| The latest sailing news from New Zealand and the world. |
17 Oct 2017 |
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  Sail-World NZ - Oct 17 - Volvo does a slow boil..Kiwi skipper signs on
 | | Brad Jackson on the helm of team AkzoNobel during the Rolex Fastnet Race © James Blake / Volvo Ocean Race |
Welcome to Sail-World.com's New Zealand e-magazine for October 17, 2017
The Volvo Ocean Race is providing more than its share of on the water and off the water action ahead of the start on Sunday night NZT.
Although the round the world race has not yet begun, a firm favourite has already emerged in the form of MAPFRE, which completed the pre-race hat-trick on Saturday with a win in the first In-Port race at Alicante.
That came on the back of wins in the shortened Prologue and the light air Leg Zero qualifier race.
Skippered by 2004 Olympic Gold medalist in the 49er class, Xabi Fernandez, the red-hulled MAPRE is hopeful of becoming the first Spanish entry to win a Whitbread or Volvo Ocean Race.
She would appear to be very well navigated by the veteran Juan Vila who is making a return to the race after a 15-year absence. In between Volvo's he has been a member of three America's Cup winning teams. He first sailed in the then Whitbread Round the World Race, in 1989-90 - the same year that another red boat Peter Blake's Steinlager 2 won all six legs.
 | | Brad Jackson (NZL) foreground, with Jules Salter (left and Simeon Tienpont (NED) on the helm of team AkzoNobel Volvo Ocean Race |
For those who follow the Peter Burling/Blair Tuke stakes, this time Blair Tuke would appear to have the upper hand, and even at this early stage is poised to become the first sailor in history to win an Olympic Gold medal, the America's Cup and Volvo Ocean Race. However there is a long way to go, and a lot can happen in 45,000nm - as we have seen many times before.
Ashore there has been plenty of fireworks from the Dutch entry, one of two. Team AkzoNobel's backing sponsor decided that they would part company with their skipper Simeon Tienpont's company STEAM Ocean BV who had put together the crew and the new boat - the only new hull in the seven-boat fleet.
Despite dire predictions that the crew would walk away along with their skipper, they stayed in place and sailed in the In-Port Race in Alicante. They did not cover themselves with glory in the race sailed in light to medium breezes, but just getting out and sailing the course was good enough in the circumstances.
For reasons that are not entirely clear Akzo Nobel decided to step in, contracted the crew directly and cut-out Tienpont's company. They offered Tienpont the skipper's role on the same basis - an offer which was declined.
Just through is the news that three times Round the World race winner Brad Jackson (NZL) has been appointed to take-over the skipper's role. A replacement crew member is yet to be named to bring the Dutch-flagged entry back up to full crew strength.
 | | Sir Stephen Tindall (right) at the America's Cup Presentation Ceremony, Bermuda, June 26, 2017 Scott Stallard |
Welcome news came last Friday that Sir Stephen Tindall had decided to take a year out from his business activities and to be focused on other projects including ensuring that the 2021 America's Cup is hosted in Auckland.
That should be a great comfort to Kiwi sailing fans, particularly those based in Auckland who knows only too well of the shortcomings of the Auckland Council.
It is expected that if the Cup does stay in Auckland, and is not reassigned to Italy that an event management arm of Team New Zealand will be formed to run the event, and leave the Defence itself to the sailing team.
No new teams have come forward since New York Yacht Club made their early announcement.
 | | Nacra - Day 4 - Yachting New Zealand 2017 Youth Trials, Manly Sailing Club Yachting New Zealand |
One sticking point, aside from the unfortunate requirement for money - and lots of it - looks to be the Crew Nationality clause.
After running a few timelines (overlaying the Nationality Rule with the Boat launch rules, with the Auckland base availability and the New Zealand summer sailing season), it would seem that in its present form, the Nationality clause would seem to be too extreme. The exception being those teams who are intending to run with sailing crews that are near 100% homegrown and comply with the first of two criteria that they are a 'national' of that country.
The second option is for the sailing crew member to have been resident in the country of the club they seek to represent for 380 days out of the 730-day qualifying period.
The Qualifier period starts on December 1, 2018, and if a team member did the whole 380 days from the outset, they could not move to New Zealand until around mid-December, 2019.
That is about a year before the Challenger Selection Series gets underway. But it is also six months after bases are expected to be built in Auckland, and it is nine months after the teams are allowed to first launch their initial AC75.
 | | Josh Armit - Boys Laser Radial - Day 4 - Yachting New Zealand 2017 Youth Trials, Manly Yachting New Zealand |
The obvious response is to expect the crew to shuffle back and forth between their adopted home and New Zealand - not to winter over - and log up their 380 days on a piecemeal basis. But that also assumes that the team has a base in their adopted country from which they operate during the New Zealand winter and can do useful sailing there, rather than just talk about it, or sail AC39's (the maximum length surrogate boat allowed under the Protocol).
With the AC75 being a new class there will probably be an advantage in launching the first AC75 close to the earliest permitted launch date, and then starting the modification process with that test boat.
As there is no tank or wind testing allowed, and the AC39 being just over half the size of the AC75, there will need to be some early checking of scalability if a radical high-performance monohull is chosen as the America's Cup class. The first boat launched is expected to be a 'Lego boat' - able to have parts added and subtracted as design options and refinements are tested in full size.
It is quite a different situation from the 2017 America's Cup where the Surrogate AC45's were so close to the AC50 that the parts could be interchanged between the test boat and the America's Cup Class.
 | | The newly formed Asko Appliances team showed improved form to finish seventh – 18ft Skiffs Spring Championship © Frank Quealey / Australian 18 Footers League |
The obvious thing for a team is to build a base early in New Zealand, launch early and stay here. Bases are expected to be available in mid-2019, or three months after the AC75 first launch date.
For some teams who will engage foreign sailors of fortune. It is just not practical to have a sailing team here that comprises nationals only and then have the 'foreigners' jetting back to their adopted home - remembering that the rule requires the non-nationals to be 'physically present' in their adopted country.
There is a workaround of course. That is to pick a crew that is the best fit for the first criteria of the nationality policy. Then find a willing club in that country and make the Challenge on that basis. From where the rest of the team hails is irrelevant, as the Nationality clause only covers sailing crew, and then only those on the race boat.
The Nationality clause works very well for the Defender, as it will be the only team with a base in its home country, and sailors of fortune can serve out their required 380 days in New Zealand.
 | | Team Brunel - Alicante stopover. MAPFRE In-Port Race Alicante. 14 October, 2017. © Pedro Martinez / Volvo Ocean Race |
The Protocol clause doesn't define what a 'national' is - whether it is a passport holder, a holder of citizenship, a holder of Permanent Residence, or where born there (and maybe left a month later). It is also a lot easier to obtain the first of the three documents in some countries than it is in others.
That is all decided between the Defender and Challenger of Record, and a foreign sailor would appear only to have recourse to the Arbitration Panel for determination if those two teams cannot agree.
A Protocol change which would make it all simple is to declare the team bases in New Zealand to be part of the territory of the Challenging Club. The same criteria applies to a modification of the Constructed in Country rule - allowing changes to be made to the hulls of competing yachts in New Zealand without having to ship them home.
As the alien crew members have to be resident in the country of the Challenging Club from September 2018, there is still a significant physical residency requirement - but not an onerous one.
 | | 28 Swan One Designs raced for The Nations Trophy © Studio Borlenghi |
Follow all the racing and developments in major and local events on www.sail-world.com by scrolling to the top of the site, select New Zealand, and get all the latest news and updates from the sailing world.
Good sailing!
Richard Gladwell
NZ Editor
sailworldnzl@gmail.com
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 | | 29er - Day 4 - Yachting New Zealand 2017 Youth Trials, Manly Sailing Club Yachting New Zealand |
 | | Bella (foreground) against the national park small – Australian Couta Boat Championship © Bob Fowler |
 | | Racing was tight at the first windward mark – 18ft Skiffs Spring Championship © Frank Quealey / Australian 18 Footers League |
 | | team Akzonobel - Alicante stopover. MAPFRE In-Port Race Alicante. 14 October, 2017. © Pedro Martinez / Volvo Ocean Race |
 | | MAPFRE - Alicante stopover. MAPFRE In-Port Race Alicante. 14 October, 2017. © Pedro Martinez / Volvo Ocean Race |
 | | Alicante stopover. Dongfeng crosses with Team Brunel. In-Port Race Alicante. Photo by Pedro Martinez/Volvo Ocean Race. 14 October, 2017. © Pedro Martinez / Volvo Ocean Race |
 | | Day 3 – Great crew concentration on Sebastien Rogues' Team ENGIE – Marseille One Design © Gilles Martin-Raget / GC32 Racing Tour |
 | | Day 2 – Alicante Match Cup © Ian Roman / WMRT |
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