Organizers of the Newport Bucket Regatta are counting on the spectacular display of vintage aircraft to attract the local community to the waterfront in celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the Bucket Regattas, held in Newport and St. Barth’s.
The ninth annual Newport Bucket Regatta, which will be held Saturday, August 27 and Sunday, August 28, will include a grand finale of legendary WWII airplanes buzzing the skies from 4:30 to 5:00 p.m. on both days.
The Texas Flying Legends, who are making a debut in Newport, will feature six rare WWII vintage aircraft including Last Samurai, one of only two Japanese Zeros still flying in the world; the FG-1D Corsair Whistling Death; the P-40K Aleutian Tiger; two P-51D Mustangs Dakota Kid II and Little Horse; and the Mitchell B-25 Bomber Betty’s Dream. A public viewing will be available at the Quonset Air Museum from noon to 7 p.m. both days of the Airshow and will include access to the planes and pilots along with a viewing of the launching (approximately 4 p.m.) and recovery (approximately 5 p.m.).
Newport Bucket 2010
The Newport Bucket is the sister regatta to the St. Barth’s Bucket held each spring and is known for a legendary combination of thrilling superyacht racing and memorable shore-side celebrations. With 20 yachts registered to compete in Newport, including J Boats Velsheda and Ranger, the 37 meter Dubois/Fitzroy Moonbird, 42 meter Frers/Royal Huisman Hyperion and 35 meter Fontaine/Holland Jachtbouw Whisper, the regatta will once again host some of the world`s finest racing yachts, fiercely competing for the highly-sought-after tin bucket award.
Sailing a charter yacht in the British Virgin Islands is a lot of fun for a family, a real adventure that everyone can participate in. But savvy repeat charter clients know that at some point during the cruise it’s time to let the kids get off the yacht and enjoy a dedicated beach day.
The Bitter End Yacht Club (BEYC), on the North Sound of Virgin Gorda, is beautiful, remote and protected, 12 miles from Tortola and an excellent choice, welcoming charter yachts and offering great activities for both the kids and the adults.
BEYC has a watersports fleet of over 100 boats, small keelboats, kid`s training boats, kayaks, and Stand Up Paddle boards. Kids might enjoy Optimist or 420 sailing dinghies, while parents might take a Laser for a workout, and everyone can enjoy the Hobies.
Expand your knowledge by taking a course at BEYC. For non-sailors the Bitter End offers a Sailing 101 (half-day course) ideal for the novice who wants to learn the basics. For experienced sailors there is a Racing 201 Course that can prepare sailors for competition in the Sunday Regatta and Tuesday afternoon `Beer Can Racing.`
For the parents in need of quiet time away from the kids, BEYC has a very highly rated spa that offers a variety of treatments, as well as yoga and meditation sessions.
Nominations are now invited for the 2011 ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year Awards, the most prestigious award of recognition in the sport of sailing. Since the first Awards presentation in 1994, the nominees and winners have always included the highest achievers from all disciplines of the sport.
The accomplishments of the sailors nominated each year are an inspiration – from windsurfers and dinghy sailors to offshore specialists, a nominee’s achievements may be an exceptional series of regatta wins, a record breaking passage or a triumph against the odds.
Nominations may be made by anyone and the only criterion is `outstanding achievement in the sport of sailing` during the qualifying period of 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2011. Nominations should be sent to ISAF by 12:00 (UTC) on Wednesday 7 September 2011 using the Official Nomination Form, available at www.sailing.org/36404.php
A shortlist of nominations will be drawn up by ISAF from all those received by the deadline and those making the cut will go on to become the ISAF Rolex World Sailor of the Year 2011 Nominees. The 137 ISAF Member National Authorities will then vote for one male and one female nomination who they believe should win the Award.
The winners will be announced at the Awards dinner on Tuesday 8 November in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the host city for the ISAF Annual Conference. The winners will be presented with the unique marble and silver trophy depicting the globe, crowned with five silver spinnakers representing the continents, together with a personalized Rolex timepiece.
On Sunday, 10 July, at 16h 08m UTC, Rambler 100 was the first yacht to cross the finish line of the Transatlantic Race 2011. The elapsed time for Rambler 100 was six days, 22 hours, eight minutes and two seconds, setting a new record for the 2,975 nautical mile course from Newport, R.I., to Lizard Point, South Cornwall, U.K.
PUMA’s Mar Mostro crossed the finish line at The Lizard at 05:40 UTC on July 11, and once calculations proved that none of the 24 yachts still racing could beat them on handicap, PUMA’s Mar Mostro was declared winner of IRC Class One and IRC Overall for the Transatlantic Race 2011. Slightly more than 24 hours the next yacht crossed the finish line. Zaraffa, Phaedo and Jazz all finished to claim victory in their respective classes.
Mar Mostro before the finish: photo courtesy of PUMA Ocean Racing Team
On July 15, more than a dozen yachts completed the race, providing some dramatic close encounters in a dash to the finish. From IRC Class One, which took the final start of the Transatlantic Race 2011 on July 3, Beau Geste was followed eight minutes later by Vanquish, and 13 minutes later the grand ketch Sojana completed the race.
In IRC Class Two, Varuna was first over the line with a three minute lead, but Shakti won the duel on corrected time to claim second in class.
Phaedo: photo by Richard Langdon Ocean Images
Prodigy, owned by Chris Frost of Durban, SA, was to finish less than an hour later to take fourth place overall.
In IRC Class Three, Ambersail finished second followed by Scho-ka-kola, however, neither yacht placed on corrected time. The youth team on Norddeutsche Vermogen Hamburg and Snow Lion placed second and third in the division, respectively.
In IRC Class Four line honors went to the oldest yacht in the race, Nordwind, the 86’ yawl skippered by Hans Albrecht of Germany. While Carina was well ahead of British Soldier on corrected time, the two yachts had been sailing within touching distance of each other throughout the final night. British Soldier won the race to the line by less than a minute, an astounding finish after nearly three weeks at sea, and while Carina looked likely to win on corrected time, their hopes were dashed by Dawn Star, co-skippered by Bill Hubbard and his son Will Hubbard, both from New York, N.Y., that claimed the class victory by less than an hour.
The Transatlantic Race 2011 is part of the Atlantic Ocean Racing Series (AORS), which includes the Pineapple Cup – Montego Bay Race, RORC Caribbean 600, Annapolis to Newport Race, Rolex Fastnet Race, Biscay Race and the Rolex Middle Sea Race. The next race is the Rolex Fastnet, which will commence on August 14, 2011.
Here are some informative links about this and other important racing events and yachting opportunities:
01/Sep-04/Sep – Perini Navi Cup Porto Cervo, OT, Italy: Live Tracking
27/Sep-02/Oct – Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez Saint-Tropez, France
