Just over two weeks to the start of the Mini Transat and the village in Douarnenez France is preparing itself to display the Mini Transat to the world. Check out the layout of the Mini Transat Village and be sure to come and visit the RG tent, and join the RG and Hewsonracing team for a good old Aussie BBQ.

The boat is currently based in the AOS yard in Lorient. An amazing yard for its big trimaran, Open 60’s, Class 40’s and Mini’s. Every boat in the yard is of a high pedigree of racing. There is also a lot of history in the yard. In WW2 it was a German submarine base, and over the years its bee home to some classic racing yachts including the entire Pen Duck fleet. 816 is located in the Mini part of the yard, and there are currently about 200 mini’s, about 40 of which are getting ready for the big race. I am in an awesome location as the boat is always under cover, and I can winch it up in the air using block and tackle to sand and paint the undersides when required.

In the past few weeks the bottom of the boat has been completely stripped of all Antifouling back to its original gel coat, re-primed and re painted. This is not an easy job it requires sanding overhead for days on end. So far the bottom has taken me over 5 days, and I estimate I have another two days of work to get it perfect. The keel and rudders are looking flash in the mandatory Survival Orange. The rest of the hull will be sprayed with a very smooth antifouling on Friday just before I put the boat back in the water. Once re-sprayed the boat will need re-sanding, diving on a regular basis, and a final polish before the race.

All the fittings on the deck have been taken off and overhauled, and in most cases replaced with new Harken equipment including the traveler which has been replaced by a brand new Harken Traveler and car, and a new designed traveler system which will make it easier for me to trim the mainsail to its full potential.

All electronics have been re-wired, and in addition to the existing NKE instruments and Pilot system, a interface has been made with the newly installed Raymarine X5 Pilot, the majority of components found at heavily discounted prices, or lent to me by friends or family, allowing me to have a backup pilot incase for any reason the NKE fails. A third “Autohelm” pilot has been lent to me from my father from his 20ft trailer sailor in Australia, which will be packed in styrofoam for the Transat only to be bought out incase of complete failure. My Efoy charging system was re-conditioned before my last race, and I have now installed the computer display so I can monitor its power usage and turn it on and off as required. One major change in the electronic layout in the boat is that all the wiring now runs up the starboard side of the boat to prevent interference with the SSB receiver, which is the only way I will receive weather forecasts during the Transat.

Rudders have been taken off the boat to be re-sprayed, and at the same time the rudder gudgeons have been re-fastened and tightened up with locking nuts to insure that they don’t become loose after 4000nm of sailing. A new Tiller has also arrived, and I am currently modifying that to allow it to be used with the Raymarine deck pilot. A simple job (or so it would seem) to put a pin in place. But this requires cutting, re-filling, glassing, grinding to ensure that inserting the pin will not weaken the structure of the tiller at all.

My new bow rotator fitting has arrived after being lost in the post for a while, and is currently getting some slight modifications before I install it on the boat and re-fasten the pulpit at the same time, and install the new pole that I am currently building.

While I waited on parts to arrive and epoxy to dry, one fun job today was finally getting the new AUS 816 numbers on the mainsail and pasting on my Australian flag. With music playing (as always) I enjoyed this job, as it was one of the last on my list. And while there is still a lot of work to do before being on the start line of the Mini Transat, I now know I’m 96% there!

It has been long days in Lorinet doing the final refit to 816 prior to the start of the 2013 Mini Transat. I have just completed a full overhaul of the electronic wiring, including re-arranging the electronics to increase the performance of my SSB receiver so I can get clearer weather forecasts.

Part of the overhaul included stripping the antifouling from the bottom of the boat and sanding it to a high grade of smoothness. Also I have just completed the respray of the keel and rudders which is a requirement by Class Mini

The small business that is the Mini does not recognise the crisis. Once more the race for these boats of just 6.50 meters was refuelled, on 30 August, with 84 competitors admitted who had met the full requirements of the organiser and the Mini class. From the semi-professional racer to the businessman on leave and with competitors from nearly every continent, the entry list presents an incredible diversity. The Mini Transat is a race like no other.

30 August, the official list of candidates for the adventure fell. All being well there will be 84 boats at the start and at the moment a dozen navigators still remain on the waiting list eager to find out if they will have the chance to race. Among the final list of entries, there are several who not to have yet confirmed their full funding and on the deadline of September 13, all registration fees (2000 €) must be paid to the organiser. It is therefore likely that the list is still evolving over the next two weeks, after a few withdrawals of candidates who do not have the means to start in good condition. To be continued …

Note also that they are 32 foreigners, from Estonia to Australia, who will come to the start so Douarnenez will resonate with a multitude of accents at the beginning of October.

See www.classmini.com for more details

After a few close days of racing Highland Fling in the Maxi Worlds at Porto Cervo in Italy we have had some fantastic results. Two first place positions on corrected time.

Conditions have been quite light for the past few days, with wind rarely exceeding ten knots.

Due to a light forecast the race committee decided to bring forward the lay day to give the crews a rest, and allow racing in fresher winds for the remainder of the week.

Best use of the lay day was made today, as we took out a launch and navigated around the course diving and marking rocks on the course. It was a fantastic opportunity to inspect the course and make some navigation and course notes.

The Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup: sunny clime, rocky outcrops, ideal wind conditions and high-class sailing. 2013 marks the 24th edition of the world’s premiere rendezvous for Maxi yachts held in Porto Cervo, Sardinia. Five days of racing on the Costa Smeralda commences tomorrow with 37 eye-catching Maxi yachts (ranging from 60 to a gigantic 157-ft) negotiating an environment as challenging as it is dramatic.
Preparation, whether physical, strategic or tactical, plays a crucial role in the lead up to a contest that demands perfection and where competition across the board is fierce. Crews started the last day before racing undertaking tailor-made fitness regimes onshore before honing starts, manoeuvres, tactics and communication on the water.

The 37-strong fleet comprises 13 yachts competing in the fourth running of the Mini Maxi Rolex World Championship. The Class, governed by an owner/driver rule, is in the ascendancy with a host of yachts in contention this year. Ran 2 (GBR) won the first two editions in 2010 and 2011. She narrowly relinquished her title in 2012 on countback to Hap Fauth’s fellow 72-ft Bella Mente(USA).

This week for the Maxi Worlds Richard Hewson will be sailing the RP82 Highland Fling in a class of four boats. The competition is always excellent at these regatta’s and top crew work, good tactics and precise navigation will be critical for a victory.

An absolute contrast to the cut and thrust of the ultra-modern Mini Maxis is provided by the presence of four elegant timeless J-Class yachts, all in excess of 120-ft. Two of which – Shamrockand Velsheda – were first launched over 80 years ago. The sight of these yachts gliding elegantly through the Maddalena Archipelago will provide onlookers with a vista of rare grace. Equally, the talent and technology offered by the Maxi, Supermaxi and Wally classes – showcases for contrasting styles and designs – will provide compelling sailing. The largest attending yacht is the 157-ft Nativa from Italy.

The RG650 816 s now based in AOS yard in Lorient. This is an amazing yard surrounded by the most extreme racing yachts in the world. Class 40, Open 60’s and the big trimarans from the older designs of the 90’s to the ones still being built in the shed are everywhere, and it is a solo sailors heaven.

The great thing about working from AOS yard is it has everything we need for a mini campaign. Sailors can work on their boats from 8am to 10pm, or even later if your out of the shed and happy to work with the lights out. There is internet, workshops, cranes, and even a couple of spray painting booths to ensure that everything gets done before the transit.

I recommend everybody should come and have a look and share the excitement. If you would like a holiday to France, I am happy to provide accommodation for anybody willing to lend a hand preparing my Mini

At the moment I am undertaking the long, arduous task of stripping, sanding and re-spraying the bottom of the boat. Not the most glamourous side of yacht racing, but defiantly the one of most important influences in the speed of your boat. A smooth tidy bottom always has a nice feel, but it is not always easy to get.

Road tripping across france can be an interesting experiencing when towing a 6.5m long and 3m wide Mini