Big Cats IV
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
You have made this series oh-so-popular, and oft requested more instalments Thank you. You have made this series oh-so-popular. Additionally, you have oft requested more instalments, which is also greatly appreciated. So, we started all this back in September of 2021 with Big Cats I.
Posted on 2 Dec The Traditional Hobart
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Interesting. You hear the term a bit, but what does it really mean? You hear the term a bit, but what does it really mean? One thing is for sure. It is not like we are hearing people saying they are buying up all the full-keelers to go to Hobart at six knots, no matter what direction the breeze is coming from.
Posted on 1 Dec He loved to laugh, and a good time
by John Curnow
Vale Ian Wall. What a guy. Man of action, joviality, plans, adventures, miles and smiles Ian Wall. What a guy. I am not sure anyone knows how many people ‘Wallie' taught to sail, but judging by the number of people he kept in contact with, all over the world, it was thousands. Wallie was industrious, but in many ways he WAS the industry.
Posted on 24 Nov Gloves off! (Or is that actually gloves on?)
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
After last year's spectacular Hobart win, can LawConnect claim underdog status anymore? Well now... Isn't that actually a really good point. Normally, you'd say it was gloves off, time to get physical in a bare-knuckle street fighter sense.
Posted on 17 Nov Trust your instincts - Trust in Maverick
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
An amazing looking craft, full of interesting tech, and a brilliant project title How could you not get into this? An amazing looking craft, full of interesting tech, a brilliant project title, and the pedigree of two of the greatest names going around. Yes. I'm going to get my teeth into that, all right!
Posted on 8 Nov Making time to take time
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Selene might not be top of mind, but you'll be happy you took time to find out Funny thing is that this title applied to both parties. Me, because we had to make time to find out more about Selene, as they are not what you might refer to as 'top of mind'. It's OK. They admit to that.
Posted on 6 Nov When diminutive is massive
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Let there be light. Indeed. Elizabeth Tucker has acquired Cole Brauer's Class 40, First Light Let there be light. Indeed. Elizabeth Tucker has acquired Cole Brauer's Class 40, First Light. Come November 23(ish), the pair will undertake a 12,000nm journey from Spain to Australia via two of the Capes, thence under Tasmania and into Sydney.
Posted on 3 Nov Completely Polarised
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Nothing splits the field quite like a discussion about the America's Cup Nothing splits the field quite like a discussion about the America's Cup. Good thing that is exactly what we are going to get straight into.
Posted on 20 Oct 50% is no mere pass mark
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
We're talking about half the planet here Some parts already in place, and others that needed much more time on low heat, in order for them to distil down. Make the grand sauce, and all that...
Posted on 7 Oct Look familiar?
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
OK. So the delivery system is different, to say nothing of the overall mission parameters OK. So the delivery system is different, to say nothing of the overall mission parameters, but the AC75 and the Soviet, Cold War era Lun-class Ekranoplan do both use ground effect. Both are designed to be combatants. Both get the job done smartly.
Posted on 25 Sep Who makes a better BBQ?
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Hold that thought. We'll revert, as this story about Sabre is right in the middle of our wheelhouse Hold that thought. We'll come back to it, because this story is right, bang, smack in the middle of our wheelhouse. Sabre is part of a small group of boatbuilders who started out making yachts (sailboats) before venturing into motor yachts.
Posted on 24 Sep What comes after good?
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
Well if you get it right, then it's usually, great Well if you get it right, then it's usually, great. Miss the mark, and the slide down and out the other side is not so glorious. Good thing then that Jeanneau's new Sun Odyssey 350 is all about the former, and none of the latter.
Posted on 17 Sep For when looks not only matter, they count!
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
It's in the way the canopy integrates, and her amazing folding bulwark It's the look of her, for sure. She's just got something about her. It's in the way the canopy integrates, and her amazing folding bulwark. It is like the boat is sort of on steroids, but remains elegant, and everyone's interested to see her.
Posted on 10 Sep How hard can it be?
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
PredictWind really has a coming-of-age event at this 37th America's Cup Regatta PredictWind really has a coming-of-age event at this 37th America's Cup Regatta. Their Founder, Jon Bilger, explains “PredictWind was born out of the America's Cup, and the three challenges over 10 years that I did with Alinghi."
Posted on 8 Sep Do it on an empty stomach
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Now I bet you thought that means this editorial is going to be about seasickness. Uh-uh Now I bet you thought that means this editorial is going to be about seasickness. Uh-uh. Actually, it is about hospitality. More specifically, Turkish hospitality, which is incredibly generous, and always involves heaps of food.
Posted on 28 Aug Reefing your hat
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail-World AUS
Being sun aware is kind of top of mind. I love the stuff, just don't want to be in it too much As an Australian, being sun aware is kind of top of mind. I love the stuff, but these days just don't want to be in it too much. You'll often see me opt to stand in the shade when I can. It's a sort of as long as it is there, not here, kind of thing…
Posted on 26 Aug Architect of the grand design
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
You're talking about one hell of a journey, thus far, and there are a few things that could help I have had several conversations with one, Mick Miller, in the last few weeks. Typically, they've lasted around 40 to 60 minutes. An interesting guy, for sure. Now did I just hear a collective 'Whoop-de-do'? It's OK. I got it.
Posted on 25 Aug Magnificent journey and an awesome passage
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
43 years and 7000 nautical miles. The former is the journey, and the latter is the passage 43 years and 7000 nautical miles. Both are very weighty numbers in their own right. Both have tremendous significance. Both apply to the same greater subject here. Now the former is the journey, and the latter is the passage.
Posted on 14 Aug A man called Dingo
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Australia has just sent its largest ever team to the Olympics. Now it is time to look at the AC Australia has just sent its largest ever team to the Olympics. They have competed in more events than we have before. We have also had our best ever medal haul (In terms of Gold and overall count for an away Games). Nice. Very nice. Well done all.
Posted on 12 Aug Talk about a bad rap
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
For whenever you think you have it bad, ponder these guys For whenever you think you have it bad, ponder these guys. Now rather than just the whole of them, it really comes down to the Big Four, albeit the stature of one of them is nowhere near as big as its reputation.
Posted on 31 Jul Good times
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
I had a distinctly Bernard Edwards and Nile Rogers flashback with the Tesoro T40 Yes. I had a distinctly Bernard Edwards and Nile Rogers flashback. Actually. Stop the press! It was a halleluiah moment. The reason? Got to catch up in person with the Tesoro T40...
Posted on 30 Jul From the Olympics to ocean passages
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
1.5 million users and counting: from Olympians, to ocean racers, cruisers and powerboaters Yes. The best there are on the water use PredictWind. However, it is not just limited to the Olympic Classes. Ocean racers and cruisers, as well as powerboat passage makers comprise the 1.5m users of the renowned system, and there is good reason why.
Posted on 29 Jul Never again! (Except for next time…)
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
What's it like to take a Cruiser/Racer racing? And not just any old race What's it like to take a Cruiser/Racer racing? Not just any racing, mind you, but two of the world's most famous courses. The Transpac and the Hobart. This was the premise presented to Charles Ettienne-Devanneaux ahead of our most recent chat.
Posted on 17 Jul It's called fishing. Not catching…
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Time for a Q&A with Andrew Ettinghausen ahead of the Sydney International Boat Show Ahead of the impending SIBS we were fortunate enough to get time for a Q&A with ET (Andrew Ettingshausen). As one of the most recognised fishing experts in Australia, we were keen to understand how someone can make a start from a pier, and be waterborne.
Posted on 16 Jul It's upon us
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Paris 2024 happens this month. Little wonder it seems like it has come back around quickly Paris 2024 happens this month. Little wonder it seems like it has come back around quickly, when this current quadrennial actually started in 2021. Still. Is what it is… 12 sailors comprise the Australian Olympic Sailing Team.
Posted on 2 Jul The Devil Wears Detail
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Amazing renders have a nasty habit of not being completely thought through Amazing renders do indeed have a nasty habit of not being completely thought through, so complicated as to have a build cost factor of times three, or the proverbial snowflake's chance in hell of ever being built. Sometimes it is even an amalgam.
Posted on 18 Jun It's just a stick
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
It was just like watching an enthusiastic kid It was just like watching an enthusiastic kid. Alinghi's Silvio Arrivabene was totally in the 'nothing to see here' mode, and moreover, was keener to get into the ‘maybe exceeding them' remarks about their targets. Did someone say, ‘Spinal Tap'?
Posted on 17 Jun Affordable meets Versatile meets Reliable
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
It was a real hurdle for me, nay, it was a complete roadblock It was a real hurdle for me. Nay, it was a complete roadblock. I simply felt like I had the most underwhelming headline. For me, this is often the peg in the wall to hang everything off.
Posted on 4 Jun Your silent partner
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
A not insignificant amount heavier, and maybe 15-20% more expensive?! A not insignificant amount heavier, and maybe 15-20% more expensive. Sounds a lot more like a large drogue, rather than a ride along a travelator at a huge airport. Sure, but like all things, it is a matter of perspective.
Posted on 3 Jun Going to publish the 'F' word
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
There was a distinct, if decidedly unfair, hint of the Darwin Awards when I first saw this There was a distinct, if decidedly unfair, hint of the Darwin Awards when I first saw this item come in. Most specifically, it related to the one where the guy had strapped a JATO rocket to his car.
Posted on 3 Jun Things Do Change…
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
ZF POD 4600 brought about a lot of change. The new ZF POD 4900 will do just the same! It's quite some time ago now. Three decades for sure, and into its fourth, quite possibly. It was one of those unwritten laws. An adage, if you will.
Posted on 21 May The most famous boat in the world
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Goes by a lot of nicknames, but you'd think Comanche fits the bill wherever she goes Goes by a lot of nicknames, but you'd have to think Comanche fits the bill wherever she goes. Right oh. Well, for just another eight months or so, she's not going anywhere. The most famous boat in the world has another, albeit short, charter with one aim.
Posted on 20 May Loads of amenity - Goes like a cut cat
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
As the first Cure 55 steps closer to being splashed it looked more like a Purosangue to me As the first Cure 55 steps ever closer to being splashed, I could not help thinking that it was a lot like the Ferrari Purosangue. More space than your typical two-seat hypercar, yet with the punch to dispatch distances and pretenders with complete ease.
Posted on 16 May Pre-eminence
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Not too hard to work out that I am unabashedly Australian Not too hard to work out that I am unabashedly Australian. Hope everyone is as proud of their country, as I am. Most folk I know seem to be.
Posted on 6 May No result without resolve
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
Normally, when you think of the triple it might be Line Honours, Corrected Time, and Race Record Normally, when you think of the triple it might be Line Honours, Corrected Time, and Race Record. So then, how about sail it, sponsor it, and truly support it? his was the notion that arrived as I pondered the recently completed Sail Port Stephens.
Posted on 21 Apr Alive and Kicking - B2G
by John Curnow, Sail-World.com AUS Editor
They just ran the 76th edition of the 308nm Brisbane to Gladstone race Kind of weird. They just ran the 76th edition of the 308nm Brisbane to Gladstone race. It's been annual, except for a wee hiccup in the COVID period. This year, unless you knew it was on, or had friends racing in it, it sort of flew under the radar...
Posted on 7 Apr Cool it. Cool it. Cool it!
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
It's what my father used to say to my siblings and I whenever the energy got too much It's what my father used to say to my three other siblings and I whenever the energy got a little, shall we say, animated, and the volume went up to raucous, on its way to unbearable.
Posted on 2 Apr Not on a mission - Just simply IS the mission
by John Curnow, Global Editor, SailWorldCruising.com
So if life is an adventure, and we are here to master the addiction, this may help all of us So if life is an adventure, and we are here to master the addiction, Renate Klocke might have the keys to success for us all. She only first stepped onto a boat six years ago, and crossed the two big oceans in the process.
Posted on 28 Mar Thirteen from Fourteen
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
Not races in a sprint series - we're talking years! Not races in a sprint series. We're talking years! Yes. That's over a decade. Bruce McCracken's Beneteau First 45, Ikon, has just won Division One of the Range Series on Melbourne's Port Phillip to amass this most brilliant of achievements.
Posted on 27 Mar Plymo – Weddings, Parties, Anything
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
What a guy. Andrew John Plympton AM may have had many nicknames, but Plymo describes him best What a guy. Andrew John Plympton AM may have had many nicknames, like ‘Cheese', ‘The Admiral', ‘Dingo', and ‘Prez', but there can be no doubt that it is ‘Plymo' which best describes his disarming smile and entertaining wit.
Posted on 26 Mar The Maiden. A Triple. Four Bullets
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
I kind of like our Managing Editor's name for 18-footers: The Kings of the Lowriding World The JJ Giltinan Championship is often referred to as the unofficial World Championship of the mighty and majestic 18-Footers. I kind of like our Managing Editor's name for them – The Kings of the Lowriding World. Yes. That most definitely suits.
Posted on 11 Mar Back with a vengeance
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
Categorically been on the Mixed two-handed offshore bandwagon from the beginning Categorically been on this bandwagon from the beginning. Flag bearing, card-carrying, full-blown trumpeter. Mixed two-handed offshore. You might argue it had a wee false start, but it just was a bridge too far at the time
Posted on 26 Feb Small Packages
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
You know? It is all about really good things You know? It is all about really good things. In sailing, two of the best attributes have always been fun and participation. Some would argue that these may have slipped off of late, but perhaps, it is more about finding a suitable offering.
Posted on 13 Feb Delivering us our…
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Freedom. Best of all, you won't need to put blue paint all over your face to attain it Freedom. Best of all, you won't need to put blue paint all over your face to attain it, either. Equally, you won't have to go too far to find it, for there are a little more than 400 Freedom Boat Club locales the world over with 5,000 boats in the fleet.
Posted on 11 Feb Contesting the Contenders
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
The Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club recently held the 2024 Contender Australian Championship The Gippsland Lakes Yacht Club in picturesque Paynesville recently held the 2024 Contender Australian Championship.
Posted on 28 Jan U can't touch this
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
Reputedly, the very words that came out of MC Hammer's mouth that created the song Reputedly, these were the very words that came out of MC Hammer's mouth. They then went on to become the immortal tune.
Posted on 15 Jan Upcycling your Recycling part 3
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail World AUS
Brother from another mother Thank you. You have catapulted this thread's two other siblings into the outstanding category. Upcycling your Recycling, and then a little later on, Upcycling your Recycling – Sister from another Mister looked at a Volvo 70 mould, and a former TP52.
Posted on 22 Dec 2023 Not so Looney Toons
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Paying distinct hommage to the Warner Brothers franchise, with this one Paying distinct hommage to the Warner Brothers franchise, Looney Tunes, with this one. Now you may be too young to even remember the cartoons themselves, let alone Saturday morning sessions glued to the TV, when they were tubes, not screens.
Posted on 14 Dec 2023 One word. One enterprise. Two models
by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World
Passion. There's your word Passion. There's your word. It pervades everything in this place as much as it is the motivating driver for the team that work there. Funny thing was, it happened to be the very first thing that was said after the recording had stopped.
Posted on 7 Dec 2023 Of foiling boats and taverns
by John Curnow, Editor, Sail-World AUS
Televising the AC40 racing for the masses Was in a tavern. It was actually a bit more like one of those barn style places, where size mattered more than anything else. Bigger is better, right? Let alone fries with that… Did not necessarily want to be there too long, either.
Posted on 3 Dec 2023