Last day of sailing in the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta.

Shortened courses and unfriendly weather, but still Serious Fun! Prize giving at Kim Sha Beach at 6pm tonight! Followed by some amazing music entertainment: Orange Grove, Brainpower and of course WYCLEF JEAN! Are you ready???!!!

Philipsburg, St. Maarten (March 4, 2011) – The 31st edition of the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta kicked off in surprising style  as nearly 200 boats in 18 classes set sail anticipating both serious fun and, of course, serious competition. While most everyone enjoyed a good time and tight racing, they also encountered seriously challenging conditions thanks to squally skies, fluky breeze, and more than one or two windless holes on the racecourse.

found on heinekenregatta.com

“It is fantastic!” This was Paul Cayard’s verdict after a four-hour sail on the AC45 catamaran in beautiful conditions on Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf today. Cayard and a crew from Artemis Racing put the cat through a thorough testing session.
Weekend boaters out on the water in force were thrilled to see the America’s Cup cat fly past – less than a week after it capsized in a freak wind gust in the Rangitoto Channel.

After the capsize, the damaged wing was taken to the Core Builders facility in Warkworth, north of Auckland, where a small team, including the America’s Cup Race Management (ACRM) team and members of the Artemis Racing crew, executed a flawless repair in just four days.

“We learned a lot in the process and were able to make some small modifications which we believe would reduce the damage if we have a similar incident again,” said Phil Jameson from Artemis Racing, who assisted in the repair of the boat’s wing sail.

Conditions on the Hauraki Gulf for the AC45’s return were excellent, with the breeze building from 12 knots to a solid 18 knots towards the end of the session.

Cayard qualified his comments by noting he was not a multihull sailor. “I have not done much sailing on multihulls, apart from messing about on a Hobie,” he said.“But this seems to me to be a great boat, very well designed. I was able to sail it for quite some time and it was very user-friendly.

“One of the biggest challenges with cats is the danger of digging in the leeward bow, but we never had that issue at all. There was always good buoyancy in the bows. I think that when you consider this project went from zero to sailing in just over four months, it is a very impressive effort.”

Paul Cayard.

Artemis Racing testings – Day 2 -  Ivor Wilkins-www.americascup.com

found on artemisracing.com

The world-famous San Francisco Bay will be home to the 2013 America’s Cup Finals and the Challenger Selection Series for the Louis Vuitton Cup, as well as an America’s Cup World Series event in 2012. This will be the first time the America’s Cup has been hosted in the United States since 1995.
“Today is one of great celebration, with San Francisco winning the right to host the America’s Cup, and all of the economic benefit, jobs and excitement that comes with it,” said Mayor Gavin Newsom. “San Francisco is the best place on Earth to host an event of this stature, and we could not be more proud to be the city that brings the America’s Cup back home to the United States.”
Independent studies show that the America’s Cup delivers the third largest economic impact in sport to host countries, behind the Olympic Games and soccer’s World Cup. The 34th America’s Cup is projected to pump an estimated $1.4 billion dollars into the San Francisco region.

“As a native San Franciscan, I grew up sailing in front of the City. Racing for the America’s Cup in San Francisco is something I have dreamt of my whole life,” said Paul Cayard, CEO of Sweden’s Artemis Racing, a challenger for the 34th America’s Cup. ”By hosting sailing’s most important event in the Bay, the world will see sailing as it never has before.  As a team, Artemis Racing is particularly looking forward to competing in San Francisco.”
Racing will be held on the iconic San Francisco Cityfront and be visible from world-renown tourist destinations such as the Golden Gate Bridge, the Marin Headlands, Crissy Field, the Embarcadero and Fisherman’s Wharf. An influx of millions of tourists is expected for the Challenger Series for the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America’s Cup Finals in late 2013.
“My support for San Francisco hosting the America’s Cup goes beyond the opportunity to see our team competing on home waters,” said Russell Coutts, CEO, ORACLE Racing, the current America’s Cup defending team. “We are excited to sail for our sport’s greatest trophy, on a stretch of water legendary among sailors worldwide.”
The Race Village will be constructed on Piers 19 and 29, with the team bases at and around Pier 30/32.  As part of the plan, the America’s Cup Event Authority will redevelop these piers as well as the surrounding infrastructure to support the racing, while rehabilitating the piers for the enjoyment of generations of San Franciscans to come.

With a goal of creating the most dynamic America’s Cup in history for fans and participants, changes have been introduced to the 34th edition. Enhancements include the introduction of groundbreaking new 72′ wing-sailed catamarans capable of speeds in excess of 40 miles per hour, new race formats and rules, and a transformed media and online broadcasting approach to enable an interactive viewer experience.

In the summer of 2011, America’s Cup teams will commence racing in the new America’s Cup World Series in the new wing-sailed AC45 catamaran. The America’s Cup World Series calendar of events will be published in early 2011.

found on artemisracing.com

Louis Vuitton Trophy – Dubai – Round Robin 2 Wrap Up

Well, it came down to the crunch today.  We needed three pieces of the puzzle to go our way, one of which was completely within our control.

In the first race today, Emirates Team New Zealand came from behind to overtake Synergy (RUS), that was the first piece of the puzzle. The second piece was our race against ALL4ONE.  It was a must win.  We had to win to have any chance of continuing through to the semi-finals.

The third piece was to have been Emirates Team New Zealand’s win over ALL4ONE in the last race of the day. The breeze was light and shifty and we were up against the French/German team in the first race of the second flight.  We wanted the left side of the course and to be tight to leeward at the start. We got both. Perfect.  But we made the wrong call regarding the course.  I think ALL4ONE must have wanted the right side.  They chose it and were off.  From there they comfortably crossed us at the first meet and despite our best efforts we just couldn’t get to them.

photography by Sander van der Borch/Aertemis Racing

found on artemisracing.com

Photography by Sander van der Borch / Artemis Racing

Found on artemisracing.com

California’s general coastline is 840 miles long.

California as a state is 770 miles long and 250 miles wide at its most distant points. The difference is due to they way the coast line curves in directions at various points like with the shape of the bays.

Here seen through the lens of photographer Rob Keith.

found on robkeithphotography.com

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (8 November 2010) –

Artemis Racing confirmed today the team’s entry as a Challenger for the 34th America’s Cup, which will include competing in the America’s Cup World Series in 2011-2012 and culminate with the Challenger Selection Series in 2013.

Speaking at today’s press conference Torbjörn Törnqvist, Chairman of Artemis Racing, shared his vision for the team and endorsed the new format for the America’s Cup.  Torbjörn Törnqvist also spoke of the important role of the Royal Swedish Yacht Club (KSSS) in the team’s challenge.

The Royal Swedish Yacht Club (KSSS), one of the world’s oldest yacht clubs, has a longstanding history with the America’s Cup, having had three Challenges since the America’s Cup began in 1851. KSSS Commodore Jacob Wallenberg stated: “KSSS is honoured to be alongside Artemis Racing for the next America’s Cup. This is an important milestone for the Club and sailing in Sweden. It is also important for Swedish junior sailors, as a project of this magnitude will inspire them and provide excellent role models.”

Over the course of the next three years, Artemis Racing will be focused on designing and building two AC72 yachts, while also developing a strong sailing team to compete in the AC45 World Series and the Challenger Selection Series. The clear goal is to challenge Cup holders BMW ORACLE Racing for the America’s Cup in 2013.

“We have been orienting Artemis Racing toward the America’s Cup for more than a year. With much of the plan for the 34th America’s Cup now defined by the Defender, and an early start for the team, we have a tremendous opportunity to mount a winning campaign.” said Paul Cayard, CEO of Artemis Racing.

photography by Sander van der Borch

found on artemisracing.com

It was at 15 hours 16 minutes 47 seconds (GMT) today that the skipper of Groupama took victory in his first solo transatlantic race! Beneath the glorious sunshine of Guadeloupe and surrounded by a horde of spectator craft, Franck Cammas couldn’t conceal his happiness and his emotion. He covered the 3,539 miles in 9 days 3 hours 14 minutes and 47 seconds, at an average speed of 16.14 knots… Franck Cammas’ achievement is a sizeable one on a trimaran spanning 31.5 metres in length and 22.5 metres wide! In fact she is the biggest boat that has ever competed in the Route du Rhum la Banque Postale! Hearty congratulations to Franck for expertly helming his Groupama 3.

found on cammas-groupama.com

An experienced sailor and internationally renowned nautical photographer,

Sander van der Borch is behind the lens and the imagery of ARTEMIS. For more than a decade,

Sander sailed as an amateur with Peter de Ridder’s Mean Machine team and began his career in photography shooting the TP52 Mean Machine. Sander also sails onboard the RC44 KATUSHA.

photography by Sander van der Borch / Artemis Racing

found on artemisracing.com

The spirit that drove those commercial sailors along the web of trade routes, deep into the bleak latitudes of the Southern Ocean and around the world’s most dangerous capes, emerges today in the form of the Volvo Ocean Race, a contest now seen as the pinnacle of achievement in the sport.

The first edition of this sporting adventure came in the wake of two remarkable sailors of the last century, Sir Francis Chichester and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, men who drew worldwide acclaim for amazing solo voyages around the planet. Inevitably their success led to talk in international sailing circles of a race around the world for fully crewed yachts. It became a reality in 1973 with The Whitbread round the World Race, the longest, most demanding and perilous sporting contest the world had known.

Dangerous it was. In that very first race three competing sailors were lost after being washed overboard during storms. This led to the inevitable call for that inaugural contest to be the last, but the desire for unbridled adventure and great competition led to the race being staged every four years.

The re-badged Volvo Ocean Race was run for the first time in 2001-02. Today it is, quite simply, the ‘Everest of Sailing’.

found on volvooceanrace.org

Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez is an amazing rendezvous of yachts. First run twenty-six years ago as La Nioulargue, the regatta gathers together the most extraordinary modern sailing boats alongside the most beautiful traditional yachts in the early autumn. A host of racers and sailing enthusiasts come from all the corners of the globe to do battle in the bay of Saint-Tropez. The Trophée Rolex is awarded to the winner of the Classic Division over 16 metres.

found on regattanews.com