Rolex Miami OCR 2011, Men’s 470 fleet, Photo By Rolex, Daniel Forster

This winter, the sails are set for the 22^nd time: The upcoming renowned US Sailing Rolex Miami OCR 2012 regatta will be held from january 22^nd to 28^th, this time in the picturesque Biscayne Bay. The second of seven regattas within the ISAF Sailing World Cup 2011–2012 circuit is open for ten olympic and three paralympic classes – at the same time, the Rolex Miami OCR 2012 marks also the final selection event for the US Paralympic Team – Sailing. ‘With 2012 being the last year of the Olympic quadrennium, we expect an increase in Pa-ralympic class participation as all of the world’s top Paralympic hopefuls will be coming to Miami straight off the IFDS World Championships, also held in Florida,’ said Gary Bodie (Hampton, Va.), regatta co-chair.

The ISAF Rolex Miami OCR 2012 will be followed by the Trofeo Princesa Sofia 2012 Palma Spain in april, the french Semaine Olympique in Hyeres, the Delta Lloyd Regatta Medemblik 2012 from mai 23–27, the Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta Weymouth and the german Kieler Woche. Since 1990, the prestigious Miami regatta is organized by the United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), which has been founded just as Gaastra in the year of 1897! Passion for sailing=1897! The US Sailing Association with its headquarter in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, supports in addition a wide-ranging amount of national US Sailing Championships and the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics. Gaastra blog wishes all participants a successful week in Miami – all sailing passio-nates can professionalize with high-value technical Gaastra Pro Sailing Gear offshore or dress up with nautical Gaastra Fashion onhore as the Gaastra Voiles de Saint Barth 2012 Collection — comfortably and with worldwide delivery service in the official Gaastra Online Shop!

Gaastra Voiles de Saint Barth Collection 2012 — exclusive nautical fashion new arrived!

Caribbean sea breeze has arrived in the Gaastra Online Shop: To the exclusive Caribbean sailing regatta Les Voiles de St. Barth 2012, Gaastra presents as the official partner the limited and maritime Saint Barth nautical fashion collection! The meanwhile third edition of the French West Indies Regatta will be held from 2–7 april 2012 in the Caribbean French Antilles sailing– and VIP holiday paradise Saint Barth and is organised by the St. Barth yacht club. The already second Gaastra St. Barth Collection refreshes in bright and airy colours: Navy, lavender, white, olive, berry, turquoise and frutto reflect fashionably the sweet life on the Caribbean VIP island in the sporty Gaastra Women St. Barth Polo Shirts Valencia and in the Gaastra Men St. Barth Polo Shirts Vincey. Set sail to the new Gaastra nautical fashion arrivals fastly: The Limited Gaastra Saint Barth Edition Collection 2012 is for now available in highly diverse colours and sizes! Discover as well wind– and waterproof Saint Barth jackets, vests and softshell jackets. Shop from now on the style 2012 of the Caribbean VIP-island Saint Barth in the Official Gaastra Online Shop with worldwide and fast delivery!

Heineken Regatta Curacao, Caribbean Sailing Event, photobucket.com, Naomi Reisel album

Sunshine the whole year, an average yearly temperature of 28° C and steadily refreshing trade winds: Welcome to the Netherlands! (the carib-bean island belongs to the Dutch Kingdom since last year). One can count himself lucky being at Curacao next weekend. Because between 11 to 13 november 2011, the fourth edition of the Heineken Regatta Curacao will take place in Willemstad. Open for the racing class on three days and on two days for the racing cruising class, the cruising class, open fun class and the multihull class, the Carribean sailing hotspot will be right in the city center — at the largest natural harbour of the Carribean, the St. Annabaai Harbour. Sailing races will take place on the waters south of holiday paradise Curacao. En passant, the international sailing teams and visitors will respire the historical air of Willemstad – for the capital of Curacao belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage.

You can follow the Curacao Sailing Festival on Dutch radiostation Paradise FM with news, live reports from the regatta village on the Kleine Werft and interviews — and naturally on the official Heineken Regatta Homepage. There you get in addition all informations about the parallelly happening Heineken Regatta Festival 2011 and its performing artists like reggae legend Maxi Priest and Puerto Rican-American Grammy Winner Elvis Crespo. And one who is still looking for the perfect matching maritime fashion look: Visit the Official Gaastra Online Store with worldwide delivery service and with the biggest assortment of premium Gaastra Sailing Fashion and this years popular and only limitedly available Gaastra Les Voiles de St. Barth Collection 2011 for the caribbean Gaastra sponsored sailing venue, that will take place anew 2012 from 2–7 april!

Heineken Regatta Curacao 2009 (2), photobucket.com, Naomi Reisel album

Heineken Regatta Curacao 2009 (3), photobucket.com, Naomi Reisel album

Heineken Regatta Curacao 2009 (4), photobucket.com, Naomi Reisel album

Heineken Regatta Curacao 2009 (5), photobucket.com, Naomi Reisel album

Volvo Ocean Race 2011–2012 Route Map, Gaastra Blog wishes Godspeed

All hands on deck for the pending 39,000 nautical miles: Today the Volvo Ocean Race 2011–2012, one of the world’s most challenging sailing events, starts! The continental route of the 11th edition will lead from port of Alicante via Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, around Cape Horn to Itajaí, Miami, Lisbon, Lorient and the final destination Galway Ireland in july 2012. The unique and extremely challenging Volvo Ocean Race, will demand high endurance as well as perfect foresighted skills on the international sailing teams — each one consisting of a crew with eleven professionals.

This edition participate the Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing Team, Team Telefonica, Groupama Sailing Team, Puma Ocean Racing Team, Camper with Emirates Team and Team Sanya. ‘The level of competition has never been higher’, said Volvo Ocean Race Chief Executive Knut Frostad. The teams will race day and night, depending on the distance they will be more than twenty days on the run, experiencing temperatures from –5 to +40 degress Celsius. Blessedly, the teams can bank on cutting-edge sailing technologies and the Volvo Open 70s fastest racing yacht in the world, which covered 596 nautical miles in 24 hours at the edition 2008-09. Get on ocean deck for the next nine months and keep in mind the Racing Schedule and listen to Podcasts or follow the brand-new Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 Livestream service in real-time. Gaastra Blog and the Official Gaastra Shop with worldwide delivery service wish Godspeed to all teams!  

Audi TP52 World Championship © Stefano Gattini_Studio BorlenghiAudi MedCup

Quantum Racing, defender of last years Audi TP52 World Champion-ship title hold in Valencia, homelike Audi Azzura Sailing Team dressed in Gaastra Pro Sailing Gear and many more international high-level sailing teams will challenge this week running from october 4–8 on the waters of Italian Porto Cervo. It was in 2007, when the last TP52 world regatta edition was held in this popular sailing riviera, won by Sweden’s Torbjorn Tornqvist’s Artemis. This is what Ed Reynolds (USA), project manager of Quantum Racing says: ‘It is going to be a unique worlds since really any boat could get on a hot streak and go out and win. In this one regatta format it will be the most competitive worlds we have known to this point. In the past there have been one or two boats to focus on, this time it could be any one.’

Perhaps it will be the Audi Azzura Sailing Team with Alberto Roemmers’ crew skippered by Guillermo Parada (ARG), sailing on home waves under the flag of the host Yacht Club Costa Sme-ralda? Or Britain’s Gladiator by Tony Langley (GBR) returning this year for challenging for the world title again with tactician Chris Larson? Or Spain’s ESP 7552 skippered and steered by Gonzalo Araujo with his team equipped as well like Audi Azzura in Gaastra Pro Professional Sailing Gear? As Reynold said, everything is possible this year! The Audi TP52 World Championship 2011 will comprise five days of windward-leeward racing including one coastal race on thursday. Gaastra Blog and Gaastra Pro Sailing Gear wish all teams fantastic and challenging days!

Audi Melges 20 Sailing Series Scarlino©2011 Luca Butto for Carlo Borlenghi B-Plan

Venice will get in touch these days with pure joy of sailing: Going from the 29th of september to october 5th 2011, the Audi Melges 20 class European Championship will be held in Venice waters this week. After last years sailing series in Lerici, Scarlino and Riva dela Garda, the Audi Melges 20 Championship 2011 are hosted by the Compagnia della Vela di Venezia this time, welcoming the Melges Europe teams at this fast Venice sailing venue. Renowned for its cutting-edge materials and concepts, the Audi Melges 20 class will prove their high standards in easy-to-sail sportboats with a simplicity exceeding expectations by new. With a lenght of 6.096 m and weight of 520 kg, the Melges 20 sailboat class is the easiest sportboat to sail on the market today and has become the benchmark for small keelboats nowadays. Gaastra Sportswear wishes all participants challenging days!

Audi Medcup Cascais sailing regatta, Gaastra Sportswear

Today starts the final fifth sailing venue within the Audi MedCup Circuit 2011 in Barcelona: After this season’s MedCup regattas in Cascais, Marseille, Cagliari and Cartagena, the big MedCup Barcelona Trophy 2011 final from september 12 to 17, will attract anew international sailing teams, designers and technicians to the catalan metropolis. Eight teams left will challenge for the final rankings in the TP-52 class including the German ‘Container’ of Udo Schütz and Skipper Markus Wieser, the Spanish ‘Bribón’ with Gonzalo Araújo, Italian Audi Azzurra Sailing Team of skipper Guillermo Parada and the ‘Quantum Racing’ with Ed Baird (USA) with probably the best chances for the Barcelona Trophy 2011. This years new feature of the world’s leading regatta circuit Audi MedCup, is the introduction of the Soto 40 Class, a new one-design 40 footer which is growing rapidly worldwide. Six teams will challenge this week this class as well.

Today start the official trainings for the 52Series and from tuesday onwards, the daily starting signals for the short races will sound till saturday! If you’d like to be in the spot of this weeks Audi MedCup Circuit 2011 Grande Finale in Barcelona, we refreshingly recommend you the Audi MedCup Live Broadcasting 2011 with this years new virtual eye 3 D animations. Gaastra Blog wishes all teams and visitors a succesful and entertaining week!

Gaastra recommends the Delta Lloyd Open Dutch Championships, www.gaastraproshop.com

Seven days left and one of the biggest Dutch sailing events will take place off the International Sailing Center Medemblik: The Delta Lloyd Open Dutch Champion-ships 2011 including the Olympic and Paralympic Classes, will make Medemblik Europes’ sailing spot next weekend this year as well!

Organized by the ‘Nederlandse Watersportverbond (KNWV)’ and the organizing authority ‘Royal Netherlands Yachting Union’ in conjunction with the ‘RYC Hollandia’ and ‘Trefpunt Sports and Entertainment’, this main Dutch sailing event is open this year for the J22 and Dart 18 classes, the Laser Standard Laser Radial (Men and Women), 470 (Men and Women), Finn, 49er, 29er XX, RS:X (Men and Women), Star, Sonar(open) and 2.4mR (open).

The weather forecasts look good for upcoming Delta Lloyd Open Dutch Championships and first warning signals will be on friday, the 16th september 2011 at 10 am. You can follow the latest news and sailing videos on the Topzeilen TV of the Watersportverbond and the latest Gaastra Pro Sailing Wear as well!

Gaastra Jacket Men, Maritime Sailing Fashion in the Official Gaastra Online Shop

Maxi elegance and maxi sailing adrenaline fills up this weeks’ Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup 2011 at Italian Costa Smeralda: From 5th to 10th september, the 22nd edition will take place this year at Porto Cervo in collaboration with partner Rolex and with about 46 of the most competitive maxi racing yachts with an average lenght of approximately 30 meters (going up to 45 as the maximum) challenging. 

Since 1980, the prestigous Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS) organizes the annually in september scheduled italian sailing event for the largest sailing vessels in existence. Today on the first day of the sailing week at Costa Smeralda, the yachts will be divided into various divisions according to their size and technical characteristics – first races will start tomorrow. Covering an enormous spectrum of designs, models, technological solutions and new launches like the prototype for the new F-Class one-design Firefly, the Comet 100 Shadow and the classic Bermudian sloop Annagine and stretching to veteran competitors such as the 38-metre ketch Hetairos (winner of the Supermaxi division in 2010), the Porto Cervo sailing event represents the who’s-who of international maxi yachting. Within this traditional Costa Smeralda sailing week, the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship 2011 will be held synchronically as well — with sixteen yachts competing ranging from 18.29 to 24.08 meters, and representing strong Niklas Zennström’s Rán 2 (winner of the last year’s Mini Maxi title) by new. We wish all participants a succesful start to the Maxi racing week! Follow the Livecam of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda these days if you’d like to be on the spot!

Dragon Gold Cup Gaastra Poloshirt 2011 Collection, www.gaastraproshop.com

Do you hear the starting signals? The Derbigum Dragon Gold Cup 2011 with Gaastra as the Official Clothing Supplier, starts its international Dragon Class Regatta today. Going from the 2nd to 9th september 2011, the high standard sailing race at Ostend Belgium organised by the Royal North Sea Yacht Club (RNSYC) and the Belgian Dragon Association, will welcome 77 registered Dragon Class yacht-teams from all over the world at the city by the sea. Well-known for stable winds and challenging currents, we all expect a thrilling sailing event at Ostend’s North Sea with top sailors from the Netherlands, Germany, Russia, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Great Britain, Ukraine, Japan, USA, Hong-Kong and Belgium of course. The Dragon Gold Cup 2011 marks the closing of Ostends summer event highlights with that nautical top event on and off water.

Gaastra presents you the perfect matching Sportswear-Look for that special late summer sailing event: We created an own fashionable and sporty Gaastra Dragon Gold Cup Poloshirt Edition 2011 equipped with many high-quality details. A Dragon Gold Cup crest at chest, maritime logos and an elaborate nautical design at back will grace your looks the special way. Set course for the Official Gaastra Online Shop and choose your favourite colour and size the easy way as long as the stock of our Limited Dragon Gold Cup Collection 2011 lasts!