Extreme 40s in the Middle East

Arabian Extreme 40 Challenge comes to a close

The inaugural Arabian Extreme 40 Challenge had drawn to a conclusion, with four teams - including a host of crew members from this year's iShares Cup series - taking part in the first ever Extreme 40 event in the region.

The first event took place in Dubai from 27-29 November, racing under the spectacular skyscrapers off the Mina Seyahi. Oman Sail, who had been sailing together consistently throughout the 2008 iShares Cup season to finish a respectable fourth in the European Series, won the first round convincingly, with Chris Draper at the helm. They took a lead of 15 points over second placed iShares, skippered by Hugh Styles. Third was Oman Air, skippered by Shirley Robertson, with Team Aqua - another iShares Cup team with French multihull specialist Karine Fauconnier taking the tiller - in fourth.

Fauconnier, skipper of the Dubai-owned team, enjoyed her first experience of close-quarters Extreme 40 racing at their home venue: "The Extreme 40s are so much fun to race and my crew were fantastic. We've had great conditions, perfect for what we are doing here and with such a narrow race area it means there is plenty of action on the racecourse which provides a great spectacle for the public."

The Arabian Extreme 40 Challenge then moved on to Muscat, Oman for the second event, racing for the Oman Air trophy from 2-4 December near Port Sultan al Qaboos and the Al Bustan Palace. With royalty, dignitaries, VIPs and members of the international media watching from nearby dhows, the carbon-fibre catamarans enjoyed ultra-close racing on a variety of courses in testing conditions.

Race Director Gilles Chiorri said, "These are the world's best sailors and they are being particularly tested with the tactical decisions they have to make on the race course. Shirley Robertson [skipper of Oman Air] in particular has made some great strategic calls which saw her keep well in the game."

Joining each Extreme 40 were two Omani core crew members from Oman Sail, taking the opportunity to learn from the best with Olympic gold medalists, America's Cup winners and round the world sailors all in the fleet. "It's hard for these guys, really tough, but they work fantastically well as part of the team," said iShares skipper Hugh Styles, for whom Oman is the ninth country he has raced the iShares Extreme 40 in, following the five-event iShares Cup circuit and a host of exciting corporate sailing opportunities. "Racing on an Extreme 40 as part of the crew, without much sailing experience, is like being a co-driver in a rally car, having never stepped inside a car before, and travelling down a near vertical slope and asking them to help the car go through a 90 degree corner. It's really tough, but they are improving each day."

The Oman Sail crew of Pete Cumming, Chris Draper, Mark Bulkeley were joined by Saleh Al Jabri and Mubarak Al Battashi, and continued to post a series of wins to take the Oman Air Trophy, but were pushed hard by the other teams including the iShares Extreme 40, skippered by Hugh Styles, and Shirley Robertson on Oman Air. Robertson won the inaugural 2008 iShares Cup event in Lugano and is clearly something of a specialist when it comes to racing in light and changeable airs. At the end of six days of racing iShares finished second, with Oman Air third, and Team Aqua in fourth position.