(Capetown, South Africa)- In another one of those "what's not to like"
categories, the gorgeous Club Mykonos Resort just north of Capetown
hosts an offshore race every year that has been a favorite of SA sailors
over time. This relatively easy downwind dash between Cape Town and
Saldanha Bay some 65 nm up the west coast, pulls the biggest fleet of
boats in South Africa each year, including a fleet of Hobie Tigers. It's
a downhill blast most of the way as the fleet runs with the "Cape
Doctor" to the tranquil waters of the World Heritage site of the
Langebaan Lagoon and the local version of a transplanted Greek village -
casino et al- a.k.a. Club Mykonos.Race organizers set the fleet off (which numbered 107 boats this year) in four rolling starts by division from 0830 and pulls the plug at midnight for the slower boats. The distance race is split into three sections with a gate boat just past the halfway mark.
The
following day a 25 nm pursuit race is held in and around Saldanha Bay
and Langebaan followed by a "Mother of a Party", courtesy of generous
sponsors. It's a pretty cool event with some scantily clad girls
passing icy cold champagne to finishers. Having the famous South African
"Silver Falcon Aerobatic Team" overhead on arrival is not too shabby
either. And, the whole thing gets filmed for national TV. Organizers
from Royal Cape Yacht Club and Club Mykonos got the entire event spot
on. It's interesting to note how some events work whilst others fade
into obscurity. With this one, the race chairman, Hylton Hale, has the
pragmatic approach and common sense to listen to what the sailors want.
FUN!!At the end of the day, J sailors involved in the mix ranged from J/27s up to a J/133. The J/133 SPEED OF YELLOW sailed by Patrick Holloway got 5th IRC Class in the Pursuit Race. The J/27 HILLBILLY skippered by Peter Hill was 4th Division 2 class, 3rd in Pursuit Race. And, stablemate J/27 PURE MAGIC sailed by the infamous Allan Taylor managed a 6th Division 2 class. Finally, the J/120 NALEDI led by the redoubtably fast and fun-loving Felix Scheder-Bieschlin escaped with a 5th Division I in the Pursuit Race! Sailing photo credits- Trevor Wilkins For more Club Mykonos Race sailing information
