A great year ahead for the UK D-One Class

 2022 is shaping up as a strong one for the UK D-One fleet with an open event calendar comprising an exciting mix of inland, sea and foreign venues.

The UK circuit kicks off in early April at Oxford Sailing Club before moving on to Burghfield Sailing Club in late April. The National Championship will return to the heart of UK D-One sailing at Lymington Town Sailing Club in July. For the Inland Championship, the Class heads north to Leigh and Lowton Sailing Club in September. The ever popular, Warsash Sailing Club will again bookend the season in October.

A UK circuit travellers series will include the Nationals, Inlands plus one other open event.

For those wishing to travel further afield, the European circuit includes the Gold Cup at Gravedona, Lake Como, Italy in May with the European Championship at Lake Balaton Hungary in September.

More details of the events can be found on our website www.d-oneassociation.org. Other events may be added as they are confirmed. If anyone would like to add an event, please let us know.

There is plenty to prepare for as we look forward to welcoming the back the travelling fleet for some great competition at fantastic venues.

Princess Yachts staging their own boat show to launch new vessels

 Plymouth-based Princess Yachts is to stage its own boat show at the city’s Royal William Yard to make up for Europe’s largest marine industry showcase being scrapped.

The UK’s leading luxury yacht manufacturer will stage what it is calling The Princess Exclusive from January 22 to 30 at the Royal William Yard Marina.

It comes after Germany’s Boot Düsseldorf fell victim to the surge in Covid cases on the continent.

Princess Yachts had planned to unveil the Princess X80 and the all-new V50 in Düsseldorf, and also give show debuts to the Princess X95 and Y72, as part of a six-yacht display.

But it will now be able to show off some of its most eye-catching vessels to prospective buyers in its home city.

The invitation-only Princess Exclusive event will provide customers the opportunity to experience the yachts that were originally due to feature at the show in Düsseldorf.

The impressive eight yacht line-up includes the global launch of the Princess X80 and V50, plus the award-winning Princess X95 and Y72, with the Princess F55 and V55 also featuring in the yard’s marina, in addition to the Princess V40 and Princess S62 situated at the nearby Mayflower Marina.

Visitors to the Princess Exclusive event can view both yachts from Princess’s new “superfly” X Class range, the X80 and X95, seen together for the first time.

Featuring an extended flybridge that provides 30% more indoor space than a traditional motor yacht, the X80 is the smaller sister ship to the award winning X95.

The X80 includes an enclosed bridge and Skylounge on the upper deck, and an optional master stateroom forward on the main deck.

Working with naval architects Olesinski and Italian design house Pininfarina, Princess Yachts has created what it terms “the ultimate in avant-garde yacht construction with an evolved design meant for extended time at sea”.

Will Green, chief commercial officer at Princess Yachts, said: “Despite the unfortunate cancellation of this year’s boot Düsseldorf 2022, we are thrilled to be able to showcase our models in our brand home of Plymouth.

“This is the first-time our customers will be able to experience the all-new X80, an exciting addition to the award-winning X Class range.

Cowes Week 2022 – Entries open 21st January

 Cowes Week Ltd (CWL) is delighted to announce that entries for Cowes Week 2022 will open at 12 noon on Friday 21 January, with Super Early Bird discounts available until 18 February.

Having run a successful regatta last year, despite Covid restrictions, the team are excited about plans for this year. On the water, the racing will follow a similar format with more starts off the Royal Yacht Squadron line and a roving Committee Vessel, able to be located to make best use of the conditions on the day. The race teams have been working throughout the winter to address issues around shortening courses and new plans are in place to make that a smoother process across all 42 fleets within the Regatta.

A new one design class for Sonata’s has been introduced to reflect its strong activity in Cowes over the past few years. We have also added a class for the FarEast 28 who are intending to hold their European Championships at Cowes Week.

On shore, the event will continue its legendary and wide ranging social programme kicking off with the Cowes Week Opening Party on Saturday 30 July, for which DJ Mark Covell has already been re- booked. Those of you who were there last year will know that DJ Covell made quite a night of it!

Based on competitor feedback, an updated pricing structure has been introduced for Black Group boats for 2022 which has been radically altered to make it fairer across the board for different sized boats. The pricing bands are now broken down into 1 m increments and start at 7m rather than 9m which will lead to more consistency in what different boats are paying, irrespective of their overall length.

The team at Cowes Week look forward to welcoming competitors and visitors to the Regatta and to the sunny Isle of Wight for race day 1 on Saturday July 30th. The overall prizegiving will be on Friday August 5th.

Maiden to circumnavigate again

 Maiden has set off on its next circumnavigation of the planet, aiming to raise awareness and funds for girls’ education, sponsored by DP World.

The yacht, which famously raced with a female crew in the Whitbread Round the World Race skippered by Tracy Edwards, left the Dubai Offshore Sailing Club on her 90,000nm journey, this time skippered by Marie-Claude Kieffer Heys (formerly of Key Yachting in Hamble).

Backed by global logistics leader DP World, the voyage aims to build on the successes of the previous pre-pandemic Maiden ‘World Tour’, engaging with schools, charities, outreach programmes and organisations “that are committed to the education of girls through empowering and inspiring girls around the world and changing the narrative around what a girl can achieve”.

A big year ahead for the International Moth Class

 This year is shaping as a strong one for the UK Moth fleet with a calendar full of events both at home and internationally as we build towards our home in Worlds in Weymouth, 2023.

Starting off with a one-day event at Oxford Sailing Club, we have a good balance of inland and open water venues, with the UK Nationals being held exactly one year out at the WPNSA venue. We have an Inland Nationals at Grafham, a series of Grand Prix two-day events, a few one-day races, a European Championship in France and an open on Poole Harbour for anyone not heading to the Worlds in Argentina. There really is something for everyone.

This year the class is again putting on three training weekends covering all standards, making the Moth class as easy as ever to get into and master. Given the high quality of various used boats currently available, now is the time to jump in and join the class that tests and rewards skippers like no other.

UK Moth Season Calendar 2022:

March 12 - Oxford Sailing Club

March 26 - 27 Queen Mary Sailing Club GP

April 23 - 24 Grafham Water Sailing Club UK Inland Championship

May 14 - 15 Stokes Bay Sailing Club GP

June 9 - 12 UK National Championship WPNSA

June/July Eastbourne Sailing Club 1 day event date TBA

June 30 - July 3 Foiling Week Lake Garda Italy

July 23 - 30 European Championship Quiberon France

September 24 - 25 WPNSA GP

October 15 - 16 Parkstone Yacht Club

November 21 - 27 World Championship Yacht Club Argentino

Training Events 2022:

March 19 - 20 Queen Mary Sailing Club

April 30 - 1 May Grafham Water Sailing Club

June 2 - 3 WPNSA (Thursday/Friday event)

For all UK Moth class information please join the Facebook group or visit the class website at www.internationalmoth.co.uk

A busy year ahead for Tenby Sailing Club

 A busy year ahead is planned for the volunteers at sunny Tenby in west Wales.

The club dinghy racing season kicks off in earnest on the first weekend in April with handicap racing for all dinghies including class racing for the popular Osprey fleet.

The club's very popular juniors sail training program also restarts on April 6th after a two year break for the pandemic.

Dates for your diary:

Tenby Regatta and annual Round Caldey Island race June 25/26th

Firefly National Championships August 7th to 12th

Enterprise and Redwing National Championship August 21st - 26th

West Lancashire Yacht Club withdraws the 24 Hour Dinghy Race

 Following an in-depth review of the current circumstances, the WLYC Executive Committee has reluctantly taken the decision to cancel the "24 Hour Race" due to take place on 10th/11th September 2022.

This decision taken now will avoid any last minute disruption for all concerned allowing WLYC members and potential competitors reasonable time to make alternative plans for their activities later in the season.

Looking ahead, with the WLYC 24 Hour Race having been cancelled for 3 consecutive years, we are very concerned about the event's viability in years to come. Therefore, the Club has made the very difficult decision to withdraw the Race from the sailing calendar for the foreseeable future.

Tim Harper

Commodore

West Lancashire Yacht Club

RS Aero 6 to make its handicap debut at King George Gallop

 A few RS Aero 6s are lining up for the next event in the Seldén SailJuice Winter Series, the King George Gallop this Saturday 22 January.

Entries for the King George Gallop have almost reached the limit of 70 boats for this Saturday's handicap contest in North London. First held four years ago as part of the Seldén SailJuice Winter Series, the North London club has quickly built a reputation for a friendly welcome and well-run racing.

Among the mixed entry of 60 boats entered thus far are three RS Aero 6s to be raced by Sam Mettam, Sam Blaker and Chris Rust. Class manager Peter Barton will also be there in an RS Aero 7, and had this to say about the RS Aero 6's competitive debut: "Interest in the new RS Aero 6 rig is high and current owners are jumping at the opportunity to test the Class' demo rigs in the Selden SailJuice Winter Series whilst they wait for deliveries of the first RS Aero 6 rigs this spring.

MDL Marinas to Host Two Boat Shows in 2022

 MDL Marinas is hosting two boat shows in two of its waterside locations in 2022. The South Coast Boat Show in Southampton and the Green Tech Boat Show in Plymouth.

South Coast Boat Show

The popular South Coast Boat Show (6–8 May 2022) will return to MDL’s flagship Ocean Village Marina for the third time.

 

Featuring the marine industry’s most exciting and innovative global power and sail brands, the South Coast Boat Show will also showcase an extensive range of ancillary services such as associated gear, finance and insurance. 

On the water, brands that have confirmed their attendance include: Arcona, Axopar, Beneteau Power and Sail, Broadblue Catamarans, Dehler, Dufour Yachts, Fjord, Fountaine Pajot, Galeon Yachts, Grand Soleil, Hanse, Hylas, J/Boats, Jeanneau, Lagoon Catamarans, Moody, Nautitech, Princess, Saxdor, Sealine, Seaward, Solaris, Viko and X-Yachts.

Set in the heart of Southampton, Ocean Village Marina, with its state-of-the-art facilities, transport links and numerous restaurants and bars, is an ideal venue for a boat show.

Green Tech Boat Show

Following the success of MDL’s first Green Tech Boat Show last year, the show will take place again this year at its Queen Anne’s Battery marina, Plymouth, 16–18 June 2022.

The Green Tech Boat Show will be open to the public, with a focus on helping boat owners and perspective boat owners understand what is available to them when it comes to making the switch to greener options.

To address the complexities of green marine technologies, in addition to an extensive range of eco-focused exhibitors, the Friday and Saturday of the show will incorporate an Innovation Hub sponsored by the University of Plymouth, which is among the UK’s leading proponents of clean maritime research and innovation.

With more landside stands and on water exhibits this year, the show is building in size and importance from a marine industry perspective, both locally and nationally. Exhibitors confirmed so far include: Marine Energy Systems, Maritime UK South West, North Devon Marine, Pixii Electric Boats, RS Electric Boats, University of Plymouth and Vita Yachts.

MDL Marinas Group is the UK’s leading marina and water-based leisure provider and one of Europe’s largest marina groups, offering members over 120 destinations to cruise to in the UK, France and Spain. Currently MDL Marinas manages 18 UK marinas and one in Spain.

Paddy Hutchings takes on iconic Solitaire Du Figaro with #Sail4Sustainability Project

 Paddy Hutchings is a 21-year-old sailor from Plymouth and from an early age, grew up sailing around the South West. He has been lucky enough to have had the opportunity to take sailing to the next level.

After finishing his A levels, he competed on the world stage, representing Great Britain and also for teams such as Team Malizia and Pip Hare Ocean Racing, both established "around the world" racing teams. After gaining experience and sailing with these teams, he has now decided it is the right time to launch his project, to race in the legendary Solitare Du Figaro. This gruelling offshore race takes place around the French coast for over 2500 nautical miles in August 2022. The Solitaire Du Figaro attracts the worlds best sailors and is a huge event in the sailing calendar worldwide.

Paddy also is an ambassador for the Royal Western Yacht Club and will be bringing the boat back to Plymouth after the race to raise the aspirations of young people and encourage them to see sailing as a sport for them.

Quote from Paddy "I want to inspire other young people to see that sailing is achievable for everyone and I also want to use my platform, competing in the Solitaire, to motivate others to think about the effect of plastic in our oceans."

Pip Hare to open the doors to BoatLife Live this February

 Pip Hare, who needs very little introduction as the 8th woman in history to complete the Vendee Globe, will be the first big name to open the inaugural show. On day one, Thursday 17 February 2022, the celebrated sailor will officially open the show to visitors and the media before joining Mark Covell on the show stage. Pip and Mark will chat about her experiences, motivations and how Pip's boating journey started from the landlocked East of England.

Pip Hare commented 'I'm honoured to be opening the BoatLife Live show. I really want to help encourage as many people as possible to get out on the water and experience the freedom of sailing, boating or whatever you choose to do. So I'm delighted to be able to welcome people to what promises to be a great celebration of boats and boating.'

BoatLife Live is a new Boat Show held at the NEC Birmingham, 17-20 February. Visitors will be wowed with over 100 boats on display and a number of other exhibitors showcasing the latest in equipment.

BoatLife Events Ltd is a privately owned company registered in London founded by Richard Dove. Supported by an experienced team who previously worked on marine events.

Comanche takes Monohull Line Honours in the RORC Transatlantic Race

 Comanche (CAY) - the 30.48m (100ft) VPLP Design/Verdier Maxi, skippered by Mitch Booth (AUS), has taken Monohull Line Honours in the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race - crossing the Grenada finish line off Camper and Nicholsons Port Louis Marina at: 09 11 04 UTC on Sunday 16 January.

Magical Maserati - Multihull Line Honours in the RORC Transatlantic Race

 Giovanni Soldini's Multi70 Maserati (ITA) has taken Multihull Line Honours in the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race, crossing the finish line outside Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina in Grenada at 05:51:41 UTC on Saturday 15th January (Corrected: 6d 18h 51m 41s). After eight days of extraordinary racing, Maserati finished ahead of Peter Cunningham's MOD70 PowerPlay, skippered by Ned Collier Wakefield, followed by Jason Carroll's MOD70 Argo.

Maserati's margin of victory was less than 20 miles over PowerPlay and Argo, expressed as a fraction, that is one third of a percentage point. Giovanni Soldini has enjoyed many great successes in his glittering career, and this was one of the finest.