First entry for sailing week

Alaistair Abrehart looks ahead to next year's Antigua Sailing Week

Keen to defend his title, Patrick Festing-Smith, owner of Nanuk of the North, a Beneteau 505, has already registered for the granddaddy of them all - Antigua Sailing Week 2005 (24-30 April) - a full 10 months before next year’s event.

Sailing against 18 identical Beneteau 505s this year, Patrick, an experienced offshore racer and co-owner of the BVI-based Nanuk of the North, managed a superb victory in Bareboat Class I.

“We had such a great time in our first ASW, and the crew is still on a total high after winning Bareboat I in a nineteen yacht one-design fleet of Beneteau 50s,” enthused Patrick after he was tracked down following a visit to Nanuk in the BVI.

“After several emails from crew members saying they wanted to do it again, I put out the general email to all crew and filled the yacht again for next year, including a paid charter to deliver Nanuk to Antigua!”

Patrick and his team mates on Nanuk of the North also entertained the locals and visitors with an impressive display of Canadian ice hockey, Caribbean style on the basketball court at Falmouth Harbour: “Next year we want to properly organize a ball hockey tournament which we started this year. We had several yacht teams from different countries compete and it was great fun! Good after race activity that requires beer drinking.”

While Patrick may be the first entry, bow number one may be reserved posthumously for Trinidad’s Legacy, owned and raced by Douglas Meyers. Better known to most as "Dougie", he passed away on Sunday, June 20, 2004, after a massive heart attack.

Truly one of the great West Indian racing skippers of this generation and a perennial attendee at Antigua Sailing Week, Dougie raced first in his stretched Cal 40 Huey Too and then in Hooligan, a Soverel 30, and in most recent times in Legacy, a Soverel 42. He always managed to give the other competitors a good run for their money. Ironically, he most recently topped the highly competitive racing fleet in the recently concluded Mount Gay/Boatyard Regatta in Barbados and the week before he died contacted Jeffery Chen, Caribbean Sailing Association Chief Measurer, to inquire about the rating penalty for changing to a carbon fibre mast.

To honour Dougie, Antigua Sailing Week is renaming the Morris mark on the southern end of Cades Reef off Curtain Bluff to Legacy. “ Legacy sees a lot of fleet convergence and rounding action over the week, so hopefully Dougie will approve of our choice,” said Jan Santos, vice chairman of Antigua Sailing Week. “Dougie epitomized the spirit of Antigua Sailing Week. He came year after year, he had a good time and raced competitively, all with Trinidadian charm, understatement and sportsmanship. He will be sadly missed.”

Reggie Williams from Trinidad & Tobago is the second on-line entry for 2005. Entering his Frers 43, Titan M, Reggie plans to be the first boat to pass the new mark Legacy. Another five boats from Trinidad & Tobago are also expected to race in Dougie’s honour while Legacy's crew are planning to compete in 2005 as well.

The 2004 event held April 25-May 1 - saw 211 boats in 16 classes registered, with 200 making it to the start line for the first start gun off English Harbour. Twenty-eight yachts 60 feet and over gathered with the fastest monohull in the world, Mari-Cha IV, leading the charge.

24 countries were represented with Russia and Hungary entering for the first time. 85 bareboats battled it out. A total of 28 Swans competed - a record for Antigua Sailing Week – and a king’s ransom of international sailing talent that was hard to keep track of was scattered through the fleet.

All Smoke had Alinghi’s Jochen Schuemann as helsman-tactician and other America’s Cup sailors, some from Alinghi, onboard. Flying Dragon's ( ex-Fast.net) new owner Erck Rickmers shared the helm with Bertrand Pace from Team New Zealand's 2003 America's Cup challenge; New Zealander Rod Davis, tactician for Prada's 2003 challenge, called the shots. Brad Butterworth, tactician on the America's Cup winning Alinghi team was tactician on Aspiration, a Swan 86. Two times Olympic gold medallist Steve Benjamin shared the helm with Aspiration's new owner Dr Alex Hoffmann. GBR Challenge supremo Peter Harrison had Richard Sydenham on the helm of Sojana, Justin Slattery at the bow, Ian Budgen on trim, Mark Fizgerald as navigator and John Brinkers and Jamie Boag as tacticians. Alinghi’s Peter Holmberg was calling the shots on Tom Hill’s Titan XII.

After the week of racing, Dr Hasso Plattner’s maxZ86 Morning Glory walked away with the Lord Nelson’s Trophy for best overall, the Curtain Bluff Trophy for winning Big Boat I and the Ricochet Cup for best American yacht. She won four of her seven races, dropping two to Titan XII and one to her sistership Pyewacket. She beat Mari-Cha IV over the line three times.

After a week of building winds, the 37th annual Antigua Sailing Week ended with a bang on the last day of racing. Rain and cloud greeted the fleet but as the day wore on the clouds gave way to Caribbean sunshine. Winds moderated slightly and averaged 23 knots but 28-knot gusts were seen after the start.

Racing concluded on Saturday with the second annual Bareboat Championship Race. Conditions were still demanding with 20-25 knot winds and 6-8 foot seas. Eighteen boats - the top three from each class - lined up on the start line and DSD Carnival with Phil Otis on the helm emerged victorious.

Stanford International Bank Limited is a diamond sponsor of the event. Platinum sponsors are Air Jamaica, Cable & Wireless, English Harbour Rum and American Express. LIAT is a Silver sponsor.