Sydney Boating Festival now inviting exhibitors - Australian MarineBusinessWorld.com newsletter
by Peter Rendle 18 Mar 2021 15:00 PDT
Looking forward to the Sydney Festival of Boating © BIA
Firstly, congratulations to our neighbours across the ditch. The 36th America's Cup in Auckland proved to be a thrilling spectacle and lifted the image of sailing to a new level, literally. This new breed of AC foiling yachts leaves one wondering if the helmsman should now be named 'pilot'. Well done Team Emirates New Zealand for mounting a highly professional and victorious campaign.
On the home front, the 2021 Sydney Festival of Boating Invitation to Exhibit is now available. The Boating Industry Association Ltd (BIA) is pleased to present a new-format, COVID-Safe Sydney show in 2021. The Sydney Festival of Boating will be held at the International Convention Centre (ICC) between 29 July and 1 August and will occupy the upper-level halls, together with undercover exhibitor displays on the Event Deck. The festival will also feature a marina in Cockle Bay for larger on-water displays and a new Festival Boulevard of displays between Cockle Bay and Tumblong Park.
With both New Zealand and Australia enjoying extremely low Covid cases and almost no community transmission, Australia established quarantine free access for New Zealand arrivals by air some months ago. This open access is now also available to superyachts, just in time for the completion of the America's Cup. David Good, CEO of Superyacht Australia commented, "The last two vessels to apply to enter Australia from New Zealand have been approved to do so without quarantine requirements upon arrival in Sydney. The vessel occupants will be able to step off and go ashore as soon as they receive a negative Covid test result on arrival. This is now available to superyachts and occupants who have been in New Zealand for longer than 14 days for arrival into New South Wales."
Further north we have news that one of the annual Race Weeks is 'sold out'. No sooner than opened, entries flooded in for the SeaLink Magnetic Island Race Week (SMIRW), and days later, all 80 berths were filled for the Townsville Yacht Club hosted event to be held from 2-8 September, 2021. "We knew people were itching to go sailing and travel again, but we were nevertheless amazed when numbers reached 35 on the day entries opened. Ten days later there were 70 and that quickly escalated to 80," Event Chairman, Mike Steel said. "Entries are still coming in and we're putting them on a reserve list. If any accepted entries can't make it, we will advise those on the reserve list. TYC would like to create a separate Sports Boat division, so is offering dry storage to any still looking to enter.
New boats this week include two that could not be more different. Following several weeks of teasing, Lagoon has unveiled its new model, the Lagoon 55. Straight out of the shipyard at Construction Navale Bordeaux, the first prototype was launched on Thursday February 25th, from the quayside on the Garonne River. For catamaran lovers, who have been following Lagoon's fabulous history for more than 30 years, the name of this model will certainly evoke fond memories: The Lagoon 55 was in fact the very first Lagoon to have been launched, back in 1987. With naval architects Marc Van Peteghem and Vincent Lauriot-Prévost (VPLP design) at its side, Lagoon began to make its mark, and gradually became the undisputed leader in the leisure catamaran market. 34 years later, there are more than 6,000 Lagoon catamarans sailing all the seas of the world.
At the other end of the boating spectrum world-renowned high-performance builder Force Boats has just created a monster. And Rod Bickerton and his crew couldn't be prouder. The latest creation from the company based at Lower Portland on the Hawkesbury River in New South Wales is a custom-built version of their all-conquering 23-foot Force F1 for a client who had a simple brief - make it black and white, and make it quick. That's why this starkly beautiful beast features Mercury Racing's awesome 450R outboard with its supercharged 4.6-litre V-8. It's the first time this combination has ever been delivered in Australia and Rod is confident it's a boat that will be capable of reaching 100mph - in comfort. "It's been built to race but it also has a social interior, so it's got a bit of everything," he said. This is the first time we've fitted one of the new Mercury Racing 450R engines to this hull and we can't wait to see how it goes. It's going to fly."
Among new products arriving in Australia is the E-Wincher 2. The Wincher is a real alternative to electric winches and has been incredibly successful since its launch in 2017. In 2021, the French manufacturer EWINCHER pushes the quest for innovation and performance even further by launching the Ewincher 2: Faster, more powerful and with increased usability, Ewincher 2 offers a 20% performance boost. Unique with its three operating modes (electric, manual, and combined) Ewincher 2 provides maximum comfort, precision, and high speed for all manoeuvres. Thanks to a 450 W battery and a patented efficient motor, you always have 230 W and 90 Nm torque available on the winch tip.
Zhik's new autumn 2021 ranges are all now being delivered from their three global warehouses out to worldwide dealers and via their website. Hitting the shelves shortly, Zhik's INS100™ jacket is the perfect technical cross-over lightweight jacket for life afloat and onshore. With an athletic street-style, modern cut, you'll look equally at home on board and on the boardwalk. Made with Vecta, a fully waterproof, 2-layer hydrophobic breathable fabric technology, it has an additional DWR (durable water repellent) coating that sheds water from the surface. A soft mesh lining maximises air flow adding to comfort levels across the conditions. Each seam is fully taped with the critical junctions further reinforced for durability.
And if you are a sailmaker by trade you may want to take a look at what's on offer in the Gold Coast. Evolution Sails are currently looking for an enthusiastic, hard-working sailmaker to join the team. The loft is located at Biggara Waters, Gold Coast. The position is suited to either a 3-4-year apprentice Sailmaker or a qualified Sailmaker. The ideal candidate is someone who takes pride in their work, has a high attention to detail and can work well independently or in a team environment. Reliability and strong work ethic are essential.
For more industry news check out the website www.marinebusinessworld.com
Keep safe,
Peter Rendle peter.rendle@marinebusinessworld.com