Yachts & Yachting magazine May 2022

WELCOME exciting news that Sailing Today and Yachts & Yachting will continue as one magazine from now on. Thank you for all your positive feedback – sailing is a broad church and there are many good things that come from looking at the sport as a whole as opposed to remaining in the straitjacket of 'cruising' or 'racing'. Our all-encompassing, amalgamated magazine will continue to bring you the very best from across the full gamut of sailing. This issue we also kick off a new monthly section, Experts' Forum, where experienced sailors share advice and knowledge to help your own cruising and racing. We hope you find it useful - and please don't hesitate to let us know topics you'd like to hear about. And, to make this issue even…

Budworth wins Club of the Year award Budworth Sailing Club has been named as winner of the 2022 RYA and Yachts & Yachting Club of the Year Award, supported by Gallagher. The Cheshire club was one of 10 finalists selected by the RYA awards panel and ultimately crowned by a public vote. The coveted trophy was presented by the British Sailing Team’s Sam Whaley on 26 February at the RYA Dinghy & Watersports Show, after the finalists were introduced by the RYA’s CEO Sara Sutliffe. Budworth SC was recognised for implementing changes which have attracted more members of all ages and backgrounds into the sport, including volunteer run open days and dedicated sessions for newcomers. Having been recently recognised as an RYA training centre, the club is also now able to offer a…

The UK has been battered by storms. What does that mean for boat insurers? There’s no question that weather patterns are changing and storms are becoming both more frequent and more severe. Over time this will affect both insurers and customers as premiums will inevitably have to increase to cover storm losses. Have you seen new boat owners coming in over the pandemic? Yes, we have seen this across most craft types and it’s great to see. Most have purchased sensibly, lots of paddle boards, dinghies etc, but we have also seen people without experience buying boats that are not suitable. It’s not our role to police who uses the water but our existing customers don’t want premiums going up as a result of us taking on poor risks either. We…

“No hint of doubt is evident on the faces of the crew, as they boldly go..” We’ve featured a shot from 2021 Vice-Admiral’s Cup in our monthly Position slot before. The RORC regatta was a busy day on the water for all. What’s admirable about this shot is that no hint of doubt is evident on the faces of the crew, as they boldly go where few racing yachtsmen dare to. The nosedive, if attempted, must be done with conviction, as demonstrated ably here. Done well, it garners praise from competitors. Few yacht club bars are long enough to accommodate the congratulatory drinks following a good one. For the crew, it’s a moment in their sailing careers never to be forgotten, forging an eternal bond between those on board. Some of…

‘Of course I love the Finn, but it’s not the only solution out there, let’s be honest’ Wandering around your average boat show these days, you can’t help noticing something different – something with a lurid colour scheme, a mildy anarchic logo, something that carries words and stickers unintelligible to the average Hallberg-Rassy owner. This, plainly, is a foiling kiteboard. But what’s it doing in a boat show? Our late and greatly esteemed columnist Bob Fisher spent some time in the years following the Rio Olympics giving World Sailing a magnificently hard time. It was Bob at his best, firmly on the side of the ordinary sailor, armed as he always was with fact and history as much as emotion. Bob’s bugbear, or one of them (he really did give World Sailing a…

C Cat 48 The C-Cat 48 is a lightweight and fast Italian cruising catamaran from the Comar Yachts yard and their latest launch is definitely designed for high speed cruising. The boat is designed by French naval architect Francois Perus and the new yacht features C-Foil daggerboards to reduce displacement at speed and increase clearance of the nacelle. Comfort wise, the key concept has been to create a single large outdoor living space. The cockpit is protected by a large bimini, which is fully closable for pleasant outdoor living, and the cockpit and dinette are both on the same level, divided by a large sliding door. c-catamarans.com Lagoon 51 Lagoon’s relatively new 50 (launched 2017) has been obliged to take a bow in order to accommodate its replacement, the 51. The new boat is…