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Welcome to the Wonderful World of AsianYachting New Year January 2008 News and Views

Raimon Land - Down by the River

Distribution: Emailed to over 2700 recipients on all points of the compass. Known to be read by sailors as far north as Iceland to the extremes of the Southern Ocean. Also found hidden away (For future consumption) on computers operated by some of Europe's business elite to visiting royalty at posh oriental Clubs in the far east.

AsianYachting.com is now a major yachting news provider in Asia which averages over 2000 page views per day.

CONTENTS

1. EDITORIAL - New Year TEAM NEWS - Neil Pryde's HI FI Team Pryde Taking the Racing Class to New Dimensions - New Feature monthly Photo Gallery - Whose going to which regatta? Comments at AsianYachting blogsite
2 . AUSTRAL - ASIAN NEWS - Sydney Hobart Roundup - Clipper fleet Asian bound - Boat Asia back in Singaporean hands
Up next - Royal Langkawi Int Regatta (5 - 11 Jan), Singapore Straits Regatta (16-19 Jan), Phang Nga Bay Regatta over Chinese New Year (Feb 7-10th)
3 . INTERNATIONAL NEWS - Sail Melbourne hosts World Championships, Finn Gold Cup and more...
Up next - WORLD'S BEST heading to KEY WEST - Thomas Coville is off and running
4. WORLD SPEED RECORDS - Hugo Boss sets new 24 hour distance world record - New WORLD RECORD for JOYON - SAILROCKET posts 42.4-knot top speed - Who will break the 50kt barrier - Loïck Peyron - Open 60's faster than ever before
5. "Unluckiest sailors of the month" - Open 60's having a hard time of it... Drama on the high seas - Barcelona World Race - Mast manufacturers Lorima reply to critics... ARC cruisers were not spared in the Atlantic

Goto Archived AY News & Views and Race Reports 2007-08 2006-07 2005-06 2004-05 2003-04 2002-03 2001-02 2000-01 98-99

1. EDITORIAL - New Year TEAM NEWS

Taking the Racing Class to New Dimensions
Incessant phone ringing woke me from the post AY Boxing Day BBQue slumber to let me know that Neil Pryde's newly converted HI FI Team Pryde was making a pit stop at Admiral Marina in Port Dickson on its way to the Royal Langkawi Int Regatta (5 - 11 Jan) Wow! and what a conversion it has turned out to be. (See after shots). It looks nothing like it used to with two distinct chine's running along the hull, making it very hard to identify anything other than the mast and boom that may have belonged to the earlier Farr 52 OD that it once was.

Whose going to which regatta?
With the introduction of Chris Meads swish looking Corby 43 Full Metal Jacket at the Kings Cup last year and the arrival of Ben Copley's new Club Swan 42 Katsu, the racing class is rapidly expanding and taking on a new dimension by introducing shear out and out racing machines. It's anybodies guess just how much longer Frank Pong's 75ft R/P Jelik and Ray Roberts DK 46 Quantum Racing will remain at the top of the 2007-08 AY Grand Prix Championships. Aussie Peter Ahern returns in Langkawi with his Farr 40 YO!2 and the Royal Malaysian Navy are fielding the Farr 520 Zuhrah and the DK46 under RMN-JB. With mainland China's Adam Ng's Judel/Vrolijk 52 Microlab Moonlight Shadow and Vincent Chan's Titan 36 Matahari boosting the numbers, the decision to bring the dates forward to improve the standard of racing class entrants is clearly paying dividends.

Bill Bremner's TP52 Foxy Lady IV has arrived in Singapore for Christmas and the lengthy task of putting the keel on, re-rigging and other preparatory jobs before launching are underway in earnest. They are very happy and the crew are looking forward to putting her through her paces and getting used to their new racing stead. Bill says "Maybe not ready for Langkawi but definitely for Singapore Straits at end of Jan. It's going to be a great season in SE Asia. 3 x TPs + Pryde's new Welbourne-ized Farr 52 + Mandrake, Jelik & Quantum Racing. Woohoo!!" You can follow their progress with photos on the Sailing Anarchy Forum "Come on Tuff-Luff - Spill the Beans"

Who is going to Singapore Straits Regatta in January (16-19th) or the Phang Nga Bay Regatta over Chinese New Year (Feb 7-10th). After claiming 3rd place overall and Class A victory, plus enduring another agonizing finish to the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race four days ago will Ray Roberts be able to turn his crew around and front up in Asia so early in the New Year? The action then swings over to Hong Kong for the Rolex China Sea Race (21 March start) and the President's Cup (21 - 29 March) in the Philippines before moving across to the Gulf of Thailand for the Top of the Gulf Regatta (1st -5th May) and 2007-08 Season ending finale at Koh Samui Regatta (1st - 7th June dates now confirmed). It is our intention to keep the present momentum going by posting a transcript on the Capt Marty - AsianYachting blogsite at http://asian-yachting.blogspot.com/ and invite everyone to comment and start a forum on who is likely to attend which event.

Those concerning themselves with end of year website statistics and global rankings will have noticed that over the last few months AsianYachting has progressively come down from over 2 million ++ place on the Alexa Ranking to a respectable 647,000 today. Whilst the unique visitor numbers on some days increased by only a few hundred, the Page Views peaked at 7517 on Dec 12th and with everyone digging through the Photo Gallery for their free Christmas presents a whopping 45,217 hits were recorded on a single day. This may not be considered very high compared to other International yachting websites but our main aim has always been on sending out valuable News from Asian events rather than contest the Top of the Hits game. We may have finally found a niche in the market and as we are expected to keep in line with current trends to improve the rankings, we have decided to introduce a monthly Photo Gallery and share the images collected whilst rummaging around the web and compiling this January News and Views. Come on in and take a look at what we get to see at http://asianyachting.com/photos/photo.htm?0801Jan plus at the same time help us improve our rankings with a New Year bonus.
Cheers to ya all for the New Year
Capt Marty Rijkuris.

2. AUSTRAL - ASIAN NEWS

2.1 Rolex Sydney Hobart Round up
The Sydney maxi Wild Oats XI became only the second boat in the race's 63-year history to take three successive line honours when she crossed the line at 10.24am on Friday 28th Dec, nearly three hours outside her own record. The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia declared Roger Sturgeon's US STP65 Rosebud overall winner of the race on corrected time, the third American boat and first in 30 years to have won the race. Due to overnight calms, variable and transitional winds in Storm Bay and the Derwent River many skippers were denied the chance of of winning the Rolex watch and the Tattersall's Cup for the overall IRC winner. Sturgeon's Rosebud had an early evening finish and was tied up at Elizabeth St Pier as Ray Roberts' Cookson 50 Quantum Racing, Syd Fischer's TP52 Ragamuffin and Geoff Ross Reichel/Pugh 55 Yendys were rounding Tasman Island 40 miles away into a wall of uncertainty. The three finished closely under spinnakers before a wafting south-easterly just after 3:00am 29th, with Quantum Racing beating Yendys across the line by two seconds and Ragamuffin another 6min 42sec behind, beating them both on corrected time. In the end, Rosebud won on IRC corrected time by 1hr 21min 33sec from Ragamuffin with another 36 minutes to Quantum Racing. All the news, class results and photos at: http://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com More fantastic images at: http://www.regattanews.com/photos.asp?eventid=178

2.2 Clipper fleet Asian bound
The ten boat international line up competing on the Clipper 07-08 Race are set to restart in Perth, Australia on 1st January. The teams are hoping that the ‘Fremantle Doctor’ kicks in as the restart promises to be an exciting one with close quarter racing in Fremantle’s Inner Harbour and along Perth’s city beaches before entering the Indian Ocean again. The race will restart at 1400 local time with the action beginning at midday. With 27 nationalities amongst the 400 crew and 13 different nations sailing on Uniquely Singapore alone, the Clipper 07-08 is truly a global event. Up to 17 crew members from varying backgrounds pay to sail on each yacht at any one time as they put their everyday lives on hold for up to ten months to take part in the round the world race. The remaining legs of the Clipper 07-08 route: Fremantle - Singapore - Qingdao - Hawaii - California - Panama - Jamaica - New York - Halifax - Cork - Finish back in Liverpool. For all the news, boat blogs and tracking goto: http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/

2.3 Place TOTGR 08 firmly into your racing campaign
Discussions are underway to include the Top of the Gulf Regatta into the AY Grand Prix Championships if sufficient racing class yachts goto Pattaya (1st - 5th May) and join in the fun they have been having at Ocean marina all these years. Foreign boats planning their 2008 campaign should consider combining the TOTGR in early May with the Koh Samui Regatta to be held early June. Ocean Marina can take boats up to 3 meters and plans are afoot for re-dredging prior to the regatta. OMYC will offer dry storage FOC for boats up to 5m draft and weighing less than 18 tonnes prior to the regatta. Boats with drafts over 3m can be moored outside with ferry service from the Marina, so no need for anyone to get wet feet! For further info visit the regatta site http://www.topofthegulfregatta.com

2.4 Boat Asia back in Singaporean hands
BoatAsia organiser Suntec Singapore has exited the event management business by selling its entire show portfolio to Singaporean businessman Herman Ho. He was founder of TechMex Event Production, a company that specialises in staging mega events in the IT industry. He divested TechMex to take on the full-time challenge of managing his new entity, TMX Show Productions, which he formed to take over the newly acquired shows from Suntec. The new company will retain all existing staff. Ho's wealth of experience in the show sector and his personal interest in boating combine well for him to pursue this objective. http://www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20071030093707ibinews.html

2.5 Call for papers: 'Global alignment in marine operations.'
The International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) has announced a call for papers for the 16th annual seminar to be held in Malaysia in November 2008 with the theme 'Global alignment in marine operations'. Abstracts of about 250 words are welcome from members and non-members alike from all over the world and should be sent to events@imca-int.com by February 15, 2008. "Our theme covers the need for common approaches worldwide in marine construction covering operations, equipment and personnel," said IMCA's technical director Jane Bugler. Hotel Nikko in Kuala Lumpur will be the venue for 2008's seminar, which will be hosted by the IMCA's Asia-Pacific Section. The previous year's seminar, held in Paris, attracted over 350 delegates from 25 countries. All four technical divisions - diving, marine, offshore survey and remote systems & ROV - combine to organise the event, which will involve presentations, workshops, informal receptions and an exhibition.

2.6 Now Open for Sailing - Koh Chang, Thailand
Sunsail has expanded even further into Asia by launching a new seasonal base in the eastern Gulf of Thailand. Based in the province of Trat, the new base offers some amazing sailing from October to April throughout the archipelago including Koh Chang National Park and around 50 other spectacular islands. Click here to learn more about about this spectacular cruising ground. For the less experienced, they also operate a RYA Sailing School offering 5 day sailing courses from their Phuket base or join a MileCatcher voyage to gain some valuable sea miles. For many years now they have led the way in opening up new SE Asian destinations and are proud to give you a chance to discover some of the most intriguing and unspoiled countries in the Asian region. Check them out by Calling +66 76 239057 Fax: +66 76 238940 Email: sales@sunsailasia.com or visit http://www.sunsailasia.com

2.7 Wot Rocket aiming to crack 50kts
The Wot Rocket is half sailboat and half sailplane; a nine metre long canoe style hull with two tiny foils, each about a sixth of the size of a Moth foil and a nine metre rigid sail, then a transverse beam out to an aerodynamic twin pod crew compartment. The difference between this sailboat/sail plane and any that have come before it, is that it will be attempting to break through the water speed barrier using a technology as yet untried on any sailing craft - super cavitation. Sean Langman conceived the design four years ago before taking it to Andy Dovell the Naval Architect for further design work. Tacka (Martin Thompson) got wind of it. He was excited and pushed me to get it going again. He interested Graeme Wood in the project and he decided to take a half share. So the headline sponsors are Wot If and Noakes Boat Yard. In a task split, similar to offshore power boating, Thompson will be in the back controlling the pitch foils, Langman will be upfront steering and controlling the mainsheet and trimming the sail. ‘The craft is almost finished. All the instrumentation and controls are in place and some time in January we will stick Wot Rocket in the water to see if it works’

2.8 Shipping the boat overseas?
Dockwise Yacht Transport (DYT) and its Australian agents Aurora Global Logistics are adding two extra voyages from the Mediterranean to Brisbane, Australia, to complement the already existing float-on/float-off yacht transport service to the South Pacific. The extra voyages in March and October will give clients better options to benefit from the cruising seasons in the South Pacific. A complete schedule of voyages is available at http://www.yacht-transport.com As destination offerings may increase or change, clients are encouraged to check back periodically for updates.

2.9 Raimon Land - Down by the Riverside...
Few real estate companies in Asia enjoy the success of public-listed Bangkok-based luxury property developer Raimon Land. The company has positioned itself as the developer of choice for buyers and investors who seek the best in lifestyle developments that posses a excellent track record of delivering quality residential projects. From Bangkok to Pattaya and Phuket the company has projects in all the most sought-after areas which proudly achieve high yield holiday rentals through their professional management team. One aspect that distinguishes Raimon Land from its competitors is the company’s clear commitment to lifestyle events and have made a strong commitment to the yachting scene in Thailand by sponsoring the Phang Nga Bay Regatta, Top of the Gulf Regatta, Evason Phuket Race Week the prestigious Phuket King's Cup Regatta and the Koh Samui Regatta More at: www.raimonland.com or goto AY Real-Estate page...

2.10 Combining Global Superyacht events
The Superyacht Cup has announced a new joint venture with The Phuket Invitational Superyacht Rendezvous, Thailand. The Superyacht Cup has been organizing these specialized events for yachts 26 meters and above for 12 years, with the forthcoming 2008 scheduling including the Transatlantic Challenge starting in Antigua in April, the Palma event in June, the Antigua event in December, and now the Phuket Invitational in December. -- http://www.thesuperyachtcup.com

2.11 Passage of law in Korea will promote marina development
Under a new law, Korean provinces now have the freedom to develop their own coastlines without gaining permission from the federal government. According to a story on Korea.net, the recently passed Special Law of Coastal Areas Development allows local authorities to go ahead with plans to develop manufacturing and other facilities in order to promote new industries. South Gyeongsangnam-do (Province) and Jeollanam-do have said they will move ahead with development plans that include marinas and boatbuilding facilities. The marinas will contain berths for up to 2,000 yachts. The long-term plan is to turn a chain of southern islands into a tourist destination with marinas and other yachting businesses. Before the passage of the law, the Korea National Park Service had exclusive authority over maritime construction, including marinas, sightseeing routes and observatories. Now, each province will be able to develop its coastline according to local mandates. The south coast's boat building industry is also expected to grow with the new development plans.

2.12 AY Sailing Gloves for all occasions
Keeping with the durable features that made the original AsianYachting gloves a favourite amongst sailors all over the world, we have now added a third layer of grippy Kevlar protection, to the two layers of durable gray Amara. This extra palm reinforcement not only provides positive grip but also extra protection when handling modern synthetic ropes. We also have XS size available for the kids, so whether you are a weekend racer or competing on the world stage we have something for you. We can also supply in bulk to yacht clubs and event sponsors with their choice of colour and print companies name with promotional logo on the wide wristed Velcro tabs. Check out the new range at: http://asianyachting.com/Mall/AYGloves.htm

3. INTERNATIONAL NEWS

3.1 Sail Melbourne hosts World Championships, Finn Gold Cup and more...
Sail Melbourne, the annual international ISAF Grade 1 Olympic class regatta held in January each year, will kick start 2008 with a number of world championship titles, including those in the colourful and quick 49er and 29er skiffs, to be hosted by Sorrento Sailing Couta Boat Club from 2-9 January. With 13 nations qualified for the Beijing Games, including Australia, and a place automatically going to host nation China, the five remaining places will be decided at this World’s, putting the pressure on a number of international competitors. Some countries will select their Olympic representatives in Melbourne too; the game is on!

One of the greatest showdowns in Olympic history is set to take place when the Finn Gold Cup (world championship) gets underway at Sail Melbourne from January 20-29 on the challenging waters of Port Phillip. To be held simultaneously with the Finn Silver Cup (the Finn Youth World Championship) and hosted by Black Rock Yacht Club, one of the world’s most outstanding Olympic sailors will feature in a showdown for a place in the British Olympic team for Beijing in 2008 and for the prize of the Gold Cup. Ben Ainslie, gold medallist in the Laser at Sydney 2000 Games and in the Finn at the 2004 Athens Games, will take on fellow British sailor Ed Wright, who feels he can defeat the double medallist for selection.

Despite the recent decision by ISAF to drop the Tornado from the 2012 Olympics Some of world’s fastest catamaran sailors will race on Westernport Bay next month when Somers Yacht Club hosts the Tornado Asia Pacific Championship in tandem with the Australian Championship from 4-9 January as part of the lead up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics. A Sail Melbourne event, it has attracted more than 40 entrants. Crews are expected from the Netherlands, France, Belgium, Austria, Spain and Great Britain, as well as Australia’s World Ranked No. 1 pair of Darren Bundock and Glenn Ashby and others. Follow the action at: http://www.sailmelbourne.com.au

3.2 Warning to all offshore racers.
DK Yachts are warning all offshore racers to sit up and take notice when one of their World Champion Mumm 30, Farr 40 or Mills DK46 lines up on the starting grid. They just keep turning up and sailing away with all the major prizes. First and second overall for Ray Roberts on Quantum Racing at the Raja Muda Regatta and Kings Cup respectively has lifted them to second place in the AYGP Championships. After a close rock hopping battle down the Tasmanian coast Paul Buchholz DK46 Extasea took Line Honours and Matt Hannaford's Dekadence third place in the Melbourne Hobart Race. These successful results confirm that DK46's are head and shoulders above the rest, be it for offshore or inshore racing. Have you ordered one yet? Serious Yachts for Serious Sailors can be found at http://www.dkyachts.com

3.3 WORLD'S BEST heading to KEY WEST
The entry list for Acura Key West 2008, presented by Nautica is already long on talent and strong on international and national representation. AKWRW is so much more than a numbers game, but an early look at the current entries reveals some eye-popping stats. 50 foreign entries from no less than 18 different countries. New York's 25 and California's 18 entrants head a list representing 30 different US states and eight 2007 class champions have already signed up to defend their titles. North America's annual gathering of international grand prix boats, high profile classes and sailing legends takes place over January 21 - 25. Keep up with the news at: http://www.premiere-racing.com/keywest08/pages/KW08_news.htm

3.4 Ericsson 3 ready for launching soon
Stockholm, SWE (December 14, 2007) The construction of Ericsson Racing Team's boat for the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 is now complete. With less than 300 days remaining to the race start in Alicante, Spain, "Ericsson 3" left the shipyard in Kista on December 13 to be transported to the training base in Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. Brazilian skipper Torben Grael will lead the two boat testing with the new boat and Ericsson 2, formerly called ABN Amro One, which the team had acquired after it won the 2005-2006 Volvo Ocean Race. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/2xnqk6

3.5 Quantum Sails just keep getting better!
Quantum Sail Design Group designs, engineers and manufactures sails for racers and cruisers who demand the highest levels of quality and performance. Have you ever noticed that more and more photos of winning boats at top events are wearing the familiar green Q on their sails. That is because winning sailors now prefer top quality products supported by a high level of personalized customer service, recognized expertise, professionalism and a company with the passion for developing the sport of sailing. Ray Roberts on Quantum Racing is a shining example as they have won nearly everything in their path both in Australia and Asian waters over the last few years. The fastest sails are now available at 55 lofts throughout the world. So now, more than ever, you can count on Fusion M delivering great boat-speed and reliability. Goto: http://asianyachting.com/news/QuantumSails.htm

3.6 Glenn Bourke departs as CEO of Volvo Ocean Race
Portsmouth, England: Glenn Bourke has resigned from his position as CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race. Forty-seven-year-old Bourke's decision, a very difficult one he said, was taken for family reasons. He has held the position since November 2002 and helped establish the Volvo as the world's leading offshore ocean race. Bourke will relocate from England to take up a position in his native Australia in the New Year. "Glenn has done a fantastic job for the Volvo Ocean Race and for Volvo since 2002 and it's very sad to see him leave," said Gerry Keaney, Chairman of the Board of Volvo Event Management and Senior Vice President of Volvo Car Corporation. More on that: http://www.volvooceanrace.org Meanwhile the new course through Asia was announced recently. An interesting bit of commercialism with a back tracking leg to take in the Middle East (Yet to be disclosed) and stopovers in cities that front up the cash and promise to have a entry in the next race.
Leg 1: Alicante-Cape Town (6,990 miles)
Leg 2: Cape Town-Kochi (4,390 miles)
Leg 3 - Kochi-Middle East (1,660 miles)
Leg 4 - Middle East to Singapore (3,530 miles)
Leg 5 - Singapore to Qingdao (2,450 miles)
Leg 6 - Qingdao to Rio de Janiero (12,100 miles)
Leg 7 - Rio de Janiero-Boston (4,750 miles)
Leg 8 - Boston-Galway (2,630 miles)
Leg 9 - Galway to Gothenberg (980 miles)
Leg 10 - Gothenberg to Stockholm (500 miles)
Leg 11 - Stockholm-St Petersburg (380 miles)

3.7 Skysails to power ships
The first new cargo ship to harness wind power in well over a century was launched in Hamburg, with the maiden journey taking the 10,000-tonne MS Beluga Skysails across the Atlantic to Houston. The pioneering 132-metre long MV Beluga SkySails was ceremonially launched in the northern German port ahead of its maiden voyage across the Atlantic to Venezuela in early January. Pulled by a huge kite to catch strong winds up to 300 metres above the surface, the 500,000 euro ($837,200) SkySails system is projected to cut fuel costs by about 20 per cent - or about $1,600 per day. 'The shipping industry emits 800 million tonnes of CO2 now and that will rise to over 1 billion tonnes in five years,' said Niels Stolberg, the chief executive of Beluga Shipping GmbH that helped develop the system. More than 450 people crowded into the harbour and on to the ship on a freezing afternoon to witness the launching and watch the giant white sail tethered to a 15-metre high mast near its bow unfold, just above the deck in a gentle breeze. If the Beluga performs well on wind power and if the high-flying kites dramatically cut its fuel consumption, then the age of sail will be back.

3.8 Thomas Coville is off and running
Thomas Coville crossed the official start line of the single-handed round the world record attempt on 17th Dec at 18 hours 43 minutes and 21 seconds UTC. The maxi-trimaran Sodeb'o set out with two reefs and pushed by an E/NE'ly wind of nearly 30 knots. "The window? It really is a nice weather window, but it doesn’t come free; one has to go and look for it." "Sodeb' O and Idec? Difficult to compare boats in different sailing conditions. What is going to be interesting, it is to compare average speeds in the same winds. Obviously, our boats have evolved a lot since Ellen’s; you’d have to talk to the architects, Nigel Irens and Benoît Cabaret who designed both our boats. One couldn’t have imagined averages like these 3 or 4 years ago." News in French at http://www.sodebo-voile.com and follow their progress with same time comparisons with Ellen and Joyon directly at: http://netandsea.dnsalias.com/sodebo2007/

4. WORLD SPEED RECORDS

4.1 Hugo Boss sets new 24 hour distance world record
One year ago, Alex was being rescued from his sinking boat in the Southern Ocean. 12 months on, he has set a new 24 hour distance world record in roughly about the same place. Alex Thomson and his co-skipper Andrew Cape have broken the 24 hour distance record for a 60 foot monohull yacht. Competing in the Barcelona World Race aboard HUGO BOSS, the pair covered 501.27 miles nautical miles (nm) between 11.15 and 11.15 GMT from 6th-7th December, at an average speed of 20.8 knots. Thomson already holds the 24 hour distance record for a single-handed sailor, having covered 468.72 nautical miles in a day on his previous yacht, which he lost in the Southern Ocean last year. "It's a great feeling to have set a new world record," commented an elated Alex Thomson this morning. "When I broke the record on my last boat in 2003, the average wind speed was 35 knots, compared to just 23 knots which we have experienced over the past 24 hours. The new HUGO BOSS is a beast - there is no doubt about it!"

WSSRC has a new website, see http://www.sailspeedrecords.com/ The search function -- bottom menu bar -- is a great records research tool.

4.2 New WORLD RECORD for JOYON
(Day 19 - December 12, 2007 - 14:00 UTC) Francis Joyon onboard the 97-foot IDEC trimaran has broken the singlehanded 24-hour distance record, after covering 616.07 mile at an average speed of 25.7 knots. The record is subject to ratification from the World Sailing Speed Record Council (WSSRC). The previous best distance was set in 2006 by Yvan Bourgnon (SUI) onboard the 60ft trimaran "Brossard" that clocked 610.45 nm at an average speed of 25.76 knots. On 29th Dec, Francis Joyon rounded Cape Horn and is now headed north to the finish line. Joyon's time has shattered that of Ellen MacArthur who took 44 days, 23 hrs and 36 mins to reach that same point. Joyon did it in 35 days 12 hrs and 36 mins, an astounding lead of 9 days and 11 hrs over what was previously the best time for that distance sailed solo. Joyon has traveled 17,900 miles with an average speed of 21 knots. Just the South and North Atlantic Oceans remain in his quest to establish a new singlehanded round the world record. Get on the pace at: http://www.trimaran-idec.com

4.3 SAILROCKET posts 42.4-knot top speed
The aim of the SAILROCKET project is to set the outright world speed sailing record and become the fastest sailing vessel ever, and on Nov 27th 2007, SAILROCKET leapt into the speed sailing arena and posted a 42.4-knot top speed in Namibia. What is most impressive is only four days earlier, the craft had broken in half on this same stretch of beach. With visas and funding running out for the team, they worked around the clock to repair her in the slim hope that the wind would blow on their last day. Walvis Bay didn't disappoint, and on the final run, they rattled off the impressive run that is shown here in this 4:31 minute video http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/media/07/1203

4.4 Who will break the 50kt barrier
The World Sailing Speed Record Council announces the ratification of two new World Records. Alexandre Caizergues (FRA) set a new outright world kite sailing speed record on October 9, 2007 when he hit 47.92 knots on the 501 metre course at Luderitz, Namibia (previous record: 41.79kts). Sjouke Bredenkamp (RSA) set a new outright world women's kite sailing speed record on October 9, 2007 when she hit 42.35 knots on the 501 metre course at Luderitz, Namibia (previous record: 37.24kts). This was also the fastest speed ever recorded by a woman sailor. -- http://www.sailspeedrecords.com/

4.5 Loïck Peyron - Open 60's faster than ever before
Despite being handicapped to varying degrees, the top trio on the Transat Ecover BtoB certainly weren't wasting any time and in the end the deficits on the podium are very small. The winner Loïck Peyron (Gitana Eighty) only took one day more than the reference time of the Transat Jacques Vabre (2005: 13d 09h 19'), a race which is predominantly downwind! This would suggest that the new prototypes designed for the next Vendée Globe have gained even more in terms of performance and power... All the shore crews are going to have a lot of work over the winter however, in order to make their machines more reliable and optimise the life on board as the sailors make no bones about the fact that the comfort is more than a congruous element on these 60 footers, which slam considerably against the wind. 14d 09h 13' 25'' for Loïck Peyron (Gitana Eighty) is also two days less than on the previous return race between Bahia and La Rochelle in 2003, that Mike Golding won in a time of 16d 14h 24'... In short, the pace has been particularly intense and none of the solo sailors could have imagined easing off the pace to simply qualify for the Vendée Globe...

5. "Unluckiest sailors of the month"

5.1 Open 60's having a hard time of it...
The Transat Ecover BtoB fleet hammering upwind in steep seas has taken its toll. It’s worth noting the vast amount of damage on all the boats and the fact that these problems concern almost all the different positions onboard: rig (dismasting of Brit Air, broken stay on Maisonneuve), sails (delaminated jibs on Generali, lost sails on Maisonneuve and Spirit of Canada, Aviva hole in the mainsail and eventually dismasted), appendages (ram that cants the keel has broken forcing Safran to lock the keel), electronics (mast wand ripped off on Gitana Eighty), ballast tanks (Groupe Bel, Akena Vérandas, Ecover), halyard (Cervin EnR), engine and automatic pilots (Ecover forced to retire), personal injury (infected hand for Jean-Baptiste Dejeanty) and even a collision (Foncia collided with a fishing boat)...

5.2 Drama on the high seas - Barcelona World Race
In a heartbreaking turn of events, skippers Vincent Riou and Sébastien Josse aboard PRB are out of the Barcelona World Race. The team which had been alternating the race lead with Paprec-Virbac 2 over three weeks since the beginning, lost the top three metres of its mast. Both skippers are safe and made their way to Cape Town under jury rig. Commiserations for PRB have come in from the rest of the fleet, with each of the skippers sad to see such a strong competitor fall victim to the fates and equally relieved to hear there have been no injuries.

Guillermo Altadill and Jonathan McKee on Estrella Damm blew their A2 kite and then found after a broach under a smaller spinnaker that their starboard rudder had entirely broken across one side. Their rudders are transom-mounted, so they took the damaged one out and relaminated and re-attached it, a pretty heroic effort in big seas; it took six hours. The next day they contacted the shore team to report serious damage to their port rudder. In this separate incident, the damage to the port rudder can not be fixed on board the boat and Altadill and McKee made the decision to divert 620 miles to Cape Town to effect repairs. With the assistance of their shore team it was decided to retire Estrella Damm from the race in Cape Town. The serious consideration of safety for the skippers and the boat rejoining the race at its most perilous stage has to be taken into account.

11 Dec: Skipper Jérémie Beyou onboard the fourth-placed IMOCA 60 Delta Dore informed Sylvie Viant, Race Director of the Barcelona World Race that his boat has been dismasted. Both he and co-skipper Sidney Gavignet are unhurt and safe onboard and the boat itself is structurally intact. Just minutes after the incident Jérémie stated "We have just been dismasted, we have wind from 300°, 25 knots increasing to 35 knots sometimes, and waves not too bad at about 4 metres. We were sailing with one reef in the mainsail and staysail (small headsail). The mast seems to have fallen backwards." The boat's position at the time of dismasting was 47°00 S 033° 25 E, nearly a thousand miles south east from South Africa, drifting slowly at between 1 and 2 knots east. The reason for the dismasting is unknown at this time

Skipper Roland Jourdain on Veolia Environnement made the decision to divert to the Kergulen Islands following engine difficulties. Jourdain told his shore team he was happy to have discovered such a beautiful part of the world, but he's anxious to get back into the race before too many miles are lost. Co skipper Jean-Luc Nélias describes the events after leaving the Kergulen Islands: "We were very quiet on the boat last night (not pushing too hard), because we know it will not be speed that will help bring us back to the leader, it will be a weather forecast (sailing in different conditions) or a problem on the other boats. So we were quietly sailing downwind, with a big gennaker and a full mainsail. And suddenly there was a big cloud and a puff and the wind increased a lot. I went on deck to ease the main sheet. Then we hit the bottom of the wave and the boat stopped and the mast broke and that's all. We worked for one hour cutting away the mast from the boatand then took a little bit of rest. This morning we built a jury rig with the boom and now we have a couple of weeks before we reach Australia, maybe Perth or Albany, we're not sure yet. Maybe we'll need a tow at the end." More at: http://www.barcelonaworldrace.org

5.3 Mast manufacturers Lorima reply to critics...
This is worrying stuff for mast manufacturers Lorima, although a message on the company website throws it back at other people to ponder.
“BARCELONA WORLD RACE - TRANSAT B TO B : 4th mast down today.
* Masts are 1.5 m higher than those of the previous generation,
* Boats are 35% more powerful,
* Masts tubes that we get asked to fabricate are still the same weight (by 10kg) !
Still, it’s by no means all bad news for Lorima, whose carbon technology is driving Francis Joyon IDEC and Thomas Coville 110-foot trimaran Sodebo singlehandedly round the world.

5.4 ARC cruisers were not spared in the Atlantic
Anyone think the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers ARC is just another walk in the park? Think again. This year proved that, like any ocean voyage, it is a challenge and has to be taken very seriously. Some saw winds of over 50 knots at times, there were broken booms, rig failures, rudder failures, third degree burns and a skipper who tragically lost his life as a result of a head injury. Unconnected with the ARC but crossing the Atlantic at the same time, several boats got into serious trouble. One yacht sank and at least three others were abandoned for various reasons and left floating abandoned.

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