Warming up nicely

Dick Johnson reviews the form at this week's silver jubilee St Maarten Heineken Regatta

As befits a Silver Jubilee event, the entry list for the 2005 St Maarten Heineken Regatta is filling up apace, with massive entries, particularly in the Bareboat class, but also in the multihulls and racing classes.

With a full four days to go before the first day of racing, a remarkable 122 entries have their names on the list for the Bareboats. These range from a one-design class of 50 footers, to mixed battalions of smaller boats. Lest you think that the bareboats are just here for the parties, then a quick look at some of the teams will quickly dispel that idea.
Some of Holland¹s top domestic racers are here warming up for the coming European season, and as usual there are those who have been here so many times that the mysteries of conducting a charter boat round a racing course at speed is second nature to them. This year there are three all-girl teams: Something Hot, Sailing Team Clima Airco and the Good Girls team from Curacao. The Clima Airco Sailing Team are raising money for the St Maarten orphanage following a well established fund raising tradition at the Heineken regatta.

Another burgeoning class is the multihulls, with 18 boats split about evenly between racing and cruising. The racing class varies from Larus Roc, a record breaker better known under the name of Paragon, down to one of the oldest racing tris, Patrick Turner's 36ft Newick, Tryst. Among the cruisers there is a sprinkling of charter cats, another good way to take part in a Caribbean Regatta, have some fun, some good racing and a comfortable boat on which to sleep.

The perennial war between St Maarten's Bobby Velasquez and Antigua's Hugh Bailey isn't being resumed this year as Hugh hasn't entered Hugo to join battle once again. Antiguan colours are being taken up in Non-Spinnaker Division by Bernie Evan Wong's Huey Too, but the 40ft Huey might not be in the same class as Bobby's L'Esperance, making the battle one for long distance cruise missiles rather than hand to hand in the trenches as in past years. Bobby's latest secret weapon is reported to be a new mainsail ­ which won't do them any good at all unless they can get their navigation right - last year the local boat went to the wrong mark!

Making a welcome return to St Maarten is a crew from Barbados, once well represented here, but lately not venturing far from their home waters. Ralph Johnson is bringing Rapajam, a Beneteau 53F5, to sail in the Non-Spinnaker division. Bobby Velasquez might have to look out for the Bajans as their legendary prowess on the race course won't have dimmed over time. It could be that both the local boat and the Antiguan might be eclipsed by the boat from Barbados. Let the Island Wars begin!

In the Spinnaker class, stand out boats at the top end include Peter Harrison's 115ft ketch Sojana, but he is on his own with that really mega yacht. Peter will be using this event as a warm up for the Rolex Transatlantic Race later this year when his boat will in head to head competition across the big pond from New York to the English Channel.

In the big racing class it is Tom Hill's Titan 12 that will doubtless head the fleet on the water, but he will have to be sailing well to beat some of the smaller craft if he wants to be top division dog.

One of the Caribbean¹s top sailors, Mike Green from St Lucia, is rumoured to be conducting a Beneteau 40.7 ­ along with three other 40.7s - in the spinnaker division and Edgar Cato in the Swan 56 Hissar ­ perhaps better known in Swan Racing circles as Lolita (the boat, not Edgar) ­ can always be guaranteed to bring forward a top team and conduct an exemplary campaign. Expect fireworks.

In fact, the array of Swans here at St Maarten ­ best advice gives the collective noun for swans as either a Bevy, or a Drift; depends on the weather I suppose ­ is second to none. There are boats from as long ago as 1973 and 1974, and just about everything represented from Swan 39s up. A matched pair of 45s, Plenty and Vixen join the twin 56s Hissar and Nautor's Swan Benelux ­ with ex-St Maarten top sailor Paul Dielemans in the team.

Silver Jubilee St Maarten Heineken Regatta looks to have all the makings of a classic. Boats and crews are arriving every hour and crews have been out practicing in ideal conditions; the bars are filling up and the party programme is due to start at any moment. What more could you possibly ask for?