The Yachting Year 2018

Sir Keith Mills’

Invictus (left) and

the HP30 class

THE YACHTING YEAR 2018 | 45

FAST40+

CIRCUIT CONTINUES TO WOW

Since the class formed two years ago, there’s no doubt

that the Fast40+  eet has been the hottest keelboat

class around. And the momentum is still growing!

Owner of Ràn Racing and Skype founder Niklas

Zennstrom is the latest owner-driver to join the

fast-growing Fast40+ phenomenon. His team, Ràn

Racing, has commissioned a Carkeek Fast40+ to be

delivered in 2018. It’s a move that takes him away from

the 52 Super Series, of which he was a founder and

president of the TP52 class.

Also joining the Fast40+ party is Botin Partners,

who’s new production series Fast40+ is being built by

McConaghy and sold via Ancasta.  e  rst two boats

are destined for Australia and Japan, but there’s

already a third of the same tooling and design waiting

to be snapped up. If their TP52 pedigree based on the

2017 championship series winner, Azzurra, is anything

to go by, these should be fast boats.

Defending their titles will be 2017 FAST40+

champion Sir Keith Mills and his team on board

Ker40+ Invictus, who clinched the series win with

Giles Scott on board as tactician.  ey saw o close

competition from Peter Morton’s Carkeek 40 Mk III

Girls on Film - the CF40+ which was built at Premier

Composites from the same mould as his previous Girls

on Film launched early in 2017 and has had a fantastic

run it its  rst season, winning not only the class at

Cowes Week, but also retaining the One Ton Cup.

Racing is tight and with more teams coming to the

fray in 2018, it will continue to be the class to watch.

HP30 CLASS

RE-LAUNCH

Despite no o cial racing taking place in 2017, the HP30

class is optimistic of getting things back on track for

2018, thanks to recently announced independent

technical support from RORC. Rating O ce Director

Jason Smithwick will lead the team of experts, and it

will be good to see these small sportsboats given a

second chance in their bid to loosely emulate the

successful formula of the bigger Fast40+  eet.

 e class will be run by the owners’ association, with

support from RORC, and promises exciting racing for

fans of pocket rockets such as FarEast28s, Farr280s,

Farr30s, Open 7.5 and Seascape27s. Originally set up in

2016, by Joe Hall and Jochem Visser, the class is open to

boats with asymmetric spinnakers and a minimum

TCC of 1.050.

Class starts have now been o ered at RORC’s Easter

Challenge and Vice Admiral’s Cup events, as well as at

Poole International Paints Regatta and Lendy Cowes

We e k.

BART’S ‘BIGGER’ BASH

September sees the return of Bart’s Bash,

now into its fi fth year. The world’s largest

sailing event has chosen 2018 to attempt to

beat its own Guinness World Record, set in

2014, for staging the world’s largest sailing

event! Back then an incredible 9,484 boats

took to the water to race at 237 locations

worldwide, competing in memory of Olym-

pic medallist and America’s Cup sailor, An-

drew ‘Bart’ Simpson and raising a massive

£366,391 for the Andrew Simpson Founda-

tion, which works to increase participation

in sailing among young people.

F A S T 4 0 + H P 3 0 C L A S S

TYY4 Year ahead Y&Y.indd 45 04/12/2017 15:14