From the Editor
What would the Volvo Ocean Race have been like if Open 60s had been adopted instead of venturing into the realms of the relatively unknown qualities of the VO 70?

On the Wind
Carnage in Biscay – and beyond. High profile races, the VOR and the Transat Jacque Vabre, are dealt severe blows by heavy weather, structural problems and capsizes. Plus, Extreme racing at the VOR start; the rise and rise of the Open 60; yacht accidents investigated; maxed out at the ARC

Letters
Has the Volvo gone too far? Seasickness cures – sit under an oak! Unabated weight debate. How the Equator affects weather systems

The Walrus
What’s Gordon Ramsay doing at the Volvo start? Trying to make a feast out of a depressingly unpalatable freeze-dried meal and throwing in some colourfully worded advice for offshore racers

Robin Knox-Johnston
Robin describes two incidents at sea which prompt him to discuss the responsibilities of yachts and merchant vessels in the light of collision regulations

Gear
We’ve spent the year testing some interesting kit. From Sebago’s latest ‘shoes with attitude’ and Gill’s racer kit, to putting Musto’s layered system though a Fastnet campaign. On the electronics front we checked out Navicore’s tiny GPS and Memory Map’s PDA chart plotting software

Show for the serious yachtie
Can the London International Boat Show at ExCeL improve on its debut at the Docklands exhibition venue with a helping hand from new sponsor the Daily Mail? The first aim is to appeal more to boat owners. We help you plan your visit and feature some of the highlights

Yachts
The ‘must have’ Brenta 30; Italian Star in wood; North Wind blows again and we review the sailing qualities of Niebla, a new interpretation of an
Alfred Mylne-designed cutter built by Fairlie Restorations in the UK

Leading Edge
What price speed? The new VO 70 might be super-fast but what are the consequences for the crew, whose safety might be seriously compromised as the yachts hammer through the inhospitable oceans at well over 30 knots?

Hanse together
Once a very basic budget build from Germany, the Hanse range, including the 370, 400 and 461, is now a very different prospect in terms of looks and performance, says Matthew Sheahan

Classic encounter
What’s it like to be in the thick of it on the start line of the famous Voiles de St Tropez? David Glenn reports from the deck of Mariquita and then steps aboard something completely different, Open Season, Wally’s new 94-footer

Spectacular Acts
In less than two years the America’s Cup has been turned on its head, become spectator-friendly and even more competitive. We look back in pictures at the travelling road show and comment on its success

Going it alone
She’s been the wrong-way round once before with the Global Challenge but now Dee Caffari’s going it alone in the hope of being the first woman to sail westabout non-stop. She talks to Elaine Bunting

Islands and highlands
No, not Scotland but Croatia where the Editor took a Moorings catamaran to sample the delights of the fashionable place to be in the Mediterranean. Sadly, the weather was indeed more like Scotland . . .

Cruising
Fire guts cat; Salcombe on the slide; charts for free; cruising guides on the web and boosting your radar returns. Plus, taking precautions against thieves and pirates – Mike Brasler ditched his guns in favour of a carefully thought out strategy for security at sea

Great Seamanship
Leading the way. When Richard Tudor’s British Steel II was dismasted in the Southern Ocean he reckons the yacht would have sunk had she not been built of steel

Racing
Mini madness. Sue Pelling on why 72 people are prepared to risk life and limb in 21-footers in a race across the Atlantic. Prospects for the King’s Cup in Phuket and a high-octane Rolex Sydney Hobart. Matthew Sheahan talks to Barry Carroll about the threat to IRC in the USA

Inside Alinghi
In a new column about how Ernesto Bertarelli and his team intend to defend the America’s Cup, Daphne Morgan Barnicoat reports from inside the Swiss compound

SuperSail
A revolutionary example of interior design from a Barcelona studio which also designs toasters; fast cruisers from JFA in France and walking on Hall Spars’ new V-Boom

Yachts for sale

Classified ads

Last Word
Jochen Schumann was Alinghi’s sailing director when they won the America’s Cup in 2003, now he’s back in Valencia