by Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt Sailing News
After the Kiwi government did not meet the asking price of Team New Zealand for hosting the next America’s Cup, the defender is now shopping the event offshore to find a venue that considers the benefit worth the investment.

With the heightened expectations now for the host, which has included significant infrastructure costs and hosting fee, it has been gamble by governments which has rarely paid off. Perhaps Bermuda came out okay in 2017 but nobody else has since 2007.

While one would think past history would help future bidders, the needed data is either likely not available, or based on estimations of future participation that fall short.

The closest comparison might be the Olympic Games which are scheduled every two years, alternating between summer and winter sports, and rarely returning to the same city. Host venues invest massive amounts of money to gain benefit, much like any city which bids on the next America’s Cup.

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There is an ocean-sailing science fiction novel I’ve been writing in my head now for some time. It posits a future in which the world’s climate has become so unsettled the sport of ocean sailing has been transformed. Sailing in the Vendée Globe has become so dangerous, due to all the furious weather roaming the planet, most competitors race robot boats from behind computer screens safe onshore. The action of the story revolves around the last two sailors crazy enough to sail the race themselves, who are, of course, bitter rivals. The denouement comes when they are shipwrecked together on a remote island in the southern Indian Ocean, where they are confronted by a horde of seemingly sapient penguins, who are in fact “transcended” tourists from an alien planet.

It says something about how the future is unfolding that this scenario now seems increasingly likely.

Take last year’s hurricane season. It was phenomenally dynamic and shattered all sorts of norms. It broke the record for the most named storms in a single season (30), the most named storms to make landfall in the United States (12), the most storms to form in a single month (10 in September), and the most late-season major hurricanes (four in October and November). It also tied many other records, including one for the most storms to rapidly intensify (nine).

The 2020 season was so insanely active every single mile of the U.S. southern and eastern shoreline, from the Mexican border in Texas to the Canadian border in Maine, was at some point under a storm watch or warning. All but five coastal counties ultimately did experience tropical storm-force winds…

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Salcombe Gin RS Summer Regatta – RS Vareos

With some last-minute cancellations just 4 Vareos travelled to Torquay to join RTYC VC Jim Short.  Seeing the reducing numbers, Jim persuaded his son Jovian (an experienced Sailor in other classes including 29ers) to borrow another local boat to give us a fleet of 6.

The yellow course was set well out in the bay by race officer Bob Penfold and was shared with the 100s and 600s.  After a short delay to allow for some of the fleet to get to the sailing area the Vareos were started first.  Jovian got off to a good start followed by Richard Woods and Luke Fisher.  With the wind not really filling in as expected the first beat was very long and after a gentle run down with the kites up the windward mark was moved down to shorten the beat (although for us pond sailors it still looked like a long way). In his first outing in the Vareo Jovian took an unlucky line downwind allowing Richard and Luke to get past. As the race progressed the 100s and 600s who started 6 minutes behind began to catch up giving us a larger fleet to contend with in the final run.  Richard made the most of his new spinnaker (won at the Milton Keynes Inlands two weeks ago) to take the win from Luke then Jovian. At the back of the fleet Jim and Alan Basset were fighting for 5th and 6th as they did all afternoon…

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The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race was established in 1996 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo non-stop around the world in 1968-69. His aim was to allow anyone, regardless of previous sailing experience, the chance to embrace the thrill of ocean racing; it is the only event of its kind for amateur sailors.

Held biennially, the 2019-20 Clipper Race got underway September 1 for the fleet of eleven identical Tony Castro designed Clipper 70s. As the most subscribed round the world race, the 12th edition had attracted 688 crew representing 43 nationalities for the 41,000+ nm course.

The plan was for the race to finish in 2020 on August 8 in London, but while on course from Australia to China, the Clipper Race Organizing Committee found themselves facing a global pandemic.

Expected to arrive by mid-February 2020, the coronavirus outbreak forced a series of course revisions to avoid Sanya, Zhuhai, and Qindao. But a month later, locked down in the Philippines with nowhere to go, the committee was forced to make an unprecedented decision and postpone the balance of the race.

With the race half way done but stuck in place, the crew eventually was released from quarantine, with the Clipper 70s waiting for the next move. But now over a year later, that next move has yet to come. With hopes of restarting in August 2021, the plan now is to extend the postponement to nearly two years.

Race details – Team list – Race route – Tracker – Facebook

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Coming to a One Design fleet near you?

In a new advancement in the use of technology in the design and certification of vessels, construction is beginning for the first commercial U.S. vessel designed, built, and verified using an end-to-end 3D design process. According to the partners in the project, a purely 3D process reduces costs and time investment, while streamlining interaction between all stakeholders throughout the design, verification, and construction phases, without compromising safety.

“This landmark achievement sets the bar for future projects both in the U.S. and internationally,” said Christopher J. Wiernicki, ABS Chairman, President and CEO. “Together with our partners, we have realized a long-held dream of the industry to leave behind 2D paper plans and move to the next generation of vessel production. ABS is proud to help unlock this capability and to be genuinely leading the industry in this area, once again delivering the advantages of digital classification today.” Read on.

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When doing the Baja Ha-Ha, it’s good to remember the observation of the ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus, who said, “You cannot step into the same river twice …” In other words, the one constant is change. In the first photo of Bahia Santa Maria, the second stop in the Baja Ha-Ha, you see the channel over the bar to the mangroves to the south side of the opening. You also see a second entrance of sorts just a little farther to the south. Probably not navigable by dinghy at the time of the photo.

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For their first new mid-size model to be launched in close to 15 years Oyster Yachts went back to a previously highly successful formula but now applied in a very different and contemporary modern package

The Oyster 495 cruising yacht is a major milestone in more ways than one. It’s the first entirely new model launched by Oyster since it was taken over three years ago by Richard Hadida, who has refocused Oyster Yachts on its core values. It’s the first new ‘sub-50ft’ sailing yacht from Oyster since 2007 and a lot of big-boat innovation has trickled down and been built in.

And it’s the first Oyster in a long time that’s been developed with the involvement of the marque’s founder, Richard Matthews, who rejoined Oyster’s board of directors last year. There’s clearly some pent-up demand, as six 495s were sold off-plan before the first layer of laminate went into the mold a few weeks ago to begin the build of hull number one.

‘It’s a completely new Oyster,’ says Paul Adamson, Oyster’s chief commercial officer. ‘She is designed to appeal to younger owners and she’s full of innovative features. It’s a balance between preserving Oyster’s core values – safety and the ability to go anywhere in the world in luxury and comfort – while introducing modern, contemporary design benefits. The hulls are lighter, yet incredibly robust with more emphasis on performance for excellent daily passage-making.’ Read on.

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New Shoreham, RI (June 25, 2021) – Thick fog and light winds greeted sailors on the final morning of Storm Trysail Club Block Island Race Week presented by Margaritaville. After an hour-long postponement, the Race Committee ultimately decided to abandon racing on Margaritaville Race Day due to the low visibility and lack of wind.

“Safety is the most important factor in our decision making,” said event chair and long-time PRO, Ray Redniss. “Windward-Leeward courses with multiple fleets is just not feasible for safe sailing.”

Cheers and a few groans could be heard around the dock as Dick Neville, On-Water director, made the VHF announcement at 11am because it was now a certain outcome on which teams would be crowned champions of Block Island Race Week. Before the cancellation, one of the races to watch today was between two service academies in the J/44s. The US Merchant Marine Academy and the Coast Guard Academy were in a standoff tie after the Regatta Craft Mixers Round the Island Race with USMMA ultimately ending up on top due to the rule that “who beats who” in the last race wins…

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