2014 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek - Phuket Island is ready to host

by Phuket Race Week on 7 Jul 2014 2014 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek - Phuket Island is ready to host the award-winning Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek from 16 – 20 July off the Island's southeast coast. The season-opening event of the 2014/15 Asian Yachting Grand Prix – a series of 12 of the best regattas in Asia – Raceweek is set to welcome one of the most competitive fleets in the Regatta's history.

'The quality of the fleet is arguably the best ever and what is particularly encouraging this year is the number of new boats from around Asia taking part. Crew are coming from Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines regionally – as well as a strong showing from Thailand – and also from as far afield as the UK, USA, Australia and New Zealand,' said Mr. Byron Jones, Managing Director of organisers Media Business Services (MBS).

The increase in the number of international boats and crew, together with an increase in charterers who fly in and charter a local boat to race, is encouraging for the future of the event, and also for Phuket and the Panwa area.

Phuket Raceweek attracts approximately 500 sailors and family members each year, and while the Regatta is four-days long, participants and their families often come for longer, choosing to either arrive early or stay on after the Regatta. The revenue from travel, accommodation, dining and entertainment is considerable during Phuket's summer season, and goes direct into the local economy.

'The multi-day nature of regattas mean they generate significant revenues for the local economy in which they are held. Looking at the participants this year, and taking into account residents competing and those coming from overseas, we estimate Raceweek will generate 1,800 room nights for Phuket. Add to that travel, food, drink and entertainment, and the tourism dollars are considerable,' commented Jones.

Entries as they stand
Working closely with the race management team, we have updated the entry list and based on that, have finalised the class splits.

Of course, nothing is set in stone and there might be some last minute surprises on registration day that require us to re-jig things, but as of today entries and classes are as they stand on the website.

Offshore Multihull Rule (OMR)
Alan Carwardine of Asia Catamarans is handling the OMR duties this year while Mark Pescott is away. Please assist him with details as required. The multihull fleet is looking to be even bigger this year and I'm sure you're all looking forward to some exciting racing.

Race Management
The on-water team are all onboard and will be lead, as always, by ISAF International Race Officer Simon James.

The aim is to provide a mix of courses over the four days – something to suit all boats whether you're racing or cruising, mono or multi. Windward/ Leewards, passage races, and island courses are all in the course books. For those of you who are competing at Raceweek for the first time, the sailing area is dotted with some beautiful islands and we intend to make most of the stunning scenery to its full.

The Sailing Instructions and Courses can now be previewed online. Hard copies will be provided at Registration on Wednesday 16th July.

Onshore programme

Geared up for a fantastic onshore experience is Cape Panwa Hotel, Title Sponsor and Host Venue together with Kantary Bay Phuket, for the third consecutive year. With its private pier and beachfront location, together with five-star facilities and service, Cape Panwa Hotel delivers a regatta experience second-to-none.

Within metres of stepping off your boat, you are in the Regatta Village where you can check the results, latest news, enjoy a bite to eat at the restaurants or just chill out and enjoy a drink while overlooking your boat on anchor.

The popularity of the venue is evident in the feedback we receive. The service is fantastic, the facilities are second-to-none, and the parties and dining are top notch. Raceweek has long been recognised for the quality of its parties and the catering, and Cape Panwa Hotel outperforms sailors expectations every time.

Adding to the great venue, we're proud to welcome a number of race day sponsors this year. Race Day 1, Thursday 17th, will be sponsored by East Marine; Race Day two and three prizes will be presented on Saturday 19th, and will be sponsored by Peroni; Race Day four, Sunday 20th, will be sponsored by Cape Panwa Hotel; and presenting the series prizes on the final night will be the Commander of the Royal Thai Navy Third Fleet.

Also on the final night, Gig and the Z Machine – a popular band on the Island – will be entertaining everyone into the early hours with their international tunes.

International Boat Show, RUS Phuket TV, Electrical Marine, Phuket Boat Lagoon, Krabi Boat Lagoon, Quantum Sail Design Group.

Supporting Authorities include Ao Chalong Yacht Club, Sports Authority of Thailand, Sports Association of Phuket, and Yacht Racing Association of Thailand.

All eyes are on Raceweek
The Raceweek message has been carried far and wide this year through targetted international advertising, support from our media partners, word-of-mouth, and from our new fully-responsive website which is receiving more than double the traffic of last year.

In addition, if you head to Patong right now you will see a large LCD screen on the main strip (Bangla Road) promoting Phuket Raceweek and all its supporters and sponsors. In the region of 500,000 will view this over the coming weeks.

2014 Race Entries

YACHT NAME	TYPE / DESIGN	OWNER/SKIPPER	NATIONALITY	BASED AT	FLAG
IRC RACING I
Oi!*	TP 52	Peter Ahern, Scott Bailey, Fergus Wilmer	Australian	Langkawi	Malaysia
Fujin*	Beneteau 44.7	Mick Tilden	Australia	Rebak Malaysia	Australia
Foxy Lady VI*	Summit King 40	Bill Bremner	Canada	Singapore	TBC
Island Fling*	JV42	Paul F Winkelmann	British	Hong Kong	Hong Kong
Blue Note*	Dubois IRC 40	David Dimmock	USA	Singapore	Singapore
IRC RACING II
Skandia Endeavour Of Whitby *	Beneteau 34.7	Stuart Williamson	British	Malaysia	UK
Surf Patrol*	Phuket 8	Ray Waldron	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
BeauX Esprits*	X-412	Keith Garry	Hong Kong	Malaysia	Malaysia
Phoenix*	X yachts	Neils Degenkowl	Denmark	Phuket	Thailand
Ruby Tuesday*	Young 11	John Vause	New Zealand	Phuket	NZ
Jessandra II*	Corby 36	Roland Dane	Australian	OMYC	Australia
IRC CRUISING
Astraeus*	FRASER 41	Bill Sax	Thailand	Phuket	Thailand
Foreign Affair*	Farr 30	Greg Reynolds	Australian	Langkawi	Thailand
Sansiri (Windstar)	S & S 42	Patinyakorn Buranrom	Thailand	Phuket	Thailand
Hedonist*	Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 409	Richard Barnhurst	Australian	Phuket	Hong Kong
Farrgo Express*	Farr 1104	Paul Baker	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Linda*	Baveria 49	Jack Christenson / Harry Usher	UK	Phuket	USA
CHARTER/BAREBOAT
Venture*	Hanse 400	Philip Grove/Ian Lodewyckx	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Anchali*	Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 409	Sunsail, Simon Oliver	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Sudsakorn Too*	Hanse 315	David Cole	Australia	Phuket	Thailand
Little Eva*	Baveria 34	Jonathan Kingdon	British	Phuket	Thailand
FIREFLY 850
Twin Sharks*	Firefly 850	John Newnham	Thailand	Thailand	Thailand
Voodoo*	Firefly 850	Hans Rahmann	Thailand	Singapore	Thailand
Advanced Racing/Mamba*	Firefly 850	Neil Ayre	Great Britain	Phuket	Thailand
Moto Inzi*	Firefly 850	Roger Kingdon	Great Britain	Phuket	Thailand
MULTIHULL RACING
Asia Catamarans Hurricane*	Stealth 11.8	Alan Carwadine	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Java*	Multihull	John Coffin	British	Phuket	Thailand
Zig Zag*	Corsair 31	Peter Boyd	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Adrenalin*	Trimaran	Mark Horwood	Australian	Phuket	Thailand
Niña*	Andaman Cabriolet	Grenville Fordham/Bob Mott	UK	Phuket	Thailand
Galeforce*	Stealth 13M	Kirill Stashevskiy	Russian	Phuket	Thailand
Sweet Chariot*	Trimaran	Henry Kaye	British	Phuket	Thailand
Bullet*	Corsair Sprint 750 MKII	Zam Bevan	Australian	Thailand	Thailand
CLASSIC
Aventure*	Classic	Michael Zircon	French	Phuket	Malaysia
Seraph*	Classic	Captain Bao	Thailand	Phuket	Thailand