Untitled Document

AsianYachting January 2004
News and Views

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CONTENTS

1. Editorial - Yachting gains International media coverage
2. "Unluckiest sailors of the month" - Ludde Ingvall's maxi yacht Nicorette
3. Austral - Asian News - Next up is the Singapore Straits Regatta (14 -18 Jan)
4. International News - Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race winner
5. World Speed Records - Bruno Peyron's new giant-catamaran Orange 2

Browse past News & Views - Web Editions click on: Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec

1. EDITORIAL

Although the TV Network news coverage during 2003 was dominated by the Iraq war and the continuing battle on global terrorism, it was also a year when International yachting challenges received a considerable amount of media attention, producing a new round of national heroes. Nick Moloney, Mike Golding, Emma Richards MBE, Alex Thomson, Ernesto Bertarelli and Alinghi are all becoming household names who are joining the continuing trials and tribulations of Ellen McArthur, Bruno Peyron, Russell Coutts, Steve Fossett, Tracy Edwards and many more on the International sailing scene. It is not surprising then that their positive sporting achievements have done allot more for humanity and uniting cultures that far outweigh the negative effects of war which has significantly affected how the maritime community goes about its business. No wonder sponsoring yachting at this level has proved extremely successful and cost effective but it also provides the industry with the necessary funds to move the technology and skills forward to an ever expanding audience.

Although the Asian region is usually considered to be lagging behind other developed sailing regions an increasing number of regatta's have been introduced each year and this season sees Omega coming onboard as the first major series sponsor after realizing the value of Proteus Sports filming the 4 regatta's on the Asian Yachting Circuit.

The internet has proven to be the best medium by far, to quickly promote the regions yachting events Internationally and AsianYachting has compiled the annual Calendar of Events, sent out advance publicity, distributed regatta updates, handled media interviews, and coordinated media boat activities at selected events to be considered the best yachting news source in Asia.

Partners interested in becoming sponsors and trophy donors for the 2003/04 AsianYachting Grand Prix Rankings are invited to respond directly to the editor at: captmarty@asianyachting.com and current standings after four ***** five star events can be browsed at: http://asianyachting.com/news/Rankings0304.htm To ensure ongoing coverage at these events both sides will need to benefit from a partnership deal and the sponsors details will be incorporated into the Race Reports and the popular News and Views. As we expect to stage a presentation in late May at the Koh Samui Regatta which is the final event of the season, as a new year resolution we are looking forward to developing further industry support and assistance in the region.
Wishing all our readers a Happy and Prosperous New Year.
Capt Marty Rijkuris

2. "Unluckiest sailor of the month"

Q. What does Grant Wharington's 2003 Rolex Sydney Hobart Line Honours winner Skandia, US yacht Zaraffa owned by 74-year-old New York Yacht Club member Dr Huntington “Skip” Sheldon and Sean Langman's Grundig AAPT all have in common?
A. They have all reportedly hit sunfishes during the race that rendered one of Grundig AAPT two rudders useless.

Ludde Ingvall's maxi yacht Nicorette had to abandon the race in rough seas after suffering damage to her new canting keel supporting structure and the adjacent part of the carbon fibre hull in Bass Strait. The owner/skipper advised the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race committee that the 80-footer had firstly broken its canard keel and then the welds on supporting struts either side of the canting keel had cracked. The crew had also noticed that some non-structural carbon fibre inside the hull had been torn, which, while not serious, could have worsened as the big yacht pounded to windward. Nicorette, which was in fourth place in the fleet when she retired, underwent major modifications before the 628 nautical mile ocean classic, being fitted with a triple foil system that included the canting (swinging) keel, the canard rudder (a retractable centreboard forward of the main keel) and trim tabs to the rudder.

All was not lost after Ludde retired the boat to Eden, as at a crew meeting a decision was made to work around the clock replacing the complete canard and repair the damage in time for the 23rd Strathfield Pittwater to Coffs Harbour Race. Getting to the start line with 20 minutes to spare and after over 100 tacks up the NSW coast, her distinctive green hull glistening in the fading afternoon sunlight, Nicorette crossed the finish line at 19:10:17 to take line honours. More on the race at: www.sail-world.com/coffs2004

3. Austral - Asian News

3.1 Next up is the Singapore Straits Regatta (14 -18 January) and the organising committee have advised that all the racing will take place off Singapore's eastern freeboard between the Changi Sailing Club and Nongsa Point Marina in Batam, Indonesia. Most of the regions top racing boats will be there and a Premier Cruising Class has been included for the large cruiser / racers. The North East tradewinds are expected be in and last year this event was voted one of the windiest regattas on record. More info on website: http://www.straitsregatta.com or Email: ahoy@straitsregatta.com

3.2 Andaman Sea Pilot - 2004 Edition out now!
Sailors heading for the South East Asian region and intending to have a memorable cruise should arm themselves with the new Andaman Sea Pilot before they embark. This is a comprehensive cruising guide to more than 600,000 sq miles of ocean and islands contains detailed charts, anchorage info and what can be expected onshore. Although earlier editions mainly concentrated on Phuket and Pattaya in Thailand this new edition has been expanded to 170 pages with sections on Singapore, East and West coast of Malaysia, Myanmar, the Andaman's and even Cambodia. The aerial photography and colour pictures are second to none which give a good insight on what to expect and show off the region at its best. Retail price 950 Baht (approx US$ 20-23) within Thailand is good value and can be browsed at: http://www.andamanseapilot.com For mail order enquiries pilot@image-asia.com

3.3 Entries are up three-fold on the 2004 Kata Group Andaman Sea Rally when 15 yachts – 11 sail and 4 power boats set sail on the 3rd to 18th January. Gareth Twist, Director of event organisers notes, “This is a clear sign of the popularity of the event and the destination – the Andaman Islands.

Following on from the success of the first event, a recent delegation from the Andaman Islands was hosted by the Phuket Chamber of Commerce. An official signing ceremony was held at the Kata Beach Resort, presided over by Pamuke Achariyachai Chairman of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce and Managing Director of Kata Group, where Co-operation Agreements between the two Chambers of Commerce were signed. The driving force behind the recent trade delegation, David Ratcliffe, said " As co-operation with trade and tourism develops between the Andaman Islands and Phuket, the future for both looks good.” Also, “The Prime Ministers of both Thailand and India have suggested to the relevant authorities the possibility of twinning Phuket and Port Blair, which at present is being prepared for signature between the two authorities” Event website: www.andamansearally.com

3.4 Check out the fastest selling yachting gloves in Asia at: http://AsianYachting.com/Mall/AYGloves.htm Made with best Amara (synthetic leather which is 300% stronger than real leather) Double stitched with the worlds strongest "Kevlar" thread. Velcro wrist closure and light weight breathable spandex with flexible back enables us to supply these quality products in bulk at very competitive prices.

3.5 2004 QBE Phang Nga Bay Regatta expanded into a 4-day event
The annual QBE Phang Nga Bay Regatta – likes to bill itself as ‘Thailand’s most fun sailing event’ – is set to sail through some of the world’s most spectacular waters again this Chinese New Year from 21st - 25th January. With a difference. The coming event has been expanded from a three-day event to four days competition on the water, to match the sailing format with the spectacular geography.

The new course will see the fleet begin and end in Phuket. The starting gun will be fired at Yacht Haven Marina on the morning of 22nd Jan, following registration and an opening party the night before. The first day on the water will end at Koh Yao Noi, the second at Krabi, and the third at Phi Phi. Following tradition, beach parties will be held each evening. New contestants should be aware that accommodation is difficult if not impossible to find at these stops and during this regatta all on board usually sleep on their boats. For further information see www.bayregatta.com or email info@bayregatta.com

3.6 After a clean sweep by Jeremy Muller's Sydney 32 Scallywag at the Kings Cup the Quantum Sail Design Group reports increased demand of their Carbon Kevlar Fusion Membrane sails produced in Malacca, Malaysia for the world wide market. Place your order at: http://www.quantumsails.com or obtain a obligation free quotation from Bruce Anson at: banson@quantumsails.com or Phone ++60-6-231-6145

3.7 Guy Nowell reports that the Raja Muda Int Regatta and Kings Cup photos can be browsed online and full resolution prints can be ordered directly from his website by going to: http://www.guynowell.com

4. International News

4.1 The overall winner of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race is determined using the IMS handicap system, the boat with the lowest corrected time is declared as the victor and awarded the Tattersall Cup. Michael Spies competing in his 27th Hobart Race and Peter Johnson's Beneteau 40.7 First National Real Estate won both the IMS and IRC divisions on there first outing. Beating Thorry Gunnerson's wooden-hulled Dory 41 Tilting at Windmills by almost 90 minutes on corrected time. Third was Howard de Torres' IMX 40 Nips-N-Tux correcting out not quite five minutes later. The 59th Rolex Sydney Hobart is all but over. Of the 57 boats that entered, 56 started, three boats retired en route, one from a broken mast and two because of other gear failure and one was disqualified for failing to radio in during the race.

First National Real Estate is a Beneteau 40.7, the hugely popular Farr design that has sold some 500 boats worldwide. Spies has heavily optimised the boat though. “We’ve worked hard to get the rating down. If I listed all the changes made it would take a couple of foolscap pages,” he said. “I like to think she is the fastest of the 500 of her type,” he added, “but we can take her back to Sydney and it will only take us two hours to transform her back into a boat you’d happily cruise for a week. If there is such as a thing as a freak boat this is probably it.” Results and news can be found on the official website at: www.rolexsydneyhobart.com

4.2 From one side of the earth to the other DK Yachts are on a winning streak. Mike Greville's new DK 46 Erivale was fastest over the water and saved his time on handicap over 156 boats on the 6th day of the Tyco Healthcare Hamble Winter Series in the UK and Matt Allen’s Farr 52, Ichi Ban has convincingly won the IRC division at the Rolex Trophy Series and the IRC Division A first place on the 2003 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race. Serious Yachts for Serious Sailors can be found at http://www.dkyachts.com

5. World Speed Records

5.1 Orange France has officially announced its partnership with Bruno Peyron's new maxi-catamaran. The new giant will tackle the Jules Verne Trophy this winter set sails for the first time on Dec 31st for a trial session under the name Orange 2. This high-tech giant is 37.80 metres long, 50 metres high, a beam of 17 m was built at the Multiplast yard and with a downwind sail area of close on 1000 m2.set off on preliminary tests to reach the harbour of La Trinité-sur-Mer, which will be their base for the days to come.

During this first outing, no major problems were encountered, to the satisfaction of the skipper and his crew. The dimensions of this new catamaran left spectators wide-eyed as they gazed at the new boat. Bruno Peyron: "This boat is the 7th "giant" of the maxi-multihull generation, but we did not want her to be the biggest of all at any cost". Orange's trials program will last another two weeks, then the crew will start to actually train in various sea and wind conditions. Stay tuned... Christophe Guigeno has photos of the launch at SeaSailSurf.com: http://seasailsurf.com/seasailsurf/actu/article.php3?id_article=2857 and Orange 2 under sail can be found at G.Martin-Raget website www.martin-raget.com

5.2 The paths of two French singlehanded circumnavigators converged in the South Pacific this week. Francis Joyon is sailing west to east in a trimaran IDEC (ex-Sport Elec), having departed from France on November 22. Jean-Luc Van den Heede left France on November 7, sailing his 85ft aluminum monohull Adrien the wrong-way-round -- against the wind and currents, east to west. The two navigators have been in contact with each other and hope to be able to cross within sight of each other. It will be necessary for conditions to be moderate for each -- strong winds in one direction are good for one but not the other. You can follow their exploits at: http://www.trimaran-idec.com and at: http://www.vdh.fr

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