Brought to you by boats.com Europe with the support of OC Events, Scuttlebutt Europe is a digest of sailing news and opinions, regatta results, new boat and gear information and letters from sailors -- with a European emphasis. Contributions welcome, send to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

PASZKE EYES SOLO ROUND-THE-WORLD RECORD
Gdynia, Poland: Polish sailor Roman Paszke is preparing for a lonely 10 weeks at sea.

The 56-year-old is planning to have a crack at breaking Briton Ellen MacArthur's solo round the world record of 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds.

And in attempting to break that remarkable feat, Paszke, who will embark on his first solo effort, will set sail from the same place that MacArthur launched her record navigation, the Isle of Ushant off the coast of Brittany in France.

He plans on leaving next month aboard his Bioton catamaran before heading for the Cape of Good Hope, rounding Australia's Cape Leeuwin and finally negotiating the hazardous Cape Horn before returning to Ushant.

To beat the record, Paszke is hoping to rely on his vast experience of the open seas, his custom-made catamaran and that little bit of lady luck needed to achieve something truly remarkable.

But it is in Bioton that he will put most of his faith.

"It's a faster boat than Ellen's but it's more difficult to master. You really have to know it's limits," he said.

Paszke has had little time to test his vessel. Bioton was first launched a week ago in Sweden and next week Paszke will sail from here to Falmouth in England before waiting for the meteorological go-ahead.

"The results of the first tests across the Baltic are encouraging, even if there are a many details to iron out, particularly with regards to the navigation and communication systems," the Pole said.

Should he make it all the way around the world and back home, Paszke will become the second Pole to do so, following in the wake of Henryk Jaskula who, in 1980, took 344 days aboard his monocoque Dar Przemysla.

Taipei Times: www.taipeitimes.com/News/sport/archives/2007/01/24/2003346200
Photos of the new cat at TheDailySail.com

IN FROM THE COLD?
The rumours were that she had retired from sailing for good, fallen in love and planned to spend all her time building an eco-house on the Isle of Skye. Ever hands on, she has been doing some of the building herself, but Dame Ellen MacArthur says that she has not disappeared from public view for ever. She has just been on ice and to prove it she spent the weekend in St Moritz, Switzerland, trying the four-man bob for the first time on the only natural ice run in the world. She emerged thrilled from her 75 seconds on the 80mph, mile-long ride.

MacArthur has often wrong-footed the pundits on what she was going to do. In 2004, they thought she was going to take part in the Vendee Globe and instead she went for and broke the solo round-the-world record. It was always known she had something new planned, but in the spaces left by her silences, rumour flourished about the next step for the 5ft 2in woman from Derbyshire, who became the most famous sailor of her generation.

"We're in the final days of organising the next project, there are lots of options of the table," MacArthur said. "We're building an IMOCA 60 [in Cowes] and the Round Britain & Ireland Challenge will be my next race. It's categorically not true [I've retired]. I'm 30, not 50. I'm motivated. I'm not about to emigrate to some island in the middle of nowhere."

She insists she is definitely not doing the 2008-09 Vendee Globe, the blue-riband 60-footer race that brought her to global attention when she finished second in 2000, at the age of 24. Some of her potential competitors, such as Mike Golding, are not so sure. "I am still hopeful of persuading Ellen," Golding said. "It's going to be such an amazing field, the best ever, and I don't think she should, or will want to miss it."

MacArthur laughs. "Mike said that?" she asked. "I had to make the decision. The last round-the-world was brutal and I knew if I went into the Vendee I'd come out and say I can't do that again."Her biggest project will centre on the Barcelona World Race, a novel two-handed round-the-world race that begins in November and is being set up by Offshore Challenges, the company she founded with Mark Turner, her business partner, in 1995. At least one of the entries - Turner says there are eight so far, though only five have been announced - will be a team run by MacArthur. But there are more ambitious plans.

"We are probably in the last ten days of deciding [what to do]," Turner said. "February 15 is the day to decide which way to go. What form that team takes, whether we have the funding to do more than one boat, a second later, two boats in 2008, I don't know. But the objective was always to get to two boats. Ellen would lead the project with two skippers."

Full article by Matthew Pryor in the London Times:
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/more_sport/sailing/article1343023.ece

VOLVO YOUTH SAILING ISAF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
The entry deadline for nations applying for funding from the ISAF Athlete Participation Programme (APP) to compete in this year's Volvo Youth Sailing ISAF World Championship has been extended until 23 February 2007. The 37th ISAF Youth Worlds is taking place in Kingston, Ontario, Canada from 12-21 July.

ISAF has extended the APP deadline as several nations are still in the process of selecting their participants, and therefore were unable to meet the original deadline date of 26 January 2007.

Sailors and parents interested in the APP should contact their MNA to make an application.

The APP has an annual budget of 15,000 pounds to assist sailors from smaller, developing sailing nations - in particular those new to ISAF Championships - pay for travel costs and entry fees. As well as being able to compete at the world's premier youth event, the young sailors on the APP also receiving coaching throughout the regatta from renowned British coach Jim Saltonstall, whose appointment is funded by the World Youth Sailing Trust. More - www.sailing.org/default.asp?PID=20150

ISAF OFFSHORE PERSONAL SURVIVAL TRAINING COURSE
An special offer to take the ISAF training course at a professional Naval establishment

Conducted in the English language, the German Maritime Search and Rescue Service DGzRS together with the DSV Fachverband Segeln Bremen will provide two certified Offshore Personal Survival Training Courses in compliance with ISAF Offshore Special Reg. Section 6.

The courses are open to all crews of offshore sailing races. However the Transatlantic Blue Race 2007 entries will have priority as each course has limited capacity. Otherwise, places are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Offshore Personal Survival Training Course 19-21 March
- Location: Wieksbergstr. 16, 2730 Neustadt/Holstein, Germany
- Duration: from Monday 19th March at 0900 to Wednesday 21st at 1100
- Maximum 15 participants
- Course fee: 300 Euros per person
- Participants will be accommodated at the DGzRS hostel/training centre with all meals provided through DGzRS or the Naval Base operating the training facilities
- As the course will start on19th at 09:00 participants are welcome to arrive Sunday pm.

Contact details/application: Torben Knappe,
Norddeutsche Regatta Verein, Schöne Aussicht 37
22085 Hamburg, Germany
+49 (0) 40-32 03 02 54
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

A course will be provided in the German language from 22nd-24th March. There are regular trains between Hamburg via Luebeck to Neustadt (100 km; aprox. 2 hrs). Probably the best is train to Luebeck and taking a taxi (30 km). The training school is in walking distance of the centre/train station. From the UK German Wings (low-cost division of Lufthansa) flies to Hamburg main airport and Ryanair flies to "Hamburg Luebeck". -- Alan Green

MATCHRACE.COM FOR SALE
A lovely domain name for a team, yacht club, sailing center, wealthy America's Cup syndicate with money to burn, etc. Serious inquiries only. Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or dmccreary on Skype.

NEW NATIONAL TWELVE DATABASE
The National Twelve Owners Association has now created an on-line database of all boats built, and is asking current and past owners of National 12s to visit the website at national12.org and contribute information. As Antony Gifford, Chairman of the NTOA explained "The database will serve a number of purposes, enabling the NTOA to track and retain the history of individual boats while also creating a resource accessible to anybody interested in finding out more about a boat they own or are interested in buying".

To help guide the class through another 70 years the Class Association is conducting a national census of National 12 sailors past, present and future. This survey has been open since December, and has now been extended until March 11th. It is the hope of the NTOA that this survey will be completed by as many people as possible, whether or not they have any current or historical link to the class.

The survey will only demand a short amount of time to complete and one lucky winner will win a Gill Coast Sport Jacket worth 100 pounds; the winner will be drawn at random from the complete scripts. The survey can be completed on the National 12 website www.national12.org

STOLEN ART?
The National Maritime Museum at Greenwich is checking a 'quagmire' of documents to see if a series of paintings and models it holds were looted by British troops from the Murwick Naval Academy on Germany's Baltic coast at the end of World War II.

Seven paintings, including a seascape by Claus Bergen, another by Carl Saltzmann and nine models including one of Hitler's yacht are among the collection at the centre of the controversy. All items are in storage and not on show, like many other exhibits at the museum.

If the exhibits did once belong to the Murwick Academy, the NMM, may be forced to hand them back.

www.ybw.com/auto/newsdesk/20070101102014ymnews.html

PORTOFINO PANTS
For a night out with the crew or for racing off Valencia, these canvas pants are perfect for all activities. This modern, classic, Italian design is also great for crew dress uniforms!

The Portofino Pants are made from 9 oz. brushed, soft cotton canvas. They have a relaxed fit with plain front, hemmed legs, zipper fly, belt loops, two deep side pockets, and two stitched rear-pockets with Velcro closures. They are designed with a double seat for protection and gusseted crotch for full range of motion. The stone colored front and mist gray or khaki back give these pants a unique look. www.camet.com

CASA DE CAMPO READY FOR PRESIDENTE CUP
La Romana, Dominican Republic: The inaugural Casa de Campo Regatta 2007 Presidente Cup is set to open tomorrow with 26 entries racing off the Dominican Republic.

The overall winner will receive the Presidente Cup and a watch from event sponsor Corum.

Racing commences tomorrow and subsequent race days follow on Thursday and Saturday. The regatta will be scored under the PHRF handicapping system.

Two races per day are planned for Wednesday and Thursday. Saturday's final race is scheduled to take competitors around Isla Catalina. The fleet could be bolstered by three superyachts, including the Bruce King-designed 150-foot ketch Alejandra.

Friday is a day of activity for entrants. An exhibition match race regatta, featuring World Match Racing Tour President Scott MacLeod and noted sailing scribe Tom Leweck [Editor of the original Scuttlebutt], will be held in the morning followed by a golf tournament in the afternoon.

Gianfranco Fini's Comet 51 Sport Bellissima is scratch boat in the fleet with the low rating of -10. The skipper is head of the Gianfranco Fini firm, a renowned architectural firm headquartered in Rome. Fini designed the Casa de Campo Marina and Yacht Club. -- Sean McNeill

www.CasadeCampoRegatta.com

INDUSTRY NEWS
* Paddy Boyd, former Chief Executive of the Irish Sailing Association, has remained closely aligned with the sailing sector since his "retirement". His new business, Boyd Boats, operates from Dun Laoghaire's Carlisle Pier, just a stone's throw from his former ISA offices. While he has left behind the administration of a National Authority, he still works on their behalf at ISAF level as a member of the Offshore and Youth and Development Committees.

The new company, which among other things, is Irish agent for J-Boats, aims to service the growing sailing and boating market in Ireland.

* Marine exhaust system manufacturer, Halyard, has announced two company Directors to complete the company's management re-structuring.

Stuart Cochrane, the lean manufacturing specialist who joined Halyard 18 months ago, becomes Manufacturing Director. Jane Turner, ACCA, joins as Finance Director and brings a strong background in manufacturing accountancy. Halyard now has a board of five, headed by James Grazebrook as Managing Director and also including Zeb Elliott who joined as Sales Director in 2006 from Selden Masts, and Graham Clapp as Design Director.

Halyard is now Europe's largest designer and manufacturer of marine exhaust systems, employing 90 people and concentrating on applications for craft between 15m and 100m. The company recently won the Queen's Award for Enterprise, in the Innovation category, for its work in developing new ways to reduce exhaust noise on large powered craft.

* Simpson Marine, dealer for Beneteau, has signed a historical contract with the organisers of the 'China Cup International', to supply ten Beneteau racing yachts for the new Shenzhen-based regatta - the first significant yacht purchase of its type from China.

The sale of the ten identical First 40.7 (12m) yachts was officiated at a prestigious signing ceremony in France at the Beneteau Group Headquarters, Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez, on 22 January. It was attended by a number of representatives, including China Cup administrator, Mr Zhong Yong; Olivier Decamps of Simpson Marine; and Mr Li Quanhai, Vice President of the China Yachting Association.

The China Cup in Shenzhen, which will take place in October prior to the China Coast Regatta and the Hainan Race, will include a number of Olympic and Island courses that will put China on the international sailing calendar. According to Mr. Zhong Yong, the event organisers believe the regatta will become one of the major racing events in Asia.

* Hyde Sails is sponsoring two top sailors in an Olympic Tornado campaign. Tom Phipps and Jon Cook have been sailing together for the past 11 years already winning several prestigious titles on the catamaran circuit. The two boys, both studying for A levels, have recently joined the RYA Olympic development squad and hope to represent Great Britain in 2012.

The dynamic duo train regularly in Falmouth while RYA Olympic training takes place in Weymouth. They will also compete in key Tornado events during 2007 and campaign a Tiger to get as much big fleet training as possible. So far medals include gold and silver at three ISAF youth world championships and a second in the Hobie 16 Youth World Championships. Tom has recently been awarded BBC South West young sports personality of the year 2006.

* The first all Wales Boat Show, at Carmarthen, UK, has been scheduled to take place from May 5-7, 2007.

Organisers say the event aims to offer not only a boat show but also a complete nautical and leisure extravaganza.

Located in the heart of the South Wales boating and fishing community, at the United Counties Show ground, Carmarthen, the show will occupy an area of 14 acres (56,660sqm) with ample parking and 10,000sqft (929sqm) of fixed indoor arena linked by tarmac access roads to exhibition halls. The main seated grandstand area overlooks the casting and fly fishing arena.

The show will cater for every aspect of being on or near the water in Wales and the UK, with special emphasis on Welsh boat manufacturing. There will be themed areas for sea fishing, diving, chandlery, electronics, magazines and education.

The show's website will feature its supporters and sponsors together with all the exhibitors in the show, as well as the show catalogue with advertising opportunities. The website can be found at www.welshboatshow.co.uk -- IBI News, www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20070030104710ibinews.html

* boot 2007 in Dusseldorf, which drew to a close on Sunday, 28 January, after a nine-day run, was characterised by increases in the calibre of visitors and their buying power, but there was also a dearth of newcomers interested in watersports, compounded by poor weather and traffic conditions at the start of the event. A total of 273,000 high-calibre visitors from over 60 countries around the globe flocked to the world's No. 1 yachting and watersports trade fair in Düsseldorf to find out about the premieres, new watersports equipment and services showcased by the 1,644 exhibitors from 56 nations. In 2006, boot attracted 292,000 visitors.

The 39th boot Düsseldorf will be staged from 19 to 27 January 2008.

BYM News, www.bymnews.com/news/newsDetails.php?id=3188

* Ancasta, the largest boat sales network in Europe, has recruited Graham Laver as Sales Manager for the Lagoon range.

Graham previously worked with Sunsail as Yacht Sales Manager for 12 years. He replaces Gilly Russell, who is emigrating to Australia.

* Andres Cardenas has been appointed as the new managing director of the Rodman Group.

Cardenas developed a career in engineering and business management in Germany, and has held posts of maximum responsibility in top multinational companies in the German automobile industry, such as General Motors and BMW.

Over the last decade he has been general manager of Sintax Logística, a company that specialises in international logistics services.

The appointment has been made at the same time as the launch of the new range of yachts under the Rodman MUSE trademark, recently presented at the Barcelona Boat Show. -- IBI News, www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20070026115238ibinews.html

THE LAST WORD
Why is it that we rejoice at a birth and grieve at a funeral? It is because we are not the person involved. -Mark Twain

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.

Over 80,000 boats for sale on www.boats.com

Scuttlebutt Europe is available via email:
To subscribe, send an email to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit scuttlebutteurope.com

Editorial and letter submissions to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Advertising inquiries to Graeme Beeson: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or see www.scuttlebutteurope.com/content/view/7/6/