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Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race returns to Nanaimo waters

NANAIMO — Boats big and small are readying to circumnavigate Vancouver Island.

The Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race sees dozens of vessels sail around Vancouver Island, and begins in Nanaimo on Saturday, June 3 with boats arriving as early as Wednesday, May 31 at the W.E. Mills Landing and Marina, off Cameron Island.

Sylvia Motley owns the race with her husband Jeff, she told NanaimoNewsNOW 39 boats, roughly 325 sailors and around 50 support crew will make the trek around the Island over the next two weeks.

“[The boats] going to range from 24 feet up to 52 feet. Most of the races this year are American, 60 per cent of our fleet are American. They’re very keen on this race…so many anchorages, so much wild beauty around the Island which they just really don’t have once you get south of Seattle.”

Start times on Saturday morning will be at 10:20 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 10:40 a.m. as the boats navigate around busy Harbour waters with BC Ferries and seaplanes, along with personal watercraft.

Motley said the start is always a little chaotic with the best viewing along the seawall by the pier.

“The start is always fun, it’s very small and between satellite reef and the pier. There will be a lot of yelling and screaming and hopefully quite a bit of wind so we get out of the harbour quickly.”

After starting in Nanaimo, boats will turn north for the first of nine races around the Island, making stops along the way.

Most races are short day trips, however, boats will go overnight against the clock and each other down the Island’s west coast.

While boats are split into four divisions, they’re all competing for top prize through a unique ranking, the Ocean Racing Council system, which evens the field.

“It’s a very accurate form of handicapping the boats in that it takes into account weights of the boats, measurements, how tall their mast is, how big their sails are,” Motley said. “This makes the competitors very, very close because these ratings are so accurate.”

Usually held at the end of May or the start of June, timing of the race is built around one critical junction point.

“The race is totally dependent timing-wise on the tides through Seymour Narrows [between Vancouver Island and Quadra Island, north of Campbell River]. It’s the only place the boats will motor to get through the narrows and the whole race is based when we can get through at a half decent time.”

Boats will begin arriving back in Nanaimo in the evening or overnight hours of Friday, June 16 into Saturday, June 17 with an awards banquet to follow Saturday night.

It’s the first time in four years the bi-annual event has run, after being cancelled in 2021.

The races are supported by crews from the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Coast Guard.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler , our letters to the editor feature.

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Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race

June 3, 2023 @ 10:30 am - june 17, 2023 @ 2:00 pm.

The Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race is a 588 nautical mile circumnavigation of Vancouver Island with a series of point to point legs. 40 boats and 350 people will be participating in this event.

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Sailors circumnavigate Vancouver Island in Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race

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Thirty-eight vessels have set out to circumnavigate Vancouver Island as part of the Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race.

The boats, including a handful of sailboats that recently completed Swiftsure, set out Saturday from Nanaimo for the two-week, 1,150-kilometre journey around the Island — the first since 2019, due to COVID.

This will be the 13th edition of the biennial competition, which alternates each year with the Vic-Maui yacht race.

Organizers Jeff and Sylvia Motley of Chemainus were avid sailors when they took over the Van Isle 360, but now put all their energy into making sure the event runs well.

“What goes on in the water is the simple part,” Jeff Motley said. “It’s the logistics on the land that are hard.”

That’s because the boats stop at eight designated ports as they make their way around the Island, he said, giving the hard-working crews time for some fun ashore after a day on the water.

“Every day they get out there and go as fast as they possibly can from one place to the next,” Motley said.

After their days on the water, the sailors will spend time in Comox, Campbell River, Sayward, Telegraph Cove, Port Hardy, Winter Harbour, Ucluelet and Victoria before finishing in Nanaimo on June 17.

Crew members on the boats plus helpers following on land adds up to about 350 people converging at each community along the way, Motley said.

Motley said the mix of the onshore and offshore experience is a big attraction for competitors. “Some people have referred to it as adult Disneyland.”

This year’s field is about 60 per cent Americans and 40 per cent Canadians, and includes Victoria-based skippers Suze Cumming, Ellery Down, Ben Sproule and Colin Nichols.

The boats will stop at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club once they get past the open ocean on the Island’s west coast, with a barbecue planned for June 15, Motley said.

The following day will see an 11 a.m. start off Clover Point for the final push to Nanaimo.

It could be a spectacular sight, he said, because the racers get going downwind, which means colourful spinnaker sails.

For more on the race and the full list of competitors, go to vanisle360.com .

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Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race

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Van Isle 360 Yacht Race makes waves

More than 40 boats are now racing around Vancouver Island in a marathon that's more a test of skill and nerves than a pleasure cruise. In the Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race's ninth edition, close to 400 racers are currently sailing around the island, covering 729 kilometres, in 10 legs, spread over 14 days.

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More than 40 boats are now racing around Vancouver Island in a marathon that’s more a test of skill and nerves than a pleasure cruise.

In the Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race’s ninth edition, close to 400 racers are currently sailing around the island, covering 729 kilometres, in 10 legs, spread over 14 days.

Starting in Nanaimo, the first half of the race takes sailors up the inside of the island through some of the world’s most beautiful cruising grounds, sailing through Desolation Sound and up through Johnstone Strait to Port Hardy. The second half takes the boats around infamous Cape Scott at the Northern tip of Vancouver Island into the Pacific Ocean. The distances between ports are much longer on the outside and each leg includes an overnight passage.

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You may ask why would someone want to be on a small sailboat with up to eight other crew, with no showers and sitting on deck in the rain and wind for hours or baking in the sun without shade?

The answers are as varied as the sailors participating in this race: A love of sailing and the ocean, the adventure of visiting stunning places few of us will ever visit, the camaraderie among crew and competitors, are probably common sentiments among participants. The exhilaration when the wind is just right, the sails trimmed perfectly and the boat is accelerating down a wave can hardly be described in words.

So what makes Van Isle 360 so special? It’s the involvement of the communities. At each stop, there is an event: The traditional pancake breakfast at the start in Nanaimo, the salmon feast at Hardwick Island, or the famous barbecue in Telegraph Cove.

The boats on this race range from small coastal cruising boats to high-end racing machines. The crews are just as varied. Some boats are crewed by highly trained, and seasoned racers. While other boats are crewed by less experienced sailors looking for a lifetime adventure.

Aboard Turicum, the majority of the crew are novice racers and we use the VanIsle 360 as a way of training new racers and giving them an opportunity to become part of the VanIsle 360 family and by introducing them to long distance and offshore sailing. For me, racing in the Van Isle 360 for the first time in 2011, was the beginning of an incredible adventure that took me sailing to Hawaii and back during the 2012 Vic-Maui International Yacht Race.

This year’s event is characterized by light winds on the inside legs, making it very challenging for all boats. It’s tough to sit on a boat, trying to tweak the sails to get the maximum out of the little wind there is. During the leg from Deepwater Bay to Hardwick Island, strong, adverse currents added insult to injury. With almost no wind to give the boats steerage, it felt like bumper-car racing. Around us, boats were anchored but spun around on eddy lines, bumping into one another or the crew was avoiding rocks. It was brutal carnage. Amazingly, everybody had a good laugh and there was no yelling or protests.

After a day of relaxing, washing cloths and drying sails and boats, the crews were looking forward to some exiting downwind sailing on Wednesday. Neptune seemed to finally have mercy on the Van Isle family with strong winds predicted from the northwest.

Christof Marti is the owner of Simply Sailing School in Vancouver (simplysailing.ca) and is a director on the Board of BC Sailing. Trained as an engineer and with an MBA in finance, Christof is also a qualified sailing instructor and a certified Yachtmaster. He will be filing reports from B.C.’s coastal waters over the season.

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V IC- M AUI Q UALIFYING R ACES

Selected overnight distance races are designated as "Vic-Maui Qualifying Races”. 

It is highly recommended that potential Vic-Maui boats and crew members participate in one or more of the Vic-Maui Qualifying Races as part of their personal preparation for the Vic-Maui International Yacht Race. Individual crew experience with overnight sailing is important to skippers when selecting crew, and combined crew experience with long distance overnight sailing is important to the race committee when considering Vic-Maui entries.

The 2024 Vic-Maui Notice of Race requires that a boat shall provide a log or other evidence of completion within two years prior to the race: Pacific Northwest Offshore Race, Van-Isle 360 (outside legs), or the Swiftsure Lightship Classic; another equivalent ocean race; or an offshore passage of at least 150 miles; with half of the Vic-Maui crew including the Person in Charge aboard. This requirement is designed to ensure that race participants have some exposure to offshore sea conditions.

Please refer to the Vic-Maui Notice of Race for qualifying requirements. 

Vic-Maui highly recommends Vic-Maui boats and potential crew members compete in selected overnight races to hone crew member skills, training and experience in preparation for Vic-Maui. 

These overnight races meet this requirement.

updated Feb 28, 2023

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A Sailboat Race Around Vancouver Island

A sailboat race around vancouver island van isle 360.

The VanIsle360 International Yacht Race is a 14 day, multi-leg race through some of the most complex sailing grounds in the world.  With 15-foot tides, up to 10 knot currents and stormy offshore sailing, this is a proving ground for any crew.   

I’ve had a dream of competing in this race for decades and this year, I raced as skipper in my boat, Reepicheep,  A Sabre 386.   Reepicheep has been my cruising boat and the journey to get her race ready was intense.   A new sail inventory, new rigging, lifelines, bilge pumps, spinnaker rigging, replaced and new halyards, fittings, blocks, electronics – the list goes on.   It took us months to get her ready but ready she was for the start on June 1 st , 2023 in Nanaimo British Columbia.  

The start on that sunny Saturday morning was intense with 40 yachts circling around the Nanaimo harbour among the floatplanes, ferries, barges and recreation boats.  They hold the start in the harbour so that spectators can take in the amazing sight.  One prestigious racing boat ended up aground on the reef just off the starting line and another fouled their prop and needed divers to free it.    A dramatic start.   

The first leg to Denman Island offered up a bit of everything.  Getting out of the harbour was tricky with light air and lots of turbulence from the other boats.    We then enjoyed some medium wind and shifty conditions and finished up with a 25 knots Qualicum breeze with a massive shift to bring us to the finish.

That night was spent in Comox Harbour and a fun night meeting some of our competitors.    

The second leg from just outside the bar in Comox up to Campbell River was super challenging. I’d heard about the 6-knot current coming into Campbell river and having to short tack up the shore but nothing prepared me for this challenge.   We did more than 30 tacks – many not getting us any more upwind.  We had to take Reepicheep in as close as we dared on each tack, or we were guaranteed to not make any way.   The risk is that you lose momentum due to the current and slip backwards during a tack.   This has put many boats up on the rocks and it was a nail-biting time for me. I navigated and Alex drove as only an owner is qualified to make these high-risk decisions.   We finished and the team was exhausted.    

Campbell River was party night and we had a great time celebrating Alex’s birthday. 

We had to leave at the crack of dawn the next day to motor past Seymour narrows at the 6 am slack tide.  The start of Leg 3 was just beyond that in heavy NW wind.  We set our heavy weather jib and had a decent start, but the wind dropped and we had to do a sail change.   This allowed one of our competitors to get to the next shift first and lead the way.     We sailed hard taking advantage of every puff and shift and eventually caught up, but we weren’t able to put enough time on them to win.  A second place finish after winning the first two legs. 

That night was spent on anchor in Port Neville and we enjoyed BBQ Lamb Burgers.   It was a gorgeous night.  The sight of 40 race boats anchored out in the wilderness was super unique.

The Fourth leg was up Johnstone Strait.  Known for its heavy wind and wind against current chop, this leg didn’t disappoint.  It was a ton of work to keep Reepicheep going fast but the team gave 110% and we arrived in Telegraph Cove with another win.   

Telegraph cove is a spectacular little fishing village with much of the history preserved.  It features a whale museum, a pub and some eco tourism businesses.    It was amazing fitting 40 racing yachts in this tiny boat basin and we had a social evening visiting many of the other competitors.  

Leg Five was from just outside Telegraph Cove up to Port Hardy and the race really started to get interesting.  We had a lot of very light wind and lots of strong current.   It was essential to be hunting the wind and catching every breath you could.   At one point we were going backwards at 3.0 knots in the right direction.     The wind filled in for a while before the sea fog hit and the wind died again.   Not being able to see our competitors and hunting out wind with little visibility was tough but at the top of the leg, we came out ahead of not only our fleet but most of the boats racing.   The wind filled nicely for the last few miles but only 12 out of 40 boats were able to finish within the time limit.   

We had a layover in Port Hardy with a chance to re-provision, clean up the boat, sleep in a bed and enjoy this remote little town.    The local community treated us to a wonderful celebration featuring young kids performing a traditional dance and a burger lunch from the legion.   It was a great day.

At this point, the race changes.   The legs get longer and the stops more remote as we leave Port Hardy to head over the top of the Island, over the Nahwitti Bar, around Cape Scott and down the outside to Winter Harbour.   Getting over the bar is super tricky.   There is a ton of current, rough waves and we had very little wind.    Creeping through the current took every ounce of acceleration we could nurse out of Reepicheep but eventually we were free and had a great sail around the point.   We arrived in Winter Harbour in the middle of the night and sleep was a fantastic reward for our efforts.    We enjoyed a lovely day in this super remote hamlet perched on the west coast of the island.  The locals had an incredible BBQ and a warm welcome for us all.

Leg 7 is the longest and in this race and turned out to be the most challenging. With a forecast of 30 knots downwind, we were all a little anxious for the challenges we would face.   The wind built as the day progressed and the wave state was incredible. Bigger waves than any of us had previously experiences with gusts hitting 40 knots.   We sailed a conservative route reducing sail area early.  Many of our competitors waited too long and shredded their sails.  Even with minimum sail area, this was a high-risk leg as the waves were certainly capable of putting a boat over.   Driving was exhausting and I was happy to have three capable drivers on board. We had one terrible knock down caused by a massive wave breaking over the boat.   The force of the wave was devastating, and we were all thrown down.   One crew nearly went overboard but her tether held, and we were able to get her back inside.  We got the boat back under control and while I was attending to my traumatized crew, we had impact with something.  We were 20 miles offshore, so it was likely a whale.  We all know that these impacts can severely damage and even sink a sailboat, so we were immediately monitoring the bilge for water.    No leaks and no obvious damage so it was back to racing.    After nearly 18 hours of extreme sailing, we sailed out of the wind and into a massive hole near the finish line in Ucluelet.   This was very frustrating and took a significant attitude adjustment to get back in the game.  It took us 5 hours to sail that last 7 miles.   I can’t help but see this as an important metaphor for life.   We shifted, we persevered, and we won. 

Ucluelet was a fantastic stop over.  We had the biggest and best breakfast ever, rested, showered, socialized, had a great group event at the recreation centre.  The main road into Ucluelet was closed due to a forest fire so road crews, race organizers and tourists couldn’t get through.  I think the town was happy to have us and they stepped up in a major way to make the stopover work.

Leg 8 from Ucluelet to Victoria was a painful start.  There was still up to 40 knots offshore and no wind inshore and the sea state was terrible.   We sloshed around for hours trying to get to the wind.  It took every bit of focus, patience and skill we had to get ahead and out to the wind in the Juan De Fuca Strait.    Once we did, it was champagne sailing down the strait with the sun setting in the background.  Everyone had a chance to drive this leg and we arrived at the finish line shortly after dark.  Another first.

The festivities were at my home club, the Royal Victoria Yacht Club and it was really an exciting time.  To be leading the regatta and have fellow club members celebrating with us was a real high.  We had a fantastic meal, my nephew Simon helped me collect our flags and it was early to bed.   The final leg mattered and it was the trickiest of the bunch.   If we stayed ahead of our competition, we could win not just our division but overall which would be such an honour.

The 9 th and final leg winds its way through the Gulf Islands with multiple possible ways to go and several tidal gates to time.   Once you choose a route, there is no going back so if you get it wrong, you could lose the race.   It was mostly downwind and we took a risk at the start.  We went inside a small channel that required a spinnaker hoist, douse and re-hoist in around the rocks but it put us and the 5 other boats that went the same way a significant lead right off the bat.     It was great sailing in medium wind and we were continuing to gather information to assessing our options.  Being ahead meant our fleet could split from us at any of the decision-making points.    Mostly they followed us except one boat cut out early and was looking in pretty good shape.    The wind died and it started to look like we wouldn’t make our gate at Porlier Pass.  This could be a significant problem to win overall but somehow, we sneaked through with very little wind and current against us.    We all breathed a huge sigh of relief and thanked the eagle feather that had accompanied us on the entire journey.     The rest of the leg was beautiful until the very end when the wind died to nothing.   Not even a whisper.   It took us an hour to float over the finish line with the light current in Nanaimo harbour.  It took massive patience but eventually the radio lit up – Congratulations Reepicheep, you have finished. 

And then we celebrated.   

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Sail Care Road Trip: Van Isle 360 Race

Chris Walter from North Sails Vancouver logs his road trip to provide sail care for the Van Isle 360 international yacht race.

This year marked the 10th Van Isle 360 International Yacht Race, comprised of nine distance legs running counter-clockwise around Vancouver Island. Known for its mild climate, mother nature delivered a whirlwind of uncharacteristically stormy weather for the sailors, who raced a combined 534.2nm between the start in Nanaimo and the finish in BC’s capital city, Victoria. Forecasts reported a maximum wind speed of 35 knots, a true test of strength for all 73 boats in the race and the wit of their crew.

North Sails is proud to have supported the race’s 10th edition through the overnight sail care program run by the Vancouver team and led by Chris Walter. Chris spent 20 days on the road, following the fleet up the inner coast of Vancouver Island and around the outside, taking in repairs each day and fixing them in time for the boats to reach starting line the next morning. With help from trusted accomplices and the occasional break to sail, Chris took a few minutes each day to record his journey for us.

37.4 NATUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 17-23 KNOTS

LEG 1- NANAIMO TO COMOX: ON THE ROAD

1030: I watch as the fleet pushes off the docks of Nanaimo, “The Harbour City” as it’s known, to begin their circumnavigation of Vancouver Island. It was a downwind start out of the bay and into the Strait of Georgia where they were greeted by a strong northwest wind.

1100: I hop in the van and begin the drive to Comox. I took the Old Island Highway for a more scenic route, stopping along the way at parks and trying to catch a glimpse of the boats. Eventually the wind started to die and I left the fleet behind to join the rest of the road crews at the park in Comox.

2000: It was late in the evening before the first boats started to arrive at the docks . When Zulu (a custom Jesperson 42 that I sail on quite a bit) arrived to the dock with our crew of Findlay Gibbons, Trevor Gibbons, Peter Gibbons, Krizia Marban, Reigh North, Rick Wunderlich, Andrew Costa, and Drew Mitchell, I caught their lines and spent some time on the boat before we all went to bed. I was excited to race on Zulu the next day in the inshore Straight Marine Race.

WIND SPEED 9 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 15 KNOTS

JUNE 7 – STRAIGHT MARINE RUM RACE: ZULU

0715: I am woken up by Drew bringing a genoa from Family Affair, a Beneteau 45, to the van to repair a tear along the top of the spreader patch. Once I found the right supplies, I got the sail patched up just in time to head out for the race start.

1100ish: The Straight Marine Rum Race race was held on Comox Harbour and consisted of a windward leeward course with the finish just off of Goose Spit. It was a fun race where every boat was awarded a bottle of rum at the beer garden later in the afternoon. Today was extremely hot with a period of very light wind, even the water was quite warm but everyone went swimming anyway. After racing, I got to work replacing all the battens in Northern Light’s jib (they had all flown out of the sail during a tack), and then replaced a broken mainsail slide for Rogues Roost . With all the work done it was time to join the guys on Zulu for some dinner.

26.7 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 11-20 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 24 KNOTS

LEG 2, COMOX TO CAMPBELL RIVER

ON THE ROAD-

0800: Watched the fleet start into a strong NW wind, then continued driving up island. I passed by the Comox Canadian Forces Base where the search and rescue teams are based and continued north for most of the day arriving at the Campbell River Waterfront only an hour ahead of the leading boat, a Formula 40 catamaran named Dragonfly .

2000: The finish line was just off the pier where I watched as the fleet flew across the line in what must have been 4-5 knots of current. There were only a few minor repairs today and Drew gave me a hand to get everything done quickly. Everyone was in bed early because the boats would be leaving the dock at first light to make it through Seymour Narrows at slack water, before the current really got moving. Seymour Narrows has some of the strongest currents in the world.

34.2 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 10-16 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 21 KNOTS

LEG 3, CAMPBELL RIVER TO HAWICK ISLAND (AKA “FISH FARM”)

Lay day for me. Went hiking with my dad up to Elk Falls. Elk Falls is a 27 metre waterfall on the Campbell River, below the John Hart Dam and above the generating station.

Fish habitats have been built up and down either side of the river below the Falls for salmon to spawn in. Tomorrow I will head to the airport to pick up a new set of sails for Julien Sellgren on Kiva .

41 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 17 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 25 KNOTS

LEG 4, HARWICH ISLAND TO TELEGRAPH COVE

ON THE ROAD- I drove the 212km up to Telegraph Cove from Campbell River. The road leaves the coast and heads inland through the mountains.

1300: I arrived in Telegraph Cove which I learned is an old whaling village tucked into a tiny cove. The road crew from Dominatrix had rented a house on the hill where we could watch the boats finish. Neptune’s Car was the first to arrive and we saw they were motoring, so they must have had a breakdown, followed by the other Santa Cruz 70 Westerly , the Formula 40 Dragonfly , and another catamaran named Bad Kitty . By this time, there was already work to do as Neptune’s Car had torn the leech in their mainsail and lost some battens. I assessed the damage, took the sail with me, and the other jobs started flooding in.

…We took in four mainsails and many jibs with damage all down the leech from the strong wind the fleet had been sailing into for the past few days. I was up until 11pm fixing sails before a heavy fog rolled in and stopped us from working for the night. We couldn’t get them all done but we had been sure to finish the mainsails first so that every boat could sail the next day. The next morning I headed down to check out the fleet all crammed into the tiny cove. It was quite impressive to see them all fit, I had my doubts the day before!

LEG 5, TELEGRAPH COVER TO PORT HARDY

ON THE ROAD- 1330: Arrived in Port Hardy just as the first rain started to fall. After re-provisioning the van, I am waiting for a sail and more supplies to be sent up from Vancouver. It started to rain hard, off and on all day, as the fleet slowly trickled into to the bay across the finish line. With many sails to repair we were lucky when the local Harbour Master gave us a room in their building to work. Protected from the rain, we set up our mobile loft and Drew, my dad, and I got to work fixing sails. I worked until 2am, when every job was finished. I wanted to get everything done so I could go out on the boat the next day.

69.1 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 8-21 KNOTS WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 KNOTS

LEG 6, PORT HARDY TO WINTER HARBOUR

Onboard ZULU – This leg was around 70 nautical miles and took us around the top of Vancouver Island. With the start line at the bottom of the bay the fleet didn’t have much room to play with and we didn’t get the best start. We headed out of the bay on a close hauled course, tacking up the inside and then crossing the Nahwiti Sandbar which was quite interesting with so many breaking waves. Once through the bar, we were able to start cracking off and picked up speed as we headed to Cape Scott at the tip of Vancouver Island. After a nice run down the outside, we turned the corner into Winter Harbour just before sunset.

WINTER HARBOUR LAY DAY

Winter Harbour is a tiny community on the west coast of Vancouver Island. There is an old boardwalk that runs along the waterline between the homes and the ocean, and one storefront that opens only when they feel like it. I spent most of the day repairing the last of the sails from the upwind legs and finished in time to miss the barbecue. Lucky for me, they fired it up again so I could get some dinner! After that Drew and I and a few others walked down to the beach and around the corner from town. We had a fire and enjoyed how peaceful it was to be out in the middle of nowhere. As it started to get dark, we headed back to the party where the guys from the Formula 40 Dragonfly put on a fireworks show for everyone.

138.1 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 20 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 30 KNOTS

LEG 7, WINTER HARBOUR TO UCLUELET

ON THE ROAD – 0740: I jumped back in the van just as the fleet left the dock. The drive started with two hours down a narrow logging road that, in some places, you couldn’t pass a car if you met one. Lucky for me, it was Sunday because you can’t drive on these roads during the week days until evening due to active logging. Back on the highway, I still had a long way to go – all the way down to Parksville, then take a right to pass through Cathedral Grove. The grove is one of the only old growth forests in BC you can drive through. The trees are huge. The road took me up over the hill to Port Alberni where I stopped for gas and food before continuing down the narrow winding road out to Ucluelet and Tofino. I barely had time for dinner before rushing down to Amphirite Lighthouse to watch the boats finish Leg 8. Out on the horizon I could see Dragonfly finishing just as the sun was setting.

Headed up to Tofino and went surfing for a day at Cox Beach. It was nice to relax. The next day, a bunch of local school kids came down to check out the boats and ask lots of questions. They even got to help out with tasks on some of the boats. On Zulu we gave the kids some North Sails sunnies and they were all very excited. Later we walked down to the awards dinner, then back to the boat for the start of the next leg in the morning.

98.2 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 9-18 KNOWS WITH GUSTS TO 35 KNOTS

LEG 8, UCLUELET TO VICTORIA

Onboard ZULU – We headed out of the harbour to the start line and were greeted by a very light Northwest Breeze. The wind picked up just as we were about to start and before I knew it we were off with the big boats leaving most of our competitors behind. We had steady breeze all day and the sun was out. We made a few gybes and took a nice header that had us flying down into the Strait of Juan de Fuca alongside Strait Marine , a Farr 40, and Jam a J/160. After going as far to the American side as we wanted, we gybed back to the Canadian side of the strait. As we expected, the wind began to pick up closer to Race Rocks on the Canadian side, so we gybed again and doused the big kite. We hoisted the heavy air spinnaker and blasted back across the passage with a top speed of 16.7 knots – not far off Zulu’s all-time speed record.

Soon we had to gybe again and in the heavy breeze we tore the kite through the turn, so we took it down quickly to avoid further damage. As we headed into Race Passage (between Race Rocks and Vancouver Island) the wind really picked up to at least 30 knots gusting to 38, with the tide running against us at 4.5 knots. The sea state was a mess and we were surfing down waves at over 15 knots boatspeed with the bowsprit buried in the back of the next wave. The boats behind us rounded up under main and jib and one was still coming down under spinnaker. I noticed they made the wise choice to get rid of it before they approached Race Rocks. We took it easy as we knew we were probably far enough ahead and the wind was still quite strong. Closer to the finish at Clover Point we hoisted the big kite and passed a boat in the 1st Division before finishing. We were greeted by Krizia at Royal Victoria Yacht Club with three pizzas and beer.

VICTORIA LAY DAY

Spent the day cleaning up the boat and stripping everything that we didn’t need for the last leg. We even took the cooking spices off the boat. We had to beat two boats ahead of us ( Kiva and Different Drummer ) that were tied for first on the leaderboard in our division. Drew and I and some of the crew showed a friend from Nova Scotia around Victoria as it is a very cool place that has a very British feel to the downtown part. In the evening there was a bbq and prizes in the rain.

59.9 NAUTICAL MILES, WIND SPEED 6-12 KNOTS

LEG 9, VICTORIA TO NANAIMO

ZULU – 1200 start today: The final leg was very challenging as there are so many different route options to take between the islands. We were prepared and planned our route in advance using the forecast as a guide. It was a downwind start in 20-25 knots and we sailed our planned route through Enterprise Channel between Vancouver Island and Trial Island which is only about 600 feet wide at its narrowest part. We were one of the first boats through with a good chunk of the fleet cramming in behind us. They didn’t look like they were having fun! As we headed out into Haro Strait the wind started to calm down and temperatures rose. We noticed that a number of bigger boats were well inside kelp reefs when, all of a sudden, Neptune’s Car stopped dead in the water. By the time they were off the reef and back into deep water we had almost caught up to them.

As we gybed close to Sidney Island and the kite filled I noticed a three foot long tear coming out of the clew patch and up into the middle. We rushed to rig up the smaller heavy air kite and drop the big white one down before it tore any more. After a quick repair on deck we had the white kite back up again. Later on as we approached Saltspring Island and sailed into Captains Passage we watched a number of other boats head north toward Active Pass. We had already chosen our route and stuck with it. We were now in Trincomali Channel and had a big transition zone to get through. Unfortunately we were on the wrong side and a few other boats snuck past. Once through the zone we got the code zero out and had a nice reach down to Porlier Pass. With the tide still flooding, both Zulu and our competitors were spat out into the Strait of Georgia. On Zulu we were spun right around by a whirlpool as another boat was pushed to close the shore and ran aground.

No wind in the strait. We all let the current push us up the side of Valdes Island toward the finish. Out farther in the strait you could see Darkstar just barely make out ahead of the rest of the boats who had followed them. We were waiting for the wind to fill so I went up the mast to have a look and see if any wind was coming. The crews on the other boats were watching me and when I got to the top of the mast I said “nope, we are screwed” quite loudly and everyone around us had a good laugh. By this time the sun was going down and there was still no wind. Yet somehow the sneaky little J/80 SW2 had managed to sail past us and they just kept going. A round of coffee and hot chocolate and the wind started to finally fill in. We didn’t have far to go now, Just around Gabriola Island and into Nanaimo Harbour, trading tacks with other boats in the dark. We went between Entrance Island and Gabriola Island on our last tack, heading right for the south end of Protection Island on a close reach. Then we rounded up to close hauled and crossed the finish line.

Congratulations to all Van Isle 360 sailors and the organizer and supporters of this event. It was well-run and it seemed everyone had fun and enjoyed the beautiful Vancouver weather and scenery. We hope to see you all again next year!

FEATURED STORIES

27 February

GITANA TEAM WINS INAUGURAL ARKEA ULTIM CHALLENGE

08 November

REMARKABLE RESULTS AT J/70 WORLDS

21 September

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Take a sneak peek at the biggest and most expensive boats at 2024's Palm Beach yacht show

The Palm Beach International Boat Show kicks off later this week.

Eight megayachts are expected to be on display for would-be buyers and charter customers.

These are the show's biggest yachts — and how many millions of dollars they are going for.

The Palm Beach International Boat Show — the yacht world's flashiest event stateside — is returning this year with over 800 boats for both deep-pocked potential owners and window shoppers to peruse.

While it's impossible to know what exactly will be on display until the show begins on Thursday, it's expected that eight megayachts — generally defined as ships over 60 meters long — will be docked at the show and at nearby marinas like the Rybovich Marina in the ritzy Florida town.

Some of these are for sale at eye-popping prices, but others are available to if in case you fancy living like a billionaire for a week or two this summer (and if you have six figures to spare on a vacation).

These are the eight biggest yachts that will be at the Palm Beach International Boat Show and nearby marinas, in size order.

Nero: 90.1 meters

Price: From $497,000 a week (charter) Standout features: Pizza ovens, beauty salon, massage room, resistance pool

Reportedly owned by Irish billionaire Denis O'Brien, Nero is modeled after J.P. Morgan's 1930s ship , and was built in 2007 and updated in 2021.

She now boasts a gym on her sundeck with multiple cardio machines and a beauty salon, and has an on-board beautician for manicure, pedicure, hair, and massage needs. There's also an upgraded movie theater, two new pizza ovens, and both a pool and a jacuzzi.

For those who want to go overboard, she has more than a dozen toys, including a waterslide, Jet Ski, and flyboard.

Victorious: 85 meters

Price: From $876,600 a week in the summer and $950,000 a week in the winter Standout features: Hammam (Turkish bath), wine cellar, wood-burning fireplace, children's playroom

Victorious brings a party vibe to the yacht show. With a beach club on board, a wine cellar, a cigar clubroom , multiple bars, and a lounge with a piano, the vessel is made for entertaining. Plus, there's a playroom and movie theater to entertain the kids.

For tamer charter clients, Victorious has a suite of wellness features such as a gym, massage room, beauty salon and hammam, or Turkish bath — perhaps a custom request of her owner, Turkish businessman Vural Ak.

She also boasts a treasure trove of water toys, including Jet Skis, jetsurfs, inflatable kayaks, and scuba equipment.

Casino Royale: 72 meters

Price: TBD Special Features: Infinity pool, helipad, private jacuzzi

Purchased and refitted by car dealer magnate John Staluppi last year, Casino Royale is the latest of his James Bond-inspired yachts (he's also owned an Octopussy and a Skyfall, among others).

Casino Royale has a helipad that turns into a dancefloor, an infinity pool, and a wellness center with a gym and sauna. The owner's cabin has its own deck, which features a private bar and jacuzzi.

However, the boat's price isn't listed, and while she's not necessarily officially for sale, that might change depending on who's prepared to buy, Mr. Bond.

Talisman C: 70.6 meters

Price: $60 million (or from $567,000 a week to charter) Special features: Massage and beauty room, private library

Likely the largest yacht for sale (not just charter) at the show, the Talisman C is a 2011 six-bedroom boat. The owner's cabin comes with an en suite bathroom, dressing room, private library, and crystal chandeliers.

Amenities include a gym, a beauty room, oversized jacuzzi, and a fully equipped bar. Her crew of 19 includes a trained masseuse, and the toy room comes equipped with a wakeboard, eFoil , and WaveRunners.

Joy: 70 meters

Price: From $650,000 a week Special features: Disco club, basketball court, onboard fitness instructor

Superyacht Joy testifies to the fact that owners want as many on-board experiences as they can get.

There's an expansive suite of fitness features, including a basketball court (don't shoot that hoop too hard!), a personal trainer on staff, boxing equipment, and a handful of machines. For post-workout winddowns, there's a spa with a steam room and onboard masseuse. And for entertainment, there's both an outdoor and indoor cinema, and a disco club.

Triumph: 65.4 meters

Price: From $707,600 a week in the summer and $650,000 a week in the winter Special features: Sauna, helipad, banana boat

This 2021 superyacht is named after Triumph motorcycles — a reported favorite of her rumored owner, British businessman Chris Dawson — and even has one on display as an art piece in the upper deck's lounge. The primary suite is 1,400 square feet and has its own study , and there's a sauna, an indoor-outdoor gym, a helipad, and a massage room spread among her six decks.

She boasts an "armada of water toys," including two kinds of Jet Skis, electric water bikes, and a banana boat.

Seanna: 64.5 meters

Price: $54,000,000 (or from $462,000 a week to charter) Special features: marble foyer, movie room, sundeck pool

The recently refurbished Seanna is available for sale and charter.

Her indoor-outdoor gym is on sea level so that passengers can take a dip after a session with the onboard personal trainer. There's also a sundeck pool, a helipad, a two-room massage facility, and, for the more cerebral guests, a library with an electric fireplace.

There are a number of toys on board, including a popular water trampoline and two WaveRunners.

Come Together: 60 meters

Price: $65,000,000 Special Features: DJ and videographer on board, ice bath, sauna

Next-to-new yacht Come Together is looking for a new owner after doing charters during the 2023 season.

The Beatles' influence is evident beyond the yacht's name, with guitars dotting the sky lounge and a crewmember who doubles as a DJ. There's also an outdoor cinema and bar for entertainment and an ice bath and sauna for the day after the party. The owner's suite has a private study and lounge, and each guest cabin has its own ensuite.

The sale includes a number of toys, like Jet Skis, kayaks, and Seabobs.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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First refuelling for Russia’s Akademik Lomonosov floating NPP

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The FNPP includes two KLT-40S reactor units. In such reactors, nuclear fuel is not replaced in the same way as in standard NPPs – partial replacement of fuel once every 12-18 months. Instead, once every few years the entire reactor core is replaced with and a full load of fresh fuel.

The KLT-40S reactor cores have a number of advantages compared with standard NPPs. For the first time, a cassette core was used, which made it possible to increase the fuel cycle to 3-3.5 years before refuelling, and also reduce by one and a half times the fuel component in the cost of the electricity produced. The operating experience of the FNPP provided the basis for the design of the new series of nuclear icebreaker reactors (series 22220). Currently, three such icebreakers have been launched.

The Akademik Lomonosov was connected to the power grid in December 2019, and put into commercial operation in May 2020.

Electricity generation from the FNPP at the end of 2023 amounted to 194 GWh. The population of Pevek is just over 4,000 people. However, the plant can potentially provide electricity to a city with a population of up to 100,000. The FNPP solved two problems. Firstly, it replaced the retiring capacities of the Bilibino Nuclear Power Plant, which has been operating since 1974, as well as the Chaunskaya Thermal Power Plant, which is more than 70 years old. It also supplies power to the main mining enterprises located in western Chukotka. In September, a 490 km 110 kilovolt power transmission line was put into operation connecting Pevek and Bilibino.

Image courtesy of TVEL

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