Racing Meetings, Real Boat records, Volvo, Etchells and Lord Howe

Les 5 corsaires de l'Hydroptere pour le record du monde du Pacifique. Jacques vincent, Jean Le Cam, Yves Parlier, Alain Thebault et Luc Alphan .  Francis Demange

Following discussions initiated by a number of yacht owners regarding the sport, participation, rating and handicap rules, event formats and other related issues Yachting Australia will hold a national meeting of owners and interested parties. Yachting Australia has today sent the meeting notice to all racing certificate owners and a range of other contacts.

The meeting will be held in the Freya Room at the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, Sydney, on Friday 27 July, from 9:00am to 12:30pm. Those owners unable to attend in person may take advantage of a dial-in facility to listen to the discussion and issues covered.

Sail-World.com is very keen to see expanded discussion on yacht racing on the Australian scene and will provide more detailed content on Monday.

Gosford to Lord Howe takes Sydney Mooloolaba time slot

The 'Lord Howe', is sailed at the end of October but its been fading in recent years.

Newly appointed Race Director Tony Evans Evans has cited the evergrowing Northern winter season from Brisbane Keppel, through to Magnetic Island as contributing factors.

Evans said. 'We looked at the calendar and decided that with most Club season point-scores due to finish in March, we could take advantage of the available Cat 1 boats sitting idle and skippers looking for a contest'.

In years past this was approximately the time of the Sydney Mooloolaba Race.

So the 39th Gosford to Lord Howe Island Yacht Race has been scheduled for a start in Broken Bay on Saturday 6th April 2013.

On water action with Iron Lotus - Etchells World Championship 2012  © Ingrid Abery

The 16th ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Championship, organised by the Mooloolaba Etchells Fleet, is being sailed from seventh to 10th June 2012. The winter sailing conditions each June long weekend are often very tricky. A wide range of offshore sea states and wind strength challenge the sailors and as the 2008 winner Graeme Taylor explains, luck is certainly needed to win this regatta.

There have been 15 different winners in the last 15 years and Sail-World will be on the water off Mooloolaba, to record a history making double, or a 16th winner.

Proving it's a real boat, Alain Thébault's l'Hydroptère DCNS Holder of the absolute sailing speed record over one nautical mile since 2009 (at an average of 50.17 knots or 95 km/h ), l'Hydroptère DCNS will try to beat the crossing record between Los Angeles and Honolulu this summer, record currently held by Olivier de Kersauson on the maxi trimaran Geronimo in 4 days, 19 hours and 31 minutes.

Volvo Ocean Race 2012 - Abu Dhabi won an exciting win in the transatlantic leg from Miami to Lisbon, while Groupama's second place finish -- five and a half minutes behind after more than 3,500 nautical miles racing -- was enough to take them top of the VOR leaderboard in place of long-term leaders Telefonica.

World's richest 18ft Skiff event to be staged on Sydney Harbour Frank Quealey, The Australian 18 Footers League will stage a bigger event in 2012 on Sydney Harbour. Handicaps will be re-adjusted for the first three placegetters after each race and all races in the ‘Challenge' will be sailed over four-lap windward-return courses with ‘twin' bottom rounding marks.... [more] Share this story

National Meeting of Racing Yacht Owners Rob Kothe Sail-World.com, Following discussions initiated by a number of yacht owners regarding the sport, participation, rating and handicap rules, event formats and other related issues Yachting Australia will hold a national meeting of owners and interested parties.... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race - Moves at the top Volvo Ocean Race, Abu Dhabi shrugged off seven months of Volvo Ocean Race frustration to seal their first offshore victory in a nerve-jarring transatlantic leg from Miami to Lisbon. Groupama, skippered by Franck Cammas, now lead Telefónica by three points overall, with the Spanish team dropping off the lead for the first time since their victory on Leg 1 from Alicante to Cape Town back in November.... [more] Share this story

New date announced for 39th Gosford to Lord Howe Island Yacht Race Gosford Sailing Club, The 39th Gosford to Lord Howe Island Yacht Race has been scheduled for a start in Broken Bay on Saturday 6th April 2013. Traditionally the 'Lord Howe', a true Category 1 Ocean Passage Race starts on the last Saturday in October, but the new Race Committee believed it was necessary to shift the date to attract a more competitive race fleet.... [more] Share this story

Resort heroes aid New Zealand sailors after yacht sinks Sail-World Cruising round-up, Two New Zealand sailors, a man and a woman, have been rescued by the staff of a Fijian resort after the yacht they were sailing sank in waters between two Fijian Islands. The 14 metre yacht Touche hit a reef about 20nm east of Savusavu Harbour at the entrance to Somosomo Strait, between Taveuni island and Vanua Levu in Fiji, normally better known as an idyllic snorkeling and diving paradise.... [more] Share this story

Finn World Masters - Maier approaches fourth title Robert Deaves, At the 2012 Finn World Masters, in some real Welsh weather, Michael Maier (CZE) won both races on day four to close in on his fourth Masters title. Two second places for Allen Burrell (GBR) lifted him to second while Laurent Hay (FRA) dropped to third overall in wet and windy conditions.... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race - Pressure mounts in fight for first Volvo Ocean Race, In the Volvo Ocean Race, with 33 nautical miles to go to the finish of Leg 7 of the in Lisbon, Groupama (Franck Cammas/FRA) are piling the pressure on Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (Ian Walker/GBR), who are now fighting to retain their lead. Winning this leg, with Telefónica (Iker Martínez/ESP) finishing in their current position, would also hand Cammas and his men the overall race lead with two legs to... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race: Abu Dhabi wins Leg 7 + Video Sail-World, She crossed the line in light winds, followed by Groupama, with Puma third. The next group to finish were Camper, Telefonica and Sanya. The information systems at Volvo Ocean Race have all seem to have got major technical issues or are inoperative.... [more] Share this story

RC44 Austria Cup - Action in full swing on Lake Traunsee Jo Grindley, The RC44 Austria Cup is now in full swing and Lake Traunsee threw everything at the fleet for the first day of fleet racing. The day started with a glassy lake that delayed proceeding. A light westerly breeze emerged and the twelve competing boats were sent afloat, only for the breeze to shut off just as the fleet arrived. After a drift in the sun the skies suddenly darkened and 25 knots of breeze... [more] Share this story

l'Hydroptère heads for the City of Angels Thomas Lesage, Following three weeks of trials on the Mediterranean, Alain Thébault's l'Hydroptère DCNS was loaded onto a cargo ship on Monday in Toulon (FRA). The 'flying sailboat' will head to Los Angeles, California, USA, where she will be positioned to wait for the best weather conditions for a Pacific crossing record attempt.... [more] Share this story

Global Ocean Race fleet pummelled by low pressure system Oliver Dewar, Global Ocean Race - As the mid Atlantic low pressure system moved north-east after pummelling the GOR Class40s, the fleet leader Cessna Citation with Conrad Colman and Scott Cavanough held onto the wind longest, polling averages of over 11 knots before finally dropping off the back of the system at around 06:00 GMT on Thursday.... [more] Share this story

Volvo Ocean Race - Puma's Mar Mostro not out of the woods + Video Amory Ross, Volvo Ocean Race, Day 11 of Leg 7. Amory Ross, MCM for Puma Ocean Racing powered by Berg, reports on the crew's progress: The power of the jinx is a dangerous thing. There are things I might normally say, progress updates and enthusiastic hunches I might ideally give, but I don't want to jinx this thing, not even a little bit.... [more] Share this story

WMRT Korea Match Cup Qualifying Session 2 – Ian Williams takes pole Leigh Ireland, WMRT Korea Match Cup 2012 second qualifying session was held in Gyeonggi, South Korea today, 31st May 2012. Current Tour Champion Ian Williams looks set to progress to the knockout rounds after taking pole position, recording six wins and one loss so far.... [more] Share this story

ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Championship – Lucky or Good? ADCO Etchells Australiasian Media, In the world of One Design racing, the competition doesn't get any tougher than in the Etchells class. Just ask the top players who have recently competed in the 2012 Wold Championship, but still have the taste for hard competition as they head north for the 16th ADCO Etchells Australasian Winter Championship... [more] Share this story

Sydney International Boat Show confirmed for 2013 in Darling Harbour Domenic Genua, The Boating Industry Association of NSW (BIA) has confirmed that the Sydney International Boat Show will be staged on in Darling Harbour in August 2013.... [more] Share this story

Gladwell's Line: America's Cup – Emirates Team NZ AC72 unveiled +Video Richard Gladwell, Sail-World heads to Cookson Boats yard on Auckland's North Shore. There team CEO Grant Dalton gives a guided tour of the yard, including a walk around both hulls, and a look on the lower level at the massive main beam, which is about to be fitted. These are the first shots of an AC72 published. Plus we have video interviews with Dalton and AC72 design co-ordinator Nick Holroyd.... [more] Share this story

Hamilton Island Race Week accommodation options! Kristie Kaighin, Have you booked your accommodation for Hamilton Island Race Week 2012? All the best properties book out early, so make sure you book soon to secure your preferred option.... [more] Share this story

Olympic Sailing Competition – Los Angeles 1984 ISAF, The Olympic Sailing Competition in 1984 was held in Los Angeles, USA. The Los Angeles and Long Beach combination that was seen in the 1932 Olympic Sailing Competition was used again at the 1984 Games as the USA hosted the Olympic Games for the third time.... [more] Share this story

Samui Regatta 2012 - Foxy Lady 6 leads with two days to go Samui Regatta Media, Samui is back! The blue skies and idyllic tropical island conditions that Samui is famous for surfaced today as the sailors left the anchorage in a steady 10 knots of wind. Principal Race Officer Ross Chisholm called the courses: Windward/ Leewards for IRC Zero and IRC One in race one, followed by a coastal course. For the rest of the fleet it was a single coastal course south past Lamai Beach.... [more] Share this story

Skandia Sail for Gold - Cream of world sailing head to Weymouth Jo Grindley, Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta 2012 - The waters of Weymouth Bay and Portland Harbour will be filled with the stars of sailing over the next couple of weeks as the team's training camps at the 2012 Olympic venue turn serious with the final pre-event. The annual event will this year feature almost all of the medal contenders for the upcoming Games.... [more] Share this story

America's Cup: Emirates Team NZ's AC72 expected in mid-June Warren Douglas, Emirates Team New Zealand will take delivery of its first AC72 catamaran by the middle of next month. The mammoth cat will then be assembled – it will arrive at the base as components - and undergo a rigorous testing regime before an official launch planned for late July.... [more] Share this story

WMRT Korea Match Cup Qualifying Session 1 - Three victories for Mirsky Leigh Ireland, WMRT Korea Match Cup 2012 first qualifying session was held in Gyeonggi, South Korea today, 30th May 2012. As the world's top sailors were welcomed by capacity crowds on the first day of competition, Williams, Hansen and Mirsky took the early advantage on the water and finished the day unbeaten in the second event of the 2012 Alpari World Match Racing Tour.... [more] Share this story

Reef Festival joins up with Great Whitsunday Fun Race Corrie Gardner, Great Whitsunday Fun Race 2012 is being held from 16th to 19th August in Airlie Beach. Airlie Beach will be the hottest spot in Queensland when the Reef Festival joins up with the Great Whitsunday Fun Race for an entertaining weekend. Coming right on the back of Airlie Beach Race Week, the place will be buzzing with activity for the biggest festival and party of the year... [more] Share this story

Airlie Beach Race Week - First Performance Multihull entry Corrie Gardner, The first Performance Multihull entry for Airlie Beach Race Week has been made by Alasdair Noble with his vessel McMoggy, a light, fast ocean cruiser. This will be the first Airlie Beach Race Week for both owner and vessel. Alasdair purchased the New Zealand built craft earlier this year and is looking forward to cruising up to Airlie Beach and then on to Magnetic Island for a season of sailing... [more] Share this story

NSW Maritime alert – Dangerous surf conditions Penny Robins, Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) has issued an alert following a Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) warning about dangerous surf conditions from Norah Head to Yamba tomorrow and Friday.... [more] Share this story

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