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Sailing News for September 10, 2025

This week SailGP hits Saint-Tropez, where home hero Quentin Delapierre, the U.S. comeback crew, and the infamous Mistral promise chaos. Offshore, the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup lit up Porto Cervo as Magic Carpet E, Jolt, and Bella Mente traded blows in stacked fleets. Inshore, the Nacra 15 West Country Championship ended with a one-point thriller, while Australia’s Kaison Puls stormed to an O’pen Skiff world title in Japan. Cruisers get a masterclass in shaft-seal upgrades and a clever new magnetic fastening system. And in our highlight, SailGP’s tech hub pulled off two miracle F50 rebuilds in just 16 days.

Sail GP/America’s Cup

5 Things You Need To Know About Saint-Tropez (6 min read)
SailGP hits the French Riviera this week, and Saint-Tropez is bringing drama. The U.S. team returns to the site of its first-ever win, while local hero Quentin Delapierre looks to fire up the home crowd fresh off victory in Sassnitz. Add in the infamous Mistral wind, blasting cold and fast down the Rhône Valley, and you’ve got a recipe for chaos. One day it’s foiling heaven, the next it’s a glassy drift. Either way, it’s going to be spectacular.

Inshore & Offshore Racing

Early world championship leads for Magic Carpet E and Jolt in Porto Cervo (6 min read)
The Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup finally got moving in Porto Cervo after a windless start, and the big names wasted no time. Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones’ brand-new Verdier 100 Magic Carpet E stormed to victory in Maxi 1, while Peter Harrison’s Jolt and Hap Fauth’s Bella Mente traded blows in the Maxi Grand Prix with a three-second nail-biter. Add in wins for H20, Moat, and Nice, plus Dean Barker guest-starring on Artemis Bleu, and it was a stacked day of racing around La Maddalena.

Olympic Class/Dinghy Sailing

Nacra 15 West Country Championship at Windsport, Mylor (5 min read)
Four boats, big breeze, and a nail-biting finish summed up the Nacra 15 West Country Championship at Mylor. Will and Eliza (GBR 334) came out firing with two bullets on day one, but Marcus and Maddie (GBR 378) clawed back with dominant sailing on day two. A final race win wasn’t enough for GBR 334 to hold the top spot, and GBR 378 sealed the title by just one point. Close duels, gear failures, and plenty of spray made it a classic weekend of youth cat racing.

Youth Sailing/Development

2025 O’pen Skiff World Championships Nishinomiya, Japan (7 min read)
The Aussies lit up the O’pen Skiff Worlds in Japan with some history-making performances. Kaison Puls stormed the U17 fleet to become World Champion, the first Aussie since coach Breanne Wadley in 2019, while Maya Hodzic snagged 5th overall and topped the female rankings. Billie McCracken grabbed 3rd female, and the U13 trio of Casey Roeder, Isabella Del Favero, and Isabelle Hobson all finished within a few spots of each other. Between chanting “Aussie Aussie Aussie” at the opening and swapping rashies with other nations, the kids had the week of a lifetime.

Tech & Gear

How I Replaced My Boat’s Shaft Seal (8 min read)
When Will Renilson’s Jersey 36 fried its Vetus lip seal after a seaweed blockage, the fix turned into a masterclass in dripless shaft seals. He swapped to a PSS, then later a Lasdrop DrySeal, added dual water feeds with filters, and even installed a camera to spy on the stern gland in real time. The kicker? A snapped engine mount had thrown everything out of alignment, proving once again that boats always find the sneakiest way to break.

NuSnaps Launches Magnetic Fastening System for Boats (5 min read)
Goodbye stuck snaps and torn canvas. A U.S. startup called NuSnaps has rolled out a magnetic fastening system that swaps old-school corroded buttons for stainless steel-encased rare earth magnets. Drop a cushion in place, pull it up when you’re done—no wrestling, no swearing. Founder Steven Grabowski, a Navy vet tired of fighting saltwater corrosion, spent three years and 100 prototypes to get here. With both screw-in and adhesive mounts, NuSnaps is aiming to make life a whole lot easier for cruisers and boatbuilders alike.

Sailing Highlight of the Day

After Sassnitz turned into a demolition derby, both the U.S. and Brazil SailGP teams limped away with busted F50s. Cue a 16-day scramble at SailGP’s tech hub in Southampton, where engineers built a brand-new hull section for USA and basically rebuilt half of Brazil’s boat from scratch. Think night shifts, ovens cooking carbon fiber, and 4-ton stress tests just days before shipping. The clock was brutal, the repairs insane, and somehow they pulled it off in time for Saint-Tropez.