The latest news from the world of yachting and sailing including yacht & dinghy reviews, cruising and destination information plus the latest boating gear as well as inshore and offshore racing updates and regatta schedules. All things Sailing, Sail Racing, Sailboats and more.
Whenever two yachties meet in Western Australia it takes only minutes for their conversation to turn to bridges. Those bloody bridges that separate the river yacht clubs from the ocean. Those bridges that require river folk to lower and raise…
Bievinedos Cuba! Talk about the best welcome to a country we have ever had to date. After rolling around in a beam swell and dodging a few commercial ships who were oblivious of our sailing vessel, we safely passed through…
The warm sun on your skin, the gentle rustling sounds of water flowing along the hull and the cool ocean breeze on your face. These are some of the thoughts that come to my mind when thinking about sailing. For…
Every Christmas my dear old Mum would scour the shops for anything with an anchor on it. She cornered the market on paperweights, letter openers, pencil boxes and bon bon dishes. The really sad thing is, they all went in…
So the long awaited boating trip to Port Stephens has been and gone. We, being Caitlin and Ella (15 and 12 years old respectively), believe that everyone who came with us is all a bit wiser for it. Our family…
On the outside you look and think, yes it is a Hanse. But in a lot of ways this is quite a different beast to previous Hanses. From the design table of Judel/Vrolijk the hull is shaped to provide more…
What are needs? Food, shelter, air and fresh water. That is all very well until your husband wants both of you to live on a yacht for many a long year. Who wants long years unless they are enjoyable? In…
It is almost a generation since 1994, when GPS finally relegated celestial navigation to being just an intermittent, time consuming and relatively inaccurate backup method of position fixing. It is true GPS was preceded by the Transit satellite system from…
Overcast yes, but conditions looked more manageable than yesterday, with winds in the 16-20 knot range at the 27th Airlie Beach Race Week today, but low and behold, not everyone got off scot-free. In the Whitsunday Sailing Club hosted event,…
Jason Ruckert has steered his Thompson 7, Mister Magoo into an almost unassailable lead in the Trailer Boat Nationals at the 27th Airlie Beach Race Week, with one day of racing remaining. After sailing three windward/leeward races on Pioneer Bay,…
German yacht builders, the Hanse Group have released the first model in their new 8 series – the Hanse 588. This 17 metre (58 foot) model is an innovation in yacht building and design. It offers all the space and…
The weather gods turned their wrath on competitors at Airlie Beach Race Week today, the normally ‘Tropical Festival of Sails’ was not living up to that moniker, instead winds gusting 35 plus hit the Whitsundays. Race Director for the Whitsunday…
At London 2012, legendary New Zealand media man and “the voice of sailing” Peter Montgomery was standing next to me at the 49er medal ceremony. Australians Nathan Outteridge and Iain Jensen had won the Gold before the medal race was…
The Australian cousins Jason Waterhouse and Lisa Darmanin were in fourth place going into the Nacra medal race at Rio 2016. They were nine points out of Gold but only four behind Silver. However their medal chances weren't helped at…
Giles Scott missed the British nomination for the Finn at his home Olympics because of the greatest Olympic sailor of all time, Ben Ainslie. Scott was arguably the better Finn sailor at the time but understandably the British selectors gave…
Australian Jake Lilley said yesterday, when he held third position in the Finn fleet, that he wasn't thinking about medals with two qualifiers to race. Unfortunately, in the shifty conditions today he was always in the wrong place and finished…
Croatia has never won an Olympic medal in sailing, but they look certain to break their duck in the mens' 470 where they are making life difficult for defending champion Mat Belcher and his crew Will Ryan. Leading after the…
Defencing champions Jo Aleh and Polly Powrie of New Zealand are ruing being a few millimetres over the line in the first race of the womens' 470 at the Rio Olympics today. The UFD they scored, to go with a…
It was a grim day for Australia in the waters off Marina Da Gloria in Rio de Janeiro today as one after another of yesterday's heroes fell by the wayside. Instead of looking good chances for medals in five of…
Pierre Le Coq (FRA) has won the bronze medal for France after a fierce battle in the Medal Race for the Men's Windsurfer (RS:X). Racing in 10-knot winds, the fleet of 10 windsurfers blasted up the race track in front…
SB20 one-design sportsboat enthusiasts Brett and Jacinta Cooper yesterday sailed their brand new boat, Aeolus, to a win on its first day of racing in the Derwent Sailing Squadron/Cascade Winter Series on the River Derwent. The Coopers, pioneers of the…
Tonci Stipanovic of Croatia and Tom Burton of Australia went into the Laser medal race at Rio 2016 knowing they were going to win a medal. The only question was what colour that medal would be. Stipanovic had a handy…
Unless a miracle happens during the 470 medal race tomorrow, Australia has failed to defend the Olympic titles they won at Beijing and London. Croatians Sime Fantela and Igor Marenic have been the best crew in the class at these…
Despite the very light conditions inshore that caused the postponement of the Laser final, there was just enough breeze out in the Atlantic Ocean to sail three races in the 49er and 49erFX. For Kiwi superstars Peter Burling and Blair…
The London 2012 Olympics started badly for Australia when the swimming team, usually the source of so many medals, failed to fire. With just a single win in the women's 4 x 100m relay, the first week passed without an…
Another superb day of sailing weather at 2016 Airlie Beach Race Week yesterday and more on the way, according to the local forecast and competitors are asking, “How much longer can this fabulous racing weather last?” Warm, sunny and lovely…
After five years of Danish triumph in Lysekil Women’s Match, local hope Anna Östling finally sailed to a very longed-for success. With the smallest of margins she pushed herself past Stephanie Roble, USA, right before finishing the very last finale…
The best day yet at Whitsunday Sailing Club’s signature event, Airlie Beach Race Week, as trade winds strengthened to north of 18 knots, allowing yachties to enjoy a day of pressured up but pleasant conditions. While the sports boats…
The Swedish west coast offered a fresh breeze and heavy rain as the quarterfinals of Lysekil Women’s Match, the 2nd event on the 2016 WIM Series, were decided Friday. All quarters finished 3 – 0, but the winners agreed that it…
The weather could not have been better for yesterday’s opening day of Whitsunday Sailing Club’s 2016 Airlie Beach Race Week – or so we thought – but today‘s trade winds were enjoyed by the record 131 entries sailing across 10…
Kiwi favourites Peter Burling and Blair Tuke remain on top of the 49er table after six races of the 12 race qualifying series but are coming under pressure from the German crew of Erik Heil and Thomas Ploessel. The Germans…
The inaugural 49erFX class is set for a classic regatta as positions remain close after half the qualifying series has been raced. With just 12 points from six races after discarding a UFD from the first race, the Danish crew…
How often can you score 15,11,11 in one day and still hold the lead in your class? That was the question Australians Jason Waterrhouse and Lisa Darmanin were asking themselves after a crazy day on the Rio course that saw…
Australian Laser sailor Tom Burton goes into Monday's medal race guaranteed a place on the podium. He finished the qualifying series 10 points behind Croatian Tonci Stipanovic and 10 points ahead of third-placed Sam Meech of New Zealand. It has…
With the qualifing series completed and only the double-points medal race to sail, London Silver medalist Marit Bouwmeester (NED) holds an eight point lead over Anne-Marie Rindom (DEN) with Annalise Murphy (IRE) a further two points behind. Bouwmeester said she…
Sailing may well be an all year round activity in Australia, but it still gets cold at this time of the year. To counter the chilly months Gill Australia has brought in the new Thermoskin Skiff Suit and Thermoskin Top….
In excellent sailing conditions with bright sunshine and perfect winds, Thursday’s racing offered an exciting conclusion to the round-robin of the second round of Women's International Match racing. Not until the very last match of the day, Camilla Ulrikkeholm Klinkby…
We all know our sport is confusing to those less fortunate than ourselves who have never been sailing. And most of us bemoan the fact that it never gets any TV coverage. Well, perhaps the answer lies in this very…
The Whitsunday Sailing Club’s 2016 Airlie Beach Race Week opened with a bang, as the record 131 boats hit the water in ideal conditions averaging 15 knots in the Whitsundays today, putting a smile on all competitors’ faces. Back at…
Jake Liley (AUS) had an awful start to the Rio 2016 regatta with a 16th and a UFD which became his discard. But since then he has put together a great scorecard of 8,6,6,3,3 before another excellent day today whe…
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