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CONTENTS

1. EDITORIAL - This month the sailing scene focuses on Malaysia.
2. AUSTRAL - ASIAN NEWS - Inaugural Extreme Sailing Series Asia announced - Tragic loss of Andrew Short and Sally Gordon - Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games - qualifying events announced - Cruising dreams swept away by violent Tsunami - Celebrate the 20th Raja Muda Regatta - Jewel of Muscat Nears Completion in Oman - Phuket scores big from King's Cup Regatta - Mr IRC (Mike Urwin) has spoken - Pimex Preview in Bangkok 6 - 8 Nov - 8th Blue Water World Rally - Asia bound - Guanabara Bay venue for 2016 Olympic's - ISAF president elected to IOC - Oman unveils Majan, first Arabian 100 trimaran - Andres Soriano triumphs at Rolex Middle Sea Race
Up next - Sail Malaysia - Asian Match Racing Championship (9-12 Nov) - 20th Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta (Nov 13th - 21st) - Malaysian Match Racing Championship (Nov 23 to 26) - Phuket King's Cup (Nov 28th - Dec 5th) - ISAF World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) - Monsoon Cup (1-6 Dec)
3. INTERNATIONAL NEWS - New course for Transat Jacques Vabre - Clipper's battle it out in South Atlantic - Solidaire du Chocolat - Class 40 High-speed, off-wind sailing at last - Louis Vuitton Trophy - WSTA – Nice - Final RC44 regatta in Dubai (UAE) Nov 25 - 29 - Enter Round Britain & Ireland race NOW! - Alex Thomson stands on HUGO BOSS keel - France to Mauritius resembles the start of a world tour
Follow the: Clipper Race - Solidaire du Chocolat - RC 44 Finals - World Match Racing Tour - Louis Vuitton Trophy - Rolex Events - Transat Jacques Vabre
4. WORLD SPEED RECORDS - Historic NZ Coastal Classic Race Record tumbles
5. "Unluckiest sailors of the month" - Destruction on the Rolex Middle Sea Race. - More drama for Mike Golding's Ecover - Paul Larsen Vestas Sailrocket - I'll cut to the chase - Slight setback for SYZ & CO

1. EDITORIAL

This month the sailing scene focuses on Malaysia.
Seventy six International cruising yachts have signed on for Sail Malaysia that started on Oct 31 from two new marinas, Danga Bay and Puteri Harbour in the southern state of Johor. Over the next month and half, they are free to make their way up the west coast of Malaysia with scheduled stops at Lumut, Penang and finally Langkawi, where they will be entertained with cultural activities, extended tours and gala state government welcoming parties.

Next week the Asian Match Racing Championship (9-12 November) will see 16 Asia Pacific teams battle it out at the qualifiers with the winner having a chance to get amongst the RM1m prize money waiting for them on the final leg of the prestigious ISAF World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) - Monsoon Cup to be held in Terengganu from 1-6 Dec, 2009.

Fleet racing enthusiasts have been preparing for the 20th Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta (Nov 13th - 21st) which is the third event on the 2009-10 AYGP Championship. Reaching the 20th milestone has taken a dedicated team of mainly voluntary committee members and boat owners that have turned up year after year to participate on one of their favourite Asian regattas. Personally (The Editor, Capt Marty) would like to thank all the bizarre characters, we've had the pleasure of racing and meeting along the way and are very much looking forward to the reunion celebrations at the RSYC in a couple of weeks.

Straight after the Raja Muda finishes some Malaysian sailors will be making a beeline for Terengganu to compete in the Malaysian Match Racing Championship (Nov 23 to 26). There is a record 12 teams, including our very own AY Team, fighting it out for a spot in the blue ribbon Monsoon Cup. More on the Malaysian Teams can be found in the latest AY Team News.

While the Malaysian Qualifiers are underway delivery crews will be busy taking yachts to Thailand for the Phuket King's Cup Regatta which starts early this year on the 28th November. Over the years this regatta has grown into Asia's premier yachting event, as it has gone from strength to strength, in both size and reputation by hosting the largest gathering of keel boats, multi-hulls and traditional sailing craft annually in SE Asian waters.

At the 1st Singapore Superyacht Conference it became very apparent that most foreign delegates didn't know much about the megayacht facilities already available here and what the Asian region has to offer owners, skippers, crew and their guests. In the final SS Conference - AY Summary we wowed to develop a one-stop Marina Guide and have carried out some updating and new inclusions to the long standing Asian Directory that already contains web links and email contacts for most Asian National Organisations, Sailing Clubs and Major Events. If you know off any Marina's and repair facilities that should be listed, please help us out by emailing the details to: info@asianyachting.com

Breaking news on the 33rd America's Cup scene is that GGYC has advised SNG that they have nominated Bryan Willis as one of the three expert witnesses for the hearing called by Justice Kornreich this Wednesday (4th Nov) in NYC, and he has agreed to serve. Interested to see how that goes down as Brian was the IJ Chairman at the 32nd AC back in 2007 and reportedly fell out in a big way with the Alinghi team boss Ernesto Bertarelli. The world now awaits to hear from SNG of their nominee. Hopefully we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel for a no holds barred grudge match in February somewhere.

All these topics and much more on the International yacht racing scene is either covered (Below) in the popular monthly AY News & Views and regularly updated on the AsianYachting website. We welcome any comments from the circulation list about the new email format.
Enjoy!
Capt Marty Rijkuris

2. AUSTRAL - ASIAN NEWS

2.1 Inaugural Extreme Sailing Series Asia announced
OC Events, organisers of the award winning iShares Cup, the European Extreme 40 Sailing Series, have announced the creation of the inaugural Extreme Sailing Series Asia to be staged between November 2009 and March 2010. The first year of the Asian series will include events in Hong Kong (20th-24th November), Singapore (11th-15th December) and Muscat, Oman (1st to 5th Feb 2010) with the possibility of a fourth venue to be confirmed. Bids have already been received for the future series from a number of other venues across Asia. Each event will consist of five days of racing, combining the established format of short, easy to understand races, a media day, VIP sailing days and special events. The Extreme Sailing Series Asia Notice of Race has been issued and five boats have already committed to the Asian circuit. The first event in the Extreme Sailing Series Asia is supported by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, to coincide with their annual 'Around the Island Race' on the 22nd November. -- Read on: http://www.extremesailingseriesasia.com/

2.2 Tragic loss of Andrew Short and Sally Gordon Two veterans of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race were killed and 16 crew members had to be rescued after a multimillion-dollar maxi yacht ran aground off the NSW South Coast. Shockwave skipper Andrew Short 48 and its navigator Sally Gordon 47 died when the boom swept them from the deck into the choppy sea after the vessel hit rocks off Port Kembla. The 80-foot yacht was taking part in a 92-nautical-mile lead-up race to the Sydney to Hobart classic when it struck rocks during rough conditions at Flinders Islet about 3am. The yacht began sinking quickly, taking water through its fractured hull, forcing the remaining 15 on board, including a 14-year-old boy, to abandon it. The crew scrambled onto the rocky island - the man knocked off the deck by the boom remained in the 20-degree water, tossed by the large swell. Other yachts in the race rushed to rescue those in the water. Australian yachting great Syd Fischer, 82, the skipper of Ragamuffin, said his crew saw a yellow object in the water which turned out to be Ms Gordon. His crew gave CPR to Ms Gordon for the short journey to Port Kembla harbour where they handed her over to paramedics. The crew of another yacht, Quest, fought to save Mr Short. He could not be revived. The CYCA want to thank the NSW Air Ambulance, the NSW Water Police, police attached to the Marine Area Command, AMSA and the wonderful staff at Wollongong Hospital.

2.3 Last chance for a Sunsail Birthday Bargain..
Remember the incredible 35% discount off the charter price on selected sailing holidays in the Austral-Asian region, are only available until the end of the year. Join Sunsail in celebrating 35 years in the business and while your there, grab a fantastic bargain for your next sailing holiday. Vessels are booking fast so don't miss out! The world’s largest yacht charter operator, has a diverse range of yachts at several Asian locations that offer all year round sailing opportunities. The extended season also allows the yachts to be available for the 20th Raja Muda Selangor Regatta in November and they have just issued a notice to get in early for December's King's Cup and January's Royal Langkawi Regatta before peak season bookings are at a premium. Visit Sunsail Asia website www.sunsailasia.com and receive regular updates on Sunsail's new activities in the Asian region contact Tel: +66 (0)76 239057 Email: sales@sunsailasia.com

2.4 Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games - qualifying events announced
Young sailing hopefuls with their sights set on Singapore 2010 and the inaugural Youth Olympic Games can now find full details on the qualification events with the publication of the Notice of Race for each qualifier. The inaugural Youth Olympic Games (YOG) will be held in Singapore in August 2010 and feature 100 young sailors competing across four sailing events. The Notice of Races for the YOG Qualifiers are now posted on the Byte Class website - http://www.bytechamps.org The Asia qualifier - Pattaya, Thailand - 23-29 November 2009 The Notice of Races for the Techno 293 class is at http://www.techno293.org and the Asian qualifier - Pattaya, Thailand – 15-23 January 2010 For each of the four sailing events, there are seven Youth Olympic Qualification Events (YOQE). Competitors qualify their National Olympic Committee (NOC) at a YOQE, and the NOC will then select its competitor for that event. In order to make the YOG as accessible to as many nations as possible, there is a maximum of one male and one female athlete per NOC for all events. In addition, the host nation automatically qualifies one male and one female and 14 of the 100 places are reserved as NOC Universality Places to be assigned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Find out more on the Youth Olympic Games at http://www.sailing.org/youtholympicgames

2.5 Cruising dreams swept away by violent Tsunami
At 1748 UTC (approximately 7 a.m. local time) on September 29, 2009, a magnitude 8.3 earthquake struck at a depth of 33 kilometers in the Pacific Ocean at 15.3 S and 171.0 W, 80 nautical miles south of American Samoa and 160 nautical miles northeast of Niuatoputapu, Tonga. The warning, time stamped 1804 UTC, was released 16 minutes after the quake and indicated that a tsunami could reach Pago Pago in only 11 minutes (or 5 minutes before the warning was issued). Eyewitness reports indicated that the tsunami began its assault on Pago Pago 20 minutes after the quake or approximately 4 minutes after the first warning was released. No warning sirens were reported in Pago Pago prior to the tsunami and this caught many unprepared. Many cruising yachts in Pago Pago suffered significant damage. West, In Apia, on the island of Upolu, Samoa, sirens began wailing soon after the quake struck, giving cruisers like Ernie and Charlene Kelly of the 38-foot catamaran Lauren Grace an opportunity to cast off dock lines and go to sea before the worst of the tsunami turbulence hit the shallow harbor. The crews of other boats that chose to stay and wait, were ordered by police to higher ground leaving their boats in the marina unattended as the harbor waters receded, leaving dry ground in its wake, then watching docks surging and fish being thrown ashore as the water returned. Full report at Cruising World

2.6 Jewel of Muscat Nears Completion in Oman
The Sultanate of Oman, at the Eastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is going through a renaissance of it's maritime heritage. Taking it one step closer to their goal is the Jewel of Muscat project which is nearing completion. The importance of the relationship between modern Oman and its famed ancient seafaring traditions is of paramount importance as this oil rich Sultanate looks to diversifying it's global perception as it becomes a modern country. The Jewel of Muscat project is a joint initiative between Oman and Singapore involving the reconstruction of a 9th-century sewn-plank ship on the beach of Qantab village, just outside Muscat, Oman's capital city. Once the 30-foot (18m) long hand-built hull is launched into the Gulf of Oman, she will set sail on an epic voyage that will finish in Singapore, one of Oman's oldest trading partners. Displaying the characteristics of vessels built in the western Indian Ocean at that time, the Jewel of Muscat's reconstruction represents a major feat of maritime engineering. Even today, the 1,200-year-old method of sewing the hull planks together with handmade coconut-fibre rope makes the vessel extremely resilient, and during the whole process - from shaping the first planks to hoisting the palm-leaf sails that were woven in Zanzibar - not one nail nor screw was used. The new education module on the Jewel of Muscat website http://www.jewelofmuscat.tv/ provides materials that can be used across schools internationally.

2.7 Don't miss out on the 20th Raja Muda reunion celebrations
The Sailing Instructions for the 20th Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta have been released. Click on: http://www.rmsir.com/html/s01_home/home.asp to download them... There are important additions, changes, extra races and earlier start times for some classes so please download them asap, as they may affect you and your crews travel plans. There are still some pretty fancy Yachts for Charter (Including the DK 46 Evolution Sails above) So if your running late and still looking for a crewing position post your desire on the Crew Available List 2009 for all to see. Everyone is looking forward to the 20th reunion celebrations... So Bring it on! Contact the RMSIR Organising Committee directly through the website http://www.rmsir.com or by Emailing info@rmsir.com Phone: +603 3168 6964 Fax: +603 3168 8650

2.8 Phuket scores big from King's Cup Regatta
Bangkok Oct 09: Long recognised as one of the top events in the yachting world, both regionally and internationally, the Phuket King's Cup Regatta is this year also being saluted as a major tourism attraction for Phuket. The annual event generates income, regional and global publicity highlighting Phuket as a world class marine lifestyle and sports destination. The regatta not only underscores the benefits of the greater Andaman Sea as a world sailing destination, but brings in around 2,000 additional high spending tourists who provide a 40 million baht direct boost to the island's economy. Full Press Release at: http://asianyachting.com/news/PKC09/0.htm The 2009 Notice of Race is available at: http://www.kingscup.com/index.cfm?ntid=1018

2.9 Mr IRC (Mike Urwin) has spoken
Mike Urwin, the RORC Rating office, Technical Director explains some of the changes proposed to the IRC rule, and the overall objective of the IRC. The IRC does not rate individual boats, it rates the features of boats in general. We are not looking at individual boats but the whole fleet. So, as and when necessary, we make changes to the rule on an annual basis. (January 1st in the Northern Hemisphere, June 1st in the Southern Hemisphere). It is very, very rare that we will make changes during the middle of a season. We run a research agenda and at the end of each year the IRC Technical Committee decides which things we want to change, which things need more work and which things are to be left alone, as they are perfectly alright. There will be many small changes next year, potentially issues such as bowsprits, and stored power. We will also be slightly refining the way we treat keels. One significant change to the rule is the way it will look. From the 1st January 2010, we will be adopting the Equipment Rules of Sailing, in their entirety. We are doing that because IRC is an international rule and we need to have measurements and standards that are common to all countries. We want to have measurers who have been trained by us or the relevant National Authority. We want to have consistency of training and measurement, throughout the world. In practice, this won't actually change anything but it will result in improved IRC measurement standards around the world. Complete interview click Here...

2.10 Pimex Preview in Bangkok 6 - 8 Nov
PIMEX will bring a taste of the Phuket marine lifestyle to the big city with the Pimex Preview in Bangkok from the 6th to 8th November at the 5-star Pan Pacific Hotel in the central Business District. All the leading brokers will be on hand to give an excellent opportunity for the capital's residents to see some of the fantastic boats that will be on display at the main event in January. The in-water display at PIMEX is almost fully booked with over 30 yachts having reserved space. Among the fine quality yachts on display there will be several over 80 ft. PIMEX 2010 (7-10 Jan) is expecting 90 exhibiting companies to participate with 45 yachts in the water. All the major brokers and dealers from around South East Asia have already signed up to participate. Keep up with all the news at: http://www.phuketboatshow.com

2.11 8th Blue Water World Rally - Asia bound
Over 100 sailors have signed up for the eighth bi-annual Blue Water World Rally which set sail from Gibraltar on 25 October in what is forecast as an 'El Nino' year. Over the next two years 21 yachts will sail with Blue Water Rallies from Gibraltar to the Caribbean, 32 yachts will cross the pacific and more will join en route. Blue Water Rallies, which started running it's world rally in 1997, will support this fleet of sailors along 23 legs starting in Gibraltar and stopping off in Antigua, Panama, Galapagos, Tonga, Darwin, Phuket, and Djibouti, to name but a few before finally returning to the Mediterranean. The 8th World Rally Dates:- Depart 25 October - Finish Crete 24 April 2011. Follow their progress at: http://www.yachtrallies.co.uk/

2.12 DK 46's still on Top of the Podium
If your serious about forming a racing team and joining the racing class at major regattas in the region, there are two Mark Mills designed DK46's, that have won nearly every major event in the Austral-Asian region on the market. DK is one of the most technologically advanced composite manufacturing facility in the SE Asian region. The design office works on high performance IBM CAD/CAM systems which are data supply linked to production and directly command the five-axis milling machine that accurately cuts hull plugs and moulds. Contained within the 110,000 sq ft facility is a multi-cycle computerized temperature oven (25m x 5m x 3.5m), a spray chamber (18m x 6m x 5.5m), an engineering workshop and a dedicated laminating room. In addition, DK also has an in-house 40m long autoclave to cure carbon fibre and kevlar finished products. So what are you waiting for? Serious Yachts for Serious Sailors can be found at http://www.dkyachts.com

2.13 Guanabara Bay venue for 2016 Olympic's
Marina da Gloria in Guanabara Bay is already well known as a world-class sailing venue: earlier this year it was a stopover venue for the Volvo Ocean Race; whilst in 2007 in was the sailing venue for the Pan American Games. Next year the Star class visits Rio for their World Championship battle. Brazil has a proud record in Olympic sailing, in fact sailing is one of the nation's most successful Olympic sports. Torben Grael is the only sailor to have won five Olympic medals, whilst Robert Scheidt is only one behind with two gold's and two silvers. At Beijing 2008 Fernanda Oliveira and Isabel Swan became the first female Brazilian sailors to win an Olympic medal. Brazil also showed its dedication to the future of the sport as it hosted this year's Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship with great success.

2.14 ISAF president elected to International Olympic Committee
Goran Petersson, President of the International Sailing Federation, has been elected as a member of the International Olympic Committee. The election for new International Olympic Committee (IOC) members took place during the final day of the 121st IOC Session in Copenhagen, Denmark today. The current IOC Members elected Göran Petersson as one of six new members by 76 votes to 12. Petersson joins the IOC in his role as President of the International Sailing Federation and will serve an eight-year term. - http://www.sailing.org/30000.php

2.15 Oman unveils Majan, first Arabian 100 trimaran
After four months of assembly in Oman's southern most port of Salalah, skipper Paul Standbridge has been stretching the legs of Oman Sail's new Arabian 100 (A100) trimaran during sea-trials off the Omani coast. Now named Majan, after the ancient name for Oman, Oman Sail's new flagship is now operational and is heading into the Gulf and a tour of neighbouring countries. Based on the proven design of another trimaran, Sodebo, which is the holder of the solo North Atlantic crossing record, the design has been tailored for the needs of Oman Sail and their objective of training and developing Omani sailors to compete on the international stage. Majan will sail with a crew of seven: 50% of the sailors will be Omani offshore trainees joined by three international professional crew and a cameraman providing the one-on-one training that the recruits require at this early stage of their career. The first chapter will be a 'Tour of Arabia' starting next week from Muscat, which will include stops in UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar before Majan joins the Dubai-Muscat race back to Muscat one month later. All the Oman Sail news at: http://www.omansail.com/

2.16 Andres Soriano triumphs at Rolex Middle Sea Race
Valletta, Malta (Oct 19) Top prize of the event, the Rolex Middle Sea Race Trophy and Rolex Yacht-master Chronometer for finishing first overall under IRC Handicap went to Andres Soriano, skipper and owner of the 69-foot Mills designed mini-maxi Alegre and his crew of largely Corinthian sailors. Last year they celebrated line honours victory here. This year victory is even sweeter, as it is on handicap. For a successful businessman and seasoned offshore sailor, Soriano is openly thrilled to have won this year's race. He has beaten the whole fleet and significantly, within his Class, he has beaten some of the best sailors in the world on some of the world's best grand prix racing yachts. This is no mean feat. Soriano acknowledged the organisers work in putting on the race and described not just the winning, but also the taking part in this edition as "the experience of our lives." Continuing, he thanked the Royal Malta Yacht Club for being such generous hosts. Fellow Asian owner Karl Kwok on his Farr 80 Beau Geste also did well to finish second on handicap. Access all the News and Photos from http://www.regattanews.com/event.asp?id=226

3. INTERNATIONAL NEWS

3.1 New course for Transat Jacques Vabre
Whilst remaining true to its roots, the Transat Jacques Vabre is breaking new ground. Once again it will be setting off from Le Havre on 8th November, a town resolutely geared towards the ocean. Innovative by nature, it is offering sailors a new course, which culminates with the double-handed crews traversing the Caribbean Sea to Costa Rica. The primary feature of this ninth edition: the homogeneity of the line-up, which blends an IMOCA fleet, where the most honed sailors will compete in what already promises to be an exciting battle, and a Multi50 class which will propose a total of three new multihull's at the start. With just one single requirement: for monohulls to leave the Dominican Republic to starboard and for the multihull's to leave the island of Barbados to starboard. Such a course means that competitors are likely to expect a bunched finish off Puerto Limon. In total, the course will represent 4,730 miles for the monohulls and 5,050 for the multihull's. Follow the race or play the game at: http://www.jacques-vabre.com/en/s01_home/s01p01_home.php#

3.2 Clipper's battle it out in South Atlantic
01:11:09 Edinburgh Inspiring Capital has been leading for much of the race from Rio de Janeiro to Cape Town and according to skipper, Matt Pike, "Things are looking good." He says, "Although those boats south west do seem to have a bit more of a breeze, will they catch us by the scoring gate? Or will the much promised and sought after north easterly wind find us and give us a spinnaker run and the speed we need for the next 500 miles? We continue to study the barometer, GRIB files and the horizon waiting for the answer. I wonder if we tried cutting the corner too much? Certainly it is a shorter distance but we are struggling to maintain a good boat speed the crew is still haunted by memories of the Doldrums." Today the lead has changed, Jamaica Lightning Bolt's tenacity and hard work paying dividends as they move into first place. "Much to everyone's relief our tactics of heading east of most of the rest of the fleet seem to have paid off," reports Jamaica Lighting Bolt's skipper, Peter Stirling. "We now find ourselves in a very strong position ahead of the entire fleet by some margin (except Edinburgh Inspiring Capital) as we finally find ourselves heading downwind. Very shortly the spinnaker will be going up and then it is a dash for the scoring gate. The race is on to get there ahead of Edinburgh Inspiring Capital and California to pick up the maximum three points." Follow all the action at http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/

3.3 Solidaire du Chocolat: High-speed, off-wind sailing at last
A change of rhythm is in progress for the sixteen Class 40s in the middle of the Atlantic. The low pressure system, so ominous in appearance, which was to affect the northerners, has decided to move over towards Newfoundland. Sea state will not be quite so bad and the winds will be a little more manageable. It's moving from north to south ! It might not be downwind sailing quite yet, but reaching is becoming more or less possible. This is good news. Five depressions in a row take their toll. Five in two weeks since the start in Saint Nazaire. Almost the whole Solidaire du Chocolat fleet has an average speed of 8 knots or more in a south or south-easterly breeze. … Moderate wind on a sea which was becoming increasingly chaotic and a gradual wind shift east for the end of the weekend. We should see some spinnakers flying – at last ! For those in the north at least. The southerners can boats having had their spinnakers up for a day or two already. Sailing freely along the trade winds picking up to 20-25 knots, the three southern boats are reeling in the miles at average speeds of not far off 12 knots. Slowly but surely they are gaining on the leaders who are never the less 700 miles ahead. Follow through the last stages at: http://www.lasolidaireduchocolat.com/en

3.3 Louis Vuitton Trophy - WSTA – Nice
The event in Nice, to be sailed over the dates 7th to 22d of November, is called the ‘’Louis Vuitton Trophy - WSTA – Nice" and is sanctioned by the world authority of sailing, the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). Following the merger of Joe Fly with Azzurra, eight teams will compete for the Louis Vuitton Trophy Nice: Azzurra (ITA), BMW ORACLE Racing (USA), Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), K-Challenge (FRA), Swedish Challenge Artemis (SWE), Synergy Russian Sailing Team (RUS), TeamOrigin (GBR) and Team French Spirit (FRA). The Louis Vuitton Trophy in Nice is jointly promoted and organised by the teams, through the World Sailing Teams Association (WSTA), Louis Vuitton and the Club Nautique de Nice (CNN) with the FFV support. World Sailing Teams Association (WSTA) was founded in 2009 by a group of professional yacht racing teams to develop a regular series of high-level competitive racing events. The WSTA is jointly owned by its preferred shareholders and represents the interests of the teams for fair and highly-competitive racing. The WSTA, in conjunction with title partner Louis Vuitton, co-organizes the Louis Vuitton Trophy. Follow the action at: http://www.louisvuittontrophy.com

3.4 Final RC44 regatta in Dubai (UAE) Nov 25 - 29
The last regatta of the RC 44 Championship Tour 2009 will take place from Nov 25 - 29 in Dubai. The ten RC 44 teams involved in the Championship Tour will participate in the event and fight hard to maintain or better their position in the rankings. The Sea Dubai RC 44 Gold Cup is the season’s most important regatta: four titles will be awarded at the end of the regatta and the points count double. The titles at stake are: the overall championship title, the match race and fleet race season titles as well as the DHL Trophy. The RC 44 match race has become the toughest in the world over the years, with three times America’s Cup winner Russell Coutts sailing against Team New Zealand's helmsman Dean Barker, Cameron Appleton, Paul Cayard, Ray Davies, Karol Jablonski, Markus Wieser and many more. Nothing’s acquired yet in this contest: four team are still in a position to win the title: Artemis (9 points), Ceeref (11 points), Team Aqua and No way Back (12 points). News items, results, photos and updates will be posted on the Class website throughout the event at http://www.rc44.com/en/regattas/index.php

3.5 Enter the Shetland Round Britain & Ireland race NOW!
Still three months from the entry deadline (31st January 2010), 26 teams have already signed up for the two-handed race, including the winner of the OSTAR 2009, Jankees Lampe. After breaking the trans-Atlantic race record for a 40ft yacht, must make him the one to watch in next year's Round Britain & Ireland race. The race is limited to 50 boats so it is advised that those interested in taking part contact the RWYC soon to avoid disappointment. This race has the support of many sailing greats; including Pete Goss MBE, Mary Falk, Jerry Freeman and David Southwood (previously race director of OSTAR 2009). The race will depart from Plymouth on 6th June 2010 and see competitors sail 2000 nautical miles around the UK coastline. The race has been hosted by the Royal Western Yacht Club every four years since 1966. More news at: http://www.rwyc.org

3.6 Alex Thomson stands on HUGO BOSS keel
Having already tried his hand at foiling, round the world sailor Alex Thomson went keel walking on his IMOCA Open 60 HUGO BOSS in the Solent. Alex said; “I’ve always wanted to stand on the keel while sailing for a couple of years now, and in 17-20 knots of breeze I stood on the keel whilst sailing wearing a HUGO BOSS suit. It was pretty dangerous but a real buzz.” These photos are a couple months old now but we still consider this achievement worthy of posting.

3.7 France to Mauritius closely resembles the start of a world tour
Francis Joyon continues his descent into the South Atlantic at high speed, by signing off his 11th day at sea to 500 miles. His quest for Mauritius will face a turning point over the next few days. After the light winds of a transition zone, IDEC will attempt to seek a southern depression that will propel the trimaran towards the Cape of Good Hope. But for now, life is not an easy on the maxi trimaran IDEC, which bumps into the sea, at over 20 knots upwind. This is asking much the boat - which saw its first damage - and skipper. Morale is always rosy, but the tension is real, as evidenced in a recent interview with Francis. More on the France to Mauritius Record run "Passage to India" in French at: http://www.trimaran-idec.com/

4. WORLD SPEED RECORDS

4.1 Historic Coastal Classic Race Record tumbles
At 4.43pm on Friday 23 October, the supermaxi Alfa Romeo set HSBC Premier Coastal Classic history when she crossed the finish line to set a new race record of 6 hours, 43 minutes and 32 seconds. Starting at Devonport Wharf in Auckland, and finishing at Russell Wharf in the romantic Bay of Island township, the boat wiped more than 36 minutes off the 13-year old record held by the pink multihull Split Enz, achieving an average speed of 17.9 knots on the course. The 30m boat owned by New Zealander Neville Crichton, has already accumulated 142 line honours victories, and is visiting New Zealand for the HSBC Premier Coastal Classic. Full story http://www.coastalclassic.co.nz

5. "Unluckiest sailors of the month"

5.1 Destruction on the Rolex Middle Sea Race
The daylight hours of Sunday have been easier towards the back of the fleet, but drama was unfolding from early morning at the front. First Hap Fauth's Bella Mente pulled out with equipment failure; an unfortunate and premature end to Fauth's previously successful Mediterranean season. Then, a couple of hours later, news arrived that Roger Sturgeon's, 2007 Rolex Sydney Hobart winner, Rosebud/Team DYT had broken her mast and was heading to Milazzo, all crew unharmed. These two were joined a little while later by Jonathan Gambin's Ton Ton Surfside (MLT). Gambin has good cause to be seriously disappointed, but was by all accounts lucky not to lose his mast as well. "We were having a really good race. We were at the front of our class even though we are not at our best point of sail going downwind," said Gambin, continuing, "we had seen winds between 25 and 30 knots, and were fast with good boat speed. We needed to free a halyard during a sail change and sent a man up the mast. He spotted a big crack in the starboard spreader. Fortunately, we were on port tack. We might have lost the mast if the spreader had gone." Gambin chose not to chance his luck any further, dropped his sails and has motored to Syracuse. More at: http://www.rolexmiddlesearace.com

5.2 More drama for Mike Golding's Ecover
At the end of day 1 of the final iShares Cup regatta in Almeria, Mike Golding's Ecover suffered serious damage to both hull and transom in a collision with LUNA. Mike Golding must be the unluckiest man on the iShares Cup circuit this year – a collision in the second round in Hyéres, a capsize in the fourth event in Kiel, another collision in Amsterdam and now a crash in Almeria which has left a big hole at the back of the port hull and serious transom damage. None of the collisions have been Ecover’s fault and in today’s incident with LUNA, skipper Jean-Christophe Mourniac found himself powerless to bear away as the tiller extension had become unlocked. As Mourniac pulled on the helm the tiller arm just got longer, and without any steerage the collision was inevitable. Asked if he felt like a marked man, Mike responded: “Well, it's two regattas in a row, our only salvation is that we weren't in the wrong. It's slightly unfair that the boat in the right always has worst damage! It puts a dent in the regatta but we've repaired the boat before and it can be done again. The boys are all really professional and I know it won't phase them.” To their credit the LUNA support crew immediately went to the aid of Ecover with the guys scrambling on to the bows to keep the stern out of water. It was a shame for LUNA who were on fire today winning the first and third race. Check out the Almeria video highlights on the new European Extreme Sailing Series website at: http://www.extremesailingserieseurope.com/

5.3 Paul Larsen Vestas Sailrocket - I'll cut to the chase...
Wed, 7 Oct 09: Yesterday we did a run in gusty conditions with recorded winds during the run ranging from 18.6 to 26.3 knots. The run started slow and peaked at 52.8 knots going past the timing hut... with no main flap on (approx. 4 knots still up our sleeve)... I got the flap on and pushed on trying to make this run count. At the end of the course we hit a small freak wave (a last remnant of the North bound Atlantic swell that wraps around the distant Pelican point and rolls back up the bay). The front end got 'boosted' and it appears that the main foil failed at the top inboard tip due to the centre of effort moving rapidly down with the boat fully loaded at around 48-50 knots. It didn't go as high as last time and turned 90 degrees to leeward... but it did the full flip and inverted landing. As I sat there looking at the clouds I congratulated myself on my choice of full-face KBC helmet and HANS neckbrace. They absorbed the impact well as my shoulders smashed the 'roll-bar' clean off as I flew out. I was fine. At that stage I thought... "That's it... no more. This boat has issues". I thought the boat had just lost pitch stability in a gust. Alex pointed to the main foil which was wobbling around in the air. I was quietly relieved. Component failures are easier to resolve. The upturned boat was dragged backwards to the shore with the wing dragging alongside trailing bits of broken flap. News as it happens at Paul's Blog: http://www.sailrocket.com/blogs

5.4 Slight setback for SYZ & CO
Oct 15th: Strong wind conditions had attracted several candidates trying to break the Lake's different speed records. The northerly "bise" was blowing at over 25 knots when the SYZ & CO sailed out of the Société Nautique de Genève's harbour yesterday in an attempt to break the 1 km speed record, with two reefs in the mainsail and the jib. After sailing upwind and showing that she was able to fly against the wind, the hydrofoil catamaran eased downwind to attack the record. Unfortunately, as she was flying at 30 knots, she hit a rogue wave and the fore portion of her starboard hull suddenly snapped. Fortunately, no one was hurt on board and the boat was kept afloat.

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