| The latest sailing news from Asia and the world. |
30 Aug 2017 |
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  One typhoon is bad. Two is terrible.
 | | Pak Sha Wan, the aftermath of Typhoon Hato Steve Pheby |
A week is a long time in politics, but a week that saw not one but two typhoons come close enough to Hong Kong to shut the city down is an absolute age. Damage to boats has been substantial – did you strip off everything that moves above deck when the T3 signal went up? Did you check your mooring lines and chafe gear, remove biminis and barbeques, take down all the sails and snug down the hatches properly tight? Or are you now the proud owner of some seriously damaged dacron or a large and expensive piece of severely smashed grp? Even a comprehensive insurance policy is not a guarantee of a payout if you don't follow the rules. Remember, the summer is not over, and it's still typhoon season.
 | | Intrigue Plus raises its kite in Race 8 - UK Sailmakers Typhoon Series 2017 Hebe Haven Yacht Club |
Hong Kong's major piece of summer sailing fun is all over... all over bar the shouting, that is. The last day's racing of the UK Sailmakers Typhoon Series took place last Saturday in absolutely perfect sailing conditions, slotted in just after Typhoon Hato but with Typhoon Pakhar incoming and just below the horizon. That meant the evening's prizegiving party was postponed as it was all hands on deck at Hebe Haven Yacht Club, strapping down for the imminent blow. Just as well they did – it was nasty. ‘Resail' this coming Friday. Bring a thirst.
 | | Tiger Mok, SHK Scallywag, Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18 © Ainhoa Sanchez / Volvo Ocean Race |
Tiger Mok has been appointed to the crew of the Hong Kong entry in the forthcoming Volvo Ocean race, SHK Scallywag. Mok, a proper Hong Kong sailor, is relishing the challenge of doing something a bit longer than a China Sea Race, and will be the only Hong Kong sailor on the boat. In the position of ‘back up navigator' it is unclear how much sailing he'll be doing. Rumour has it that he did very well in the last VOR virtual race, and enjoys locking himself in a darked room for weeks at a time and taking cold salt showers at regular intervals.
 | | Rush hour at the leeward mark. WMRT Fremantle 2016 Guy Nowell © |
The World Match Racing Tour has joined hands with the China Cup International Regatta, and the last event of the WMRT season will take place at Longcheer (or Shenzhen, if you prefer) in October. WMRT has been trying to carve out a slot in China for quite a while now – first there was the very public fiasco in Qingdao in 2008 when the local partners moved the goal posts so far (after contracts had been signed) that WMRT very wisely walked away; after that there were attempts to get events going in Shanghai, Ningbo and Xiamen, all of which fizzled out. Let's hope this one works out better. WMRT regattas are usually stand-alone affairs, but now it looks as if the match racing will be a sort of side show to the main event, the China Cup. A decade ago the CCIR proudly announced that their event was “bigger than the America's Cup” on the basis that it involved more boats. With the current uncertainty as to where the AC is going, we are wondering whether racing in lightweight catamarans will still be the “pathway to the America's Cup” in a couple of months' time?
 | Hanuman - 2017 J-Class World Championship Newport RI
Daniel Forster © |
At the bigger end of the scale, there have been plenty of voices suggesting recently that the next AC should be sailed in J-Class yachts. Being a dyed-in-the-wool romantic, I think that's a grand idea: however, my good friend and Sail-World colleague over in New Zealand, Richard Gladwell, pointed out very succinctly that “the America's Cup is war, not dressage,” and I am not going to argue with that. For those that like the latter, the recent J-Class Championships was a proper treat, especially for the photographers.
 | | The Editor also sails. Or hangs on, at least. © Ian Roman / WMRT |
The Editor also sails. M32s are great fun to sail – enjoy this pic of the Editor in the sixth man seat in Fremantle last year. Photographs? You must be joking: I was too busy hanging on for dear life! Yup, got the t-shirt.
Standing by on 72.
Guy Nowell, Asia Editor
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