Regattas cancelled, but one conference is going ahead - Australian MarineBusinessWorld newsletter
by Peter Rendle 7 Aug 2020 10:00 NZST
SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week 2019 © Andrea Francolini
Another victim of this insidious virus pandemic is a North Queensland Sailing Regatta. The SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week (SMIRW) 2020 committee has made the difficult decision to cancel this year's regatta, which was to be held from 27 August to 2 September.
Whilst the COVID19 situation is worsening in eastern states, Event Chairman, Mike Steel, said the decision to cancel Townsville Yacht Club's popular annual event had been arrived at following lengthy discussions through a number of days.
However, not to be deterred and making use of the internet, the Marine Industry Association has converted their face-to-face Club Marine Emergency Preparedness Course to also be available online. With enhanced downloadable reference documents, this course will include a combination of self-paced learning and online live session with an industry veteran.
Meanwhile the association is full steam ahead in planning its biennial Marinas21 International Conference and Trade Show which will be held at the Marriott Resort Surfers Paradise, 24-25 May 2021. Marinas21 is conveniently timed to follow the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show. In announcing the Marinas21 Conference Marinas21 will be Inspiring Business Success! While we are experiencing troubling times, we aim to provide our industry with a positive and motivating event that focusses on opportunity and success for our industry".
Already enjoying considerable business success is Australian marine clothing manufacturer Zhik. The company has announced a collaboration with Plastimo, the prestigious marine industry safety manufacturer and equipment wholesaler, as their new distributor for France, Belgium and the French domestic territories. With more than 50 years' experience, Plastimo is a household name in the French marine market, offering 11,000 products, all rooted in the brand's fundamental values of safety and ergonomy, to encourage enjoyable boating practice and professional service to the trade. Piet Poelmann, CEO of Zhik comments, "We are delighted to be partnering with Plastimo, a brand which, like Zhik, contributes to safe and enjoyable sailing, and will be a reliable, powerhouse of a partner for us and our French retailers."
A number of new boats appeared in the market place this week including two multihulls. The world's leader in catamaran manufacturing has once again made a bold step forward with the introduction of the all new Lagoon Sixty5. A clear leader in this segment, the new 65 promises to deliver on all the learnings gained from the incredible success of the now legendary Lagoon 620. With over 100 Lagoon 620s sailing safely around the world, this model is now recognised as the most successful catamaran in its sector. Lagoon have since stepped further into the big boat market with the Seventy 7 and combining their learnings from these two incredible models have created the latest pocket superyacht, the Lagoon Sixty 5.
From the southern hemisphere, the Leopard 42 is the organic evolution into a new generation of Leopard's award-winning line of yachts. Built by Robertson and Caine and designed by Naval Architects, Simonis and Voogd, together they have created a revolutionary catamaran design that has exceed expectations by offering far more than anticipated. This was accomplished all while maintaining their signature balance of comfort and uncompromising performance.
Local builder Maritimo has launched the new X50R. Come offshore with us as we check in with Maritimo's latest model from their custom division, Maritimo One. A written review will follow soon after this video.
And an interesting recycling project is under way. Australia's Waterway Cleaning charity are at it again. They never seem to stand still. Having gone through the 100-tonne barrier of marine debris removed from Australian waterways already in 2020, they have now launched the Crab Pot Float Fundraiser where they will turn plastic bottle caps into hard plastic floats. In SE Queensland alone they have access to 750,000 bottle caps a day, yep you read that right. If every cap came back, that's over two tonnes of plastic that used to go to landfill.
Stay safe,
Peter Rendle peter.rendle@marinebusinessworld.com