“Unbelievable Racing and Intense Competition” at Key West 2010

Winners Praise a Spectacular Week


Key West Race Week Final Day. Image copyright Tim Wilkes/www.timwilkes.com

by Bill Wagner

Mike Williamson sported a very satisfied look as he sat in the cockpit of his Summit 40 sipping a Heineken and reflected on capturing IRC 2 class at Key West 2010, presented by Nautica.

“It feels very, very good to win this regatta. Key West is well known around the world so certainly it’s a great accomplishment,” Williamson said.

Winners of the other 10 classes at Key West 2010 had similar feelings. There were hearty handshakes and slaps on the back among the Joe Fly crew upon return to the dock on Friday after the Italian team topped the Farr 40 class.

Skipper Giovanni Maspero and tactician Francesco Bruni have brought the Joe Fly program to North America’s largest winter regatta for many years without winning in either the Melges 24 or Farr 40 classes and thus were overjoyed.

“We are very happy to finally win in Key West. We have always been second and third so it feels good to be the champion,” Bruni said.

Joe Fly put forth a tremendously consistent effort by finishing fourth or better in 8 of 10 races to total 35 points, six better than runner-up Barking Mad (Jim Richardson, Newport, R.I.). “We are quite pleased with our performance. We were by far the fastest boat in the fleet in all conditions. We had a little luck with catching shifts, but our success was due mostly it was our boat speed and crew work.”

Over at Truman Annex, the UKA UKA Racing crew was in tremendous spirits as they dropped the mast of their Melges 24 after winning Key West for the second straight year. Helmsman Lorenzo Bressani spoke excitedly about how close the competition was with Blu Moon, the Swiss entry that finished just three points behind the Italian team.

Blu Moon helmsman Flavio Favini needed to win the last race and have UKA UKA Racing take third or worse in order to snag the overall victory. At one point in the last race, Favini had put Alan Field’s WTF between Blu Moon and UKA UKA Racing. However, the Italian team rallied on the last leg to win the last race along with the regatta.

“It was unbelievable racing, very close and tense. It was a tough day because Favini match raced with us. There was a moment when he was winning the regatta, but we were able to maintain our concentration and pull it out,” said Bressani, who praised the work of tactician Jonathan McKee.

Blu Moon, which had Tiziano Nava aboard as tactician, was runner-up for the second straight year despite winning four races and placing second or third in four others within the 21-boat fleet. “We tried very hard and almost made it, but UKA UKA sailed well all week and deserved to win,” Favini said. “They had a little better speed than us upwind and it seemed like every time they made a choice about which side of the course to take it was correct call.”

John Kilroy and the Samba Pa Ti team completed an impressive run in the Melges 32 class, largest of the regatta with 22 boats. Stu Bannatyne called tactics while Morgan Reeser and Sam Rogers served as trimmers aboard Samba, which took the lead on Tuesday and never relinquished it – ultimately winning three races en route to an 18-point margin of victory over Red (Joe Woods, Great Britain).

“It’s all about the team, which for me starts with Fuzz Foster of North Hawaii and the help he gives us with the sail program,” Kilroy said. “The racing team did a tremendous job all week. We were very fast and very consistent in all conditions.”

Kilroy has enjoyed success in the Farr 40 and TP52 classes before moving into the Melges 32 and coming away with a major title in only his fifth event. There was an added bonus for the Malibu, California resident as Samba Pa Ti was named Boat of the Week.

“That is a tremendous honor and a tribute to the class. This fleet is very competitive with a lot of outstanding teams and a lot of great sailors,” Kilroy said. “You really have to work hard to win in the Melges 32 class.”

Williamson steered White Heat to victory in four of 10 races en route to a final score of 27 points, nine better than IRC 2 runner-up Cool Breeze. The Summit 40 took the lead away from early pacesetter Pugwash (David Murphy, J/122) on Wednesday then held off a late charge by Cool Breeze (John Cooper, Mills 43).

Simon Shaw called tactics while Will Howden (jib, spinnaker) and Tim Dawson (main) trimmed for Williamson, who splits his time between London and New Castle, New Hampshire. “It was a great team effort all around,” said Williamson, whose previous best finish at Key West was a third in a PHRF class. “It was a great regatta, excellent competition and very tough sailing.”

Bella Mente, a Reichel-Pugh 69-footer owned by Hap Fauth of Newport, R.I., completed a wire-to-wire victory in IRC 1 class. Kelvin Harrup and Eric Doyle teamed to call tactics on Bella Mente, which won eight of 10 races. Fauth was pleased to take the bullet in Race 10 after finishing last in Race 9 after hooking the anchor rope of the committee boat.

Interlodge, owned by Austin Fragomen of New York, captured the TP52 sub-class. Massachusetts-based Bill Lynn called tactics for Fragomen, who was competing in just his second regatta aboard the Judel-Vrolijk design.

“We are very pleased to be the top TP52. It was a very tough class and all the boats were sailed extremely well,” Fragomen said. “We learned a lot about our boat this week. It was a nice long regatta with a good mix of conditions.”

Le Tigre, co-owned by Glenn Darden and Reese Hilliard of Forth Worth, Texas, placed third or better in seven of 10 starts in capturing the J/80 Midwinter Championship, which was contested as part of Key West 2010. Little Feat, skippered by Jeff Johnstone of J/Boats, won both races on Friday to get within one point of Le Tigre.

“We had a great battle with Jeff and were just able to hold on,” said Darden, a past J/80 world champion who had Ullman pro Max Skelley aboard as tactician.

Bluto, an Evelyn 32 co-owned by Bill Berges and Ben Hall, was chosen PHRF Boat of the Week. Bluto won three of the last four races to edge the J/109 Rush (Bill Sweetser) by one point in a very competitive PHRF 2.

Key West 2010, presented by Nautica - January 22, 2010
Final standings after ten races

IRC 1

1. Bella Mente, R/P 69, Hap Fauth, Newport, RI, USA, 1-1-1-1-1-3-1-1, 6-1, 17
2. Highland Fling XI, Wally 82, Irvine Laidlaw, Monaco, 2-4-4-3-3-4-3-2-1-2, 28
3. Interlodge, TP52, Austin Fragomen, New York, NY, USA, 4-2-2-2-4-2-2-5-2-5, 30

IRC 2

1. White Heat, Summit 40, Mike Williamson, Newport, RI, USA, 1-2-5-4-1-4-5 1-1-3, 27
2. Cool Breeze, Mills 43, John Cooper, Cane Hill, MO, USA, 6-3-7-6-3-3-2-2-2, 36
3. Pugwash, J/122, David Murphy, Newport, RI, USA, 2-1-1-2-7-1-3-5-7-5, 40

Farr 40

1. Joe Fly, Giovanni Maspero, Rome, ITA, 4-3-4-4-5-2-3-1-3-6, 35
2. Barking Mad, James Richardson, Newport, RI, USA, 2-5-8-5-7-5-2-3-2-2, 41
3. Nerone, Massimo Mezzaroma, Punta Ala, ITA, 10-2-3-1-10-1-1-11-1-3, 43

Melges 32 (with discard) – Mid-Winter Championship

1. Samba Pa Ti, John Kilroy, Malibu, CA, USA, (14)-1-4-1-11-1-3-6-5-4, 36
2. Red, Joe Woods, Torquay, GBR, 9-6-(19)-6-5-10-1-5-1-11, 54
3. Fantistika, Lanfranco Cirillo, Torri del Benac, ITA, (18)-8-12-9-4-4-4-2-4-10, 57

Melges 24 (with discard) – Mid-Winter Championship

1. UKA UKA Racing, Lorenzo Santini, Porto Civitanova, ITA, 2-1-2-(5)-1-3-2-1-2-1, 15
2. Blu Moon, Franco Rossini, Lugano, SUI, 1-4-(9)-2-3-1-1-3-1-2, 18
3. WTF, Alan Field, Marina del Rey, CA, USA, 3-2-1-4-2-4-3-(8)-3-3, 25

J/105 – Mid-Winter Championship

1. Savasana, Brian Keane, Marion, MA, USA, 2-1-4-2-1-4-2-2-1-1, 20
2. Ghost, Kenneth Colburn, Southport, ME, USA, 6-4-2-3-6-5-4-4-2-6, 42
3. Blackhawk, Scooter Simmonds, San Francisco, CA, USA 3-5-9-7-4-3-1-3-8-3, 46

J/80 – Mid-Winter Championship

1. Le Tigre, Darden / Hillard, Ft. Worth, TX, USA, 2-10-2-2-6-3-1-1-2-5, 34
2. Little Feat, Jeff Johnstone, Newport, RI, USA, 7-7-1-1-4-4-6-3-1-1, 35
3. Rascal, Will Welles, Newport, RI, USA, 1-3-3-8-5-7-2-5-5-2, 41

PHRF 1

1. Stark Raving Mad, J/125, James Madden, Oyster Bay, NY, UsA, 1-1-1-1-1-1-2-4-1-1, 14
2. Mariners Cove, Summit 35, Royal Cork Yacht Club, Cork, IRL, 3-2-5-4-2-2-4-1-6-2, 31
3. Rhumb Punch, Farr 30, John and Linda Edwards, Solomons, MD, USA, 2-4-3-3-4-3-5-3-4-4, 35

PHRF 2

1. Bluto, Evelyn 32-2, Berges / Hall, Bokeelia, FL, 2-2-2-5-2-2-1-1-1-2, 20
2. Rush, J/109, Bill Sweetser, Annapolis, MD, USA, 1-3-4-1-1-1-4-3-2-1, 21
3. L’Outrage, Beneteau 10M, Bruce Gardner, Annapolis, MD, 4-1-6-2-4-3-3-2-6-4, 35

PHRF 3

1. Bad Dog, Mariah 27, John Chick, Key West, FL, USA, 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1, 10
2. Blah, Blah, Blah, J/24, Mark Milnes, Key West, FL, USA, 3-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2, 21
3. Nojoe, J/24, Naroski/LeBlanc, Marblehead, MA, USA 2-4-3-5-4-3-5-5-3-3, 37

Multihulls

1. Merlin, Gulfstream 35, Bob Harkrider, Sarasota, Fl, USA, 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1, 10
2. Tobiko, Corsair Sprint 750, Tim Britton, Peru, VT, USA, 3-2-2-2-2-3-5-4-2-3, 28
3. Strategery V, Corsair Sprint 750, Cliff, Farrah, Destin, FL, USA, 2-4-3-4-5-4-3-2-3-5, 35

Key West Race Week

America's Cup: Statement by Tom Ehman, GGYC

by Tom Ehman

The Deed of Gift requires the competing yachts to be "Constructed in Country." In the court papers filed last night by Société Nautique de Genève, they admit they are using 3DL sails. Racing sailors the world over know that 3DL sails are American, not Swiss, made.

Instead of demonstrating that their sails have been constructed in Switzerland as required by the Deed of Gift, their court papers attempt to duck the issue with a long list of excuses, and shift the focus away from their own problems with bizarre attacks on our ýacht.

In recent months, their excuses have been, literally, all over the map. First, it was, "Sails aren't part of a sailboat." Then, "It's not an issue until we race." Next, "Our sails were built in the USA but assembled in Switzerland." Yesterday, it was, "If we can't use our 3DL sails we'll forfeit." Now, in their latest court papers, "GGYC's boat is a French design."

This is untrue, and there is nothing whatsoever in the Deed of Gift that say where, or by whom, a yacht must be designed - only that it must be constructed in the country of the yacht club it represents.

After claiming repeatedly, and erroneously, that GGYC is trying to win the Cup in court, SNG's latest filing seeks to disqualify GGYC's yacht. Moreover, SNG threatens to bring further litigation after the Match is they lose to GGYC on the water.

Making a modern sail is like baking a cake. You gather the ingredients, put it in a mold of a shape and size designated by your design team, and literally cook it. That's what takes place at the 3DL plant in Minden, Nevada, where Alinghi's sails were constructed. Shipping that cake to Switzerland and adding some candies does not make it "Swiss-made."

Golden Gate Yacht Club

Team Foncia: F2014 - 1 man, 1 company, 2 boats, and a new ambition

Michel Desjoyeaux (left) with Yves Gevin (right), President of the Board of Directors of the FONCIA Group. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

by Laurence Dacoury, Stéphanie André and Justine Erhardt

Involved in sailing sponsorship for the past 10 years, FONCIA remains faithful to both this commitment and its skipper Michel Desjoyeaux, with the renewal of their partnership through to 2014. The next four years will be devoted to the launch of two ambitious and innovative projects: the construction of a new 60 foot Imoca to participate in the Route du Rhum and the Barcelona World Race, followed by their entry from 2011 in the Multi One Design 70 circuit (70 foot one design trimarans).


Michel Desjoyeaux in front of the Eiffel Tower. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

This programme was unveiled on Thursday 21st January during a press breakfast organised at the Café de l’Homme, in the Marine Museum building in Paris, in the presence of the main protagonists involved in these new sporting and architectural challenges.

FONCIA and sailing: a reaffirmed loyalty

Having become a player in sailing sponsorship back in 1999, FONCIA is now reaffirming its attachment to this arena by extending its partnership with Michel Desjoyeaux (which began in 2007) until 2014. “As with all companies involved in sport, we’ll be seeking an image and values which are faithful to the reality of our profession which, it is worth remembering, is a service profession. Sailing wonderfully embodies the values of authenticity, sincerity, perseverance, daring, team spirit and rigour. We’re sending all these powerful messages to our colleagues about the position, behaviour and mindset we wish to develop with our clients. This is why FONCIA is sticking with this process alongside Michel, who honoured us with an exceptional year in 2009, punctuated by a series of fantastic victories. How can we better that? By launching into new projects which are both ambitious and innovative” states Yves Gevin, President of FONCIA Group’s board of directors.

2010-2011: The Route du Rhum and the Barcelona World Race aboard a new monohull


Denis Horeau - Michel Desjoyeaux - Yves Gevin - Vincent Lauriot Prévost. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

The first part of this programme is already well underway because the plans for the new VPLP/Verdier prototype have been in the hands of the CDK yard since Monday 18th January, which is where the construction will begin. As such, through until March 2011, Michel will continue to sail within the Imoca class at the helm of what is said to be a highly original monohull, with the intention of participating in two major events: the next Route du Rhum (single-handed transatlantic race which he won back in 2002 aboard the trimaran Géant), followed by the Barcelona World Race, a double-handed round the world without stopovers. The latter race, organised by the FNOB (for its second edition) represents a whole new exercise for the sailor from Port La Forêt, NW France, who is well versed in large solo sports challenges. “The programme’s a bit full-on, he admits, but you have to keep on taking up challenges and calling yourself into question, without hesitation. That doesn’t bother me, in fact I’d even go so far as to say that it motivates me even more. I’m very happy about these new prospects.”

2011-2014: The multihull and a pioneering team returning to its roots

Following on from this circumnavigation, there will be a change of programme as well as a change of circuit. Michel has always dreamed of returning to his first love, the multihull. As such, he is the first to announce his participation in the new Multi One Design circuit, whose objective between now and 2012 is to gather together an international fleet of 12 one design trimarans for a crewed offshore and inshore programme. “In all sports, there is an ultimate. In sailing, the ultimate is sailing on multiple hulls. Multihulls are spectacular, lively boats. The speed hits you immediately and draws you in, as does the sense of power. More care is required to drive these boats, which are more sophisticated, more demanding and at times dangerous… In short, they top the bill. I hope that we’ll be able to show off the beauty of these machines and that those unfamiliar with multihulls will discover the pleasures of racing such boats” says an already enthusiastic Michel.


Franck David - Marco Simeoni - Michel Desjoyeaux - Yves Gevin. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

For FONCIA, which made its début within the Orma class alongside Alain Gautier, this second chapter of the programme also constitutes a return to its roots. The first test sails aboard the new FONCIA trimaran are due to take place in the autumn of 2011.

A public ambassador for coherent sponsorship

This new programme reinforces the below-the-line support strategy orchestrated around sailing sponsorship and Michel Desjoyeaux, who over the past few years and through till 2014, has become ambassador of the FONCIA brand. Yves Gevin confirms the firm’s willingness to continue this partnership: “With Michel, we’ve gone that extra mile in terms of the communication of FONCIA, which originally began with getting the general public to recognise who we were. It may be said that today 1 in 2 French citizens know about FONCIA, whilst this figure was 1 in 4 just 2 years ago.

A second milestone was passed last summer when we began communicating about our work in our televised adverts (ref.: management of joint ownership, letting management, rental and sale). It’s through our reliance on sailing and Michel’s exacting character and strictness that we achieved that. We’re going to continue with this practice so that the French get to know us better, as well as becoming more familiar with our ambitions and the services we’re able to provide”, emphasizes an enthusiastic Yves Gevin. “Compared with many other opportunities, sailing sponsorship remains extremely reasonable in terms of the outlay. The increase in prestige after our victory in the Vendée Globe is evidence of this: the impact of the sponsorship project in relation to the equivalent purchase of advertising space was 10 to 15 times the initial investment.”


Michel Desjoyeaux. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

Provisional Programme 2010-2014

18th January 2010: start of construction of the new 60 foot Imoca FONCIA (VPLP-Verdier design) at CDK Technologies
August 2010: Launch, initial test sails, fine tuning, training, qualification for the Route du Rhum
31st October 2010: Start of the Route du Rhum
Mid-November 2010: Route du Rhum finish
End November/Mid December 2010: Delivery from Guadeloupe-Barcelona by ship
31st December 2010: Start of the Barcelona World Race
End March 2011: Barcelona World Race finish/ Return of FONCIA to Port-La-Forêt, refit


FONCIA IMOCA 60. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

***End of the IMOCA season 2011***

Autumn 2011: Delivery and initial test sails of the MOD 70 “FONCIA”
November 2011: Pro-Am (MOD 70) – Promotional race gathering together skippers and guests (press and public relations operation, objective of 4 boats)
May - June 2012: European Tour in crewed configuration (MOD 70 – Objective of 7 boats)
November 2012: Oceanic race in crewed configuration (MOD 70)
June - July 2013: European Tour in crewed configuration (MOD 70)
November 2013-April 2014: Ocean World Tour in crewed configuration (MOD 70 - 5 oceans, 8 stages, objective 12 boats)


FONCIA MOD 70. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

They said...

Michel Desjoyeaux:

“With the construction of the new monohull within a time frame of 7 and a half months, we’re going to have to break some speed records! We have a lot of work ahead of us. I announced that to my team the day before yesterday and there eyes were sparkling. As such we’ve got a lot on our plate. As regards the one design trimaran which will follow on from that, it’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long time. There’s a real lack of oceanic multihulls in the French and international landscape. The future is in multihulls and I’m proud that we’re the first to announce this participation in the MOD 70 circuit."


Michel Desjoyeaux in front of the Eiffel Tower. Image copyright Yvan Zedda/Foncia/Sea&Co.

Guillaume Verdier, co-architect of the future IMOCA 60 FONCIA:

"It’s a new project that we’re inevitably tackling from a new viewpoint. We’re putting in place a big design team. Alongside me I’ll have Benjamin Muyl and Romaric Neyhousser, who have worked with me for some time. Alongside VPLP, it will be Xavier Guilbaud. They’ll inevitably be a great deal of exchanging of ideas, especially with Michel’s vast experience.”

Vincent Lauriot Prévost, co-architect:

“Michel has gathered together a team that we are part of and which works around him. His brother Hubert also plays a very big part. Usually it is the architect who is at the centre of these debates as regards the design, but in this instance it’s Michel who is hosting proceedings with a high level of input. He fires off ideas and then we discuss them to see whether or not we’re going to use them. He has his specifications with some clear, precise ideas of what he wants. The project must be fast as the boat has to be ready quickly. This 60 footer will be a development from the approach we took with Paprec-Virbac (second generation of the VPLP-Verdier designs), even though we’re making new moulds. And there are bound to be a fair number of “Desjoyeaux touches” in the concept.”

Marco Simeoni, president of the MOD 70 SA:

“The commitment from FONCIA and Michel Desjoyeaux to the Multi One Design 70’ circuit confirms the return of the oceanic Multihull at the highest level. Michel Desjoyeaux has the biggest haul of trophies in solo sailing and the FONCIA sailing team is one of the best oceanic teams in the world. This new championship integrates an environmentally responsible international circuit, which promises to be both passionate and hard-fought: the Multi One Championship 2010-2020, will group together 12 international teams on 70 foot one design multihulls, each of them battling on equal terms, racing in crewed configuration across the ocean planet. After the Swiss boat “Multi One Attitude No.1” whose aim is to protect the water, the commitment of the French sailors, led by Michel Desjoyeaux (FONCIA), confirms the growing appeal of this new international oceanic class. The first event will take place in May 2012 with the European Tour!”

Denis Horeau, race director for the Barcelona World Race:

“Inevitably the arrival of Michel Desjoyeaux and FONCIA is excellent news for the Barcelona World Race. It’s the second edition of this double-handed round the world, and although it’s already a polished event, it is constantly evolving. Michel is a guarantee of expansion for the race so naturally we’re very happy to have him alongside.”

Team Foncia

JVT: Return to Code Red for the Maxi Banque Populaire V

Banque Populaire V. Image copyright B. Stichelbaut/BPCE.

by Virginie Bouchet (abbreviated in translation)

Moved to Code Orange in the last few days, under the impetus of a weather situation which appeared to have the awaited qualities for a record attempt, the men of Maxi Banque Populaire V see Red once more. After mature reflection, Pascal Bidégorry, Ronan Lucas and their navigator Marcel Van Triest estimated that the current situation in the Atlantic was much too unstable, choosing to hold back for a better time of departure. If the sailors' spirits had risen in the last few days, the start of the Trophée Jules Verne for the trimaran sporting the colours of Banque Populaire V has only been put back, as the stand-by will continue until 20th February.

For the skipper of the Maxi Banque Populaire, the situation is not one to regret: "The window didn't develop as we had hoped. The situation became complicated between the Canaries, Cape Vert and the equator. The depression system located in the west of the Spanish archipelago... gave place to a zone of light winds. We still had some hope yesterday evening, but no longer so this morning. It is incredible how everything is very unstable in the North Atlantic while in the South the systems don't move due to the St Helena High which bars the route. We really wanted to leave but the deciding factor is always to go with weather with which we stand a chance of beating the record. We will continue our stand-by until 20th February."

Since starting their record campaigns, the men of the Maxi Banque Populaire V have become very well used to the rules of the game and know that hopes and disappointments are their lot during the forecast analysis and expectation phase. But far from demobilising, each keeps and eye on the [weather] files. The time for the race around the world will come, but for now, the Code returns to Red.

Banque Populaire V

Volvo Sailing Podcast by Guy Swindells

22nd January 2010 Volvo Sailing Podcast by Guy Swindells

Contents:

- America's Cup in Valencia with Russell Coutts and Brad Butterworth
- Perth WA ahead of the Warren Jones international youth regatta
- a Laser initiative in the UK

Volvo Ocean Race

America's Cup: Video of BMW ORACLE Racing's new Coach - Joey Allen (NZL)

BMW ORACLE Racing

America's Cup: BMW ORACLE Racing's USA and Alinghi's Alinghi 5 Together off Valencia

USA and Alinghi 5 off Valencia. Image copyright George Johns/Alinghi.


USA and Alinghi 5 off Valencia. Image copyright George Johns/Alinghi.


USA and Alinghi 5 off Valencia. Image copyright George Johns/Alinghi.


USA and Alinghi 5 off Valencia. Image copyright George Johns/Alinghi.

Alinghi

America's Cup: Alinghi 5 Graphics

Alinghi

America's Cup: America's Cup Defender submits 'constructed in country' opposition papers and a counter motion

by Daphne Morgan Barnicoat

Société Nautique de Genève (SNG), the 33rd America's Cup defending yacht club, today presented its opposition arguments to the New York Supreme Court in response to Golden Gate Yacht Club's (GGYC) ninth lawsuit; a misguided interpretation of the ‘constructed in country' (CIC) requirement of the Deed of Gift, the event's governing document. SNG's comprehensive set of papers reaffirms its interpretation that only the ‘yacht or vessel' has to be constructed in the country of the club holding the Cup, and that sails do not.

SNG's affirmations are supported by historical precedent, as reflected in the expert declaration of John Rousmaniere, a leading America's Cup historian, ‘the donors of the original Deed of Gift never contemplated limits on foreign sails or foreign sail technology. Those donors, in fact, hoisted British sails in first winning the Cup with the schooner America. In fact, in adding the CIC clause to the Deed in 1882, George Schuyler, the last surviving donor, sought to ensure that the Cup remained a genuinely competitive event, while preserving the Cup's international character. He thus struck that balance by limiting the CIC requirement only to a competing vessel's hull, but not its sails.'

Additional documents presented to the court confirm that GGYC's CIC claim is factually wrong: SNG's sails were constructed in Switzerland and this fact is supported by an affidavit from Tom Whidden, president of North Sails, and an official certificate of Swiss origin from the Swiss Chamber of Commerce.

“SNG is certain of our yacht's Deed compliance, including the ‘constructed in country' provision and our interpretation is supported by the language of the Deed, historical precedent, and by the Cup donor's intentions,” said Fred Meyer, vice-commodore of SNG. “In any event, GGYC's CIC claim is factually wrong and we have submitted to the court substantial evidence proving that our sails are Swiss made. It is our view that we should go racing on 8 February. GGYC should end their legal strategy to try to delay the Cup and to try to gain competitive advantage over the Defender and should proceed with the competition on the water. If they wish, however, to pursue their latest lawsuit, then the judge should have a close look at BMW Oracle's yacht, which does not comply with GGYC's own interpretation of the Deed,” he concluded.

‘Constructed in country' counter motion

In parallel to the opposition papers, SNG has presented a counter motion stating that, should GGYC's interpretation of the CIC in the Deed of Gift be validated by the Court, then its own boat would be illegal. Affidavits from a number of leading experts in the field of yacht design, such as Duncan MacLane and Nigel Irens, support the fact that GGYC's trimaran is in fact a French-designed boat and not American, as supported by photographic exhibits the boat also includes a number of non-American constructed elements. In addition, BMW Oracle's yacht is not even a sloop, propelled by sails, with a main and a jib, as declared in the American club's certificate of challenge, but a wing-mast rig.

SNG's set of documents showcases how this latest motion by GGYC is in contravention of the spirit of the Deed of Gift and how Larry Ellison's yacht club has forgotten the call for friendly competition between nations.

Excerpts from expert affidavits:

Excerpts from the declaration by John Rousmaniere (USA), America's Cup historian:
”For more than a century of America's Cup competition, nationality concerned only yacht clubs and yacht hulls. There were no nationality restrictions on sails in the first race in 1851, when the American donors of the America's Cup used English sails. The first formal restriction of international exchanges of sail and other technologies was not established until after the nineteenth cup regatta in 1962. That was when the then trustee, the New York Yacht Club, issued what it would call an “interpretive resolution” limiting access to technology across national borders. Subsequently other, sometimes conflicting restrictions were imposed until all interpretive resolutions were rescinded by SNG and GGYC before the most recent cup races in 2007.

“Unlike hulls, sails were not regarded as subject to nationality restrictions – not by sailors, not by sailmakers, and not by the donors and the trustee New York Yacht Club.

“Had a stringent “constructed in country” rule – like the one proposed by Golden Gate Yacht Club in this action – been in place and enforced, in most of those nineteen regattas either the challenger or the defender (and sometimes both) might have been disqualified.

“Since the complaints about Atalanta concerned how identical her “model,” or hull shape, was to U.S. yachts, “constructed” can only have meant “designed and built.” Nothing was said or even implied in the “Second Deed” about sails, scantlings, or other construction standards.”

Excerpt from the affidavit by Tom Whidden (USA), president of North Sails:
“In Switzerland, I understand that the Alinghi team constructed the sails for Alinghi 5 by (1) joining the 3DL pieces/sections to construct the body of the sails; (2) finishing the sails by traditional sail-making methods; and (3) transporting the constructed sails to the location of Alinghi's yacht.”

Excerpt from the affidavit by Nigel Irens (GBR), multihull designer at Irens-Cabaret:
“In my view, the BOR yacht represents an extrapolation and adaptation of other current racing designs of the French firm, VPLP.”

Excerpt from the affidavit by Duncan MacLane (USA), multihull designer:
“Over the last ten years, there has been very little development of large performance multihulls in the United States. The larger racing multihulls have been concentrated in Europe, with European designers. The BOR 90 foot trimaran is clearly the offspring of European racing trimarans, particularly the ORMA 60's and their development programs.”

Notes (sources of quotations given above):

- Rousmaniere quote: SNG MOL in opposition to GGYC improper motion to ‘enforce' the April 7, 2009 order and judgment, page 3.
- Rousmaniere excerpt 1: Rousmaniere affidavit, pages 2 & 3
- Rousmaniere excerpt 2: Rousmaniere affidavit, page 6
- Rousmaniere excerpt 3: Rousmaniere affidavit, page 7
- Rousmaniere excerpt 4: Rousmaniere affidavit, page 15
- Whidden excerpt: Whidden affidavit, page 4
- Irens excerpt: Irens affidavit, page 2
- MacLane excerpt: MacLane affidavit: page 2

Documents and Court filings:

- Opposition papers
- Notice of Cross Motion
- MOL Cross Motion
- Declaration of John Rousmaniere
- Alinghi Sails Certificate of Origin
- Whidden Affidavit
- Vrolijk Affidavit
- Tournier Affidavit
- Sahli Affidavit
- Pattison Affidavit
- Masmejan Affidavit
- MacLane Affidavit
- Irens Affidavit
- Giuffra Exhibits

Société Nautique de Genève

Nathan Outteridge wins Audi A4 Avant

Audi's Anna Burgdorf presents Nathan Outteridge with the keys to the Audi A4 Avant. Image copyright Andrea Francolini/Audi.

by Di Pearson

Young Australian Sailing Team sailor Nathan Outteridge came ashore at Waterfront City, Docklands tonight with an ear splitting smile – and why not, he had just won the Audi King of the Docklands and in doing so, will drive home to the NSW Central Coast in a brand new Audi A4 Avant, courtesy of Audi.

Outteridge and his crew of gun Moth sailors Scott Babbage and John Harris, who is also an 18ft skiff world champion, helped the 2008 and 2009 49er world champion who finished second at the Worlds in the Bahamas earlier this month.

“I couldn’t have done it without John and Scott – I couldn’t have picked two better guys; guys who are friends. I’ll be shouting them to dinner tonight,” said Outteridge, who turns 24 at the end of the month.

“It’s awesome the support that Audi gives to sailing. As an Australian Sailing Team member, I get to drive an Audi all the time, because they sponsor our team. I feel very fortunate for that,” said Outteridge from Wangi Wangi on the Central Coast of NSW.


Scott Babbage, Nathan Outteridge and John Harris with the Audi A4 Avant. Image copyright Andrea Francolini/Audi.

The young sailor, who could not wipe the smile from his face continued: “I’ve driven the Audi A4 station wagon; it’s awesome to drive and very fuel efficient. I’ll make the best of my new car.”

“Congratulations to a great crew, you raced in difficult conditions. We are happy to be supporting such a great event and we thank Rod Jones and Oceanburo and Royal Geelong Yacht Club for their support,” said Anna Burgdorf, General Manager, Corporate Communications, Audi Australia, as she presented Nathan Outteridge with the keys to his brand new silver Audi A4 Avant valued at $54,800 at Docklands this evening.

As part of his prize, Rod Jones from Oceanburo donated the use of an SB3 to the winner’s home club to use for two years. “Wangi Wangi has a lot of young upcoming sailors, they’ll really appreciate this generous prize,” said Outteridge who let slip, “After sailing these boats I’d like to do the SB3 2012 Worlds if I can fit it in my program.”

Outteridge won both his heats to progress to the six boat final, which kept spectators holding their breaths. The two semi-finals were exceptionally aggressive, reminiscent of an America’s Cup action with plenty of pre-race tactics being played out on the course.

ABC’s Ian Cover and around the world sailor Nick Moloney gave blow by blow coverage from Waterfront City in breezes that were up and down, keeping all competitors on their toes until the final race in which the best six crews competed.

By the time the six teams hit the water, the breeze had faded to almost nothing and it was touch and go as to whether to abandon the race or not, but in the little breeze there was, the six moved at snail’s pace on the Victoria Harbour course with a crowd cheering them on.


The six finalists representatives in their headcams prior to heading on the water. Image copyright Teri Dodds/Audi Victoria Week media.

A young Geelong crew skippered by Brendan Garner finished second, as both his father John and Nathan Outteridge’s father Tony looked on, seemingly relaxed.

Garner made a brilliant recovery after crossing the start ahead of time, forcing him and his crew Jake Newman and Tim Clark, to take a 360 degree penalty turn, leaving him well behind the other five. However, sailing to the second last mark of the course, the 34 year-old skipper caught some breeze and forced a Quest crew, skippered by Julian Plante, out of the podium running and into fourth place.

A crew skippered by legendary 18 and 16 foot skiff sailor, Peter Sorensen, who also sails sports boats, finished third. Sorensen also happens to be the second winner of the Audi IRC Australian Championship, driving home in an Audi in 2008. “Oh well,” said the 60 plus year old, “you can’t win them all.”

Two other champion crews skippered by Heath Walters and Jock MacAdie, who is also in his 60’s, gave it their best and positions behind Outteridge changed constantly right to the end, thrilling onlookers.

Audi Victoria Week

America's Cup: Joey Allen helps out with BMW ORACLE Racing's final push

Image copyright Gilles Martin-Raget/BMW ORACLE Racing.

by Peter Rusch

The wind eased to near calm conditions later in the afternoon on Thursday sailing session, but sailing team coach Joey Allen (NZL) was still pumped up coming off the water. Another day at the office working at 'the greatest job on earth'.

At least that's the way he sees it.

He's joined the team for this final sprint towards race day, with a focus on helping the sailing team iron out its crew work through all of the race course manoeuvres.

"It's an extreme yacht to learn," he said after sailing today. "The game's on. We have plenty of work to do...

"The boat has taken a massive amount of development and engineering," he explains, adding that while the focus to date has been on boat speed, now the team is turning their attention to crew work.

"I'm just trying to help where I can. I'm not an expert on multihulls but i do have a lot of America's Cup experience and I'm just trying to help where I can."

On Thursday, the team had a full day on the water, with the mast and wing sail being stepped into the boat in the morning, USA leaving the mooring before noon, and several hours of sailing through the afternoon.

There was a light to moderate breeze early in the afternoon, but it eased to near calm conditions later.

Allen says they'll be keeping focused on their boat and development as preparations continue for the America's Cup Match.

"It's like getting ready to go to the moon. It's the most extreme vessel anyone's ever attempted to build, and if feels like we're heading off into space."

The greatest job on earth - or beyond!

BMW ORACLE Racing

Bay of Islands Sailing Week Day 3

by Lesley Haslar

What a day of racing... a perfect finish to three days of superb competition, 10-25 knot breezes, a Beach Party to remember, skilful tactics on the water and loads of laughter.

Quotes on the last day:

From Alan Brierty (Limit): “This is what we came for, to measure ourselves against Georgia and Wired. We need the international challenge and it’s been hard work. We beat Georgia over the line today by only 26 seconds in the first race – then it was her turn in the second race to show us a set of heals. We’ll be back.”

From Jim Farmer (Georgia): “The opportunity to measure Georgia against both Limit and Wired is what it’s all about. We had to work hard to stay between the two with the couple of firsts over the line making it all worthwhile."

Rob Bassett (Wired): “Racing against Limit and Georgia brings out the best in all of us. It’s been very close at times, and we just couldn’t quite make it. But It’s worth the challenge and we’ll be back”.

Chris Dickson (Limit): "Special racing for me, and yes a chance to show-off the Bay. Nine races over 3 days is pretty touch racing.” (And from Chris’s wife Sue) “A treat for us to just drive to a Regatta rather than fly all over the world – thank you Bay Regatta.”

From Tim Willets (skipper Timberwolf): “whoops, it was the closest we’ve ever been to tipping over at 9-pin. We had a bit of a screw-up and the (*^!*#**) 9-Pin wouldn’t get out of the way.”

From Steve Miller (Hickey Burr): “Good to race against the out-of-towners, but we needed more 1020’s. Maybe we could have the Nationals up here at the Bay Regatta in 2011?”

Adrian McHardy (Open Country): “This is our fourth year here; we won our division in 2005. We sail up from Tauranga and take a two week cruising holiday. Graham Clouston and I are partners with Open Country and we both really enjoy coming up to race at Bay of Islands Sailing week. See you again next year.”

From Paddy Simms (Race Officer A,B,M Divisions): “Not a lot of time to see a lot of actual racing on the track; the starts are special with boats all trying to get in front over the same piece of water. Two or three boats over the line payed the penalty. The wind each day has ranged from 5 to 25 knots. Yep – heard occasional strong language but no collisions. Ray Haslar’s Jive Talkin’ sailed by the Aussies started off a bit slow, but improved noticeably. A difference without the old-master on board, but watch out today – she’s catching up.”

From Tony Dalbeth (Deep Throttle): "Karma as usual has been great competition. There’s been tight racing in B Division, very close. At the start in races 7 and 8 there were at least 6 of us screaming toward the start line, the Race Committee were sweating as we missed each other – and them, by only millimetres, we’re sorry it’s over”

Tony Webb, (Judge from Auckland) offered his skills on the start boat for passage division: “The skippers loved the courses, with no windward-leewards and using islands as markers – what more could you ask for”.

And finally from Volunteer Phil Harris (on a course working RIB): “We were moving around the Bay, G3 was racing toward us. She came toward us so ##** fast we had to slam forward at top speed. My eyes felt like they were out on stalks, heart beat at about 200/100 as she screamed past at about 30 knots – what a machine.”

RESULTS (from Roger McMillan):

In IRC, Limit finished on 10 points, three ahead of Georgia with Wired (30) in third. On general handicap the two 52s were nowhere to be seen. Limit again triumphed ahead of the Andy Ball's Sunfast 52 Sea Harmony and Boyd Smith's Robinson 56 Bare Essentials. On PHRF Limit completed the clean sweep ahead of Wired and Sababa, David Nathan's Farr 50.

Division B was won by Geoff Martlew's Ross 12m Pretty Boy Floyd on general handicap, followed by Rob Shaw's Shaw 9m Karma Police and Bullrush, the Elliott 12 of Anthony Robinson. Jive Talkin, the Davidson 10.5m chartered by Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club members Richard Hudson and Rob McClelland was sixth in the nine boat fleet.

In PHRF, the finish order was Karma Police, Deep Throttle (Justin Ferris) and Bobby's Girl and in IRC it was Bobby's Girl, Bullrush and Revs (Chris Hornell).

There were 11 boats in Division C, which was won on general handicap by Paul Collins' Elliott 1050 High Voltage on 21 points, ahead of Stephen Miller's Farr 1020 Hicky Burr (23) and sister ship Hard Labour (Cameron Thorpe) on 31. High Voltage also won PHRF, with the Young 99 Mr Wolf second and Hicky Burr third.

Division D was the biggest division with 14 boats. Winner under general handicap was Max Newport's Loomes 10.8m Rock n Roll, ahead of Andrew Reid's First 34.7 First By Farr and the Young 88 Heartlight owned by Roger Sims. In PHRF First By Farr took the honours, ahead of Andrew Walker's SR 26 Mercenary and Heartlight and in IRC it was First By Farr and Adrian McHardy's Beale 35 Open Country.

Division E comprised seven little boats, which also enjoyed some close tussles. General handicap was won by Mike Sherwood's 7.55m Dale Sunday Special, followed by Chris Browne's Davidson 28 Top Knot and the Whiting 29s Candela (James Duke) and Nexus (Cees Romeyn). Only four boats contested under PHRF, with Marara (Terry Dunn, S&S 10.23) first, Screw Loose (Martin Clark, Ross 780) second, Nexus third and Frivolous Fish (David Krebs, Elliott 5.9) fourth. Hard Labour won IRC.

Premier Passage and Passage divisions had just one race each day. As the name would suggest they sailed around islands instead of doing windward/leewards.

John Graham's beautiful Warwick 50 Fez and Murray Walbran's Beale 42 Cruise Control were the fastest in Premier Passage, with Fez taking two races and Cruise Control one. Third was John Faire's Elliott 12.1 Terminator with three thirds. On general handicap, it was Nev Campbell's Atkinson 12.2 Kantime on six points, ahead of Cruise Control (8) and Fez (13) while Kantime also took PHRF with four points ahead of Cruise Control (6) and Kelvin Mulcare's modified Mt Gay 30 Fun-n-Games (8).

The Passage division had a healthy 12 entries and honours were shared. Dale Fenton's Farr 1020 Mesmerise took line honours with two firsts and a third, ahead of Kerry Mair's Ganley 17m Vision and Roy Goodwin's Elan 40 Royale both on nine. General handicap was won by Vision, with Royale second and Blue Newport's Lotus 10.6 Valentine third. In PHRF, the Farr 10.6 Charisma of Nelson, owned by Ian Wood, was first ahead of Mesmerise and Gambler. It was also great to see the graceful old Nicholson 45 Weatherly still racing well in this division.

With only five entries, the sports boat division was small but competitive. The Shaw 7 Orange Peeler (Grant McInnes), was able to clean-sweep line honours despite several capsizes. On handicap, it was Monkey Business, the Shaw 6.5 of Mathew Goddard that took the trophy on 22 points, two ahead of Orange Peeler and three ahead of third-placed Team Sex, the Magic 25 helmed by Anne Hirst.

Bay of Islands Sailing Week

Scarlet runs away with the Audi Docklands Invitational win

Scarlet Runner - ran away with the Audi Docklands Invitational. Image copyright Andrea Francolini/Audi.

by Lisa Ratcliff

Melbourne’s temperatures soared this afternoon thanks to a hot nor’westerly that quickly built from two to 43 knots, creating a furnace perfectly matched to the hot on-water action as the five-race Audi Docklands Invitational was decided off Williamstown.

It was Victorian Rob Date’s Reichel Pugh 52 Scarlet Runner that eventually snared the overall win in the Grand Prix division after scoring consistently throughout the series, including today’s fourth, third and first places. Scarlet Runner finished just one point ahead of Sandringham Yacht Club mate Alan Whiteley’s TP52 Cougar II, which was leading on points going into the decider.

“We are happy chappies. You don’t get many wins so you have to enjoy them”, a smiling owner/skipper Rob Date said at Docklands this afternoon.

Their day wasn’t without incident, a broken runner causing them to spear off downwind in race four while they recovered it. Amazingly they clawed back lost time, rounding the top mark in very good shape and in the company of the TP52s.

In the final shortened race, a diminished fleet elected to keep kites in their bags for the last downhill slide to the finish gate but even without their spinnaker, Scarlet Runner managed 21 knots of boat speed.

Scarlet Runner’s tactician Graeme Taylor admitted that this was “the best big boat racing I’ve done in Australia. All the boats have got different personalities, it was just awesome fun.”

“One little mistake and you lose three places. It’s like one design racing,” Date added in reference to the quality fleet of 50 footers racing at Audi Victoria Week.
Under overcast skies race three of the series and the first race of the day began in a soft breeze that flicked left and right of north.

In the IRC Grand Prix division Geoff Boettcher’s South Australian Reichel Pugh 51 Secret Mens Business 3.5 survived yesterday’s protest to go into the deciding day the clubhouse leader but a fading wind at the finish of this race hurt the RP 51 and favoured the bigger boats, which managed to squeeze the last out of the northerly.

There was a hiatus in the schedule between race three and four as the sou’east breeze teased around the edges of the course area but a short time later the northerly fought back with gusto and the course was re-set to north north westerly.

“The whole regatta has closed up” said Living Doll’s owner/skipper Michael Hiatt after the first race today while waiting for the breeze to settle and awaiting results. The handicap win went to his Victorian Farr 55 from the Royal Yacht Club of Victoria, the largest boat racing in this division.

The two divisions, Grand Prix and Production, set off on a NNW course in race four, the breeze building from 10 to 25 knots between the start and the second windward beat while in the third race the wind peaked at 43 knots with many choosing not to sail the final shortened course.

Secret Mens Business 3.5 returned to the dock early with a broken backstay, which is being fixed overnight, while others suffered sail damage, including the Production division winner Terra Firma.

Cougar II sailed a brilliant race four, beating the rest of the division over the line and on corrected time but Scarlet Runner, the six month old racy red 52 footer, pipped them on the final scoreboard with a race five win to close out the series.

Looking forward, Date plans to make a decision on his boat’s racing program after Audi Victoria Week finishes at Geelong. If Scarlet Runner does well on IRC he may follow the Audi IRC Australian Championship with the next event the Audi Sydney Harbour Regatta in Sydney in March. Otherwise he’ll take the boat to Adelaide for the Adelaide to Port Lincoln race and series.

Audi Docklands Invitational Production division winner Terra Firma also sailed a consistent series, the Sydney 47 from SYC beating the Rolex Sydney Hobart winner Two True (Andrew Saies) from South Australia by three points.

“It’s always good to go into the last day not in front. You set your task and you know what you have to do,” said Bartels dockside this afternoon.

He credited the win to his crew with a special mention to tacticians Ian ‘Barney’ Walker and Jeff Casley for playing a key role in today’s tough shifting conditions.
As far as the concept of a separate division for like boats, Bartels says the idea has plenty of merit. “It’s about making it fair for boats that can plane, and those that can’t. I think it will go from strength to strength.”

Principal race officer Denis Thompson described today’s extremely changeable conditions as “four seasons in one. We had a bit of everything.”

The IRC boats fleet will join the rest of the 335 strong fleet for tomorrow’s 34 nautical mile Melbourne to Geelong Passage Race which starts off Williamstown at 0930hrs. The Lou Abrahams trophy will be awarded to the IRC winner and for the first time they will also pick up an $8000 carbon wheel donated by McConaghy Boats
Audi Victoria Week will then continue at Geelong through to Australia Day, next Tuesday 26 January.

Tomorrow’s forecast is for south westerly winds 15 to 25 knots tending south to southwesterly 15 to 20 knots around dawn then tending southerly 10 to 15 knots by early evening.

Audi Victoria Week

Steady Winds and Boat Speed Rule the Day in Key West

Leaders and Challengers Ready for Final Day


Penultimate day's action from Key West. Image copyright Tim Wilkes/www.timwilkes.com

by Bill Wagner

John Kilroy has been leading the Melges 32 class since Tuesday and holds a comfortable 10-point advantage with just two races remaining at Key West 2010, presented by Nautica. However, the California skipper plans to sail the last day of the regatta the same way he did the first.

“We’re not going to do anything different. We’ll just go out and sail as well as we possibly can and hope that is good enough to get the job done,” Kilroy said. “We don’t really look at the score until the regatta is over. Of course, you always would rather be in the lead going into the last day, but we can’t allow that to change our approach.”

Stu Bannatyne is calling tactics while Morgan Reeser is trimming and helping with strategy aboard Samba Pa Ti, which has won three of eight races and finished sixth or better in three others in totaling 27 points. New Wave, owned by Michael Carroll of Clearwater, Fla., had a superb outing on Thursday to move into second place – 10 points behind.

Quantum professional Scott Nixon is calling tactics while Marty Kullman is steering New Wave, which won Race 8 and placed second in Race 7 to jump from sixth to second in the overall standings.

“We carved a lot out of the lead today. Whether it was enough remains to be seen,” Carroll said. “We are certainly in range and have given ourselves a chance. Hopefully, we can sail as well tomorrow as we did today.”

Competition is still close in the Melges 24 class with skipper Lorenzo Santini and UKA UKA Racing taking a three-point lead into Friday. Lorenzo Bressani is steering while Jonathan McKee is calling tactics for UKA UKA Racing, which has been remarkably consistent this week. The Italian team has won three races and counts no worse than a third in totaling 12 points – three better than the Swiss entry Blu Moon.

“They are sailing unbelievably. We are going fast, but they are just a click better,” said Flavio Favini, helmsman aboard Blu Moon, which won Race 7 and took third in Race 8. “We have a chance, but it is a very small one. After what the UKA UKA guys did today, they deserve to be winning the regatta.”

Thursday brought the strongest wind of the regatta with a south-southeasterly delivering 14-16 knots. After three days of shifty conditions, the breeze stabilized and allowed tacticians to focus on boat speed instead of choosing sides of the course.

“It was the steadiest wind I’ve ever seen, both in terms of velocity and direction,” said Ken Legler, principal race officer on Division 1.

Skipper Giovanni Maspero and the Joe Fly team tacked on two more good results on Thursday and now hold a solid 11-point lead in the Farr 40 class. Tactician Francesco Bruni has made all the right calls this week as the Italian boat has finished fourth or better in seven of eight starts, notching its first victory of the regatta in Race 8.

Barking Mad, an American boat skippered by Jim Richardson of Newport, R.I., notched a second and third on Thursday to move from fifth to second in the overall standings. Tactician Terry Hutchinson believes Barking Mad has been sailing relatively well all week and finally caught some breaks.

“I’m incredibly happy with our performance today. We started the day by setting a team goal of finishing on the podium and this was certainly a step in the right direction,” he said. “Joe Fly is sailing really well and will be hard to beat. We just have to continue sailing the way we did today and be in position to capitalize if Joe Fly makes any mistakes.”

All the boys on the Highland Fling were happy to hear the weather forecast for Thursday. The Wally 82-footer, easily the largest entry at Key West 2010, has been unable to maximize its potential in the moderate, shifty conditions that predominated the initial three days of the regatta.

“We were really, really pleased when we went out this morning and found the breeze was what it was predicted,” tactician Peter Isler said.

Highland Fling, owned by Irvine Laidlaw of Monaco, responded with its best day of the regatta – posting a second and a third to close to within two points of second place in IRC 1. “We got the sails up and down real well and our maneuvers were terrific. We turned that 82-footer into a small boat today,” Isler said.

Bella Mente, a Reichel-Pugh 66, owned by Hap Fauth of Newport, R.I., has run away with IRC 1 by winning seven of eight races. At this point, the battle is for second place between Highland Fling and the TP52 Interlodge (Austin Fragomen, New York).

There is a great battle going on in IRC 2 class between the Summit 40 White Heat and the J/122 Pugwash. Those two boats finished one-two in Class 3 at the IRC East Coast Championship off Annapolis in late October and are positioned to do so again in Key West.

Skipper Mike Williamson and the White Heat team saw their lead cut to one after Race 7 on Thursday, but rebounded to win Race 8 and push the advantage back to five points. Tactician Larry Leonard, a North Sails professional, admitted Pugwash will need two terrific results and a little good luck in order to overtake its hometown rival from Newport.

“We’ll go out and sail the best we can and hope the breaks fall our way,” Leonard said. “We can’t really engage White Heat because their boat is faster than ours. We just try to sail in the same vicinity.”

Savasana, owned by Brian Keane of Marion, Mass., continued its impressive performance in the J/105 class with a pair of seconds on Thursday. Savasana holds a 16-point lead over ghost (Kenneth Colburn, Southport, Maine) and has pretty much clinched the overall victory.

“It’s been an awesome week of all-around sailing and we’re very, very pleased,” said Keane, whose team has placed first or second in six of eight races and no worse than fourth.

Le Tigre, co-owned by Glenn Hilliard and Reese Darden of Forth Worth, Texas, posted a pair of bullets on Thursday to take over the lead in J/80 class, which is contesting its Midwinter Championship at Key West 2010. Little Feat, skippered by J/Boats executive Jeff Johnstone, entered the day atop the 19-boat fleet but exited six points behind Le Tigre.

In the International Team Competition for the Nautica Watches Trophy, the two Italian Teams have been close all week. Joe Fly, Calvi Network and UKA UKA Racing have a narrow 6 point lead over Nerone, Fantastika, and Blu Moon.

Key West Race Week

Images of Races 5 and 6 of the Star Worlds by Fried Elliott

Race 5


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 5, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com

Race 6


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Percy and Simpson finish Race 6, Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com


Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson after winning the Star Worlds 2010. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com

Fried Elliott
Star Worlds

Iain Percy and Andrew 'Bart' Simpson win 2010 Star Worlds

Iain Percy and Andrew 'Bart' Simpson: 2010 Star Class World Champions. Image copyright Fried Elliott/www.friedbits.com

by Lynn Fitzpatrick

Iain Percy and Andrew “Bart” Simpson (GBR) were crowned 2010 Star World Champions Thursday. The reigning Olympic Gold Medallists continue to add treasures to war chests. Percy’s sterling collection of championship titles includes the 2002 Star World Championship and an Olympic Gold Medal in the Finn in 2000.

Percy and Simpson are in the TeamORIGIN afterguard and began sailing Stars together in 2007. They were persistent in getting every ounce of boat speed out of their Mader Star and won the Olympic Gold Medal in the most exciting Medal Race of all of the Olympic Classes.

Following the Olympics, they took a breather from Star sailing and have been doing a lot of match racing. Their last Star regatta was Sail for the Gold in Weymouth, where they won the Gold. They did not compete in the 2009 Star World Championship nor did they compete in the Taca Royal Thames and South American Championship earlier this season. They had two practice sessions leading up to this regatta. Percy commented at the pre-regatta press conference, “Sometimes short, sharp training sessions can work in your favor.”

This victory places Percy in the rarified company of Torben Grael, Mark Reynolds, Bill Buchan, Jr.; Lowell North, and Agostino Straulino as a Star skipper who has won an Olympic Gold Medal and multiple Star World Championship titles.

Flavio Marazzi and Enrico De Maria (SUI) entered the 2010 Star World Championship ranked #1 by ISAF and hoping to find the Holy Grail after their second place finish in the Taca Royal Thames Regatta and victory in the South American Championship. This second place finish matches their second place finish at the 2004 Star World Championship. They were fourth in 2008.

Marazzi/DeMaria’s doggedness in trying to close the point spread between them and Percy/Simpson kept the World Championship title up for grabs through the final race of the series. Percy went into the race, “holding all of the cards” and knowing that Marazzi/DeMaria would have a difficult time accomplishing two very difficult feats: placing first or second in the race and having the Brits finish eight or more points behind them.

“The start did not quite go as planned,” explained Simpson. “We thought that we were pushing them to the wrong end of the line and a big shift came through in their favor. They did a great job.”

The Brits’ miscalculation put the Swiss more than two dozen boats ahead of them at the top mark and trading places with Lars Grael and Ronald Seifert (BRA) and Johannes Polgar and Markus Koy (GER) and Fernando Echavarri and Fernando Rodrigues (ESP), all talented light air sailors. Said Percy, “We had a nervous moment at first when they crossed the fleet, but we continued to play the shifts and make gains.”

Mark Mendelblatt and John Von Schwarz led around the first windward mark. They, like many others, had problems with the current after tacking for the offset mark, they slipped back to fifth. “We jibed to get clear air, and it turned out to be a good decision,” said Mendelblatt who went on to win his first race in a Star World Championship. He continued, “It was a good way to end the regatta.”

Percy/Simpson made a huge gain half way up the second beat and, “got quite close to them, and actually enjoyed the last lap,” said Percy.

In the end, Flavio Marazzi and Enrico DeMaria slipped from being in contention for first or second to 12th and Iain Percy and Andrew “Bart” Simpson had recovered to 16th place.

Said Percy, who was pleased to win another important sailing title with his best mate, “The race didn’t quite go as planned and was a good reminder that you can’t rest on your laurels especially in the Star Class.”

Alexander Schlonski and Frithjof Kleen (GER) matched their Race 1 second place finish with another second place finish today. Torben Grael and Marcel Ferreira (BRA) followed them across the finish line in third.

Grael/Ferreira claimed third place in the regatta. Lars Grael and Ronald Seifert (BRA) followed their third place finish at the 2009 Star World Championship with a fourth in Rio. Alan Adler and Guiherme Almeida (BRA) finished fifth.

Torben Grael said, “I am very glad with our performance. It was a wonderful way to get back into the Star with a third at the South Americans and a third at the Worlds. There is such a high level of competition locally and it is fun for all of us. The races are always difficult and we are always pushing one another. We have talented newcomers, like Andre Mirsky. It is good for the Class.”

Top Junior

Tomas Hornos and Luis Hornos (USA) - the top Junior skipper at the 2010 Star World Championship is Tomos Hornos. Tomas sailed with his father, Luis, the District 1 Secretary. Tomas is the 2007 Snipe World Champion. Luis’ brother, Carlos, joined them in Rio. Tomas sailed his first Star regatta in New England years ago at his uncle’s suggestion. Tomas is in his final semester at Tufts University, where he is the Jumbo’s A Division skipper. The father and son combination finished 44th overall.

Top Master

Peter Ficker and Urbirtran Oliviera (BRA) – The 1976 Olympic Silver Medalist in the Flying Dutchman teamed up with the 2005 Brazilian Star National Champion crew for this regatta and topped the group of eight Masters teams in the 2010 Star World Championship. They finished 38th overall.

Top Grand Master

Gastao Brun and Gustavo Kunze (BRA) – The 2010 Star World Champion Regatta Chair, and his family have been working around the clock helping to make the regatta perfect. Brun is the 2008 South American Champion and the 1990 North American Champion, and a lengthy list of other victories. Brun won the warm-up regatta and had two races in the top ten, including on Wednesday, the day that half of the top ten teams to cross the finish line were Brazilian. Gustavo Kunze sailed Optimists and Lasers and started crewing with Brun in 2007. They finished 16th overall, ahead of all of the Junior, Master and Grand Master teams. Said Brun, “It is great to be sailing with all of these guys. It is so much fun. It makes you feel alive.” Brun has won many races in these waters, said, “You need to be calm and can’t go to the extremes.”

Preliminary Results of the 2010 Star World Championship

Place Boat Skipper Crew Sail #: Fleet 1 2 3 4 5 6 Total

1 GBR 8371 Percy Iain Simpson Andrew 8371 Sol 2.0 11.0 2.0 1.0 4.0 18.0 20
2 SUI 8364 Marazzi Flavio De Maria Enrico 8364 TB 30.0 1.0 6.0 4.0 6.0 12.0 29
3 BRA 8397 Grael Torben Ferreira Marcelo 8397 GuB 5.0 25.0 21.0 7.0 3.0 3.0 39
4 BRA 8392 GRAEL LARS SEIFERT RONALD 8392 Par 35.0 15.0 12.0 10.0 2.0 5.0 44
5 BRA 8210 Adler Alan Almeida Guilherme 8210 RdJ 6.0 5.0 11.0 13.0 9.0 74.0 [OCS] 44.0001
6 ITA 8266 Negri Diego Colaninno Fernando 8266 VE 23.0 18.0 5.0 6.0 13.0 10.0 52
7 SWE 8387 Loof Fredrik Tillander Johan 8387 Bk 8.0 9.0 18.0 19.0 11.0 6.0 52.0001
8 NOR 8317 Melleby Eivind Morland Pedersen Petter 8317 Nor 9.0 10.0 4.0 16.0 16.0 15.0 54
9 BRA 8255 SCHEIDT ROBERT PRADA BRUNO 8255 Gua 3.0 19.0 50.0 5.0 5.0 32.0 64
10 GER 8378 Babendererde Johannes Jacobs Timo 8378 Moh 1.0 8.0 39.0 8.0 15.0 34.0 66
11 USA 8361 Campbell Andrew Nichol Brad 8361 SDB 12.0 3.0 24.0 26.0 14.0 14.0 67
12 GER 8140 Schlonski Alexander Kleen Frithjof 8140 Lub 24.0 2.0 74.0 [BFD] 20.0 23.0 2.0 71
13 ARG 8381 Kouyoumdjian Juan Colla Alejandro 8381 Lar 4.0 30.0 8.0 22.0 7.0 33.0 71.0001
14 CAN 8398 Macdonald Ross Lekszycki Andre 8398 EB 10.0 13.0 14.0 15.0 20.0 26.0 72
15 BRA 8283 Brun Gastao Kunze Gustavo 8283 RdJ 21.0 7.0 15.0 48.0 8.0 22.0 73
16 CRO 8339 Lovrovic Marin Mikulicic Sinisa 8339 Kv 17.0 34.0 13.0 14.0 10.0 19.0 73.0001
17 GER 8109 Polgar Johannes Koy Markus 8109 Ess 26.0 4.0 42.0 24.0 17.0 7.0 78
18 GER 8340 Stanjek Robert Stanjek Philipp 8340 BF 14.0 12.0 27.0 23.0 19.0 16.0 84
19 POR 8276 Lima Gustavo Nankin Charles 8276 Por 7.0 74.0 [BFD] 9.0 46.0 21.0 8.0 91
20 ARG 8211 Rigoni Alejo Percossi Juan Pablo 8211 BA 29.0 31.0 7.0 12.0 25.0 20.0 93
21 BRA 6475 Mirsky Andre JORDÁO MARCELO 6475 RdJ 33.0 6.0 22.0 3.0 34.0 74.0 [DNC] 98
22 USA 8267 Mendelblatt Mark Von Schwarz JOhn 8267 TaB 44.0 17.0 25.0 31.0 26.0 1.0 100
23 IRL 8385 Treacy Max Shanks Anthony 8385 Isol 13.0 32.0 33.0 9.0 29.0 17.0 100
24 USA 8362 Merriman Rick Trinter Phil 8362 LH 49.0 36.0 17.0 2.0 1.0 46.0 102
25 FRA 8237 Rohart Xavier Ponsot Pierre Alexis 8237 NI 66.0 14.0 1.0 18.0 12.0 74.0 [OCS] 111
26 POR 8309 Domingos Afonso Melo Frederico 8309 CP 25.0 29.0 16.0 17.0 27.0 37.0 114
27 GER 8299 Miller Matthias Wenk Benedikt 8299 UB 62.0 20.0 31.0 25.0 24.0 21.0 121
28 USA 8273 Szabo George Peters Rick 8273 SDB 53.0 39.0 10.0 42.0 22.0 9.0 122
29 BRA 8337 Cunha Renato Mascarenhas Marcos 8337 RdJ 34.0 27.0 3.0 33.0 41.0 27.0 124
30 ARG 7966 Labandeira Julio Thompson Valentin 7966 OL 15.0 26.0 23.0 43.0 38.0 23.0 125
31 ITA 8155 Poggi Giampiero Corsi Manlio 8155 Rom 22.0 23.0 20.0 38.0 33.0 30.0 128
32 GRE 8138 Papathanasiou Emilios Papastefanou Pachos 8138 GR 16.0 49.0 30.0 11.0 44.0 74.0 [DNC] 150
33 ESP 8297 Echavarri Erasum Fernando Rodriguez Rivero Fernando 8297 Lar 18.0 74.0 [BFD] 29.0 65.0 36.0 4.0 152
34 BRA 7590 King John A Spear Macpherson Norman 7590 Cop 11.0 56.0 45.0 27.0 74.0 [BFD] 13.0 152
35 ITA 8384 Celon Nicola Natucci Edoardo 8384 SG 41.0 21.0 43.0 21.0 30.0 74.0 [DNC] 156
36 GBR 8396 Razmilovic Ante Hammersley Brian 8396 NB 40.0 40.0 38.0 58.0 28.0 11.0 157
37 CRO 8280 Lovrovic Dan ARAPOVIC Antonio 8280 Kv 27.0 37.0 44.0 50.0 31.0 24.0 163
38 BRA 8300 FICKER PETER Oliveira Ubiratan 8300 San 19.0 33.0 56.0 28.0 45.0 43.0 168
39 BRA 8282 PASCOLATO ALESSANDRO Boening Henry 8282 Gua 28.0 22.0 51.0 30.0 43.0 50.0 173
40 BRA 8393 Carabelli Horacio Ilha Fernando 8393 RdJ 57.0 46.0 40.0 40.0 18.0 31.0 175
41 GBR 8025 Gimson John Greig Ed 8025 Sol 37.0 41.0 37.0 36.0 74.0 [BFD] 29.0 180
42 BRA 8145 Bodra Fabio Barbosa Lopes Arthur 8145 SP 20.0 24.0 19.0 45.0 74.0 [DSQ] 74.0 [OCS] 182
43 CAN 8143 Cramer Brian Johnston Matt 8143 WLOC 31.0 52.0 41.0 37.0 53.0 25.0 186
44 USA 8067 HORNOS Tomas HORNOS Luis 8067 BH 39.0 48.0 32.0 44.0 32.0 40.0 187
45 BRA 8049 Raulino Guilherme LAGOA MARCO 8049 Par 51.0 16.0 48.0 39.0 35.0 60.0 189
46 ITA 8383 Augelli Marco Rocca Leone 8383 FdiT 74.0 [DSQ] 42.0 49.0 29.0 42.0 28.0 190
47 ITA 8400 Santoni Silvio Toccoli Fabio 8400 NG 32.0 43.0 74.0 [BFD] 35.0 46.0 35.0 191
48 ITA 8242 Boggi Lucio Lambertenghi Sergio 8242 Gar 43.0 74.0 [BFD] 28.0 32.0 37.0 57.0 197
49 BRA 8251 Conrad Reinaldo Pomerantzeff Paulo Andre 8251 San 45.0 50.0 46.0 74.0 [DNF] 47.0 38.0 226
50 BRA 8284 Raulino Gabriel Camargo Rosas Juliano 8284 Par 59.0 54.0 35.0 49.0 50.0 39.0 227
51 BRA 8391 Gonzaga Neto Admar Figueiredo De Freita Alexandre 8391 Par 46.0 47.0 52.0 54.0 40.0 42.0 227
52 ITA 8370 Simeone Luca La Porta Manuele 8370 Rom 42.0 62.0 36.0 60.0 51.0 45.0 234
53 ITA 7556 Fornaro Andrea Tarabella Andrea 7556 LdB 48.0 35.0 63.0 63.0 49.0 41.0 236
54 SUI 8085 Zimmermann Lorenz Hollweg Nils 8085 LUV 56.0 60.0 26.0 41.0 60.0 54.0 237
55 ARG 7700 Della Torre Daniel Barroso Julian Gazari 7700 BA 60.0 28.0 54.0 53.0 58.0 48.0 241
56 ARG 7777 Della Torre Gerardo Latour Guillermo 7777 BA 67.0 38.0 59.0 52.0 74.0 [BFD] 36.0 252
57 BRA 8287 Almeida Reis Luiz Andre Moura Renato 8287 Par 64.0 58.0 34.0 57.0 74.0 [BFD] 44.0 257
58 AUT 8368 Tomasini Grinover Roberto Bahr Gunnar 8368 AU 55.0 44.0 55.0 51.0 55.0 74.0 [DNC] 260
59 USA 8279 Bonanni Claude Burgess Richard 8279 TaB 36.0 74.0 [BFD] 61.0 64.0 52.0 49.0 262
60 SUI 8009 Gautschi Christoph Koenig Juerg 8009 Bod 70.0 61.0 65.0 34.0 56.0 56.0 272
61 POR 8048 De Barros Patrick M Plantier Santos Bernardo 8048 FdeL 63.0 57.0 60.0 47.0 57.0 52.0 273
62 ARG 7909 Perez Jorge Oscar Tufarolo Marcelo 7909 OL 54.0 55.0 53.0 70.0 59.0 53.0 274
63 GER 8016 Rauch Hubert Schappeler Ingo 8016 And 52.0 51.0 64.0 61.0 74.0 [BFD] 51.0 279
64 BRA 7441 Bueno Mauricio Zarif Jorge Joao 7441 Gua 69.0 45.0 58.0 55.0 54.0 74.0 [DNS] 281
65 BRA 7284 Castro Cezar Montezuma Afonso 7284 Par 68.0 53.0 47.0 67.0 74.0 [BFD] 59.0 294
66 CHI 7972 Gimeno Pablo Calegari Frederico 7972 Val 38.0 65.0 66.0 [66.0, RDG] 66.0 74.0 [BFD] 61.0 296
67 ITA 7551 Graciotti Vincenzo Cisbani Paolo 7551 Con 74.0 [DNS] 64.0 66.0 56.0 48.0 64.0 298
68 SRB 7888 Erac Branislav Tosic Ozren 7888 Isol 47.0 66.0 57.0 71.0 62.0 74.0 [DNC] 303
69 BRA 8117 Caruso Bruno Manzoli Bremer Rolf 8117 Gua 71.0 59.0 67.0 59.0 63.0 55.0 303
70 BRA 7772 Siemsen Francisco Floricke Manfredo 7772 Cop 65.0 74.0 [BFD] 74.0 [BFD] 69.0 39.0 58.0 305
71 BRA 8212 Goretkin Sergio Cruz Renato 8212 RdJ 50.0 74.0 [DSQ] 74.0 [DNS] 74.0 [DNS] 61.0 47.0 306
72 ITA 8382 Irrera Renato Cristaldini Corrado 8382 Pal 58.0 67.0 62.0 62.0 74.0 [BFD] 62.0 311
73 BRA 7823 De Almeida Joao Marcos Bunge Manuel 7823 Cop 61.0 63.0 74.0 [BFD] 68.0 64.0 63.0 319

World Regattas
Star Class