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Jim Reiher, the owner of the Swan 53 SKY, sent us this photo saying:
"My UK Sails sure have carried the load. Your sails are still going
strong after: 2 trans Atlantics, 2 Caribbean seasons, a season in the
Mediterranean, a season in New England, the Swan Worlds, the Swan North American regatta, Antigua Race Week, the Heineken Regatta, Rolex St.
Thomas, the BVI Spring regatta, and Block Island Race Week." After
looking at the photo carefully, we agree that everything is picture
perfect.
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NEW RULES QUIZ |
 The latest rules quiz has just been released. This one involves two boats returning to the starting line after being over the line early. The question came from one of our readers who won this protest while frostbiting.
Check it out! It fooled a lot of people including some top sailors. |
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KEY WEST NOTES |
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Pictured above is the Transpac 52 TRADER blasting downwind with her UK main an massive asymmetrical runner.
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In one of the biggest fleets at Key West, Jim Johnstone finished third in a fleet of forty J/105s. Jim was a bit of a one-armed paper hanger at times going from steering upwind to flying the chute downwind. Jim has nothing but great things to say about his inventory of UK Sails. “I’ve used sails from other sailmakers for the 105 and I find myself coming back to the ones I know work. Rig tune is not as critical with my UK Sails; they have a wider range.” And Jim should know, he is the production manager for the J/Boat line.
The hardest part of sailing in a crowded fleet is getting clear air; lanes upwind are very skinny. Johnstone saved his highest praise for how high he could point. “If I ended up with someone on my bow it was never a problem; I could always lift off them and create a lane. Even with the jib trimmed six to nine inches inside the shrouds, I had great upwind speed.”
In the J/80 class UK customers Mac Kilpatrick and John Storck finished second and third. Kilpatrick was one point out of first. Stork finished a whopping 14 points in front of the fourth place boat. Also congratulations go to Bob Limoggio and his crew on the Tripp 47 CABERET, which finished third in PHRF 2. |
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UK OPTI SAILS PROVE FAAAST! |
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| Defina and Guillermina Saldaña flanked by their proud parents. |
BUENOS AIRES -- Over 100 of South America's best Optimist sailors competed in the South Atlantic Championship sailed in mostly light air on the River Plate. UK Sailmakers is delighted to announce that Delfina Saldana finished second overall using UK Detroit’s Medium design and her sister Guillermina Saldana finished 18th using Detroit’s heavy design. Delfina is only 11 years old; keep an eye out for her name for many years to come. Her older sister Guillermina finished in the top five in all the races sailed on the few windy days.
All of the coaches are reporting that these sails are fast. UK is converting kids over from North, Tony Tio, and Olympic weekly. Look for a report on the South American Championships next month. |
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COME TO THE HAMBLE SPRING SERIES SEMINAR: IMPROVE YOUR RACING SKILLS AND HELP THE JOHN MERRICKS SAILING TRUST |
UK Sailmakers in Hamble, England, will be holding a racing seminar open to all featuring two-time Olympic gold medalist Shirley Robertson, OBE, and Eddie Warden Owen. The seminar will cover the strategy and tactics for starting and sailing the first beat of a race, with the last third of the program dedicated to the ins and outs of sail trim, which will be taught by UK Hamble’s John Brinkers.
The program will be held March 19th and runs from 5:30 to 8 pm. Cost is £30.00 and all proceeds go to the John Merricks Sailing Trust. The Trust's aim is to provide help to those young people who display similar drive, talent and commitment to sailing as John did, but who need support to set them on their way to fulfilling their dreams.
For full details go to www.uksails.co.uk. |
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DN JUNIOR WORLD WON WITH UK SAILS |
 LAKE MENDOTA, WISCONSIN -- UK Sailmakers is pleased to announce that Mihkel Kosk won the Junior DN world championships and finished 20th overall in a 121 boat fleet using UK Sails new sail designs. We have been refining the UK original speed & power sails developed by UK Hong Kong.
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MEGA YACHT NEWS |
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Pictured above is the 80-foot ketch Zanabe sailing off St. Maarten.
Her upwind sails are Spectra Tape-Drives, which will make them last for years.
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UK Sailmakers Hamble is proud to announce it is building three new sails for Peter Harrison's Farr 115 footer SOJANA. UK Sailmakers will deliver a Code Zero, heavy jib and genoa staysail, all made out of Cuben Fibre.
These huge sails will be designed and developed in co-operation with Peter Heppel and his RELAX software – a custom flow-code analysis program.
SOJANA is upgrading her sail inventory for the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge, which starts May 21st. The 3,000-mile race from New York to England is open to single-hulled sailboats with a minimum length on deck of 70 feet and with no maximum size for entrants. Starting off in New York Harbor and finishing in the English Channel, the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge 2005 will be sailed over the same course as the famous race 100 years earlier in which the transatlantic racing record was set. The record for the New York Yacht Club's Transatlantic Race is recognized by the World Sailing Speed Record Council, part of the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), and is included in its list of OCEAN RACE RECORDS. It is the oldest race record in sailing.
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Caption story for icy picture |
 Spring is coming and old man winter will eventually loosen his grip on the northern hemisphere. Scenes like this ice storm on Lake Geneva will be a long forgotten memory once everyone gets back on the water. Believe it or not, time is running out for all the winter projects that are on your list, so stop reading and get to work on your boat. |
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