaker

Nikon AW1Fame in the frame

This is something of a groundbreaker. Some of the photos of the kit you see adorning

these very pages were taken with a borrowed one. It’s totally waterproof (up to 15m

submerged) even though it has interchangeable lenses and hence the

usability of a proper SLR. You can shoot movies, it has a superfast autofocus, 14.2

million pixels, CX-format CMOS sensor and even a compass.

A stunningly good camera that you could take anywhere, but especially at sea.

www.nikon.co.uk for stockists £600

http://www.duogen.co.uk

http://www.quba.com

http://www.gillmarine.com

http://www.pf-technologies.com

http://www.nikon.co.uk


Action camera

VIRB Elite watersport bundle

The VIRB action camera proved itself extremely popular with our testers when we put it through its paces. Now

you can buy a watersports-specific bundle consisting of the camera and all the kit you need to record your

on-the-water action. Included are various stands, a waterproof case and SD card.

www garmin.co.uk £380

Kids RNLI wellies

Keeping little feet dry

Last year, we were offered the opportunity to test out waterproof kit in the RNLI’s sea survival school. There, we fell in love with their bright yellow wellies

but alas no amount of hinting could land us a free pair. With this in mind, we can think of nothing better than receiving a pair for Christmas. Sadly they are

only available in children’s sizes, so you will either have to have small feet or just live vicariously through your children as they go puddle-stomping.

www.rnli.co.uk £13

Outboard economy

Lean-burn outboard

Suzuki has introduced its lean-burn technology in a wider range of

engines, including some smaller outboards, including this 15hp model.

Lean-burn changes the air-to-fuel mix according to conditions. This

allows the engine to run more efficiently, boosting economy and

reducing fuel bills.

www.suzuki-marine.co.uk £2,800

Oru folding kayak

Spacing saving from Nestaway

When folded flat, this kayak looks a lot like an oversized envelope or post package,

just about carriable under the armpit of a person of average height. The makers claim

that it takes about 15 minutes to change the flatpack container into a working kayak

on most people’s first go, but the record stands at under five minutes. In yachting terms, it is perhaps a shame there is not

the space for more than one occupant, so tender duties lie out of reach.

www.nestawayboats.com £1,030

Overboard bag

Pro-Vis duffel

It’s pretty easy to see why this is called the Pro-Vis, being made almost entirely of luminescent orange waterproof fabric and lending it a distinctly safety-ish look. Built to be completely waterproof, even if fully submerged, this bag also has a vent to allow air to escape once closed and so

reduce the space it takes up. 60lt.

www.over-board.co.uk £85

http://www.nestawayboats.com

http://www.garmin.co.uk

http://www.rnli.co.uk

http://www.suzuki-marine.co.uk

http://www.over-board.co.uk


Toplicht rigging bag

Keep it all together

Made from heavy sailcloth in the Toplicht rigging workshop, this is a smart functional rigging bag with a wooden floor to enable it to be stood up on deck. Tools can be arranged in the pockets sewn around the bag so that they are visible

and ready to hand while the rope handles can be strung from a bo’sun’s chair. Inside there is

plenty of room for yarn, lanyards, rigging material and further tools.

www.toplicht.de £70

Zhik hydrobase

Winter warmer

Let’s face it: not many of us carry on cruising in the dark depths of winter. But for those who

do, layers are what you need to stay warm. This super-snug, breathable Zhik base layer is just the thing – with the added bonus of working

well for skiing should you be off to the mountains this winter.

www.zhik.com €89

High load eye

Control the power Available in five sizes to suit line diameters of 3-16mm and up to 8,000kg break load. The

HV500 hard coat anodising finish offers virtual resistance-free operation yet is much lighter than standard pulleys. Suitable for backstays, kicking straps, lazy jacks, barber haulers and

anywhere for deflecting high load lines.

www bartonmarine.com from £9.30

GoPro Hero

Fun Water proof camera

This is the first time we have seen an entry level option from this most popular sports

video camera brand. Hitting shops just in time for Christmas we think there will be plenty of these wrapped up under trees in December.

The camera is waterproof but it cannot be removed from its waterproof housing like its pricier brothers and sisters. But if you want a fairly cheap and reliable sports camera, you

would be hard pushed to find better than this.

www.gopro.com £99

Conker deck shoes

Smart style for the deck

Made by Conker Marine in Totnes, these must be the ultimate in bespoke, handmade deck shoes. After you’ve decided what colours of high quality leather you want, black or white

stitching, type of sole and the exact size, there’s the comfort of knowing that they are fully repairable and should last for years.

www.conkershoes.com £165


http://www.zhik.com

http://www.bartonmarine.com

http://www.gopro.com

http://www.conkershoes.com


Wind vaneNicholas Brawer has something of a knack for

discovering sporting/industrial items that can be brilliantly polished up to become just the thing for sailors to display at home or on their, ahem, yacht. He now has a

cult following, and this anemometer and wind vane, of Japanese origin, is just one of 10 new additions in his

‘sporting antiques’ category. This wind vane appeals on three levels; its shininess, its intricacy and, of course, its ability to tell you wind speed and direction. Can you work out how it does it though?

www.nicholasbrawer.com

Mount Gay 1703 rumMount Gay rum has always been an old friend of the

sailor. If you are inspired to spend over £100 on a bottle then you may want to turn your nose towards the Mount

Gay 1703 – marking the year the distillery opened. Master blender Allen Smith has created it from reserves aged between 10 to 30 years. The taste is described as ‘oak-smokey honeyed nectar’ and it is already scoring

high in international competitions.

www.mountgayrum.com £100

OF DESIREThings to covet and cherish

Objects

Historic chartBreak out the sextant and ship’s log. This 18th century chart of Portland and Weymouth

from The British Coasting Pilot by Captain Greenville Collins; ‘A Draught of Portland the Shambles, and the Race of Portland’ features a decorative title cartouche and text panel

with a detailed description of the coastline and races and a compass rose.

www.antique-maps-online.co.uk £395

http://www.nicholasbrawer.com

http://www.mountgayrum.com

http://www.antique-maps-online.co.uk


PortholeThis superbly-built and finely finished gunmetal

porthole has been fitted with safety glass, a backing plate and two lugs for a much tighter fit.

It has a 7in (18cm) opening (6in/15cm across the glass), 1/4in (6mm) spigot depth and an

overall diameter of 10in (25cm).

www.tradboats.com £210

In fine spiritsThe ‘Great American Flask’ holds 255ml of your

favourite drink and is handmade from copper and covered with Horween Dublin leather. We

particularly like the cork stopper that is tethered to the flask itself, so one can open it with a single

hand and their teeth.

www.foxandhardy.com £175

Mary Rose cufflinksThese silver cufflinks are based on an

image created by maritime artist Geoff Hunt. They come in a display box and

proceeds go to a good home: the Mary Rose Museum.

www.maryroseshop.org £15

Rolex Yacht-Master II: Azure

Rolex’s classic Yacht-Master II sailing watch has been customised by Titan Black and released in an exclusive run of only 50 pieces. In place of the original’s steel, gold or platinum finish, the Azure has a diamond-like

carbon coating for a robust, moody, black finish that goes nicely with the blue detailing. As with the original Yacht-Master II, this is waterproof to an

impressive 100m (330ft) with sapphire crystal glass and a movement containing no fewer than 31 jewels.

www.titanblack.co.uk £18,500

Traditional fisherman’s jumper

These traditional fisherman’s jumpers are hand-knitted from British wool in

Yorkshire and take their style cues from British fisherman’s jumpers. We

particularly like this navy Gansey Sweater, called the Bridlington, which is

possibly the most traditional of the available styles.

www.waysideflower.co.uk £290

http://www.tradboats.com

http://www.foxandhardy.com

http://www.maryroseshop.org

http://www.titanblack.co.uk

http://www.waysideflower.co.uk

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Next season’s cruising, racing and boat shows start here

27 JUNEJP Morgan Round the Island RaceCowes, Isle of WightThe grand daddy of cruiser races.www.roundtheisland.org.uk

26 DECEMBERSydney Hobart SydneyThe Rolex Sydney Hobart is one of the greatest o� shore yacht races in the world, attracting top competition.www.rolexsydneyhobart.com

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JANUARY7 JANUARY PANERAI TRANSAT CLASSIQUE 2015 This will be a special transat race just for classics. It’s the third time that Panerai has organised such an extravaganza, but a fl eet of willing yachts keen to take part has been gathering for some time already. This year they will race from Lanzarote to Martinique. www.paneraitransatclassique.com

9-18 JANUARY LONDON BOAT SHOW Major indoor boat show held in London’s ExCel Centre.www.londonboatshow.com

10 JANUARY WORLD ARC Saint Lucia to Saint Lucia via Panama Australia, South Africa and Brazil. www.worldcruising.com/world_arc

17-25 JANUARYDUSSELDORF BOAT SHOW Europe’s premier boat show, located in a series of vast halls miles from the sea. www.boat-dusseldorf.com

18-23 JANUARYQUANTUM KEY WEST RACE WEEK 2015 (USA)www.premiereracing.com

24-31 JANUARY ISAF WORLD CUP MIAMI www.sailing.org

FEBRUARY 12-15 FEBRUARY YOUTH INTERNATIONAL MATCH RACING CHAMPIONSHIPWaitemata Harbour, Auckland (NZL). www.sailing.org

28 FEBRUARY-3 MARCH RYA SUZUKI DINGHY SHOW LONDON (GBR)Held at Alexandra Palace (N22 7AY).www.rya.org.uk

11 -14 MARCH LORO PIANA SUPERYACHT REGATTA Superyachts, including classics; fi ve days of sailing with a change of venue to the BVI this year.www.loropianasuperyachtregatta.com

30 MARCH-5 APRIL RACE OF THE CLASSICSTeams from di� erent universities and colleges in the Netherlands race on classics. The route is Rotterdam-Ostend-Ipswich-Amsterdam.www.rotc.nl

15-21 APRILAntigua Classic Yacht RegattaThe main event in the Caribbean, with a worldwide entry of 50 to 60 stunning yachts.www.antiguaclassics.com

6-16 JANUARYMoth Worlds 2015This year’s will be held out of the Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club in Victoria, Australia, not to be confused with Sorrento in Italy.www.mothworlds.org

APRIL13-18 APRIL LES VOILES DE ST BARTH Pre-Antigua race that attracts some big name racers and includes a classic class. Now in its sixth year.www.lesvoilesdesaintbarth.com

20-26 APRIL ISAF SAILING WORLD CUP HYERES (FRA) www.sailing.org 26 APRIL BEAULIEU BOAT JUMBLE A world of bits and bobs roused out from the bottom of lockers - all for sale. Held at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.www.beaulieu.co.uk

MAY1-4 MAY WORLD PILOT GIG CHAMPIONSHIPSThe 26th outing of this spectacular event will be held on the Isles of Scilly and features 100-plus rowing gigs all competing to become champion. www.worldgigs.co.uk

8-10 MAY THE WILSON TROPHYOne of the largest and most prestigious events in the international dinghy team racing calendar. Takes place at The Marine Lake, West Kirby, the Wirral’s world-renowned sailing amphitheatre. www.wilsontrophy.co.uk

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http://www.paneraitransatclassique.com

http://www.londonboatshow.com

http://www.worldcruising.com/world_arc

http://www.boat-dusseldorf.com

http://www.premiereracing.com



http://www.rya.org.uk

http://www.loropianasuperyachtregatta.com

http://www.rotc.nl

http://www.antiguaclassics.com

http://www.mothworlds.org

http://www.lesvoilesdesaintbarth.com


http://www.beaulieu.co.uk

http://www.worldgigs.co.uk

http://www.wilsontrophy.co.uk


5-7 JUNEBeale Park Boat and Outdoor Show Pangbourne, BerkshireFeaturing small traditional boats, this show has all its activites centred around the park’s lake. You can camp for the weekend, browse trade stands and search for bargains in the boat jumble (RG8 9NW).www.bealeparkboatandoutdoorshow.co.uk

9 MAYARC EUROPEUSA (or BVI) to PortugalThis is a west-to-east Atlantic rally, starting from either the British Virgin Islands or Portsmouth, Virginia. The two fl eets rendezvous in Bermuda before crossing the Atlantic to the Azores. www.worldcruising.com

22-24 MAY BALTIMORE WOODEN BOAT FESTIVAL (IRELAND) The festival has matured and consolidated in the last couple of years. The numbers are high with a very varied fl eet including Currachs from Ireland’s west coast and other rowing boats such as the Gandalows of the River Shannon. www.baltimorewoodenboatfestival.com

22 MAY ROYAL ESCAPE RACE This commemorates Charles II’s 17th-Century escape from Brighton to France. Modern boats take part but it now has a classic class. www.royalescaperace.co.uk

24 MAY VOGALONGA VENICE A rowing extravaganza through the Venice canals with 1,600+ boats. It’s the 40th anniversary year of this astonishing event. www.vogalonga.it

30-31 MAY THREE RIVERS RACE Popular Broads day/night race, where you can choose the order in which you take the rivers Ant, Bure and Thurne. www.horningsc.org.uk

JUNE3-7 JUNE LES VOILES D’ANTIBES Since 1996, Les Voiles d’Antibes marks the opening of the Mediterranean circuit as well as the fi rst stage of the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge. Expect a warm welcome and plenty of social events. www.voilesdantibes.com

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http://www.bealeparkboatandoutdoorshow.co.uk

http://www.worldcruising.com

http://www.baltimorewoodenboatfestival.com

http://www.royalescaperace.co.uk

http://www.vogalonga.it

http://www.horningsc.org.uk

http://www.voilesdantibes.com


8-14 JUNEISAF SAILING WORLD CUPwww.sailing.org

12-14 JUNE FALMOUTH CLASSICSOriginally part of Falmouth Week in August, this event has stood on its own two legs for two years. www.falmouthclassics.org.uk

12-14 JUNE FALMOUTH INTERNATIONAL SEA SHANTY FESTIVAL One of the biggest maritime music events in Europe. 2014 was the biggest year yet with 48 shanty groups, 21 venues and 261 hours of shanty singing. www.falmouthseashanty.co.uk

13 JUNE EDDYSTONE PURSUIT A charity pursuit from Plymouth around the Eddystone Light and back. Prize money of £16,000 is up for grabs. www.eddystonepursuit.org

ALL SUMMERRYS Bicentenary celebrationsCowes, Isle of WightThe world’s smartest yacht club is 200 years old in 2015 and will be staging a number of events during the summer to celebrate. www.rys.org.uk

27 JUNEVolvo Ocean Race fi naleIn-port race at GothenburgWatch the fi nal in-port race in Gothenburg – home of Volvo and Swedish sailing heritage.www.volvooceanrace.com

16 AUGUSTFastnet 2015Cowes-Fastnet Rock-Isles of Scilly-PlymouthMore than 250 boats will be at the start line for this. www.fastnet.rorc.org

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http://www.falmouthclassics.org.uk

http://www.falmouthseashanty.co.uk

http://www.eddystonepursuit.org

http://www.rys.org.uk

http://www.volvooceanrace.com

http://www.fastnet.rorc.org


20 JUNE-28 JUNE KIEL WEEK (GER)Over 5,000 yachtsmen from around the globe come to the city of Kiel in Germany to compete in several di� erent sailing events. This year will be the 127th time the event has been held.www.kieler-woche.de

JUNE (TBC) SPETSES CLASSIC YACHT RACE Greece’s only classic yacht regatta was fi rst established in 2012. It’s now a corker. Start and fi nish with cocktails at the Poseidonion Grand Hotel before racing on luscious blue-green seas.www.classicyachtrace.com

27 JUNE JP MORGAN ROUND THE ISLAND RACEThe granddaddy of day races, regularly attracting more than 1,500 cruisers and racers to the Solent.www.roundtheisland.org.uk

27 JUNE THREE PEAKS YACHT RACERace up the west coast of the UK in a yacht and walk (or run) up Snowdon (Wales), Scafell Pike (Lake District, England) and Ben Nevis (Scotland).www.threepeaksyachtrace.co.uk

JULY

3-5 JULY SCOTTISH TRADITIONAL BOAT FESTIVAL With rowing, sailing, shoreside activities and 100+ boats in Portsoy. Now under Aberdeen Asset Management sponsorship, just like Cowes Week. www.stbfportsoy.com

4-10 JULY SWAN EUROPEAN REGATTASwanky Solent sailing for the fl eet of elegant Finnish built Swan cruiser-racers. Cowes, Isle of Wight www.rys.org.uk

6 JULY ARC BALTIC From Kiel to Copenhagen, via the Baltic states over six weeks and 1,800nM. This is only the second year of this rally from the ARC organisers and promises to be a fun addition to the programme. Short legs and plenty of exploring time.www.worldcruising.com/arc_baltic

8-12 JULY ISAF WOMEN’S MATCH RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP The world’s top women descend on Middelfart (DEN) for more racing. www.sailing.org

11-18 JULY CLASSIC CHANNEL REGATTARacing and social events in the English Channel from Dartmouth-Paimpol-St Peter Port. Record attendance expected this year – some 100 yachts.www.classic-channel-regatta.eu

2-5 JULYBelfast Tall Ships FestivalA large muster of 40-plus Tall Ships n and around Belfast Harbour and

the Titanic Quarter. Not to be missed! www.sailtraininginternational.org

11-18 JULY SUFFOLK YACHT HARBOUR CLASSIC REGATTABermudan yacht racing on the Orwell and Stour; three classes, including Stellas. The regatta is open to wooden yachts built before 1970 and consistently provides exciting racing. www.syharbour.co.uk

18-25 JULY PANERAI BRITISH CLASSIC WEEK Race series including a round-the-island race, social programme, glamorous yachts and 70+ boats.www.britishclassicyachtclub.org

20-25 JULY COWES CLASSICS WEEK Metre boats, classic keelboats and yachts at this event formerly known as the ‘Metre and Keelboat’ regatta. The other big annual classic sailing event in the Solent.www.cowesclassicsweek.org

http://www.sailtraininginternational.org

http://www.kieler-woche.de

http://www.classicyachtrace.com

http://www.roundtheisland.org.uk

http://www.threepeaksyachtrace.co.uk

http://www.stbfportsoy.com

http://www.rys.org.uk

http://www.worldcruising.com/arc_baltic


http://www.classic-channel-regatta.eu

http://www.syharbour.co.uk

http://www.britishclassicyachtclub.org

http://www.cowesclassicsweek.org


20-22 JULY BRISTOL HARBOUR FESTIVAL One of Britain’s biggest shoreside festivals: historic boats, fl yboarding, music and more. www.bristolharbourfestival.co.uk

20-24 JULY ISAF TEAM RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPHigh octane team racing on Rutland Water, near Leicester.www.sailing.org 24-26 JULY TAITTINGER ROYAL SOLENT YACHT CLUB REGATTA IRC, Swans, cruisers, ga� ers, 6-Ms, Dragons, FBs, XODs and YODs all come together at Yarmouth, Isle of Wight.www.royalsolent.org

24-27 JULY SUTTON HARBOUR PLYMOUTH CLASSIC BOAT RALLY Three days of racing ending with a 20-mile passage race to Fowey. www.plymouthclassics.org.uk

25 JULY BLACKWATER SMACK AND BARGE MATCH Racing dozens of iconic Thames Sailing Barges and east coast Smacks around the beautiful River Blackwaterwww.colnesmack.co.uk

JULY (TBC) BOSHAM CLASSIC BOAT REVIVALFifty boats were at the fi rst revival in 2011, more last year and there will probably be more this year. www.classicboatrevival.co.uk

JULY (DATE TBC) PUIG VELA CLASSICA Barcelona welcomes classic fl eets to compete in the waters of the Catalan capital, with nautical events in the city.www.puigvelaclassicabarcelona.com

18-19 JULY THAMES TRADITIONAL BOAT RALLYThe 2014 event was cancelled due to fl ooding so 2015 marks its rebirth. www.tradboatrally.com

25 JULY-08 AUGUST BALTIC 4 NATIONS 2015 A two-week rally from Copenhagen, taking in some stunning coastline between Sweden, Poland and Germany. Boat transport deals available.www.sailingrallies.com

AUGUST1 AUGUST EGGEMOGGIN REACH Quirky Maine-based classic regatta celebrates 30 years since it began. www.erregatta.com

2 AUGUST PEEL TRADITIONAL BOAT WEEKEND Friendly regatta with quick ‘n’ dirty boatbuilding contest held on the IoM.www.peeltraditionalboat.org

6-8 AUGUST RISØR WOODEN BOAT FESTIVAL The 51st iteration of one of the world’s great classic boat festivals.www.trebatfestivalen.no

7-16 AUGUST FALMOUTH WEEK See up to 150 classic boats.www.falmouthweek.co.uk

8-15 AUGUST ABERDEEN ASSET MANAGEMENT COWES WEEKThe event now runs up to 40 daily races for around 1,000 boats. www.aamcowesweek.co.uk 8-15 AUGUST YORKSHIRE YC REGATTA Includes all sizes of wooden boats.www.ryyc.org.uk

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SUMMERAmerica’sCup seriesSix teams will compete n the America’s Cup

World Series in 2015. www.americascup.com

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20-25 JULYCowes Classics WeekMetre boats, classic keelboats and yachts at this event formerly known as the ‘Metre and Keelboat’ regatta. www.cowesclassicsweek.org



http://www.bristolharbourfestival.co.uk


http://www.royalsolent.org

http://www.plymouthclassics.org.uk

http://www.colnesmack.co.uk

http://www.classicboatrevival.co.uk

http://www.puigvelaclassicabarcelona.com

http://www.cowesclassicsweek.org

http://www.tradboatrally.com

http://www.sailingrallies.com

http://www.erregatta.com

http://www.peeltraditionalboat.org

http://www.trebatfestivalen.no

http://www.falmouthweek.co.uk

http://www.aamcowesweek.co.uk

http://www.aamcowesweek.co.uk

http://www.ryyc.org.uk

http://www.americascup.com


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8 NOVEMBERARC+Las Palmas to Saint LuciaThe ARC ‘plus’ leaves Las Palmas and goes via Mindelo in the Cape Verdes to Saint Lucia. Once in Saint Lucia you can savour the blue skies (like the ones here in this photo) safe in the knowledge that everyone back in the UK is looking up at grey ones in December. www.worldcruising.com

12 -22 AUGUST AQUECE RIO INTL SAILING REGATTAThe o� cial pre-Olympic sailing regatta in the 2016 Olympic sailing venue.www.aquecerio.com 16 AUGUST OPERA HOUSE CUPThe fi rst all-wooden, single-hulled classic boat regatta on the US east coast. Nantucket, Massachusetts. www.operahousecup.org

22 AUGUST MERSEA TOWN REGATTA A classic east coast regatta that has been running since 1838, and the very birth of yachting!www.mersearegatta.org.uk

27-29 AUGUSTDARTMOUTH ROYAL REGATTA Incorporating a passage race and an illuminated river procession, this event is back after a health and safety hiatus.www.dartmouthregatta.co.uk

27-30 AUGUSTVANCOUVER WOODEN BOAT FESTIVALBeing held for the 27th time. www.vancouverwoodenboat.com

31 AUGUST NEWLYN FISH FESTIVAL Over 20,000+ visitors descend on Newlyn, Cornwall for fi sh auctions and tasting. Lugger and gig races take place. www.newlynfi shfestival.org.uk

SEPTEMBER1 SEPTEMBER MERSEA OYSTER DREDGING MATCH Unique event for smacks and bawleys. He who dredges most, wins.www.mersearegatta.org.uk

11-13 SEPTEMBERPORT TOWNSEND WOODEN BOAT FESTIVAL 300 wooden boats on land and water, 120 presentations, dozens of exhibitors and live music all day, every day. www.woodenboat.org

SEPTEMBER (DATE TBC) REGATES ROYALES While the mother of all regattas might be Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez, many sailors prefer this one.www.regatesroyales.com

11-20 SEPTEMBERSOUTHAMPTON BOAT SHOW The UK’s biggest on-the-water show held in Mayfl ower Park, SO15 1AG. www.southamptonboatshow.com

12 SEPTEMBER GREAT RIVER RACE Huge, colourful, 300-boat rowing race from the Docklands to Ham in Surrey. www.greatriverrace.co.uk

OCTOBER10-12 OCTOBERSCOTLAND’S BOAT SHOW Stay near Kip Marina, Inverkip to see a vast selection of new and used boats.www.scotlandsboatshow.co.uk

11 OCTOBER BARCOLANA REGATTASome 2,000 boats (not all classics!) in this huge annual event held in Trieste.www.barcolana.it

NOVEMBER8 NOVEMBER ARC+ Like the ARC, but from Las Palmas via Mindelo in the Cape Verdes to St Lucia. www.worldcruising.com

22 NOVEMBER ATLANTIC RALLY FOR CRUISERS The classic Atlantic rally, from Las Palmas to Rodney Bay, St Lucia. www.worldcruising.com

22 NOVEMBER ATLANTIC ODYSSEY Jimmy Cornell’s new rally, from Lanzarote to Martinique. www.cornellsailing.com

DECEMBER6 -31 DECEMBER 2015 SAILING RALLIES CHRISTMAS CARIBBEAN RALLYAlternate rally, crossing over Christmas from Lanzarote to Jolly Harbour. www.sailingrallies.com

27 DECEMBER-3 JANUARYISAF YOUTH SAILING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPThe best youth sailors in the world compete in multiple classes.Langkawi (MAS)www.sailing.org

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20 SEPTEMBERBarts BashLast year 30,717 people in more than 60 di¤ erent countries took part in this mass sailing event. Let’s hope for even more in 2015.www.bartsbash.co.uk




http://www.aquecerio.com

http://www.operahousecup.org

http://www.mersearegatta.org.uk

http://www.dartmouthregatta.co.uk

http://www.vancouverwoodenboat.com

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http://www.scotlandsboatshow.co.uk

http://www.barcolana.it



http://www.cornellsailing.com

http://www.sailingrallies.com


http://www.bartsbash.co.uk

GIVE YOUR BOAT A BOOST WITH THE ADDED INTELLIGENCE OF

LIGHTHOUSE™ II - NOW SMARTER THAN EVER WITH TURN-BY-TURN

NAVIONICS AUTOROUTING NAVIGATION. LIGHTHOUSE II ALLOWS YOU

TO SEE CLEARLY WITH MULTIFUNCTION DISPLAYS AND STEER EASILY

WITH EVOLUTION 9 AXIS AUTOPILOT SYSTEMS. SMART BOAT?

MORE LIKE GENIUS BOAT.

THERE ARE

SMART PHONESAND SMART CARS IT’S ABOUT TIME WE GOT

SMART BOATS

Images for illustrative purpose only.

the yachting year - 2015 uk

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