In This Issue
• Back to Reality
• Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
• Da Vinci Code
• From the "I wish I lived in a Covid-free nation" files...
• The Yacht Racing Podcast: Episode 30
• What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine
• Armel Tripon Is Already Thinking About Another Vendee Globe
• Italians claim Luna Rossa have the measure of Team New Zealand
• Eight Bells: Linda Knowles
• Featured Charter: Ultim Emotion 2 - 80ft Racing Trimaran
• Featured Brokerage:
• • NEEL 47 - Trimaran
• • X-Yachts IMX-45
• • Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600 - Bora Fast
• The Last Word: Robertson Davies

Brought to you by Seahorse magazine and YachtScoring.com EuroSail News is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to

Back to Reality
On the Vendee Globe front line the Christmas truce is over. Days of light winds and mild temperatures have been summarily replaced by 30-35 knot winds. Deep reefed sails are the order of the day. It is cold, miserable and wet with freezing South Pacific water sluicing the decks. As the leading duo Yannick Bestaven (Maitre CoQ IV) and Charlie Dalin (Apivia) pass Point Nemo today, the loneliest point on the Southern Ocean - the Furious Fifties offer a rude reminder why they are so called.

From Point Nemo it is nearly 2000 miles to Cape Horn where deliverance waits. This stage, to the Horn, is about remaining prudent, preparing perfectly for the Cape and knowing the timing of the weather transitions as accurately as possible.

Mike Golding, four times Vendee Globe racer, says this is one of the toughest parts of the course mentally, "But it is essential to keep doing what they have been doing, getting through each day, one day at a time, without pushing too hard, just staying in the rhythm and looking after the boat. The sense of anticipation grows and grows for those who have not been round the Horn before but there is so much can be gained and lost just after, it is important to be there in the best shape mentally and physically."

Golding adds, "In fact if there is a little more compression, as we might expect, then anyone in this main group can be on the podium in Les Sables d'Olonne. It is that open. Right now I am impressed by Boris and his approach and especially by Isabelle Joschke who has really come into her own. Like Boris she has a largely unbroken boat, she's in the play. And don't discount Jean Le Cam. He is 'steady Eddie', you never hear of his problems because whatever he deals with, he just gets on with.."

Top ten at 28 Dec 2020 - 21h (UTC)

1. Yannick Bestaven - Maitre CoQ IV, 8875.27 nm to finish
2. Charlie Dalin - APIVIA, 178.04 nm to leader
3. Thomas Ruyant - LinkedOut, 263.1
4. Damien Seguin - GROUPE APICIL, 291.72 nm
5. Maxime Sorel - V and B-MAYENNE, 345.58 nm
6. Isabelle Joschke - MACSF, 347.25 nm
7. Jean Le Cam - Yes We Cam!, 348.33 nm
8. Boris Herrmann - SEAEXPLORER - YACHT CLUB DE MONACO, 359.56 nm
9. Benjamin Dutreux - OMIA - WATER FAMILY, 369.8 nm
10. Giancarlo Pedote - PRYSMIAN GROUP, 399.8 nm

Tracker

Wight Vodka Best Sailors Bar
Tonight's featured pub is one that's near and dear to your humble narrator's heart, as I attended Cornell University in the 1970s and soon found out about... the Glenwood Pines on Cayuga Lakes western shore just north of Ithaca NY. The Pines is close to the Ithaca Yacht Club, which in 1988 hosted the Star North American Championship.

The North American Master's Trophy was donated by John M. MacCausland and first raced for in 1988 at the Ithaca North American Championship. It goes to the best skipper over 50. The score for this trophy is keep separately from the score of all the competitors in the Championship, this score sheet having only those skippers over 50 on it. The trophy is dedicated to Durward Knowles, the grand master of all the masters in the Star Class. It is a brass ship's lantern built by MacCausland.

The Glenwood Pines is famed for it's Pinesburger (which got a mention in the Netflix series Designated Survivor as it's lead character President Tom Kirkman is a Cornell alumnus) and for the eclectic cast of characters that inhabit the establishment. Sailors, bikers, doctors and nurses from the nearby hospital, college students, summer renters... it's a VERY welcoming environment. Still thriving even in Covid times, supported by a lot of take out orders from its huge customer base.

I manage to get there every year or so, and the same owner has greeted me by name for decades. That kind of place.

It's also one of the first bars outside of the Bahamas to serve the Goombay Smash recipe from Valentine's Yacht Club and Marina on Harbour Island:

1 shot Coconut Rum
1 shot Pineaple Rum (both of these are extremely high proof at Valentine's, the pineapple nearly 180 proof!)
1 shot Bacardi 151 Rum
1/3 shot Galliano
Equal parts orange juice and pineapple juice.
Served in a pint glass with various chunks of fruit clinging to the rim.

Best accessorized with a sandy beach and an afternoon nap.

Please tell us about YOUR favorite sailor's bar: use the form at eurosailnews.com/sailors-bars or email

Da Vinci Code
"Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward." The famous quote by Leonardo Da Vinci contains a riddle within an enigma that could well be apt for the America's Cup. My inbox mirrors the darker (and the more enlightened) parts of the internet with philosophies regarding the secret code of the AC75s. I'll be honest. I'm as lost as you are. Do you know your Merc foils from your T-sections and your Y blades? How about your actuators from your interchangeable tips or your foil arm fairings from your gaiters? It's a whole new lexicon but give bored, highly intelligent armchair sailors a Christmas break from the racing and the internet breaks with theories, philosophies and cracker-barrel comment. Great isn't it?

What we do know is that the teams didn't have as much fun as we did over Christmas. Most were out there training, running through their moves. Bear-aways being seen as crucial. Downwind VMG being the highest prize of all. Pictures from the Huaraki Gulf showed Prada in pretty much the same trim and foil combo as before, blasting around at warp speed. Time in the boat being the crucial message. Ineos issued pictures of their boatbuilders hard at work. American Magic kept quiet and under the radar as is their style. Same too Team New Zealand.

So have the internet admirals got this wrong? Are the foils a smokescreen for the real work going on with the teams?

More in Magnus Wheatley's latest in Rule 69 Blog

From the "I wish I lived in a Covid-free nation" files...
It is with great excitement that we can announce a fantastic line up for New Year's Eve in the 36th America's Cup Race Village on Thursday 31st December 2020.

It's been such a challenging year and we know we are very lucky to be able to celebrate safely in public, on our beautiful waterfront in Tāmaki Makaurau, Auckland. With the World Series recently held in December behind us, and Emirates Team New Zealand having won the first round of racing with the AC75s, it's time for us to have some fun and we think there's no better place than down here on the waterfront.

We've got two stages you can come and listen to some great local acts. We are sure there's something for everyone.

Crowd Capacity:
Te Wero Island 5,800 PAX
Eastern Viaduct 3,100 PAX
Silo Park 7,000 PAX

The America's Cup Race Village is an alcohol-FREE zone.

There are two bars on Te Wero Island being Te Pou NZ House and Mumm Yacht Club, both operated by our partners SkyCity.

Our advice is to get in quick and grab yourselves a seat for the event. We also welcome people with picnic blankets, to come and experience what we have to offer, and we have a great range of food and drinks down in the Race Village for you to enjoy.

www.americascup.com

The Yacht Racing Podcast: Episode 30
On the latest episode of The Yacht Racing Podcast Justin Chisholm – editor of the Yacht Racing Life website – and Vendee Globe skipper Conrad Colman catch up on Christmas Eve to chat about the latest challenges facing the fleer of Vendee Globe solo skippers out on the Indian and Pacific Oceans on Day 46 of their around the world quest.

Amongst other topics, Conrad and Justin discuss:

- What it is like to spend Christmas Day isolated and alone on a 60-foot yacht at the very bottom of the world
- Louis Burton's daring mast climbs to effect the repairs that have got him back in the race
- How the skippers feel about passing Point Nemo – officially the most inaccessible location on the planet
- Why the race has been so slow compared to last time and how that might be affecting the sailors' stomach and minds
- Conrad's take on who might fare best at the front of the fleet over the Christmas period

yachtracing.life

Seahorse January 2021
What's in the Latest Edition Of Seahorse Magazine

Cleaner lighter (faster)
The fairways and marinas of the Hamble River have been quiet this year but in the light-industrial units set back from the river, innovation continues apace. The real lifeblood of the Hamble has always been its ecosystem of specialist companies, run by sailors for sailors, where a lot of next-generation yacht racing technologies are created and refined.

Not just the Vendee Globe
There are two even faster new ocean racers already preparing for 2021. Fred Augendre

It's all in the mind - Part I
Remember what you did before, how you did it, what you do next... on today's fastest boats that process gets you nowhere. David Munge, Prof Vincent Walsh and David Carr

More for less
Making life easier for Olympic champions and weekend warriors alike. Julian Bethwaite

1yr Print Sub: €77 - £48 - $71 / Rest of the World: £65 www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/subs/

1yr Digital Sub for £37.50: www.seahorse.co.uk/shop/subs/

Discounts shown are valid on a one year subscription to Seahorse magazine.

Armel Tripon Is Already Thinking About Another Vendee Globe
If you were lucky enough to speak to Armel Tripon during this Vendee Globe, you would come across a man who is enjoying every minute of his first solo round the world race and an individual bubbling with positive energy and enthusiasm.

We contacted Armel with some questions in written form which he replied to in written English, as his Sam Manuard-designed L'Occitane en Provence surfed ever eastwards, 500 nautical miles due south of New Zealand's south island.

Tripon started this race with a setback when a halyard lock problem forced him to climb his mast twice to make repairs. The delays dropped him out of the leading bunch, but since then the 45-year-old sailor from La Trinite sur Mer has been playing catch-up in spectacular style.

Having been as far back as 24th place and more than 2,000 miles behind the leaders when he entered the Southern Ocean, he is now in 14th position, 1,340 miles off the leading pace and fast catching Romain Attansio, in 13th place, just 160 miles ahead of him.

We asked for Tripon's view on Sam Manuard and on his yacht, the first IMOCA design from Manuard's board that has attracted a great deal of interest with its beautiful/ugly looks, its scow bow and its lightning pace.

Her skipper has fallen in love with her.

"My message for Sam?"Tripon told the IMOCA class website. "Well, he is a maverick guy and an incredible man and someone who can draw this kind of boat," he said. "I think this boat is not far from the perfect boat,"he added. "I think we can change some details, we can be more accurate, but from my point of view this boat is really perfect."

www.imoca.org

Italians claim Luna Rossa have the measure of Team New Zealand
A bullish Italian yachting media claim America's Cup challengers Luna Rossa have the equal of defender Team New Zealand.

The start of the America's Cup match is still 10 weeks away and Luna Rossa have to negotiate the Prada Cup challenger series to earn the right to take on Team New Zealand, but the signs are promising in the eyes of Fare Vela.

Correspondent Michele Tognozzi analysed the performance of the four teams from the recently completed world series regatta in Auckland and couldn't separate Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa.

The scoring system covered performances in three different wind ranges, work in the starting box, and a boat's abilities through turns. Both Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa emerged with 42 points out of a possible 50.

American Magic was third with 40 and INEOS Team UK trailed the small fleet with 35.

Tognozzi acknowledged the all-round package of Team New Zealand's radical new boat Te Rehutai as "a set of solutions interacting with each other".

Fare Vela gave an edge to the Kiwis in medium and strong winds.

But Luna Rossa made up for that with a supposed superior performance in light winds while Fare Vela also gave them an edge in the starting box and through their turns at this early stage of competition.

www.stuff.co.nz/sport/americas-cup/

Eight Bells: Linda Knowles
Linda Marie Knowles, Co-Founder of the Salty Dawg Rally, died unexpectedly of a heart attack in her home in Vero Beach, FL on November 14, 2020. She was 71 years old.

Born in Buffalo, NY and raised in Eden, NY, she was a devoted wife of 36 years to her husband William (Bill) P. Knowles. They spent the last 15 years living on their sailboat Sapphire, cruising from the Northeast to the Caribbean each year. During this time, they founded the Salty Dawg Rally in 2011.

The organization has grown to become the Salty Dawg Sailing Association (SDSA), one of the premier sailing associations in the world, with over 800 members and many events each year. Linda served as Vice President from 2013 until her death. The ocean became their home, and the Salty Dawgs her passion.

The family has requested in memory of Linda Marie Knowles and her passion for helping sailors and the communities they visit, that donations be made to the Salty Dawg Sailing Association, a 501(c)(3) organization, at the following link www.saltydawgsailing.org/donations/

Hosting blue water rallies in the U.S. and Caribbean is one of the SDSA's specialties. Each rally is an opportunity for sailors to cruise-in-company, with the safety, camaraderie, and passage-preparation assistance that a rally can provide. Meet new friends and re-unite with old ones. Kids and pets are welcome.

www.sailingscuttlebutt.com

Featured Charter
Ultim Emotion 2 – Trimaran Ultim Maxi 80

The Ultim’Emotion 2 is a giant of the seas, combining power, lightness and robustness. Extremely powerful and able to pick up speed immediately, she provides the ride of a life time. Designed to race, there is no other option like her, ensuring performance, speed and durability.

Recently (Jan 2020) breaking the World record for the fastest South Atlantic crossing with Lovewater Sailing Team, and receiving Line Honours in the Cape2Rio.

See listing details in Seahorse Charters

Contact
Lucy Jackson - LV Yachting
Call: +44 2392 161272
Email:

See the the Seahorse charter collection

Featured Brokerage
NEEL 47 - Trimaran. POA EUR

NEEL 47 - Comfort living and performance

The NEEL 47 successfully combines the benefits of cruising or blue water yacht: safety, performance and comfort living. The NEEL 47 offers a new design and sporting look. The optimization of its exterior and interior ergonomics makes it a unique multihull. Its layout is thought to promote a better cohabitation and to keep the privacy of each person.

The NEEL 47 seduces by its exceptional sailing qualities, it allows to taste the sensations of speed while keeping a feeling of comfort and balance.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
4 rue Virginie Heriot
Plateau nautique BP 23085
17032 La Rochelle Cedex - France
Tel. : +33 546 290 871

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2003 X-Yachts IMX-45. 140000 EUR. Located in Nr. Valencia, Spain.

High spec IMX-45 from 2003 with both racing and cruising inventories for optimum dual-purpose usage making her the ultimate ‘go-faster’ cruising boat, or just perfect for competitive regatta racing campaigns.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
Lead Broker: Lucio Pellegrini - Grabau International Palma (Spain)
Tel: +34 675 236 174
Email:

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Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600 - Bora Fast. 170,000 TAX PAID EUR. Located in Italy (near Rome).

The Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600 needs no introduction. This Daniel Andrieu design is a proven competitive IRC / ORCi cruiser/racer with fantastic stability, a fast turn of speed and a winning performance wherever she races. "Bora Fast" is a good example with a successful racing history in the UK and in 2017 she won the Double Handed Italian Offshore Championship, with several victories and in the 2017 RORC Middle Sea Race she finished 9th Overall and 3rd in Class in very challenging conditions.

See listing details in Seahorse's RaceboatsOnly

Contact
Sea Ventures (UK) Ltd
Swanwick Marina
Swanwick Shore Road
Swanwick
Hampshire SO31 1ZL
+44 (0)1489 565444

See the RaceboatsOnly.com collection at seahorsemagazine.com/brokerage/

The Last Word
Canada needs ghosts as a dietary supplement, a vitamin taken to stave off that most dreadful of modern ailments, the Rational Rickets. -- Robertson Davies

Editorial and letter submissions to

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: or see www.eurosailnews.com/advertise.html