Pirates of The Mediterranean

Around the World

1. Dramatic Rescue: Northern Spain. The Ocean 50 trimaran Le Rire Médecin-Lamotte, competing in the Transat Jacques Vabre Race, de-masted after she gained uncontrollable speed, caught air over a wave, and slammed back into the ocean. The rescue and recovery could’ve been a Bond movie. Merida, the rescue shadow boat for the race, came to their aid, sent a diver down to refloat the mast with an air-bag, and towed the vessel back to Spain. The Ocean 50 crew were then able to sail her back to Saint-Malo using a jury-rigged Hobie 15 sail, and one pontoon, Proa style. All parts of the boat were recovered. This is the 3rd Ocean 50 to break in the race so far.

2.Ghost Ship: Coruna, Spain. An abandoned Lagoon 400 washed up in northern Spain, after the captain died aboard, and the boat drifted from the Azores. The captain was delivering the boat from Virginia, when the coast guard received a distress call, and discovered the captain’s body. The boat was unable to be recovered near the Azores, and has been adrift since.

3.Invasive Marine Species: Isle of Man. Called Ficopomatus enigmaticus, this fast growing invasive tube worm was discovered on the hulls and propellers in the Isle of Man. The worm attaches to man made surfaces and develops thick layers of calcareous tubes.

4.Sailors, Puppy Rescued: Florida Gulf. A couple and their 1 year old dog were rescued about 90 miles off Hernando beach last week after a porthole blew open and the engine failed. The Coast Guard gave them top marks for being prepared, since they even had a life vest for the dog.

5.Pirates of The Mediterranean: Natal, Brazil. Back in July, two couples chartered Mischief, a Hanse 588 with a captain in Croatia. After sending the captain to shore for dinner, they switched off the AIS and weighed anchor, marooning him there and stealing the ship. Mischief was not seen again until this week, when she was spotted in…Brazil.

The pirates had sailed her from Croatia to Morocco, and then from Morocco across the Atlantic to Brazil. They then rented a berth for 60 days, with the intention of sailing her up to the Caribbean after Hurricane season, and selling her there. A savvy civilian familiar with the story of Mischief noticed the highly custom, very out of place Hanse, and alerted the Brazilian authorities. When they boarded her, they found forged ownership and registration paperwork, renaming the boat Albina.

Wrong on all levels? Absolutely. A very impressive piece of piracy? Well, to quote Norrington’s officer:

Race Updates

Retour à la Base: The 3,500 mile solo skipper race from Martinique to Lorient got under way Thursday with light 9kt winds. There are 30 skippers in all, with the leaders expected to reach France around December 9th. Follow the race here.

Transat Jacques Vabre Race: The last of the IMOCA’s in the co-skippered race are pulling in to Martinique. Check out the fleets and standings here.

Ocean Globe Race: Pen Duick VI continues to lead the pack. Excellent conditions gave way to storms in the Indian Ocean, as the boats aimed for a waypoint avoiding icebergs.

Quick Question

Q: Why was Sherlock Holmes a good sailor?

A: …He always had a great Clew.

Sailing Snippets

Sail for Sale: SailGP has been selling off individual teams, and the United States team was purchased by a US private equity group that counts Football, Basketball, and Soccer stars as investors.

Bali Bumper Boats: Watch this rogue charter cat rampage through a mooring field, and one smart skipper fend off the Bali by ramming it with his dinghy. Who knows what happened, but appears as if someone dropped a short anchor and didn’t secure the jib, then the wind swung around, caught the sail, and blew the boat off the hook. Wince at that video here.

Blow-boats to BloKarts: It’s a go-kart! It’s a sailboat! It’s a…BloKart? The BloKart is the invention of a New Zealand based company that makes land-sailing carts capable of hitting up to 40 knot speeds. This weekend is the Horseneck Beach Regatta Land Sailing Competition, where locals will race around a beach-side parking lot. Now that is cool. Check out that story here. Hey Santa, if you’re listening, the BloKart website is here…

Sausalito Sailcloth Art: Pamela Kogen up-cycles old sailcloth in her mixed media art, giving new life to textiles that otherwise get land-filled (an unfortunate byproduct of the sailing industry). Kogen has been sailing since she was 6, and discovered the unique medium during art school, when her brother, who was working as a rigger, sent her some discarded sailcloth. She is opening her own studio in Sausalito to showcase her work; read an interview and see some of her pieces here.