Muscat Regatta - Inshore Dinghy Racing. The inshore dinghy regatta will be held at Marina Bandar Al Rowdha January 17th and18th 2014 - We look forward to seeing you there!
The 2014 Inshore Regatta at Marina was a tremendous success as ever. Please have a look at the 3 photos galleries we have added to see some of this years action. Photos were taken by Matt Ridgeway, Abi Willson.
Click on ‘Gallery’ at the top of the page to view the photos.
The 230 Mile Muscat to Khasab Bank of Beirut Chairman’s cup yacht race, started from Marina Bandar Al Rowdha on Sunday 10th November in perfect conditions. 7 boats including a British entry, a Kuwaiti entry, 2 UAE entries and 3 boats from Oman entered in the IRC racing boat class. Vying for a share of the $50,000 prize fund, generously donated by The Bank of Beirut, the 2013 fleet made the most competitive race that the Muscat Regatta has seen to date.
Dubai based communications company, Xtra-Link equipped the yachts with the latest satellite communications equipment for the second year running. This included Thuraya XT satellite phones and hi-tech tracking devices, which allowed race fans, all over the world, to view the race live on the regatta website. (an archive of the tracking can be found at: www.muscatregatta.com/news/2013gps/ ). As always the excellent support of the regional navies, Coastguard and Police ensured there were no security concerns, and race organisers GWM inspected all the boats prior to the race to ensure there were no safety issues.
2013 saw a classic offshore race, that for the most part was sailed in light airs. The event came to a conclusion on Tuesday 12th November, in the remote northern province of Musandam, located in the spectacular fjords in the Strait of Hormuz. After three nights at sea, all of the yachts competing in the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup were accounted for in Khasab, only one boat failing to officially finish the race due to lack of wind.
There was also insufficient wind for the Cookson 50 owned by Mr Adrian Lee, CEO of Lee Overlay Partners, and winner of the Dubai Muscat Race to realise its full potential. Sailed with a professional crew she took line honours and was second overall. Lee Overlay were beaten on corrected time by the lowest rated boat in the fleet, ‘Dames Jeanne’, a UAE based yacht skippered by Jean Phillipe Girard. Jean Phillipe was a previous competitor of the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup, taking part in the 2012 race, in which he was unfortunately forced to retire due to adverse weather conditions. The same fate happened in this year’s Dubai to Muscat race, but it is a testament to the popularity of the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s cup that his crew continued to Muscat to enter the Muscat to Khasab event.
Added interest would have been provided by the participation of ‘Blackwater’, a high performance catamaran from the United States. Unfortunately she retired from the Dubai Muscat Race due to crew issues, but will hopefully take part in next year’s Bank of Beirut race.
All the sailors expressed great enthusiasm for the event and a expressed a desire to compete again next year. The owner of the Cookson 50 that was dismantled and shipped from the UK to take part, described the race as ‘A truly great event’. The sailors were unanimous in their support for the Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup, and showed enthusiasm to compete again next year. Jean Phillipe Girard, and the crew of Dames Jeanne vowed to be back in 2014 to defend their title.
To see the final results and prize awards – click here
To view the 2013 gallery – click here
We have uploaded a selection of images from the 2013 Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup – Muscat to Khasab race.
To view the images click on the ‘Gallery’ button on the website, or click here
If you were part of a crew in this years event and would like to submit images for us to upload to the website please contact us
Muscat to Khasab Race Race Archive
Xtra Track [www.xtra-track.com] provided GPS based tracking for this years Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup. To view a snapshot of the race please click on the link below:
Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup Tracking Archive – Click Here
The results for the 2013 Dubai to Muscat SARF race have been announced.
Lee Overlay Partners with Adrian Lee at the Helm took first place with a corrected time of 2 days 17 hours 31 min 7 secs.
For the full breakdown of the final result please see below:
Dubai to Muscat Race – Tuesday 5 November 2013 – Louay Habib
Adrian Lee’s Cookson 50, Lee Overlay Partners, has claimed line honours for the IRC Racing Division in the 2013 Dubai to Muscat Race, sponsored by Xtra-Link.
The Irish canting keel racing yacht crossed the finish line at Muscat on Tuesday, 5 November at 11:58 40 seconds (local time). Lee Overlay Partners elapsed time for the race was 2 Days 53 Mins at 40 Secs, setting a new course record for the 360-mile race.
Adrian Lee was full of praise for his crew, after breaking the monohull record for the longest offshore yacht race in the Arab region that has lasted for 13 years.
“The crew have been absolutely first class, we have sailed together for many years and beating the course record is a very special moment for us. We think we have done well on handicap but we will just have to see how the competition does before we will really know. I think we made some excellent tactical decisions and if we had to run the same race again, I doubt if we would have changed much. What has really surprised me about the race is the 30 knots of wind we experienced for most of yesterday. It was not forecast and seemed to just come from nowhere. The boat was sitting at 16 knots for long periods and flying down the beautiful Omani coast line was very special. We have received a very warm welcome at Bandar Al Rowdha Marina”
Lee Overlay Partners for the Dubai to Muscat Race: Adrian Lee, James Hemingway, Ilya Lee Paveliev, Scott Wilson, Emmet Kerin, James Gunne, Tim Corney, Neil Harrison, Ruairi Herraghty Robert Witte and Daniel McKeown, who took the photo as the team crossed the finish line.
The 22nd Dubai to Muscat Race is organised under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing club. HH Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nehayan was the guest of honour for the start. The 360-mile race is the longest offshore yacht race in the region and is organised by The United Arab Emirates Sailing and Rowing Federation in association with the Ministry of Sports Affairs, the Sultanate of Oman.
For regular updates including satellite tracking of all of the yachts, click here
2013 Dubai to Muscat Race – Tuesday 5 November – Dubai, United Arab Emirates. – by Louay Habib
The monohull record for the longest offshore yacht race in the Arab region looks set to be broken. The record has stood for 13 years. Yesterday afternoon, the wind speed picked up significantly in the Gulf of Oman, propelling Adrian Lee’s Cookson 50, Lee Overlay Partners at record breaking pace.
“The Strait of Hormuz was an impressive sight with the mountains of Musandam in clear view, it was a spectacular exit from the Arabian Gulf and what followed was a dramatic introduction to the Indian Ocean.” reported Adrian Lee via Thuraya Satellite phone. “A storm blew in from astern and with the wind speed touching 30 knots, we were often at over ten knots of boat speed and surfing down waves at over 16 knots, what a ride! The storm seemed to pass but the wind hardly decreased, we are trucking along, but dead down wind, so we have had to put in a few big gybes, which the crew have executed with great precision, morale on board is fantastic.”
Race Organisers, GWM Racing have reported that 3 yachts have retired with all the crew safe and well. Fawzi al Sultan’s Kuwaiti team on Dolce Vita put into port just after Ras Al Khaimah and the Emirates team on Adel Lootah’s Jadi made safe haven at Fujairah.
XS35 catamaran, Blackwater skippered by Matt Vukelich has also retired. “We had a tough beat to leave the Strait of Hormuz, with 18 knots of wind on the nose it was pretty bumpy on board.” Reported Matt via Thuraya satellite phone. “We were just looking forward to coming off the wind, for what would have been a fantastic ride, when one of our rudders broke. As required by the rules of the race we had a spare, which we fitted but we decided to retire from the race as a precaution. We are disheartened to say the least but happy no one got hurt and we all had a great time!”
The monohull record for The Dubai to Muscat Race was set in 2000 by Twister, skippered by Marco Graziano. In strong winds and a significant sea state the UAE registered J/105, Twister was often sailing with just a heavily reefed mainsail and completed the course in 2 days 3 hours 52 mins 31 secs.
Lee Overlay Partners need to finish the race by 14:52 and 30 secs to become the first overseas yacht to hold the record for 13 years. Today at 0940 local time, Lee Overlay Partners was 20 miles from the finish but the wind speed was dropping dramatically.
Eric Laing’s Beneteau 57, Yours Truly was the first yacht to finish the race in the Club Class. Finishing in the early hours of this morning, the UAE based team have won the class for the second year in a row.
The 22nd Dubai to Muscat Race is organised under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing club. HH Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nehayan was the guest of honour for the start. The 360-mile race is the longest offshore yaht race in the region and is organised by The United Arab Emirates Sailing and Rowing Federation in association with the Ministry of Sports Affairs, the Sultanate of Oman.
For regular updates including satellite tracking of all of the yachts, click here.
Dubai to Muscat Race – Monday 4 November – Dubai, United Arab Emirates. – Louay Habib
After a perfect start in Dubai, the IRC Division of the 22nd Dubai to Muscat Race, sponsored by Xtra-Link, is well under way. The front runners passed Ras al-Khaimah during the night and are approaching the Strait of Hormuz.
Irish Cookson 50, Lee Overlay Partners has enjoyed a spectacular reach along the Arabian Gulf, as Adrian Lee explained via Thuraya Satellite phone.
“I will never forget the start, it was a totally knew experience racing past the Dubai skyscrapers in warm breeze and brilliant sunshine. Approaching nightfall, we had to make our first big tactical decision; inshore for land breeze or offshore for gradient wind. We tacked out and it looks to have paid off, as the gradient breeze from the north just about held and we kept moving but at times, only just. However, what a night, dolphins came to visit us and shooting stars and thousands of others were utterly amazing. I have never seen a night sky like it.”
This morning, Lee Overlay Partners is back up to full speed. Just before dawn, the Irish Cookson 50 tacked onto Port to lay the Strait of Hormuz and the breeze seems to be lifting the overall towards the strait with a boat speed in excess of 8 knots, the leader should past through to the Indian Ocean this afternoon. Lee Overaly Partners’ closest rival on the water is the hi-tech XS35 catamaran, Blackwater with a team from Southern California, skippered by Matt Vukelich.
Meanwhile the bulk of the fleet opted for the inshore option and suffered from the decision. Doug and Claire Hassell’s First 44.7, Diablo made great gains on the first day, at one point the British team was ahead of Lee Overlay Partners. However, as the breeze faltered at dusk, Diablo’s progress slowed. On the water Diablo is now over ten miles behind Lee Overlay Partners but racing under the IRC measurement system, Diablo was the leader after time correction.
DOSC Rear Commodore, David Worrall racing First 36.7, Shahrazad reported last night via Thuraya Satellite connection. “The wind has died inshore and with about a knot of current against us, we had to put down our anchor, so that we would not go backwards. All we can do now is wait for the morning and hope that wind will arrive.”
The wind looks to be shifting to a north easterly direction today, which means that Lee Overlay Partners are gaining from the change, whilst yachts inshore have got the wrong side of the shift. Jean Girard, sailing Two-handed with his wife, aboard First 34.7, Dame Jeanne looks very well placed after IRC time correction and also well placed offshore to take advantage of the shift.
Today, the Dubai to Muscat Race will enter a crucial stage. Weather forecasts predict building breeze in the Gulf of Oman. However to get to the fresh wind, first the fleet must pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The narrow gateway to the Indian Ocean is notorious for ocean currents and squalls and the scenery is breathtaking. The rugged fjords of the Mussandam Peninsular, south of the Strait of Hormuz, are often described as the Norway of the East.
The 22nd Dubai to Muscat Race is organised under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing club. HH Sheikh Khaled Bin Zayed Al Nehayan was the guest of honour for the start. The 360-mile race is the longest offshore yacht race in the region and is organised by The United Arab Emirates Sailing and Rowing Federation in association with the Ministry of Sports Affairs, the Sultanate of Oman.
For regular updates including satellite tracking of all of the yachts, click here
Sailing Instructions for the 2013 Bank of Beirut Muscat to Khasab Chairman’s Cup, have now been posted. Please read the sailing instructions as there are some significant changes to the eventthis year
To view the 2013 Sailing Instructions – Click Here
The Notice of Race for the 2013 Muscat to Khasab Bank of Beirut Chairman’s Cup has been amended and republished. The new document supersedes all previous editions.
To view the new NoR – Click Here
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