Of Paralympic Gold, a sailing icon, Heaven Can Wait and foiling AC72

Dawn before Heaven Can Wait 2011  Heaven Can Wait Media

Australia's Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch have won gold at the London 2012 Paralympic Games with a race to spare. We have detailed news on the Paralympic regatta and all that surrounded it.

Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch SKUD18  Paul Wyeth / pwpictures.com - copyright

Today we feature one of the icons of the Australian yachting scene - Lou Abrahams.

Lou Abrahams  © Rolex/Carlo Borlenghi

It's a must read, a wonderful article by John Curnow in which we discover a lot about this great man.
Today we present Part 1.

And continuing about icons - The seventh annual Heaven Can Wait Regatta is just three weeks away.
There is a One Lap Dash, a 12 hour race and a 24 hour race

Enter NOW!! At www.heavencanwait.com.au

Emirates Team NZ's AC72 off Takapuna Beach on foils in a gust  Richard Gladwell

In a belated media release issued nine days after images were first appeared of their AC72 on foils, by photographer Graeme Swan, Emirates Team NZ have conceded their AC72 'can foil sailing downwind in a moderate breeze.' Those photos were published in Sail-World last Monday, with a further set published on Thursday, and again on Friday morning.

Not up for 24 hours on Lake Macquarie? How about 12 hours then? HCW Media, This year's Heaven Can Wait Charity Regatta on Lake Macquarie, starting in just three weeks, will include for the first time a 12-hour 'Challenge'.... [more] Share this story

Goodness. Gracious. A story of the Doyen, Lou Abrahams. (Pt I.) John Curnow, It's been a long time since the expression of surprise, ‘Goodness, gracious me!' has passed from common vernacular. It does seem imminently suitable in reference to one, Lou Abrahams however, for he is full of goodness and very gracious.... [more] Share this story

University Force 24 Fleet Racing Championship - James Burman dominates Ajay Rau, University Force 24 Fleet Racing Championship 2012 two day event was dominated by James Burman along with crew Rob Crawford, Hugh Tait and Chris Rohr and Macquarie University was crowned University Fleet racing champion. Competition was held over 1-2 September at the home for university sailing, The Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club in Newport.... [more] Share this story

America's Cup: Emirates Team NZ admits boat can foil sailing downwind Richard Gladwell, In a media release issued nine days after images were first released on the interweb of their AC72 on foils, by photographer Graeme Swan, Emirates Team NZ have conceded their AC72 'can foil sailing downwind in a moderate breeze.' They have questioned as to whether foiling can be sustained safely They have questioned as to whether foiling can be sustained safely on the short America's Cup course... [more] Share this story

Formula 18 World Championship all set for Long Beach action Rich Roberts, Multihull sailing history will come full circle with the 2012 Globaltech Formula 18 World Championship set to be hosted by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club from this weekend through next week. It's the class's first world championship ever contested in the USA and, more specifically, on the Southern California waters where multihull racing first thrived in the 1970s.... [more] Share this story

Easy Tiger Racing ready to tear strips off F18 Catamaran Worlds Lulu Roseman, The Formula 18 Catamaran Worlds are set to take place in Long Beach, California from the 8th-15th September, 2012 and Easy Tiger Racing Team's Chris Way and Rod Waterhouse are set to compete. The competition is expected to be hotter than ever among the 122 strong fleet that features some of the world's best multihull sailors.... [more] Share this story

America's Cup: Emirates Team NZ AC72 flies on Day 5 + Video Richard Gladwell, Emirates Team NZ were out again for their fifth day of sailing in their AC72, New Zealand. Conditions were a very fresh SW wind, estimated at 20kts which provided for some high speed sailing. TV crews were invited onto the team chase boats and the day featured in the prime time news.... [more] Share this story

Oracle Team USA's first day of testing ends in delay of several weeks Lisa Ramsperger, Oracle Team USA's first AC72 has returned to the shed following the first day of testing, after the session was curtailed by a starboard daggerboard failure. 'We are currently building replacement daggerboards, which is a significant construction project with a duration of several weeks' - Grant Simmer... [more] Share this story

London 2012 Paralympic Games - Fitzgibbon and Tesch win sailing gold Craig Heydon, Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch have won gold at the London 2012 Paralympic Games with a race to spare. It's the first time that either sailor has won Paralympic gold.... [more] Share this story

Entries start to flow in for seventh Heaven Can Wait Charity Regatta Mark Cherrington, Four weeks out from the start of the seventh Heaven Can Wait Charity Yacht Regatta, to be held on Lake Macquarie on September 29 and 30, entries are starting to flow in fast. Already 16 boats have entered, representing a range of classes and types - with significantly more expected by the time the event starts at 1100 on Saturday September 29 - a long weekend in NSW.... [more] Share this story

2012 Paralympics: Dutch Trio remain clear in the Sonar after Day 4 ISAF, Only one Sonar race was possible on the fourth day of the London 2012 Paralympic Sailing Regatta and Netherlands' Udo Hessels, Marcel van de Veen and Mischa Rossen remain in the lead with an 11 point cushion. The day's race win went to Jens Kroker, Siegmund Mainka and Robert Prem (GER) which moved the German trio from fourth to second overall.... [more] Share this story

2012 Paralympics: Brit's Lucas sitting pretty in the 2.4mR after Day 4 ISAF, Helena Lucas (GBR) made it three wins in a row on the fourth day of 2.4mR racing at the Paralympic Sailing Regatta to extend her lead to 11 points over Heiko Kroger (GER) who won the days other race. The Brit picked up where she left off from day three by winning Race 7 to make it three wins in a row.... [more] Share this story

2012 Paralympics: Australians go clear in the SKUD18 after Day 4 ISAF, Dan Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch (AUS) have put a gap of four points between them and Jen French and Jp Creignou (USA) and Alex Rickham and Niki Birrell (GBR) with three SKUD18 races remaining at the Paralympic Sailing Competition. Very little has separated the top three crews since racing began with just two points the difference throughout.... [more] Share this story

Fire at El Campbello Marina - dramatic images Paul Todd/Sail-World Cruising, Yet another reason not to own a power boat. Volvo Ocean Race photographer, Paul Todd, shot these images as a power boat catches fire and explodes in the El Campello marina on Sunday the second of September in front of hundreds of people on the Costa Blanca near Alicante, Spain.... [more] Share this story

Jack Sherring wins Moth Junior World Championship Southport Yacht Club, At age 17 Southport Yacht Club's Youth Sailor, Jack Sherring, took the win at the Zhik Nautica Moth Worlds 2012 held at Lake Garda, Italy.... [more] Share this story

Sailing Knot secrets - Tie the mighty 'King of Joinery' Captain John Jamieson, Imagine that you find you need a twenty foot spring line to dock your boat in a stiff wind. And you have just a collection of shorter lengths of line left aboard. What is the solution? John Jamieson (Captain John) here offers an answer:... [more] Share this story

North Sails Australia launches it's new One Design website Dave O'Connor, North Sails Australia has launched its new One Design website... [more] Share this story

Yachting New South Wales Youth Championships October long weekend Mainsheet Media, Over the 2012 October long weekend youth sailors from around New South Wales and other states will be gathering at Lake Macquarie to compete in one of the largest youth sailing regattas in the country. This year sees the regatta being hosted by Belmont 16' Sailing Club.... [more] Share this story

Swansea Channel looking good for 2012 Heaven Can Wait charity regatta Heaven Can Wait Media, Yachts coming from outside of Lake Macquarie for this year's Heaven Can Wait charity yacht regatta will have no trouble transiting the Swansea Channel following an on-going dredging program over the past 12 months.The regatta, which this year celebrates its seventh year, will be held on the NSW Labour Day long weekend, taking place on Saturday September 29 and Sunday September 30.... [more] Share this story

The 2012 Northern Circuit events are over - we are heading south Rob Kothe and the Sail-World Team, x... [more] Share this story

Paralympics London 2012 - Fitzgibbon and Tesch extend lead Craig Heydon, On day four of the London 2012 Paralympic Sailing Competition, Australian sailors Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch extended their lead at the front of the Skud 18 fleet. Light winds again delayed racing in Weymouth on Tuesday morning with racing eventually getting underway in the early afternoon.... [more] Share this story

Interview with Laura Dekker on arrival in New Zealand Sail-World Cruising, As reported earlier this week, Laura Dekker, tearaway Dutch solo circumnavigator, who is still to reach her 17th birthday, arrived in New Zealand intending to take up residence. Here is the interview with reporters that was recorded on her arrival into Marsdon Cove in Whangarei.... [more] Share this story

SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week - Lunchtime Legend sets new record SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week media, Today, Tuesday September 4, was the final day of the sixth annual SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week 2012. The 60 boat fleet headed out into Cleveland Bay, assured of a last great sail. Under blue sky, bright sunshine and in 16-18 knots of breeze, the IRC Racing fleet lined up to face the starters gun.... [more] Share this story

Sailing community passes on condolences to Tesch family Craig Heydon, Yachting Australia and the Australian Sailing Team, on behalf of the Australian sailing community, would like to express its condolences to Paralympic sailor Liesl Tesch and her family.... [more] Share this story

Paralympics London 2012 - Australians in medal hunt Craig Heydon, Daniel Fitzgibbon and Liesl Tesch continue to lead the way in the Skud 18 class. Colin Harrison, Jonathan Harris and Stephen Churm are third in the Sonar and Matt Bugg has moved up to sixth in the 2.4mR at the London 2012 Paralympic Games in Weymouth.... [more] Share this story

LCC sponsors 12ft Skiff out of Woollahra Emma Simonsen, The first race of the NSW 12ft Skiff Association, the ‘Upper Harbour Championship' on the October 6th 2012 is an important one. The 12ft skiff is a lightweight open class, two man high performance sailing boat, which has a long tradition on Sydney Harbour.... [more] Share this story

Paralympics London 2012 - Helena Lucas regains 2.4mR lead IFDS, At the London 2012 Paralympic Sailing Competition, Helena Lucas (GBR) stormed back to the top of the 2.4mR leader board following a fantastic day of racing that saw the Brit win both races. With six races done and dusted, the discard has now come into force and Lucas sits at the top of the tree on eight points, losing her 11th in Race 4.... [more] Share this story

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