FEATURES

Multi-tasking
GRANT SIMMER is one of the most respected figures in the world of the America’s Cup, having won the Auld Mug both as a sailor with Alan Bond and as a technical director (twice) with his current team, Alinghi. Now he is having to prepare for a very different kind of Cup defence strategy...

A grand time
The Olympics seems somehow always to produce a remarkable regatta... Qingdao was certainly no exception. TIM JEFFERY

A British blueprint
Guess which team left Qingdao with the biggest haul? TIM JEFFERY looks at the creation 12 years ago of the performance programme that culminated (to date...) at Beijing in August 2008

Winners (almost) all
ANDY RICE did not agree with the venue choice, but he is unstinting in his praise for the Chinese organisers... and for the sailors who thrived in Qingdao’s challenging conditions

A tale of two boats
Did the Danish crew deserve their 49er gold? Absolutely, says ANDY RICE... and this is why

Les monstres! - Part 1
Two 100ft-plus trimarans launched in one week. Has there ever been anything like it? We talk to designers du jour, MARC VAN PETEGHEM and VINCENT LAURIOT PREVOST

A changing world
Volvo navigation is no longer a purely cerebral role, says Team Russia’s WOUTER VERBRAAK

REGULARS

Commodore’s letter
DAVID AISHER

Editorial
ANDREW HURST
And our entirely unexpected voice of liberalism is warming to his theme... for the greater good!

Update
TERRY HUTCHINSON and NICK SCANDONE both close the deal, and RODNEY  PATTISSON and BEN AINSLIE compare notes

World news
LOICK PEYRON’s big Figaro... CAMMAS and BIDEGORRY’s big boats, and San Francisco’s, big breeze in Hamo and TOM ASHLEY delivers! PATRICE CARPENTIER, CARLOS PICH, ROB MUNDLE and IVOR WILKINS

Paul Cayard
Time for a serious look at the big picture

Seahorse letters
The finest credentials and the clearest of opinions

ORC column
SYD FISCHER is back on the warpath

America’s Cup
– Girls, girls
The Cup ‘battle’ gets personal

2008/9 Volvo Ocean Race
– Mind your backs
And a new team on the dock. SAM BRUNNER

Design – Right first time!
‘They [Percy and Simpson] would have won gold in any boat’, JUAN KOUYOUMDJIAN reminds us generously. But the first of JUAN K’s latest Star designs is still worthy of closer examination

Seahorse raceboat build table – Have it all?
The theme of a high-performance multihull cruiser-racer oriented towards and using the best racing technology gathers pace. ERIK LEROUGE

RORC news – A long road
EDDIE WARDEN OWEN 

Seahorse regatta calendar

Sailor of the Month
Two genuine legends... we’re bracing ourselves