Tris, 24s, 72s and Olympic Gold—Sailing News from the U.S. and Beyond

by David Schmidt, Sail-World USA Editor on 24 Sep 2012 This weekend’s distance-racing headlines are being commanded by the MOD 70 European Tour, where a fleet of five trimarans are in the process of racing from Cascais to Marseille in fairly light airs. Currently, 'Musandam-Oman Sail' team, skippered by Sidney Gavignet, is leading the pack by a 70-plus mile margin, followed by 'Race for Water' and 'Fonica'.


'We are at Cartagena under a cloudy sky. The wind goes from 3 to 6 knots, so we’re not moving very fast, but we are making progress,' reported Gavignet. 'A few hours back we were making 24 knots around Cabo de Gata. All is well though: Dark night, some stars, clouds, more and more clouds. We are waiting for the end of us being becalmed!'


Depending on the breeze, Musandam-Oman Sail and the other front-runners should finish this leg within the next twenty-four hours, so stay tuned to the website for more news, as is breaks, and be sure to also check out the great reports, inside this issue.


Stateside, Mauricio Santa Cruz and his 'Bruschetta' (BRA 85) team won the J/24 Worlds, which just wrapped up in Rochester New York at the Rochester Yacht Club, followed by John Mollicone’s '11th Hour Racing' (USA 22) and Tony Parker’s 'Bangor Packet' (USA 92). Impressively, this is Santa Cruz’s fourth J/24 World title; he and his team commanded the leaderboard from Day One, demonstrating again why they are world-class.


'The venue was very shifty, and the team worked hard to stay on top of them,' reported Santa Cruz. We had good sails and good speed... Our team has sailed together for eight years, and that is a big help.'


Interestingly, Santa Cruz and company won this heady championship using J/24 hull number 2021, which emerged from her moulds in 1980, a quick 32 years astern. 'We used an old boat, but the old and new boats are fairly equal. The mast, keel and rudder have a good shape so we knew we would be fine.' Get the full report, inside this issue.

Meanwhile, in America’s Cup news, word has hit the street that Nathan Outteridge (AUS) has sorted out a deal to a skipper one of Artemis Racing’s two AC72 class wingsail-powered catamarans leading up to (and possible including) the Louis Vuitton Cup and the 34th America’s Cup. Outteridge, it will be remembered, won a Gold medal with crewmember Ian Jensen in the 49er class at the London Olympics 2012 and also skippered Team Korea’s AC45 to some impressive finishes at various America’s Cup World Series events.


'Joining Artemis Racing is a great opportunity for me,' said Outteridge. 'Artemis is a solid team all around and I’m excited to join [the team’s other skipper] Terry Hutchinson and the sailing team for my first America’s Cup.' Get the full scoop, inside.

And in Olympic sailing circles, Rod Carr, the former CEO of the Royal Yachting Association’s as well as the Competition Manager for the 2012 Olympic Regatta, shares his thoughts on what it takes to win Olympic Gold in a great video interview, inside. Carr played a big role in the rise and sustained success of mighty Team GBR, and his insights are particularly germane to the U.S. squad after this summer’s Games.

Also inside, be sure to check out the coverage of the PWA Cold Hawaii World Cup, the 52 Super Series and Fall Cork 2012, inside. And finally, be sure to check out the post-regatta reports from the Farr 40 Worlds, which just wrapped up in Chicago. Enjoy!


May the four winds blow you safely home,