Flying high
Most think first of MARC VAN PETEGHEM and VINCENT LAURIOT PREVOST for their record breaking offshore multihulls, but the pair have also built a substantial, broad-based, design studio, now with 15 staff, concentrating as much on fast cruisers and now superyachts as on out-and-out racers. But throughout their work, performance remains key...

Apparent Wind Sailing - A surfeit of MacDonalds
Early 29er prototypes sailed fast, but when they stopped they tended to sink... FRANK BETHWAITE explains how iterative development eventually resolved the problem without sacrificing any performance

Design - The truth about fillings
There has been considerable debate in these pages recently about the merits of various core materials. DAVID LYONS has undertaken a fresh and detailed study of this subject and offers a few answers...

Regulars

Commodore's letter - PETER RUTTER

Editorial - ANDREW HURST
IMS is working for those for who it was always intended. Now let's solve the raceboat question?

Update
NIGEL IRENS describes the litany of disasters (or abuse) that befell Marc Guillemot and his trimaran La Trinitaine, DEE SMITH and IAN MOORE update us on progress at the Nautor and illbruck Volvo syndicates, CHRISTIAN FEVRIER pays tribute to Route du Rhum founder Michel Etévénon, and RUSSELL COUTTS throws the on switch for a quick 
lesson in match racing... 

World news 
Sill gives a lesson in alround performance in the EDS Challenge, K-2000 hits the water, Le Défi lands its first America's Cup sponsor, Le Cam and Bonduelle on song in Italy, Tour de France - tougher than ever, superyachts take on IACC proportion in New Zealand, as Bertarelli builds his Auckland 'Superstore', Sydney-Hobart reviews catch up with Aussie race fleets, Blackwing picks up the pace at Block Island and new TP52s fly in Transpac 2001. IVOR WILKINS, PATRICE CARPENTIER, ROB MUNDLE, TIM JEFFERY and DOBBS DAVIS

Paul Cayard
Paul goes for gold with some brave predictions about Volvo Race performance

America's Cup - Delicate
Robert Hook - man in the middle, TV debates continue to overshadow the Cup and ERNESTO BERTARELLI interviewed

ORC Column
News from City Hall about a successful IMS Worlds in Spain as well as the introduction of a new world offshore team event...

Olympic and small boat news
ROBERT SCHEIDT is one of the supreme Olympic class athletes - and he still has some unfinished business with the Laser fleet...

Seahorse raceboat build table

RORC news
'For the avoidance of doubt,' JOHN WARREN sets out the realities of the IR2000 Rule. And some race management tips from the Tour Voile