FEATURES

Full scale full power
During the previous Americašs Cup cycle Alinghi took the lead in full-scale evaluation of new ACC design ideas, chopping their boats about more - and more successfully - than any of their rivals. LUC DUBOIS and MANOLO RUIZ DE ELVIRA explain how the team maintain the correlation between full scale and the tank.

Yer wrong!
Plenty of people thought that given a tough upwind Sydney-Hobart the slender canting-keel maxis would come unstuck. Well, it didn't turn out quite as expected.

Volvo Ocean Race
- WInners!
Italian engineering maestro GIOVANNI CARIBONI explains what it took to make sure his Volvo Race clients' keels all worked without any problems. Plus JOHN KOSTECKI on why 'this' Ericsson campaign will be different.

The (new) miracle cure
- Part 2
DOBBS DAVIS takes the latest Dyneema SK75 and SK78 products and compares them with their market rivals in a real-life context

REGULARS

Editorial
ANDREW HURST

Update
GEOFF ROSS finds himself a surprisingly satisfied new customer of IRC, more details are confirmed for the next Volvo Ocean Race, DAVID AISHER explains the changes for the next Rolex Commodores' Cup, a word on 'those' growing regatta management costs, and MAREIKE GUHR on why Germany has gone IRC for the 2007 Nordbank Blue Transatlantic Challenge

World news
Class 40 gets a full 'dual-purpose' review, Spain's Olympians start to wind up towards Beijing 2008, how the custom boats are still making the running in New Zealand, the history behind a memorable Hobart win (inset), ladder technology infiltrates the maxi fleetŠ and the left and right US coasts team up for the Pacific Cup. PATRICE CARPENTIER, CARLOS PICH, ROB MUNDLE, IVOR WILKINS and DOBBS DAVIS

ORC column
GP42s hit double figures already!

Paul Cayard
Hola! And we're off to Valencia

Olympic and small boat news - Shining brightly
JON EMMETT sits down with 49er World Champions CHRIS DRAPER and SIMON HISCOCKS as they prepare for Qingdao

America's Cup
A very different GBR is back in the Cup game courtesy of the drive and determination of the UK's 2012 Olympic bid CEO KEITH MILLS

Design - Decisions decisions
TORBJØRN LINDERSON explains how Marström Composites took a new approach in building their first ORMA 60 trimaran mast

Seahorse raceboat build table
- Total beauty
Mike Brennan's new Reichel-Pugh 45 Sjambok was not built strictly to any particular rating system but it flies anyway. DOBBS DAVIS

RORC news

Seahorse regatta calendar

Sailor of the Month
Youth versus experience

Below:
In one of his brief diversions from taking fine photographs of the marine world in general and sailing competitions in particular Thierry Martinez recently took his camera to Hawaii to capture some of the always frenetic mid-winter activity. These shots are of top US professional windsurfer Levi Siver (far left) and France's Baptiste Gossein - he's the upside-down one, of course. Now it's back to Valencia for the America's Cup action - as Alinghi's official photographer