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EARLS COURT V. EXCEL
Since 2004 the London Boat Show has been held at ExCeL. After a bumper 210,000 visitors in the first year, attendances have been dwindling, with 80,000 less visitors in 2007. On the back of this a new Earls Court Boat Show has been announced.

There are obvious problems with Earls Court as a venue; street lamps had to be moved just to get the large superyachts down the London streets and the venue just wasn't big enough for the number of exhibitors wanting to come, but ExCeL also has two main problems.

First is the location. The Docklands area is having a massive amount of redevelopment, but is currently a building site. Driving up the A13 from the M25 is through an industrial wasteland and taking the Dockland Light Railway from Central London is often seriously overcrowded and not what people want to do after a day's work.

The second major concern is the ExCeL centre itself. The building is just two giant halls with a long central dividing corridor. Masts cannot be up on any large yachts and there is no way to get an overview of the show from an elevated position. This is what people miss about Earls Court. This has changed the nature of the London Boat Show from a show to an exhibition.

The announcement of a new Earls Court Boat Show is unsurprising since there have been grumblings within the industry about ExCeL for some time. Holding the show from 1-9 December 2007 is surely dooming this initiative to failure, with the Paris International Boat Show on from 1-10 December 2007. Exhibitors cannot be in two places at once and international companies will always stick with the established major show.

The British Marine Federation is quick to point at success stories from the London Boat Show. Increased sales figures boost confidence in the industry, but is this just the result of a growing economy and massive City bonuses?

The major question in my mind is whether the industry needs two major domestic shows in a year. Exhibiting at ExCeL is a major expense for the industry both financially and in people's time. The motor and cycling industries only have one each, both at ExCeL. Should the London Boat Show be canned altogether? Or alternatively should the Southampton Boat Show be canned and the London Boat Show held in September at ExCeL when outside docks could be used properly?

Time for the industry to do some serious thinking and decision making. -- Mark Jardine, Online Editor, Yachts & Yachting Online Ltd.

* Editor: This from Cowes Online, naming none other than Paul Streeter as operations director:

The organisers of the new Earls Court Boat Show, scheduled for December, have secured backing from drinks firm Whyte and Mackay.

James Brooke and John Vincent have secured sponsorship from whisky brand Whyte and Mackay, of which Vincent is a Director, and their operations director is none other than Paul Streeter, ex Managing Director of National Boat Shows, organiser of the ExCeL show. Also on the team is Nigel Nathan, the Group Commercial Director of Earls Court and Olympia.

The founders say that the new show at an old venue is a "revival" and will be about "the magic of sailing and the community spirit which is so special to sailors".

The show will run from 1-9 December 2007, with a press and preview day on 30 November and the battle for exhibitors and visitors will rage all year between the organisers of the new show and the BMF. -- www.cowes.co.uk/cb/zone?p=story;story_id=2356

STAMM PASSES THROUGH THE FIRST ICE GATE
This weekend presented Bernard Stamm on Cheminees Poujoulat with a challenging route to pass through the first ice way gate in leg 2 of the Velux 5 Oceans, a mandatory line positioned at 52 degrees South between 160 and 145 degrees West. But the defending champion's tactics were both daring and flawless, and certainly delivered the desired results. With the onset of a high pressure system from the north that would have left him wallowing without wind, Stamm dived south, ignoring the westerly mark of the ice gate. Using this tactic Cheminees Poujoulat sailed many more miles but at a much faster speed than if he'd sailed the direct route. He passed the eastern end of the way gate at around 18:30 UTC last night.

"After having rounded the easterly mark of the gate one, I'm now heading east, more or less on the great circle. The wind is very shifty in force and in direction. It goes from 12 to 30 knots and it can change by 40 degrees. It is not so easy to set the right sail. But the general direction of the wind is good, I'm doing the right course, so everything is ok."

Latest position report:

1.Cheminees Poujoulat, 9299 nm to leg finish
2. Spirit of Yukoh, 1052 nm to leader
3. PAKEA, 2155
4. A Southern Man-AGD, 2190
5. SAGA Insurance, 2196

www.velux5oceans.com

AUSSIE DOMINATE FIRST DAY OF WARREN JONES YOUTH REGATTA
Perth, Western Australia: Australian skippers have dominated the opening day of the Warren Jones Youth Regatta on the Swan River, including two local Western Australian skippers in the top four.

Sydney sailor Evan Walker from the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia tops the leaderboard after the first day of the match racing event, undefeated in all seven races he sailed.

The Royal Perth Yacht Club's Torvar Mirsky holds second place with six wins from seven races, with Keith Swinton from across the river at South of Perth Yacht Club also putting in a strong performance, being undefeated, but only having sailed five races.

Walker had spent the weekend sailing 18 Foot Skiffs on Sydney harbour before jumping on a plane for a 3,000 mile dash across the country to contest this series, but the jet lag seems to have done him no harm.

The best of the overseas visitors was England's Ali Hall with a 3 – 3 win loss scoreline at the end of the day.

The regatta in memory of Warren Jones, the man who masterminded Australia II's famous America's Cup victory in 1983 has attracted sailors from Britain, Sweden and Japan to sail against Australians from three states.

Racing continues on the Swan River's Matilda Bay until Thursday, and this year the regatta marks the 20th anniversary of Australia losing the America's Cup to American Dennis Conner. -- John Roberson

Results:
1. Evan Walker, AUS, 7 wins, 0 losses
2. Torvar Mirsky, AUS, 6, 1
3. Keith Swinton, AUS, 5, 0
4. Murray Gordon, AUS, 5, 2
5. Mark Dorling, AUS, 4, 3
6. Ali Hall, GBR, 3, 3
7= Yuki Nagahori, JPN, 2, 5
7= Tom Barker, AUS, 2, 5
9. Peter Nicholas. AUS, 1, 5
10. Nick Deussen, AUS, 1, 6
11. John Back, SWE, 0, 6

NXR SYSTEM
The NXR grand prix instrumentation system from Nexus Marine was launched in the UK at the London Boat Show to an enthusiastic response from big boat owners. Designed for large race boats and superyachts, the NXR is the result of a long process of development and customer consultation. Combining a powerful, multi-function network with XLR masthead displays optimised for clear yet unobtrusive viewing, the NXR can process, analyse and display data from an unprecedented range of hardware, form load sensors to tactical software, as well as the standard instrumentation feeds. For more information, contact UK distributor Silva Ltd via www.silva.ltd.uk

CHINESE WHISPERS
These are heady days for the Volvo Ocean Race commercial team as negotiations continue apace with prospective port stopovers in the ground-breaking outposts on the 2008-09 route.

The air miles continue to pile up for George Blake, the Volvo's Director of Strategic Relationships, and the visa entry stamps of China, India and the Middle East clog the pages of his passport.

While talks are at advanced stage in a number of the wish-list frontiers, according to Blake, the competition is particularly intense in China with Shanghai, Qingdao, Hainan Island, Hong Kong and Guangzhou all vying for stopover bragging rights. And a lot more besides.

'There is already massive interest in sailing in China, and even though there was no Chinese entry in the 2005–2006 Volvo Ocean Race, a remarkable 253.2million Chinese viewers, a quarter-of-a-billion, 14% of the total 1.8billion global audience tuned in, so with a Chinese stopover and a Chinese entry, the potential numbers watching the 2008–2009 race in China are quite staggering.'

Of those who ply their trade on the coal face of ocean racing, Mike Sanderson, the winning skipper in 2005-06, relishes the prospect not only of a Chinese stopover, but also racing against a Chinese boat.

Sanderson says: 'Many of my friends are sailing on Emirates Team New Zealand in this year's America's Cup against Team China and they tell me how professionally they go about anything they undertake, so a Volvo Ocean Race stop over in China would be phenomenal.

www.volvooceanrace.org

ALINGHI ADDS PETER GILMOUR TO ITS ROSTER
Peter Gilmour, a veteran of five America's Cup campaigns, has joined Alinghi as a coach to help improve the performance of the team. He will act as a consultant, sailing with the team periodically over the lead up to racing.

"We look forward to having Peter Gilmour on board as a consultant to provide us with a fresh, objective analysis of our performance," says skipper Brad Butterworth. "When you race in-house as regularly as we do, it is vital to measure yourself against outside competitors and as there is just a fleet race left before the Match, we won't have this opportunity. Therefore we are seeking an objective point of view and bringing in an outsider of Peter's calibre will hopefully bring some new ideas and a critical analysis of our match race skills."

Gilmour first participated in the America's Cup as a starting helmsman for Kookaburra III, an unsuccessful candidate to become the defender in Fremantle in 1987. His most successful outing was with OneWorld, which finished in third place in the Louis Vuitton Cup in 2003. Gilmour has a reputation for aggressive sailing – especially in the pre-start.

www.americascup.com

TERRORIST THREAT TO AMERICA'S CUP
A terrorist threat has been made to the America's Cup in Valencia.

Spanish police have arrested a 26-year-old man who is believed to be a member of the Basque separatist group ETA. He was travelling on a train between Perpignan and Barcelona when he was taken into a custody. The suspect was carrying bomb-making plans, 3,000 euros and documents with false identities. Anti-terrorist police sources claim he had been sent to plan an attack on the America's Cup.

ETA is on the United Nations and European Union's lists as a terrorist organisation. It is estimated to have been responsible for hundreds of murders.

www.radiosport.co.nz/SportsNews/spyac/Detail.aspx?id=111459

JPMORGAN ASSET MANAGEMENT WINTER CHALLENGE
The fifth JPMorgan Asset Management Winter Challenge match racing qualifier took place this weekend (27-28 January) at Queen Mary Sailing Club, Staines.

The British have won all the qualifiers to date but this weekend the five overseas teams from France, Germany and Finland saw off the Brits in the round robin and secured all the places in the semi final. Claire Leroy's all-women team from France, the leader on the world women's match race rankings, topped the round robin. Jon Eriksson from Finland was next with Christian Ponthieu from France and Sven Erik Horsch from Germany third and fourth in the round robin.

Claire Leroy sailing with Marie Riou, Elodie Bertrand, Ingrid Cerrato, Ophelie Thenon had a shock in the first race of the final losing the match in the stronger winds to Jon Eriksson with Jan Mattsson, Kenneth Nysten, Kenneth Blomster. However she started sailing more defensively and used her match racing skills to go on to win the next two matches to secure her place in the final of the JPMorgan Asset Management Winter Challenge (9-11 March).

Leroy will also be back again in a month's time for the Women's final where she will be against the Women's number two and three in the World Match Race Rankings. However the next weekend on 9-11 February has attracted the best in the Men's World Match Race Rankings with seven teams attending from the top 25 of the rankings including Mathieu Richard and Ian Williams.

Final Results

1. Claire Leroy (FRA), Marie Riou, Elodie Bertrand, Ingrid Cerrato, Ophelie Thenon
2. Jon Eriksson (FIN), Jan Mattsson, Kenneth Nysten, Kenneth Blomster
3. Christian Ponthieu (FRA), Olivier Camebourg, Olivier Cardin, David DeLarue
4. Sven Erik Horsch (GER), Mirko Masek, Ole von Studnitz, Alexander Nibbe
5. Ed Hill (GBR), Christian Hamilton, Jeremy Fowke, Tom Odell
6. David Tabb (GBR), James Cole, Rob Kemp, Jason Foster
7. Robbie Allam (GBR), Adam Richards, Pete Allam, Matt Pinner
8. Antti Luhta (FIN) Kim Kurenmaa, Johan Neuvius, Timo Soini
9. Andrew Shaw (GBR) Jo Brigg, Dan Schieber, Tom Hodkinson, Nick Blevin.

Future Events

Qualifier 6 (9-11 Feb)
Women's Final (23-25 Feb)
Final (9-11 March)

rya.org.uk

SOLO MEDITERRANEE CANCELLED
For three years, Mer & Media, the Yacht Club Porquerolles and the Yacht Club de la Grande Motte have organized the Figaro class' Solo Mediterranee, annually the first major solo event in the class' calendar.

Unfortunately over the last three months the Yacht Club de la Grande Motte has taken it upon itself to organise the Cap Istanbul race from Marseille to Istanbul, Turkey, a race the Figaro-Beneteau class have chosen to support. The class association is also supporting the Trophy BPE, this year being sailed singlehanded. Because of these circumstances the organisers have chosen not to run the Solo Mediterranee this year.

They are currently looking into whether it will be worth their holding the event in 2008.

www.thedailysail.com

SPEED CLASS JOINS IWA
Speed windsurfers have taken the next step forward in the development of their class. The Speed Class becomes the 7th member class of the International Windsurfing Association (IWA).

Starting in January 2007 the class will be represented on the executive committee of IWA.

However the immediate priority remains confirming ISAF status as an "international class". The application made to the November 2006 Conference was deferred to allow a further period of time to evaluate the class rules. This process has been completed; and one direct consequence is adoption of a new name - International Speed Windsurfing Class.

Tour Manager, Markus Schwendtner, confirmed that eveything is in place for the 2007 World Tour and full details of events, rules and membership can still be found on the ISA website.

www.speedsurfing.org

HIGHLIGHTS FROM 100 YEARS OF SAILING
2007 is ISAF's centenary year. Throughout the year ISAF will be celebrating its centenary and 100 years of sailing. Each week Highlights From 100 Years Of Sailing will take a look back at some of the landmark moments in our sport.

Tabarly Beats The Brits: 19 June 1964

Eric Tabarly (FRA) sailed into Newport, Rhode Island to win the second Observer Single-Handed Transatlantic Race (OSTAR) and become an overnight hero in his home country and the catalyst for the ensuing French domination of single-handed offshore sailing.

The 32 year old French naval officer was given leave to compete in the second running of the OSTAR, with a firm aim 'to beat the English'.

Four years earlier, five boats had lined up for the first ever OSTAR won by Sir Francis Chichester (GBR) in 40 days, 12 hours and 30 minutes on the 40 foot Gypsy Moth III. The single French entrant Jean Lacombe finished last, 34 days after Chichester.

www.sailing.org/default.asp?PID=20111

THE LAST WORD
The most perfidious way of harming a cause consists of defending it deliberately with faulty arguments. -- Friedrich Nietzsche

OC Events, www.ocevents.org , organisers of two major IMOCA 60 oceanic events, the new double-handed Barcelona World Race 2007, and the original solo transocean race, The Transat 2008 (ex-OSTAR) plus the Extreme 40 Sailing Series for The iShares Cup.

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