Transatlantic Superyacht Regatta and Maxi Yacht Cup concludes

by Jill Campbell on 6 Dec 2011 The 2011 Transatlantic Superyacht Regatta and Transatlantic Maxi Yacht Cup have now concluded with the arrival of the final vessel and the official prizegiving ceremony which was held at the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s Caribbean base in Virgin Gorda. The 20 metre X-Yachts X65 Karuba 5 (CRO) took overall victory on corrected time ahead of the 66 metre Baltic Yachts ketch Hetairos in second place.

Tobias Koenig's Swan 82 Grey Goose of Rorc (GBR) took third place overall. Hetairos, which was launched in July of this year, claimed line honours having completed her 3069 mile crossing from Tenerife in eight days, 10 hours, 58 minutes and 30 seconds at an average speed of just over 15 knots. The event was organized by the YCCS in collaboration with the International Maxi Association and saw eight superyachts and maxi yachts participate.

Vincent Fauquenoy, captain and racing manager aboard Hetairos, was understandably pleased with his crew's result:

'It is certainly with great pride that we secured line honours in the race and even who knows, maybe a new speed record for this particular route. On a personal note, having been involved for the last two years in the very complex building process of Hetairos, managing to race her fresh out of the box across the Atlantic also brings me a sense of achievement. Hetairos performed admirably and we all enjoyed very much sailing her. We did not have the perfect wind and had to chase it most of the time but it has been a good training test for the boat and her crew for the next regattas of the season.'

During the prize giving dinner hosted by the YCCS prizes were also awarded to Hetairos as the first IMA member to cross the finish line and to Andrea Recordati's Wally 101 Indio as the first YCCS member to finish. Peter Harrison's Sojana also received a special prize for having participated in all four editions of the transatlantic race organized since 2007.

'I am delighted to see this beautiful fleet of sailing giants lined up at YCCS Marina and their owners and crews enjoying a 'sneak preview' of our new Clubhouse which will be officially inaugurated in January.' commented YCCS Commodore Riccardo Bonadeo during the final ceremony.

'The level of participants in the event was extremely high and my sincere congratulations go to Hetairos: it not often that a boat fresh from the shipyard wins a transatlantic crossing by such an impressive margin on her first regatta outing. I hope to see her back here, together with the rest of the fleet, in March for our next superyacht regatta.'

'I am very pleased with the level of participation of IMA members - six out of the eight yachts - in this regatta.' declared Gianfranco Alberini, Secretary General of the International Maxi Association. 'I was very impressed by Heitaros' performance but all of the boats raced in a very competitive way. I am sure that with the cooperation of the YCCS and thanks to the Club's outstanding facilities here in BVI the regatta will further grow in the near future.'

Yacht Club Costa Smeralda website
YCCS Marina website
International Maxi Class Association website