“We would like nothing more than to spoil the dream that Ben [Ainslie] and his team has,” said Oracle Racing’s skipper Jimmy Spithill on the eve of the practice day…
Matthew Sheahan
Torbjörn Törnqvist, head of Artemis Racing – the quiet man of the America’s Cup
You have to look carefully to spot Torbjörn Törnqvist. Wearing identical gear to the rest of his crew and listening intently to the pre-race briefing and post-race analysis in the…
Why the next generation is embracing high speeds and body armour as sailing takes a huge step forwards
Clocking 40knots in a 45footer is not unusual, far from it – It’s the new norm, the start of a new generation. But not everyone has bought into foil borne…
What’s it like to sail a foiling America’s Cup boat with Ben Ainslie? Matthew Sheahan finds out
Fortunately in recent years I’ve become used to wearing a wetsuit when I go sailing, but getting dressed in a buoyancy aid that includes body armour, strapping a large diver’s…
Is everybody ready for the thrill of foiling? Maybe not all of us
As the back end of the 200bhp rear wheel drive Toyota GT86 snapped out and the car started to spin like a roulette wheel and slide towards the perimeter fence,…
Fancy a US$1m bonus? Just win the World Match Racing Tour and it’s yours
It’s been a busy and expensive few weeks for the organisers of the World Match Racing Tour. First came the news that the tour had been bought by Swedish boatbuilding…
Fancy some foiling? How you learn to fly flying in minutes on the new White Formula Whisper catamaran
“If you can sail, you can foil this boat,” said Rob White of White Formula, a company that has a long list of internationally successful production catamarans to its name…
From foils to Folkboats, key performances in the Round the Island Race
As famous for its wide variety of boats as it is for the number of entries, this year’s Round the Island Race also saw foiling come into play. So who…
When a partnership is different from sponsorship – Ben Ainslie Racing announce Land Rover deal
At the first press conference to be held in Ben Ainslie Racing’s new purpose built base in the heart of old Portsmouth, Land Rover was announced as the BAR’s new…
Kite vs Cat – Which would you favour in a windward leeward race?
The very fact that I’ve posed the question provides the biggest hint that the result is going to be the opposite of what you might think. And if you swayed…
Winning the Volvo Ocean Race – Abu Dhabi takes the trophy
When it came to the overall winner of the 2014/15 Volvo Ocean Race everyone had known the result for several days beforehand, yet the approach to the final finishing line…
Cowes Week tactics in the Eastern Solent: our local tips for the smart navigator
Shallow with shingle and mud, the Eastern Solent has a different character from the western part, yet there are just as many opportunities for a smart navigator to get ahead.…
Team SCA wins Volvo Ocean Race Leg 8, but the finish saw three winners
Sam Davies’ Team SCA crossed the finish line in Lorient this morning to take their first leg win of the event. In an impressive performance the all women team crossed…
ISAF Sailing World Cup, the best bits of the opening day in Weymouth
One way of levelling the playing field at any regatta is to send the wind from an unusual direction. For the visitors at least, reducing the impact of local knowledge…
Penalties issued to three Volvo Ocean Race teams following exclusion zone protests
They may have fought hard in the 2,800nm needle match across the Atlantic on Leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race to gain just a single point on their arch…
Louis Vuitton returns to the America’s Cup. This is a big deal that really matters, says Matthew Sheahan
While the proclamation of a new event sponsor is very important to those closely involved, it is rarely headline news. But the confirmation this evening that Louis Vuitton is to…
Team Brunel wins a memorable Volvo Ocean Race leg 7. Now the pressure is on
“Last night we saw 24 knots but that was it,” he said. “The rest of the time it was a cruise across the Atlantic in nice flat water. But the…
Video: The new C&C 30 has arrived in Europe, Matthew Sheahan takes her out for a spin
There is eye watering, grin fixing, backside twitchingly quick, where your ride is balanced on a knife edge, and there’s clocking the same numbers without the same jittery feel. Here,…
What happened to Cheeki Rafiki? Key findings from the official Marine Accident Investigation Branch report
A series of earlier groundings and the detachment of the internal structure in the area of the keel fastenings are believed to be among the key factors that led to…
Video: See how the new Gunboat G4 foiling ‘cruiser’ capsized at the Voiles de Saint Barths regatta
Having been talk of the town in Saint Barths for her foiling antics at the beginning of the week, Eduardo Perez’s foiling Gunboat G4, ‘Timbalero III’ became the hot topic…