Entries are flooding in for the 2016 Finn World Masters in Torbole, passing the 100 mark on November 4, 2015.
Feeling down? Can't go sailing? Snowed under? Ice on the lake? Too cold? Your Finn is wrapped up in the garage (or in some cases in your living room)? And you want nothing more than to enjoy a warm, sunny afternoon with a good breeze and nice waves to surf down? But it's a long wait until summer is here again...
Well, we think we have the perfect antidote for Finn sailors waiting out the European winter – the second edition of the Finn Masters Magazine. It's bigger, better and will hopefully bring a little sunshine into the room with stories of last year's exploits and previews of the sunny venues on offer in the future. We also interviewed a lot of sailors and what they say is worth reading.
This issue includes interviews with Aleksandr Kuliukin, the Russian bronze medalist from the 2014 World Masters; the indomitable Henry Sprague who took the 2014 Grand Grand Masters title; Chris Watts, a regular jury member at the Finn World Masters; Walter Riosa, boatbuilder and Masters category silver medalist; and Yuri Tokovoi and Vladimir Krutshikh, coaches with Team Fantastica, now returning to Finn sailing.
There is also another great article from Karl Purdie, this time on everything he has learned about downwind technique. It will certainly help Finn Masters as they up their game ready for the 2015 season. Then there is the innovative hiking bench from Finland, an extensive interview with Chris Watts on Rule 42, and finally an in-depth paper from Richard Hart on a new a solution to the problem of equitably splitting a large fleet into smaller groups. It is planned to use this at the 2015 Finn World Masters. It could be a big step forwards.
There are previews of the three fabulously warm and sunny venues lined up for the coming years: Kavala, Greece (photo), Torbole, Italy, and Barbados. Entry for Kavala is already underway with a little over four months to go until the first race.
The Kavala 2015 event site can be found here.
This second edition again comes in two editions. The print version has been extended to 48 pages, while the online version has an extra 16 pages of photos, and is 64 pages.
You can also read the online edition here right now.
The message is the same. Finn sailing is growing worldwide and in the next few years we expect to see in excess of 300 Finns at the Finn World Masters. Barbados (photo) is already generating a lot of interest. This growth is clearly apparent also through the growth in national Masters events. There is a full round up of Masters activities in 2014 in the magazine with reports from Great Britain, USA, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, Russia, Netherlands and Italy.
There is a lot to read in this magazine, covering all aspects of the Finn Masters worldwide. We hope it will provide hours of pleasant and informative entertainment, whether you read it over breakfast, online, on the toilet, or on the go.
The Finn Masters Magazine is only possible with the ongoing support of our sponsors: Finn Masters Euro Cup, HIT Masts, HiTechSailing, North Sails, Pata Marine, Rob Coutts Sailing, Sandiline, Suntouched, WB Sails, Wilke and Zhik.
While hard copies are speeding their way to Finn Masters worldwide, you can also read it online here or download it here.
Enjoy. Summer is on the way.
The Finn Class has published the first ever edition of the Finn Masters Magazine and Yearbook. During discussions at the 2013 Finn World Masters in La Rochelle, France, the idea of a dedicated magazine for the ever growing number of Finn masters was put forward. Eight months later the first edition has just been published.
This exciting new direction for the Finn class comes at a time when Finn masters numbers are escalating worldwide as aging Finn sailors come to realise that Finn sailing is not just for the young Olympic hopefuls, but can be for the rest of your life.
The Finn class has perhaps the largest masters movement of any dinghy class worldwide and this magzine is published in recognition of this fact. Last year the Finn World Masters attracted a record 285 entries.
What also became clear during production was how many masters fleets around the world have taken the concept of the masters to heart and created new events to cater for this ever growing sector of the class. There are now dedicated masters events in the UK, USA, Italy, Poland and The Netherlands as well as Masters categories in most country's national events. In 2014, the Finn World Masters travels to Poland for the first time, and new local events are cropping up, including in Ukraine. It continues to attract sailors from 40 to 80 years old, and from club sailors sailing one event a year to experienced Olympians, and everything in between. The current Masters World Champion, Mike Maier, is a five times Olympian, and more aging Olympians are expected to join the fleet this year.
At more than 40 years old the Finn World Masters has an incredible culture and heritage that will be nurtured and developed through initiatives such as this magazine to continue providing a platform for the continued success and growth of the Finn World Masters and the continued fun of Finn masters across the world.
As well as the printed edition, which is sent to Finn Masters worldwide, there is an extended e-dition that is available to all. It contains an extra ten pages of photos, maps of forthcoming venues, video links and more. It can be viewed here: http://issuu.com/finn-class/docs/masters-magazine-2014
Contents include:
The successful production of the magazine is largely due to the fantastic support of the advertisers: HiTech Sailing, HIT Masts, North Sails, Pata Boats, Suntouched, WB Sails and Zhik.