K-Challenge's FRA60 christened in Gandia

On Friday afternoon we had the great pleasure to assist at the first official presentation of a version 5 America's Cup Class boat in Valencia. K-Challenge presented its first version 5 boat, the FRA60, which will be used to race during the Louis Vuitton Acts in Valencia next June.

More than 1,000 guests attended the presentation and had the chance to see first-hand the engineering marvel created by Dimitri Nicolopoulos and his team. Enjoy the photos

The two boats from across the harbor while they were being prepared for the presentation

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The two boats from another angle.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Just before the arrival of more than 1,000 guests, we took advantage and shot the two boats side by side.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

This is it!! The FRA60, the first version 5 America's Cup Class boat to be officially presented in Valencia

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The stern of the FRA60

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The two bows, FRA60 in the front and FRA57 in the back.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A closer view of the two bows. The design differences are evident even to a non-expert eye.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The two masts, with FRA60 in the front and FRA57 in the back.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

More photos of the two boats side by side

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

An impressive view from below. Without any doubt this is going to be the best French syndicate ever

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The boat's godfather Johnny Hallyday, probably the most famous French singer in the last 50 years, is about to break the champaign bottle.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Champaign is still flowing on the just-christened boat

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The immense bulb of the FRA60

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The FRA60 white ..

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

... and now red.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A close view from below

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The brightly-lit mast surges skywards

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

No self-respecting party in Valencia can end without fireworks. We were lucky to witness a spectacular show

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The sky of Gandia was brightly lit.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The Valencia harbor from above

We have found the perfect spot from where to take pictures, thanks to the help of a very good friend. This is going to be our strategic location for the next 2 months and will be able to shoot pictures never seen before.

You will be able to watch the action from a privileged location. Stay tuned!! As for the weekend, we will have an enormous update with all the action from Gandia and the K-Challenge base.

A central view of the Darsena. There is no doubt at all that guests at the Foredeck Club will have an extremely privileged position

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

An overall view of the north bases. It seems that work at the LunaRossa base has stopped. I haven't seen any progress for almost a month


Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A closer view of the north side of the Darsena. The breakwater of the canal is clearly visible. In addition, the works for the canal are advancing very rapidly. You can see the two boats of the BMWOracle team training at the back. Further to their right the +39 boat was about to return to the harbor.

The race area is just in front of our building. With a better camera we will be able to take sensational photos.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Another view of the south bases. We will have exceptional views from here during the June regattas.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A final panoramic view of the Valencia port. It's not a perfect picture but as we get better material, multimedia content will improve

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Valencia 2009 ?

It was with great pleasure that I read Tom Ehman's article on Saturday in "El Mundo", one of the largest national newspapers in Spain. The President of the Challenger Commission wrote a very interesting and concise piece where he assessed the current situation in Valencia, made comparisons to previous America's Cups and presented his views on the future of the world's oldest sports competition.

I am sure that just like myself, the absolute majority of Valencians that read the article focused entirely on his 3rd point. As a Valencian, I would be lying if I were to say that I was not astonished and very pleased to learn that the major two teams are considering hosting the 33rd America's Cup in 2009 right here in Valencia, regardless of who wins the 32rd America's Cup. Despite the obvious growing pains the whole process is going through, this statement comes as a testimony to the success of the hosting city. It may even turn out that our new logo for the blog wasn't as far fetched as one would have initially thought!!!

You can read the article from the author himself at the Challenger Commission website (www.challengercommission.com) here.

Para nuestros lectores Valencianos, tenemos una copia del documento en Castellano

Construction pace quickens

It is a nice surprise each we visit the construction site to witness the quickening pace. The north bases are now at a very advanced stage, with the +39 team having already placed a mast inside. The Alinghi base strikes with its distinctive design and the BMWOracle one with its size. At the south end of the Darsena, the K-Challenge building is advancing rapidly while for the first time we witnessed the first steel beams of the Desafio Espanol base. Unfortunately, the whole harbor was strictly off limits for all boats without special clearance and as a result we could not navigate and take better photos.

Just like everybody else, Valencia Sailing looks forward to a great event in less than 2 months. In the shorter term, we will be in Gandia next Friday for the official presentation of the K-Challenge team. We can not miss such an important event and our coverage will be very extensive. As the Valencia Sailing website has been upgraded and will shortly move to dedicated servers and domain name, we will also be able to offer short videos in addition to the usual tens of photos

A closeup of the superyacht pier. Most probably, in the next photo update the Foredeck club will be already visible

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The use of prefab concrete slabs is speeding up work considerably. This one was used for the superyacht pier

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A partial view of the south bases. The white structure in the center is the K-Challenge base. To its right, the site of the future Emirates Team NZ base. To its left, the empty space of the future Victory Challenge base. Further to the left, the initial structure of the Desafio Espanol base

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A view of the south bases. The Desafio Espanol base has gotten off the ground. We have to admit that construction is advancing at a breakneck pace.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The Desafio Espanol base. Its particlarity lies in the fact that it will be composed of two separate buildings

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

An overall view of the BMWOracle base. Each time I stare at it I'm amazed by its size and complexity

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A closeup of half the BMWOracle base.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Inside the LunaRossa base, where construction work seems to have stopped since almost a month.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A view from the back of Shosholoza (right), +39 (middle) and Alinghi (left) bases.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The same bases from the opposite angle. The distinctive look of Alinghi's base is now clearly visible. It is surely going to be impressive when covered with mirror windows.

By the way, imitation is the best form of flattery. We are pleased to see that Alinghi is also a follower of our idea to publish the weekly advance of its base construction on its website.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The same bases as seen from the front.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The +39 team has already placed a mast in its base. Judging from the advanced stage of construction, they will be moving in shortly

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

These are going to be ACM's future offices.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Inside the "Tinglados", the old sheds. Even if at times the organizing company of this event seems to be acting as if desiring to alienate Valencians, they are increasingly using the port area. The once-derelict and infamous port is now a family-friendly area !!

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

More locals looking at the construction work. Despite the scant promotion in Valencia of this prestigious sailing event, for a lot of Valencians the walk along the Darsena is seen as integral part of their Sunday program.

In fact, the small crowd in this picture was commenting Tom Ehman's article on the possibility of having the 33rd America's Cup in Valencia. The president of the Challenger Comission in his article in the national newspaper "El Mundo" suggested that if the 32nd America's Cup turned out to be successful, the two major teams would propose hosting the 33rd America's Cup in 2009 here as well, regardless of who wins in 2007. It's music to their ears!!!

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The breakwater is advancing at a great speed as well.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

We are only in April, but Valencians and tourists alike took advantage of the wonderful sunny afternoon weather and flocked to the beach. I was surprised by the great number of Americans and Britons.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Today's final picture couldn't be other than of the race area as seen from the beach. It looks quite clean from here!!

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

"A cradle of champions"

NZL38 ‘Black Magic II’ was a crucial weapon in New Zealand’s successful 1995 victory over the USA in San Diego. She is the most successful New Zealand America’s Cup yacht of all time, undefeated on the water in official competition. She then served a useful retirement in developing new yachts of her breed for both New Zealand and Swedish teams.

In fact, a large number of New Zealand sailors currently present in Valencia cut their teeth aboard NZL38.

Yacht Statistics

Sail Number	NZL38
Class	International America's Cup Class (IACC)
Launched	December 1993
Designers	Laurie Davidson, Doug Petersen, Team NZ 1995
Length	23.8 metres
Beam	4.2 metres
Draft	4.0 metres
Weight	Hull 2 tonnes
	Ballast 21 tonnes
Sail Area	Upwind 300m2
	Downwind 500m2

Exceptional and unique opportunity for corporate events

After ten years service within America’s Cup syndicates, this prestigious yacht is due to be launched this summer. She has been specifically modified for commercial passenger service and offers a rare and exciting vehicle for marketing campaigns and custom corporate events. Black Magic is currently in the final part of a complete overhaul, making this elite super powered sailing machine just tame enough for the novice crew to try.

Project Manager Patrick Carpenter comments: "Our key priority has been to keep the yacht ‘authentic’ while bearing in mind the abilities and comfort of our guests. Customers will have the chance to truly experience the amazing sensation of sailing this 24 metre behemoth, in a safe and user friendly environment"

Be at the helm of this amazing racing yacht

With up to 500 square metres of sails to manoeuvre, the guests are essential in helping provide the energy to control the enormous amounts of power available. The majority of the yacht is made from super strength carbon fibre, providing superior structural integrity, with the added benefit of super lightweight construction. A whopping 85% of the yachts complete weight is moulded into a 2.5 metre long, 20 ton bullet suspended 2.5 metres below the hull of the yacht. This provides huge resistance in a pendulum effect to counteract the effort of the massive sail area.

NZL38 available for charter in Spain

Commencing July 2005, your opportunity arrives to experience the exhilaration that is sailing an ‘International America’s Cup Class’ legend. SailEurope is nearing completion of charter modifications on its first IACC yacht ‘NZL38 – Black Magic’, which will be launched in Valencia.

Saileurope is currently inviting enquiries from Corporate's and Charter Agencies interested in getting involved with its sailing programme for 2005 – 2007. Its yacht provides an excellent vehicle for Marketing, allowing an enormous area of advertising space and sailing capacity for anywhere between 8 – 18 passengers. In addition, this opportunity is uniquely mobile, and legally certified to operate anywhere in the Mediterranean sea.

To find out more about Saileurope, please contact patrick.carpenter@saileurope.com.

Or phone/fax: +34 963 974059

Postal Address:
Saileurope Group
Ronda del Puerto 5, Pta 8
Port Saplaya de Alboraya
46120 Valencia
Spain

Pop quiz: Who is she?

Do you know whose sewer this is? We visited a workshop here in Valencia and got into the sewer of a champions' cradle. Any ideas on the identity of the boat?

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

Inside Valencia's port

We had a wonderful sunny weekend in Valencia and with the help of a friend of ours we managed to navigate inside Valencia's port with a small boat. We thus had the opprotunity to take lots of pictures of all the construction work from a different angle and get a much better idea of the situtation inside the interior basin.

Unfortunately, we didn't have complete freedom of movement but were lucky to catch the +39 team with their small boats going out of the port to train. In the following weeks we'll get better organized and try to follow as many training sessions as we can.

Following the tens of emails we received we will try to enrich the content with non sailing-related material.

As always, please send us an email if you want to make a suggestion, criticize us or just congratulate us (especially the latter).

While we were waiting for permission to leave with our boat the +39 team started maneuvering its boat inside the harbor

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

We are off. We are navigating inside the harbor. Unfortunately, we could not get as close to the north bases as we would have liked since the area north of the superyacht pier is strictly off limits for boats without any official clearance. The Clock House, or "Edificio del Reloj" is the main entrance from the city in the basin

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

The old shed, or "Tinglado". It will house, at least during the 2005 regattas in Valencia, the AC Park. It is an open free area, where visitors can follow the racing activity through a giant screen as well as participate in all sorts of sailing-related activities.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing

A view of the south pier. The white steel beams are of the K-Challenge base, while in front of it the Emirates Team NZ base is just starting to get off the ground.

Photo taken by Valencia Sailing