Yesterday morning Saint Tropez awoke as vibrant as ever from an all-night party animated by sailors keen to fill every single minute of a truly exceptional week of sport and festive spirit on every count.
Les Voiles de Saint Tropez 2010 bowed out this Sunday with the traditional prize-giving at the citadel, where the racers came to share a last moment of conviviality, before setting a date for next year and an anniversary edition which is already tickling the taste buds. Indeed the 30th anniversary of the original Nioulargue regatta – initially named the Club 55 Cup – will be celebrated from 24th September to 2nd October 2011. An opportunity to once again rekindle the passion of sailing, which has fuelled the whole of this past week of racing, to provide a very special atmosphere in the depths of the bay of Cavalaire and Saint-Raphaël.
Unique ambiance during the event at Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez Photo credit Rolex Carlo Borlenghi
This year, the magic of a sports gathering, which plays host to some of the most beautiful sails of yachting from both yesteryear and the modern day, was evident throughout; from the wind, to the sea to the sun, conditions were absolutely idyllic. Skippers, owners, sailors and massive crowds made up of curious observers and keen sailing fans, simply can’t get enough of it.
6 races for the Wallys, 4 for the Modern boats and 4 for the Traditional, means there really is something for everyone! The 2010 edition of Les Voiles de Saint Tropez will remain etched on the memories of both participants and observers alike, being described by all concerned as one of the most intense and most successful editions of all time.
Perfectly located between the Mistral and an Easterly breeze, this beautiful week in Saint Tropez brought with it the ideal proportion of wind, sun and sea each day, which proved to be a winning recipe for guaranteeing some fantastic, completely fair racing that favoured the daily courses along the resort’s various reliefs. As such the winner’s congratulated at the Citadel of Saint Tropez today could really relish the moment without risk of contention. The 5 IRC groups gathering together the Modern yachts, the 10 categories identifying the various types of classic yachts, as well as the fine fleet of 11 Wally Yachts of course, all had their own champions today, albeit at the end of some fierce battling on the water.
3 three-masters on the race zone of Saint Tropez
A festival of sailing and an exceptional gathering of over 125 years of maritime engineering, Les Voiles de Saint Tropez provided the rare spectacle of three large three-masted schooners in the bay. Atlantic (70 metres), the superb replica of Charlie Barr’s boat, fresh out of her yard in Holland, crossed tacks with the massive three-masted schooner Adix (66 metres), which in turn vied for elegance with Creole (65 metres), the fabulous three-master designed in 1927 by Charles Nicholson.
Of particular note on the race zone was an intriguing meeting between sailing schooner Atlantic, the record holder for the Transatlantic crossing in 1903, and the all-carbon performance sailing yacht MARI CHA III. (44.70 m), which was built 95 years later in 1998. It took place in Saint Tropez, and nowhere else.
Lionheart
With the recent authorisation to use aluminium in the hulls, a range of new projects have seen the light of day, based on the plans and specifications of Charles Ernest Nicholson and the measurement rules of the J Class. As such observers were able to witness the very latest replica from the Dutch Claasen Jachtbouw BV yard, Lionheart, built according to research by Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens created by Hoek Design from Holland. 20 large J Classes were designed between 1930 and 1937. Ten were built. Indeed, to Velsheda, sailing yacht Shamrock V and Endeavour, you can add the faithful replicas of Ranger (2004), Hanuman (2009) and Lionheart, the latter of which boasts some remarkable proportion at 44 metres in length. Others may well follow, with Atlantic and Rainbow due to sail at an historic meet in the Solent in June 2012.
With its form inspired by the hulls of the Open 60s and Volvo 70s, which gave Farr Yacht Design its name, Leopard 3 is a fantastic yacht offering supreme comfort, combined with a quite outstanding ocean-going performance. 30 metres in length, with a beam of 6.80 metres and an air draught of 47 metres, Leopard benefits from a swing keel, which can be inclined by 40 degrees, giving the yacht the equivalent stability of 200 men out on the wire. Leopard successfully scours the waters of the Atlantic, the Caribbean and the Mediterranean. She is a yacht designed to break records, she had to withdraw from a Trans-Atlantic record attempt in the summer due to lack of wind.
They were at Les Voiles…
Newcomers or familiar faces at Les Voiles, each year the event is bursting with sailors of renown. Indeed the 2010 vintage notably comprised, in alphabetical order: Alexia Barrier, Brad Butterworth, Catherine Chabaud, Bertrand de Broc, Karine Fauconnier, Philippe Monnet, Doug Peterson, Marc Pajot, Yves Parlier, Lionel Péan, Cécile Poujol, Mike Sanderson, Jean-Yves Terlain, Alain Thébault, Marc Thiercelin and Dominique Wavre,…
IKRA - 12 MJI - Photo credit Rolex Carlo Borlenghi
And the winners are…
Rolex Trophy : Ikra
“Yacht de Tradition- Série Limitée”, Voiles de Saint-Tropez : Avel
Crew parade : Tuiga
TRADITION :
Grands classiques :
1- Ikra – Yves Marie Morault
2- Sagittarius – Frederic Laffitte
3- White Dolphin – Fabrice Payen
Petits classiques
1- Maria Giovanna II – Jean Pierre sauvan
2- Outlaw – Mike Horsley
3- Crazy Life – Bernard Olivieri
Epoque marconi 1
1- Rowdy – Graham Walker
2- The Blue Peter – Michael Aalders
3- Oiseau de feu – Blaise Bernos
Groupe marconi 2
1- Anne Sophie – Joerg Moessnang
2_ Ludwig – Christian Dornier
3- Aile VI – Sylvain Ferri
Groupe marconi 3
1- Cholita – Mary Linde nettis
2- Mercury – Jordi Cabau
3- White Wings – Michael Sparks
Epoque marconi 4
1- Windhover – Olivier Poulain
2- Arrow – Phil Plumtree
3- Marguerite – David Myatt
Grands epoque 1
1- Thendara – Peter Engels
2- Altair – Joe Pytka
3- Elena – Steve Mc Laren
Grands Epoque 2 ;
1- Moonbeam IV – Mikael Creac’h
2- Tuiga – Bernard D’Alessandri
3- Mariquita – Jim Thom
Epoque Aurique 3
1- Kelpie – Olive Pelham
2- Marigold – richard Glen Allan
3- Bonafide – Giuseppe Giordano
Tofinou
1- Speed Bird – James Hudleston
2- Pitch – Patrice Riboud
3- Ondine – Dominique Burnier
MODERNES :
Wally
1- Indio
2- J-One
3- Magic Carpet
IRC A
1- Ran – Niklas Zenstrom
2- Jethou – Sir Peter Ogden
3- Shockwave – George Sakellaris
IRC B
1- Kora 4 – Enrico Scerni
2- Cuordileone – Nicola Ardito
3- Kuujjuaq – Ludovic de Saint Jean
IRC C
1- Sayann Madrac – Cyril Baillie
2- Geranium Killer – Charles metenier
3- Glen Ellen V – Dominique Tian
IRC D
1- Hector – Peynirci/ Provezza Levent
2- Tahina – Pierre Alain Tocci
3- Tchin Tchin – Jean Claude Bertrand
IRC E
1- Architeuthis – Jean Marc festino
2- Flawless – Philippe Cospain
3- Sagai – Dominique Lexa
