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EVEN UP... AGAIN
Alinghi, the Defender of the 32nd America's Cup, beat Emirates Team New Zealand on Wednesday to square the Match at two wins apiece. The Swiss team was in control for the entire race, leading the Emirates squad around the race course.

It was another day of tricky, shifty conditions, with the light 8 to 10 knot wind blowing out of the East-northeast. SUI 100 helmsman Ed Baird won the right hand side of the starting line and Alinghi was in a powerful position for the rest of the race.

The America's Cup Match scoreline reads 2-2 heading into Thursday, a scheduled 'off' day. Racing will resume on Friday, with Race Five scheduled to start at 15:00. -- www.americascup.com

* Just when you thought it was safe to go outside . . . the whole world opens up beneath you - that's if you are a crewman on Alinghi.

You have won the race and you are on your way home when you are asked to demonstrate that you can conform to ACC Rule 31.6: 'Mainsails shall be able to be lowered to the deck without the necessity of a crew member going aloft.'

The details of what went on will only be released to the International Jury when it sits at 1100 local time on Thursday June 28th. Further speculation might be unwise, but it is as well to note the use of 'shall' is taken as mandatory. Suffice to say that the entire incident was recorded on television showing Pieter van Nieuwenhuyzen at the masthead to release the head of the sail.

To be penalised would be unfortunate because Alinghi had won the fourth race by sailing better than Emirates Team New Zealand. The margin between the two teams was hairline, but that is sufficient difference at this level of competition.

Tomorrow the jury meets and there will be many outside the doors of the 'room' waiting to hear its decision. Much may hang on it. -- Excerpts from Bob Fisher's commentary on Sail-World.com, full article at www.sail-world.com/indexs.cfm?nid=35158

* So Alinghi gets the initiative back by squaring the series but Dalton immediately snatches the momentum by launching a protest over the Swiss halyard lock. This is great gamesmanship from the Kiwis and it's really going to get under the skin of the Defenders. I like Dalton's style... -- Magnus Wheatley in www.rule69blog.com

* About a million years ago, looking ahead to racing for the America's Cup, Emirates Team New Zealand's American tactician Terry Hutchinson predicted, "I think it will be about how they go against us in the light stuff and how we go against them in a breeze."

Well, in Race 4, Alinghi went very well against New Zealand in the light stuff.

Considering how lumpy it was, you might have thought the narrower NZL 92, with its finer entry, would be happier than the famously upmoded SUI 100 (even if it's been recently downmoded to meet its opponent partway).

If ever the Kiwi boat was going to look superior to the Swiss boat, surely this was it.

Instead, Alinghi's wire-to-wire win inspired German photographer Heike Schwab to say, "Back to normal." -- Kimball Livingston in his Sail magazine blog: sailmagazine.blogspot.com

SNSM TROPHY
The epilogue of the third event of the ORMA Championship took place this morning at the foot of the Saint-Malo ramparts. The 60' foot trimarans engaged in the cwhich left Saint-Nazaire Tuesday at 1:03 PM reached the corsair city shortly after 5:00 AM Wednesday. In order: Banque Populaire, Groupama 2 and Sopra Group. On the finishing line, moored off the Cezembre Island, a short distance separated the two crews of Franck Cammas and Pascal Bidegorry.

Groupama 2 crossed the line only two minutes after Banque Populaire. A beautiful finish after a long duel and over 16 hours within contact along the Brittany coast. The ORMA Champion title is now open! As for Gitana 11, they were forced to abandon the race due to front balcony damage while passing Ushant.

Leading most of the race, Franck and his men saw Banque Populaire coming after them shortly after the Brittany Point: "We had a great advance passing Ushant, but they caught up with us very fast on a reaching side. Many solutions were envisaged, changing front sails or trying a land option towards the end. But coming back on the situation now, there was nothing we could have done. I hope we get our revenge on the Rolex Fastnet Race" concluded the skipper of the Groupama trimarans. -- from www.cammas-groupama.com

On Wednesday afternoon June 27, Michel Desjoyeaux sailing FONCIA crossed the finish line winning the (IMOCA 60) division of the Saint Nazaire to Saint Malo race, and taking more than 5 and a half hours off the course record for the class. This is a very satisfying result for Michel in his boat's inaugural race less than one month after launching.

Following Michel were two other new Farr designed Open 60's; Jeremie Beyou's DELTA DORE and Vincent Riou's PRB. These three Farr IMOCA Open 60 designs dominated the monohull fleet in this race, which is used as a testing opportunity for upcoming races in the IMOCA Open 60 events calendar later this year, including the Transat Jacques Vabre, Barcelona two-handed race and the Vendee Globe. -- www.farryachtdesign.com

Event site: www.recordsnsm.com

THEY JUST KEEP GOING AND GOING
At all the regattas around the world, just look at what the crews are wearing. It is no surprise that the Camet Padded Shorts, Rio, Bermuda Aruba, Cargo Shorts and Pants are everywhere - from Opti sailors to the Farr 40's, Maxi's and cruisers. The comfort of the pads, the reinforced Cordura seat, the quick drying breathable Supplex fabrics, and the 97.5% UV protection provide the solutions for hours on the water. Check out the Shorts, Code Zero shirts, Neoprene Hiking pants, X5 shirts, Rash Guards, and Mylar bags on the Camet web site: www.camet.com/?Click=122

ETCHELLS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Day two of the Etchells World Championship in Cowes brought strong winds, incredibly close racing and more than a few gear and crew failures including two men overboard (both promptly recovered and now safe and well). With the wind averaging 22 to 26 knots and occasionally gusting over 30 from the South West the seas were large and the racing was incredibly physically demanding. Even some of the best crews found themselves struggling with only 28 of the 45 competitors crossing the finish line in today' second race.

Overall Andy Beadsworth, sailing GBR1361 with Oscar Strugstad and Simon Fry, retains his lead thanks to a seventh this morning, his worst result of the championship so far, and an unexpected third in the afternoon.

Best performance of the day definitely goes to Ante Razmilovic, sailing GBR1333 with Jez Fanstone and Stuart Flinn, who took third in the morning race and then won this afternoon with a beautifully controlled performance in near survival conditions. He now lies fourth overall on 24 points, just three points shy of third place.

All the crews and boats are safely home and tonight the marina, the sail lofts and David Heritage's yard are a hive of activity as repairs are made and spare parts and masts are found ready to do battle again tomorrow.

Top ten overall:

1. Andy Beadsworth, GBR, 17 points
2. Jud Smith, USA, 20
3. James Howells, GBR, 21
4. Ante Razmilovic, GBR, 24
5. Jon Andrews, NZL, 31
6. David Burrows, IRL, 34
7. Noel Drennan, AUS, 44
8. Jervis Tilly, AUS, 46
9. Tom Hughes, USA, 52
10. Mark Thornburrow, HKG, 56

www.etchell sworlds2007.org

ROUND AND ROUND THE ISLAND - THE SAILS IN FRONT
Sanders Sails have won the Gold Roman Bowl in the Round the Island Race for an astonishing fifth time in 6 years. The overall winner for 2007 was Edward Donald's Nordic Folkboat, 'Madelaine', which is converted to the IRC rule specifically for this annual race. 'Madelaine' has a considerable reputation, having come second overall in 2003 and 2006 and third overall in 2004.

Sanders Sails have powered 'Rosina of Beaulieu', Jeremy Rogers' Contessa 26 to win the gold bowl no less than 3 times, with 'Whooper', a 1939 Laurent Giles design, winning in 2004 to make up the five wins.

sanders-sails.co.uk

NINE DIVISIONS SET FOR THREE STARTS IN 44TH TRANSPAC
Seventy-four entries are in the virtual starting gate for the 44th Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii, now aligned as of Wednesday into nine divisions on three start dates scheduled to compress the finishes as much as is practical.

ap ratings are not yet determined, but there's little doubt that Pyewacket, Roy E. Disney's former maxZ86 that he has chartered back and rebuilt as a 94-foot racer with wings, will be the scratch boat and favorite for the traditional Barn Door trophy awarded to the monohull with the fastest elapsed time.

Should the modified Pyewacket falter in its maiden race, Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 should be close behind. It's an Andrews 80 that shattered the 22-year-old record in the Marina del Rey to Puerto Vallarta race last spring after finishing the 2005 Transpac behind only three larger boats in 2005.

Two of those boats---Hasso Plattner's record-breaking Morning Glory and Randall Pittman's Genuine Risk---aren't competing this year, but the premier fleet will be joined by something of an unknown threat: Roger Sturgeon's new STP65, Rosebud, that was built for off-wind races like Transpac but has astounded observers with its speed in two Southern California inshore buoy regattas the last month.

Sturgeon's previous Rosebud, a Transpac 52, was the overall winner on corrected handicap time in 2005.

The first group to fire off from Point Fermin in San Pedro on Monday, July 9, will include 23 boats in Aloha Divisions A and B and racing Division 6, followed by 27 in Divisions 4 and 5 and a special division of nine Santa Cruz 50s and 52s, plus the trimaran Minnow on Thursday, July 12.

Three days later on Sunday, July 15, the 22 biggest and fastest boats in Divisions 1, 2 and 3, plus the trimaran LoeReal, will start the 2,225-nautical mile haul to the finish line at Diamond Head. Among them will be Morning Light, Disney's team of young recruits sailing in Division 2 on the TP52 known as Pegasus when Philippe Kahn sailed it to the fastest time in the division in '05.

There were 77 entries when the window closed earlier this month, but three boats have withdrawn---Stark Raving Mad III because of a medical situation, the Hawaii-based doublehanded Addiction after encountering problems early in its transit sail from Honolulu, and Steve Waterloo's Cal 40, Shaman, after losing its mast in last week's Coastal Cup race from San Francisco to Santa Barbara. -- Rich Roberts

www.transpacificyc.org

A FOCUS ON SCOTLAND
That's how it looks like on the Northern Atlantic: Outsider and Chieftain are leading predominantly, the main fleet is behind - but surprisingly close - and also the HSH Nordbank is catching up. However, Outsider wants to cross the finishing line off Cuxhaven this weekend.

After the HSH Norbank has gone a long way round in order to transfer the injured crew member Kerstin Troeger to a Canadian Coast Guard vessel, the crew tries to get back to the fleet. Troeger has unintentionally crossed the Atlantic by aircraft now and arrived in Hamburg on Tuesday. Her ankle is broken and has to be treated properly.

The three maxi racers who joined the race a week later catch up slowly from astern. They couldn't show their speed potentials due to moderate wind. The three "Great" missed the gale which has pushed the first start group towards Point Alpha and further on. But also Parsifal III, Bon Bon and Rambler will have a fast sail soon because the wind is going to freshen. In perfect conditions George David's Rambler makes speed of about 30 knots.

Meanwhile the fleet is more than 500 miles behind Outsider and is leaded by Tobias Koenig's Grey Goose. The Swan 82 had some problems with its mainsail but everything is repaired and the yacht taps the full potential. "At seven o'clock this morning we hoisted the asymmetric spinnaker (A1,5) which nearly pushes us with the speed of the wind. It is not the ideal course but we are making way and for the best course we pay with several manoeuvres", reports Martin Borkmann, crew member of Grey Goose.

* The team on Chieftain are now ten days into their HSH Nordbank Blue race campaign and sailing in conditions which are a stark contrast to those experienced initially. The gale force winds and steep seas seen last week were replaced by frustrating calms, as a large high pressure system draped itself over the fleet. Instead of regularly sailing at speeds between 18 and 20 knots, the crew have been trying to eke out every tenth of a knot's boat speed they can from the zephyr like headwinds. This is, as Ed Hill reports, "a totally different type of sailing, keeping on the ball, watching the clouds and weather and working on getting every inch of boat speed we can out of the Chieftain".

Despite the effort that has gone in, key rival Outsider has continued to pull away and crucially got into the new breeze first. As navigator Hamish Oliphant reported "it was case of "the rich getting richer" as Outsider, being further ahead, got out of the high sooner and has been sailing at good speeds".

www.hsh-nordbank-blue-race.com

INTERNATIONAL 14 POW WEEK
Are you between 16 and 25 and want to race an International 14 in POW Week?

To encourage more young sailors to the International 14 class, an existing owner has kindly offered his boat for a two-week loan, to the winners of a qualifying regatta for entrants matching the selection criteria. The boat is competitive and fully race prepped for the lucky winners.

Entrants must be between the ages of 16 and 25 on the date of the POW Race within POW 2007. Entry fee for the event is only 30 pounds per team

There are now two youth Trophies in the class for POW Week and the Qualifiers will take place from Hayling Island on 28th and 29th July.

Applications should be sent to George Nurton at email address: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

www.international14.org

INDUSTRY NEWS
* Private equity firm Bain Capital, supported by subsidiary investment funds, has signed an agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the shares of Bavaria Yachtbau, one of the largest serial yacht producers in the world. Bavaria, which was founded by Winfried Hermann in 1978, builds around 3,500 yachts per year at its yard in Giebelstadt, Germany, with sales of around 271 million Euros during the 2005/2006 fiscal year. The acquisition is expected to go through on July 31, 2007.

Bavaria's general manager Rudolf Muller and sales director Mike Reuer will continue to operate the company, but will be complemented by additional staff over the next few months. Upon completion of the acquisition, company founder Winfried Herrmann will withdraw from active management to become a member of the advisory board.

According to Bain Capital, Yachtagentur Josef Meltl will continue to serve as one of the leading dealers for Bavaria sailing yachts in Germany. -- International Boat Industry news, www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20070527121952ibinews.html

* Groupe Beneteau has revealed that its third-quarter sales for 2006-2007 reached 373.1 million Euros, resulting in a 28.4 per cent increase over the 290.6 million Euros that was generated during the same time last year.

At the end of May 2007, year-to-date sales represented some 750.3 million Euros - a 23.1 per cent rise over the 609.5 million that was achieved by the end of May 2006. This figure includes 77.8 million for IRM, a mobile home manufacturer that was consolidated in the group's accounts as of January 1, 2007.

The French group says that growth has been driven by all of its activities. For its Beneteau, Jeanneau, CNB-Lagoon and Wauquiez boats, it noted an 8.4 per cent increase from 531.7 million to 576.1 million. -- IBI News, www.ibinews.com

* Brian Peters, founder of UK boat distributor Peters Opal, has been appointed president of the British Marine Federation (BMF) with immediate effect. He replaces Peter Methven, who has held the position for the last two-and-a-half years.

Peters has served on the board of National Boat Shows (NBS), BMF subsidiary and organiser of both the London and Southampton boat shows, since 2000, including three years as chairman. For the last seven years, he has served on the BMF's management board and national council and has been a long-standing member of the federation's international committee, which supports the industry's export efforts. -- IBI News, www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20070525155130ibinews.html

* The business of A.Mylne & Co was recently purchased as an on going concern by Ace Marine Ltd - Naval Architects based in Fife. The collection of designs dating from 1896 extends to over 350 sailing and motor yachts.

David Gray, MD at Ace Marine was delighted to be received on Thursday 14th June by Duncan Walker of Fairlie, Southampton. A tour of the yard was conducted, and Gray was extremely impressed by the quality of work being undertaken. "This truly is the place to have a fully authentic hand carved replica yacht built, or to have your old yacht restored," comments Gray. He was also able to view the Mylne designed 60ft sailing yacht "Fedoa", lying shrink wrapped in the yard, awaiting an enthusiastic owner.

An agreement in principle was reached between Fairlie and Mylne (Ace Marine), that it would recommend the yard as one of the few that have the facilities and expertise to fully restore and build these fine yacht.

* The UK's Formula Yacht Spars has announced a restructure of the business in order to better service its clients and increase efficiency. Following an extensive review, the company has decided to split its manufacturing sites into two separate operating units - carbon and aluminium masts.

On the carbon side, Formula has created a new custom mast production facility in Lymington that will focus on producing carbon spars for superyachts, including those for the America's Cup, Volvo Open 60 and other high-end speciality markets.

All additional carbon work will be produced in the new Formula France facility based just outside Montpellier, where a 32m (105ft) autoclave has recently been installed. According to the company, Formula France has recently won contracts for the Mills 43, which has started production, as well as the new production Ker 39, Ker 52 mast packages and a French Open 60 project.

On the aluminium side, the company operates from its UK facility in Burnham-on-Crouch and another new facility in mainland Europe whose acquisition is currently nearing completion. Over the last three years, the Burnham facility has seen great investment and development and has recently shipped spars for Bushido, a 33m (108ft) Paolo Scanu-designed superyacht, and a 64m (210ft) schooner Pilar Rossi for ex-F1 champion Nelson Piquet.

The European factory is preparing to build spar packages for the 31m (102ft) Anastasia and a 45m (148ft) Dijkstra & Partners design, both of which are due for delivery in 2007. This purpose-built mast making facility is capable of shipping 58m (190ft) in one piece, says the company. -- www.ibinews.com/ibinews/newsdesk/20070520123358ibinews.html

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.

* From Stephen A. Van Dyck: . It looks like Mr. Bertarelli has been able to buy everything but a windshift and sportsmanship.

* From Malcolm Thorpe: As regards the TV footage - certainly really good, but it does appear as though the spectator fleet are allowed right up next to the yachts themselves whilst racing.

This has got to be wrong and the Officials should police the situation thoroughly.

THE LAST WORD
A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject. -- Sir Winston Churchill

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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