Marina Johnson, Director of ClearLine, which was established in 1995, comments “We are proud to be signed up by such a leading brand name.  Line 7 has been worn by top-class sailors at events around the world since 1963, and its return to the UK will be a very welcome one”.

To find out more about Line 7 and its product range, go to www.line7.com.

Rob Humphreys next to the Russian VOR70

It's great to see the Team Russia Volvo 70 afloat and undergoing sea trials.  We visited her with designer Rob Humphreys (pictured above) in the shed at Green Marine in Lymington just before she was launched, and it was quite a sight.  Her spray rails, more familiar to owners of fast motor boats, are already causing a stir, and she will certainly be one to watch when the race gets under way in October.  Rob and his team will once again be at the Monaco Yacht Show in September showcasing their current projects in both sail and power.

We had four major brands to showcase - B&G, Lowrance, Northstar and Simrad - and the guys at Navico UK excelled themselves in marshalling a fleet of demo boats ranging from a TP52 to a Sunseeker Portofino 46 plus a selection of angling boats and RIBs.  This enabled each journalist to have the opportunity to get out on a cross section of craft to press all the buttons and chat to the technical experts manning each nav station.

And did the sun shine?  Well, most of the time.  There was a short, sharp shower at around midday, but ten minutes later the staff at the RSrnYC were firing up the barbeque ready to feed us all, and it stayed clear for the rest of the day.

We also welcomed the participation of partners Suzuki, Marine AV, RIB-X, Musto and Warrior Boats, who all contributed to making it a great day, and a really valuable exercise in allowing writers and editors to experience the products first hand in their natural environment.

Clearline’s client McMurdo, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of emergency distress beacons, is sponsoring British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes in his attempt to climb Everest. McMurdo has donated a FASTFIND PLUS PLB (Personal Location Beacon) to  Sir Ranulph which he can activate to alert search and rescue services in the case of an emergency.

Sir Ranulph  is making a second climb of Mount Everest three years after he abandoned his attempt just 300 metres from the top when he suffered a heart attack.

This time Sir Ranulph, who is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s greatest living explorer, is re-enforcing his safety preparations by carrying the McMurdo PLB.

Sir Ranulph and his team are currently at Camp 2, on their ascent and should reach the summit on Saturday 24^th May.  

If successful the intrepid adventurer will be the first man ever to cross both ice-caps via both poles and reach the top of Everest.  He is accompanied by a doctor, Robert Casserley and expedition guide Kenton Cool, both of whom have climbed the mountain before.

McMurdo has donated the FASTFIND PLUS to Sir Ranulph in recognition of his ambitions, not only to reach the summit despite repeated heart problems, but also to help him in his quest of raising £3 million for the Marie Curie Cancer Trust.

Sir Ranulph will take possession of the FASTFIND PLUS in Katmandu, during his Base Camp trek. The FASTFIND PLUS PLB has a maximum 24 hour operational battery life from activation, operating at temperatures as low as -40°C. 

The FASTFIND PLUS was supplied to Sir Ranulph by McMurdo’s distributor Cosalt Marine International Ltd.

Clearline has played an active part in arranging the sponsorship agreement, and promoting the story to the press.

ClearLine has been appointed by Navico Norway AS to provide the company with PR, advertising and general marketing support services across the EMEA region. 

Navico is the largest marine electronics company in the world, with a stable of brands that includes B&G, Eagle, Lowrance, Northstar and Simrad.  ClearLine is delighted to be working with such a prestigious group, and 2008 looks set to be an exciting year with an ambitious programme of new product launches planned.

It's funny how your memory plays tricks (writes Matt).  I hadn't set foot in Earls Court since the end of the last Boat Show to be held there, and the impression that instantly struck me was that I'd forgotten how small it is.  Compared to Excel, let along RAI in Amsterdam, Earls Court is just tiny!  There can be no going back, there just isn't the space.

Impression number two, at 1130 on the Tuesday morning, was that the place was almost completely deserted.  The guys and girls on the stage did their best to liven the place up with fashion shows, rowing competitions and interviews, but my heart went out to them as they served it all up to groups of sometimes half a dozen or less.  Most of the people that we bumped into in the aisles seemed to be other members of the industry checking things out just like us - so the number of punters must have been pretty minimal.

Interestingly, though, the exhibitors seemed a lot happier than we might have expected.  Customers were few, but had money to spend, was the majority verdict.  This can be a bit of a euphemism for not much going on, but the enthusiasm seemed genuine, so maybe it was shaping up better than first impressions seemed to indicate.

All in all, an interesting day out, and definitely a nostalgia-fest, but a rival for Excel?  No!  That ship, as they say, has sailed.

Her email is catharine@clearlinecommunications.co.uk and you can reach her on the usual number.

Again, generally a good vibe with our counterparties reporting good sales / strong interest in new product lines, and the sheer size of the show demonstrates just how much the leisure marine industry has expanded and matured over the past decade.  Assuming we can weather the problems of sub-prime debt, collapsing banks and a weak dollar, the industry should be in good shape for next year!

The UK presence was pretty good, with some nice looking stands grouped together in a British zone, and the buzz was consistent.  The bulk of the action though was outside, despite the rain, with big sportsfishing boats as far as the eye could see.

 In short, a great show, and we'll certainly be back next year.

September is one of our busiest months with the four day Monaco Yacht Show taking place within the ten day Southampton Boat Show, which makes for an interesting - and rather hyperactive - time.  We had three current clients to support at Monaco - two superyacht design houses and a leading brokerage firm - and the work that we had put in over August on the assorted newsletters, brochures and press releases ensured their success with both the superyacht media and our clients' target customers.  We also got to look over some stunning superyachts and enjoyed the 30 degrees plus weather in an iconic setting.

2007 has been a very busy year for ClearLine, with the company involved in a wide range of activities right across the leisure marine sector. 

Highlights include; In the electronics and equipment area we have had an active nine months with safety electronics manufacturer McMurdo; working with their senior management and new owners to educate the market as to the change of ownership.  Instrumentation manufacturer Nexus Marine launched a number of major new products for which we handled the worldwide publicity, and we took over the PR and marketing support for Gerber Inc in the UK and Ireland as part of the takeover by that company of our long-standing client Silva Ltd. 

In the racing sector, not only were we working closely with Nexus Marine, as mentioned above, to launch their new instrumentation products, but we also worked with client Humphreys Yacht Design to announce a number of new race boat projects including an entry for the 2008 Volvo Ocean Race.  This boat is now currently under construction at yet another client of ours – Green Marine. 

We also remain highly active in the superyacht sector where we represent two designers currently working on motor and sailing yachts ranging in size from 37m up to 140m.  We handle worldwide publicity for both these – Rainsford Saunders Design and Humphreys Yacht Design – and also promote products by McMurdo and Nexus within this sector.  This year we will be attending the superyacht shows in Dubai, Monaco and Fort Lauderdale in support of our clients.  Currently we are compiling some prestige publications for top superyacht broker Yachting Partners International for new year publication. 

Our Event management desk has also been particularly busy in 2007, having organised three regattas on half of their management teams; the Bénéteau Cup, the British Classic Yacht Regatta, and the subsequent Six Metre World Championship, all held at Cowes.  From press reports to sponsorship contracts, race management to social events, we have to be multi-skilled to make these the successes that they have been. 

We have also been very pleased to work on half of the national yachting authority in the UK - the Royal Yachting Association – on a number of communications projects for the southern region, including communications to yacht clubs, and distributing stories from the RYA to the press. Overall ClearLine Communications has had an excellent and very interesting year to date, and we look forward to continuing this momentum through to the end of the year and into 2008.