Tour de France à la Voile 2015, DIAM24 trimaran replaces monohull with 31 entries submitted for the 2015 event

From the following article on mysailing.com.au

http://www.mysailing.com.au/news/over-thirty-boats-entered-for-the-tour-de-france-la-voile-2015

Over thirty boats entered for the Tour de France à la Voile 2015

06 Dec 2014

It’s been four months since the finish of the last edition in Nice and the annoucement of the Tour de France à la Voile new boat, the Diam 24. And the trimaran builder, Vianney Ancelin, has had his order book full. Furthermore, the entry list for the 2015 edition has been filled in just a few hours. A big success for Amaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O) which aimed to gather a large fleet with this new Diam 24 trimaran. The 31 entries have been revealed today at the Nautic (Paris Boat Show) and the race director Jean-Baptiste Durier has announced the line-up and the venues of what is set to be an remarkable edition.

read more here

Weta Trimarans, short video details updates on 2015 model

A short video by Weta Trimarans showing the improvements made in the 2015 model.  It's just a general tidy up of the platform smoothing things out and cleaning up details the one design rule remains unchanged and the platform, sail area etc is the same.

Weta trimarans Australia, Easter Race Day is on Sunday 20th April Pittwater, NSW

From the following article submitted to Sail-World by Paul White:

http://www.sail-world.com/index.cfm?Nid=120896&refre=y&ntid=119&rid=1&subid=174604&NLID=463692
      

It’s official, Easter Race Day is Sunday 20-4-14. Everyone is welcome, as this is just a social race day, please be warned no prizes or trophy’s will be awarded and there is no entry fees. The aim is to get Weta racing happening in the Sydney area and have fun.

So if you’re new to sailing or just purchased a Weta, or even hopping to be on the next America’s cup yacht to represent Australia, don’t wait for the phone call just bring your Weta down and join in the fun.

We are launching from Bayview Park boat ramp. Next to the tennis courts on Pittwater Road (Nearest cross street is King Edward Ave).

 

read more here

Weta Fest 2014 held at Fort Walton Yacht Club in Florida a great success

 From the following article on the excellent LiveSailDie:

http://livesaildie.com/weta-fest-2014/

Weta Fest 2014 – Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida – 6-9 March 2014

Weta Fest 2014 Delivers!

The second annual Weta Fest has successfully wrapped up at Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida. This Weta Fest event has got great international traction in just its second year with numerous replica regattas being held throughout the world in each Weta community.

The simple format involves all sailors including a coaching day, sprint races, long distance race and plenty of off-the-water social time to enjoy what the location has to offer. It’s nothing new but is satisfies the demands of today’s hectic timeshort lifestyle where you have to mix it up to maximise fun!

Sailors attended from all over the USA including California, Michigan, Texas and New York States, as well as Weta Marine representative Miranda Powrie from New Zealand.

read more here

Weta trimaran cruising in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand

From the following Sail-World article submitted by Geoff Durham:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/index.cfm?SEID=0&Nid=119244&SRCID=0&ntid=0&tickeruid=0&tickerCID=0

Geoff Durham, a keen Weta owner from Auckland, New Zealand talks about his last minute Weta cruise to Moturoa Island in the Hauraki Gulf last weekend:

Searching for a camping destination to sail to last week we settled on Motuora Island (6km east of Mahaurangi Harbour) and little did Lotte or I realize what a wonderful weekend our selected destination would provide!

We have a large hatch on our Weta which enabled us to carry a lot of gear - as you can see from the photo. We included my reconfigured canoe cart which I use for putting the boat on the beach without a trailer. It isn't easy in soft sand and steep beaches (of course!) but, if if the boat is lifted from the bow whilst the other person lifts/pushes from one of the rear float arms, good momentum can be achieved. Of course if there are a couple of Wetas with a total of more than 2 adults the boats can be easily lifted and moved.

On Saturday morning we launched from Red Beach, Whangaparoa (approx 13km south-west of Motuora) and sailed to the island on a sunny day with an 18knot following wind whilst admiring the wonderful scenery.

read more here

Weta trimaran training Clinic and Regatta to be held at Canberra Sailing Club, 22nd to 23rd February 2014

Paul White has contacted me to advise me of an upcoming training clinic and regatta to be held at the Canberra Sailing Club 22-23 February for Weta Trimarans.

The number of Weta's is increasing and there are now 10 in the Sydney area and more on the way, with the addition of Glenn Marney as agent for Weta NSW based in Jervis Bay.

 

We’ve organised a clinic and race day in Canberra with Miranda Powie of Weta Marine which will hopefully attract some of the Victorian boats too.

Weta trimarans fleet racing

For further details the contact is Glenn Marney at Weta NSW gofastglenn@gmail.com
Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/wetansw
Website http://www.weta.com.au/

Visitors interested in a test sail of a Weta trimaran at the event please contact Glenn to arrange.

Camp cruising on the Windrider 17 trimaran article on smalltrimarans.com of Mac and Paul's adventures sailing the North Channel

From the following article on the excellent small trimarans blog:

http://smalltrimarans.com/blog/?p=10766

White Waterman and Blue Waterman – An adventure in the North Channel – July 2013
Mac MacDevitt – Windrider 17 Trimaran

The Odd Couple
No predicting a how a beach cruising adventure is going to turn out. Paul and I both have Windrider 17 trimarans. But we were certainly the odd couple. Found him on the Windrider forum. Paul is a white water canoe trekking adventurer. He gloried in incredibly challenging long trips, far from support, dealing with ice, overturned canoes, lost gear and paddles and rugged wilderness camping. His Windrider 17 was his first sailboat and he was learning to sail by the seat of his pants. Couldn’t name many of the lines or the stays or the fittings. Before this trip he had never sailed alone. Not sure how he was going to manage hoisting the main without someone to steer into the wind. Had no idea why anyone might want to make the mainsail smaller – never reefed.

Blue Waterman (Lite)
Compared to Paul I was Blue Waterman. Well, not really – not compared to other sailors who have made serious off-shore passages – maybe Lite-Blue Waterman. I started sailing with bigger trimarans on Lake Champlain, a Jim Brown 27 and a 31, finishing up with a Corsair 27. And I’ve gotten in lots of tight spots: cracked an ama on a dock piling on the Chesapeake, ran seriously aground and had to wade out with an anchor and kedge off before the situation would require a dredger and a tow (and that was with the whole family aboard), even once sailed for quite a while in high winds off Valcour Island before realizing that my sluggish performance had to do with the new Honda 8 outboard I was trolling behind the boat connected only by the control cables.

read more here

New Zealand Wetafest 2013, solid fleet numbers and great conditions make for a fantastic event

From the following article on Sail-World submitted by Miranda Powrie:

http://www.sail-world.com/Australia/index.cfm?SEID=0&Nid=117027&SRCID=0&ntid=0&tickeruid=0&tickerCID=0

Glamour weather just added to the fizz at the NZ Wetafest held at Tauranga Yacht and Power Boat Club over the weekend.

We arrived late Friday afternoon to a light sea breeze and quickly rigged and got out on the water for the rum race. Everyone was a little unsure of our course, except perhaps the local Phil Scherer who sails with his son Lawrence. But basically we made our way around the sand bank in the middle of Tauranga harbour with the sound of thuds to keep us company as everyone managed to smack into the sandbank at least once each, no sneaky cutting corners in Tauranga!

Saturday dawned sunny with another light sea breeze that filled in just in time for the start of the Rogaine orienteering race. Sailors were given a map and instructions and had to search the harbour for hidden codes and they could get the codes in any order that they wanted. With high tide at 11.30 there was a lot of discussion about what way to go first and the tactical advice was coming thick and fast. 

read more here

The fleet racing, photo courtesy Josh McCormack

WetaFest 2014 to be held at Fort Walton Yacht Club NW Florida 7-9 March

From the following entry on wetamarine.com

http://www.wetamarine.com/about/news/581-wetafest-2014

WetaFest 2014

Springtime in Northwest FL…
The second most popular drive to Destination in the state of Florida...
Big breeze…
Charter boats available first come, first serve...

White sandy beaches…
Cold drinks...
World class OD sailing…
The clear waters Jimmy Buffet learned to sail on…
The camaraderie of Northwest Florida sailing community...
The home waters of Randy Smyth...
Will we get to meet Miranda live?

Be there to find out… Start planning now!
You read the reviews…

You saw the videos…

Come be a part of WetaFest 2014

Fort Walton Yacht Club

7-9 March 2014 (Fri-Sun)

(NOTE - leave your boat and be a part of the 2014 Trimaran Nationals27-30 March (Thru-Sun), held only 3 weeks after WetaFest!)

First gathering of Weta trimarans at the 2013 Jervis Bay Regatta, NSW a big success

Weta's first gathering in NSW at the Jervis Bay Regatta

 

The following report is from Miranda Powrie of Weta Marine Australia www.weta.com.au

 

October 7th 2013

 

Chris Kitchen from Weta marine in New Zealand was at first skeptical when Issac, his 12 year old super helm declared "we will go around the top mark, blast downwind, then when we turn round the bottom mark we will have dolphins on the bow", but sure enough there were four dolphins cruising off the bow of his Weta!

 

Six boats from VIC, ACT and NSW attended the first New South Wales Weta regatta held at Jervis Bay Yacht Club. Wives, kids or helpful Weta dealers joined in for some races, so the focus was on up-skilling the fleet and having a bit of fun. Saturday was a warm and shifty offshore wind of about 10-18 knots with flat water, perfect Weta weather. Chris took out Glenn Marney’s kids Issac and younger brother Jack, who were stoked to win a race with Issac steering and Chris playing tactician. Chris was stoked that a kid who was a bit worried about even going out on the boat in the morning ended up steering with the gennaker blasting over the finish line in race 3.

 

Sunday was perfect Weta newbies weather, offshore (flat water) again with 1-4 knots building to 12-15 knots. Everyone got comfortable in the light winds and enjoyed a blast once the wind came in. Chris took out a local kid Sean from the club, who couldn't go out in his own boat. The highlight was Sean helming on a tight reach with the gennaker out while blasting past Spirals and Tasers!

 

Racing was very close between the 3 doubled handed crews, Leigh and Brian both took their wives with them and they both got right into the racing. Geoff a Weta newbie took out the Victorian dealer Colin who gave him some good tips to get him started and then on Sunday Geoff took his son out.

 

The racing was followed up on Saturday with something no Aussie regatta is complete without; a dinner at the local RSL (Returned Services League). It rounded out a great weekend, we will be sure to do it again soon, keep an eye out for the next one.

 

A big thank you to Jervis Bay Sailing Club and Glenn Marney from Weta NSW for putting on a top regatta!

 

www.weta.com.au
 

Charlotte Harbor Regatta Feb 6th - 9th 2014, Notice of Race posted and registration open

A notification from John Lange on the upcoming Charlotte Harbor Regatta which welcomes a wide range of off the beach multihulls:

http://www.charlotteharborregatta.com/index.html

NOR POSTED, REGISTRATION OPEN
FOR 5th ANNUAL CHARLOTTE HARBOR REGATTA, FEB. 6-9, 2014

CHARLOTTE HARBOR, FLA. – The Notice of Race for the 5th annual Charlotte Harbor Regatta set for Feb. 6-9, 2014 has been posted. After a record-breaking 2013 event that featured more than 100 boats, the 2014 CHR has been expanded to include the Olympic-class Nacra 17 catamaran. Other new classes invited included the WindRider catamaran and the Viper 640 and Melges 20 classes. Returning classes will include the 2.4mR, Laser, Sunfish, Precision 15, Flying Scot, F18, F16, Hobie 16, Hobie Wave, WindRider 17 and Weta trimaran.

The 2014 Charlotte Harbor Regatta will also mark the Inaugural Will White Cup. Named in honor of Sunfish racing legend and “The Sunfish Bible” author Will White, the cup will be awarded to the winner of the Sunfish class.

Featuring nightly regatta dinner parties, 14 one-design classes and competitors from around the country racing on three race circles, the Charlotte Harbor Regatta has quickly grown into one of the most talked-about regattas in the nation. Free beach, ramp and lift launching facilities, free or low-cost storage, affordable hotels and low registration fees make the Charlotte Harbor Regatta, “the fun, affordable regatta.” Find out why SAIL magazine designated Charlotte Harbor as “one of the top 10 greatest places to sail in the United States.”

Since its inception in 2010, the National Association of Sports Commissions recognized the regatta as its “Best Local Event” and the Charlotte County Visitor and Convention Bureau honored regatta organizers with its 2010 “Event Development Award.” The CHR board staged the International Association for Disabled Sailing’s 2012 IFDS World Championships and the 2013 regatta featured the 64-boat strong Laser Masters Midwinters East. Charlotte Harbor has also played host to the 2012 2.4mR North Americans and the U.S. 2.4mR Class Association Nationals, both of which will return in December 2013.

The 5th annual Charlotte Harbor Regatta will once again feature a wildly popular Pusser’s Rum Beach Party at Port Charlotte Beach Park. Limited on-site tent camping is available.

For photo slideshows and videos of past Charlotte Harbor Regattas, go www.charlotteharborregatta.com. For participant, media and sponsor inquiries about the 2014 Charlotte Harbor Regatta, e-mail Brian Gleason at gleason@charlotteharborregatta.com or call 941-206-1133.

The Notice of Race is here:

https://www.regattatech.com/public/CHR/CharlotteHarbor14/CHR_NOR_2014_Ver04.pdf

The registration page is here:

https://www.regattatech.com/registration/action/showEntryForm?clubCode=CHR&eventCode=CharlotteHarbor14

Weta trimarans, video from the West Coast Championships 2013

Weta Trimarans, new facebook page for the Weta class in North America

A new facebook page has been established as a communication hub and to notify of events for Weta trimaran owners in North America.  Join up at the following link:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Weta-Class-North-America/152333094972348

Weta's racing, photo courtesy Weta Class North America

French Weta Nationals 2013, Photo's by Laurent Lanos

Laurent has posted up a gallery of photos of the 2013 French Weta Nationals.

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/98783622@N02/sets/72157634618035553/

French Weta Nationals 2013, photo courtesy Laurent Lanos

Weta Trimaran, video from 2013 Fort Walton wetafest and report from competitor Toni Sacco

From the following article on wetamarine.com link courtesy of Sailing Anarchy. 

Weta sailor Toni Sacco sums up wetafest

http://www.wetamarine.com/wetafest-report-from-toni.html

Never in my wildest dreams would a trip to Florida to sail Wetas entail sailing with an Olympian and winning a national championship.

At 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday March 20, the morning after my birthday, the Ithaca, NY Weta fleet, represented by Richard Stephens, Keith Rice, and me, started our grueling 25-hour drive to Fort Walton Yacht Club in the panhandle of Florida. We were on our way to the largest gathering of Weta’s this nation had ever seen - WetaFest 2013. As the entries grew from four boats to twenty, our 25-hour drive seemed like a small price for three days of one-design multihull racing.

read more here

Warren Light Craft, new video from onboard the Ultralight 20 trimaran

Ted Warren over at Warren Light Craft has put up another video of the very impressive Ultralight 20 off the beach trimaran.  This boat has carbon fibre construction of the hulls and uses aluminium beams and spars while the "R" version has a taller mast, screecher and full carbon fibre construction including beams, spars and rudder/daggerboard.  These lightweight small trimarans are demountable and easily rooftopped on a normal large sedan.  All Ultralight 20's are custom built incorporating any features you might like from the options available. 

The Warren Light Craft website is here