International One Design class at Bermuda Invitational Race Week

by Talbot Wilson on 3 Apr 2009
Racing in the International One Design (IOD) Class in the 2009 Bermuda International Invitational Race Week is shaping up to be a keenly contested affair with participants from the United States, Great Britain, Norway, Canada and Bermuda. Race Week starts on April 18th with registration and continues until the prize giving on the evening of April 24th.

Racing in the IOD class consists of thirteen races scheduled in the Great Sound. This year fourteen teams of top international competitors will race for multiple trophies in a two part IOD series: races 1-7 for the 'A' Trophy, races 8-13 for the 'B' Trophy and the full compliment of 13 scheduled races (with the potential for two drops) for the coveted Vrengen Gold Cup.

All but two of the skippers have Bermuda experience and are familiar with sailing in Bermuda’s Great Sound. Certainly, the pre-race favorite is the co-skipper pair of Arthur Kuypers and Kevin Farrar of the Fishers Island fleet. Kevin is a past IOD World Champion and runner up in Bermuda Race Week. Closely following him is David Rockefeller, Jr. of the North East Harbour Maine fleet. He is their current fleet champion and a frequent participant in the IOD World Championships.

Jan Petter Roed, a former Bermuda Race winner and perennial participant, returns from Norway. He hopes to rekindle the magic that won him the title some years ago. Bobby Constable and co-skipper Peter Gevalt of the Nantucket IOD fleet are looking forward to being competitive and in the running for overall honors for the week. They are veterans of Bermuda Race Week and should do well. Jeremy Preston, of the Daring fleet of Cowes England, is competing here for the third time. As the Cowes Daring champion, we expect him to be quite competitive, as he will also have a veteran crew.

There will be three other experienced and quality veteran teams competing. From the San Francisco IOD fleet, Hank Hernandez returns after a long absence. If the wind blows he could do very well. From Canada and representing the Maritime Bluenose Fleet is Shawn Mulroony their national champion. He will have an experience crew with him and is looking forward to the competition. Shawn recently bought the IOD Zephyr and has been campaigning her in Chester, Nova Scotia.


Dan Faria comes to Bermuda from the Ida Lewis Yacht Club in Newport, Rhode Island. He has sailed in Bermuda on several occasions and should do well in the competition. Another veteran is Knut Tenvig from Norway. He is expected to give a good account of himself this year and will be looking for some silver, too.

Our final two international teams are new to sailing in Bermuda. Matthew Emans represents the strong Marblehead, Massachusetts IOD fleet. This is his first time in Bermuda Race Week and he is keen to learn from the experience. Our final competitor is Jim Dingle from Ottawa, Canada. He is new to IOD sailing, but has had extensive experience sailing in Canada and overseas. All competitors will find a warm welcome from Bermuda and from the host Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.

The Bermuda IOD fleet will have three representatives, headed by skipper Patrick Cooper, the overall 2008 winner of the Bermuda Fleet sailing series and co-skipper Bill McNiven. This will be his first Bermuda Race Week participation since 1989. Somers Kempe the RBYC skipper of their fitted dinghy Contest and former Bermuda IOD World’s participant should do very well as he has extensive knowledge of sailing in the Great Sound. The third Bermuda participant is the team with co- skippers Hubert Watlington and Kevin Horsefield who sail regularly in the local fleet and now tests themselves for the first time against championship level overseas competitors on Bermuda’s Great Sound.

The 2009 Bermuda International Invitational Race Week is sponsored by Bermuda Premium Spirits Limited, local distributors of Bacardi® rum. Racing will be held on two courses. The Keelboats- IODs, J105s, International Etchells classe and J24’s- will be on the Alpha course. Lasers will sail the Bravo. Global competitors will represent Australia, Sweden, Norway, Canada, US and the UK against the usual strong contingent from the Bermuda classes.

Details, entry lists, results and photos will be posted on the RBYC web site: http://www.rbyc.bm/Default.aspx?alias=www.rbyc.bm/biirw2009

Racing starts at 1100hrs on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday for both courses. The ‘Bacardi Gras’ Celebration on Race Week’s ‘Bat Tuesday’ leads into a ‘No Race’ day on Wednesday, just right for international guests to enjoy the sights and non-sailing activities of Bermuda. The ‘Bacardi Gras’ Bat Tuesday party is open to competitors and the public.
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Bacardi also presents a daily prize at the RBYC Terrace Bar post race party. The Bacardi Sailing Spirit prize, for the day’s significant sailing achievement, is awarded ceremoniously each afternoon.

The Prize Giving Party at RBYC concludes Race Week on Friday the 24th of April. In addition to the fantastic sailing competition, the week is sprinkled with fleet parties.

Inaugurated by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club in 1927, Bermuda International Invitational Race Week has become an established international yachting fixture each spring - attracting top skippers from all over the world. Bermuda Premium Spirits Limited, local distributor for BACARDI® rum, is the sponsor and has been for the past nine years. All classes with an active local racing program in Bermuda may invite international sailors to participate in the 2009 Bermuda International Invitational Race Week. International participation is required for a fleet to compete.