The Wild West- a great weekend with Beneteau
by Jardine Media on 17 Apr 2009
The WA Beneteau fleet will range from 21 foot to the magnificent ’One day I’ll have one’ First 50. Vicsail - copyright
http://www.vicsail.com
The second West Coast Beneteau Regatta will be held on the 18th and 19th of April, under the watchful eye of the Perth Flying Squadron Yacht Club with both the Fremantle Sailing Club and The Cruising Yacht Club of WA providing assistance. A fleet of 30 boats, ranging from small but perfectly formed 21 footers to ‘one day I’ll have a boat like that’ 50 footers, will take to the water for a weekend of racing and frenetic socialising. Like any Beneteau regatta the prizes on offer are a story in their own right: this time around the drop dead gorgeous prizes include a trip for two to the Paris Boat Show.
Givenchy Langer, the local Beneteau agent and owner of Squadron Marine, said ‘pretty much everyone who joins up for the race is going to win something.’
Prizes have been donated by a range of companies including Raymarine, Lewmar, AC Shoes, International, AC shoes, Offshore and Ocean magazines and Sun Zapper. It's kind of like Christmas just for yachties.
The fleet will be divided into racing and cruising divisions and the first race will kick off at 10am on Saturday. The weekend’s racing program looks like it’s going to be a cracker: the first race departs Fremantle and races to Garden Island, with the second race of the day finishing at the Cruising Yacht Club of WA in Rockingham. Participants will stay at Rockingham overnight and enjoy a night of famous TCYC hospitality that includes a buffet dinner (more of a feast really) and band guaranteed to rock the house with a playlist that includes soul classics. The trip to Paris and Sydney will be lucky door prizes and the winners will be announced after dinner.
The following morning the bleary and by now bedraggled participants will wake to a hearty breakfast and decent coffee; stagger to their boats feeling a bit more optimist; and by mid morning will be feeling pretty damned good as they race north towards Fremantle. The winners of the trip to two to Paris and the trip to two to the Sydney Beneteau Cup will be feeling particularly pleased with themselves.
The fleet includes three Beneteau Lagoon catamarans and competitors who have come from as far South as Busselton and Dongara in the North. It also includes the Brad Skegg’s ‘Palandri Wines Minds Eye’, a well raced Beneteau First 34.7.
Sail-World looks forward to hearing the reports from a weekend of racing that promises to be both highly competitive and a great deal of fun.
Meanwhile on the East Coast, the Vicsail offices are 'standing by' for the arrival of the arrival of the Beneteau First 40, the replacement for the hugely successful Beneteau 40.7. Beneteau aficionados and just about anyone with an eye for a beautiful boat are looking forward seeing what the First 40 can do both on and off the race course. Two lucky gentlemen have secured the bragging rights to being ‘first in a First’: they are Pittwater’s Barry Jackson and South Australia’s Andrew Saies.
Jackson and Saies are expected to take possession of their First 40s prior to this year’s Hamilton Island Race Week, with two other owners likely to bring theirs home before August, so it is to be hoped that at least one of these owners will decide to race at Hammo and give the rest of a us a chance to check the new model out. From all reports the First 40 is shaping up to dominate the Australian racing scene in exactly the same way her predecessor did.
Brendan Hunt from Vicsail, the Australian importer of the Beneteau brand, said that the company thought long and hard over the decision to replace the Beneteau 40.7.
‘It was a hard decision for Beneteau to make, because the success of the 40.7 was phenomenal: it was the most successful cruiser racer ever and it did well under IMS, IRC and every other handicap system’ he observed.
He said that the Farr designed Beneteau First 40 is likely to be that rarest of beasts: good looking and fast, with incredible attention to detail when it comes to the design of sheeting, steering and crew positions.
‘In styling terms it’s reminiscent of the Beneteau 45 with things like the eyebrow over the hatches on the sides, very distinctive, and an open transom with a removable beam.’
The Beneteau First 40 will be launched at this year’s Sydney International Boat Show,
30th July to 3rd August.
For more information about the Beneteau WA regatta contact:
Beneteau Western Australia
Givenchy Langer
Squadron Marine Brokers
Perth Flying Squadron Yacht Club
The Esplanade Dalkeith WA 6009
Tel: 08 9386 9200
Fax: 08 9386 9244
Email: beneteauwa@bigpond.com.au
For more information about the First 40 contact:
Vicsail Pty Limited
d’Albora Marinas
New Beach Road, Rushcutters Bay NSW 2027, Australia
Telephone:+ 61 2 9327 2088
Fax: +61 2 9362 4516
Email: info@vicsail.com
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