Mike's blog

Happy 2012!

2011-12-29T22:21:00.001+01:00

On the cover poster of XXIII Trofeo Peñon de Ifach

2011-06-11T14:49:00.003+02:00

Jerónimo 2 is the one with the red spinnaker...this was the arrival of last year, with very light winds and covering the approach of a smaller boat from behind...

First family pic

2011-04-27T13:49:00.003+02:00

Mick's partner in crime is here: Leo Maximilian!

2011-04-24T19:40:00.004+02:00

Leo Maximilian, born April 20th, 2011, at 20:00. 4130gr, 54.5cm. Pretty much same weight and size like Mick. They are going to be a good partners in crime, I fear. :-)

First new generation Volvo Open 70 on the water

2011-04-15T11:14:00.001+02:00

and, man, does it look great!

Happy holidays and our best wishes for 2011!

2010-12-25T11:20:00.002+01:00

Mick July-Oct 2010

2010-11-01T22:33:00.000+01:00

A new adventure begins...

2010-07-24T22:22:00.003+02:00

on July 1st, I joined the management team of the Volvo Ocean Race, the regatta around the world with crew and stops that happens every three years (the old Whitbread). Very excited about the move and moreover about the next edition of the race which is shaping up to be very impressive.

The Spanish nautical press has published the news here, here and here.

Mick's first steps - June 18th, 2010

2010-06-19T11:40:00.000+02:00

Volvo Ocean Race building up momentum

2010-05-25T22:06:00.001+02:00

XXII Trofeo Peñon de Ifach

2010-05-09T20:16:00.005+02:00

Three weeks to go to one of the best regattas of the season, the XXII Trophy Peñon de Ifach. A two leg race of 65 nautical miles each, Calpe-Formentera-Calpe.

here the pics from last edition, and the video from two years' ago.

Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 - 18 months to go

2010-05-05T10:01:00.003+02:00

With the VOR route recently announced, the attention is now centered on the final list of teams taking part at the ultimate offshore regatta. The economic crisis and the blow of the last winner, Ericsson, dropping out has hit it hard, but its new management team appears to be taken the right decisions in order to create an even larger public sports event while reducing costs for the teams and ensuring a highly competitive race.

Their aim is to have 10 teams at the next race. If the VOR manages a great event next year, the aim should be for 16-20 teams at the start of the 2014-15 race (like in the initial Whitbread races). That would bring the VOR back again into the spotlight worldwide.

Ruta de la Sal 2010

2010-05-03T18:59:00.013+02:00

This year impressive crew with our future ship's boy

The past regatta Ruta de la Sal was as always cold but this time pretty sunny all the way. The passing by Formentera in the middle of the night was again a highlight as with clear skies the Eastern full moon made the island look like something extraterrestrial.

Leaving the mainland with the Montgo on the right

Racing wise it was a very tricky regatta. Headwinds all the way from Denia to Formentera made up for difficult tactical decisions. Our forecast stated a shift to the south that made us stay north of the direct line (ok, in all fairness our navigator advised to go south...the tactician and especially the skipper overruled him)...unfortunately, the forecast was proven wrong...we arrived to Formentera behind the leader's pack, but managed to recover lots of ground until Tagomago by playing the spinnaker perfectly during the night and early morning.

Sunny but cold - full gear on

We passed the Tagomago gate at 10:36, just several miles behind the leading pack (and in front of the legendary Maxi Fortuna, which broke the 24 hours speed record with 411 nautical miles at the 1988-89 Whitbread Around the World - current record is from 2008 and hold by Ericsson 4 VO70 with 599nm).

I was already thinking that we would make it to Sant Antoni for lunch....but then we hit a doldrum and stayed put for 5 hours!! well, we actually lost ground and with the current moved backwards...it was pretty frustrating, especially when you see 100 boats approaching slowly but steadily from behind...

Running goosewinged with the a-spi to leave the doldrum behind

We arrived in Sant Antoni at 21:53, 31 hrs 41 min 10 sec after the start, our longest ever Ruta de la Sal.

Lesson learned this time: don't despair in a doldrum...keep looking for the breeze...and listen to your navigator! :-)

SPF 2010 - the video

2010-04-14T22:09:00.003+02:00

Season opener - Ruta de la Sal 2010

2010-03-24T20:03:00.003+01:00

Last year I had to pass on the first regatta of the season, the Salty Route, the overnight race from Denia to Ibiza (120nm), for good reasons (see previous blog post ;-) . This time the A-crew is back in business. Expectactions are high.

Wish us fair winds!

Micky - fifth to eleventh month

2010-03-12T19:34:00.001+01:00

BOR wins the 33rd America's Cup

2010-02-15T08:11:00.004+01:00

Congrats to the BOR team, specially the designers (Francis!), for a great job.

Most importantly, thanks to Alinghi and Ernesto Bertarelli for an amazing seven years in Valencia. Choosing Valencia as the venue for the 32nd AC was an awesome present for us Spanish and Valencian fans. Due to it we have a nice sporting port and a F1 race in it. Not to mention the incredible memories of the last Cup.

Good luck to all.

The Cup is about to leave Europe

2010-02-14T08:00:00.005+01:00

Vow, unfortunately estimations were correct...BOR's wing is the "weapon"...last Friday in apptly Alinghi's best sailing conditions (light breeze) BOR was 1-2 knots faster upwind, and 3-4 downwind...no chance for the swiss...

also, Spithill showed again that he is the best match race starter...Bertarelli looked like a beginner during the pre-start...what an obvious penalty...urrg

Today, 12:00 CET the second and most probably last race. live on the official site

Alinghi 5 ready to race

2010-01-16T19:21:00.003+01:00

Despite being extremely disappointed with the never ending legal entanglement (BOR just filed a complaint in court stating that Alinghi' sails are not made in Switzerland), and the parties incompetency to agree to extend the regattas of the match to make it a larger event or change the start of the race from a Monday to a Friday, I can't refrain from posting this awesome video from Alinghi's catamaran christening day in Valencia. Great.

Happy holidays and all the best for 2010!

2009-12-20T21:42:00.002+01:00

Latin America road-trip

2009-12-20T18:19:00.016+01:00

Las Bovedas, Cartagena

Past November a business trip took me in just 11 days to six countries: Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica and USA (technically, it was seven as I had a short stop-over in Panama City).

The mandatory juicy & greasy burger for lunch, South Beach, Miami

Incredible enough, the careful but extremely tight schedule worked out perfectly, and the meetings and flights happened as planned..the only two hiccups were a missing dinner with Justin, Borja and Diego in Miami as it took me two hours to clear customs there (urrgrg) and the stressful flight to San José without the mandatory yellow-fever shot that is required in Costa Rica when travelling from Colombia. (don't ask me how I got into the country ;-)

Getting ready for the Desfile de Balleneras, Cartagena

The highlight of the trip was the opportunity to meet good friends along the way: Paulo, Carol and Jakob in Sao Paulo, Francois & Karen in Santiago, Diego and Daniel in Miami, and specially to be able to hang out with Anton in Cartagena in the just by pure coincidence THE weekend of the year in Colombia, the crowning of Miss Colombia. The national event there. (we made it incognito into the Colombian yellow press... ;-)

Impressive view from Diego's apartment, Flamingo Blg, Miami Beach

Santiago and the Andes

Getting introduced to the new Walewski

With the mandatory sake maracuja caipirinha at Spot, Jardins, Sao Paulo

33rd AC finally in February and finally in Valencia

2009-12-20T12:39:00.003+01:00

Thank God the legal mess of the past three years is finished. Alinghi lost all cases and appeals and the final decision is that Valencia will host the duel between BOR and Alinghi next February.

The deed of gift specifies a best of three match starting Monday, Feb 8th. Both parties could reach an agreement to start Friday Feb 12th, and extend the match to best of five or seven. Hope they decide fast as I need to book my flights!! :-)

XIII Copa del Canal 2009

2009-12-12T12:58:00.007+01:00

Our great 2009 crew

Awesome weather in Formentera with empty beaches

working/trimming hard our brand new spy

herewith some pics from the last regatta of the season...as mentioned before Facebook is killing the blog star...anyhow, I'll try to do a wrap up of the last weeks here...lot of things to report!

Our bowman, Martin, had to climb the mast to untangle a halyard. not an easy one

One week to go - XIII Copa del Canal

2009-10-24T21:44:00.003+02:00

one week to go to the last regatta of the season. Giving a chance to the B crew and using a brand new asymmetrical spinnaker. hope this time it does not get cancelled due to gales like last season.

Wish us fair winds.

Summer 2009 wrap-up

2009-10-03T10:23:00.012+02:00

as previously said, facebook is killing the blog star...urrg....below some pics from this past summer...

Formula 1 in Valencia

Visiting great-greatmom and aunt Carolina & family

Formentera with the F1 gold-flakes champagne

In Brihuega for Pedro&Meredith's wedding

At Eveline's wedding day

Hiking in Tegernsee

Visit of my brother & family

Getting fixed a spliter in the foot at Attersee

Kocherlball

Tollwood

third to fifth month

2009-09-22T08:27:00.003+02:00

some snapshots from the last 8 weeks...including a hut fashion show at the end...

Four Teschendorff generations!

2009-08-22T10:17:00.004+02:00

In Valencia, Aug 20th, 2009, with grandma and great-grandpa

Ras al-Khaimah venue for the 33rd AC

2009-08-05T13:39:00.003+02:00

all rumors confirmed...the emirate Ras al-Khaimah has been chosen for the deed-of-gift regatta between Alinghi and BOR next February 8-12, 2010. (Ras al-Khaimah is just a 45min drive away from Dubai).

Oracle wants to appeal the decision, we'll see if there is not another delay....urrg...

here a short video of the venue...

Mick - snapshots around his third month b-day

2009-07-22T22:40:00.004+02:00

Launch of Alinghi's cat

2009-07-09T10:31:00.005+02:00

Impressive pics from yesterday's transport of Alinghi's cat from its hangar for its christening in Lake Geneva. Another 90ft x 90ft monster to race against Oracle's one next February 2010.

Venue will be finally disclosed August 8th. Valencia has limited options to be chosen (if any)...winds are pretty unstable in that month there and Oracle knows the field very good. I bet for Dubai (Turkey has been rumoured, too).

Anyhow, hope this mess gets over soon and we have a conventional Cup in 2012-13...I doubt it will be ever be again in Valencia...that's the main thing that drives me nuts...with better planning from Alinghi and the Spanish team/politicians...we would have had the Cup again in Valencia...grrrrr

Grandpas' visit

2009-07-06T18:41:00.004+02:00

at the Aumeister Biergarten

Odeonsplatz

Kaisergarten

Mick first two months

2009-06-28T13:00:00.001+02:00

Lago di Como

2009-06-24T14:23:00.007+02:00

There are lots of magnificient places in Europe. One of them is without doubt the Lake Como in the Lombardy.

Sabine with George Clooney's house in her back

Nic invited us over this past weekend to his parents beatiful place directly on the shoreline at Torno. Impressive house indeed. We loved it.

XXI Trofeo Peñon de Ifach

2009-06-16T19:46:00.010+02:00

As mentioned earlier, I had to pass on the initial regattas of the season (due to obvious reasons...e.g. Mick birth at 5:34am on April 10th found the B-Crew (my dad & co) in front of Tagomago fighting with an upcoming gale at the past Ruta de la Sal)).

That's why I was very much looking forward to our first real test with the A-Crew at one of the best regattas of the season, the prestigious XXI Trofeo Peñon de Ifach. A two leg regatta, Calpe-Formentera-Calpe, with a great rest day in beatiful Formentera.

Competition was tough, very good sailors indeed, but I think with the learnings of this edition and some serious training, we'll be much better next time. (standings if interested here). We also faced some heavy duty waves with Beaufort 6 winds on the second leg that round up three days of great sailing in all possible conditions.

Can't wait for the next one.

Los Marqueses - Three generations

2009-06-15T13:31:00.002+02:00

Mick - first two months

2009-06-15T11:57:00.007+02:00

First ride with his burley

herewith some pics from Mick's first two months on the road (land, sea and air) with us...we don't sleep much, but it is definitely a fantastic experience.

First sailing trip Denia to Calpe

Flying with your own bed is a piece of cake

Trekking with my bugaboo and the help of Ludwig is also fun

Malta

2009-06-09T18:02:00.007+02:00

Prime Minister residence in Valletta

some snapshots from May (biz) trips...umm...only from Malta as I placed in facebook the ones from Andorra (yes, again...first time going there out of the ski season...beatiful spring scenery) and Bern. Pretty nice island with lots of history (actually Malta consists of six islands, being Malta and Gozo the largest)...I think I will sail to here one day...

Great lunch place in St Julians

the impressive natural port of Valletta

Facebook is killing the Blog-star

2009-05-30T10:11:00.004+02:00

urrg, I need to pay attention...facebook is definitely keeping me out of posting more...it is indeed a great platform with much more interaction than this blog...ummm...anyhow...will try to keep it up...there are still good blog stories coming :-)

Why we miss Rue Montorgueil

2009-05-14T20:05:00.003+02:00

No matter the (great) places will be living in the next years, we'll always remember and miss the vibe in our awesome market street Rue Montorgueil. Right in the middle of Paris, but still with a lot of charm, a cool bobo (bourgeouis bohemian) attitude and sort of off-the-radar from the tourist crowds in the Marais or Quartier Latin, the rue Montorgueil and adyacent streets are our favourite area of Paris. Four years living there (in nummer 92) that we'll never forget.

and here the latest coolest video from the street:

Make The Girl Dance "Baby Baby Baby" ( official video )
Uploaded by placeblancherec - Explore more music videos.

Nursing in Black Africa

2009-05-08T22:21:00.004+02:00

Very proud of my mother doing voluntary nursing work these days at the Albert Schweitzer hospital in Lambarene, Gabon. Very jealous as well of my dad, who is currently visiting her. That part of black Africa must be amazing.

A Sunday afternoon...

2009-04-28T09:47:00.004+02:00

...sometimes I love our place...(more than usual I mean)...

btw, April has been the sunniest and warmest in Germany ever...keep it on, May!

first days hanging out with Mick

2009-04-23T22:55:00.006+02:00

Still on the getting to know each other phase, but things are going quite smoothly with Mick (btw such a cutie!). So smoothly that the midwife told us that Mick was a baby "for beginners", i.e. easy going, long sleeper, limited hassle...hope it stays like this!!

Herewith some pics from the first outtings with him (first beergarden visit and first lunch outside)

Mick coming home

2009-04-18T09:09:00.004+02:00

About to go to pick up Sabine and Mick from the maternity clinic. First day home...now the reality of the new situation will definitely kick-in. Looking forward!

here some of the pics taken by the clinic photograph. pretty cute ones. and here the official one in the clinic website.

pics from Ruta de la Sal 2009

2009-04-18T08:28:00.003+02:00

Like in the past four years, this edition of the regatta Ruta de la Sal has faced cold and tough weather conditions. Eastern not the best time to visit Spain, I would say!

In average the boats have needed 12 hours more than usual to reach Ibiza (the change of course to end in San Antonio this time made the race 5nm longer, i.e. just ~45minutes, thus the tricky winds made up for the rest).

The small crew onboard ESP-6315 mastered the challenge. Hut up, dad!

Germany's Next Top Model

2009-04-17T18:57:00.004+02:00

With Sarina and Mandy

Stefan and Melanie called me to come over to the Seehaus beergarten on Wednesday evening (Sabine's and Mick's maternity clinic is conveniently located not only close to home but to the Seehaus and Chinese Tower beergartens :-) . Once there I bumped into three of the current candidates at Heidi Klum's Germany's Next Top Model, a huge hit in German television although no one claims to watch it. Me neither :-)

Although they didn't want to tell me, my theory of these three being together in Munich is that they have made it into the Top 3 finals (Sara was the third one - the show is not shown live). We'll find out in 4 weeks...

Mick Léon is here!

2009-04-14T08:33:00.009+02:00

Fantastic weekend. Mick Léon arrived a couple of days early. All went perfect. A really cute boy.

Quite big with his 4100gr and 58cm long...but apptly his size now is not correlated with his size later on. A pity .-)

Sabine and myself are extremely happy. A new exciting phase in our lives started on 10.4.2009..

Start of the sailing season 2009

2009-04-04T19:32:00.006+02:00

The spring has arrived and so has the sailing season. The Salty Route starts in 5 days.

Due to obvious reasons, I am going to pass this edition, but our vessel, ESP-6315, will be at the start with the B-crew.

Wish them good and fair winds! Go go go

Game over...

2009-04-04T17:53:00.009+02:00

...for a conventional 33rd edition of the America's Cup and for Valencia as the host venue. After almost two years of one of the most exciting editions ever, the whole momentum desafortunately is gone through BMW-Oracle's move into the courts.

Last Thursday, the NY Court of Appeals finally decided in favor of Oracle. As a result, Alinghi and BMW Oracle will now face each other, earliest 10 months from now, in a venue that Alinghi will choose and in a vessel that BOR will choose (most likely its huge trimaran).

Only way out would be an agreement between Alinghi and Oracle to allow for a conventional Cup in 2010 or 2011. Apptly there are 19 teams hoping for this (I doubt this number big time...the current financial crisis has hit most teams). But knowing that we are facing personal egos here (Bertarelli vs Ellison & Coutts), an agreement is as likely as an elephant flying in the sky...

Ellison never made it so far at the America's Cup...a dumm move from Bertarelli and the Spanish team allowed for this...a pity to have wasted the magnificient momentum of the past edition...and a bigger pity for Valencia...

At least we enjoyed the cup tremendously last time...if someone had told me years ago that the America's Cup, THE sailing event worldwide, would take place in my home town I would have declared him/her totally nuts...(here some links to the highlights, nite life, and the round robins)

It was aaaaaawesooooooome...

2009-03-22T10:33:00.007+01:00

Still playing around with all the footage and pics from our recent powder trip...it was aaaaaaawesooooooome, it was deeeeeeeeeep!

this teaser is was based on Claim, the best ski film ever, or so it claims ;-) we watched it over and over at Longhorn

Next year: The Monashees??

2009-03-18T15:07:00.005+01:00

As Dani yells into the camara in the last scene of the Freeriding in Whistler video, we are playing with the idea of trying out the Monashees next season...one of the reasons is the following (amateur) video that we found during one of the early morning breakfasts & surfing in Whistler...it starts slowly but after one minute the action kicks in...steep & deeeeep

open runs are nice, but gladed ones with its pillows, trees and meadows are way way better...bring it on, ride on!

Freeriding in Whistler

2009-03-13T21:57:00.006+01:00

herewith the footage from the other days in Whistler, BC including our two days catskiing in the backcountry with the great folks from Powder Mountain Catskiing, our fancy b-day dinner at Bearfoot Bistro (one of Canada's best restaurants), skiing through the Village at nite and some apres-ski snapshots at Longhorn Saloon...pretty much just Dani and myself appeared on it...ummm...not sure where the others where....ups....sorry guys... ;-)

all in all, one of the best ski weeks ever...pow pow pow!

Spanish Powderfreaks

2009-03-10T00:25:00.000+01:00

Heliskiing off Whistler

2009-03-02T10:18:00.009+01:00

Last Thursday with clear blue skies and 82+ cm of new snow we had an awesome heliskiing day...magnificient...it was deep, man! (internal joke ;-)

This year we went with Whistler Heliskiing, the largest outfit in town. Compared to the cozy 15 people (three groups of five) from Coast Range Heliskiing, Whistler Heli brings four to five times as many people to the tops. But if you take the Ultimate Run option, you end up in fiver groups and far from the others...thus, just as with Coast Range (and without the long drive to Pemberton...90 minutes more sleep in the morning then!)

Catskiing in British Columbia

2009-02-27T07:43:00.012+01:00

Vow, vow, vow...months looking forward to my skiing trip with Dani, Benedict, Guilermo and Javier, and of biting my nails since it has been a bad snow year in Whistler, BC...but once here it snowed 82cm during the first three days...awesome deeeeeeeeep powder...

More pics and commentary to follow, here just some snapshots from our first catskiing experience...heliski is nice...catskiing is the way forward, though :-)

btw amazing pics taken by pro Mike Crane...our best pics ever

Sensational powder day in Brauneck

2009-02-15T12:08:00.009+01:00

Ecstasy with my new fat skis mantras

vow, awesome powder day in Brauneck. 50cm of new snow. Sensational!

Brauneck is the closest decent ski resort to Munich, just 55km away. Normally, it does not have very good snow (highest peak is only 1,700m), but this weekend it was the place with most new snow in Bavaria and neighbouring Austria. Excellent.

Stefan at the door of the "Strasser-Alm" hut

With Eise & Isa at our lunch & obstler break (a pity they were both on a diet!!)

First carnival ball of the season

2009-02-15T00:40:00.007+01:00

Although not a big carnival location, if you know where to go there is actually lot on offer for the carnival season in Munich. This Friday 13th (!) along with Heidi, Julie and Julia we went to a ball at a great location, the National Bavarian Museum. China was the main theme.

it was snowing big time when we left

Erotic lecture

2009-02-04T22:10:00.003+01:00

Through Michi's heads-up, yesterday we spent a different evening enjoying dinner at fancy Nektar while our acquaintance and German actress Alexandra Kamp portraited an erotic lecture. It is actually not easy to read "hard core" stuff, but she did a great job and just with her voice managed to recreate perfectly the different roles and people of her readings. It was definitely good fun.

84 days 03 hours 9 minutes

2009-02-04T21:28:00.008+01:00

Last Sunday, Frenchmen Michel Desjoyeaux and his vessel Foncia arrived first at the finish line of the Vendee Globe single-handed non-stop regatta. He has delivered an extraordinary performance in an extremely tough regatta (from 30 starters only 11 remain in the race), trashing the old record by more than three days despite having to turn back to port and loosing 41 hours at the start of the race.

Hut up to a great sailor. A truly hero, but not only he, all other participants, too.

PS: meanwhile, the Volvo Ocean Race rests in China after one of the hardest legs ever. Leg 4 Singapore to Qingdao has featured a full blown hurricane that has chattered the fleet... three boats DNF (did not finish) and are unlikely to be repaired in time for next leg. heavy duty.

awesome wrap up of the leg on board of Ericsson 4:

Guy Salter's take on the leg from Singapore to Qingdao aboard Ericsson 4. Video copyright Ericsson Racing Team

Kitzbühel weekend

2009-02-02T11:42:00.006+01:00

Despite the long trip back, we couldn't resist a short notice invite to spend the weekend in beautiful Kitzbühel. The weather forecast expected sun and with the last days snowfall the skiing condition were sensational. Thus, not to be missed!!

The ski huts in Kitz have extremely good food...although sometimes quite basic...here the famous bacon&eggs from the Schroll hut

Bogota

2009-01-29T00:04:00.011+01:00

Awesome colonial houses in La Candelaria

And I thought the travelling was going to recede a bit this year...well, not so far. I am this week in Bogota for business. Not much time to do some sightseeing, besides evenings/nights. The traffic is also horrendous, thus it is pretty cumbersome to move around town during daylight (from the business district (around calle 100) it tooks us 90 minutes to get to the colonial old downtown at rush hour...and just 20 min after dinner)...

La Catedral Prima de Bogota

Major coincidence that Diego's brother, Abel, happens to be here (he is preparing an economical report for the Wall Street Journal. three months stay for a 24 page report. not bad). Juan Carlos, my sales rep here, took us out for a fancy dinner at cool Nazca in the G district. After visiting the old town with its bohemian, run down and backpacker feeling, it was a great constrast. (btw, the old town district La Candelaria is awesome, The place to go and stay, not exactly Antigua but close enough)

Globalization!

During dinner a bomb exploded six blocks away from us, at the fancy residential T district... I had no idea, but apparently the FARC guerilla is placing every now and then bombs in the capital to increase the pressure and state their presence (one or two per year in the past times). Not good, but something similar happens in Spain with ETA and the Spanish can't be bothered...

After a business lunch at La Fragata on top of the World Trade Center. Great views.

anyway, tonite heading to Parque de la 93 for dinner and drinks. Last night in Colombia. Tomorrow evening catching the plane to be back in an apptly quite white Munich...some skiing on the weekend then??!?!? :-)

With Abel at Nazca

Pics from Stanton

2009-01-19T13:03:00.003+01:00

some snapshots from a great skiing weekend in St Anton, or Stanton for the English speakers...

The Valluga gondola emerging through the sea of clouds

At last - ski season opener

2009-01-13T10:51:00.008+01:00

Believe it or not I am about to go skiing for the first time this season. Crazy stuff if compared to last year when around this time my ski days account was about 14 days... ok, ok, last year was exceptional.

anyway, lots of catching up to be done, so St Anton, Valluga, Mooserwirt, Funky Chicken here we goooo!

Winter scenes

2009-01-11T22:46:00.004+01:00

The high pressure area in the center of Europe has brought quite cold temperatures but lots of sun to Munich. Perfect weather to ski or to go trekking in the mountains around town. Here some pics from Blomberg from this past Saturday.

Art in the forest

Back from paradise

2009-01-05T09:49:00.006+01:00

Cape Town and its magical Table Mountain at sunset

Back in freezing Munich after spending 10 days in beatiful South Africa. Always worth the trip, besides that it was great for us to be able to visit friends along our route of Cape Town, Plettenberg Bay and Cannon Rocks (Eastern Cape). Back now to real life. snif snif :-)

Amazing scenery in the Robberg Peninsula

more pics here

sensational location and atmosphere at Constantia Uitsig

Merry X-mas and all the best for 2009!

2008-12-23T17:03:00.005+01:00

Just a short one to wish you all happy holidays and all the best for 2009! cheers

Paris X-mas shopping

2008-12-22T15:16:00.008+01:00

View from the Pont des Arts. The "best" picnic spot in summer

Crazy month this one... with lots of private travelling: Mexico, USA, Munich, Valencia and this past weekend Paris (not to mention the upcoming trip to SA...heavy duty... are we enjoying the last days of something??!? :-)

Anyhow, Paris, our home between 2002 and 2007, is always worth a visit. We definitely miss it. A beatiful city with an incredible scenery, atmosphere and an awesome bar and restaurant offer. One of the capitals of the world. Munich is indeed a very small village in comparison.

Paying a visit to our beloved neighbourhood, Rue Montorgueil. Btw, the SFR shop moved on, a vine shop moved in. Left of Sabine is the entrance to our former appartment (windows 2nd floor above Litte Italy - btw, best pasta in town by far)

Great regattas to follow

2008-12-22T12:43:00.007+01:00

The Cheminées Poujoulat ran aground in 40-45 knots when trying to stop for repairs

Despite my lack of posting about the Volvo Ocean Race and the Vendee Globe, there has been quite some incredible action in the past weeks.

Yann Elies being rescued by the Australian marine

At the Vendee Globe, half of the fleet has been eliminated, the current leader started two days late due to material problems and we have seen some dramatic scenes (lots of dismasting and hitting of floating objects, a boat running ashore, and a sailor rescued 800nm south of Australia as he fell from the mast and broke his femur...he is extremely lucky to be alive).

Extreme tight game in the Strait of Malaca

At the Volvo, Ericsson 4 had another impressive performance winning Leg 2 (Cape Town to Cochin, India). Now the boats are hours away to arrive in Singapore. The four leading boats are within 4 miles of each other. Nerve breaking arrival indeed!

UPDATE: it was indeed the closest finish ever. After 2,000nm, the top 4 reached Singapore within 20 minutes, the last 3 within 2 minutes and a half...vow.

The Roaring Twenties b-day party

2008-12-16T12:16:00.007+01:00

Any excuse is good for a party, anyhow Javier, Silvia and Tomas picked a great theme for their already traditional birthday party this past Saturday in Valencia. The Roaring Twenties with the Wall Street crash of 1929 seem to fit pretty well with the current climate. Since we only live once, better to party than to worry seemed to be the idea. Fair enough.

Major coincidence- destiny?

2008-12-06T01:14:00.004+01:00

Some time this past summer, Sabine came across the TV series "Moonlight" and inmediately became addicted to the (actually quite good) vampire thriller and romance story. She watched all episodes on the web, downloaded them, watched them again and again. The only break during the summer was our sailing trip, since my laptop battery could not cope with such a watching freenzy. :-)

You cannot imagine how dissapointed she was when CBS unexpectedly decided to cancel the series...there is a large fan base out there pushing to reconsider the decision, so there is some hope, but with Twilight gaining traction, the CBS folks might think that there are too many vampire stories out there...not sure.

Anyhow, two days ago we were having breakfast at the great Urth Cafe in West Hollywood when suddenly the lead actor of Moonlight, Alex O'Loughlin (aka Mick St John) walked in... Despite his new hairstyle ("I cut my hair" he said to us :-), Sabine recognized him instantly. She couldn't believe it and went almost nuts. I have only seen her so nervous when she first met my parents. It was very sweet.

After some discussions, I tricked her and approached Alex. He was extremely nice, we had a short conversation and took a pic with his main German fan :-)

Small world indeed and what a major coincidence...from all stars in LA, we bumped into the number #1 in Sabine's list. Very cool. Sabine can still not believe it. (me neither)

Baja California

2008-11-30T17:53:00.005+01:00

El Requeson, one of the famoust beaches in Baja

Just a couple of pics from this amazing peninsula that we are currently visiting. If you come here, do so with a 4WD and your tent... thousands of extreme isolated countryside and beaches to explore if you have the means (roads are terrible. the only paved one is the Transpeninsular MEX-1). Nice to still find these places actually so close to "civilization" (LA is just 10-15 hours drive away from Central Baja).

The scenery here is magnificient. Just taken from a movie set...

Great lunch at El Patron, Mulege

Macau

2008-11-20T13:24:00.011+01:00

The old Grand Lisboa casino is one of the trademarks of Macau

For the Mobile Asia Congress, we crossed the bay to Macau, the tiny former Portuguese colony just off mainland China (and an hour ferry from Hong Kong). Funny little place with all signs in portuguese, thus easy to follow. A pity no one speaks portuguese any more. Local food is also special, offering a strange combination of portuguese and chinese... although a good proper dim sum or cantonese food can't be beaten by this combination.

historical houses

Apparently, the country was in a real shabby state several years ago. Now, you still notice a notable difference with Hong Kong, but there are signs of improvement. The huge investment from the Vegas casinos should help, although the mainland chinese are only allow to come over to gamble once every three months! that and the crisis is hitting them hard...Sands Group just stopped several constructions sites in Macau, lying off 11,000 workers...

Portugal? Latin America? nope, China!

Hong Kong

2008-11-18T08:32:00.005+01:00

Just spent a couple of days at the former British colony in SE Asia. It always good to come to these places to recognize again and again that in Western Europe things are definitely too settled. We lack the dynamism and optimism that the Asian metropolis have. Eastern Europe and definitely Moscow have a similar buzz. If we don't pay attention, we'll be overtaken sooner rather than later...

More pics here.

Leg 2 started, India awaits now

2008-11-15T17:52:00.003+01:00

Leg 2 of the Volvo Ocean Race has started today in Cape Town. Great pics from the boats leaving Table Mountain. What a scenerie.

Tricky leg, with an expected rough part (until they reach Mauritius), and then very tactical as the last part should be played in very light conditions.

Lets enjoy the show!

The "Mount Everest of sailing" has started!

2008-11-09T20:26:00.009+01:00

Great season and great year for the sailing fans. While the Volvo Ocean rests in Cape Town (start of Leg 2 is Nov 15th), the possibly ultimative challenge, the Vendee Globe, the singlehanded race around the world without any stopover, started today in Sables d'Olonne.

The French are passionate about sailing, these events ranked as high as rugby in their hearts (football is third). The crowds at the start today were apparently incredible (300,000+ people). A couple of years ago, we watched the start of the last Route du Rum in St Malo and couldn't believe the atmosphere of expectation, huge crowds and sailing expertise from everyone. A huge difference to the Spanish and Valencian sometimes reluctance aceptance of the America's Cup last year. (although in the port the atmosphere and crowd was excellent, in the city there was a sort of indifference...I even had to push some of my friends to visit the harbor...incredible...:-(

Anyway, let's enjoy following this regatta as well. 30 skippers (record, incl two women) should make for a very interesting one to follow. The favourites are expected to finish in 90+ days. heavy duty if you think that they will sleep in 25 minutes slots during this time.

Fair winds to them!

UPDATE: tough first night. one of them had a collision with a fisher boat yesterday nite and is heading back to port for repairs. The skipper was inside the boat and the fisherboat didn't bother, I suspect... fisherboats and containerships are extremely dangerous at nite...urrg. you need people on watch all the time

Arrival in Cape Town

2008-11-06T09:47:00.007+01:00

Last Sunday, three weeks after leaving Alicante, Ericsson 4 reached Table Mountain, finishing first of Leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race.

Hut up to these folks for an impressive performance, specially through the strong weather front that they rid during the last 5 days of the leg. Even with a man down, Torben Grael and his crew beat the world record distance covered in 24 hours with 602 nautical miles, averaging more than 25 knots. (previous record was set by ABN AMRO II in the past edition of the Volvo with 562 nm).

All other team have meanwhile arrived in Cape Town. They have now two weeks to recover and repair the boats (two had collisions with something (a container?), Green Dragon and Telefonica Black , which almost lost the mast...). In strong winds, Ericsson 4 looks unbeatable, but the next legs will be played in lighter conditions. (next one is Cape Town to India)

UPDATE: great summary of leg 1 here.

Cancelled!

2008-11-04T09:12:00.011+01:00

The storm was fiercest in Andratx, Mallorca. 100 boats strongly damaged.

The heavy duty wheather front I mentioned in my previous post turned out to be a full blown hard-core storm. Wind conditions around Denia were not extreme (ok, there where variable gusts of 30-40 knots, pretty heavy), but apparently the situation in the islands was much worse. Even the Ibiza and Palma ports were closed for more than 12 hours over the weekend.

Pedro prepared to tack

Due to this situation the regatta committee decided to cancel the race. A big blow for us as we were very much looking forward to the challenge. Anyway, it is difficult to assess how things would have turn out for us should we have been allowed to leave port. Looking at the pictures it looks like it was the right decision.

Crew and supporters at our paella lunch (or dinner, it started at 1700) in El Palmar

The sailing season is over. Next year Jeronimo II, flag ESP-6315, will be back stronger! :-)

Last regatta of the season

2008-10-28T19:33:00.010+01:00

As usual a cold front has suddenly appeared out of no-where to escort us at our last regatta of the season, the XII Copa del Canal. A 61 nautical miles race between Denia and Formentera.

The WindGURU predicts heavy duty southwesterly beaufourt 6 with peaks of 7... we are gonna fly to Formentera...(if we don't break anything).

btw, pretty new crew this time. We'll see how they perform.

Wish us fair winds!

Andorra

2008-10-27T21:45:00.004+01:00

When we were in Paris thank to the remote home office option, the "thousands" of RTT days and the good travel connection we spent around 20 to 25 days during the ski season in Andorra. (btw, no idea why we left France...I had 48 vacation days!!! double of what I have in Germany...ouch).

Andorra is a unique little country, more Spanish than French, but it still has this little things from both neighboring countries. The supermarkets have two section, the Spanish- and the French one. Great if you like terrine, huitres, champagne, jamon de jabugo, angulas and good spanish wines.

Most people go there to go shopping as there is no VAT tax...but not the best option anymore, I would say. The skiing on the other side is quite good. Grandvalira after a heavy snow fall offers great powder runs.

Anyway, funnily enough, I am travelling down there for a business meeting this Thursday. Hope things work out and I can visit it more often.

One week to go

2008-10-26T20:15:00.006+01:00

Il Mostro at the Brasilian scoring gate

With two weeks into the race the Volvo Ocean Race fleet is delivering an extreme tight race. Last Friday after almost 3,000 nautical miles, the top four teams reached the scoring gate of Fernando de Noronha within two hours and twenty minutes of each other.

They are now facing a low pressure system developing in front of Rio that should hit them in the next hours. This "freight train" should deliver them to Cape Town fast. With gale winds expected of 40+ knots, these boats should be able to make 24 knots average speed, i.e. 500 nm a day... they could be in Cape Town in a weeks time...

...if they don't break anything...this is the first time this new version V70 boats face such a weather front...we'll see what happens. btw, I found the awesome recap video from the dramatic last edition...one sailor lost, one boat sunk... it is a mind-blowing video...at least for me...

Visiting Google HQ

2008-10-24T04:41:00.006+02:00

With Michael at one of the many company signs in the Googleplex

Crazy 50 hours trip (26 hours onsite + 24 flying) to cross the Atlantic and a continent to negotiate a cool deal with the "Don't be Evil" folks. Probably my shortest trip and the most expensive flight ticket ever. But definitely worthwhile. It looks that it won't be the last visit.

Volvo Ocean Race dramatic unfolding

2008-10-17T23:41:00.007+02:00

The start in Alicante faced decent stormy conditions. all sails reefed.

With nine months of sailing around the world still to go lots of exciting situations have already happened in just six days into the race. The fleet in Alicante had to start with stormy conditions that stayed with them all the way until Gibraltar. One of the favourites, Telefonica Blue, broke a rudder and had to stop for repairs, being penalized with a 12 hours stop onshore.

After Gibraltar the fleet has encountered champagne sailing conditions, i.e. 25 knots of downwind, sun and heat. They have stayed very close to the African coast, played cat and mouse with the Canary Islands and currently the Cape Verde Islands. Ericsson 3 just had to stop there to drop an injured sailor.

Soon, they need to gybe and head towards the west through the feared doldrums (areas of little or no wind) to reach the scoring gate of Fernando de Noronha, prior to head southeast towards Cape Town.

Best to follow the race is the official website, its race viewer. Each boat has a journalist on board (not allowed to help with the sailing), thus there are lots of good videos here. Watching them sometimes I think it could be us there! ok, ok, they are a bit faster...

btw, there is an awesome summary video from the dramatic last edition here (one sailor died, one boat sunk). you should not miss it.

II Med crossing - final leg video

2008-10-14T12:50:00.005+02:00

Once again, it is funny that I thought that I did not have enough footage material to even edit a 10 minutes video of the whole Napoli-Sitges crossing...ha...what a mistake :-)

Here is the last leg. Highlights:

- Starting point was Porto Rafael. The initial plan was to change crews in Castelsardo, but strong winds and waves made us stayed longer at our cozy shelter of Porto Rafael (once again, I can't stress it enough: what an awesome location!).

- Crossing the mythical Bonifacio Strait, the 11km wide passage between Corsica and Sardinia, famous for its strong winds (beafourt force 7 is pretty usual here) and rocks everywhere. We had actually a pleasant passage, just force 2-3 winds with some swell from the previous days, but nothing major. I had expected much worse conditions. Actually, Laulau stayed on board to help just in case.

- Stintino, nice little fishing town on the north west tip of Sardinia. It claims to have the most beatiful beach in the whole island, La Pelosa. (the location is indeed very nice). After some pizzas and some bottles of the excellent white wine, Tuvoaes, my favourite (and Tim & Sharon's - they served it at their wedding), I somehow ended up singing (terribly - I am sorry for the audience) along with the restaurant official singer...

- Crossing the Fornelli Passage. This narrow passage is a great shortcut as it saves sailing boats 20 nautical miles (i.e. 3 hours) of detour around the island Asinara. With the help of the nautical pilot guide and Steffen's wise use of the binoculars our crossing was uneventful. Not like these guys... I would not cross it with the sails on, no way you can tack inside...too narrow for that.

- Menorca. Like in the first crossing, we somehow managed to reach Menorca just hours ahead of a major storm (the last 20 hours of the crossing from Sardinia were not very comfortable). Thus, we stayed put in Mahon's beatiful huge natural harbour. First day anchored next to the KOGO (which we met again in Valencia two weeks later), and then moored to one of its artificial islands. Of course, we paid a visit to Cova d'en Xoroi, one of the most espectacular location for a club in the world.

- Sitges. The last "jump" of almost 20 hours went OK. I discovered that we had a TV on board and spent some hours watching the Olimpics...ups, I mean overlooking the instruments inside... of course. We finalized the crossing with a tasty arroz con bogavante.

All in all, an awesome three weeks of sailing in our beatiful mediteranean sea. Thanks to the three crews and weekend visitors along the way to make it possible. We need to repeat soon!

here is the video. directly in the YouTube site you can watch it in better quality.

Round the world regatta about to start

2008-10-10T14:37:00.006+02:00

The Volvo Ocean Race, probably the most exciting of all round-the-world regattas, is starting tomorrow in Alicante. The first leg will take the 8 teams to Cape Town, getting there in around three weeks of sailing.

This edition has an unusual course, as after Cape Town the fleet won't head to Perth (Australia) like always but will go to India and later on Singapore and China. New waters that should bring new excitement to this challenging race.

The fleet during last weekend's in-port race

A pity that I am missing tomorrow' start so close to my home town...believe it or not, have to attend a team event in Mallorca over the weekend.

Oktoberfest half-time

2008-09-28T19:36:00.009+02:00

Saluting the crowds at the INSEAD alumni event in Weinzelt

Not a good Wiesn weatherwise so far, as it has been pretty cold and some days even rainy, but the weather is actually meaning-less if you are inside one of the tents. Getting in is sometimes tricky, but that is another story.

Here some snapshots from some of the gatherings of the week. If you happen to be around, look after us in tents 1, 7, 8 and 9.

One week to go. Prost!

Huge crowds at the Champagne Bar in Hippodrom

With Heidi and Olaf in Weinzelt

With Dani & Rosalia in Hippodrom

Almauftrieb

2008-09-23T10:27:00.008+02:00

One of the traditions on the first Wiesn weekend is the "Almauftrieb" party on Sunday evening in the cozy Käfer tent. An event with great local press attention as lots of the Munich be-s and wanna be-s can be found there (check for some official pics here and here). Of course, we didn't want to miss it ;-)

Pamela Anderson was rumored to attend this year, but nope, the expectations of many were not met. snif, snif.

Almauftrieb actually means to bring the cattle to the highland pastures. Lots of Alps villages close to Munich have parties in the spring to celebrate it. Then in the Fall, the Almabtrieb (bringing down the cattle) takes place. In our case, the Almabtrieb happened in the disco P1 were most of the attendees were brought by shuttle buses at around 1:00am.

Check this: Kaiserschmarrn served on a paella pan!!

Oktoberfest 2008 about to start

2008-09-20T10:21:00.004+02:00

The 175th edition of one of the largest city parties of the world, the Oktoberfest, is about to start. Today at noon the opening of the first barrel by the city major will mark the start of this 16 days long festival. Around 6.2 million visitors are expected (as a benchmark for this huge number the three-months long Universal Exposition in Zaragoza had "only" 5.5 million visitors).

Prost!

II Med crossing - Leg 2 - Costa Smeralda

2008-09-12T11:06:00.006+02:00

the video from the Costa Smeralda leg is ready!

I am a fan of Ibiza and Formentera...but I have to admit that Costa Smeralda offers much more variety for a sailor. There are thousands of islands to explore, great turquoise waters, lots of wind (pretty windy corner indeed), no jelly fish (the spanish waters are quite full of these these days), amazing yachts everywhere and the coast has much less real estate...or like in Porto Rafael the houses mingle perfectly with the natural scenery. After seeing Ponza and this coast, I can't understand why the Italians go to Formentera...price?

Highlights of this leg:

- Porto Rotondo: arrival after our 20 hours crossing from Ponza. Extremely cozy and beatiful natural harbour. Spent there 4 nights, while exploring the neighbouring bays during the day (Cala di Volpe, Isola Mortorio, Maranella) and the neighbouring night hangouts during the night such as Country Club. btw, we had here the most expensive lobster of our lifes...prices are sometimes over the top in the Emerald Coast...

- Billionaire: Briatore's famous disco. Went there twice, upon arrival from Ponza and with the new crew (the second time Flavio and Elisabetta (vow!) were there)

- Fiat Playa: THE place for sundowners & aperitivi.

- Porto Cervo: stayed moored to a buoy. Nice, exclusive, but personally I think Porto Rotondo is nicer.

- Archipelago of Maddalena. vow. incredible islands. lots of them.

- Cannigione: laid back town and port, that was refreshing after the hype of Porto Cervo & Porto Rotondo

- Deadman's passage close to Isola St Maria and in the Bonnifacio Strait, not far from Corsica. Amazing place.

- Porto Rafael: not a proper port, just a pier, but a place with a special atmosphere and vibe. Increible houses that you can barely see from the water. Stayed there three nights moored to a buoy waiting for force 8 winds in the Bonnifacio strait to abate. we all loved this place...

A huge fire happened in the hills of Porto Rafael and Punta Sardegna, just in front of us...you had to see our faces when not one but three hydroplanes starting landing behind us to re-fill with water to fight the fire...it took them a while (almost two hours), but they managed to stop the fire. impressive show.

(once again. to see the video in better quality, go to this link and click on "watch on high quality")

Soireé Fantastique

2008-09-09T19:35:00.009+02:00

With Jack after the dinner & show

Part of Sabine's birthday present was our attendance to Jack Nasher's Soireé Fantastique in the President's Suite of Munich's Mandarin Oriental.

We know Jack through Michael von Hassel, as together with Christoph Gabath, they organized the yearly International Grand Ball in Baden-Baden. Last year we were there and saw a glimpse of Jack's capabilities.

Jack is a mentalist (among many other things). In a perfect intimate atmosphere he delivered a great show. My brother will love to know this. Yes, bro, Jack bent a spoon in front of our eyes!! Was there a spoon at all?? hmmm

The rooftop terrace offers amazing views of the city and the alps

Highlights from Formula One race in VLC

2008-09-03T08:51:00.004+02:00

Short video that tries to capture the atmosphere at the Valencia Street Circuit, which hosted its first Formula One race Aug 23-24. Enjoy!

Eisbach current surfing

2008-09-02T13:26:00.004+02:00

Nothing is more fun and refreshing in a hot day in Munich that to take a dip in its Eisbach (ice creek or stream - yeap, this is where you can surf).

As the current is extremely fast you can let yourself go through Munich largest park, the Englischer Garten, during almost 2km...pretty cool.

Alex was in town this Sunday and we couldn't resist to go there with him and Heidi. They loved it (although the water is quite cold! all water comes from the glaciers in the Alps).

II Med crossing - video of leg 1

2008-08-29T10:00:00.006+02:00

When I first saw the quality of the footage I got from this summer's sailing crossing, I thought that I might be forced to just do a 10 minute summary of the whole trip. I really thought that there was not much more to show... well, I was definitely mistaken. There are good passages that should be good fun to watch.

Although the video claims to cover Leg 1, this is not exactly true as the arrival in Sardinia (with the visit to Billionaire on that same night) is missing. This will be covered in the second video (no worries).

This first one covers the Napolitan and Roman coastal islands: Procida, Capri, Ventotene and the secret gem Ponza (don't tell anyone about Ponza! shhhh!!! what an island, vow!). Highlights of leg 1 were:

- Napoli: our two hour walk to find a restaurant for dinner. not an easy task in Napoli. crazy. we missed our night tour of Pompeii, an excuse to come back then :-)
- Procida: the amazing ran-down medieval town.
- Baia: our starting "port" (just a couple of piers), where the crew showed its cleanliness by thourough showering. two meter pizza in port. huge.
- Capri: the luxury rock in the middle of the sea, where Diego and Marc mastered their first challenge and got back to the boat without external help. Impressive! We spent the night alone anchored at the famous Faraglioni and had lunch with Olivier & Valerie at the restaurant Da Luigi. great place. From there we were just 25 min walk (a steep one, though) from Capri town.
- Ventotene: the bohemian island. extremely laid back and easy. great opera concert! best spaghetti vongole of the trip (for just 7 EUR!)
- Ponza: vow. a hidden gem. shhhh. don't tell anyone! the beach bar Frontone and its aperitivi is something you need to see and enjoy at least once. a pity we did not know this place when we were eighteen. :-)

The video is a bit long (15 min), but hope worthwhile to watch.

To watch it with very good quality, go to this link and click on "watch in high quality" (just below VIEWS)

Formula One in Valencia

2008-08-25T12:57:00.010+02:00

A sudden heavy drop in the mooring price at the Marina Real Juan Carlos I (the Marina in the Port America's Cup) made us decide last minute to sail to Valencia to live on site the first edition of the Formula One Grand Prix in my home town.

Is the Fashion TV boat following us? :-)

Riding the wave from the success of the America's Cup, the Valencian City and Regional government have signed with Ecclestone for seven years and created a new street circuit in the port. Not sure how it looks like on TV, but on site the circuit is not bad at all.

Funnily enough, in Valencia were several of the yachts that we had seen during our crossing, like the Fashion TV boat, the KOGO from one of the owners of McLaren, or Briatore's Force Blue. Briatore even rented one of the town's coolest summer locations, L'Umbracle, to bring over the style of his Sardinian club, Billionaire.

more pics here.

AC: The never ending story never ends...

2008-08-19T21:58:00.006+02:00

When we all thought that the mess at the America's Cup legal dispute was coming to an end, and that we would have the catamarans race between Alinghi and Oracle next year and hopefully a proper (i.e. multi-challenger) Cup in 2010 or 2011 with the likely venue being Valencia, the Appellate Division surprinsingly overruled Justice Cahn and reinstated the CNEV as Challenger of Record.

This ruling would have been quite OK actually, but the fact that Oracle has appealed again is going to delay the Cup another six to twelve months... urrg.

great wrap-up of this mess from Cory Friedman in Sailing Scuttlebutt:

"What is clear is that the Cup is in shambles. Uncertainty is total. Unless there has been some First Class bluffing, two of the biggest catamarans ever are under construction. The Challenger of Record, CNEV, no longer has a team or an annual regatta and may have dropped out altogether. The venue is questionable. SNG’s latest press release seems designed to rub GGYC’s nose in the loss and KO any chance that GGYC will participate if it loses in court. The other teams are either unfriendly to SNG, or are broke or bootleg, or both. How many nobodies can SNG round up and finance? Who will pay to watch SNG and the seven dwarfs? The sponsors are caught in a perfect economic storm and are in survival mode concentrating on battening down the hatches to ride it out."

What a disaster! and it ain't over until the fat lady sings...urrg

Back in Munich

2008-08-18T16:12:00.008+02:00

Back in town after three great weeks of sailing the Med. More pics, a (summary) report of our happenings and video to follow soon!

(click on pic for first insights) or here for more.

II Med crossing

2008-07-25T13:47:00.006+02:00

Just hours away to start the adventure of the summer. Our second mediterranean crossing on a sailing boat. This time the trip starts in Napoli and will consist on three legs.

The itinerary is as follows:
- Leg 1: Napoli-Capri-Ischia-Isola de Ventotene-Isola de Ponza-Sardinia
- Leg 2: Costa Smeralda-Porto Rotondo-Porto Cervo-Maddalena-Bonnifaccio
- Leg 3: Castelardo-Alghero-Menorca-Sitges/Barcelona

As always on the sea, this itinerary is subject to change due to sea and weather conditions. E.g. the boat owner needed to change plans and go south of Sardinia due to the gales that have been hitting Corsica and the north of Sardinia in the past weeks. Thus, wish us good seas to be able to cross the mythical and dangerous Strait of Bonifacio.

Like last time when we sailed from Sicily to Sitges, we will be changing crew along the course. The boat stays the same old one, a nice Sun Odyssey 43ft. (check the first crossing here (leg 1) and here (leg 2))

Anchors aweigh!

EURO2008 wrap-up

2008-07-25T00:41:00.003+02:00

Probably not the best video ever, far from it. I just put together a fast and dirty wrap-up of the excellent three weeks the Spanish football team made us enjoy this past June.

It includes a mix of scenes from our pilgrimage through Innsbruck, Salzburg and Vienna, plus at the end some shots from the Leopoldstrasse (the place to celebrate wins in Munich - just one block away from home), from the Germans after their semi-final win (that's why Sabine says "hemos ganado!") and, of course, the Spanish after the final. (watch it in YouTube for a higher quality pic)

Isa & Eise

2008-07-20T14:23:00.010+02:00

Just came back from one of the most beautiful wedding locations we have ever been. Surely, I still consider our own wedding location the best one ever, the romantic and historical Chateau de Malesherbes, but from the natural scenery the Spitzingsee, a high mountain lake 70km south of Munich, is difficult to top.

Isa & Eise at the first of several challenges

Remarkably, it has been a wedding without ceremony. Eise surprising proposal to Isa during their last winter New Zealand trip led to an original and quick bungy jump wedding at Kawarau Bridge, the oldest bungy jumping location in the world. Cool idea, heh?

Yesterday, the event started at the lake side with the traditional bavarian Weisswurst breakfast and a fun team game "Schlag den Eisenmengers". In the evening we changed location and moved 500 vertical meters with a chair-lift to the hut Jagahüttn, in 1600 meters height, for the banquet & party.

Family(-in-law) business

2008-07-17T22:51:00.005+02:00

After watching the Christopher Street Day parade, we went to our nephews Julia and Lioba's birthday party. Despite living in Munich, too, we don't see much of them. ups.

Anyhow, it was fun to play a bit with them :-)

Sabine sister's family waving from their window

Christopher Street Day

2008-07-15T21:17:00.006+02:00

Some snapshots from last Saturday. Definitely not Paris and its "colourful" fauna around Rue des Archives (we used to live just a couple of blocks away), but Munich has enough "rosa" fraction to have a decent Christopher Street Day parade. (the rosa party is actually in the government of the city...here in ultra conservative bavaria! )

Florian & Patty

2008-07-14T16:35:00.006+02:00

The wedding season has started. My first house mate in Munich, Florian, got married recently. Believed it or not, it was the first wedding we have attended in down-town Munich. We actually went to the church, cocktail and dinner venue by bike! Funny feeling.
Dressed as Doctors as with Florian's friends we sang an adapted gig of the Ärzte "Junge". tough song!

In the recording studio