Smokin! Aussie sets new 65.45 knot World speed record

The leeward pod is too high, as we top out at 68 knots - - Vestas Sailrocket 2  © Helena Darvelid/VestasSailrocket

Australia's Paul Larsen has done it again- with an amazing new world record of 65.45 knots. Full details below.

65+ knots - Vestas Sailrocket 2  © Helena Darvelid/VestasSailrocket

Sail-World is at the Phuket King's Cup where Matt Allen's newest IchiBan a 35 year old barnacle encrusted mooring keeper on Sydney Harbour, just seven weeks ago leads probably the toughest division after the first day.

Phuket King's Cup 2012. Ichiban.  © Guy Nowell/Phuket King's Cup

The Aussies are doing well at Sail Melbourne, we have full reports and we will be in Malaysia for the Monsoon Cup where the Australian father and son Peter Gilmour versus David Gilmour matches will be some of the highlights of this very big event.

Peter Gilmour has his hands full on day 3 at the Monsoon Cup 2011. Kuala Terengannu, Malaysia.  © Gareth Cooke/Subzero Images

Mathew Belcher and Will Ryan on day one of Sail Melbourne 2012  Jeff Crow/Sail Melbourne

News from the Vendee Globe and lots more, in this news packed newsletter.

Hope you are having a great sailing week, we certainly are!!

Smokin! WSSR Council confirms 65.45 knot World speed record John Reed, WSSR Council, The World Speed Sailing Record Council has announced the establishment of a new World Record. Paul Larsen of Australia and Vestas Sailrocket 2 have set the new Outright World and World 'B' Division Speed Sailing Record.... [more] Share this story

Phuket King's Cup 2012 – What is old is new again!! Rob Kothe, One of Australia's sailing gurus is spearheading a surprising new campaign to win another Phuket King's Cup with one of the Asia Pacific best known racing campaigners. And Day One at the 2012 Phuket King's Cup showed they are very much on a winner. Michael Spies, a former dual 18 foot skiff World Champion (1993, 1995), first sailed south in the Sydney to Hobart at age 17 back in ....... [more] Share this story

Victorian Tillet Team Selection Troy Croft, The last weekend in November saw 38 International Cadets converge on the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria for two days of racing. The aim of the weekend, being to determine the team representing Victoria at the upcoming International Cadet National Titles being held at Sandy Bay Sailing Club in Hobart, over the Christmas New Year period.... [more] Share this story

Monsoon Cup - Yanmar Racing has eyes on the prize Mark Chisnell, The 2012 Alpari World Match Racing Tour has arrived in Kuala Terengganu for the eighth and decisive final event. Peter Gilmour (skipper, AUS) and his Yanmar Racing team currently sit fourth overall on the Tour standings, some 6.75 points behind third placed Keith Swinton (AUS), with the gap to leaders Ian Williams (GBR) and Bjorn Hansen (SWE) set at 25.75 and 28 points respectively.... [more] Share this story

Vendee Globe - Armel Le Cléac'h sets a new record Vendee Globe, In the Vendee Globe, The Jackal, Armel Le Cléac'h (Banque Populaire) is the new race record holder for the fastest Open 60 from Les Sables d'Olonne to the Cape of Good Hope, clocking a time of 22 days 23 hours 48 minutes and managing to knock an astounding 24 hours two hours and 22 minutes off the record set by Vincent Riou in the 2004 edition of the Vendée Globe.... [more] Share this story

Notice of Race for 2013 ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship released ISAF, The Notice of Race for the 2013 ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship, the 43rd version of the championship being held in Limassol, Cyprus has now been released. More than 300 of the world's top youth sailors are expected to descend on Cyprus from 13-20 July 2013 and add their name to a list of winners.... [more] Share this story

WMRT Monsoon Cup - Koo and Robertson have something to prove Leigh Ireland, The eighth edition of the Monsoon Cup finally gets underway tomorrow in Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia and while the focus has been on the primary Championship contenders, there are two other skippers here who believe that they have a point to prove in the finale of the Alpari World Match Racing Tour.... [more] Share this story

ISAF Sailing World Cup - Winning start for Aussies at Sail Melbourne Craig Heydon, At the ISAF Sailing World Cup - Sail Melbourne, Australian sailors Mathew Belcher and Will Ryan have made the perfect start to their Rio 2016 Olympic Games campaign with two victories from two starts on the opening day. The pair, who only began training together in the 470 a week ago, were at the front of the fleet all day as the 2012/2013 ISAF Sailing World Cup got underway on Port Phillip Bay.... [more] Share this story

Latest bid launched for outright World Speed Sailing record Tanguy Blondel, The latest bid for the outright World Speed Sailing record has been launched. Since Wednesday the French and American kiteboarders, Alex Caizergues and Rob Douglas, have been performing a series of 500-metre runs in the 'Volkswagen Transporter Arena', a surf spot situated at the heart of the Salins du Midi in France's Camargue.... [more] Share this story

Phuket King's Cup Regatta 2012 delivers stunning first day of racing Event Media, Recognised throughout the eastern hemisphere as the premier sailing event of its kind, the Phuket King's Cup Regatta 2012, the largest in its history with 168 entrants, has opened with a first day thriller in glorious sunshine and swift north-easterly winds off Kata Beach.... [more] Share this story

ISAF Sailing World Cup - Battle commences at Sail Melbourne John Curnow, A little after noon, it was clear that the first day of racing had begun in the ISAF Sailing World Cup at Sail Melbourne - for the yard at the world-class Sandringham YC on the shores Port Phillip was pretty empty indeed. Olympic classes, such as 470s, Finns, Lasers and 49ers were on their respective courses and were joined by invited classes like 29ers, Vipers, Skuds and Access Liberty dinghies.... [more] Share this story

AEG 3 Buoy Handicap Heat 7 - Rough start for Lumix + Video Bob Killick, Heat 7 of the AEG 3 Buoy Handicap for 18 Footers on Sydney Harbour yesterday was won by Lumix of Jono Whitty, Archie Massey, and James Hozak. Whitty had to overcome a shaky start when Lumix capsized on the first beat to the 3 Buoys located in the mouth of Double Bay.... [more] Share this story

Zhik ..........the yardstick for success! Doug Blackstock, The recent Zhik Single Handed Regatta (ZSHR) hosted by South Lake Macquarie Amateur Sailing Club (SLMASC) was again a huge success, attracting the largest fleet since its inception just five years ago.... [more] Share this story

Cloudy skies overwhelm first day of Sail Melbourne John Curnow, The opening salvo of ISAF Sailing World Cup proves to be challenging for the competitors as organizers expect shifting wind patterns and scattered rain showers throughout the day. Participants in the Men's and Women's RSX Windsurfers plunged into the water Monday morning before the much awaited 49er and Women's 49FX races on Course B.... [more] Share this story

Phuket King's Cup Regatta 2012 kicks off 26th race with strong fleet Event Media, Recognised throughout the eastern hemisphere as the premier sailing event of its kind, the Phuket King's Cup Regatta will once more put on a spectacular display of the finest sailing talent with a total of 168 boats entering from over 35 countries around the world, competing in Andaman Sea to win the ‘must-have' racing trophy in all of Asia, from 1 to 8 December, 2012.... [more] Share this story

MC 38 National Championship images by Andrea Francolini Andrea Francolini, Photo Gallery of the highlights of MC 38 National Championship by Andrea Francolini... [more] Share this story

Edges Boat Yard Sprint Race - Winterbourne dominates Ian Grant., After losing the overall crown in last month's Telecoinabox Airlie Beach Race Week, Whitsunday Sailing Club's Ross Winterbourne is back in his winning ways as he guided his Bruce Farr-designed sloop Bobby D to a dominant handicap win in the 45th Race of the Edges Boat Yard sprint race on Pioneer Bay.... [more] Share this story

Windsurfing update - Days 1 and 2 Chantal Herberholz, Forty sailors from Germany, Finland, Hong Kong, Myanmar, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, the UK and the USA registered on December 1st, 2012 for the Phuket King's Cup Regatta windsurfing event. Among them Marina Alabau, who won gold at the 2012 Olymics, from Spain and Ek Boonsawad and Siriporn Kaewduang-Ngam from Thailand.... [more] Share this story

Vendée Globe leaderboard shuffles on Day 21 Vendée Globe, The Vendée Globe 2012-13 is on day 21 of racing. Roll up, roll up, place your bets as the leaderboard shuffles through the night. The leading trio are playing musical chairs, and Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac Paprec 3) this morning is at the front, ahead of François Gabart (MACIF) and Armel Le Cléac'h (Banque Populaire) sits closely on his tail... [more] Share this story

Phuket King's Cup Hall of Fame Guy Nowell, Sail-World Asia, With 75 boats on the roster it's not the biggest fleet the Phuket King's Cup has ever seen, but the quality is there. Strength in depth, and all that. The next five days of racing are sure to produce some fierce battles at close quarters, and we'll be bringing you the stories and the pictures. Man the guns, and ready a broadside.... [more] Share this story

Sail Melbourne Day 1 - 400 sailors from 27 countries set to compete John Curnow, The world's best sailors have already arrived in Melbourne for the first leg of the ISAF Sailing World Cup. Roughly 400 sailors from 27 nations are set to compete in a number of categories, including 12 invited classes for Paralympic vessels. Sail Melbourne will also feature the return of windsurfing while the Vipers will be the only catamarans to be sailed in the weeklong event... [more] Share this story

ISAF Sailing World Cup - Road to Rio starts at Sail Melbourne Craig Heydon, After pulling off perhaps the most successful Olympic stint in years, Australian sailors are about to start another long and weary journey to the 2016 Rio Olympics in Monday's opening regatta of the 2012-2013 ISAF Sailing World Cup at Port Philipp Bay.... [more] Share this story

CYCA's Ocean Pointscore Series - Merlin takes successive doubles Di Pearson, David Forbes, the gold-medal winning star sailor in the 1972 Munich Olympics, put another feather on his hat after guiding Merlin to a successive doubles in the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's Ocean Pointscore Series. Despite a testy wind pattern and big waves, the three-time Olympian and former America's Cup sailor dominated the race as he finished one hour earlier of the closest trailer.... [more] Share this story

AFR Midnight Rambler wins Lion Island-Botany Bay Race Di Pearson, AFR Midnight Rambler took a morale booster ahead of the 2012 Rolex Sydney Hobart race after winning the 60 nautical mile Lion Island-Botany Bay Race on Sunday. Bob Thomas, Michael Bencsik, and Ed Psaltis withstood an unpredictable wind pattern and strong challenge from their competitors to move into third place in the Blue Water Pointscore Series (BWPS).... [more] Share this story

Club Marine Series Round Three - Teri Dodds Images Teri Dodds, The wind finally came in for the final pre-Christmas race of the Club Marine Series, in Port Phillip Bay. Racing commenced at midday for the Division 0 fleet in light 3-5 knot breeze and by days end as the remaining Div 1,2 and 3 joined their respective courses, the welcome 18-25 knots arrived. Teri Dodds was again on the water and provided these images.... [more] Share this story

Huff and Bluster at the Club Marine Series John Curnow, The last event on Port Phillip before Sail Melbourne takes over, was Round Three of the 2012/13 Club Marine Series. It is the last one before the holiday period and the Race Management team set three races for Division Zero, two for Div1 and one for each of Div2 and 3.... [more] Share this story

The changing face of the Phuket King's Cup Rob Kothe, One often sees sports events claiming International status beyond reality, but now in its 26th year, the Phuket King's Cup organisers take so much for granted the amazing nationality mix of skippers and sailors in the fleet that it hardly rates a mention.... [more] Share this story

Club Marine Pittwater and Coffs Regatta - One week to close of entries Damian Devine, The Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club is expecting a late of wave of entries with just a week to go before the end of registration for the upcoming Club Marine Pittwater and Coffs Harbour Regatta 2013. The 226nm Category 2 Club Marine Pittwater to Coffs Harbour ocean race will mark the first race of the New Year and the regatta, when it gets underway on 2 January 2013 at 1pm.... [more] Share this story

If you liked this newsletter, do nothing, we will send you another ..
 Naa, please don't send me another.