MOD 70s, Melges 32s and AC45s—Sailing News from the U.S. and Beyond

by David Schmidt, Sail-World USA Editor on 1 Oct 2012 The multihull and OD worlds are abuzz with the news that skipper Yann Guichard’s 'Spindrift' team took top honors in the Marseille City Race, which is a stage race in the greater MOD 70 European Tour. This victory puts Guichard closer to threatening Michel Desjoyeaux’s position at the top of the leaderboard in this fleet of highly strung trimarans.


'Today was especially good for us,' reported Guichard. 'It is the last City Race of the season and the team work onboard was really good. We are only seven points behind [Michel Desjoyeaux’s] Foncia for the final leg. [On] Leg Five there are 16 points available and anything can happen. We’d prefer to be closer than further back but that’s the way it is.'


The five-strong fleet of MOD70s has now turned their attention to the 651-mile Leg Five, which began Sunday morning and which will take the fleet from Marseille to Genoa, Italy. Given the lightning-quick speeds that MOD70s regularly punch, count on a short passage time for Leg Five, and be sure to stay tuned to the website for more information from this unique event, as it unfurls.

Meanwhile, in Grand Prix monohull OD circles, John Kilroy Jr.’s 'Samba Pa Ti' (USA 13131) team has won the prestigious and ultra-competitive Melges 32 Worlds, which just concluded on the waters off of Newport, Rhode Island. 'We've worked so hard for so long to accomplish this,' reported Kilroy. 'We won in Key West [Race Week], then [we] felt as though we were a little off track. Officially, we are back where we need to be with this incredible win, a win I consider one of the most treasured I have ever won.' Rounding out the Top Three were Alec Cutler’s 'Hedgehog' (BER 1) and Stephen Howe’s 'Warpath' (USA 32917); get the full report, inside.


And in Cup news, Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ) has announced that crewmember and multihull legend Glen Ashby has returned home to Australia after sustaining an injury when the team’s AC45 wingsail-powered catamaran capsized on San Francisco Bay last week, prior to this week’s San Francisco America’s Cup World Series (ACWS) event (October 2 to October 7). Ashby injured some of his ribs in last Wednesday’s flip; according to reports, he is being replaced by Adam Beashel, at least for the upcoming SF ACWS event.

'To say we have had very disjointed preparation for these last few events would be an understatement,' said ETNZ’s skipper, Dean Barker. 'We are back out [sailing] to keep pushing on with our development for this event. The sailing conditions are great and the racing is fantastic. Just more challenging than it needs to be at times.'


Also inside, be sure to check out the coverage from Match Race France, the Flying Dutchman Worlds and—on U.S. waters—US Sailing’s Championship of Champions, as well as the wrap-up report from the Regates Royales-Trophee Panerai, which just concluded on France’s Bay of Cannes. And finally, don’t miss ace shooter Max Ranchi’s great image galleries from the Melges 32 Worlds for a glimpse at how the pros play the game. Enjoy!


May the four winds blow you safely home,