Yachting World May 2021

Online www.yachtingworld.com YouTube Yachting World Facebook @yachtingworld twitter @yachtingworldmagazine If the concept of a 75ft foiling monohull sounded otherworldly when we heard about it three years ago, watching the AC75s hurtle around the Hauraki Gulf in front of an armada of packed spectator boats felt like images beamed from another planet for most of us. No other nation on earth could have hosted the America’s Cup in remotely similar style to New Zealand this year. But while Auckland was perfect for 2021, where next for the Cup? Rumours of a Deed of Gift match around the Isle of Wight have divided the purists: the Auld Mug, making a long-overdue pilgrimage to whence the tradition began? Or a travesty for the Kiwi public to lose an event they have supported devotedly…

A bumper racing season in the UK is being predicted this summer as the easing of restrictions to social gatherings meets pent up appetite for competitive events. The largest is likely to be the Round the Island Race, which takes place on 3 July, followed by Cowes Week and the Rolex Fastnet Race in August, both of which could see boosted fleet numbers. The Round the Island race, the famous 50-mile day race round the Isle of Wight, was cancelled last summer. All but a few who wanted to take part rolled over their entry to this year, and organiser the Island Sailing Club was anticipating a wave of new interest for what will be its 90th year. “We usually get about 1,200 boats, but seeing how quickly the Fastnet…

Vendée draws to a close Ari Huusela became the 25th and final Vendée Globe skipper to complete the race when he finished after 116 days of racing. The last edition of the solo round the world race saw 25 out of 34 entrants finish, a much smaller attrition rate than usual. Meanwhile the digital Virtual Regatta version of the race saw a massive entry of 1,068,908 players skippering virtual boats around the world. Beneteau goes on tour With international travel restricted, Beneteau has announced plans to take its boats on tour with a nine-venue ‘roadshow’ offering visits and private sea trials from April-June this year. Venues include the Baltic coast of Germany, the Netherlands, Rome, Oslo, Stockholm, the south of France and the Vendée region, and Hamble on the south…

The 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race will see a new collaboration between RORC and the Yacht Club de France. The 3,000-mile race from Lanzarote in the Canary Islands to Grenada in the Caribbean is run in association with the International Maxi Association and was originally conceived as a feeder race ahead of the popular RORC Caribbean 600. “We very much look forward to working alongside our colleagues at the Yacht Club de France, which is one of the oldest yacht clubs in France (1867), to promote the race to its members and associations, and open the event to a wider audience,” commented RORC Commodore James Neville. The next edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race will start on 8 January 2022.…

A clutch of ‘budget friendly’ new round the world races for sailor-owners has tapped into renewed enthusiasm for adventure and endurance sailing. All three new events are set to take off in 2023. The Global Solo Race non-stop single-handed round the world race, planned for 2023, has already attracted 12 entries. It is organised by Italian sailor Marco Nannini, who took part in Josh Hall’s Global Ocean Race for Class 40s in 2011, and set up the Global Solo Race with Hall. The race is open to monohulls from 32-55ft with an IRC rating below 1.25. The skippers entered so far are aged between 35 and 67 and are from Belgium, Switzerland, UK, Netherlands, France, Italy and Bulgaria with yachts ranging from an S&S 34 to a Farr 45. Another…

If watching the AC75s flying around Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf appealed, the ambitious new F70 by Carkeek Design and Persico Marine might have you reaching for the chequebook. Described as “a new breed of high-performance dualpurpose day sailer and racing foiling yacht” the F70 has been created by Italian yacht builders Persico Marine, who built the two Luna Rossa AC75s as well as the foil arms for all teams, and the Carkeek Design office, known for their inshore designs like the radical Fast 40+ Ran VII. It combines retracting foils, T-foil rudders, a canting keel, and a whole lot of wow factor.…