AsianYachting March
2005
News and Views
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CONTENTS
1.
Editorial - AsianYachting
Grand Prix rankings
2. "Unluckiest sailors of the month" - Olivier
de Kersauson and Geronimo
"Luckiest
sailor of the month" Mike Golding and Ecover
3. Austral - Asian News -
Want
to become a International Jury in Asia?
4. International News - VINCENT
RIOU on PRB wins the Vendee Globe in fine style
5.
World Speed Records - Ellen
MacArthur and B&Q have done it...
Browse
past News & Views - Web
Editions click on: March
April May
June
July
Aug
Sept
Oct
Nov
Dec
Jan
Feb
Christmas 04 Special
and the Asian Tsunami reports...
1. EDITORIAL
The
BMW RLIR
05 (See AY
Race
Reports) is the 6th AsianYachting
Grand Prix event
to be held this season. Points
are awarded to racing class podium winners over nine selected events (Malaysia
3, Hong Kong 2, Thailand 2, Singapore and Philippines with 1 a piece)
each year that fairly grades competing skippers
ability to run a successful
racing campaign in Asian waters. Peter
Ahern and YO! add 3 points to their
tally to reach 8 points but trail Neil
Pryde's HI-FIDELITY presently at the
top of the table with 11 points. The remaining 3 events are held in Hong
Kong, Philippines and Koh Samui and as YO!
and HI-FIDELITY
are not expected to compete there it remains to be seen if the Fred
Kinmonth/Nick Burns MANDRAKE
can improve on
their 5 points over the remaining events. Take
a peek at this seasons progressive point score or see how your favorite
racing team is shaping up on the AY
Rankings
http://asianyachting.com/news/Rankings0405.htm
Turns
out there was a scorers error in the Sportsboat Class
at the RLIR 05. The on again
and off again interpretation of the rules in event of a series tie has
finally resulted in a win for Scott Duncanson's Somtam Express
over the Royal Malaysian Navy's KDP11 not the other way round
as initially reported in the press and AY
Race
Reports. Go to the AY
Photo Library
to view a selection of BMW - RLIR
05 images at: http://asianyachting.com/photos/photo.htm?RLIR05
This
month sees the return of the Hong Kong
to San Fernando
Race starting on the 24th March after being cancelled back
in 2003 due to the SARS scare and the President's
Cup in the Philippines from the 30th March to the
2nd April. Sam Chan's Ffree Fire is once again the Line honours'
favourite and holder of the 49:55:12 monohull record is expected to face
fierce competition from Fred Kinmonth's Farr-Mills 51 Mandrake
and also be unwise to discount Robert Knight's DK46 Drumstick racing
there first San Fernando.
Seems
like big boat fever and breaking world records has struck the sailing
world. Go to the International and World Record sections to link up with
roundups of Vincent Riou's amazing Vendee Globe finish, Ellen MacArthur's
record breaking run, Alain Thébault's incredible craft l'Hydroptere,
Bruno Peyron's imminent finish on Orange 2 and much, much more...
Cheers for now
Capt Marty Rijkuris
2.
"Unluckiest sailors of the month"
It was with a heavy heart that Olivier de Kersauson announced an end to his race around the world. His massive trimaran Geronimo has more structural problems which has forced the French skipper to retire from the Oryx Quest 2005. “For security reasons it is not possible to go on and we have to quit now,” he said simply in a satellite phone interview.
After
a forced stop in Fremantle, Western Australia to repair damage to the
forward crossbeam, de Kersauson and his team headed once more into rough
waters south of Australia and made excellent progress across the Great
Australian Bight before discovering more delamination in the main crossbeam.
“When we started to push the boat hard we began to hear the noise
of the delamination in the main structure,” de Kersauson said. “It’s
impossible for us to go south in those conditions around Cape Horn. It
is very disappointing. We were recovering slowly in the race and it was
interesting for us to be chasing the leaders, but it’s too dangerous
to continue.” After taking shelter in calmer waters off Tasmania
the team has decided to head for Sydney, Australia where a complete damage
assessment will be carried out.
Geronimo’s
retirement from the Oryx Quest 2005 is a disappointment not only to the
race officials, but also to the thousands of sailors who logged on specifically
to witness the head-to-head duel between the Geronimo, the only maxi-trimaran
in the world, and the rest of the Oryx Quest fleet, all catamarans. Despite
the race being short-lived, sailing fans were able to follow one of the
greatest match races as Geronimo and Doha 2006 raced side by side the
length of the Indian Ocean. More at http://www.rivacom.fr
"Luckiest
sailor of the month"
It was an elated and jubilant Mike Golding on his Open 60 Ecover that sailed across the Vendee Globe finish line at Les Sables d'Olonne after 24,000-mile of racing and loosing the keel with only 50nm to go. This forced him to nurse the boat for the last 14 hours across the Bay of Biscay - with only flooded water ballast tanks, a staysail and a fully-reefed main and twin daggerboards as stabilisers for the stricken yacht. He is the first person to ever have finished an ocean race without a keel and when they crossed the finish line the relief was palpable and the reward immense. "Having this happen to me has made me realise just how important completing the course is to me" smiled Golding. "It's made third place feel pretty good." Full report at: www.mikegolding.com
3. Austral - Asian News
3.1
China joins the America's Cup race...
It has been widely reported by the media that chief executive of a Beijing-based
investment company Wang Chaoyong has announced a pioneering 32 million
euro ($42m) bid to challenge for sailing's most prestigious trophy, the
America's Cup. "China Team" is joining forces with French outfit
Le Defi for the 2007 event Wang added in Geneva "The joint venture
will create a vehicle to prepare ourselves to join the ranks of the America's
Cup challengers". Xavier de Lesquen, who led Le Defi's unsuccessful
challenge for the last two editions of sport's oldest trophy in 2000 and
2003, said he hoped to join the formal list of challengers with China
Team by the deadline of April 29. The bid will be based in Qingdao, the
site for the sailing events at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Full story:
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/SPORT/03/08/yachting.cup/
3.2
Oryx Quest 2005 - Rounding the Horn - Then there
is only 2...
March 8th: Brian Thompson's Doha 2006 was the first boat to round
Cape Horn and is now past the Falkland Islands. David Scully's Cheyenne
was 737 miles astern and closing in on Doha 2006 as they rounded
Cape Horn with a mile to spare but have broken their mast to become a
candidate for next months "Unluckiest Sailors Award". While
Tony Bullimore's Daedalus continues to take a pasting as they
skirt the edge of what was Hurricane Percy. Keep up with Brian Hancock's
Doha 2006 reports at http://www.oryxquest.com
or Daedalus at: www.teambullimore.com
and Cheyenne at: www.fossettchallenge.com
3.3 Want to become a International Jury in Asia?
Intending ISAF Race Officials should mark the following dates in your
diary - The Malaysian Yachting Association will be holding a ISAF Judging
Clinic in Lumut, Malaysia from 19 - 24 April 2005. Italy's Giorgio Lauto
will be conducting the session and enrollments can be made with Malik
Sulaiman by PH +60 125242882 Fax +60 56885967 E-mail Malik_2881@hotmail.com
The Yacht Racing Association of Thailand will be holding a International Judging Clinic from 7 - 9 September 2005 at the Samudhara Kila Aquatic Sports Centre in Cholburi. YRAT will also be hosting a International Judging Seminar from 12 - 15 September at the same venue. For more information contact Admiral Varong Songcharoen by Ph +66 2 4666687 Fax +66 2 4720852 or E-mail sail@yrat.or.th or go to: ISAF Race Officials Microsite from http://www.sailing.org/
3.4
Details
of the NEIL PRYDE RS:X windsurfer
ISAF and Neil Pryde have announced comprehensive details on the new equipment
for the windsurfer men and women events for the 2008 Olympic Games, including
the Board Specification, with Production and Distribution Programs. The
Neil Pryde RS:X will be on the market during May 2005, with an anticipated
1,600 boards to be built by the end of 2005. ISAF will ensure that the
first boards are distributed to countries which are actively involved
in Olympic windsurfing, with a priority given to countries who competed
at the 2004 Olympic Sailing Competition.
The board for Olympic competition and campaigning will be a high specification board, but alongside this a cheaper board using ASA technology may be available for training and youth development. Website with details of the new NP RS:X can be found at: http://www.neilpryde.com/en/2005/rsx/rsx_news_16feb05.php
3.5
Dare 2 be Different
- Charter a winner!
The much
talked about tandem mast, bi-plane rig has mainly been used to power up
experimental out and out speed machines. But now, Schionning Designs have
put this simple rig on the Radical Bay 8000
- a production 8m catamaran built right here in South East Asia. This
boat is already turning heads as its proving to be a very easy boat to
sail which produces a sparkling performance – as evidenced by winning
the multihull class at the recent Phuket Kings Cup 2004.
Want to know more? Try chartering one at Koh Samui by going to the Coco
Sailing website: http://www.cocosailing.com
3.6
Get a proper grip on life...
Fancy having the same sailing gloves that Bruno Peyron
uses? AsianYachting
gloves are not only the
fastest selling gloves in Asia and considered a must onboard the regions
top racing and cruising yachts but are destined to become the fastest
gloves around the world. Choose from the Southern Ocean, tropical two
finger-cut or full finger types now in stock. Sailing organisations should
also know that bulk orders of 100 or more can also have their own logo's
printed on the velcro tabs. Goto the AY
Shopping Mall at: http://asianyachting.com/Mall/AYGloves.htm
3.7 Warning to all offshore racers.
DK Yachts are warning all offshore racers to watch out
for when one of their Malaysian built Mum 30, Farr 36, 40, 52, 520 or
Mills DK46 lines up on your starting grid. Congratulations must go to
Richard Perini's Evolution for winning the Rolex Farr 40 Worlds
be it by a hair's breadth. Perini not only won the Australian Championship
and the Australian Farr 40 Circuit for 2004-2005, but he also won the
Mumm 30 Worlds in Canada in September 2004. Serious
Yachts for Serious Sailors
can be found at http://www.dkyachts.com
3.8
PGYC Tsunami and earthquake prediction on the web
Click on http://www.pgyc.org/pages/6/index.htm
to surf on over to some sites that provide timely Tsunami prediction and
earthquake monitoring resources on the Internet. Note: at this time tsunami
warnings are only available for countries bordering the Pacific Ocean.
Although the Philippines is no stranger to earthquakes (the archipelago
was largely created by the tectonic squabble between the Eurasian and
Pacific plates, forming the Philippine Plate as a distinct entity), tsunamis
are extremely rare and not very dramatic. For current and recent tsunami
warnings we recommend: U.S. National Weather Service Pacific Tsunami Warning
Center http://www.prh.noaa.gov/ptwc/bulletins.htm
For earthquake events during the past seven days we recommend: U.S. Geological
Survey Earthquake Hazards Program http://earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww/Maps/region/Asia.html
3.9
International Olympic Committee in Singapore
Singapore is hosting the 117th IOC Session from 2 to 9 July 2005 were
the fate of the 2012 Olympic Games will be decided. Paris, New York, Moscow,
London and Madrid are the five candidate cities for the 2012 Olympic Games
and all five cities are now beeing visited by the Evaluation Committee.
Each candidate city will be giving a one hour presentation to the IOC
at the Raffles City Convention Centre and IOC President, Jacques ROGGE
will announce the results of the vote. This is the first time in the history
of Singapore sports that a meeting for the highest level of sports administrators
is held in Singapore. A new website has been created at http://www.singapore2005ioc.org.sg/
3.10
Boating in China, anyone?
The 2005 China International Boat Show is to be held from April 8 - 11
at the historic Shanghai Exhibition Centre. With a significant development
of yachting facilities along its thousands of lakes, rivers and extensive
coastline, China is seeing a growing number of privately owned pleasure
craft and a emerging marine industry. Media release at http://www.boatingoz.com.au/news05/0302b.htm
4. International News
4.1
WINNER of VENDEE GLOBE 2004/05 in record time...
VINCENT RIOU on PRB, after covering the 23,680 nm strait line
distance in 87 days 10 hrs 47 mins and 55 secs at an average theoretical
speed of 11,28 knots (22 km/hr). Using the same boat although heavily
modified Vincent has broken Michel Desjoyeaux (PRB) previous 93 day record
by 5 days 17 hours where he previously worked on the shore backup team.
Eleven skippers have finished, two still in the race and 7 have retired.
This grueling nature of the race is considered the pinnacle of single-handed
racing and the extraordinary closeness of the leaders throughout the race
has kept followers glued to their computer screens. More at: www.vendeeglobe.org
4.2
Quantum's FusionM
gets with the strength!
Asian sailors may be interested to know that one of the world's leading
edge sailmaking factories can be found in their own backyard. Since it's
formal introduction Quantum's FusionM
sails have taken the world by storm. For
a product update, including setting-up and gybing asymmetrical spinnakers
on boats with ‘conventional’ spinnaker poles, plus an all
important article on "The fine art of Crewing"
and the results of a recently held racing rules question and answer session
with International juror Graeme Owens goto: http://asianyachting.com/news/QuantumSails.htm
4.3
Go Bruno Go...
Orange II has made her way through the ridge of high pressure,
which has been slowing her down off the Cape Verde Islands. They still
have a lead of more than 9 days over the record but there is another hurdle
ahead, the Azores high. Will the new record be 50 days or less? One of
the most amazing things these giant sailing machines traveling at 30 knots
is there ability to play yo-yo with the weather systems in the deep south.
They caught a low below NZ that carried them right across the Pacific
to Cape Horn and beyond making Orange II a time machine. It's
incredible! Follow them to the end at: www.maxicatamaran-orange.com
4.4
The eagle has landed again...
Steve Fossett, skipper/owner of Cheyenne the present holder of
the Round the World, non stop, crewed sailing record, has become the first
person to make a nonstop, solo flight around the world without refueling,
after nearly three days in the air. http://www.fossettchallenge.com
4.5
Featured AY Grand Prix Yacht Brokerage
1976 Sydney
- Hobart Race winner - Previously
Aussie registered Piccolo is considered one
of the original Farr 1104's to be built in Lake Maquarie by John
Pickles which helped put young Kiwi designer Bruce Farr onto the road
to fame and glory. A brief history, recent maintenance plan and additional
equipment added plus a summary of the 1976 Hobart Race can be found at:
http://asianyachting.com/boats/Farr1104.htm
5. World Speed Records
5.1
SHE'S DONE IT
Ellen MacArthur has broken the non-stop singlehanded round the world record
set just a year ago by Francis Joyon. Ellen sailed her 75 foot trimaran
B&Q across the finish line off Ushant on Monday 7 Feb in a time of
71 days 14 hrs 18 mins and 33 secs, shaving over 1 day 8 hrs off Joyon's
record.
Immediately
after finishing Ellen said, "I cannot believe it, I absolutely cannot
believe it. It hasn't sunk in yet. It's been an absolutely unbelievable
journey both physically and mentally. I'm absolutely overjoyed."
B&Q sailed 27,354 miles through the water at an average speed of 15.9
knots.
Immediately after Ellen finished the previous record-holder, Francis Joyon said, "I always said that Ellen was a serious contender, and I can see today that she has decided to prove me right. The mere fact that she was able to sail around the world non-stop was quite an exploit, but to smash the record at the same time fully deserves my warmest congratulations. Full account at: www.teamellen.com
5.2
New cross Channel record at 34 minutes and 24 seconds.
09Feb05: Alain Thébault's l'Hydroptere beat the 19 mile
Channel sailing record between Dover (UK) and Calais (Fr) in 34 mins 24
secs, averaging 33,3 knts. More news on this futuristic craft at: http://www.hydroptere.com/
and amazing pictures thanks to G. Martin-Raget at http://www.martin-raget.com/eng/actu/detail.cfm?DOC_ID=R-112004-175608&init=1
5.3
BASS STRAIT CONQUERED in a LASER DINGHY!
One of the most ferocious pieces of water in the world was today conquered
by Australian sailing Olympic Bronze medallist, Dr Michael Blackburn,
who sailed his 4.2 metre Laser Dinghy from Stanley in Northern Tasmania
115 nautical miles to Tidal Beach in Norman Bay, near Wilson's Promontory,
Victoria in 13.5 hours. The perfect weather window opened for the Sydney
sailor, with winds of 15-20 knots powering his tiny craft, with pocket-handkerchief
7 square metres of sail. More at Blackburn's website: www.sailfitter.com
5.4
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