“What’s my speed? What’s the speed? What’s the boatspeed now?!” Alex Thomson hollers into a microphone. Thomson, at the helm of his brand new Hugo Boss, is pumped. As we…
Helen Fretter
Editor
Four Ultimes fly into Biscay in new 14,000-mile Brest Atlantiques race
The four Ultimes set off in a 30-knot north-westerly wind and heavy sea with 4.5 metres waves, and were rapidly reaching boat speeds of 30 knots plus. The start had…
Fastnet 2019: The inside story of an unforgettable race to the rock
They say you should never meet your heroes, lest they be found to be merely mortal. Yet one of sailing’s rarest qualities is that there are a handful of events…
Alex Thomson’s Hugo Boss forced out of Transat Jacques Vabre after collision damage
The first major test for Vendée Globe contender Alex Thomson’s new IMOCA 60 Hugo Boss has ended with Thomson jettisoning the yacht’s keel after hitting a submerged object during the Transat…
AAL: The volcanic yacht aiming for a fossil-free circumnavigation
Les Sables d’Olonne is used to waving off circumnavigators – the Vendée Globe, and most recently the Golden Globe, solo skippers start and return from the French Atlantic town. But…
Ràn VII: On board the Stealth Bomber of the Fast 40+ class
Some boats are the sum of their parts, but Rán VII is really the sum of the parts that aren’t there. It is characterised by a focus on reduction –…
Sardinia charter: Living the high life on a crewed Lagoon 620
Beam. Or beam and volume. Those are the dominant characteristics that spring to mind about cruising catamarans. You expect huge full-width saloons and cabins spread out across metres of multihull.…
Veedol: On board Yoann Richomme’s record-breaking Lift 40
A curious pattern repeated in the 2018 Route du Rhum, as the newest designs – like the foiling Ultimes, and foil-assisted IMOCAs Charal and Hugo Boss – were defeated on…
Kraken Cup: The most extreme sailing race you’ve never heard of
“This is probably the most extreme and uncomfortable sailing I’ve ever done,” says Simon Walker. “And I have sailed twice the wrong way around the world, 17 times across the…
Fastnet Race winners: Wizard claims overall prize while French crews dominate
The stars’n’stripes liveried American Volvo 70 Wizard has been confirmed as the overall IRC winner of this year’ Rolex Fastnet Race. Brothers David and Peter Askew from Detroit finished in…
Rolex Fastnet Race delivers wet, fast ride for early finishers
The first finishers in the IRC fleets of the Rolex Fastnet Race arriving last night and today have all had a hard, fast race. As crews piled in tired, wet,…
David Witt: The controversial character who shook up the Volvo Ocean Race
“I am a dinosaur,” David Witt tells me. It’s a gift of a quote from a man who has been painted as out of touch, misogynistic, and a whole lot…
Ultimes lead the charge for 388-boat fleet in Rolex Fastnet Race start
A total entry of 388 yachts – another record turnout – started in this year’s Rolex Fastnet Race today, Saturday 3 August from Cowes on the Isle of Wight. The…
Charal: On board the radical IMOCA 60 that takes foiling to the next level
In St Malo for the start of the Route du Rhum in early November, every inch of the IMOCA 60 pontoons was packed with fans trying to get a close…
Widow of yachtsman who died in Clipper Race demands changes
The family of Simon Speirs, a sailor in the 2017-08 Clipper Round the World Race who died after being swept overboard in November 2017, has urged race organisers to urgently…
Sailing around the world: Cruising couples’ top tips for a dream voyage
If you could choose anyone to go on a grand adventure with, would it be your life partner? For many couples that’s the ideal. But what if you don’t have…
Alex Thomson profile: Understanding the man behind the suit
Everyone knows Alex Thomson. He’s not only one of the most immediately recognisable IMOCA 60 skippers, but one of the few sailors who have managed to transcend the sport and…
Maiden refit: How Tracy Edwards’ sailing legend was brought back to life
Few yachts, and fewer skippers, become truly famous – famous in the sense that the everyman on the street would recognise them by a single name. Maiden did though, as…
Wendy Tuck profile: The pioneering yachtswoman making her own luck
Wendy Tuck did not set out with ambitions of breaking new ground for female sailing when she signed up for her second Clipper Round the World Race. She hadn’t even…
What can we learn from the 2018-19 Golden Globe Race?
The Golden Globe Race is a race like no other. It is a competition, an adventure, but also a celebration of an event that happened 50 years ago – the…