Charlie Enwright’s Vestas 11th Hour Racing has taken the first offshore leg in of the Volvo Ocean Race, crossing the finish line in Lisbon, Portugal, this afternoon after a tense…
Sacked AkzoNobel skipper reinstated hours before dramatic Volvo Ocean Race Leg 1 start
Yesterday’s first offshore leg of the Volvo Ocean Race start saw a dramatic twist just hours before the first gun, with Team AkzoNobel skipper Simeon Tienpont, who had been dismissed…
PC 55 Video: footage of our test of the Hoek designed Performance Classic Yachts 55
The PC55 is a performance cruiser with a difference – it’s looks. It owes its aesthetic inspiration to the original pilot cutters – working yachts that gained a legendary reputation thanks to…
VIDEO: Volvo Ocean Race teams hunt for clues as MAPFRE wins Alicante in-port race
There is a lot of background noise to tune out in Alicante – both figurative and literal. The Volvo Ocean Race village is hot, thronged with crowds, and permanently reverberating…
Ambition, nerves, and espionage: final countdown at the Volvo Ocean Race
The first race that ‘counts’ for the Volvo Ocean Race, the Alicante in-port race, takes place tomorrow. The seven teams are in their final countdown to the start of the…
How to follow the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race – expert analysis, behind the scenes and direct from the boats
The start of the Volvo Ocean Race is upon us! The first leg kicks off on 22 October. See how you can follow this exciting round-the-world race
VIDEO: How a massive makeover turned the Volvo Ocean Race one-designs into mint condition
Small fishing boats lie alongside; seagulls pick their way past fishing pots and nets. The River Tagus winds by. Nothing much happening in this semi-derelict pocket of Lisbon’s outskirts, or…
Who will win the Volvo Ocean Race? Read Ian Walker’s form guide
Reigning Volvo Ocean Race race winner Ian Walker, who skippered Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing to win the 2014-15 race, analyses the form guide to see who’s in the running for…
Team New Zealand confirm 75ft monohull for America’s Cup, but Ben Ainslie warns protocol is ‘conflict of interest’
A 75ft monohull is to be the new America’s Cup class for challenger series and match in March 2021. This was part of a tranche of changes to the Cup…
Comment: Losing Mark Turner from the Volvo Ocean Race is a huge blow to race’s future credibility
Losing Mark Turner is a blow to the future credibility of the Volvo Ocean Race. He was brought in to shake the event up – and he did. His vision…
Future strategy of Volvo Ocean Race in question as CEO Mark Turner steps down
Just weeks away from the start of the 2017/8 Volvo Ocean Race on 22 October, CEO Mark Turner has stepped down. The board he reports to announced that the organisation was…
Second Category 5 hurricane batters Caribbean, but 2018 regattas will go ahead
Just two weeks after Hurricane Irma pounded many of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean and Florida, leaving around 70 dead, a second Category 5 hurricane, Maria, is currently hitting…
Why cruising sailors should consider using a professional weather router
Should you consider support from a professional weather router on your next ocean crossing? With costs lower than you might realise, maybe it’s time you should. Employing the services of an…
The amazing voyage of Laura Dekker, the 15-year-old who sailed round the world alone
In 2009, the English sailing community was galvanised by the arrival on the East Coast of a 14-year-old single-hander from Holland, writes Tom Cunliffe. This was Laura Dekker, skippering a…
How to cope with stormy weather by top French sailor Loick Peyron
Weather like this during the Sydney-Hobart is not a surprise for the guys who start the race. They know what to expect, and how rough it can become in the…
Wally 93 – the new cruiser-racer designed for life in the fast lane
The introduction of the racy Wallycento class in 2012 was a big step into the performance arena for a brand best known for producing stylish superyachts. That first boat, Hamilton,…
36th America’s Cup New Zealand: the Challenges that face the new host nation this time around
As the saying goes, when you win the Cup you make the rules. The champagne was still running down the outside of the Auld Mug and the sailors still drenched…
Sail across the Atlantic safely – how to avoid the most common gear failures
Does wind matter? It might seem an off-hand remark perhaps when it comes to breakages; of course, when the tradewinds are strong we must expect to break more gear, but…
Does a professional skipper ever outrank his or her yacht’s owner?
Having been a skipper of other people’s yachts in my former life and, for almost three decades now, a ‘poor bloody owner’ – most of the time employing skippers –…
Dee Caffari on the Volvo Race: “I can barely get my head around the enormity of the challenge”
They say you should be careful what you wish for but nothing could be further from the truth. I am delighted to have been named skipper of team Turn the…