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ALL THE WINNERS REVEALED
NO SLEEP 'TIL MARTINIQUE What's it like to race the Transat Jacques Vabre?
ATLANTIC EXPLOITS Tales from the ARC
ORC 57 ON TEST Turbocharged cruising ULTIM CHALLENGE The fastest ever race around the world? RIVER NITH Exploring a forgotten estuary
NORTH WEST PASSAGE A classic adventure story
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8 News 26 Tom Cunliffe 30 Paul Heiney 32 Andy Rice 98 Jess Lloyd-Mostyn
AWARDS
16 Winners revealed Who got your vote at the annual British Yachting Awards?
UNDER SAIL
COVER IMAGE: JEAN-LOUIS CARLI / ALEA
REGULARS
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34 North West Passage Will Stirling narrates a high latitude trip in a classic gaff cutter
40 Arkea Ultim Challenge Previewing a supercharged round the world race
46 Beach holiday Rob Peake enjoys a beach holiday in Nikiana, Lefkas, Greece
50 River Nith Exploring forgotten estuaries
56 Interview: Louise Morton Morton talks elite racing and more
66 Gull’s Eye 40
Marina guide to Southampton’s Town Quay
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70 Atlantic Rally for Cruisers The rally arrives in Grenada
74 Charter Exploring the Atlantic islands
78 Transat Jacques Vabre Class 40 sailor Pam Lee takes you onboard
82 Greek misadventure A solo trip from the Aegean to the Ionian
BOATS
14 New boats 60 Tested: ORC 57 Bluewater cruising turbo-charged
94 Three of the Best Three of the finest brokerage boats
GEAR
90 Buyer’s Guide: Winter maintenance Tips on essential tasks
78 Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting FEBRUARY 2024
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Jeanneau Yachts
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Welcome
EDITORIAL EDITOR
Sam Jefferson 020 3943 9261 sam.jefferson@chelseamagazines.com ART & PRODUCTION EDITOR Gareth Lloyd Jones WRITER AND SUB EDITOR Sue Pelling
Skipper’s View ONLINE, ONBOARD, ALL OF THE TIME. WHAT FRESH HELL IS THIS?
PUBLISHING CONSULTANT Martin Nott PUBLISHER Simon Temlett simon.temlett@chelseamagazines.com ADVERTISING ADVERTISEMENT MANAGER Mark Harrington 020 7349 3734 mark.harrington@chelseamagazines.com GROUP SALES DIRECTOR Catherine Chapman HEAD OF SALES OPERATIONS Jodie Green ADVERTISEMENT PRODUCTION Allpoints Media Ltd allpointsmedia.co.uk CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Vicki Gavin MANAGING DIRECTOR James Dobson Published by: The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd CMC, 111 Buckingham Palace Road, London, SW1W 0SR © The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd 2020, part of the Telegraph Media Group. All Rights Reserved. ISSN 1367-5869 (print) ISSN 2059-9285 (digital) No part of this magazine may be reproduced without permission in writing. Every care is taken to ensure the accuracy of information in Sailing Today, but no responsibility can be accepted for the consequences of actions based on the advice portrayed herein. The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd makes every effort to ensure that the advertising contained in this magazine is delivered from responsible sources. We cannot, however, accept any responsibility for transactions between readers and advertisers. For the Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd full set of terms and conditions please go to chelseamagazines.com/terms-and-conditions
I'M WRITING THIS editorial with some trepidation as I'm well aware that I may come across as an old man shouting at clouds. Nevertheless, I feel like the issue of getting online afloat must be addressed. I've just returned from the finish of the ARC+ out in Grenada. This is one half of the annual pilgrimage of boats making the voyage across the Atlantic to the Caribbean - we all know that. What has made this year somewhat different is that it is the first year where it has been possible to be online onboard almost all the time at a reasonable price. I recall from ocean voyages I have made - not all that long ago either to be fair - that getting online was a rare occurrence that generally came at a very high cost. Well, all that seems to have changed and the organisers of the ARC noted that this was the first time that the participants in the ARC had been in almost constant communication with each other via WhatsApp groups. Now, on the one hand this is incredible - it breaks new ground. As an example, I generally work remotely and this would mean that I could, theoretically at least, work remotely from the mid Atlantic - or the Weddell Sea for that matter. Extraordinary. Yet the other side of this coin is that there is no escape. No escape from work emails, no escape from the insanity that is social media. The world just got even smaller. I recall doing the ARC back in 2012 and being blown away by the sheer scale of the Atlantic and the feeling of isolation. Back then there were radio groups that kept up a constant chatter as we left Las Palmas. Sailors seeking reassurance in the face of the vastness of an ocean that they were not alone. One day out, I vividly remember the plaintive call of the last boat still in radio contact; the radio operator plainitively wailing for 'chum' boats to respond. The only response was silence. We were alone. The vastness of the Atlantic swallowed us up. Well, that's still true but now, you can distract yourself from that fact by watching a cat do a backflip on TikTok or check out the latest conspiracy theory on Facebook. Technology is extraordinary and this breakthrough in comms is incredible but I hope it does not take some of the wonder of voyaging away from us.
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CONTRIBUTORS
Also part of the Chelsea Marine Magazines family:
chelseamagazines.com
JESS LLOYD MOSTYN is a writer and bluewater cruiser who is currently moored in Singapore
TOM CUNLIFFE is an author, journalist and TV presenter, and one of Britain's best-known cruising sailors
ANDY RICE is a journalist and veteran dinghy racer who has won championships at both ends of a skiff
Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting FEBRUARY 2024
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Morning glory Photographer Deea Buzdogan: “I took this picture as the yacht Carbonita was coming to the finish line of the Aegean 600 offshore race, with almost no wind, exactly at the sunrise. I chose it because I think that this photo is like an invitation to discover the beauty of yacht racing. It’s taking us behind the scenes - the yacht being the stage and the sail the curtain.” Photo: Deea Buzdogan
News
Ebb and flow EVENTS | NEWS | TALES FROM THE SAILING COMMUNITY
Goodchild first Brit to win IMOCA series In what must be seen as a good portent for the upcoming Vendée Globe Race, Sam Goodchild capped a superb year by scooping the IMOCA series. He is the first British skipper to pick up this prize. Goodchild, 34, skipper of For The Planet, maintained his remarkably consistent form when he completed his first ever solo IMOCA race, the 3,500nm inaugural Retour a La Base from Martinique to Lorient in third place. This was his first solo IMOCA event and caps a dream 2023 season for the British racer who left his native Falmouth more than a dozen years ago to pursue his solo ocean racing career in France. In taking his fourth consecutive third position, his fifth of the year, Goodchild won the title. He was, however, beaten to line honours in the Retour a la Base race by Yoann Richomme of Paprec Arkea and Jeremie
Beyou, skipper of Charal. Retour a la Base is a race held in the aftermath of the Transat Jacques Vabre and runs from Martinique back to Lorient in northern France. Richomme took line honours with an elapsed time for the course in 9 days 3 minutes 48 seconds. His average speed on the theoretical course was 16.19kts, his actually sailed 4256.68nms at an average of 19.7kts. There were also strong showings for Brits Sam Davies, who came in 6th and Pip Hare who took 11th place in a fleet of 32 boats. Richomme missed out on the last Vendée Globe but has made up for it with a carefully prepared campaign. Both he and Goodchild will be among the favourites for the Vendée Globe race which starts in November 2024.
PHOTO: DON MCINTYRE
Golden Globe worth its weight
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Independent analysis into the value of the Golden Globe Race suggests that nostalgia really does pay. The retro solo round the world race, which harks back to the exploits of Robin KnoxJohnston, Bernard Moitessier and others in 1969, was valued by auditors Meltwater as having a staggering value of €213 million reflects that following: 240,000 people visited the Les Sables d’Olonne GGR village in FEBRUARY 2024 Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting
the two weeks before the start; the website had 4.4 million unique visits with 19 million unique pages opened; the Facebook reach was 3.3 million and YouTube had 3.2 million views. Twitter saw 5.2 million impressions and Instagram a reach of 1 million. Plus, a total of 65,000 people downloaded the Yellowbrick tracking app and that related to over 15 million hits if checked just once a day and most checked many times each day.
notorious for producing some surprises for rounding the North Island but not so on this occasion. Ultimately the mighty Pen Duick was beaten into third. Vittorio Malingri, Translated 9 skipper: “We went south, you have to go south, that is how you sail around the world. Some days in the fog it was one degree, or four degrees. We didn’t see the sun for two weeks! But we are so happy to be here.” The Ocean Globe Race is a retro event which harks back to the old school Whitbread Races of the 1970s and 80s. To this end, yachts have to be of a certain vintage and modern navigation methods are eschewed.
PHOTO: GEORGIA SCHOFIELD
The Ocean Globe Race continues to treat followers to a magnificent racing spectacle with followers left on the edge of their seats as the tricky Southern Ocean leg from Cape Town to Auckland reached its denouement. The focus for much of the race was on the battle between Marie Tabarly’s Pen Duick VI and Vittorio Malingri’s Translated 9. Tabarly led early on but was forced a long way northward by a high pressure system and ended up going through the Bass Strait on her way down to New Zealand. For a while, it looked like the gamble might have paid off but Translated 9’s position continued to offer the better winds, aiding her perfectly around the often difficult Cape Reinga. It’s
Portsmouth Yardstick submission deadline
And the winner is...
PHOTO: GEOFF CHILDS
The RYA is making its annual appeal to the racing public to ensure the 2024 PY numbers are as accurate as possible by submitting your data by Sunday 31 December. The Portsmouth Yardstick handicap system is run jointly by the RYA and its affiliated clubs to allow sailors to race different boats against each other fairly. At the end of each year, clubs submit their results data to the RYA to be collated and analysed. The Portsmouth Yardstick (PY) numbers are then adjusted accordingly. The more data received, the more accurate the PY numbers will be. This year’s deadline for PY submissions is Sunday 31 December. Club handicap and results officers can submit their data online. The new Portsmouth Yardstick numbers will be released at the RYA Dinghy and Watersports Show on Saturday 24 February 2024. Go to pyonline.org.uk to submit your data.
PHOTO: MARTIN AUGUSTUS
PHOTO: NEW ZEALAND SAILING TRUST
Epic Southern Ocean battle in Ocean Globe Race
York University Sailing and Windsurfing Club is celebrating after picking up Plain Sailing’s University Sailing Sponsorship partners for the 2023/24 academic year. The charter company developed this prize as a way of encouraging grass roots sailing in the UK, and left the final decision on the winner to the public. After being narrowed down to a very strong three-University shortlist which also included sailing clubs from Aberystwyth and Edinburgh University – it came down to a public vote. There were a record number of votes cast, with voters hailing from right across the globe, including the USA, Australia and even Thailand. Tommy Tognarelli, co-founder of PlainSailing.com, said “One of the best things about working for PlainSailing.com is the opportunity to get involved in supporting and growing grassroots sailing, and our sponsorship scheme for University Sailing clubs, or special charter prices for University or Community Sailing Clubs, enables us to play our part in spreading the love of sailing.” Sailing Today with Yachts & Yachting FEBRUARY 2024
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