PrairiePundit

 Washington Post: She had lived a life of adventure. Then came the ultimate sailing race. The Golden Globe Race is a survival test in which competitors spend eight months at sea alone. For Kirsten Neuschafer, “It was actually ... quite enjoyable.” Others have described yacht racing as the functional equivalent of standing in a cold shower tearing up hundred-dollar bills.  I am glad she enjoyed her adventure.

 Washington Examiner: A t least six Russian-owned superyachts went dark to avoid capture after several  Russian  oligarchs'  superyachts  were seized in  a number of Western countries , according to a new report. At least six superyachts with ties to Russia have shut off their automatic identification system, according to a Saturday  report  by the  Guardian . Industrialist Oleg Deripaska's  Clio  went dark on April 18, oligarch Viktor Rashnikov's  Ocean Victory  went dark on March 1, oligarch Vagit Alekperov's  Galactica Super Nova  went dark on March 2, Andrey Guryev's  Alfa Nero  went dark on March 3, Andrey Melnichenko's  Motor Yacht A  went dark on March 10, and cigarette tycoon Igor Kesaev's  My Sky  went dark on March 30. "We were told to turn off the AIS. We removed the screws on the power plug and pulled it out," one member of a crew on a superyacht linked to a Russian oliga...

  Daily Mail: Giant £570 million superyacht 'owned by Vladimir Putin' is seized by Italian authorities as part of sanctions against Russia over invasion of Ukraine Several Russian yachts have been seized since the beginning of the war with Ukraine.  Expensive yachting is apparently a status symbol for Russians. 

 Bloomberg: Add ships being dragged along by giant kites to the list of things the industry is exploring in its quest to decarbonize. At the start of next year, the Ville de Bordeaux, a 154-meter-long ship that moves aircraft components for Airbus SE, will unfurl a 500 square meter kite on journeys across the Atlantic Ocean. It will undergo six months of trials and tests before full deployment. While the industry has  come up  with multiple decarbonization initiatives, it is  struggling  to keep pace with goals set out under the Paris Agreement on climate. There’s also pressure on shipping lines from large customers who are pressing to make their own supply chains less polluting. ... Sailing ships require more manpower than modern ships and they are more vulnerable to trade winds.  The description of the "kites" sounds more like a spinnaker used on racing sailboats which are mainly used on downwind runs.  Going into the wind requires frequent tacking b...

San Jose Mercury-News: The greatest America's Cup in 162 years could only end one way. With one final race. Oracle Team USA, which at one time trailed 8-1, continued perhaps the greatest comeback in sports. The American team won its sixth and seventh consecutive races Tuesday, beating Emirates Team New Zealand in Races 16 and 17 to even the 34th America's Cup at 8-8 and set up the ultimate showdown for the oldest trophy in international sports. As stunning as this development has been, Oracle Team USA skipper Jimmy Spithill knows the job isn't done. "It's not over -- that's the key point here," Spithill said. "We've got to finish it off." That opportunity comes Wednesday in a winner-take-all Race 19. Oracle's streak has allowed it to wipe out the two-point penalty it was issued before this regatta for cheating in last year's America's Cup World Series warmup event. Because of that penalty, Oracle needs to win 11 races to defend ...