Category Archives: sailing

Neoline Origin

Leave a reply

The Neoline Origin made her first call to Halifax. The French RO-RO Ship is powered by 2 large sails, and can cross the ocean while burning minimal fuel. The Ship began construction in 2021 this is its second voyage. the ships maiden crossing had stops in Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and Baltimore. Problems with the sail system sent the ship back to France.

A fully enclosed RO-RO vessel, the ship carries container internally, and has contracts with Michelin, so it should be a regular caller going forward.

With fuel cost rising, shippers are looking at other options. E-Ship One uses Fletner Rotors to supplement propulsion, and called at Pier 9 last year. Beluga Shipping also tried a skysail, basically a large Kite. I covered some of the advances in a return to sail video on Youtube.

I originally covered the Neoliner for the Herald in 2021.

SailGP Returns

Leave a reply

SailGP returned to Halifax, and once again the weather made things interesting. On Saturday, after strong gusts all day, by race time the wind died off. This led to a much shortened course, and for the first time a split fleet, where each race was run twice, with an A and B fleets. the Grand final featured 4 boats for the first time, the top two from the A and B fleets.

the A and B Fleets were arranged based on season point standings. Evidently this worked so well that sail GP Announced the rest of the season will be run this way.

the final Results were Spain with the Win, followed by Sweden and Switzerland. Perennial front runner Australia came in 4th. the Black Foils and GBR did not make the final, so the new format certainly mixes things up.

SailGP is back for 2027, this time May 15 and 16. This early event should also bring more questionable weather, and will take place a earlier then the inaugural 2024 event.

The NorthStar Canada boat spent much of the weekend tied up off Queens Marque.

Halifax does well hosting SailGP. it has one of the best venues, and runs with top international destinations. The City looks great, and if we are wanting to promote ourselves as a ocean technology hub, this is the exact sort of event we should be hosting. the Province would do well to put a sponsorship on the Canadian team.

SailGP Canadian Team Safe

Leave a reply

SailGP has confirmed the acquisition of the Canada SailGP Team by Canadian biotech entrepreneur, Dr. Greg Bailey.  In a move set to send shockwaves through the global racing championship, double Olympic Gold medalist Giles Scott has been signed as driver for the Canadian team. Giles Scott previously drove for Emirates GBR, and was the winner of the Sail GP Canada event this summer. Scott was born in Canada and Has citizenship.

Dr. Greg Bailey is co-founder and executive chairman of Juvenescence and chairman of Max Insurance, a Canadian property and casualty insurance company. 

In addition to Scott, the Canada SailGP Team announces the retention of top talent, including flight controller Billy Gooderham, wing trimmer Paul Campbell-James, as well as grinders Tim Hornsby, Jareese Finch, Cooper Dressler and Tom Ramshaw.  Strategist Annie Haeger will also continue and be joined by Georgia Lewin-LaFrance, who returns to the roster following on from her 2024 Olympic campaign. Joe Glanfield also returns to the team as Lead Coach.

SailGP also confirms the return of a Canadian SailGP event next season in 2026.  A sellout success, SailGP’s Canadian debut in Halifax was named ‘favourite racetrack’ in the Season 4 fan-voted awards. More than 50,000 spectators turned out to cheer on the action, along the Halifax shoreline.

S/V Theros Disappears, crew found in dingy on Sable Island

1 Reply

The Theros departed the Dartmouth yacht club June 11, and was last heard from June 13th. the vessel with 2 persons on board was due in the Azores on July 2. instead they were found, deceased, in their black dingy when it washed up on sable island July 10th.

Family reported them missing June 18th, after they received no further contact form the couple after the 13th. There was no distress call from the vessel, nor did it appear to carry an epirb.

There was a suggestion that the Theros may have been run over by a LNG Carrier Ineos Intuition. this was based on incomplete AIS Data for the Theros, but the last known position provided by the USCG suggests the Theros was well past the track of Ineos Intuition.

SailGP comes to Halifax

Leave a reply

SailGP comes to Canada and Halifax for the First time this weekend. The series, created by Oracle founder Larry Ellison, is currently in its 4th season. 10 teams, will race F50 one-design multi-hulls around the Harbour Saturday and Sunday. Both days will feature 3 races, with the final race only including the top teams from the previous 5 races.

The Boats are an evolution of the 2017 AC50 boats used for the Americas Cup, and 3 of the hulls were raced in that Americas Cup. as a one design series, all the boats are identical, so winning comes down to ability of the crew of 6 – Helmsman, 2 grinders, tactician, trimmer and flight controller. The F50 name drives from Foiling, and the boats length 50′. if you look closely, you will see the boats skimming through the water on a single foil on the downwind side of the vessel.

The boats typically race at 60-80km/h depending on wind conditions, with the top speed of 99.94km/h being recorded in 2022.

Arc Gloria for Port Visit

Leave a reply

The ARC Gloria, Barque of the Colombian Navy arrived for a Port visit Sunday. The ship is currently anchored in the harbour, and will be moving to Tall Ships Quay behind NSP on the morning of the 15th. The ship will be open to the public 9am-10pm. ARC Gloria is currently scheduled to sail at 17:00 on the 18th.

The ship is on a tour to celebrate the bicentennial of the Colombia Navy. It was last in Halifax in 2016.

Built to a Blohm &Voss Design, she is a modern version of the Gorch Fock. The original Gorch Fock was built in 1933, and was taken as war reparations from Germany. Her sisters include NRP Sagres, USCG Eagle, and Mircea. The German Navy built a new Gorch Fock in 1958. the 1933 ship is now a museum in Germany.

Arc Gloria is the Oldest of the Modern Set of 4, Having been built in 1968  at the Astilleros Celaya S.A. shipyard in Bilbao. Her contemporaries Include Cuauhtémoc (1982 Mexico) , Guayas (1977 Ecuador) and Simon Bolivar (1980 Venezuela)

The ship was open to the public most nights until 10 PM, with traditional Colombian music playing. The above photo was taken just after 9pm, and the ship was still busy.

Guyot heading back to Europe

Leave a reply

Guyot, a IMOCA 60 competing in the Ocean Race was bound for Newport RI when it was demasted in a storm. The boat made its way to Halifax after taking fuel from a container ship, and under a jury rig.

The Boat was hauled out this afternoon at Fairview Cove, and placed on a mafi, to be shipped back to Europe for repair. Given the placement on the mafi, it will likely go be shipped via ACL

Mari-Cha III

Leave a reply

A Proper yacht is tied up at Purdys Wharf. The Mari-Chi III was built in 1997, and besides being luxurious also puts up some impressive racing numbers. The Boat set the monohull transatlantic record in (NY to S. England) 1998, crossing in in 8d 23h. she also claimed the fastest ever from Sydney to Hobart in 1999.

She normally sails with a crew of 7, but grows to 25 when shes racing. Interior shots and more information can be found at https://www.mari-cha.com/

The Age of Sail Returns

1 Reply

This week in the Herald I talk about NeoLine, the French firm that is proposing a new transatlantic service by sail powered RO-RO vessel. The Firm has a shipping commitment from Michelin, which would see this service call in Halifax starting in 2023.

Not to be out done, Wallenius Wilhelmsen plans a sail powered PCTC in 2025. The Orcelle Wind will carry 7000 cars at 11 knots under sail.

Cargo under sail happened in Halifax in 2019 in a very traditional manner with the arrival of the Cargo Schooner Avontuur with a load of coffee bound for Just Us.