This August all eyes in the classic sailing world will be on the East Coast of the US, the cradle of that great tradition. The 13th North American Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge circuit gets underway on August 12 at Marblehead (Massachusetts, USA) with the Corinthian Classic Yacht Regatta, organised by the legendary Corinthian Yacht Club, which was founded in 1886. The Circuit continues until August 27th when it concludes in Newport.

To take the top step of the Circuit podium, the crews will compete in five events packed into a little over two weeks. From Marblehead, the fleet moves to Nantucket for the Nantucket Regatta (18/19 August) and the 45th Opera House Cup (20 August) which is also the oldest regatta on the circuit. August 25 brings the debut outing for the exciting new addition to the 2017 North American Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge, the Herreshoff Classic Yacht Regatta at Bristol. That event is organised by Herreshoff Marine Museum/America’s Cup Hall of Fame.
 

The museum dedicated to the legendary designer is house in the former Herreshoff yard which was destroyed by a hurricane in the mid-20th century and never reopened. Fife of Fairlie in Scotland aside, Herreshoff was probably one of the greatest innovators in the sailing world, building astonishingly beautiful yachts that are still in top form as they compete on the Panerai circuits in both Europe and the United States. On August 26, the fleet races from Bristol to Newport to kick off the final stage of the circuit, which will reveal the overall winner of the 2017 North American Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge.

With the addition of Herreshoff, yachts must now compete in three of the five NA PCYC regattas including the Newport Classic to be eligible to win the overall Panerai Vintage and Grand Prix division series awards.

In addition to the series awards, a Panerai timepiece is awarded to the Best Performing yacht in selected regattas, along with silver plate awards for each of the four Panerai classes (Vintage Grand Classics, Vintage Corinthian, Vintage Day Racer, Grand Prix--Spirit of Tradition), which include spinnaker and non-spinnaker classes.

For more information on eligibility and classes see the NA PCYC Notice of Series.

www.paneraiclassicyachtschallenge.com