Malaysia- Asia's Match Racing 'Central'

by AsianYachting.com on 26 Sep 2006 Ever since last year’s inaugural Monsoon Cup, Peter Gilmour and his Kuala Lumpur based T-Best Team have been working to turn Terengganu into the Match Racing Capital of Asia.

Recently the World Match Racing Tour 2006-2007 events have received World Championship status, and teams at the Monsoon Cup will be competing for the ISAF Match Racing World Championship title.

In addition ISAF have revived the Nations Cup, sailing-savvy nations like Australia are introducing some new events, and New Zealand is holding the regional Nations Cup qualifying round. It seems that match racing has become the flavour of the year, and is undergoing a rapid global expansion and acceptance as a way to settle yacht racing competitions amongst nations and racing teams.

So it all came down to the question – ‘Who will be brave enough (especially in East and popular South East Asian waters) to take the leading role in developing match racing and at the same time complete the global jigsaw?

Hosting two World Championship status rounds of the prestigious ISAF World Match Racing Tour 2006-2007, and more recently crowning Tiffany Koo's RSYC Team as the Malaysian Match Racing Champions, plus conducting the Asian Match Racing Championships for qualifying places in the Monsoon Cup proper, places Terengganu firmly on the map.

Their Kelab Teluk Warisan marina facilities on Pulau Duyong and their organisational abilities are second to none, putting them head and shoulders above the rest.

So much so, that they are deservedly entitled to become the Match Racing Capital in the Asian region.

Together with the Malaysian Yachting Association and Troy Yaw's Ulumulu Racing Team from Miri, Sarawak, AsianYachting is embarking on a ambitious plan to firmly plant Malaysia at the Center of Match Racing in SE Asia with the launching of the 8m (26ft) Miri Magic that was specifically designed by Malcolm Runnalls.

In Perth it’s a Runnalls 8, in Thailand it has appeared as Bill Gasson’s Buzz 8, and now it’s a Miri Magic.

This mini IRC Offshore racer is now entered for this year’s Raja Muda Selangor International Regatta in November. With a simple change of stanchions and guardrails this multi-purpose yacht converts to an approved sail training vessel and doubles up as a day racing Sportsboat with excellent match racing capabilities.

Given the universal appeal for a simple, roomy and stable dayboat, AsianYachting are commissioning the building of five more Miri Magics and hope by early next year to have a fleet of six yachts.

Thanks to a lifting keel, the Miri Magic can be put on a roadworthy dual axle trailer and easily towed by a 4WD vehicle.

Top of the list of MM activities is to conduct sail training courses with an intention of forming State and Club racing teams to contest international events like Malaysia's Monsoon Cup, the Borneo Cup, the Raja Muda and Royal Langkawi Int Regattas, the King's Cup and Phuket Race Week, Singapore Straits and Koh Samui Regattas.

As the momentum picks up some mini match racing events for local Asian sailors to prepare teams for the ISAF Nations Cup and Monsoon Cup qualifiers will be organised, and eventually a combined AY Fleet and Match Racing Grand Prix is envisaged between Asian nations.

This whole match racing thing is already appealing to global brand naming sponsors overseas, and over the coming months AsianYachting will be staging a roadshow through SE Asia to test the waters and try to convince sponsors to allocate some of their Asian marketing budgets towards sponsoring a racing team by advertising on the sails and hull of the yacht.

The smaller boat and low entry level should be attractive to Asian companies looking for a platform to advertise their brand or services and become involved with future yacht racing events in Asia.

After years of research and trying to contain building costs, the Miri Magic is designed to be constructed by a relatively low-tech building method - standard lamination techniques to produce a simple and robust structure.

Designed in 2004 by Malcolm Runnalls, the 8m (26ft) Miri Magic is a fairly new model keelboat. Like a ‘big dinghy’ it provides fast and exciting racing making it a class worth looking at.

The Miri Magic is a simple easy-to-handle boat with basic controls for symmetric spinnakers, and an asymmetric spinnaker that can be flown from a retractable bowsprit. With its long cockpit and open transom it can easily be sailed by a crew of 5-6, so gives dinghy sailors a chance to move up a size and big boat sailors a chance to get their hands dirty.

The Miri Magic is a relatively inexpensive way of getting out onto the water and will be built in Malaysia (constructor to be confirmed). Quality guaranteed.

A new sail-away Miri Magic with safety gear, 5 hp outboard motor and Dacron sails is expected to cost around US$50,000k. Add in a roadworthy dual axle trailer with brakes and full racing extras including exotic sails and racing instrument upgrades, and the total comes to around US$60,000.