Antigua Sailing Week 2015

by Antigua Sailing Week on 20 Dec 2014 Antigua Sailing Week 2015 - We wanted to send a newsletter before everyone breaks up for Christmas to wish you well and of course to place thoughts of Antigua and Antigua Sailing Week squarely in your mind if you haven't already made a decision to join us in 2015.

Twenty-one boats have already entered and although it's early days, if you are planning to participate please let us know. It will let potential competitors who are still deciding whether they plan to race know who their competition will be – and it really does help us in the planning and logistics of our very special event.

If you haven’t yet seen the Notice of Race check it out here.

If you haven't been to Antigua Sailing Week for some years we have a quick overview for you of what has changed and what makes it worth the journey along with information on bareboat and race charters, multihulls and challenges for 2015.

And as it's coming up to Christmas we can't miss out information about our great new 2015 Gill Merchandise which is on island and selling as we write. Crew customization is available so read on to find out how to order.

If you have any queries, suggestions or feedback for us please just let us know. We are all ears and ready to help with anything you need from recommendations for marinas and accommodation to whether you should have ginger or coke in your English Harbour five Year Old Rum (we prefer ginger by the way :)).

All that is left is for us to wish you Season's Greetings and a Happy New Year, and if it all gets too cold for you and you want a little escapism, be sure to check out our videos. It will warm you to the bone, if only for a few minutes.

Why Antigua Sailing Week?
If you haven’t been back for a few years, or have never raced at Antigua Sailing Week (ASW) – what’s different you ask and why should you come?

Well for the last three years all of the racing has been based out of Falmouth and English Harbours. That means you head straight from the calm harbours into deep water and consistent trade winds. For 2014 we will laid additional deep water marks and may add more for 2015, providing more variety to the courses including more reaching legs. Having no destination racing as was done in the past means we avoid wind holes and anchoring in dangerous swells, and logistically ASW is now a dream. Each night you can walk to the after race events (apart from one night when you get a 10 minute taxi ride to Shirley Heights) and therefore it's only a few staggers down the road to reach home.

As for the racing, each class races for an average of 3 to 4 hours daily, with courses adjusted each morning for weather conditions. With options of more than 30 courses available daily, depending upon those conditions, you are guaranteed great sailing.

Once back on dry land, our sailing centre is at Antigua Yacht Club and each afternoon at 5 pm (except the last day at 4pm) we have a daily prize giving at which we award first, second and third place in class for that day's racing. Copious amounts of English Harbour five Year Old Rum can be won along with other fantastic prizes and with two great restaurants and a beer garden on site, post race analysis, cold beer and a bite to eat are the perfect after-race wind down. New for 2015 will be a shuttle running between Nelson's Dockyard and Antigua Yacht Club so no more long walks in the sun between venues.

Into the evening of course there are still more than 25 great bars and restaurants in English Harbour only steps away from the docks, and on some of the big nights we have parties in Nelson’s Dockyard, at Shirley Heights and on Lay Day at Pigeon Beach.

The main thing to remember is our strapline which we live and breathe - Where Sailing Comes First! The race management is spot on, protests tend to be minimal and dealt with efficiently, and we listen to what you have to say and incorporate as much as we can into the following year's event.

Of course the parties are still legendary, and should you want some, you will have lots of options for fun.

Looking for a charter?
If you want to race at Antigua Sailing Week and don’t have a crew to race with or have a crew and no boat be sure to check out our charter options on the website here.

Bareboat Charter - Our official Bareboat Charter Sponsor is Sunsail which has a competitive bareboat fleet available. In particular, the crews who compete in Antigua Sailing Week regularly are incredibly competitive so don’t be sucked into thinking it’s the easy or amateur option – there are some seriously great sailors in our bareboat fleets. That said, there are also plenty of crews who are here mainly for the fun. Sunsail will provide everything you need to take line honours and all of its boats are under six years old and a full service regatta package is available. For more information contact Sunsail directly. All of the boats based in Antigua are already booked so additional boats will be transported from Guadeloupe, St. Maarten or the BVI’s. Of course should you want to extend your break you can fly into any of those islands and do the delivery to Antigua yourself, or boats can be delivered straight to Antigua and you fly in and out just for the racing. If you can't find what you want on the website, be sure to contact the Sunsail sales team directly.

Race Charter – There is a growing number of race charter options available on the market from 26-foot Cork 1720s to a Dehler 39 to the 70 ft monster, Monster Project. The majority of race charter companies offer training days and include entry fees, marina fees and drinks on board. Accommodation can be liveaboard or onshore depending on the size of the boat and crew and your preferences, but generally your wish is their command.

Head Boats (individual berths) – If you are an avid sailor and want a guaranteed way of joining a crew, then head boats are a great way to get involved. Effectively, you buy your own spot as do most of the rest of the crew and simply turn up and race. It’s really as easy as that. It’s a great way to meet a whole new group of like-minded people and indulge in your passion of sailing. Novices are also welcome. The most important thing is to be honest about your experience level. That way the professional crew can be sure to assign the jobs on board among fellow crew members appropriately and optimise race performance.

Gunboats and Multihull Classes 2015
Gunboats has announced that Antigua Sailing Week is on its itinerary for 2015 and we will therefore be looking at running separate courses for Gunboats and multihulls in 2015. Let us know if you are planning on entering or just thinking about it and want to discuss courses.

Royal Southern Yacht Club Inter-Yacht Club Challenge
The Royal Southern Yacht Club in Hamble, UK has issued a challenge to yacht clubs worldwide to come to Antigua Sailing Week 2015 and compete in the Inter-Yacht Club Challenge. The Rules can be found here on the right hand side of the page. Join us and take up the Challenge.

Invitational Nonsuch Bay RS Elite Challenge

Six places available – would you like one?
Check out the details of the Antiguan final which took place last weekend at Nonsuch Bay Resort. This fun event takes place on Lay Day (Wednesday 30th April, 2015) and teams race for the opportunity to win a one weeks’ stay for two including sailing at the beautiful Nonsuch Bay Resort in Antigua. Marc Fitzgerald, skipper of Sojana, and Martin Beck, RS Elite Sailor, won the two places to represent Antigua, and Peter Holmberg - the 2014 winner - has been invited back to defend his title.

That leaves six places. Would you like one? If you would like to be invited to take the challenge – contact roc@sailingweek.com or mark.whinney@nonsuchbayresort.com and let us know why. The open places can only be raced by teams taking part in ASW 2015. Be sure to enter your boat for 2015 to have a better chance to be invited to take a place.

Crew Customization available on 20015 Gill Merchandise
If you want crew shirts with the ASW logo and your boat name for ASW 2015, we have them available to order right now from our official ASW Gill Range. Check out the options here.

Place your order and then we will get in touch with you to confirm the cost of customization (dependent upon the size of your artwork) and confirm delivery date. We can also offer 10% off for orders of six or more shirts. Please note, the ASW logo is a registered trademark and therefore cannot be reproduced without ASW's permission.

We also have a full range of other items available to order online. They can be sent direct to you or picked up on arrival in Antigua.