A stunning night-time photo of Mike Golding’s new Ecover 3 arriving in Auckland after being trucked from Hake Marine in Wellington. This is the new Owen Clarke design he’s had built in the hope of being third time lucky and finally winning the Vendée Globe solo round the world race.

The new boat is late after some reported eleventh-hour changes (Golding gilds the term perfectionist). She is due to undergo the IMOCA class’s compulsory inversion test this week before being shipped back to Europe at the weekend in time to named by HRH the Princess Royal at the Southampton Boat Show.

Hot on Ecover’s heels in Wellington, a sistership to Ecover is being built for Dee Caffari. Dee’s boat Aviva will be launched in December and after being shipped back to Europe, she and Golding will do some two-boat testing in Portugal next year.