2001- a yachting odyssey pt3

James Boyd looks back at July to September and memorable events like the Jubilee regatta

On 20 July Australian Tornado guru Mitch Booth and Herbert Dercksen won the F18 Worlds in Parkstone YC while Britain's John Pink and Tom Weeks won the new 29er Worlds.The RORC's One Design Regatta , the replacement for the Admiral's Cup was also in full swing. Mark Heeley's GBR25 won the Farr 40 division (see our photo gallery of the action).

In the EDS Atlantic Challenge Sill was again leading the leg across the Atlantic, but there was drama when Helena Darvelid's Alphagraphics lost crew woman Asha Pajkovsha overboard and Mike Golding's Ecover hit a whale. On 24 July Fila was forced to retire when she broke her forestay. The next day the same happened to Sill who continued to limp on towards the Baltimore finish.
This left Kingfisher to cross the finish line first on 30 July, on a course the organisers had shortened. A few days later on 7 August, Sill Plein Fruit dismasted (right) and there was some major debate (!) still going on following Josh Hall's accusations that the crew of Kingfisher and Ecover had cheated on the previous leg. Ed Gorman examined the problems associated with routing in offshore yacht racing

Over in France two new round the world racing giants were launched. The van Peteghem/Lauriot Prevost design codenamed K2000 was the new monster trimaran for round the world racing veteran Olivier de Kersauson to break his own Jules Verne record. madfor sailing spoke to the French sailing legend.Meanwhile in La Rochelle solo sailing star Jean-Luc van den Heede was putting the finishing touches on his new 85ft aluminium monohull in which he wanted to make another attempt on the singlehanded non-stop round the world record westabout.

At the finish of the Tour Voile, the Brit students had scored a seventh place. Team member Richard Bonham-Christie reflected on the event. Over in Porto Cervo Nautor Challenge's two boat campaign for the Volvo Ocean Race was launched. madfor sailing spoke to skippers Grant Dalton and Lisa McDonald about how they were getting on. We also compared the campaign's Farr and Frers designs.

Hot dinghy prospect Paul Goodison won the Laser UK Nationals on 31 July while on 10 August the Greenhalgh brothers became the International 14 champions and Tom Mallindine took the Oppie Nationals. Meanwhile we looked at the Bethwaite's latest toy - the prototype 39er.

In the Solent race organisers were drawing breath prior to August's on-slaught - an action packed month including Cowes Week, the Fastnet and America's Cup Jubilee .For those involved the action seemed to kick off with the arrival in the Solent of the legendary 12m Australia II, which in 1983 prised the Cup out of American hands for the first time ever. John Roberson was there and remembered this historic moment in yachting. Andy Rice was on board for her first sail in the UK.

Cowes Week kicked off on 4 August. But there was carnage from the outset with three dismastings and a rogue ferry. One Sydney 40 got pranged by a 100 year old 100 ton iron barge travelling at 8 knots. The Ker 11.3s won the first day and the American Barking Mad the Farr 40s. The Monday was blustery and saw more than 170 retirements and the dismasting of the Ker design Roaring Meg. There was also considerable action in the sportsboats and the Mumm 30s (photo gallery). The rest of the week the weather got better and better. Peter Harrison won the Britannia Cup. In the end it was the Swans who ruled supreme with Peter Ogden's Spirit of Jethou winning class 0 and Richard Loftus' Desperado class 1. See our photo gallery.

Sunday, 12 August saw the start of the Rolex Fastnet Race with a fantastically diverse fleet from 60ft trimarans, to Open 60s, to many of the Volvo Ocean 60s to the impressive super-maxis such as Gianni Agnelli's all-black Stealth. It was a bumpy ride at the start (see Carlo Borlenghi's photos of the action). On the Tuesday morning Francis Joyon's trimaran Eure et Loire roared into Plymouth in first place. James Boyd spoke to the crew. Just before dawn - almost a day later - Stealthwas first monohull to arrive. Among the Volvo boats Team News Corp won the hard-fought battle against John Kostecki's illbruck. Eventually the Dutch yacht Tonnerre de Breskens has proclaimed handicap winner.

Continued on page 3...