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Sailing News for September 29, 2025

Big stories this week span past, present, and future. The Congressional Cup is back for its 61st edition in Long Beach with the Ficker Cup as qualifier and the iconic Crimson Blazer up for grabs. Offshore, New Zealand’s Aaron Hume-Merry and Anna Merchant earned their golden ticket to the Worlds final after a 12-hour Solent thriller. Cruisers get practical with short-handed rescue drills and medical emergency prep, while Tech & Gear breaks down how to keep your outboard steering alive. And in Sardinia, wingfoil history was made as Maddalena Spanu and Mathis Ghio claimed the sport’s first world titles.

Inshore & Offshore Racing

2026 Ficker Cup & Congressional Cup Notice of Race Published (5 min read)
Match racing’s “granddaddy” is back. The Long Beach Yacht Club has posted the Notice of Race for the 61st Congressional Cup, running April 29 to May 3, 2026, with the Ficker Cup serving as the qualifier the week before. Both regattas are part of the 2026 World Match Racing Tour, sailed in Catalina 37s right off Belmont Pier. The prize? A shot at the legendary Crimson Blazer, sailing’s version of the Masters’ Green Jacket, and a place on a winner’s list packed with Cup and Olympic legends.

18ft Skiffs – David Porter, King of Sydney Harbour in the 1970s (6 min read)
David Porter ruled Sydney Harbour in the 1970s, racking up a world title, three Australian crowns, and five NSW Championships in the notoriously wild 18 footers. Starting young in VJs and 12s before building his own 18s, Porter’s decade at the top saw him duel with legends like Hugh Treharne, Bob Holmes, and Iain Murray. His Tooth and Co–backed campaigns brought innovation, speed, and plenty of silverware. Even after bowing out in 1980, his reign as “King of Sydney Harbour” still stands tall in skiff lore.

2025 Offshore Double Handed World Championships – Kiwis Clinch Golden Ticket in a Dramatic Repechage (7 min read)
With one last spot in the Offshore Doubles Worlds final on the line, New Zealand’s Aaron Hume-Merry and Anna Merchant outdueled Australia, France, and Italy in a 12-hour thriller across the Solent. Lead changes, shredded sails, and a nail-biting finish just 2 minutes clear of the Aussies set up their redemption story after missing last year’s final. A protest briefly threatened their win, but once dismissed, the Kiwis sealed their golden ticket to Monday’s showdown. High stakes, high drama, and a Silver Fern in the final.

Cruising

How to, for two: short-handed rescue training (6 min read)
What happens when there’s just one sailor left to pull off a man overboard rescue? In Neustadt Bay, couples put the “Neustadt Maneuver” to the test with Karlchen, a very soggy rescue dummy. The training showed that nets are useless, Lifesaver lines are gold, and calm step-by-step drifting beats panic every time. By the end, every sailor had Karlchen safely back aboard, proving that with practice, short-handed rescues don’t have to end in disaster.

How to cope with a medical emergency at sea (7 min read)
Offshore sailing means no quick trip to the ER, so crews prepping for the Grand Large Odyssey got a crash course in handling health crises far from land. From stocking up on lithium grease for your joints (yours, not the engine’s) to packing splints, EpiPens, and even a defibrillator, the advice was clear: prevention beats cure. Think vaccinations, fitness, hygiene, and tele-med services. The big reassurance? With the right prep and training, most emergencies can be handled on board without panic.

Tech & Gear

How to service your outboard steering (5 min read)
Nothing kills the mood faster than losing steering in a busy shipping lane at midnight. That’s exactly what happened when one RIB’s neglected steering rod seized solid. The culprit was old, blocked grease at two hidden nipples most owners forget about. The fix? WD40, a serious grease gun, and plenty of lithium grease until the old gunk is flushed out. It’s a fiddly job, but skip it and you might learn the hard way how vital those tiny grease points really are.

Spotlight

2025 Formula Wing World Championships, Sardinia, Italy – Overall (6 min read)
Cagliari delivered high drama for the first-ever Formula Wing Worlds. In the women’s final, 18-year-old Maddalena Spanu gambled left while her rivals stayed right, then blasted across the finish to claim gold on home waters. For the men, France’s Mathis Ghio snatched victory in a nail-biting, last-race showdown after Italy’s Alessandro Tomasi was penalized. Francesco Cappuzzo settled for silver and Kiwi Sean Herbert grabbed bronze. Two new names are now etched into wingfoil history as the sport’s inaugural world champions.

Sailing Highlight of the Day

Sardinia served up every kind of drama for the final day of the first Formula Wing Worlds. Racing nearly fizzled in the dead calm before a last-minute Mistral turned the regatta on its head. Italy’s 18-year-old Maddalena Spanu threw down a gutsy split from the fleet to snatch women’s gold, while France’s Mathis Ghio clawed through a nail-biting, protest-fueled finale to lift the men’s crown. Both started the day in yellow bibs, both finished as the sport’s very first world champions.