Indholdsfortegnelse for October 2020 i Sailing Today

The 52nd Southampton Boat Show may have been postponed until next year, but there are now three smaller boat shows in Southampton over the same dates, 11-20 September. British Marine’s mini-Southampton Boat Show is called Boats2020 and we preview the event in full on page 66. Held at Mayflower Park, the site of the normal Southampton Boat Show, it features a host of exhibitors including 90 boats and a variety of kit stands, with tickets available only by pre-booking. Extensive measures have been put in place to ensure visitors can see boats and talk to exhibitors at leisure and in safety. Meanwhile marina operator MDL is also holding an event at nearby Ocean Village, on the same dates, with more than 80 boats on show. The event is by invite…

Mirabaud Sailing Video Entries are open for a competition to find the best sailing video shot this century. Supported by Group Mirabaud, the Mirabaud Sailing Video Award is open to professional cameramen, directors, editors, TV production companies as well as professional sailors who film their achievements during regattas. The award is normally given at the end of each sailing seaon, but this year is being opened to the ‘best of the 2000s’. Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting group editor Rob Peake is one of the judges.Yachtracingimage.com HMS Victory’s bottom HMS Victory re-opened in August with her underside visible to the public for the first time, following groundbreaking work by engineers, scientists and historians to replace the original cradles that the ship has rested on for nearly 100 years. In…

Record-breaking circumnavigator Dee Caffari is going for her first Olympics, as she competes with young gun James Harayda for Great Britain at the EUROSAF Mixed Offshore European Championship. The pair will go up against national double-handed teams in the regatta, which is major step towards the Paris 2024 Olympics where the mixed offshore keelboat event will debut. Caffari and Harayda were picked after a second-place finish in their SunFast 3300 Gentoo at the recent Drheam Cup, a 428-mile race starting and finishing in France. Despite her offshore experience, which includes six cirumnavigations, one of them in the Volvo Ocean Race, Caffari has never competed in the Olympics.…

‘The boat gone! She was drifting way down tide, doing several knots under her own steam, rocks under the lee’ I hope you never get to that point in life where I am now, when you feel you can no longer trust what you thought was your very best friend. All relationships have up and downs, and often when the first doubt crosses your mind you dismiss it. But when the thought crosses your mind for the second time, and the idea lingers and can’t be dismissed, then it’s time to sit down calmly and work out who your friends really are. I have just gone through that process and I can tell you it hurts. I have decided that I no longer love my old anchor, and that anchor…

There are some boats you wouldn’t mind lending out to a friend. How much harm could you do to a Laser or a Topper for example? Not much, although I bet you’re already thinking of at least 10 different ways I - or anybody else - could ruin your pride and joy. I am still smarting from the time I lent out my International 14 to a sailor who had won national championships in other classes and whom I thought would be a safe and honest pair of hands. He is a hydrographer by trade, someone professionally trained in the process of charting the ocean floor. What I hadn’t bargained on was that the hydrographer would use the daggerboard of my 14 to chart the floor of Chichester Harbour with…

Oban, sheltered behind the island of Kerrera, is a haven for yachts and a hub for ferries that transport people to and from the islands. It’s a natural harbour, but hasn’t always been a significant port. What has made it such a success? Whisky? Seafood? Tourists? All of the above contribute, and in addition today one of Oban’s largest employers is the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS). In their article, Mike Robinson and Dr John Howe describe how hi-tech sonar scans of the sea bed have revealed more about the history of this busy gateway to the islands. bit.ly/12ports-oban…

The freedom to make decisions for ourselves is one of the foundations of modern western culture. Sometimes too much choice can be a bad thing, but generally, we all agree it’s for the best. All of which brings me to the Dufour 530 – yes, that’s right, this boat is arguably the ultimate demonstration of all that is great and good about liberal democracy. Alright, I jest, but it is an example of how the big boatbuilders are wrestling with the concept of trying to provide customers with plenty of choice while also providing value for money. You see the whole problem for the big boatbuilders is that they can’t really afford to provide masses of choice. They have to look at the bottom line, which essentially means turning out…

After cancelled World Series events (Cagliari, Sardinia, and Portsmouth, UK) so far denied the four America’s Cup teams the chance of any warm-up, boats and equipment were hastily rerouted and attention directed towards to New Zealand and 2021 instead. Not even the Kiwis were immune to pandemic disruptions, with their AC75 stuck on a needless voyage by ship to Italy and back. Now, with the sole remaining World Series event just three months away and the Prada Cup beginning beyond that, there’s no time to lose. We can certainly expect an exciting few weeks in store out on Waitemata Bay and the Hauraki Gulf. Auckland action The only boat so far to join the Defenders on their home waters in Auckland is American Magic’s first generation AC75. Having left the…

It is some years since the last sailors went down to the water to earn their crust by the power of the wind. Since then, going sailing has become a hobby; something whereby we gain pleasure. Yet a glance around our marinas suggest that there are a high proportion of masochists out there. Anyone who has sailed a Macgregor 26X, for example, will know that there is precious little enjoyment to be derived from ‘sailing’ this craft. One company that has not lost sight of supplying what you would think (hope) was the most basic requirement of a sailing yacht is the boatbuilder Latitude 46. This La Rochelle based manufacturer has been building the Tofinou line of day-sailers for over 30 years now and has stuck slavishly to an ethos…

Before setting off on any offshore cruise it is essential to understand, in depth, the vagaries of the world’s weather systems and ocean currents. All sailors must be able to make their own decisions independently of any route planning services or pilot book. They must develop their own voyage and passage plans, and will feel empowered once they have seen their calculations at the chart table pay-off in practice. It’s worth knowing that a single trip from A to B is a passage; a voyage is a series of passages linked together over several months. In military terms, a passage is a tactic; a voyage is a strategy. PART ONE Voyage planning The first step is to decide where you want to go, the weather and climate will dictate…

Gender imbalance has long existed across all areas of sailing; take a glance about you, it’s not hard to miss. Now, a Strategic Review into Women in Sailing by the World Sailing Trust has gathered irrefutable data to back up anecdotal evidence, gathered from over 4,500 respondents – male and female – from 75 countries. They ranged from ages 11-83, and were involved with all aspects of the sport, from dinghies to keelboats, sailors to volunteers to official representatives. The report was underwritten by Andrew Pindar, a long-standing and passionate supporter of sailing, who felt the need to galvanise action after attending a seminar on women’s sailing at the 2018 World Sailing Annual Conference. The session had been side-lined and so too, Andrew felt, had the issues raised in it.…

The Bristol Channel and the Severn Estuary at its eastern end are not at first sight the most promising of cruising grounds. Hearing of extreme 14-15m tidal ranges, 4-6kt tidal streams and shifting sandbanks, sailors of nervous disposition thank their lucky stars they’ve got a boat tied up in Hamble – or better still, the Med. Yet dotted all around the local coastline there are harbours hosting sailing clubs and marinas, and many dedicated sailors who take the unique Channel challenges in their stride. These are sailors used to passage planning around 2 hour high water windows, always hitching a ride with the rise and fall of the tides, and keeping abreast of both the weather and the movement of the sands. Their reward? Access to a range of unspoiled…

The Bristol Channel is a giant funnel that opens onto the Atlantic, which accounts for the extreme tidal ranges. Flows of up to 6kts are common at Lavernock Point and the Ranie Shoal which lie to the west of Cardiff, and there are strong counter currents at times across the entrance to nearby Barry Harbour. The dredged Wrach Channel which offers an ostensibly simple approach to Cardiff Bay can also be subject to strong SW tidal flows 2 hours before high water. With all that said, the approaches to Cardiff are relatively simple. From the west, assuming safe passage up channel as far as Lavernock Point you’ll be looking for the Ranie bouy (R FL (2) R 5S) before heading north towards the entrance of the Wrach Channel. The big…

• Replace all batteries at the same time, don’t combine new and old. • Use the battery manufacturer’s guidelines on charging voltages, not those of the charger maker • Ensure the charger has a temperature sensor • Only connect batteries that are physically located in the same place • Install an alternator regulator so the engine charges your batteries properly too • Use a battery monitor to keep an eye on battery health • Check batteries visually from time to time – even AGMs will deform if overcharged…

With the 2020 Round the Island Race sadly postponed (and since, cancelled), 133 yachts nonetheless took an alternative opportunity the sail the 50nm course in RORC’s Race the Wight event. Covid restrictions meant many raced short-handed, but perfect conditions and a charitable donation of over £5000 made to the NHS and the Scaramouche Sailing Trust gave the race an all-round feel good factor. Staying close inshore paid for many, in particular Mike Bartholomew’s GP42 Tokoloshe. The Fast40+ did the double, taking monohull line honours and the overall race win on IRC time correction.…

The relaxing of Covid-19 restrictions in July and August prompted a spate of regattas and racing around the British Isles, with further events planned for the late season. Uncertainty continued to cause cancellations, most notably the Round the Island Race, which had been postponed to 26 September. Race director Dave Atkinson, of the Island Sailing Club, said: “As sailing restrictions have eased, it appeared that safety on the water was becoming less of an issue; but sadly, with Round the Island being one of the UK’s largest sporting events, achieving shoreside Covid-19 compliance within current government guidelines, is simply not achievable.” The club has organised two Solent races for September, the ISC Nab Tower Race on 5 September and a Christchurch Bay Race on 26 September. Notice of Race at…

The SailGP series was bolstered with the news that New Zealand would be taking part next season, with the crew including Pete Burling and Blair Tuke. The pair are among the most successful sailors in the world, as reigning 49er Olympic champions and winners of the last America’s Cup. Burling helmed and Tuke was flight controller in the Bermuda America’s Cup on the F50 catamaran, which is the same boat used in SailGP. The boat has since been tweaked by SailGP to be faster and to create a one-design fleet, unlike in the Cup. The 2020 SailGP season was called off after Ben Ainslie and his INEOS team mates, who form the GB SailGP team, won the opening event in Sydney, just before the pandemic. The next SailGP season kicks…

Young sailors aged 18-24 can now apply to be part of the next cohort of British Keelboat Academy sailors. The programme is run by the RYA to help dinghy racers make the transition to yacht and keelboat racing. A number of graduates have gone on to become top professionals. Successful applicants receive expert coaching and advice. Jack Fenwick, RYA Keelboat Development Manager, said: “The BKA is a popular and proven environment for young sailors wanting to make the jump into keelboat racing, and we are looking forward to welcoming the next generation.” The first part of the programme over the winter sees sailors encouraged to try different roles on different boats. The training takes place in Gosport, London, Portland and Cowes in boats including Elliott 6Ms, used at London 2012,…

Trintella Yachts Dutch builder Joop Doomernik is behind a relaunch of the much-loved Trintella marque with two designs by German Frers. Doomernik (pictured) is best-known for building modern racing Dragons and high-tech boats including the Wally Nano MkII. He started sailing as a child at a club next door to the Trintella yard, and later worked there as an apprentice. When the chance came to buy the brand name, he decided to revive Trintella Yachts - a respected range of seamanlike cruising yachts first built in the 1960s. The marque was still popular in the 1990s but closed in 2003. “For the good old Trintella this means a new era has dawned,” says Doomernik of the new boats, the Trintella 45 and Trintella 50. “Exclusive yachts with a classic touch…

‘We weighed up a week or more of bashing upwind versus overstaying our visas’ If you stop and think about the actual word ‘forecasting’ it sounds like something ancient and magical. The art of predicting what is to come, accurately calculating the cadence and pulse of the atmosphere and projecting educated guesses of what weather we will experience seems like an almost mystical skill. And as forecasts get more precise and detailed, the more the world of sailing gets opened up. We can now pick and choose our moments, opting to avoid the rougher conditions or stronger winds. Or perhaps deciding to go out in them anyway, but with a better prepared crew and vessel, in full anticipation of a lumpy voyage. The trouble that I have with weather forecasting…

Nova tied up right at the heart of Belfast’s Titanic Quarter. In his article for the 12 Ports project, award-winning author Alf McCreary explores how a mud-locked inlet, which seemed to lack the raw materials for success, turned into one of the world’s great ship-building ports and one of the greatest cities in the British Isles. How will Belfast fare in the post-Brexit world? With hard work, courage and ingenuity, he says. The Harbour Board plans to create 10,500 jobs and help boost Northern Ireland’s economy. bit.ly/12ports-belfast…

After beating a hasty retreat from their winter training base in Cagliari, Sardinia, in March, Sir Ben Ainslie and the rest of INEOS Team UK found themselves in uncertain times. With New Zealand appearing to quickly control the virus, the Cup itself seemed set to go ahead as planned, but the road map for getting there was suddenly thrown up in the air. “Since returning to the UK from Cagliari, Sardinia, our focus has very much been on the development of our second boat, which will ultimately be our America’s Cup race boat, Britannia II,” says Ainslie. “As part of that development process, however, we have had a great summer of sailing in the Solent on Britannia I. It’s been a really productive period getting out on the water on…

A full explanation of how to use the info on the wind rose is given on each wind pilot chart. However, this example shows the prevailing wind is east or northeast, and the most common wind strength from these directions is Force 4, since each feather segment on the wind direction arrow represents one force of wind. The number four in the centre indicates how many days a month it is dead calm. It must be understood that whilst the wind will most regularly blow from the east or northeast in this area during this month of the year, it is by no means guaranteed that it will, and - as the rose shows - for several days a month it may blow from any other direction.…

Tony and Jackie Thomas are old sailing hands, enjoying their retirement in Cardiff. They’ve both been sailing for 20 years, and have kept a boat at Penarth for around 10 – the current vessel being a Jeanneau 41 DS White Swan. Extended sailing trips have taken them to southern Ireland and the south coast in recent summers, and further adventures are always being planned. In spite of their impressive cruising range they’ve stayed loyal to Penarth as their home port. “We’re always impressed with the friendliness and commitment of the team, and everything is always well maintained and in good order. We also feel confident our boat is secure and looked after, and we’ve made lots of friends. It’s great having the opportunity to sail the bay or walk to…

Racing is so much fun that, for many of us, it’s difficult to break out of the habit of using every bit of free time to do just what we love: going racing. For those who don’t race but might like to, there is not always an obvious way to develop confidence in the skills they may need: they rarely see the racers working on honing their skills alone. This season, as recreational sailors, we’ve been forced to adapt: initially sailing on our own, then informally racing with a few like-minded teams, and eventually if we were lucky, some club racing and even the occasional regatta. It has been a great reminder that there may be better ways to learn and develop sailing skills, than spending all our available time…

Classic Choice A Cruise in an Opium Clipper - Captain Lindsay Anderson They say not to judge a book by its cover but in this case, I think it’s safe to do so. A Cruise in an Opium Clipper covers precisely that subject matter. Captain Lindsey Anderson relates in some detail his time serving aboard the clipper schooner Eamont as it engaged in the illicit smuggling of opium into China, a trade that brought obscene wealth to a number of British and American merchants in the early to mid 19th century. For the unenlightened, this trade was set up largely by the British East India Company in order to redress an imbalance of trade in China caused by the Chinese merchants’ refusal to purchase British and European goods in…

SIGMA 38 | =Q The Sigma 38 first appeared on the scene in 1985 after RORC and the Royal Thames Yacht Club, reflecting on the tragic events of the 1979 Fastnet Race, opted to sponsor a one design class that would stand up to the rigours of tough offshore racing. The result was the David Thomas designed Sigma 38 and the yacht can now be viewed as a modern classic that can be comfortably cruised but that also enjoys a strong reputation as a racer. This particular example dates from 1988 and benefits from considerable work undertaken in the last two years. Her engine was replaced in 2017 and then during her yard period in 2019 her keel was off and keel bolts replaced, standing rigging renewed along…

Applications are open for the RYA and Yachts & Yachting Club of the Year Awards, which celebrate the achievements of sailing clubs across the UK. All RYA-affiliated clubs in the UK are eligible for the competition, which is sponsored once again by Gallagher. The judging panel selects a finalist for each of the ten RYA regions, as well as two wild card entries. The finalists are invited to the RYA Dinghy Show, which in February 2021 is due to be held at Farnborough Exhibition Centre. The announcement of the winner is made by RYA chief executive Sarah Treseder to a packed house at the show each year and the winning club gets a range of benefits, including follow up articles in Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting over the year.…

Salcombe Yacht Club marked its 125th anniversary with a successful race week, 85 boats taking to the water in glorious conditions and the rare spectacle of racing on the estuary thoroughly welcomed by locals and holidaymakers. The club’s planned anniversary ball had to be cancelled because of the pandemic but commodore Andy Savell and flag officers pulled out all the stops to produce a memorable event. Social distancing measures included asking all competitors to refrain from using the slipway and instead sail from a mooring, or launch from the beach each morning. Everyone who raced did a duty and the club organised race officer teams made up of family or friendship bubbles. Falmouth Week took place with 110 entries and crews of friends of family bubbles. Full report in Sailing…

I think it might be fair to say that for an active sailor to have lived out his allotted three-score years and ten without spending more than two days in jail isn’t bad going. This is my score at the time of writing and I continue in the lively hope that the total may rest there. My inaugural custodial experience was a direct result of a misunderstanding with a South American bribe broker back in the 1970s. Arriving with my wife in a well-known port south of the Equator, I was approached by an official-looking character with no obvious function demanding a substantial sum of money. He had no receipt book and, when pressed, he explained in excellent English that our cash was to be distributed among various public servants,…

Unfortunately the TP52s 20th anniversary invitational regatta - due to be held in June concurrently with the Costa Smeralda 52 SUPER SERIES event - went the same way as the rest of the season, including the TP52 Worlds. Losing the 20th anniversary event is a blow to the circuit and the class. There are certainly plans to run it in 2021, but gone is the chance to give prospective teams an experience of TP52 fleet racing at the highest level, to dip a toe in the water, and it is an untimely loss when the circuit really could use new teams coming in for 2021. That said, the core group of owners who are involved right now remain committed and are looking forward to next season. Management have listened to…

For a sailor from the Solent, Orkney is in the far north. But far from being off the beaten track, for millennia Orkney was the beaten track, and even in the 20th century this archipelago had central significance as a naval centre. In his article written for this project, Nick Isbister writes about the way Stromness – and the Orkney Islands – has found its way into people’s stories, including his own. He reflects on how people and groups through history have formed their identity, told their stories, and made their mark: bit.ly/12ports-stromness…

As an Australian-Portuguese couple sailing around the world on a very simple cutter rigged 42ft monohull, we had heard about the coronavirus as we checked out of Cien Fuegos, Cuba on 10 March but we never would have imagined the world shutting down in the way that it was about to. Our plan was to take a couple of weeks sailing down the Jardines and then head over to Jamaica. We had difficulty filling up completely with water, food and diesel but we weren’t worried - we had plenty for the trip to Jamaica, where we could provision easily. As we arrived at the Jardines we met up with some cruisers who told us that the world was in a panic and that Jamaica had closed its borders for 14…

BENETEAU OCEANIS 51.1 An innovative and stylish yacht that turns modern naval architecture on its head by putting chines in the forward sections of the yacht and creating ‘champagne glass’ hull sections. The result is a yacht with masses of internal volume well forward. beneteau.com HANSE 548 Hanse’s well-proven Judel/Vrolijk design teams’ fingerprints are all over the 548, which boasts sporty good looks plus masses of internal volume in a tried and tested package. hanseyachts.co.uk JEANNEAU SUN ODYSSEY 490 The latest offering from Jeanneau is designed by Philippe Briand and also aims to up volume in the forward sections without reducing wetted surface area too drastically. The result is a stylish and very modern looking yacht that performs very strongly, be that on internal volume or out on the water…

Paul Goodison was an early pick for the New York YC’s American Magic team on the strength of his successes since his 2008 Olympic gold. His reputation for embracing the technical boundaries was proven by three consecutive Moth World Championship wins – not to mention his supporting role with Artemis in the last America’s Cup. Goodison’s current role is described as mainsail trimmer, but on these extreme boats, crew set-up during manoeuvres means he also gets his hands on the wheel, an experience he describes as “awesome”. He explains: “In a straight line I’m dealing with the mainsail, making sure it is well set up and the boat is going fast. But during the manoeuvres, I cross over and take the opposing wheel to ride through, and then there’s a…

It’s been a strange old season but some things never change – come September, it’s boat show time. Over the next few pages we bring you some of the exciting new kit launches to be found at the Boats2020 event and elsewhere. The Boats2020 event is a mini Southampton Boat Show, taking place from 11–20 September. It has been organised by the team at British Marine on a not-for-profit basis, as a means of supporting the marine industry after a barren few months and after British Marine had to take the decision to postpone the 52nd Southampton Boat Show until next year. There will be more than 90 boats - with both sail and motorboat exhibitors - and some 60 landside exhibitors showing a range of kit from companies including…

Ask Hannah Mills about the unthinkable – that the Olympics might be cancelled – and she replies evenly: “Obviously that thought crosses your mind, but the only thing you can do is to push it aside and just say ‘it’s irrelevant’. You can’t stop training, you can’t stop being motivated. “If the Games don’t happen it’ll be a disaster. Of course there are doubts, but you push them aside.” A gold in Tokyo next summer would make Hannah Mills, aged 32, the most successful female Olympic sailor of all time, having won silver in London and gold in Rio with Saskia Clark. The image of her and Clark embracing on the podium in Rio was one of the most moving of the Games and the culmination of a great sailing…

Time for new batteries on board? Well, you could simply replace like for like and carry on as before. If your system worked perfectly, and the batteries lasted five, six or more years, then why not? But this is also an opportunity to review your electrics and see whether there is a more suitable battery out there for you. Could you fit in a higher-capacity unit perhaps, or prevent the plotter switching off when you fire up the engine? Most of us use lead-acid batteries and their performance is determined by two factors: the amount of current they can provide quickly, and how often they can be discharged. Both of these are affected by basic design, and by the quality of the materials used in the battery – particularly the…

The inaugural Lonely Rock Race served up a range of testing conditions for a diverse fleet of predominately very experienced sailors and well-proven yachts. After a summer of weather noted mostly for successive heat waves, conditions for the first 608-mile Lonely Rock Race proved just how challenging this course can be. Very light conditions were forecast for the start thanks to a complex weather situation left over from the extensive thunderstorms of the previous week. On the second day that would give way to a slow transition towards westerly winds of 14-18 knots. After that, an extra-tropical low-pressure system promised fresh to frightening conditions on the way home from the Fastnet Rock, with the possibility of winds well over 40 knots. False start Fortuitously a band of wind on the…

The appointment of a harbourmaster in France is a political one. It is a role selected by the mayor and, as such, this means that it can be open to an element of baksheesh. This is because, in some ports, the job is something of a sinecure. Without wishing to point fingers, I nominate role of harbourmaster to the port of Marseille as the biggest sinecure of them all. I pulled in here with the aim of a night’s repose and some moderate pastis drinking at the midway point of a cruise. Entering Marseille is rather magical as this is one of the great historical ports of the world and retains a very authentic salty tang. The marina is also incredible, as you motor right to the heart of the…

Katadyn PowerSurvivor 40E This 12V system is claimed to be the world’s smallest electric desalinator and draws only four amps from 12 volt systems. It weighs 11.6kg and rated output is 5.7 litres per hour, although it’s only suitable for use in clear water. • £3,200 • katadyn.com Aqua Whisper Mini 170 / 350 These units from Fischer Panda are intended to offer quiet and vibration free running. Both models offer automatic operation, with a failsafe diversion valve that’s intended to ensure only fresh water reaches the water tanks. There’s also a weekly automatic fresh water flush. • £POA • fischerpanda.co.uk Katadyn Survivor 35 When we think of hand-operated desalinators we typically think of small hand-held units. However, this model is rated at 4.5 litres per hour and intended to…

“Reach for the stars, climb every mainsail higher... Reach for the stars, follow your heart’s desire” They say when racing to keep a close eye on the mainsail leech, but it seems as if this sailor may be taking things to the next level, attempting a quick shimmy up the back edge of the sail to peer more closely at the tell tales and determine exactly how air flow is exiting from the back of the sail. Or perhaps she is going a step further and somehow trying to replicate Alex Thomson’s famous mast walk on Hugo Boss… without the benefit of a keel. Or maybe she just needs to get aloft to check the Windex. Whatever the rationale, a capsize seems inevitable, in which case swimming to the top…