French skipper Kevin Escoffier led his Swiss-flagged Team Holcim-PRB to victory in leg one of The Ocean Race in the early hours of the morning on Saturday 21 January 2023.…
monohull
First look: Hanse 510 – decidedly different style
Hanse’s second model from the board of the Berret-Racoupeau design studio, the Hanse 510, sets the German yard firmly on a course towards a completely new range with a decidedly…
Best yacht 2023: European yacht of the year winners
The European Yacht of the Year programme is a highlight of my year as it gives us jury members the opportunity to assemble our shortlist of the best nominees, seatrial…
First look: New ClubSwan 41
Almost throughout Nautor Swan’s history its yachts have been popular and at times extremely successful choices for offshore racing. The Swan 45 that sold more than 50 boats between 2001…
The Ocean Race 2023 preview: What’s in store for the new race
It’s been a long wait for the next fully crewed lap of the planet since the last one finished in 2018, but finally The Ocean Race will start from Alicante…
Wins for Andoo Comanche and Celestial in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race
The 77th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race started on 26 December, its traditional Boxing Day slot and once again hundreds of thousands of people crowded the shores of Sydney Harbour,…
First look: RM 1380 – largest new yacht from the French marque
I like RM 1380 and I’m clearly not alone in appreciating these (typically) brightly coloured plywood epoxy fast cruisers – with over 500 hulls launched during the La Rochelle yard’s…
Beneteau First 44 review
There’s a glassy calm, without a ripple on the water, yet we’re slipping along on the new Beneteau First 44 under Code 0 at four knots of boat speed. Of…
Extraordinary boats: Scow-bowed Ace 30
Scow bow designs are still very rare in the UK and mostly elsewhere in northern Europe. The exception is France, especially on the Atlantic coast, where their distinctive spatula-shaped forward…
First look: NEO 570c
If you design and build a boat to look this wickedly fast, you better hope it performs. And it seems Shaun Carkeek and Neo Yachts have done everything they can…
Extraordinary boats: Tapio Lehtinen’s Gaia 36 Asteria
Note: Since this piece was written Tapio Lehtinen had to be rescued in the Golden Globe Race after his beloved yacht, Asteria sank in a mere 5 minutes. It is…
Smallest boats: The bonkers world of Microyacht adventures
Often the smallest boats to cross oceans look much like a child’s crayon picture of a little boat on a big sea, certainly Yann Quenet’s Baluchon does. Baluchon is only…
First look: Tison 48 Elida – wooden stunner
The stunning Tison 48 design combines engineered timber construction with high-tech materials including strategic use of carbon. Designer Thomas Tison, a structural engineer with an America’s Cup and aerospace background,…
Thomas Ruyant grabs Route du Rhum victory and record
Thomas Ruyant sailing LinkedOut was has won the IMOCA 60 class in the 2022 Route du Rhum after a tight battle between himself and Charlie Dalin sailing Apivia. Although Dalin…
Can the America’s Cup make great TV?
A long-rumoured America’s Cup TV series now looks set to be going ahead with a top-level studio and producers onboard. But will a docu-series drive eyes onto an event that…
First look: Spirit 72DH a contemporary classic
Spirit Yachts’ latest launch, the Spirit 72DH, embodies the key features that make these boats so desirable, while also marking a break with tradition for the company. All the hallmarks…
UPDATE: Route du Rhum 2022 start postponed. Is this the greatest ever offshore race?
The Route du Rhum 2022 single-handed transatlantic race start has been postponed until Wednesday 9 November. The decision was announced at this morning’s skippers’ weather briefing. While the forecast for…
How to follow the Route du Rhum 2022
NOTE: Since this article was published the start date for the Route Du Rhum 2022 has been pushed back to Wednesday 9th November at 1415hrs local time. A major storm…
Route du Rhum skipper: Pip Hare
Pip Hare is a British professional sailor and solo skipper, and the 8th woman ever to finish the Vendée Globe. She needs little introduction to regular readers of Yachting World,…
Route du Rhum skipper: Boris Herrmann
Non-French sailors who have made a name for themselves in the IMOCA 60 fleet are rare, but German-born Boris Herrmann is just one such international skipper who has impressed. Many singlehanded…