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Weymouth, England. The final 49er World Cup Regatta for the year has recently finished with over sixty crews taking part from around the world. In the highly competitive 470 Gold Fleet Peter Burling and Blair Tuke finished a respectable 8th place. Twenty three points away from a top three finish after fourteen races.

Follow the link below to read more about the campaign:
http://www.sail-world.com/NZ/NZL-49er---Peter-Burling-and-Blair-Tuke-end-of-season-update/73578
Regatta information is available at:
http://www.skandiasailforgoldregatta.co.uk/

UPDATE: NZL 49er .... “Sail-for-Gold” World cup regatta has started

Usually the 49er skiffs race closest to shore due to their large downing gennakers, spectacular speed and exciting racing.  Because of large entry numbers in other classes, the 49er course area was shifted from close to shore to be one of the furthest away from the Weymouth Olympic sailing centre, approx 6km and right out towards  the English Channel.

For qualifying the 49er fleet is split into two flights of 30 – yellow and blue.  Current world rankings were used to make the initial fleets as even as possible with new flights allocated after each days racing.

Day 1 - Monday

Good sailing breeze of 12-15 knot SW greeted the 49er sailors on course area “D” but the wind was very unstable and shifty.Yellow fleet got first use of the course for their 3 races while the guys waited on shore in blue fleet - starting after yellow had finished their 3 races.A tricky slop on the water developed due to the English Channel current running up into the wind towards the first mark.

Carnage ensued on the start line of race 1 where 17 boats from the two flights were judged to have been over the start line early – due to the strong current pushing them forward ......  all 17 boats were disqualified for jumping the start.  A solid start for Peter and Blair with race scores of  3, 3, 4  to finish the first day 2nd= overall  (4th on count back).

Day 2 -Tuesday

The guys were in yellow fleet today - sailing first.

It was raining lightly as they got towed the 30 minutes to their course area. Racing was delayed on the water due to the light winds at the start time of 11am - the forecast had predicted the breeze to increase quickly.The first race was in a steady 12 knots producing extremely close racing.The wind increased and visibility faded during the second race.  Peter reported that they struggled to find the bottom mark in the second race with poor visibility being an issue - the leaders all had to drop their gennakers and 2-sail reach to the finish once they found it.  Due to the tricky nature of the 49er in sailing downwind in big breeze and large waves, a lot of boats failed to finish this race within 10 minutes of the leader so are scored DNF (did not finish). 

The wind topped out at over 26 knots on the committee boat and yellow fleet was sent ashore without attempting race 3.  Blue fleet (the other 30 sailors) did not get to race today so it is difficult to interpret the results sheet. 

Race scores of 2, 3 today should see Peter and Blair consolidate their overall position - I assume blue fleet will catch up these races tomorrow.  The forecast is for fine weather  with light sea breezes developing.  
The plan is for two more races in Peter and Blair's fleet tomorrow, after which the top 25 ranked 49er sailors split to Gold fleet and race each other for the rest of the regatta.  

They will be pleased to see the English summer sun tomorrow.
 

Regatta Website ...   http://www.skandiasailforgoldregatta.co.uk/2010

Richard Burling.

New London, Connecticut, USA. Amanda Norris (daughter of Dave Norris) and Michael Anderson take an impressive second against stiff international competition in the 2010 William L Koch International Sea Scout Cup.

What makes this result so impressive is that Amanda is only 14  when most competitors are 16-19 years old. Harken NZ would like to congratulate Amanda and Michael on their impressive preformance. For more follow the link below:

https://seascoutcup.org/asp/ContentPage.asp?FN=KochIntro&MS=1&UserId=&Key=&oMS=1&oTS=7&oCBM=1&oCBY=2010&oCEM=12&oCEY=2010&oSMS=1&oEUMS=1&oDDF=F&TS=6

  
2010 Koch Cup Fleet

 
Amanda Norris and Michael Anderson following a top
US crew.

Awards Ceremony

"Dan and I got home last week from an almost 2 month European tour.

We started off with the Worlds in Den Haag, Holland. We had a great 12 day build up with conditions mainly being sea breeze under 10 knots. We learned a lot and felt confident with our speed in these conditions going into the regatta. As always the event turned out completely different to what we had in training with about 75% of the races being held in 15-30 knots.

We made the top 35 gold fleet and this was the first goal ticked off. We then went into 2 days of gold fleet racing and the breeze and big waves really got up for this. We got found out badly when we lacked speed upwind in the strong breeze and finally finished up 26th out of 119 boats. We thought that this an OK result considering we had only been in the boat for 6 months, however we were disappointed because our skills in the light and medium winds turned out to be world class. The event demonstrated to us that we must now focus on improving our skills in over 15 knots and in particular big waves. The 2 days and 6 races we had in these conditions proved our downfall from being in the top 15 in the World. The highlight of the Worlds for the NZ team was the 470 Women’s team of Jo and Polly placing 2nd which was a fantastic result for them. We are lucky that we have a top squad of 5 boats who work together and are pushing each other along.

We then had an awesome week break in Stockholm staying with Dan’s family and catching up with friends there. From there we moved on to Weymouth, on the South Coast of England for the Sail for Gold World Cup Regatta. Weymouth is the venue for the 2012 Olympics so we were using it as an opportunity to learn the conditions. We had two weeks training in Weymouth before the regatta. It ended up being steady sea breezes for that whole period. We spent alot of time training with the Brits and learned about how the breeze bends through Weymouth Bay, what side was generally favoured, how the gusts operated and what the signs were for change. We sailed nearly every day and ended up taking away alot of useful information with the help of the NZL Sailing Team support staff.

Sail for Gold ended up being a very high scoring regatta. During the Event there was a low-pressure system disrupting the predominant wind, creating unstable and very tricky racing conditions. We were slow to adapt to these conditions as taking risks and backing your decisions was very effective. The corners were very rewarding and we always seemed to be playing it safe up the middle. We finished 28th in Weymouth after a pretty disappointing regatta where a lack of speed upwind again cost us as it was a venue where if you couldn't hold a "clear lane" to the side you wanted to go to clearing out was incredibly costly.

We are still enjoying sailing together and both have the drive and passion to win! Overall we weren't happy with our results, particularly because we know that we have not sailed to our potential yet. However, having only sailed together for 6 months we have so much to work on and know that the areas that need improvement are fixable with time on the water. We know there are just a few weaknesses holding us back and if we can fix these we can challenge the top 10. One of the biggest areas we are going to focus on is getting quicker upwind in the strong breeze. As always having a slight edge of boat speed makes tactics so easy, whereas being slightly slow makes life tough.

Thanks for every ones support! We'll keep you updated on our progress.
 
Cheers

Geoff Woolley

Thanks to the support from Yachting New Zealand and our coaches Hamish Willcox and Nathan Handley, New Zealand Academy of Sport, Donaghys Ropes, Rooster and nzsailing.net, Mackay Boats, North Sails Japan, Sailutions, Sport Connect "

After a solid build up to the winner take all sail off, the Womens 470 crew of Jo Aleh and Olivia Powrie were in ther hunt for gold in the 470 Womens World Champs off the Hague, Netherlands.

Jo and Polly take silver in the Netherlands

"As some of you might already know, we have had a rather successful 2010 World Champs regatta, we were in the top three the whole way through, in and out of the lead, culminating in a winner takes all medal race, which unfortunately did not go in our favour, and so we ended up with the silver medal.  A result we are very encouraged by, as we seem to be tracking well, and as usual have even more to work on for next year!!

So, now for a bit of a recap of how our regatta played out...

We arrived in Holland 12 days out from the start of racing, so we could have a slightly more chilled build up, without the rush we usually end up in.  The weather was a very welcome surprise, with temperatures in the high twenties (which of course only lasted until the day before the regatta started...).  We managed to get in some good training pre-event, with a great Kiwi contingency of six boats, a two fold increase on last year!

The racing started out rather slowly, with no wind on the first day, and some fun hours drifting around on the water (with all three of us girls boats hooked up on the tow, and motoring slowly into the tide, in an effort to not get swept down the coast.).  There was an exciting ending to the day however, as a rather viscous thunderstorm hit just as we had got ashore (some boats were still coming in - and had a bit on!).

Day two finally brought some action, even if it was rather slow paced.  We had three races in lightish conditions, with a very strong tide to make it more interesting. We started out well, with two second placings after some great downwind legs into the tide. The third race of the day was even crazier, with the wind dropping out a touch, and the tide fully on the go, which meant we didnt have to tack at all on the upwind leg, with the tide dragging us so far sideways.  Annoyingly for us, the race was abandoned for some unknown reason, with us only 10 minutes from finishing another race in second.

The third day was finally more like we had been wanting, with a decent breeze building, we had a good day with a first and a fourth, and were hoping to get another race in, but a thunderstorm was apparently on the way, and we were sent in to wait ashore until 6pm, by which time the storm still hadn’t passed, and we were called off for the day.

Day four was a crazy day, the wind was howling when we got down the the yacht club, and we were a little surprised to get sent out to race. We got out to the course and did all our normal warm ups, and it was fresh, but we were still mostly in control, so we were a bit annoyed when after an hour out in massive wind and waves thrashing the boat and sails, we were sent back ashore a few minutes before start time...
Then came hours of waiting around for the wind to ease, which it did eventually, and we were sent out for a 7.15pm start time.  Where we had an ok race, with one of more missed opportunities than we would have liked, but still came away with a 3rd.

The next day was the first day of finals (with the fleet split into gold and silver fleets), and the breeze was once again rather fresh, so we were hoping for a good day.  It started out badly, when halfway up the first beat the main halyard snapped and the mainsail came tumbling down.  We capsized the boat and tried to pull it back up and lash it off, but it was more than a two person job so we pulled out and found Nathan to help us get it ready for the next race.  After that ordeal, we just wanted to get some points on the board, but couldn't quite get the boat going, and ended up with a 2nd and a 3rd.

The last day of fleet racing, was yet another day of breeze, and we finally got the boat up and going, flying around the course after some rather average starts (we were just trying to make sure we were not ocs, as we could not afford another bad race), to end up with a 1st, 2nd and 3rd, to finish our series with no result out of the top four.

We went into the medal race one point from the dutch, with a virtual match race to decide the winner.  We pushed hard, but were not quite able to take the lead, and ended up getting tangled in too many other boats, both press and 470’s! not to mention a rowing boat that somehow managed to get in the middle of our course, and in our way... But it was still a great learning experience, and we have a few lessons to take on for next year, and for now are just happy to get our first World Championship medal, and know we are still on track for London...

So now its time for a few days off, before getting some sailing time in Weymouth before the Sail for Gold regatta in mid August.

Thank you to everyone for the emails, and the messages of support!

Jo and Polly"

http://olympicsailing.blip.tv/
 

" We have just finished 9th overall at the Olympic class 49er European championships in
Gdynia, Poland. - 82 boats from 27 countries competed.

Thanks to Dan Slater, our coach at this regatta – he was able to share some old 49er tricks that still work. Dan, with Nathan Handley, are
NZ’s only 49er Olympians Sydney 2000.

Follows is a quick summary of the regatta and what’s next...

A tricky first day of qualifying had us ranked in the middle of the 84 boat fleet just couldn’t get the
starts and shifts right. This was the first time in the 49er that we have had good solid racing in very
light unstable wind – all under 7 knots.

A great learning opportunity but not much fun at the time. A little more wind over the next 2 days of qualifying and much better results saw us make the top 25
boat Gold fleet in 14th. In the last race a capsize and catching a plastic bag on the rudder while going
downwind was a bit unlucky after being in a good position.

Gold Fleet is always interesting – with so many good boats racing together it is easy to get unwanted
large scores.

The first Gold Fleet day had really fun exciting conditions of 10-18 knots of breeze. Even though it
wasn't that windy ... a huge chop/sea state built very quickly with many boats pitch poling
while trying to hoist their downwind gennaker ...bow goes into a wave and the boat cartwheels.
All four races in the top 10 this day shot us up the rankings to 8th overall. Day 2 of Gold Fleet was
back to the very light unstable stuff again, another opportunity to test our skills. Race scores of 7,
OCS (disqualified for starting early) and 15 were very average ... practically everyone picked up
unwanted scores this day. Another light race on the final day saw us qualify for the medal race in
9th.(top 10 ranked boats)

Medal race ... Part of any Olympic sailor’s campaign is to get experience in medal races. There was a
huge hype around this one with an estimated 5000 people watching from the beach (maybe some of
them were just enjoying the sun). The four lap, 25 minute medal race course was close to shore,
creating good viewing with plenty of corners ...we finished 6th here to hold our 9th place overall.
Media coverage was impressive ... a cameraman had a large helium balloon for taking aerial shots
over the race track, plus the usual on water media. We had GPS tracking and some boats even had
remote on-board video cameras. http://olympicsailing.blip.tv �] has a daily video highlights package
accessed from right hand side of the screen ... Day 4 has some good footage of us. We have a blue
gennaker and NZ flag on our mainsail.

What’s next ... We have just arrived in the UK with our 49er and coach boat in tow...a 2 day drive of
nearly 2000km. 30 knots of breeze on the English Channel delayed the Ferry from Calais. On the first
evening we found a nice little town in Germany to watch the Football World cup final. We now put
the rig in storage and head off for a couple of weeks R+R in Europe... too expensive to come home for
such a short time. Blair is meeting up with his family/friends and having his 21st birthday (don’t worry
...there will be a big celebration in NZ later on), and Peter is joining the Irish 49er boys for a cycling
trip to the South of France ... cross-training and seeing some of the Tour de France.

Our next sailing is a week’s training in Weymouth, UK – Sailing venue for the 2012 Olympics,
followed by the last World cup event for 2010 “Sail for cGold”, racing days are 9 to 14th Aug."

Photo © Thom Touw

New Zealand’s Jo Aleh and Olivia Powrie head into the three day finals series of the 2010 Women’s 470 World Championship with a share of the lead.

The qualifying round for the Women’s fleet was completed overnight off the Hague, Netherlands where the Men’s and Women’s titles are currently being contested. Once again, racing was interrupted, this time due to stormy, blustery conditions, and only one race was sailed late in the day.

Aleh and Powrie raced home to 3rd place and sit equal with Italian’s Giulia Conti and Giovanna Micol who closed their gap on the kiwis on the leader board with a win in last night’s race. A race discard now comes into play also affecting the overall standings.

Early leaders Eric Maxwell and Isabelle Kinsolving Farrar of the USA are three points behind the New Zealanders and Italians tied at the top.

Aleh and Powrie first competed at World Championship level in the Olympic 470 class in 2009, Aleh moving into the double-handed class after competing at the 2008 Olympic Games in the single-handed Laser Radial. Aleh, 24 years of age, is at the helm with 22 year old Olivia Powrie her crew. Both girls represent Auckland’s Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron.

Melinda Henshaw and Bianca Barbarich-Bacher have qualified for the gold fleet in 19th place after finishing 12th in last night’s race.

Reports indicate that regatta organisers and sailors alike were extremely frustrated by the inaccuracy of weather predictions which saw 180 plus boats head out in the morning in extreme sailing conditions which then worsened as wind challenged tide. The Women’s fleet sailed just the one race late in the day while the Men were unable to complete a race and progress to gold, silver and bronze fleets after an abbreviated qualifying series.

Geoff Woolley and Dan Willcox, as well as Paul Snow-Hansen and Jason Saunders have qualified for the Men’s gold fleet sitting in 23rd and 27th place respectively.

The titles will be decided and the world champions crowned after a medal race on the final day - July 18th. The New Zealand 470 crews are supported by coaches Nathan Handley and Hamish Willcox.

Provisional Results after qualifying rounds
Women’s 470 World Championship (62 boats)
1st = Jo Aleh and Olivia Powrie (2, 2, 1, 4, 3)
19th - Melinda Henshaw and Bianca Barbarich-Bacher (5, 12, 9, 19, 12)
53rd - Sarah and Emma Berry (28, 25, 30, 15, 25)

Men’s 470 World Championship (119 boats)
23rd - Geoff Woolley and Dan Willcox (37, 12, 5, 15, 5)
27th - Paul Snow-Hansen and Jason Saunders (16, 9, 15, 10, 6)
39th - Francisco Lardies and Finn Drummond (28, 8, 26, 14, 4)

Links:
Regatta website
International 470 class website

About this regatta:
The International 470 Class is the class of boat used for both the men’s two person and women’s two person dinghy events at the Olympic Games. Used as Olympic equipment since 1976, where the class was sailed as an open event before the introduction of separate events for men and women in 1988, the 470 is sailed in more than 61 nations around the world.

This year 119 men and 62 women are in the Netherlands to compete for the ultimate titles of 2010 Men’s and Women’s 470 World Champion. 

For more information contact:
Jodie Bakewell-White
Email. jodie@yachtingnz.org.nz
Tel. 021 709 065

Peter Burling and Blair Tuke are off checking out the beach's of Gydnia, Poland for the start of the 49er Europeans. Coached by Dan Slater, the pair are spending their time settling in before what will be a competitive regatta.

Wind conditions are light, under seven knots, and the forcast suggesting more of the same, the pre regatta training in similar conditions will be the key to a podium finish. The event starts tonight (NZ time)with racing finishing July 10th. 

Boats line the beach in Gydnia, Poland

Developed by French Olympic sailors in 1992 the F18 is currently the fastest growing class in he world. ISAF recognised, the F18 is the clear replacement for the aging Tornados in international fleet races. Due to the restrictions of a class boat the racing is both spectacular to watch and exiting - producing close competitiion.

Regular races are held at Royal Akarana Yacht Club (RAYC) during the summer months starting off with the Hauraki Raid Series in October culminating in the F18 National Champs in February.

Harken NZ are proud to support Jono Kney and Steve Delahunty in their build up to the 2011 F18 Worlds.


Jono Kney (Driver)                                                                              Steve Delahunty

Boats from the RAYC fleet approach the top mark 

 

Harken sponsored sailor Michelle Tait officially starts her build up towards the Starling Nationals being held in January 2011. A tough fitness regime and a vigorous two boat testing program starting in August should hold her in good stead.

Also campaigning in the Mistral class, Tait is captain of the Pakuranga College 420 team and races regularly on the Young 88s.


Michelle Tait hikes out in a mixed fleet race

Michelle Tait on the helm of the Harken branded 420

Schools 420 racing

Peter Burling and Blair Tuke start as they mean to continue with a second placing in the Delta Lloyd World Cup in the Netherlands.

With changing conditions hampering consistency the pair were unable to get past the Australian crew in the medal race.

Blair and Peter will be back in New Zealand until they fly out to Poland for the 49er Europeans on June 25th.


Blair Tuke and Peter Burling with the silverware 

The Harken sponsored boat, part of a fleet of 10 Elliott 7s, was officially launched at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (RNZYS) on Sunday 25.
 
The development of the Elliott 7 follows on from the success of the Elliot 6 which has recently become an Olympic class for woman's match racing. Spinlock deck gear and Harken winches were specified for the upgrade by the Harken New Zealand Ltd's technical manager Grant Blewett, who has been personally involved in the project.

To see the impressive new boats head down to the RNZYS.


The first three boats are delivered to the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (RNZYS)

Fitout underway by the Yachting Development crew

Carbon rig and racing bulb keel visable (middle right) 


Harken equipped cockpit layout
 

After winning every race in the recent 49er nationals, Harken sponsored Peter Burling and Blair Tuke are heading to Europe to compete on the World Cup circut. Sailing in Holand, England and Poland the pair are "fired up" after a successful build up in Sydney against the top 3 Australian crews.
 
Racing in their new boat 'Brutus', built by Dave Mackay, we look forward to following their progress as they compete at the elite level. The team at Harken NZ wish Peter and Blair all the best for their upcoming campaign.
 

A large amount of kit needs to be stowed before the
guys leave for Europe

Dan Slater narrowly misses out on the medal race by 1 point. Rain, thunder and lightning had a disastrous effect on the last race's final run. Slater, losing three positions to finish seventh, was disappointed with his buildup. "My lack of sailing and fitness let me down on the final run which, as it turns out cost me a place in the medal race".
 

'Free pumping' downwind during the regatta

"Today again we had a postponement ashore for 2 hours while the wind went round the compass and it teemed down with rain. Once we got on the water the breeze was around 10 knots but very shifty.

Race One I had a great start and worked the left hand side of the course which worked out well and I rounded the first mark 6th. I then had a nice run closing on the leaders and passing 1 boat by the first bottom mark. On the second beat I closed up on the leaders and although I rounded 5th I was in striking distance.

Down the run to the finish I was able to catch a few good waves with a few big pumps of the sail and at the finish I surfed into 3rd just 2 boat lengths from 1st.
 
Race two the breeze became really crazy with massive dark clouds and a bit of thunder that started to get louder. I had another good start and a good beat in really shifty conditions I looked good for the lead a few times but we had a big split in the fleet and I rounded the mark in 10th.

By the bottom mark I was 2nd after a few good waves and a bit of pressure. Up the next beat we had two huge shifts form the left and then the right I was in good shape for the first one from the left but the boats to leeward gained back in the shift from the right. At the top mark the group closed up and I was 4th. On the final run to the finish the free pumping flag went up.

The breeze built to 16 -17 knots with rain, thunder and some lightning strikes. I lost 3 boats down the run and finished 7th.
 
This was a much better day and my lack of sailing and fitness let me down on the final run which as it turns out cost me a place in the medal race as I finished 11th Overall just 1 point out of the medal race. I am gutted to not make the medal race but happy to have found some form today. Tomorrow I will sail 1 race if the weather permits before driving back up to Amsterdam then Flying home for the Auckland –Fiji Race."
 

Working the breeze during 'free pumping'

Fleet racing with the leader in the background

Hiking out

Ideal conditions for at least some of the races

Racing at Hyeres
"We competed in the French Spring Cup in Marseille, which was rather eye opening, as we raced together with the men, and with 63 boats on the start line, just getting off the line was an achievement.

We had at least 2-4 general recalls (when the race committee recalls the start as too many people are over the line) per race, and the racing was very tight the whole way round the track. We learnt a lot from seeing how the guys race, and although we were not very happy with our end result (16th overall, and 3rd women), it was worth it for the learning factor!
 
From there, we were off to Hyeres, to compete in our second World Cup event of the year. The event did not go as smoothly we would have liked, first of all our coach Nathan got stuck back in NZ because of the Ash disrupting all the flights, so we were coachless… Then the wind died, and really died well!

We did not get over 8 knots for the entire event. The first day of scheduled racing saw us sitting out on the water for about 7 hours, with no races completed, the second day got us another epic day on the water, but at least we got one race in – Which was a very up and down one, with us as low as 25th at times, but making a run for it at the end to get a 2nd. The third day brought yet more waiting around, on land and then out on the water… But at least we got another race in!

The fourth day was when the regatta really started, we got three races in, but none of them went very well for us. We were getting great starts, but just not quite getting it right after that. With the light winds, the racing was very tight, and if you got it wrong on the first beat it was pretty much all over.

We were sitting in 17th going into the last day of racing, so we needed a bit of a comeback to get into the medal race. Luckily for us, we finally figured out the conditions, and had three good races in the top 10, culminating in a 2nd in the last one, to move us up into 7th place.

After our last minute dash for the medal race, we were just happy to be there, and so went out attacking! We led the whole way around, only to get passed on the final downwind, by the boats that split the other way at the top, to finish 3rd. So it could have been better, but we were happy enough, and moved up one place to 6th overall. Not our greatest regatta, but a good result for us considering the conditions, as we do see ourselves more as heavy air specialists! Now we are back home, and taking a few days off before getting right back into training, as we don’t have long before we leave for worlds on the 27th of June, and have plenty to work on."
 

What do professional America’s Cup sailors do on a weekend off? They go yacht racing, of course, in the eleventh Harken Young 88 National Championships.

A contingent of sailors from Emirates Team New Zealand, helmed by Jeremy Lomas, won the Young 88 National Championships organised by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and sailed off Auckland this weekend. Twenty boats contested the event, which took place in more than 15 knots of ever shifting breeze over two days of racing.
 

Garry Lock (far left) presents the trophy to the winners

Lomas steered Flash Gordon, a boat that both won the event in 2004 and placed second in 2008, to victory.Flash Gordon finished up on 16 points, well ahead of second place getter Sister Moonshine (Will Tiller) on 23, and Danger Zone (Grant Turnbull) on 28 points.

Emirates Team New Zealand skipper Dean Barker, who for this event sailed as crew with Lomas, says it was his third Young 88 championship. "The large numbers of boats racing and the high standard of competitions means it is without question the best keelboat racing in New Zealand", he says. "“The standard is very high. The guys sail these boats a lot and they know how to make them go fast and sail well. That and the shifty conditions, with a bunch of boats doing similar speed makes for interesting racing.”

Flash Gordon won three of a possible eight races, and Sister Moonshine took out two.“Racing was very close,” says event spokesperson Mike Leyland. “Many finishes came down to seconds.” Leyland said that the on water umpires did a terrific job of keeping everyone honest, and that both class and safety regulations were policed by the association.

Flashback won the event on handicap, ahead of Nijinsky and Legless.

About the Young 88

The Young 88, about 30 feet in length and with a fractional rig, is a popular multipurpose boat that offers speed and agility for racing, with space and comfort for cruising.

Designed by local yachting pioneer Jim Young in 1982 as a racer cruiser, the Young 88 was based on Mama Cass, a successful one off RORC design owned by Merv Elliott. Campaiging under the banner of the RNZYS 'Mama Cass' was often crewed by Jim Young, and Merv's two sons Bruce and Greg Elliott, who went on to produce a number of world class designs under the Elliott Yachts banner. The association between Young and the Elliotts continued when the first mould was built by Roger Land, made with a plug built by Greg.

The company went on to build 158 fibreglass versions. Of these, 77 are still in the Auckland area, 9 in Northland, 13 in the rest of the North Island, 19 in the South Island, and 38 have been exported.

The Young 88 was the first one design class to incorpoarte 'flared sides' a concept originated by Jim Young in the Rocket 31, a class winner at Cowes Week.

Arguably the most popular one design keeler in New Zealand the Young 88 is reknowned as a well balanced yacht for all conditions. Of note is it's ability to carry sail over a wide wind range, almost eliminating the need for an intermediate sail between the genoa and blade.

The Young 88 class is driven in New Zealand by the Young 88 Owners Association. For more information, please contact:

Class President: Grant Crawford Ph:               + 64 (21) 270 4040         + 64 (21) 270 4040
Class Publicity Officer: Mike Leyland ph               +64 (21) 554 239         +64 (21) 554 239
Young 88 Owners Association of New Zealand (Inc)
PO Box 5355 Wellesley Street
Auckland
www.young88.org.nz

 

After leading for a good portion of the race the Harken sponsored MRX was over taken on the second to last leg by Dave Mackay on Touch of Gloss.

Helmed by Harken Managing Director Garry Lock and crewed by a mixture of Sailors Corner and Harken NZ staff, the race was a close fought event in a solid 10-15 knots of breeze.
 

Beating to weather in a close fought duel with Dave Mackay on Touch of Gloss 

Tussling with Touch of Gloss for the lead

Trimming hard upwind

Stacking the rail

The RNZYS Harken Schools Regatta, a fun event aimed at promoting the Lion Foundation Youth Training Programme, was won in convincing style by Kerikeri High School.

Sailed for the last time in the Elliott 6s the regatta highlights up and coming talent at the secondary school level. The Elliott 6s are being replaced by the new and improved Elliott 7 due to be officially launched in May. After which the fleet will find a permenant home in Noumea.
 

Westlake Boys on the Harken Elliott 6

Follow the link above to see the complete list.

Photo and text courtesy of yachting New Zealand

Brad Jackson and Stu Bannatyne, watch captains on Ericsson 4, the outstanding winner of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-2009, have been jointly named Singapore Airlines Sailor of the Year, at the 2009 Yachting New Zealand Excellence Awards.
 

Aucklander Trish Lewis is one of only two women in the 2010 Fitzroy Yachts Solo Tasman Challenge

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Trish Lewis on the bow of her Reactor 25

Testing out the winches before the heading out in the Tasman

The Bay of Islands Yacht Club hosted its annual Harken Labour Weekend Regatta to kick off the sailing season for the centre-boarders.
 
A strong contingent of Javelins, Mistrals, Splashes, 3.7s, Lasers and a scattering of Europe dinghies took to the bay on Saturday with a 6-7 nautical mile bay race; a fun warm up for all the boats before class racing started in earnest on the Sunday and continued through the Bank Holiday Monday.

An RS approaches the top mark

 

Maximum stretch on 'Bungholio'

Race management courtesy of Opua Cruising Club

Alan Roper and Rhys O'Cain 'the picture of concentratation'
 
Launching while flying a gennaker

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 'Buchanan wins Tauranga Cup on first attempt'

Click above for full story on Sail World (Photo courtesy of Sail World)
Wakatere's Dunning-Beck bounces back to win Starling Nationals