Thanks to Suzanne and Alan Whitewood for this news about Island sailor, Leigh McMillan. In their own words. Ed
Island born sailor Leigh McMillan is to skipper “The Wave Muscat” in the last and 9th Act of the Extreme Sailing Seriesâ„¢ to be staged in Singapore between 7th-11th December.
Back in August Act 5 was staged at Cowes during Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week and speaking then Leigh said, “It is so tight in this breeze because we are going so fast, the closing speeds happen so quickly. We do everything possible to try to keep track of all the boats on the course so you know where the dangers are but sometimes you are taken by surprise.
“It is scary in between races because you know you have another one coming. But as soon as that gun goes the adrenaline is absolutely pumping and you focus on keeping the boat upright and overtaking boats. It all happens in a bit of a blur to be honest and you get to the end of a race and you think, How did that just happen?”
Thrills and spills
Over the season of the 8 Acts so far, the thrills and spills of The Extreme Sailing Seriesâ„¢ have continued to excite the crowds around the World and Act 9 will be no different.
On board “The Wave Muscat” are: Skipper/Helm: Leigh McMillan (GBR) / Tactician: Kyle Langford (AUS) / Trimmer: Nick Hutton (GBR) / Bowman: Khamis Al Anbouri (OMA). At the moment they are in 5th place overall so there is all to sail for.
At the top of the 2011 leaderboard, the Italian team of Luna Rossa is only one point ahead of the French team Groupe Edmond de Rothschild.
Skipper and crew line-ups for the 10 teams competing at this 9th Act in Singapore include Dean Barker back at the helm of Emirates Team New Zealand who is lying 3rd overall in the Extreme Sailing Seriesâ„¢ going into the final event, Alinghi skippered by Tanguy Cariou and helmed by Yann Guichard lying in 4th and Roman Hagara’s Red Bull Extreme Sailing lying in 6th.
Action starts Wednesday
Action begins on the 7th December on Marina Bay, under the iconic backdrop of the Singapore Flyer, also home to F1’s Grand Prix pitlanes, The Extreme Race Village opens to the public from the 9th-11th with on-water action complemented by the Neil Pryde Racing Series.
Following its debut on the Extreme circuit in Nice, 20 of the best professional and amateur windsurfers from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia will show off the best in windsurfing.
On Tuesday, 13th December, just two days after the final Act of 2011 and coinciding with the opening day of the World Yacht Racing Forum in Estoril, Portugal, the 2012 Extreme Sailing Seriesâ„¢ global circuit will be announced. This worldwide circuit will once again span several continents as it goes in to its sixth year.
