17th November 2009
INDIAN OCEAN FIVE CAPES RACE
[http://www.indianocean5capesrace.com] & TOUR OF ARABIA
[http://www.tourofarabia.com]
Tour of Arabia: revealing the beauty and challenges of
sailing in the Gulf region…
Since the start of the inaugural five-leg Tour of Arabia on the
10th of November from Kuwait, Oman Sail's A100 trimaran
continues with what is effectively a 'tour of discovery',
tracing out these new routes for the very first time.
As Oman Sail's media crew member, Mark Covell, reported en route
to join the 105-ft trimaran: "As I flew up the Gulf, I looked
down on our intended route back to Muscat. I was struck by the
majestic beauty of these waters and the twinkling lights of the
oil-rigs dotted off the Arabian coast. It was a very visual
reminder of what was behind this amazing transformation of the
region." Paul Standbridge and his six-man crew, that also
includes Mohsin Al Busaidi, the first Arab to sail round the
world non-stop on board Oman Sail's 75ft trimaran 'Musandam',
and two Omani trainees are discovering all the beauty and
challenges that the Gulf region has to offer.
Having left Kuwait City, where the team received a warm and
inquisitive welcome from both the media and public, the Majan
crew negotiated the 272-mile course to Bahrain. From Mark: "We
sailed past fishing dhows waving at us to stop and buy fresh
fish. We dodged an oil rig being towed. We were visited by a
small pod of dolphins and we were even radioed by a 20,000-tonne
US coalition war ship patrolling the Gulf."
On Thursday, 12th November, Majan docked at Amwaj Marina which
opened a year ago. Amwaj Marina is Bahrain's newest marina - the
circular 60,000sq marina is located on the western seafront of
Amwaj Islands and has 145 berths including four super yacht
deepwater berths. The Kingdom of Bahrain is a small island
country in the Arabian Gulf ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family
. Bahrain is big on motorsports – it was the first Arab country
to host a Formula One Grand Prix in 2004, and now sailing is
taking hold: "The Kingdom of Bahrain also has a rich maritime
history and the newly formed 'Sail Bahrain' team aims to create
a new and exciting future for sailing and watersports in the
Kingdom. As we left, two Volvo 60s were arriving and their
future plans include an intention to develop an iconic yacht
club on par with those which grace other leading maritime
countries and a youth education programme along a similar vein
to that of Oman Sail," reported Mark.
Sadly, the country were in mourning following the death of the
King of Bahrain's uncle and out of respect the team cancelled
all its planned media and VIP activities and departed on
Saturday, 14th November for Doha, the capital of Qatar.
Bahrain, even in the midst of its mourning, had made a big
impression on the team and Mark sent this report as they left:
"Just before we pushed off the dock the whole boat was given a
refreshing spray from a hosepipe to shed the dust from the
concrete jungle that consumes Bahrain; I don't think I have ever
been to a place that is changing so quickly in front of your
eyes. New buildings are everywhere you look and the skyline has
an impressive array of cranes. Inlets and canals reach in and
around the luxury developments bringing the sea to you and you
to the sea."
The voyage to Qatar did not take long with Majan arriving the
next day (Sunday, 15th November), but it came with its usual set
of challenges in this region: "The trip to Qatar was only held
up by shifting winds and poorly lit fishing nets. We held a
constant bow watch, often needing to change course 90 degrees to
get round the ends of the nets!"
Eighty per cent of Qatar's population reside in Doha, the country
's largest city. On arrival Majan berthed alongside the city's
stunning bay the Al-Corniche, a long seaside promenade that
curves around Doha Bay. It has been a busy week for sport in
Doha with the England Vs Brazil football match taking place on
Saturday and now the Corniche park is also buzzing with the set
up of the UIM F1 H20 Power Boating World Championships which
begins on the 19th Nov. 'Majan' will depart Doha on the 18th
November for Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
Tour of Arabia:
Kuwait City, Kuwait
In port 7th-9th November
Depart 10th November
Manama, Bahrain
In port 12th-14th November
Depart 15th November
Doha, Qatar
In port 16th-17th November
Depart 18th November
Abu Dhabi & Dubai, United Arab Emirates
In port Abu Dhabi, 19th-20th November
Depart 21st November
In port Dubai, 21st-26th November
Depart 27th November
Muscat, Oman
Arrival end of November, 2009
For more information, please visit:
http://www.oceventsasia.com [http://www.oceventsasia.com/]
http://www.tourofarabia.com [http://www.tourofarabia.com/]
http://www.A100class.com [http://www.a100class.com/]
http://www.omansail.com [http://www.omansail.com/]
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