Andrew McKenzie jumped into second at the Laser European championships in Barcelona and will go into gold fleet racing in an excellent position to push for a podium finish.

Andrew McKenzie made an excellent start to the Laser European championships in Barcelona and Tom Saunders is not far behind as two New Zealand sailors occupy top-10 spots.

The America's Cup is going on a national tour of the regions to give New Zealanders the chance to see the trophy and also inspire a new generation of young Kiwis to get into the sport.

Clubs and class associations keen to host this season's Aon regional youth clinics are encouraged to get applications in by November 6.

The first batch of winners for this year's Volvo Yachting Excellence Awards have been announced and feature world champions, America's Cup winners and individuals who are recognised for outstanding service to sailing in this country.

Yachting New Zealand newsletter subscribers who have a Vodafone email account should update their details following news the telecommunications company are closing down up to 250,000 email accounts at the end of November.

In our regular feature on the regions, regional support officer Graeme Wall provides a roundup of what's been going on in the deep south.

Jo Aleh will enter the fulltime workforce in November but the two-time Olympic medallist has no intention of retiring from sailing.

Final preparations are underway for the start of the new Volvo Sailing... Have a Go! season following the delivery of a new trailer last week.

More than 200 competitors are expected at the 2018 Toyota Optimist Nationals hosted by the Queen Charlotte Yacht Club at the end of March.