Early in the month the "Award" was going to Thierry Dubois and his Open 60 'Solidaires' during Kiel Week in Germany who collided with a boat heading in the opposite direction. Dubois suffered a sharp fall but the other crew where unharmed. The rigs of both boats were entangled but the hulls did not make contact as both helms tried to avoid the collision. Solidaires port rigging, spreaders ripped the mast damaging it beyond repair although remaining upright in the boat.

One of the masts of the other boat under sail broke completely in two and 3 crew were injured, one seriously. The other boat accepted that they were at fault when the incident was dealt with by the police.

Then on the second day of the Belgium Grand Prix for 60ft multi's held in strong breezes became very animated which saw a collision between Sopra Group and Bonduelle where Jean Le Cam refused to give way to Philippe Monnet when approaching a rounding mark. Sopra Group smashed into Bonduelle thus causing much damage and both were forced to get back to port to evaluate the damage and unable to compete the following day.

But when Team Dennis Conner's newest America's Cup boat, Stars & Stripes USA-77 cracked up and sank during training at Long Beach, CA. the other day we had no option other than to Award this months Winner to big bad Dennis and his mighty racing teams machine. I am very surprised that he has not won the award before! They were partaking in a routine two-boat testing session, when a large crack was heard and the rudder detached from the hull allowing water to flood into the hull. Onboard pumps and airbags were deployed immediately.

Unfortunately, the boat could not be kept afloat and she went down in 55 feet of water near the south entrance to Long Beach Harbour. None of the 15 crew members aboard were ever in danger and no injuries were incurred. A recovery effort was quickly underway involving a crane and barge and the boat was raised and returned to the Team Dennis Conner base camp where the damage is being assessed. "We feel extremely fortunate that no one was hurt.

The hull appears to be in good shape and the mast is fully tensioned and does not appear to be damaged," said Conner. "Our training program will proceed as scheduled and both boats will be shipped to New Zealand separately during the first two weeks of August".

Well known yachting journalist Bob Fisher suspects that Conner is thought to have been testing a new concept - a keel turning on a near-vertical pivot, allowing the angle of attack relative to the hull's centre-line to be altered slightly on each tack to increase keel lift and reduce hull drag. Or it may be that the American veteran is trying a twin-rudder configuration, with a second one mounted forward of the keel.

5. The Royal Langkawi Yacht Club plans to celebrate the 157 berth marina extension and breakwater construction presently underway by offering the first 100 boats to register before the 1st of October a week long complimentary stay and a party to remember. To find out more about the promotion, dates etc. kindly log on to their website at www.langkawiyachtclub.com

They have also announced that they will be hosting and organising an inaugural 3 race Langkawi International Regatta and ask that all sailors mark the 11^th to the 17^th Feb 2003 into their sailing diaries. Especially scheduled for a week after the Phang Nah Regatta in neighbouring Thailand this inaugural regatta promises to be lots of fun for everyone including visiting cruisers. Many activities are in store besides dinners and parties and the participants are asked to enjoy some good ole' Malaysian hospitality which can have a habit of runing all night long! For further LIR 2003 details kindly call the Regatta Secretariat at +6-04-9664078 or fax +6-04-9665078

6. The Darwin to Bali Race started on July 27. Jon Wardill's Australian Maid regained her lead over Shahtoosh skippered by P Cremers last night and is expecting to finish in Bali on Friday 3rd August. Race Reports and positions will be available.

7. Sailors wanting to race or charter yachts during the 13^th Raja Muda Int. Regatta are once again asked to send their intentions or Sailing C.V. to the RMIR secretary at the Royal Selangor Yacht Club in Port Klang. Fax +6 03 3168 8650 Email rmir@rsyc.com.my

The regatta will follow the same format as it has in the past, island hopping its way up the west coast of the Kra peninsula in three legs; Port Klang to Pangkor, Pangkor to Penang, and Penang to Langkawi. Once the fleet reaches Langkawi two days of windward, leeward racing will be held in picturesque Bass Harbour. The regatta culminates with the royal awards dinner to be held at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club on Sat November 23. http://www.rsyc.com.my

8. Thursday 4 July 2002, London: Legendary single-handed yachtsman Sir Robin Knox-Johnston revealed the eight successful candidates to command the eight identical 60ft yachts on the world's longest and highly competitive circumnavigation the Clipper 2002 Round The World Yacht Race, which will set sail on October 27 from Liverpool in the UK. Each yacht is backed by the cities of Bristol, Cape Town, Glasgow, Hong Kong, Jersey, Liverpool, London and New York.

James Gair (31) also know as Chippie a professional coastal and offshore sailor with over 50,000 sea miles under his belt from Burnham On Crouch, Essex, will take the helm of Hong Kong Clipper. Gair hopes to lead the 60-foot racing yacht around the world which will race into Hong Kong at the halfway point of the circumnavigation in April 2003. Follow the action at: www.clipper-ventures.com

9. The People's Republic of China has opened its inland waterways to foreign ship travel after 53 years of banning the practice. For the first time since the communist takeover of China in 1949, foreign ships will be permitted to sail the country's largest rivers and inland waterways.

3, Every major Mumm 30 regatta this year in the US has been won by a DK Yacht built in Malaysia. Richard Perini's Foreign Affair won Key West and the Newport Gold regatta. Dan Cheresh's Team Intermec USA 320 have won the SORC, Annapolis NOOD and the Chicago NOOD. A foggy race cost Sydneysider Perini and his crew the Mumm 30 North American Championships to Steadfast, owned by Fred Sherratt and Team Intermec. All boats will be contesting the world titles which promises to be a dog fight to see who is the best DK boat again!

4. WEST MARINE PACIFIC CUP
Honolulu, Hawaii: Bob McNeal's brand new generation maxi Zephyrus V flew across the finish line of the West Marine Pacific Cup to take line honours in the 2,070 mile race between San Francisco and Kaneohe Bay on the Hawaiian Island of Oahu. She finished ahead of Bob Miller's giant 147 foot ketch Mari-Cha III who took second.

On board NcNeal's new flier were an all star crew including Aussie co-skipper John Bertrand, Roy Disney (the owner of turbo sled Pyewacket) and Volvo sailors such as navigator Ian Moore, illbruck's Stu Bannatyne and News Corp's Gordon Maguire. This is the first race the new Zephyrus has competed in and this Reichel Pugh design is the first example of the new generation of super-maxis known as the maxZ86 class.

The superyacht Mari-Cha III was built in New Zealand and launched in 1997. A year later, it set a speed record for a transatlantic crossing from New York to southern England in less than nine days. Owned by British businessman Bob Miller, the 146-foot ketch was designed as a supreme luxury yacht as well as a racer. Its sleek hull is made of carbon fiber and kevlar sandwich. When racing with a 26-man crew, the boat's plush mahogany interior is taken out to save weight. Race website: http://www.pacificcup.org Zephyrus website: http://zephyrus5.com
Information on the MaxZ86 class at http://maxz86.com

5. The Cutty Sark Tall Ships' Race 15-18 August 2002 is expected to attract ½ million visitors finishing in Portsmouth Harbour - making it the UK's bigest event and the world's largest and only International tall ships' race held annually. Organised by the Sail Training Association (STA) with over 5,300 young people (50% of each crew aged between 15-25 years) from 15 countries taking part in this year's race, which involves 6 ports and 80 vessels including mighty Square-riggers, Barques, Barquentines, Brigs and Schooners. The race is open to all sailing vessels over 9.14m waterline length and the fleet will be visiting Alicante, Malaga, La Coruna, Brest, Santander before finally returning to the STA's home port of Portsmouth where a exciting four-day entertainment programme celebrating the finish is planned.  http://www.ista.co.uk

6. The Shorthanded Sailing Association of Australia (SSAA) is considering a proposal to add a crewed division to its next double handed Trans Tasman race from Sydney to Auckland in 2004. The next race is shaping up to be the first leg of a "Tasman Tour" that will connect with other established races from Auckland to Noumea and Mooloolaba then on to Airlie Beach which leads into the Hamilton Island Race week. Interested yachts/crew are invited to register their possible participation to add weight to the proposal presently before the SSAA committee please contact Rob Drury at rob@broncoyachting.com to register your interest

7. DISGRUNTLED OPEN 50 OWNERS
While the focus in French offshore racing is usually confined to the Open 60 and 60ft trimaran classes, the increased number of 50 footers have been feeling a little left out in the cold, no more so than when the Notice of Race recently published for the 2004 Vendee Globe indicated that Philippe Jeantot's non-stop around the world race would only be open only to 60 footers. This has presented some major headaches, not to mention a fair amount of anger on the part of several skippers who are mid-way through having brand new Open 50s built, as a cheaper way into the Vendee rather than go the 60 footer route.

"We're talking with Finot and Berret/Racoupeau and a number of other people to put some pressure on Jeantot," Merfyn Owen told madforsailing. "The other designers think the same as I do that a good 50 in capable hands is a better prospect than an old 60 in non-capable hands."

Meanwhile European based Aussie Nick Moloney recently became the First Official entry in the 2004/2005 VENDEE GLOBE race, the solo around the world race that made Ellen MacArthur and Kingfisher a household name back in 2001. The next edition is expected to attract the biggest international field since it began, and its simple format - non-stop, solo, around the world, without assistance - has maintained it's position and considered by many as the 'Everest of Sailing'.
For the latest news on Nick's project http://www.nickmoloney.com or the going's on at Ellen's Offshore Challenges Sailing Team http://www.offshorechallenges.com

8. The EGO has a ROUGH LANDING
After making the first solo round the world balloon flight in 14 days and 20 hours, Steve Fossett landed "Bud Light Spirit of Freedom" safely and unharmed in Lake Yamma Yamma, a dried up lake in south western Queensland, Australia, but the process was far from perfect. "It was a very dangerous situation with the landing," explained Fossett.

First, the landing site had ground winds approaching 20 knots, when ideally they should have none. This problem was compounded when the balloon envelope would not detach from the capsule, meaning that it could have "dragged forever," according to Fossett. Fortunately ground team members, such as Project Manager Tim Cole, were able to help Fossett pull the ripcord that detached the capsule from the rest of the balloon.

Despite the risky landing, Fossett was in high spirits and still plans on attempting to fly a glider into the stratosphere by the end of July or the beginning of August. - http://www.spiritoffreedom.com/