Year-on-year this regatta has welcomed more classes and more boats to sail at Cowes.  Last year the Yarmouth One Designs and Dragons attended for the first time.  This year, in another milestone, two classes that are not Solent based will attend – the Mylne One Designs from the Royal Mersey Yacht Club and Loch Longs from Aldeburgh and Cove.  The fact that boats now want to travel across the country to attend is a testament to the appeal of an event that brings together sailors with a shared passion for these boats.  In the past, almost every major yacht club would have had their own one-design fleet and these boats live on and are celebrated through this community.

This year’s celebrations include the Centenary of the X One Design Class and the 50th Anniversary of the Daring class, so plenty to celebrate.  The XODs will race for the Royal Victoria Cup which is awarded by the Royal London Yacht Club to any class with a significant anniversary to celebrate

Also new for 2011 will be a menagerie fleet – not all classes can always attend in force and some boats are one-offs, so this provides the means for any classic keelboat to race. 

For more information visit Cowes Classics Week

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Paul Campbell-James on The Wave, Muscat has won the UK Round of the Extreme Sailing Series at Cowes Week – the first ever regatta win for the youngest skipper on the circuit – claiming an OMEGA Seamaster Planet Ocean watch as part of the prize as top Skipper for the UK round.  Thirty-six races over six days in front of 60,000+ spectators – the UK round of the five-stop circuit has delivered everything that the Extreme Sailing Series is about. Spectacular, adrenalin-pumping action on the water, enthralling the thousands of spectators who packed into the Extreme Race Village at Egypt Point and along The Esplanade.

The conditions throughout the event have demanded the utmost focus and physical effort from the nine competing teams and today was no exception with 20-25 knots of south-westerly breeze across the short race course and a choppy sea state.  Classic conditions for a potential pitch-pole or capsize and the crews knew it, racing with one reef in the mainsail and an extra fifth pro crew to add a bit of extra weight. The top mark proved a dangerous turning mark as they hoisted their giant gennakers to head downwind at full pelt – the crews ready in a second to ease the sails if the bows dug into the waves too deep.

Going into the fifth and final double points race of the day, Paul Campbell-James and his crew had almost done enough to keep the lead from Britain’s Mike Golding, but they had to finish the race – zero points and Ecover would claim the top spot. As it was the team did enough, scoring a 4th in the final race, to win the UK round of the Extreme Sailing Series on 249 points: “We knew if we capsized it would be the end of the regatta so pretty pleased to get through it,” said a relieved Campbell-James on the podium. 

But the Ecover team is ecstatic with their second overall place, their best result to date and appreciated the home crowd support: “It’s been great to have the support from the shore – you can even hear the yells and shouts from on board the boat,” said Golding. Tornado Olympic sailors Leigh McMillan and Will Howden have bought a new performance level to Mike’s team, who stepped back to allow the McMillan take the helm. It was a shrewd move and Golding’s team are really starting to gel, and will certainly be a force to contend with in the future.  Yann Guichard’s men on Groupe Edmond de Rothschild, winners at the first round in France, always excel in light airs but struggle at times in heavy conditions. A final win in the last race would have lifted their spirits to secure third overall on the podium.

A real battle developed mid-leaderboard between Loick Peyron on Oman Sail Masirah, Red Bull Extreme Sailing and Groupama 40. Only a handful of points separated these three going into the final race. Peyron secured fourth overall, although he never really got into his stride here, and Roman Hagara on Red Bull Extreme Sailing claimed 5th and although lacked consistency they, nonetheless, scored six bullets, ahead of the fastest man round the planet Franck Cammas on Groupama 40.  Groupama 40 provided the most dramatic moment of the UK round on the second day when the 40-foot catamaran careered towards the concrete sea wall without steerage. Franck and the crew had no option but to leap to safety.

Team GAC Pindar, who had the satisfaction of claiming some race wins here, proving that when they get it right they are competitive, finished in 7th place ahead of Roland Jourdain’s Veolia Environnement who is competing in the UK round as a one-off experience (for now!).  For the co-creator of the Extreme 40 class, Mitch Booth and the Team Ocean Racing Club, it proved to be a disastrous regatta, breaking their front beam ahead of the penultimate day and then having to sit and watch the other eight boats have some of the best racing this circuit has ever seen.

The Wave, Muscat’s victory here means they now share the top spot on the overall Series leaderboard with 14 points apiece.  Two points behind Oman Sail Masirah on 12 points.

Next stop for the Extreme Sailing Series is Kiel in Germany between 26-29 August.

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 Mike Golding wind the Artemis Challenge 2010 claiming the £10,000 charitable donation for the RNLI. The six round-the-world IMOCA 60 racers started the fourth consecutive Artemis Challenge at Cowes Week at 1000 BST today [Tuesday, 3rd August]. Joining the renowned round the world skippers were sporting stars Zara Phillips, Amy Williams, GMTV presenter Emma Crosby and former England rugby international Martin Bayfield as well as the Harry Potter ‘Weasley Twins’, James and Oliver Phelps.

Zara Phillips, racing onboard Artemis Ocean Racing, that finished 3rd overall said at the finish: “There was a really good atmosphere on board, we had a good team and we all worked really well together – it was easy for us as the crew know the boat so well. It’s great to finish on the podium but we thought that because it’s the Artemis Challenge and we’re on Artemis Ocean Racing so we thought let the others get in front!”


The boats set out on the 55-mile course round the Isle of Wight in a light south-westerly breeze and made good headway until coming to a standstill at the eastern point of the island before picking up the sea breeze which built steadily through the afternoon. The IMOCA 60s had a great reach from St Catherine’s to The Needles before hoisting their spinnakers for a high-speed dash to the finish line at the Royal Yacht Squadron. Mike Golding narrowly beat Roland Jourdain on Veolia Environnement by 10 minutes to finish in just under six and a half hours. 

The sporting stars were not on board just for a joy ride and the skippers had them working hard. “Zara and I were a good team on the grinder, we thought we were way better than the boys! It was so tiring though and big respect to all the sailors – to think they sail these boats all on their own around the world is absolutely amazing. It was a great team effort but I still feel like I’m floating around!” said Amy Williams.  Martin Bayfield who crewed for Dee Caffari, the only yachtswoman to have sailed solo around the world in both directions, was also put to work on the grinder although Dee let him steer for a while: “Dee was very gentle and very kind, and very polite about my steering!”

The £10,000 charitable donation by Artemis Investment Management will be made to the RNLI.The Artemis Challenge has become a popular fixture at the UK’s biggest yachting regatta offers a great mix of sporting competition and celebrity glamour. Mike Tyndall, Chief Executive, Artemis Investment Management commented: “It couldn’t have been better Artemis Challenge. After a few years where the wind has been a bit light, we had a proper breeze, almost had a restart halfway through the race when the breeze collapsed, then we had good breeze and a great romp home.”

Position / Entries / skippers / charities:
1st Mike Golding Yacht Racing / Mike Golding / RNLI
2nd Veolia Environnement / Roland Jourdain / Plan
3rd Artemis Ocean Racing / helmsman Simon Hiscocks / Kids Company
4th Gaes Centros Auditivos / Dee Caffari / Toe in the Water
5th VE1 / Ryan Breymaier & Boris Herrman / Chemo Outreach Project
6th Toe in the Water / Steve White / RNLI

After a ‘disastrous’ start to the Artemis Challenge yesterday due to an issue with their spinnaker, British yachtswoman Dee Caffari and her crew aboard GAES Centros Auditivos fought hard from the back of the fleet to secure fourth place in the annual IMOCA 60 sprint around the Isle of Wight. As the first woman to have sailed solo non-stop round the world in both directions, Dee is no stranger to fighting against the odds but was delighted to have assistance on this occasion in the shape of her crew which included former England and Lions lock, Martin Bayfield.

 

On reaching the dock, Dee said:

‘Despite our disappointing start we had some brilliant racing out there and fought really hard with all three of the boats ahead of us.’

 

The fleet initially made good progress on the 55 mile course in a light south westerly breeze giving GAES Centros Auditivos an opportunity to re establish themselves in the race. However, the front runners all came to a standstill at Brembridge Ledge on the eastern point of the island due to a lack of wind. As the sea breeze picked up the crew were forced to tack several times to stay out of the strongest tide as they cleared St Catherine’s Point and it was at this stage that Mike Golding Yacht Racing took the lead and the race positions were established.

 

Dee continued:

‘We had a great sail to the Needles and after our hand break turn back into the Solent we hoisted the spinnaker. The strong winds and good boat speed made for some exciting sailing to the finish, all of which helped hook Martin into a new sport. We are sad that we didn’t win a pot of money for Toe in the Water but everyone onboard had a great time out on the water which is what Cowes Week is all about.’

 

 

©Lloyd Images

 

The Artemis Challenge at Cowes Week was won by Mike Golding aboard Mike Golding Yacht Racing, a close second went to Roland Jourdain on Veolia Environnement with Artemis Ocean Racing skippered by Simon Hiscocks completing the podium. Fourth was Dee Caffari onboard GAES Centros Auditivos with VE1 and Toe in the Water taking fifth and sixth place respectively.

 

Later this year, Dee will be taking part in the Barcelona World Race onboard GAES Centros Auditivos with her Spanish co-skipper, Anna Corbella. They will be the only all-female crew taking part in the race that leaves Barcelona on 31st December 2010.

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There was plenty of dramatic action on day two of the Extreme Sailing Series at Cowes Week today. With 18-20 knots of breeze, gusting over 20 at times, the nine teams were racing right on the edge, demanding 100% concentration and a constant rush of adrenalin for both the sailors and the spectators from the near capsizes, near misses and some not so near misses…
 
In race 11 (the fourth inshore race of today), approaching the windward mark Yann Guichard’s Groupe Edmond de Rothschild hit Franck Cammas’ Groupama 40 wiping out both rudders, leaving Groupama with no steerage whatsoever. Groupama 40 were heading straight for the shore at speed and for safety the crew leapt into the water to avoid the impact of hitting the sea wall – deciding they would prefer getting wet than being thrown forward on the boat and potentially injuring themselves. Groupama 40 has sustained both rudder and daggerboard damage and it will be a long night for the shore team to get them back racing tomorrow. Groupe Edmond de Rothschild has lodged a protest which the jury will hear and award redress if relevant.

 

 
Paul Campbell-James, the youngest skipper on the circuit at just 28, ensured The Wave, Muscat finished inside the top four in today’s races including the morning offshore race and the five inshore races this afternoon held off Egypt Point. Two wins this afternoon, two seconds and two third places put them top of the Extreme Sailing Series leaderboard on 85 points: “We got good starts which is a big part of today and we were pushing really hard downwind when we needed to. Sometimes we were so close to capsizing but you have to push it hard at times and back off at others.”

Yesterday, British skipper Mike Golding said he didn’t mind if they didn’t score any ‘bullets’ today, stating finishing inside the top four was more important. But his helm Leigh McMillan and the crew had other ideas – posting a win in the offshore race in the morning, then two further bullets in the penultimate and ultimate race of the day to finish in second place with 80 points. This kept the home crowd, who packed into the Extreme Bar and along the shoreline, happy as they cheered Golding’s crew all the way.

All the skippers talk about the importance of consistency but yesterday’s leader Loick Peyron on Oman Sail Masirah found his top form elusive today, only posting a third place in the second race this afternoon which leaves Peyron’s team in third place overall with 74 points – 7 points ahead of Guichard’s team in 4th.

Double Olympic Gold Medalist Roman Hagara had another day of mixed fortunes – one race win and a second place in the penultimate race, keeps them in contention in the middle of the leaderboard in 6th place, five points behind Mitch Booth’s The Ocean Racing Club who did well in this morning’s offshore finishing in second. Another frustrating day for Roland Jourdain’s Veolia Environnement who had rudder problems before the start of the first race then had to drop the mainsail between races to sort out another problem. The team unpracticed in the art of Extreme 40 racing, put a reef in early and raced cautiously throughout the afternoon, although the 1989 Formula 40 World Champion demonstrated why he clinched that title with a couple of great starts.

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The opening day of the UK round of the Extreme Sailing Series at Cowes Week opened at full throttle delivering some stunning race action to the crowds lining Cowes shoreline at Egypt Point as the nine Extreme 40s took centre stage for five short course races this afternoon.
Newcomers Veolia Environnement had their first extreme drama in the very first race when, just metres after the start in the afternoon, they collided with a mooring bouy ripping the helm out of skipper Roland Jourdain’s hand and breaking the starboard rudder. It put them out of action for the day but Veolia Environnement is anticipated to be back on the start line for tomorrow.

It was Loick Peyron and his crew that put in the most consistent performance of the afternoon starting with a fifth, then three second places and a bullet in the last race to put Oman Sail Masirah at the top of the leaderboard at the end of Day 1 with 46 points: “We work together to keep consistent because that’s what count here. Our objective is to make the top 4 in each race.”

Ecover’s combined local knowledge of the Solent waters put Golding’s team in the running, finishing day 1 in second place on the leaderboard – the best result ever in his second year of campaigning in the Extreme Sailing Series: “The main thing about today is that we loved the win to begin with but the key thing for us was that we were consistent in pretty much every race and really that’s the key to it. If we can be consistent tomorrow and don’t mind if we go the whole day without a bullet so long as we’re consistently doing well in the regatta.

After the offshore morning race from the Royal Yacht Squadron to the mainland at Calshot, won by Mike Golding’s Ecover Sailing Team, the afternoon inshore racing started in earnest. After a gloomy start, the sun kicked in and lit up the race course as a solid 12-18 knots of wind built and the spectators that sat out all afternoon were rewarded for their dedication as the nine Extreme 40s scorched around the very short racecourses, often with their bows down and rudders out drawing gasps and cheers from the public. The short courses and their proximity to the shore combined with the wind ensured the pace was frenetic, forcing plenty of mistakes, keeping the umpires on their toes and the Extreme crews having to think fast on their feet.

Double Olympic Gold Medallist Roman Hagara and his Red Bull Extreme Sailing team came out of the starting blocks on a mission but the conditions proved challenging in more ways than one, as Hagara summed up: “We crashed into a rock in the first race [long offshore], won the second race and will try and forget the rest of the day! One pre-start, one penalty and some mistakes…. We know that we can do it in a better way.”

“It was right on the limit today – the whole racecourse was very, very short and the differences between the front boat and the back boat were minuscule. It’s so easy to lose places and if you make one mistake you can drop three or four places, but you can win it back if you keep your game together. The fact that everything was happening at such a frenetic pace you can’t really think at that pace as there is so much happening, it’s hard to take it all in. It’s lovely here at Cowes – great venue, great shorefront and we can see and hear the people on the shore cheering and yelling, and that’s a great feeling which is unusual in sailing.”

Hot favourites Yann Guichard’s crew on Groupe Edmond de Rothschild, found the conditions testing and finished in third place on the leaderboard with 38 points. It make take Guichard’s men a while to get used to the vagaries of The Solent but no one is under-estimating their comeback.

For full results, go to http://www.extremesailingseries.com/results/cowes/

Schedule for Sunday 1 August:

Planned from 12h00 – Moth Demonstrations & Racing
First Extreme 40 start at 3pm off Egypt Point
Daily public prizegiving 5.30pm
Jakey Chan & Wills of Steel 7-11pm Free entry

 

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Seb Josse and his all-star team, including celebrity guests Dame Ellen MacArthur and Radio 1 DJ, Rob Da Bank have won the Artemis Challenge at Cowes Week.  On an east-bound course, the fleet set off at 10:00 from the Royal Yacht Squadron line on a downwind leg flying their huge code zero gennakers. Mike Sanderson and team, including celebrity guest Paul Rose (TV presenter and adventurer), led off the startline but complicated winds soon started to affect proceedings and within 10 minutes, fleet positions had turned inside out.

 Team Pindar today finished second in the Artemis Challenge at Cowes Week, skippered by Former ISAF World Sailor of the Year and TEAMORIGIN Team Director, Mike Sanderson.

Light winds this morning forced organisers to modify the normal ‘round-the-island’ course, to a shortened 35-mile route through the Forts and around Nab Tower off the Isle of Wight. 8 miles from the official line, as the wind dropped further, the race was called to an early finish, sealing victory for Frenchman Seb Josse and his crew on board BT IMOCA 60.

 Now in its third year, this year’s Artemis Challenge attracted a total of eight Open 60’s many of which had not competed since the end of the non-stop solo round the world yacht race, the Vendée Globe earlier this year. Each yacht played host to a celebrity sailor which included names from the world of entertainment and sport: Zara Phillips, Bryan Adams and Rugby World Cup winners Will Greenwood and Mike Tindall. Sailing on board Team Pindar was BBC TV presenter, adventurer and Earthwatch ambassador, Paul Rose.

Mike Sanderson commented: “Obviously it was disappointing not to have more breeze, but we had a good time and definitely made the most of the day. Considering how well the boat has been performing in the strong winds over the last few days, I was really encouraged to see how well she handled the light breeze too.”

Earthwatch Ambassador, Paul Rose commented: “I’ve been sailing all my life but it’s not everyday you get to be out on the water on an Open 60 and with some of the best sailors in the world. It’s been a tremendous event and a great opportunity to raise awareness for Earthwatch and its Oceans Appeal.”

Team Pindar is now preparing for the 2009 Rolex Fastnet Race, which starts from the Royal Yacht Squadron

A further five hours later the fleet made its way back up the Solent from No Man’s Land Fort after the course was shortened for the first time but the wind totally disappeared between Portsmouth and Ryde creating a concertina effect on the fleet. 

Making zero headway against a now adverse tide, the race officers made a decision to put the self-shortening course procedure into action. It was agreed this morning that all competitors were to time themselves round each mark of the course, and take the times of the boat ahead and behind should this particular scenario happen.

The race office confirmed that the results would be based on the timings at Bembridge Ledge which meant that BT who was leading at the time was deemed the overall winner, and Pindar was second. Simon Clay on Artemis The Profit Hunter with celebrity guest Bryan Adams, were third. Stable mates – Artemis Ocean Racing –  with Sam Davies and special guest Zara Phillips finished 4th.

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The sun was shining, the wind was blowing and the crowds were cheering as both Oman Sail teams took control of the six races sailed on Monday. Masirah started the day with a dominating win over the fleet in the first race of the day but Renaissance was never far behind. After four races Masirah had done enough for the day as they could not be toppled from the top of the leader board, a position they had held since the first race of the first day. Renaissance had their work cut out for them as they were carrying a couple of poor results which their eleven top three places over the three days couldn’t balance out. Although they were never out of second or third place on the leader board, they had stiff competition from the team s below, out of which any of five of them could have leap-frogged them onto the podium.
The last race of the day counts for double points and it is this one that has, in past events in France and Italy, made all the difference to the final scores. Masirah played a safe game and took the boat home safely but it was Renaissance who was fighting for the difference between the second and third step on the podium with Gitana. Team Gitana and Renaissance were not only fighting for second and third for the Cowes iShares Cup, but also for second and third on the overall podium positions at the half way point of the iShares Cup circuit. Thus it was a nail biting finale for these two teams and the pressure was on as all the teams lined up for the start, only metres away from the thousands of spectators watching the action from the shore. In the end Gitana took first place and Renaissance could only manage a fourth, behind Masirah and Ecover. This sealed the podium places as Git ana took second and Renaissance took an admirable third.

Special guests on Masirah for the day’s racing were members of Formula One’s Brawn GP team. Each boat has a fifth man spot that gives an invited guest the chance to experience sailing at the extreme and get into the thick of it. Brawn GP CEO, Nick Fry, was on board for many of the races, ‘I believe that sport is a wonderful catalyst for pulling people together. To support sport at the highest level will encourage younger people and inspire them to be the best and I am sure that over time, more people from Oman, both men and women, will want to be part of this successful team. I applaud those in Oman that took this initiative which I am sure will bring major benefits over the coming years.’

Now that Cowes is over and the celebrations for both teams are finished, the Oman Sail team packs up both boats into their containers. Then both containers are loaded up and transported to the North German City of Kiel where the fourth leg of the iShares Cup takes place and Masirah will be hoping to maintain their dominance and Renaissance will be looking to knock them off the top spot and take some of the glory for themselves. The sponsors of Renaissance (Renaissance Services, Suhail Bahwan Group and The Wave) will continue their support of the team until the end of the iShares Cup circuit.

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The Oman Sail program is paying off dividends as Pete Cumming  and crew of Oman Sail Masirah take first place on Day 1 of the iShares Cup in Cowes today – winning 5 out of the 6 races held today.  Olympic Double Gold Medalist Shirley Robertson and her crew on Team iShares excelled at their ‘home’ event, benefiting from their local knowledge scoring their best result to date in the iShares Cup 2009 series and go into the second day of competition in second place on the leaderboard. French team Gitana Extreme – Groupe LCF Rothschild rallied in the second half to put them third overall just ahead of Loick Peyron on Oman Sail’s Renaissance. Throughout the racing there was plenty of action – the 40-ft catamarans regularly flying a hull thanks to the sometimes gusty conditions, the crews screaming for water, daring to come as close to the shore as possible without hitting the rocks – all keeping the spectators enthralled at the iShares Cup Race Village which is currently proving to be the most popular place in Cowes.

Six races were held in total on day 1 of the iShares Cup at Cowes Week– the UK round marking the halfway point of the six-stage European circuit. The first two races were straightforward reaching upwind and downwind legs but as the wind veered west, the game changed dramatically.

The first race went to Oman Sail Masirah – Pete Cumming and Chris Draper throwing the gauntlet down to the other teams. With the absence of BMW ORACLE Racing, Oman Sail Masirah go into this 3rd round of the iShares Cup Extreme 40 Sailing Series as favourites and the team wasted no time in stepping up to the mark with another emphatic win in race 2. Oman Sail stable-mate Renaissance driven by Loick Peyron finished 2nd and both BT and Team iShares were starting to put in some strong performances – 3rd and 4th place in the second race.
Regular Groupama 40 skipper Franck Cammas is currently hurtling across the Atlantic at high-speed trying to break the record but his Extreme 40 team here helmed by Gildas Philippe got a great start to race 3 and kept their cool to score their first win at the UK round. As the wind veered the nine-boat Extreme 40 fleet were suddenly in a different game – tacking upwind and gybing downwind adding an element of both opportunity and excitement as the breeze strengthened. But the Oman Sail team continued to pile on the pressure – Peyron took Renaissance across the line in 2nd and Masirah in 3rd, finishing half a boat length ahead of Nick Moloney on BT.

A penalty for Gitana Extreme skipper Yann Guichard didn’t stop his determination to get back in to race 4, pulling out all the stops to cross the line in 2nd behind Oman Sail’s Masirah who had clearly taken control of the day’s racing. Carolijn Brouwer driving Holmatro had a great first half to the race but lost out in the closing stages… In the final gybe to the line she must have thought 3rd place was hers until Cowes girl Shirley Robertson stormed past to claim the final spot on the race 4 podium – that result moved Team iShares up into 2nd place on the iShares Cup Cowes leaderboard

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