Kiwis superb in Miami...Rainbow II launched ...Walking the Slackwire

by . on 3 Feb 2015

Reunited at last - Rainbow II floats again in the Waitemata Harbour after a 45 year absence Alan Sefton

Welcome to Sail-World.com’s New Zealand e-magazine for February 3, 2015

The NZL Sailing Team had an excellent regatta at the ISAF Sailing World Cup in Miami.

This is not normally a regatta at which the New Zealand teams compete due to its proximity to Sail Auckland, and the fact that it requires time out of a Kiwi summer season - and some quality training time.

This year NZL Sailing Team competed in six of the ten Olympic events coming away with two Gold medals in the 49er FX and Women's 470. The Nacra 17 crew were unlucky to finish out of the medal table, given their excellent start.

Bear in mind that current 49er World Champions, Peter Burling and Blair Tuke, did not compete.

To put the New Zealand effort in perspective, the British came away with three Gold medals and three Silver, and were clearly the top team. Australia won two Silver and two Bronze medals in the ten Olympic class events. The host USA's best place was a fourth - they made the cut for the Medal race in just four of the ten classes. Not a great performance sailing on your home waters.

49erFX - 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami © Walter Cooper /US Sailing http://ussailing.org/

On Monday, Rainbow II, one of the four iconic yachts in New Zealand sailing history, and arguably the one that inspired the Kiwi sailing nation, was launched at the Pier 21 yard.

It was almost 45 years since she left New Zealand, bound for Heligoland in Germany, and New Zealand's first major international yachting victory in 1969.

Sailmaker Chris Bouzaid, who was newly married and aged just 23 years old, sold his house to build Rainbow II.

This was the first major international yachting campaign covered by the New Zealand sailing media, and the evening paper, the Auckland Star sent one of their top journalists Noel Holmes to cover the German campaign.

The series was covered wind shift by wind shift in the Star, and Rainbow II's win shared lead story prominence with the first Moon landing.

Lorraine Street breaks the Champagne on the spinnaker pole of Rainbow II © Alan Sefton

Rainbow II's win inspired the nation and certainly gave Kiwi sailors, and the fledgling New Zealand marine industry the confidence and self-belief that we could compete with distinction on the international stage.

Bouzaid's gritty style as he battled to secure finances, dealt to rulemakers, and delivered on the water defined the Kiwi sailing DNA to the New Zealand public.

Following Rainbow's win, along came a raft of Kiwi designers and builders who, like Bouzaid, were also excellent sailors. People like Bruce Farr, Russell Bowler, Ron Holland, Laurie Davidson, Paul Whiting and Murray Ross, to name but a few.

They laid the foundation stones, along with a number of other top Kiwi sailors who exuded self-confidence in their ability to take on the best in the world, using kiwi built boats - and win.

She may have only been 35ft long, but Rainbow II was a supermaxi in terms of the self-belief that she bought to the New Zealand sailing scene. To underline that self-confidence, she was the last yacht to win a major world championship for New Zealand that was not designed by a New Zealander.

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Three generations of Bouzaids - Chris, grandson Wilson and son Richard. Both Chris and Richard Bouzaid are sailmakers. © Alan Sefton

Bouzaid had to sell Rainbow II to a Bermudan yachtsman to recoup his costs, and it was not until several backers stepped in along with the Classic Yacht Charitable Trust, that she was returned to New Zealand. She was restored under the expert eye of her original builder, Max Carter.

Rainbow II will be one of the eight entries to sail in the One Ton Revival regatta at the end of February.

Follow all the racing and developments in major and local events on www.sail-world.com, scroll to the bottom of the site, select New Zealand, and get all the latest news and updates from the sailing world.

Good sailing!

Richard Gladwell
NZ Editor

sailworldnzl@gmail.com

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Hard at work on board 15+. - 2015 Etchells NSW State Championship © John Curnow

Sam Mackay from the Royal Port Nicholson Yacht Club, Wellington, New Zealand, sailing yesterday's strong southerly winds of day one of the Hardy Cup. © Raoul de Ferranti

February 2, 2015. Xabi Fernandez shows new crew member, Willy Altadil, who joins "Mapfre" to replace Anthony Marchand for Leg 4. © Maria Muina / Mapfre http://www.volvooceanrace.com

Alex Maloney and Molly Meech - 2015 ISAF Sailing World Cup Miami - Day 6 © Walter Cooper /US Sailing http://ussailing.org/

If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/131248

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