Calm after the storm

Today it is light winds that played havoc with racing at the Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai

The organisers of the Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai have had a difficult week in Cannes, with the weather and wind conditions moving from one extreme to the other.

On Friday, mistral conditions with winds gusting over 35 knots kept the fleet ashore. Today, on Saturday, the boats left the harbour, but struggled to complete racing in very light conditions. Sporadic rain showers over the course of the afternoon added to the misery. The classic and spirit of tradition divisions were able to sneak in one race, but the 12 Metre class didn’t manage a start on the day, despite being on the water early to maximise their chances.

12 Metre World Championships

The 12 Metre fleet began the day with just three races completed in their centennial world championships. Sadly, the light conditions didn’t allow racing on Saturday and three races isn’t enough to validate the World Championship. So the class will settle for a three-race regatta at the Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai in its centennial celebration year, but no World Championship.

Wright on White (Grand Prix), Courageous (Modern), Ikra (Classic Traditional) and Trivia (Classic Vintage) finish at the top of their respective division tables following the three races.

On Friday evening, the 12 Metre class hosted a press conference in tribute to the durability of the class, which is celebrating its 100th nniversary this year. More than 100 boats were built to the 12 Metre rule over the years and according to the class association, 65 are still in ‘sailing’ condition.

Paul Cayard, who raced on 12 Metres during the 1983 and 1987 editions of the America’s Cup, says credit for the 12’s remaining a viable racing class should go to the owners. “We have to give a lot of credit to the owners of these boats, because there's a lot of passion that is keeping this class and these boats alive and preserving the history,” he said.

Classic Yachts and Spirit of Tradition

The nearly 80 yachts making up these divisions of the Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai managed to sneak in one race on Saturday, bringing the series up to three races. In each division, just the top two race results were scored, with one discard.

Among the divisional winners were Cambria (Big Boats), Emeraude (Classic Marconi A), Sagittarius (Classic Marconi B), Tuiga (Epoque Gaff – Class B), Bonafide (Epoque Gaff – Class C), Agneta (Epoque Marconi B), Amorita (Epoque Marconi C) and Shamrock V (Spirit of Tradition).

At the prize-giving ceremony following racing, the winning owners and sailors were presented with their spoils, both for the Régates Royales and for the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge 2007.

Money for a good cause

If it was difficult to find the type of racing on the water that everyone hoped for, there was plenty of competition on shore on Friday evening. 12 Metre skippers Bill Koch ( Kiwi Magic) and William Borel ( Challenge Twelve) faced off during an auction of the original watercolour of the poster for the 2007 Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai. Bill Koch came out on top when the gavel dropped, and then graciously presented the framed painting to his rival just moments later. More importantly, money from the winning bid (8400) euros will benefit the sailing school at the Yacht Club de Cannes.

On Sunday, many of the Régates Royales - Trophée Panerai fleet will take part in a ‘feeder’ coastal race to St. Tropez. The forecast is for moderate Easterly winds under sunny skies.