Miss Geico Flawless in First Pre-Season Test / Speed on the Water

 

Earlier today throttleman Scott Begovich and driver Marc Granet ran their Miss GEICO offshore racing catamaran for the first time since they claimed a Superboat Unlimited-class world title in the 44-footer during the 2013 Super Boat International Key West Offshore World Championships. While the cat was repainted earlier this by Jay Pilini of Pilini Marine Technologies, its twin Mercury Racing 1650 engines have not yet been refreshed. They had, however, been pulled from the boat, which was completely torn down and reassembled at the team's shop in Riviera Beach, Fla. More: Miss Geico

Clipper Race - Race 10 Day 14: Teams Report Biggest Sea State Since Leaving London As Front Passes Over

Race 10 day 14: Teams report biggest sea state since leaving London as front passes over

The long awaited north westerly front arrived yesterday, causing 50 knots of wind and gusts up to 70 knots creating ‘monstrous’ seas for the fleet.

Derry~Londonderry~Doire crew member Andrew Taylor fell overboard while changing a sail in the rough weather and was rescued from the Pacific Ocean in the early hours of this morning.

He went over the side at 23.43 UTC Sunday and was sighted again at 00.55 UTC before being recovered at approximately 01.13 UTC this morning (13.13 local time, 30 March). He may have hypothermia and is in shock but is said to be in relatively good spirits as he is treated by on board paramedic, Susie Redhouse.

IOC Confirms Lisa Carrington (NZL) as Athlete Role Model / Women Other Water Sports

Sporting legends to mentor athletes at Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games.The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently announced Lisa Carrington (NZL), the Canoe Sprint K1 200m Olympic Champion and multiple World Champion, as one of the of 37 Athlete Role Models (ARMs) who will attend the 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games from 16 to 28 August in Nanjing, China.

Carrington, who was nominated by the International Canoe Federation, will join a group of other elite competitors from the world of sport. In Nanjing, every Athlete Role Model will play a key role in supporting, mentoring and offering advice to the 3,800 young athletes who will be participating in the Games.

The Carolina Cup Is Now One Of The Most Significant Races On The Calendar | SUPracer.com

We’re just four weeks out from what’s shaping up to be one of the best races of the year: the 2014 Carolina Cup.

The Carolina Cup, held in humble little Wilmington, North Carolina, is fast becoming not only one of the biggest races on the calendar, but one of the most significant events in the entire world of SUP racing, period.

And I say that not only because I believe the 2014 elite race will be one of the most exciting contests of the year (it will: Danny, Travis, Jamie, Georges, Connor, Slater, etc will be duking it out – in fact it might just be the second most competitive race in the world this year, after only the BOP), or because luminaries such as Dave Kalama, Jimmy Terrell and Larry Cain will be doing clinics, or because pretty much every major brand will have a presence there, but also because the event will have HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS of recreational paddlers competing. And it’s those hundreds of paddlers that are driving this humble little sport of ours. More; The Carolina Cup Is Now One Of The Most Significant Races On The Calendar | SUPracer.com

Racing In Lanes At The Australian Flatwater SUPfest | SUPracer.com

The automatic starting gates are definitely a novel addition to the world of SUP racing

(photo credit: Angie Jackson)

One of the more interesting races on the calendar is happening right now down in Adelaide, South Australia. The 2014 Australian Flatwater SUPfest has drawn some of the country’s finest to the Westlakes Aquatic Centre, a location usually reserved for canoe, kayak and rowing races. In the tradition of San Diego’s Silver Blade Regatta, the Aus SUPfest will see competitors racing in separate lanes, complete with automatic starting gates and all.

So while 99.9% of SUP races are “mass start” events, the SUPfest will see each paddler racing on their own stretch of water. This format is exactly the same thing you’d see in Olympic canoe and kayaking races and should provide a novel point of difference to the usual stand up paddling events. More; [UPDATED RESULTS] Racing In Lanes At The Australian Flatwater SUPfest | SUPracer.com

The new New York-Barcelona race to open the IMOCA season - Vendée Globe

© DPPI

On 1st June off Manhattan, several duos will be setting sail at the start of the new "New York – Barcelona Race", the first event in the new IMOCA Ocean Masters World Championship. For the moment, the following teams are officially confirmed: Alex Thomson/Pepe Ribes (Hugo Boss), Marc Guillemot/Morgan Lagravière (Safran), Guillermo Altadill/José Muñoz (Neutrogena), Anna Corbella/Gerard Marin (GAES Centros Auditivos) and Nandor Fa/Marcell Goszleth (Spirit of Hungary). The Italian skipper, Alessandro di Benedetto (Team Plastique) is also likely to be part of the event.    

Six crews are already lined up and are likely to be joined by others in this international line-up. “The internationalization of the IMOCA class and its development with new events and new locations attracting new skippers and partners is part of the strategy put in place by OSM,” stressed Sir Keith Mills, founder of the Open Sports Management company, the organizer of the New York – Barcelona Race. A race, which represents a warm up before the two major events on the 2014 Ocean Masters calendar: The Route du Rhum (start on 2^nd November) and the Barcelona World Race (which begins on 31^st December).

Between New York and Barcelona, the 3700-mile race course can be divided into two sections: the North Atlantic crossing to the Straits of Gibraltar, then the passage into the Mediterranean, where the crews will have to deal with the tactical challenge of sailing 525 miles along the coast of Spain. Apart from trying to win the race, the duos will be attempting to improve on the course record set in 2010 by Alex Pella, Pepe Ribes and Stan Schreyer aboard the IMOCA 60 Estrella Damm with a time of 12 days, 6 hours 03 minutes and 48 seconds.

Clipper Race - Race 10, Day 13: Mixed Night Of Fortunes As Fleet Reaches Race 10’s Halfway Stage

Race 10, Day 13: Mixed night of fortunes as fleet reaches Race 10’s halfway stage

As the first Clipper Race teams start crossing the International Date Line today, exceeding the half-way point of Race 10, those positioned in the middle, east of the main fleet were left feeling wet, cold and frustrated last night as Mother Nature poured her best attention on the most southern teams.

Derry~Londonderry~Doire skipper Sean McCarter sounded thwarted as he said:  “Well we prepared for the worst last night and I must admit to feeling a little hard-done-by. Instead of 70 knot gusts and hail, we had lighter than average wind and a lot of rain.

Volvo Ocean Race | A reluctant hero

CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand - Delta Lloyd - Brasil 1 / Volvo Ocean Race

In my world, you qualify as a champion the minute you sail the Volvo Ocean Race. So if you’re getting ready for your sixth race, you are a sailing hero, a proper legend, one of those names written on yacht club walls. But Chuny, the Spaniard who joined Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing on Thursday, he disagreed. I argued the point. I don’t think he bought it.

Extremely talented“There aren’t many other people in the world I want to be on the water with.” My colleague Nick Bice sailed with Roberto Bermúdez de Castro in 2008-09 – the Spanish sailor was Delta Lloyd’s skipper. “Chuny has a fantastic respect for the elements; he is an extremely talented sailor and he gets the most out of any team.”

Now that’s quite a compliment. Chuny – a nickname his sister gave him as a kid – just signed with Abu Dhabi for 2014-15. It will be his sixth participation in the Volvo Ocean Race, making him the Spanish sailor with the most appearances in the race. But he sweeps that away.

More; Volvo Ocean Race | A reluctant hero

By Agathe Armand

World Sailing | Greece's Skarlatou Gets Back On The Trail In Mallorca

Angeliki Skarlatou at London 2012 ©OnEdition

 

Greek Women's RS:X sailor Angeliki Skarlatou has been a regular on the Olympic circuit since July 1994 and after a post London 2012 break she's getting back to business.

With the Santander 2014 ISAF Worlds approaching fast Skarlatou is using ISAF Sailing World Cup Mallorca - Trofeo Princesa Sofia as her comeback regatta as she aims to reach her fourth Olympic Games.

St Barths Bucket Regatta : Nothing "La-Dee-Dah" About This

This morning, dockside at The Bucket, it sounded rather funny for sailors to be talking about a "Not So Wiggley Course" with such reverence, but when the day was done and a second of three races had entered the 2014 regatta history books, it was quite clear why.

Mademoiselle, Elegante and Gazelle classes took on the long version (27.1 nm) of the course, which started on the west side of St. Barths and wound its way around smaller islands and rocks to the north, while the Grande Dames sailed the shorter version (22 nm) in winds that were a few knots less than yesterday's yet just as feisty. The "not so" in the course description was obviously tongue-in-cheek, as the 38 superyachts — ranging in size from 27.5m/88' to 66.7m/216' — zigged and zagged more than the usual number of times while crews executed numerous sail changes as well as spinnaker hoists and takedowns, alternately winding their charges up to gain advantage, then dialing them down to safely share close quarters at rounding marks with their magnificently sized competitors.

J.D. Byrider’s Throttleman Search Underway / Speed on the Water

While the throttleman for J.D. Byrider has yet to be determined, the team plans to start its season at either the SBI Cocoa Beach or Sarasota event. Photo courtesy/copyright Tim Sharkey/Sharkey Images.

While Tony Marcantonio, the owner and driver of the J.D. Byrider Superboat-class catamaran, said his first Super Boat International race of the season in the 38-foot Skater cat will either be in Cocoa Beach or Sarasota, Fla., he's still not sure who will join him in the cockpit as throttleman. According to Marcantonio, who was one of the architects of the reborn-and-still-growing Superboat class, he's looking at several options.

"There's a long list," he said. "Some old names, some new names." 

Marcantonio's search for a new throttleman began earlier this week, he said, when he learned that Mark Kowalski, his longtime teammate in the cockpit, was leaving to throttle for the Stihl Superboat-class team. (Read the story.)

"I have always told people that when they want to get the latest and most accurate news about offshore racing they should go to speeodnthewater.com," Marcantonio said, then laughed. "Much to my surprise, I learned Mark was leaving the team when I read it online on speed on the water.

More; J.D. Byrider’s Throttleman Search Underway

CHINESE SAILORS FINDING THEIR SEA LEGS / Volvo Ocean Race

  

Last week Charles Caudrelier chose six Academy Squad sailors to sail with him towards Auckland for the first training leg of the project allowing them to make the transition from Academy Squad to Race Squad. They are now well into their first week at sea and it has been a bruising start for the novice offshore Chinese sailors who are learning first-hand about ‘Life at the Extreme’! Parallel to this adventure, back in Sanya the remaining Academy Squad sailors have been fighting their way to the top of the Hainan Regatta leader board.

The Volvo Ocean 65 ‘Dongfeng’ left Sanya Serenity Marina on Saturday, 22nd March their 5,200+ nautical mile journey a re-enactment of Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race. “It’s exciting being part of Dongfeng Race Team, you just don’t feel alone anymore and for us, even though we are in competition with one another we already feel like a large team. Dockside when we left there were a lot of people there to see us off, our sponsor Dongfeng, Serenity Marina, our shore team and media,” said Race Squad sailor Ying Kit Cheng.

Video - Salty Pixels - A Guide to Nautical Photography

 

Join renowned sailing and nautical photographer and Canon Explorer of Light, Onne van der Wal, as he takes you on a salty voyage through his photographic works. Onne shoots around the globe taking full advantage of our water logged planet, capturing harbors, beaches, regattas and coastal scenes that make landlubbers and "yachties" alike yearn for a life (or at least a vacation!) at sea. Revered for his witty and enlightening presentations, Onne gives you an inside look at what it takes to shoot in the salt and waves and how to make the best pictures in a salty situation without donating your camera gear to Poseidon. Sharing stills and video clips as well as tips and tricks, Onne's lecture is sure to delight photographers, mariners and admirers of the sea.

Onne van der Wal's Site
http://www.vanderwal.com/

  

Previewing the 2014 USA Canoe/Kayak Slalom Team Trials

(Smolen paddling C-1 at the Oceania Championships. Credit: SportScene.tv)

 

Who: The best U.S. slalom athletes

What: 2014 USA Canoe/Kayak Slalom Team Trials
When: March 28-30
Where: U.S. National Whitewater Center in Bryson City, N.C.
Why is it important: This is the qualifier for the 2014 Slalom World Championships, which will be held on U.S. soil for the first time in 25 years.

For more info: Start lists. Results. Deep Creek 2014 World Championships.
Team USA hopes to crack the podium at the 2014 Slalom World Championships after recording two Top 5 finishes in 2013. The Adventure Sports Center International in McHenry, Md. will host the World Championships on Sept. 16-21.

But before that can happen, the best U.S. athletes will vie for the chance to represent their country on home turf in September. Western Maryland also hosted the World Championships in 1989, the last time the event was in America.

ABU DHABI OCEAN RACING NEWS: ‘Chuny’ completes Abu Dhabi crew / VolvoOcean Race

Cascais, Portugal – March 27, 2014 – Spain’s Roberto ‘Chuny” Bermúdez, one of the most experienced and talented sailors in the history of the Volvo Ocean Race, has been recruited by Abu Dhabi to complete their eight-man line-up for the 2014-15 edition starting in October.
 

The 44-year-old will be contesting his sixth race giving him the most appearances in the race by a Spaniard.

He competed as skipper for Delta Lloyd in 2008-09 and was also in the CAMPER team in the last edition in 2011-12 when he famously avoided a whale while steering.

‘Chuny’, as he is universally known in sailing, brings a wealth of experience to skipper Ian Walker’s already talented line-up.

MIKE STEWART WINS PIPELINE BODYSURFING EXPERIENCE | SURFLINE.COM

The former world bodyboarding champion, 49, has stolen the 14th Pipeline Bodysurfing title of his career. Mark Cunningham finished runner-up, while BK Holt secured third.

The Pipeline Bodysurfing Classic is the first surfing event to be run at Pipeline, on the North Shore of Oahu. The first ever Pipeline Bodysurfing Classic was held in February 1971, while the inaugural Pipe Masters was held in December 1971.

The competition is open to all bodysurfers and has established judging standards.

In 1991, Mike Stewart won the event, but missed the kisses from supermodel Cindy Crawford, who handed the trophies to the podium riders.

ASP Australasia Junior Qualifying Series Prepares For French Polynesian Leg - ASP

The best junior (under 21) surfers from the Asia Pacific region are preparing for one of the toughest tests of the 2014 ASP Australasia Junior Qualifying Series, with back-to-back events in French Polynesia. The aspiring professional surfers will get a taste of the big leagues as they pack their bags and prepare to compete in world-class, powerful polynesian surf. This year's French Polynesian leg also sees the inclusion of an ASP 1-Star Qualifying Series (QS) event, the first in the region since the late and great Andy Irons won the Black Pearl Pro Teahupo'o in 1997.

The first event is the Rangiroa Pro Junior, held on a small atoll in the Tuamotu islands in French Polynesia, the surfers will compete at a powerful right-hand reef break that's capable of producing intense tube rides as it breaks over live, razor sharp coral.

2014 Consolidated Offshore Powerboat Racing Season Schedule - Update

A quick update to the consolidated 2014 U.S. offshore powerboat racing season with races from organizers such as Super Boat International (SBI) and Offshore Powerboat Association (OPA) and P1 Superstock USA.  Also, we cannot forget the Lake of the Ozarks Shootout, where you can you see a boat like My Way run 224 mph.  

Have a race event you want listed, send it to us and we will add it to the list!

	April
Apr 11-13	SBI - Charlotte Harbor Super Boat Grand Prix	Charlotte Harbor, FL
Apr 26-27	P1 -  Daytona Beach, FL	Daytona Beach, FL
	May
May 2-4	OPA - Lake Hopatcong Grand Prix	Lake Hopatcong, NJ
May 16-18	SBI - 5th Annual Space Coast Super Boat Grand Prix	Cocoa Beach, FL
May 17-18	P1 – Stuart Florida         NEW	Stuart, FL
	June
June 7-8	P1 – Jacksonville, FL	Jacksonville, FL
June 20-22	OPA - Atlantic City Offshore Grand Prix	Atlantic City, NJ
	July
July 4-6	SBI - 30th Annual Suncoast Super Boat Grand Prix Festival	Sarasota, FL
July 12-13	P1 – Tampa, FL	Tampa, FL
July 25-27	OPA - St Clair River Classic Offshore Powerboat Race	St Clair, MI
	August
Aug 1-3	SBI - 6th Annual Super Boat Great Lakes Grand Prix	Michigan City, IN
Aug 8-10	OPA - International Offshore Powerboat Race	Port Huron, MI
Aug 15-24	Lake of the Ozarks Shootout	Lake of the Ozarks
Aug 20-24	SBI - 11th Annual Thunder on the Gulf	Orange Beach, AL
Aug 20-24	SBI - 1st Annual Pensacola Grand Prix	Pensacola, FL
Aug 22-24	OPA - Great Race on the Sea	TBA Long Island, NY​​
Aug 23-24	P1 – Cocoa Beach, FL	Cocoa Beach, FL
	September
Sept 5-7	24th Annual New York Grand Prix – Tribute to 911	New York, NY
Sept 12-14	OPA Nationals  - Solomons Offshore Grand Prix	Solomons, MD
Sept 20-21	P1 – St Cloud, FL	St Cloud, FL
Sept 26-28	6th Annual Clearwater Super Boat National Championship	Clearwater, FL
	October
October 3-5	OPA World Championships	Ocean City, MD
	November
Nov 2-9	34th Annual Key West World Championship	Key West, FL

 

Super Expectations | OffshoreOnly.com – Powerboating Online

With nine or more boats in the field, the competition is expected to be stiff this year in the Superboat class. (Photo by Jay Nichols/Naples Image.)

 

The Super Boat International (SBI) season opener is just a couple of weeks away, and there is a buzz surrounding the Superboat class that I’ve yet to encounter in the decade or so I’ve been covering the sport—and for good reason.

With nine viable boats listed on the SBI website, and a few other teams waiting in the wings that could possibly join the class, which features offshore catamarans powered by twin 750-hp engines, the 2014 racing season appears to have some terrific momentum.

Will all of the boats be in attendance at the inaugural Charlotte Harbor Grand Prix in Englewood, Fla., on April 10-13? Definitely not. One thing’s for sure, though, there will be some familiar faces on different teams this year. For those of you who haven’t been paying attention here’s a brief summary with links to each story as reported on speedonthewater.com. More; Super Expectations | OffshoreOnly.com – Powerboating Online

Written by Jason Johnson

BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival Strength in Depth for the 2014 BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival » BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival

With less than a week to go until the 43rd edition of the BVI Spring Regatta & Sailing Festival, a truly international cast is making ready to take centre stage in the beautiful sailing grounds off Tortola, British Virgin Islands. 87 yachts have entered and not only is the number of entries larger than last year but there is real strength in depth, both in terms of the standard of the yachts and the sailors that will be racing.

Hosted by Nanny Cay Marina, local BVI sailors will be rubbing shoulders with competitors from all over the world including: Australia, Antigua, Canada, Curacao, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Monaco, Puerto Rico, Russia, St.Lucia, St.Maarten, Switzerland, USA and the US Virgin Islands. More; BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival Strength in Depth for the 2014 BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival » BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival

Clipper Race - Race 10, Day 9: A Night Of Decision Making As Skippers Anticipate Approaching Low Front

Race 10, Day 9: A night of decision making as skippers anticipate approaching low front

While the good racing conditions continued yesterday, skippers spent the day closely analysing their data and altering courses overnight in preparation for the approaching low weather system, forecast to impact the fleet over the next 24 hours. 

Explaining expectations, OneDLL skipper Olly Cotterell said: “In about 20 hours or so from writing this, the change will start and it will start with the wind dying off. The low  developed off the coast of Japan, one of the areas of cyclogenesis that affects this area. It is tracking up the cold front of a low to the north of us that was birthed over the Kamchatka Peninsula. This means that the centre of the low has so far stayed fairly far south.

“It is tracking north east, towards the Aleutian Islands. We do not want to end up north of the centre of the low as this would give us more unfavourable conditions, so we are trying to get east and a bit south.”

Familiar Faces To Resume Sailing World Cup Battles In Mallorca / ISAF / World Sailing

Davidovich fighs hard at Sailing World Cup Qingdao ©ISAF

Over 850 sailors will be ready to fight hard for 2014 ISAF Sailing World Cup Mallorca honours when racing commences on 31 March through to 5 April.

Fifty nations will be represented across one Paralympic and ten Olympic events at the fourth of five World Cup Regattas of the 2013-2014 series.

Numerous medallists and competitors will resume the battles that started at Qingdao, China in October 2013 progressed through to Melbourne, Australia in December 2013 and heated up in the Miami, USA just weeks ago.

As preparations for the Santander 2014 ISAF Sailing World Championships step up, sailors will be using Mallorca and the final regatta of the World Cup series in Hyeres, France to hone in on their fitness and skills.