NEWPORT, RI, August 28, 2010 -- If wing technology didn’t have everyone’s attention after BMW Oracle Racing’s victorious 33rd America’s Cup, it definitely does now. The high speeds and almost instant acceleration of cambered foils had members of America’s Cup syndicates, top designers, and all sailors in awe. 

Canadian C Class Catamaran Team of Fred Eaton, Magnus Clarke, Steve Killing, Rob Paterson, and Rossi Milev have been along for the entire ride, one way or another. Clarke, Paterson, and Milev took six months off from their C Class program to manage wing protection for the largest wingmast ever built for a race-boat: BMW Oracle’s (223 foot) 68 metre-tall wing. Reunited in March, their team brought four wings to the International C Class Catamaran Championship hosted by New York Yacht Club on Narragansett Bay this past week.

“Upwind the camber is moderate, but downwind with the flap set at 40 degrees, the wing will produce almost double the force of an equal area soft sail,” explains Killing.

Eaton and Clarke raced Killing’s latest design, Canaan, to a thrilling victory today in the final day of match racing. 

NEWPORT, RI, August 27 -- The wind was light and patchy on this first day of match-racing in the International C-Class Catamaran Championship. Canaan, the black cat raced by the Canadian defenders Fred Eaton and Magnus Clarke, was in her element yesterday, winning three of three races. 

Today, was not so smooth. After a significant shift to the south the seabreeze filled in at 12 knots and the third attempt to run a race was a success. More of a success for Alpha however, sailed by Australians, Glenn Ashby and James Spithill.

At the approach to the line Canaan stalled, losing the start and six legs later the first match-race. 1-0 for Australia. In the fleet race designed for the French, British and second Canadian entry, Orion retired. Invictus, of England, crossed the finish line first, and despite powering around the course, just milliseconds after crossing the line Patient Lady VI’s wing tumbled.

NEWPORT, RI, August 26, 2010 -- What a difference a day makes. Today was all Canaan all the time at the International C-Class Catamaran Championship at the New York Yacht Club’s Harbour Court. The stars today were the Canadian defenders Fred Eaton and Magnus Clarke, who won all three races, while Alpha, yesterday’s leader, sailed by Australians Glenn Ashby and James Spithill, finished second in all three races. In point of fact, Canaan has won four straight races, winning the last one on Wednesday.

These two teams will match-race tomorrow and Saturday to determine the winner of the International C-Class Catamaran Trophy in play since 1961. This is the 25th iteration of this regatta.

Missing from today’s racing – indeed the competition – was Aethon, sailed by Steve Clark and his nephew, Oliver Moore. Seconds into yesterday's first start, Moore fell overboard and Clark crash landed into the wing, which unfortunately suffered significant damage. They had to drop out of this much anticipated regatta.

Before today's first race Patient Lady VI had some rigging failure, they were towed in to shore and the crew headed back to the race course to observe in an effort to build their knowledge base of the C Class cats. Orion and Invictus  completed all races, often sailing close, but Orion punctured their wing just before reaching shore.

Yesterday the C-Class Catamaran Aethon capsized after the start of race one of the International C Class Catamaran Championship (long nicknamed the “Little America’s Cup”) and her wing was destroyed. The team hit a patch of turbulence left by a freighter for which they were not prepared and were unable to react in time. Crew Oliver Moore lost his footing and was washed off the boat with the mainsheet wrapped around his leg. As the wing rapidly trimmed in, the boat capsized and helmsman Steve Clark, unable to get out of his trapeze in time, fell through the wing, breaking the mast in the process. Both crew members would be fine, and the platform would suffer only minor damages, but what was left of the wing was all but disintegrated in the three-mile tow back to New York Yacht Club’s Harbor Court.

Click to see horrifying video of the crash!

“The thing I would like to stress here,” said Clark, “is that this was not a product of the conditions. It was a freak accident that could have happened at any time, at any wind speed. If the wing is trimmed all the way to windward and can’t be eased the boat will tip over, and these boats are not designed to do that. It’s a tough end to the last 18 months of work Oliver and I put in, but sometimes these things happen.”

NEWPORT, RI, August 25, 2010 -- The nor’easter departed New England today — more or less — and is off to ruin Canada for a couple of days. Its departure — better late than never — gave the half-dozen winged multihulls sailing in the International C-Class Catamaran Championship at the New York Yacht Club’s Harbour Court a chance to stop talking and start performing. As if they needed any other encouragement.  

Wednesday’s racing took place near Half Way Rock, north of the Pell Bridge, to minimize the remnants of the seas and breeze from the northeast. The wind at the start of the first race was 16 to 20 with puffs pushing it a bit higher. In the first race, Alpha, sailed by Australians Glenn Ashby and James Spithill, had a brilliant port-tack start. It was a shot over the bow. Ashby is an Olympic Silver Medalist and nine-time A-Class, world champion; Spithill was helmsman on BMW Oracle’s wing-sailed trimaran that won the recent 33rd America’s Cup.

Certainly a major story line was the first-leg capsize of Aethon, Steve Clark's and Oliver Moore’s C-Class Cat. This was a new boat for Clark, an American, the absolute prime-mover in the class, who held the International C-Class Catamaran trophy for 11 years, from 1996-2007. Clark has been as important to the class as Tony DiMauro was to the previous generation. These boats motor — on the sunny side of 20 knots — and the disturbed air off a freighter set off a chain reaction that resulted in a capsize and the loss of the wing.

NEWPORT, RI (August 25, 2010) — Six boats and wings are ready to fly, on day two of the 2010 Little America's Cup, aka the International C-Class Catamaran Championship. Instead of racing as planned yesterday, internationally accomplished sailors from five countries played show and tell under the tent at New York Yacht Club. A collection of designers, America’s Cup evaluators and multihull pioneers weren’t too upset that a blustery weather system delayed day one.

One of the most prestigious titles in the world of ultra-high performance sailing, the Championship was last raced in 2007, at the Royal Canadian Yacht Club in Toronto. There, Canadian challenger Fred Eaton and crew Magnus Clarke sailed Alpha to a 5-0 victory over the previously undefeated Steve Clark’s Cogito.

Of the four catamaran divisions, the C-Class is governed by a simple set of rules that reward outside-the-box thinking in aero and hydrodynamics to create the lightest, fastest course-racing boats on the planet.

“All wings under the C-Class rule are the same area of 300 square feet but it can be distributed in any fashion,” shares Steve Killing, the designer for Fred Eaton’s C-Class program. They are propelled not by traditional fabric sails, but by elegant wings, rigid but with twist capability.

Newport, R.I. (August 5, 2010) – Steve Clark has been dreaming of winning back the Little America’s Cup for the USA ever since he lost it to Canada in 2007. In 1996, Clark’s 25- foot C-Class Catamaran Cogito (pronounced with a soft g) had blown away designers and engineers with its mammoth wing sail and unmatchable speed, and with helmsman Duncan MacLane and crew Erich Chase it handily defeated Australia’s defender Edge IV on Port Phillip Bay to win the International C-Class Catamaran Championship, fondly referred to as the Little America’s Cup.

Cogito became and remained the gold standard of C-Class Catamarans for the next eleven years, a place in C-Class cat history to which Clark wishes to return by entering his new boat, Aethon, launched earlier this year, in the 2010 Little America’s Cup, set for August 22-28 off Newport. Clark’s goals for this Cup are oddly reminiscent of what they were for the 1996 event. Clark’s first experience in the C-Class had been in 1985 when he was involved in Patient Lady VI’s unsuccessful defense of the Cup, losing to Australia’s Victoria 150. It was largely this defeat that drove Clark to develop Cogito. Now, his “Cogito Project” is back where it started: testing a new boat and taking aim at winning the Cup back again.

After a tough weekend at the Islander Reef Run, the second race of the Endurance Series hopes to be an easier day on the water with a much shorter course. Gilligan's Run is the shortest course on the Endurance Series schedule. At just under 30 miles, the race starts and ends at the Acapulco Hotel and Resort in Daytona Beach Shores. The course usually runs North to a mark just offshore from the Ocean Deck Restaurant, then South to round a Ponce De Leon Inlet ocean marker buoy, then back north to the start. The weekend is topped off by awards presentation and fish fry at Steve and Cindy Caron's house within walking distance from the Finish line which is always attended by most participants.

Message from the OSYC Vice-Commodore - Wed, May 26, 2010
Not Oil For Slip to Ship! Sign up online now, with no late fee.

We are looking forward to another terrific Slip to Ship this weekend. Looking at the marine forecast as of today, winds are forecast on Saturday to be out of the NW at 5-10 kts. Sunday's forecase is out of the W at 5-10kts. Should be plenty of wind for competitive sailing.

I have received several inquiries about oil and the Islands. As of today, no change. The oil is 60 miles away and the Islands remain open. Me and 4 other boats sailed to Horn Island last weekend and it was beautiful. If you know someone who is aprehensive, tell them to sign up now. 30 boats is fine, 50 would be awesome.

Robbie Holstead will be cooking his cajun fare extrodinaire and we are lowering the food prices for extra meals down to $6.00 from $8.00. If you have already paid the $8.00 let us know and we will give you extra raffle tickets to make up the difference. Also, if you paid the late fee, I will put in for a refund for you.

We will have several special awards to give out as well as the Round Dear Perpetual. We will also have a great local band to entertain you on Saturday night.

As always, tents are permitted and a good time required.

As to the course, we will be providing the GPS coordiantes for the finish boat near the eastern tip of east ship Island (Race 1) at the competitors meeting.

Race 3 (Round Dear). The large range marker is no more. After being damaged in the Hurricanes last year, it has been removed. To keep consistency in the race, we will station a chase boat at the former location of the large range marker. An Orange Cylinder will be dropped as well. Competitors must round the Orange cylinder to port. Race 3 will remain the same in all other respects.

Thirty stalwarts of the beach catamaran sailing community took sail on 15 boats May 10th, 2010 to face the elements in a grueling race to Tybee Island, Georgia, some 560 miles from the starting point in Islamorada, Florida. 

The first day from Islamorada, FL. saw stiff breezes on the nose changing as boats rounded the tip of Florida to continue a tough beat to the finish.  The distance of 90+ miles took the last boats more than 12 hours to finish in the dark, but all boats made it, with crews beat up and looking for a comfortable bed. 

The second day from Hollywood to Jupiter, FL  was a shorter leg, but rough seas continued.  Crews saw wash board sailing and challenging sea conditions take a toll on the boats.  Ground crews were up late into the night working repairs. 

Day three from Jupiter to Cocoa Beach were equally challenging, where inlets caused rough sailing even though winds had clocked to give sailors their first chance to use spinnakers.  One boat lost a crew member in early going, recovering, but the boat and crew drifted ashore with broken battens and a decision to take its penalty and a day ashore.  Another crew lost a crew member and put panic in the race committee until all systems worked as planned and the crew member was found by use of the required personal EPIRB and was returned to his boat by Boat US, to continue the race.

Day four starting from Cocoa Beach involved a trip around Cape Canaveral, where a Shuttle stood on the pad, ready for launch the following day.  All boats were required to remain 3 miles off shore for the rounding before arriving in Daytona Beach.  The day was a glorious sail for all with great reaching winds cooperating for a continuous spinnaker run, after turning the corner off the Cape.  

Day five from Daytona Beach was equally a great sailing day, traveling from Daytona to Fernandina Beach, Florida in record time. The race committee had to drive ahead quickly just to stay up with speeding catamarans.

The final day, starting at Fernandina Beach on May 15th, 2010 looked to have light winds and the crews voted to start at 8:00AM in case the forecast held.  Actually, the winds held, but the course carried to the north east, causing the leg to be full of short and long spinnaker gibes.  But even so, much to the pleasure of all, boats began to arrive at 3:30 in the afternoon. There was a joyous celebration throughout the home city of Tybee Island, GA.  Awards followed on Sunday morning.

500 miles in 6 Days up the Atlantic Coast - The Tybee 500 is an extreme sailing endurance race from Islamorada in the Florida Keys to Tybee Island, GA. The annual race begins May 10th at the Islander Resort in the Florida Keys and continues up the coast for six days, arriving on Tybee Island May 15th.

Each day there is a spectacular beach launch through the Atlantic surf that is very exciting for race fans on the scene. After the teams leave the beach the race is covered live on the Tybee 500 website at http://Tybee500.com . Each catamaran will carry the Spot™ satellite tracking beacon enabling a realtime view of the race on the website while the teams are offshore.

Race Schedule: Starts are 10am, finish times vary.

• May 10 Start from Islander Resort, Islamorada, FL and finish at Ramada Hollywood Beach Resort, Hollywood, FL.
• May 11 Start from Ramada Hollywood Beach Resort, Hollywood, FL and finish at Jupiter Beach Resort, Jupiter, FL.
• May 12 Start from Jupiter Beach Resort and finish at the International Palms Resort, Cocoa Beach, FL.
• May 13 Start from the International Palms Resort, Cocoa Beach, FL and finish at the La Playa Resort, Daytona Beach, FL.
• May 14 Start from the Playa Resort, Daytona Beach, FL and finish at the Amelia Hotel, Fernandina Beach, FL.
• May 15 Start from the Amelia Hotel, Fernandina Beach, FL and finish at the Oceans Plaza Beach Resort, Tybee Island, GA.

This will be the 8th annual race, beginning in 2003 where two man teams battle the open ocean, equipment breakdowns, and fatigue to be the first on the beach at Tybee Island. Sailors appear as alien figures wearing their protective gear. Each sailor carries enough food and drink to compete for up to 20 hours, in case light winds keep them offshore longer than expected.

TheBeachcats.com is happy to announce the launch of www.Tybee500.com a new website for the 2010 Tybee 500 long distance catamaran race. Teams wishing to enter this years race from Islamorada, FL up the East Coast of Florida to Tybee Island, GA can begin the registration process by filling out the simple online registration form.

There are over 3,000 photos from past years races, so be sure and take a look and see if you spot anyone you know.

Each team that is accepted to participate in this epic adventure will be provided with a team profile page on the Tybee500.com site. News items and updates posted on the site will be automatically tweeted, so be sure to add Tybee500 to your twitter account.

2009 NACRA North American Championship

The 2009 Nacra North American Championships was held in Fort Walton Beach, Florida the week of October 12-15, 2009 and was sponsored by Performance Sports, Inc, the manufacturer of NACRA racing catamarans, Annapolis Performance Sailing, Harken USA, Emerald Sails, and ZHIK USA.  The event was hosted by the multihull friendly Fort Walton Yacht Club on beautiful Choctawhatchee Bay.  The North American Championships, or NAs, was open to the Nacra 20 class, the Nacra F18 class, and the Nacra F17 class.  However, the Nacra F18 class decided not to attend leaving only the 20s and F17s to mix it up on the bay.  Four races a day were scheduled for the 4 day event.

DAY 1 – Monday, October 12th

Monday dawned with sunny skies and a south to south west wind building to 8-12kts.  The FWYC Commodore said a few words welcoming all the teams and after skippers meeting, the sailors finished rigging their boats and set sail for a 1200 start.  The order of starts for the week was the 20s first followed by the F17s not on a rolling start.  The courses were US Sailing multihull courses 5G and 6G with an upwind finish leaving one more chance to be a hero or a zero!

After the fourth race of the day in the 20 fleet, Alex Shafer/Nigel Pitt wrapped up the day with finishes of 1, 1, 1, 2 to lead the fleet.  Wisconsin favorite Guy Selsmeyer was not far behind with finishes of 2, 2, 3, 6.  There was a big collision at the start of race 1 involving Kirk Newkirk and Chris Blake resulting in one of Kirk’s rudders coming off the boat.  Chris quickly sailed up to Kirk and the crews swapped boats.  Nice!!  Kirk went on to sail scoring a 4th and setting up a redress situation for the end of the day while Chris headed back to the beach for repairs.

In the F17 fleet, former 2 time class champion Bob Curry showed the way with an awesome first day score of 1, 1, 1, 1 followed by Jim Leonard with a score of 2, 3, 2, 2.  Curry was challenged at 2 A mark roundings and 1 gate by Bill Gillispie.  The battle line was being drawn between Jim and Bill as only 2 points separated them after the day’s racing.  It wasn’t very long after the races were concluded that the boats were washed off by mother nature.

Ocean Springs Yacht Club, Ocean Springs, Mississippi Discuss Slip to Ship
It's getting close to the Slip to Ship Regatta (May 23-24, 2009). This is a fun two day distance regatta in its 24th year. It is a blast and we are ready to put S2S "Back on the Map."

I have listed the top three reasons not to miss it this year.

1. New club: Katrina be damned. We now have a beautiful facility, full kitchen, fuller bar expansive balcony.

2. New management/New Value: With the openning of the new building, we have sailors at the helm. We have heard your complaints and are responding.

Entry Fee: $50.00 (single handed), $60.00 (double handed). Late registration (after May 15, 2009) will be an additional $10.00. Entry fee will include the following:
a. a custom S2S regatta t-shirt for you and your crew (if applicable) b. contintental breakfast Saturday morning c. Beer and chicken out on the Island d. A Saturday Cajun dinner extrodinaire created by Robbie Halstad; e, An automatic entry in the sailor's door prize; f. Two Raffle tickets for the raffle;

3. Old school: We remember what makes a regatta fun: good wind, good food, good drink and friends. This year, we are striving to bring back the fun from the days of old. Call it our Reggatta stimulus package.

Remember, camping is permitted on our grounds.

Please fax or email your completed registration to fleetcaptain@osyc.com or (228) 865-7885. Also, while our physical address is 100 Front Beach, Ocean Springs. Please send all mail to P.O. Box 821, Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Please get your registration form in early to avoid the $10.00 late fee. I would also appreciate an email just to help us gauge the number os sailors to plan for.

More information can be found at www.osyc.com