News

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1986. “Pop Star’s Yacht Given Drug Search At End of World Race”. Four more maxi yachts finished the Whitbread round-the-world yacht race yesterday and customs officials searched one of them for -drugs but came up empty-handed, officials said. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1986 05 12 464 1986. “BOC Sailor Concussed”. The oldest competitor in·the BOC round-the-World yacht race has been badly …

At 20h00 last evening Yann Guichard, ‘Spindrift 2’s’ skipper, made the decision to turn around and end the current Jules Verne Trophy record attempt. A difficult decision, following a sudden loss of control, which required the intervention of two sailors at the wheel to recover the situation. This malfunction has damaged the steering system which makes the boat unsafe to be sailed in heavy weather conditions. All the crew members are safe and sound. Nevertheless, the multihull’s condition does not …

by Richard Crockett After a really tough day of sailing on day 1 in wild weather which lashed the race areas off Auckland, New Zealand where wind speeds up to 37 knots were recorded, and after a very long delay, enough to cause even the most seasoned veterans to assume they were having a day off, the 49er fleet were sent out for two rounds of qualifying races. Our RSA guys, Benji Daniel and Alex Burger finished both races bruised …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1970. “Portugal’s Sole·Rio Yacht Race Entrant”. The 46-ft fibre-glass yacht, Adamastor, will be the sole Portuguese entrant in the Cape to Rio race. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1970 12 04 812_Redacted 1970. “Armchair Sailing Made Easy”. An intricate system involving the use of radio, teleprinters and computers has been devised for plotting the daily positions of yachts in the Cape-to-Rio …

‘Spindrift 2′ crossed the start line of the Jules Verne Trophy last night to begin their 21,600 miles around the world record attempt. The Objective is to beat the existing record of 40-days 23 hours 30 minutes and 30 seconds and cross back over the line again before 20h 27′ 25″ UTC on January 13, 2020. The twelve crew of the black and gold trimaran crossed the line in front of the Créac’h Lighthouse (Ushant) in a very moderate 15 …

Alex Lehitnen, support crew for Benji Daniel and Alex Burger, reported on day 1 as follows: The racing is on and I honestly think I am more nervous than those guys – they are as cool as a cucumber and they are honestly loving the conditions here. Two races were sailed in extremely challenging conditions with some top ten guys at the back of the fleet, and the Race Committee rib all over the place and having a “mare” themselves. …

Matt and Rivaldo teamed up in 2019 to compete in the 420 class, taking the opportunity to join a class that is going through a revival in South Africa, so they are now part of that group of sailors who are raising the bar in the class. They recently won this year’s 420 National Championship on the last leg of the last race on the last day of the championship, after a nailbiting series with several reversals of fortune. Rivaldo …

The finish line is fast approaching for Maxi ‘Edmond de Rothschild’. Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier are now heading straight towards Brest, where they are expected to arrive any time from Tuesday night to Wednesday. Behind them, ‘MACIF’ and ‘Actual Leader’ are still battling it out for second place. Having crossed the Azores archipelago this morning, Maxi ‘Edmond de Rothschild’ is in no way hanging around, today reaching high average speeds of between 30.5 – 31.5 knots. The conditions have …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1970. “Last-minute Race Rush”. The skippers and crews of·the Durban yachts taking part in the Cape to Rio race are already involved in a race of their, a race to get to the starting line on time. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1970 12 03 798_Redacted 1970. “Sea Trials for Cariad”. Cariad I, the world-famous racing yacht and Cape to Rio …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1970. “Rio Race Will Not·be Easy, Says Dalling”. Despite the fact that he has one of the finest racing yachts in South Africa at his disposal, Bruce·Dalling has no illusions of “walking it” in the Cape to Rio race next month. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1970 12 02 800_Redacted 1970. “Yacht Hitches A Ride”. The Cape Town·based fish factory ship, …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1989. “What A Hobie Regatta”. With 15 entrants last weekend’s Hobie Regatta at the Santos Beach, sponsored by Rodger Brink, was a great success. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1989 12 01 _Redacted 1991. “Yachting World in A Tizz Over Tit of A Sailing Cover”. It’s not being billed as a storm in a teacup – instead a gale in a …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1986. “Scant Support for Body Searches?”. The top America’s Cup syndicates have ridiculed suggest ions for body searches in an effort to halt the use of illegal electronic weather pagers on the boats. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1986 11 30 620 1991. “UNWITTING BLOOPER. Who Could -Blame Him for ‘Circumventing’ World?”. I was interested to read, in a report in …

The Cruising Yacht Club of Australia (CYCA) is pleased to announce that the fourth-largest fleet in the history of the race will take part in the 75th running of the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race; owners and crews coming from far and wide to pay respect to one of world’s greatest sailing events. Competitors and spectators of the 2019 Rolex Sydney Hobart will bear witness to the development that has taken place since the days of the old classics, with a …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1969. “Sailor’s Visit Goes Adrift”. Mystery surrounds the movements of world·famous yachtsman, Robin Knox-Johnston, who was due to arrive in Durban from Britain yesterday. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1969 11 29 607 20 1970. “Cariad Spreads Her Wings”. And her pilot swops steam for sail. Cariad I, the Tribune’s Cape to Rio race hope, could well set some unexpected records …

by Richard Crockett To read the full reports, click on the LINK following the headline. 1985. “Another Drama for Drum”. Drum, the high-drama boat of ocean racing, is again the centre of a nail-biting situation, with hull repairs taking longer than expected and with a buckled rudder now compounding the maxi yacht’s problems as the restart of the Whitbread Round-the World Race draws near. To read the full report, Click on the following LINK:  1985 11 28 837 1985. “Full Ahead …