(St Barths, Caribbean)- With winter weather persisting in northern parts
of the U.S. and Europe, sailors could be envied for heading to the
Caribbean to extend their racing calendars. As it is, over 60 yachts and
crew are currently on the island of St Barths, in the French West
Indies, preparing for the start of Les Voiles de St. Barth. The fourth
edition of this regatta will offer up four days of racing on a mix of
courses and a social schedule equally as demanding, with dockside
entertainment each evening and a lay day (Thursday) full of activities
at Nikki Beach on St. Jean Bay.As it has for its three prior editions, Les Voiles de St. Barth again has drawn a competitive mix of international yachts and crews from the UK, USA, France, Italy, Ireland, The Netherlands, Belgium, and South Africa, as well as a strong Caribbean contingent from Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, Anguilla, Antigua, and Trinidad.
The
inaugural event in 2010 drew 27 boats, and since then, entries have
steadily grown as the media and sailing’s coconut telegraph helped
spread the word. Event Director François Paul Tolède was enthusiastic as
yachts tied up stern-to at the Quai General de Gaulle in Gustavia. “The
atmosphere is great on shore and the weather looks perfect,” he said.
“With 62 boats entered and considering the current economic climate, the
turnout shows what great regard the yacht owners have for the Voiles de
Saint Barth.”Tolède continued: “Luc Poupon (Course Director) has come up with some new courses, slightly longer in some cases, as many of the sailors wanted to spend more time on the water, and so racing will start a little earlier. We expect anywhere between 15 to 20+ knots of wind this week — ideal conditions for the fleet.”
Jim
Swartz, owner/skipper of the TP52 VESPER, is the anointed “godfather”
of this year’s regatta. An enthusiastic competitor, he has participated
in all four editions. For Swartz it is a "do-not-miss event". “The
conditions are fabulous,” he said. “Sailing around this island is
beautiful — the winds are always predictable, the sailing is always a
lot of fun, particularly when we get a good breeze on the back
(windward) side of the island.” After VESPER competed in the TP52 Worlds
in Miami last month, the boat was shipped to St. Thomas to get it race
ready and then delivered to St. Barths this week. “Les Voiles is always
on our calendar,” Swartz said, “it’s the atmosphere — the racing is
great, the people are great, as is the organization. It all runs very
well. And the dining and shopping (for the ladies)--all that St. Barths
is all about, we love the same thing!” Plus, Jim and friends in the
summer resort of Martha's Vineyard will be, even more importantly,
supporting summer youth sailing programs with a new fleet of J/70s! 
In
addition to new J/70 owners like Jim Swartz and gang, venerable
Caribbean competitors like Sergio Sagramosso's J/122 LAZY DOG and the
J/125 HAMACHI sailed by Greg Slyngstad will be competing for Class I
Racing honours. In Class 2 is the J/105 WHISTLER sailed by Peter Lewis
from San Juan, Puerto Rico and the custom J/120 JAGUAR ISLAND WATER
WORLD is being sailed by Ben Jelic. In Cruising Class is the J/95
SHAMROCK VII sailed by Tom Mullen from New Hampshire and the J/109
VOILES DE FEMME sailed by an all-girl team led by ARC trans-Atlantic
champion Sophie Olivaud. Sailing photo credits- Tim Wright/ Photoaction.com For more St Barths's Regatta sailing information.
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