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EVENTS | NEWS | TALES FROM THE SAILING COMMUNITY

Sailors pay tribute to Prince Philip

As the sailing world paid tribute to HRH The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, previously unseen images of His Royal Highness sailing as a schoolboy came to light.

They were released by his former school Gordonstoun and were taken by the great-uncle of a former student.

They show the Duke in happy times in 1937, sailing one of Gordonstoun’s boats, Diligent, helming and washing-up (above centre and right). Diligent was a 14-ton Cornish trading ketch, bought in Plymouth in 1936 by teacher Michael-Noel Varvill.

Meanwhile tributes have been paid from across the sailling world to the Duke, who was a keen sailor and did much to support sailing.

Commodore of the Royal Yacht Squadron, Jamie Sheldon, said: “We owe a substantial debt to our Admiral, who was an active and talented sailor and contributed enormously to the development of yachting on the Isle of Wight.

“He was the catalyst behind the formation of Cowes Combined Clubs, the organisation which lies behind Cowes Week.

“He was elected a Member in 1947 and became Admiral on the accession of Queen Elizabeth II.

“He served as commodore from 1961-68. He was a dynamic, reforming commodore who modernised the governance of the club and admitted ladies as Associate Members (they were admitted as Full Members in 2015).

“He continued to take a keen interest in the club’s affairs well into his nineties. For the club’s Bicentenary in 2015, he undertook a Fleet Review of Squadron yachts, dressed overall, off East and West Cowes — a spectacular occasion. He will be sorely missed.“

Vice-Commodore of the Royal Thames Yacht Club, Tony Hanna, said: “His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, agreed to become Patron of the Royal Thames Yacht Club in November 1952. His Royal Highness attended dinners and presentations at the clubhouse, appeared regularly at our Cowes Week cocktail party and competed for club cups.

“The Duke had many sailing successes, including being six times winner of the Holt Trophy, presented to the club in 1962 and now awarded to the Flying Fifteen class winner in Cowes Week. His Royal Highness, The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, was proud of the Royal Thames Yacht Club and we were exceedingly proud of him. He will be much missed.”

Tim O’Brien, President of the UK Flying Fifteen class, said: “One of Prince Philip’s passions was the sea and his link with sailing was prominent throughout, none more so than during Cowes Week when the Royal Yacht was anchored off Cowes with many of the Royal family actively involved in the week’s racing.

“Flying Fifteen K192 - Coweslip - was a gift from Uffa Fox to Her Majesty The Queen and Prince Philip on the occasion of their marriage in 1949, and Uffa and Prince Philip were often to be found sailing Coweslip throughout the 1950s and 1960s (above left), usually in front of the paparazzi of the day and frequently with significant racing success... fun times. The Prince subsequently became life Patron of the Flying Fifteen class association, and Coweslip can still be seen today on display in Edinburgh with the Royal Yacht Britannia.”

World Sailing said: “Well-known for his love of sailing, as well as his long-standing naval career, The Duke of Edinburgh started sailing while he was at Gordonstoun School in Scotland.

“In 1948, Her Royal Highness Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh were listed as new members of the RYA and given Honorary Membership.

“At the 1956 RYA Annual General Meeting, The Duke of Edinburgh was elected as President of the RYA for the first time. Following his election, the Council was regularly invited to hold one of its meetings on board HMY Britannia during Cowes Week.

“In 1964, on the suggestion of HRH Prince Philip, Cowes Combined Clubs was formed to run and organise the regatta. That structure is still in place, delivering a single set of racing instructions for the regatta and ushering in a modern and evolving race management system which has been instrumental in creating what is one of the world’s premier regattas.

“His Royal Highness opened the Regatta House building that the Cowes Week team still uses today, on 19 May 2004.”

RYA launches diversity strategy

The RYA has launched an Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy, aiming to “chart and cement the sport’s commitment to developing a culture that celebrates diversity and is free from discrimination and prejudice”.

The RYA was the first UK national governing body to achieve the Advanced Level of the Sports Councils’ Equality Standard for Sport, in 2016, and it intends the new strategy to build on this.

RYA Chief Executive, Sarah Treseder, said: “We joined other voices from the world of sport last summer to speak out against racism, and in doing so we recognised that more needed to be done to ensure that boating was as inclusive and diverse as we would like it to be.

“We reaffirmed our commitment to equality of opportunity then, and we have gone on to develop the Strategy that we are launching today that will enable us to deliver on that commitment: recreational boating and competitive sailing that is accessible and inclusive to all.

“It is a hugely ambitious and exciting plan that we are looking forward to actioning to demonstrate that a person’s sex, age, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or religion should never be a barrier to participation in boating.”

The strategy has four objectives: to change perceptions, behaviours, experiences, and reality. It has 10-step plan, aiming to drive progress via the embedding of best practice, training, positive engagement, and monitoring.

Cowes Week for cruising boats

Entries have opened for Cowes Week and organisers have created a new class for Club Cruisers, designed to welcome cruising yachts and less experienced racers to the regatta.

There will also be the first ever Cowes Week opening party, which will take place on Saturday 31 July, after the first race day.

Laurence Mead, Regatta Director, said: “What a year! We have so many sailors desperate to get back on the water and I think this will be a bumper year for boat racing all round. We are working flat out to deliver a great Cowes Week. There won’t be any fireworks this year (at least not up in the sky!) as a Covid-safety decision but there will be great racing for thousands of keen sailors and, in the end, that’s what matters most.

“A special thanks to our long-term clothing sponsor Musto, who stood by us without hesitation during ‘the AP year’ that was 2020, along with nearly 200 competitors who rolled over their entries. The AP flag is coming down on March 29!”

As well as the class for Club Cruisers, which will have one or two starts daily depending on entries, there is also a division for Performance Cruisers with four starts daily. Mead said: “The decision was taken to split cruisers into Performance and Club divisions to recognise the very different performance characteristics across the range of yacht designs, as well as the sometimes more family-orientated crew lists in the Club cruisers.

“The team behind Cowes Week believe this will deliver high-quality racing for everybody, with similar boats and like-minded crews in the different divisions and are delighted to be able to offer a new trophy for the Club Cruiser Division sponsored by The Cruising Association.”

For the first time there will be a daily prize giving, open to all competitors, to be held on the Parade at 1800 hours, each day celebrating the race winners across the regatta, which is hoped will become a social occasion in its own right.

Cowes Week runs from 31 July to 6 August.

L-R: 2019 Cruiser Division Newcomer’s Trophy winners JALO 1; coming up to the line in the Cruising clasS

NEWS BRIEFS

Meet our Olympians As the countdown for the Olympics begins, with the Tokyo Games set to open on 24 July, all our interviews with the sailing members of TeamGB are now online at yachtsandyachting.co.uk. The team comprises 15 sailors including Hannah Mills, aiming to make history by becoming the most successful Olympic sailor in history.

RORC crewmatch If you’re looking for a boat to race or looking for crew, RORC has launched an updated international Crew Match portal. Anyone can register, whether a RORC member or not. crewmatch.rorc.org

Ellen’s Trust in 2021 The Ellen MacArthur Cancer

Trust has outlined plans to take young people on day sails and longer cruising trips across the UK between July and September. The trust had to cancel all its trips last year.

Trust CEO Frank Fletcher said: “Nothing would make me happier than the Trust supporting young people in person again this summer. We now believe we can safely make that happen.” ellenmacarthurcancertrust.org

Landsails J-Cup Key Yachting will run the Landsail Tyres J-Cup from 24-26 June, taking place just after the anticipated ending of all lockdown restrictions. Hosted by the Royal Southern Yacht Club, more than 50 teams are expected. keyyachting.com

Fastnet course record MOD70 trimaran PowerPlay, led by Peter Cunningham and skippered by Ned Collier Wakefield, completed the Fastnet course of 595 nautical miles, from Cowes to Plymouth, in a new record of 25hrs 04mins, averaging more than 20 knots. powerplay.ky

Mystic honours Terry Hutchinson The Mystic Seaport Museum is giving its 2021 America and the Sea Award to Terry Hutchinson, skipper of American Magic in the America’s Cup. “What truly sets Hutchinson apart is his leadership,” said Mystic president Peter Armstrong.

New RORC chief executive RORC’s new chief executive is Jeremy Wilton, taking over from Eddie Warden Owen. Wilton has held senior positions in at Bath Rugby and Wasps, as well as at Whitbread PLC. He has sailed all his life and competed in many RORC races.

OSTAR & TWOSTAR

The 60th anniversary editions of the two transatlantic races has been postponed to May 2022 due to Covid restrictions. They were due to take place last year and then this year. Race Director Adrian Gray said: “Atlantic weather systems prevent us from looking at a start later this year.”

Keelboats get their own ‘Round the Island’

With entry open for the 90th anniversary Round the Island Race, the organisers have announced details of the Windeler Cup, a new event for keelboats.

The Island Sailing Club will run the new race on the same day as the Round the Island Race, Saturday 3 July, for boats which are ‘too small to safely participate in the annual circumnavigation of the Isle of Wight to join in the excitement of the Round the Island Race weekend’.

Boats from the Daring, Dragon, Etchells, Flying Fifteen, Mermaid, Redwing, Sunbeam, Swallow, Sonar, Squib, RS Elite, Victory and XOD classes will compete in a ‘Round the Solent’ race.

The race will start from the Royal Yacht Squadron line off Cowes, around 08.30 after the main Round the Island fleet is underway. It will follow a course towards Hurst Narrows, around Western Solent marks, before taking advantage of favourable tides to return along Cowes beach and finish back on the RYS line in Cowes.

The new race is named after the founder of the Round the Island Race, Major Cyril Windeler. See our feature on the history of the race on page 36.

With Cowes Classics Week, which also features big fleets of keelboats, coming directly after the Round the Island weekend, it provides a great opportunity for competitors.

Also new for this 90th anniversary year of the Round the Island Race is a Round the Island Rowing Race. Five or more rowing teams will set off on the afternoon of Thursday 1 July from the RYS start line in their ocean rowing boats, circumnavigating all 50 nautical miles around the Isle of Wight.

To enter Round the Island Race and the Windeler Cup, visit roundtheisland.org.uk

The Island Sailing Club has also said there are openings for new partners in this year’s race and beyond. Those interested should email sponsorship@islandsc.org.uk

Award for Bob

Yachts & Yachting writer Bob Fisher has been given a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award.

Bob was recognised in the Classic Boat Awards, organised by our sister title Classic Boat magazine, in April.

The announcement was made by Olympic, Admiral’s Cup and America’s Cup sailor and coach Harold Cudmore.

Harold said “His life was dedicated to family and sailing.

“He was a campaigning journalist. Along the way, with his engaging and outgoing personality, he was controversial and ruffled many feathers, but he was always great fun.”

Bob’s daughters Alice Davies and Carolyne Archer gave an acceptance speech, saying that their father might have “for once been lost for words”.

As well as his lifelong journalism, documenting sailboat racing at every level, Bob was recognised for his own sailing achievements, his eminence as a historian of yachting, his 30 books including the definitive work on the history of the America’s Cup, and his active guardianship of the Victorian yacht Rosenn, which he raced from Lymington with co-owner Barry Dunning and friends.

Bob wrote for Yachts & Yachting for most of his life. He died in January aged 85.

Watch the ceremony at classicboat.co.uk

Southampton Boat Show ramps up

The Southampton Boat Show will run from 10-19 September this year, with a new layout and a host of exhibitors already signed up.

Working in partnership with Southampton City Council, organiser British Marine has confirmed additional land has been agreed for use at this year’s show, making the event bigger than ever and creating space for a new entrance and festival area outside Southampton’s Westquay shopping centre.

There will be a zone for paddle boards, kite surfers, kayaks and windsurfers, accompanied by a stage, street food and music, while another zone will cater for dinghies and another for classic and wooden boats.

Mayflower Park itself will be ‘bigger and better than ever’, says British Marine, with a wide range of exhilarating on-the-water experiences for everyone as the natural arena between pontoons and shore is utilised further to create a safe and constantly active water park with opportunities to demonstrate, compete, entertain and get more people out on the water, all with live commentary’.

British Marine says that while the Government roadmap allows for outdoor events to run in full by September, the health and safety of visitors and exhibitors remains the top priority.

Lesley Robinson, CEO of British Marine, said: “After more than a year dominated by the pandemic, we are delighted to be working with Southampton City Council to bring the show back to the city again and plans for the new layout and zone are really exciting.”

Councillor Jacqui Rayment, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Customer and Organisation, Southampton City Council, said: “While we were disappointed that last year’s event couldn’t go ahead, everyone’s health and safety must come first.

“The Southampton International Boat Show is a key event in our calendar, and with plans for the show’s first ever Community Day and festival area, which aims to connect Southampton residents with the marine community, we are very much looking forward to welcoming boat fanatics young and old to the event and showing everyone what our great city has to offer.”

southamptonboatshow.com

British will challenge for next America’s Cup

The rumours that had been doing the rounds on the Auckland waterfront were confirmed on 19 March when Royal Yacht Squadron Racing was accepted as official Challenger of Record for the 37th America’s Cup.

The news broke a few days after the end of the 36th Cup, won by Emirates Team New Zealand against Italian outfit Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli.

It is not since 1964 that a British team has been official Challenger, when the Royal Thames YC-backed Sovereign, designed by David Boyd, lost to the New York YC-backed Constellation, designed by Olin Stephens.

It also means that there will be a British challenge for the Cup in three consecutive editions – Land Rover BAR competed in the 35th Cup in Bermuda, while INEOS Team UK competed in the recent Auckland event and will do so again in the next America’s Cup, if not beyond.

It will be the first time a UK team has competed in three consecutive Cup cycles since Sir Thomas Lipton and the Royal Ulster YC bids between 1899 to 1930.

Bertie Bicket, Chairman of Royal Yacht Squadron Racing (centre in photo above), said: “We are delighted to be embarking on our third successive America’s Cup challenge with Sir Ben Ainslie and INEOS, as the Challenging Yacht Club for the 37th America’s Cup. We look forward to working with all parties and will strive to continue the tradition and history of this great sporting event.”

Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron commodore Aaron Young (left above) said: “The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron have received and accepted a challenge for the 37th America’s Cup from our long-standing British friends at Royal Yacht Squadron Racing. It is great to once again have the RYSR involved, given they were the first yacht club that presented this trophy over 170 years ago, which started the legacy of the America’s Cup.”

The venue of the next event has yet to be decided, but one idea is that it could be a two-boat America’s Cup around the Isle of Wight, between Emirates Team New Zealand and INEOS Team UK, mirroring the original race around the island in 1851.

Great Scott – he’s back!

After taking the winter out to concentrate on his duties as tactician with INEOS Team UK, Giles Scott was back competing in the Finn Europeans in April, a regatta where he was second a year ago. It was a shaky start for the man who has dominated Finn sailing for so long, but he did enough to fend off the challenge from the many younger sailors knocking on his transom and finished with an impressive silver medal, behind defending champion Zsombor Berecz, who must now be seen as Scott’s main rival for the Olympic title in Japan this summer. Fellow Brit Henry Wetherell was seventh.

MARIA COSPITO, HEAD OF NAVIGATORS AND GENERAL

Happy 100th to Navigators & General! Can you celebrate properly given the circumstances?

Thank you! We’ve had to change some of our plans but nonetheless we’ve still been able to mark this milestone. It’s our customers – some of whom have been with us for decades – that have made our centenary possible, and it’s them who we really want to thank at this time.

It’s an interesting time to be an insurer. Have you been fielding some unusual requests over the last year?

With overseas holidays hampered by travel restrictions, people are thinking of new ways to travel and explore. Boats appeal to what many people want at this time – a sense of freedom and to escape outdoors. We’ve seen spikes in demand for cover at both ends of the market, from small speedboats to large yachts.

Has boat insurance has risen during the pandemic?

We regularly review the value for money provided by our products, and based on it, we adjust our pricing models to ensure a good outcome for our customers. We have done this even more frequently during the pandemic. Consequently, some customers, especially in the commercial space, have seen large premium reductions, while others less so if the risk hasn’t fundamentally reduced during the pandemic. As an example, we have seen fewer claims related to grounding, and more claims related to fire, which tend to be a total loss. While the key risks have changed, they have not disappeared.

Nav & Gen’s founder Captain William Coombs was strongly motivated by the desire to help a wronged colleague. Is the company still on the side of the ordinary sailor?

Absolutely. Although a significantly different company to the one Captain Coombs formed in 1921, our focus on customers has remained constant, and it’s their trust and loyalty that has helped us to reach this milestone in our history. It helps that we speak the same language as our customers. Like them we have a genuine enthusiasm for the boats we insure, whether they are small craft or large yachts.

People might be surprised to hear N&G only has 36 employees. How many policyholders do you look after?

We have about 100,000 policyholders – covering a wide range of boats and vessels, all up to the value of £10 million. We also offer commercial insurance for UK marine trade businesses such as marinas, sailing schools, hire fleets, boat builders and boatyards.

Are we talking to sailors if we call up?

One of the strengths of our business is the knowledge and expertise of our employees, eight of whom have been with N&G for over 20 years. Our staff have both a passion for sailing, and the knowledge and expertise required in a such specialist market. It is a real differentiation point for us. More than that, it helps us understand how important it is that we deal with a claim efficiently to put customers back in the water as quickly as we can.

What proportion of policyholder claims do you honour?

We are committed to paying all valid claims. We pay out millions each year to support customers with claims, ranging from the theft of small outboard engines to the loss of prestige yachts. Paying valid claims goes to the very heart of what we do and we’re proud of the fact we are there for our customers when they need us most.

What is your best insurance anecdote? We’ve had two totally separate claims that cows had eaten a customer’s boat. In both cases, the cows were attracted to the saltiness of boats stored ashore.

World Sailing under pressure for Paris 2024

In an unprecedented move, the IOC has given World Sailing little more than six weeks to come up with an alternative Olympic class for the Paris 2024 Games.

The news that the IOC were less than keen on the new Mixed Double-Handed O shore class, which had been proposed for Paris 2024, had been feared for some time, but then on 16 April, World Sailing held a virtual press conference announcing that the IOC had decided to continue its review into the class. Meanwhile in a private letter to World Sailing the IOC indicated the class is unlikely to gain approval.

It is a blow for the many mixed crews around the world with their sights set on Paris 2024.

The new discipline was designed to create opportunities for female sailors at Olympic level and also to give sailing better media coverage.

World Sailing’s CEO David Graham said: “We’ve been asked to propose an alternative event should the O shore event be rejected. The O shore is our preferred choice. It’s an unusual situation that we fi nd ourselves in. It’s going to be hard-hitting news for those who are preparing for 2024. We have to get this right for our athletes now. This tight timeline is unprecedented for us.”

SailGP tickets

Tickets are on sale for the Plymouth leg of SailGP on 17-18 July, where racing will take place on Plymouth Sound, with a roster of top sailing names competing. Ben Ainslie will lead the GB boat against seven other national teams helmed by Peter Burling, Nathan Outteridge, Tom Slingsby and Jimmy Spithill among others. There is a range of ticket options. Ticketed free access to the Spectator Area, includes live race commentary, big screens, merchandise shop, entertainment, immersive experiences, refreshments, and podium.

There is also a Premium spectator experience a little closer to the action with refreshments.

There are two on-water spectator experiences - Premium and Access, on o cial spectator boats.

There is also a Bring Your Own Boat programme.

More information at SailGP.com/GreatBritain

Position: The health nut

Sailors these days take hydration seriously

PHOTO: JOAO COSTA FERREIRA - OSGA PHOTO This shot does not show a world class sailor who was sucking so conscientiously on his water bottle that he failed to notice the mark approaching behind the sail of the boat in front. No, this piece of action from the recent Finn Europeans shows the trialling of a new athlete hydration system designed for those competing in the heat of Enoshima Bay this summer. Rather like a baby sucking a dummy, athlete literally never lets go of water bottle, sucking endlessly until whatever substance inside is consumed entirely. Hands are le free to trim, steer and raise ags. Sailors these days are a healthy bunch.

DIFFICULTY RATING: 1

Rather like a baby sucking a dummy, athlete literally never lets go of water bottle

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