Panerai British Classic Week came to a spectacular conclusion with one final round the cans race for all classes in glorious sunshine and a perfect Solent sea breeze. Royal Yacht Squadron Racing set courses that took the fleet west down Cowes Green and then brought them back together off Beaulieu for a thrilling massed reach into the finish.

The only class winner still to be decided was Class 4 where John Mulcahy’s 1961 Kim Holman Stella Estrella held a narrow three-point lead over Jonathan and Scilla Dyke’s 1938 Robert Clark Bermudan sloop Cereste. Estrella got the best start, but it was neck and neck between the two boats on corrected time until the final reach home when Estrella was forced out into the tide by two larger boats, allowing Cereste to claim victory by 97 seconds. With both boats now on 7 points it was only on countback that Cereste was declared the class winner with Estrella second and Mark & Liz Rushall’s 1965 Honeybee Ragdoll third.
 

With the sailing complete it was time for the crews to don their finery and enjoy the last big party of the regatta, the Panerai British Classic Week Gala Prize  Giving  Dinner  in  Cowes  Yacht  Haven  events  centre.  Admiral  and founder of the British Classic Yacht  Club Tim Blackman  took the  role of Master  of  Ceremonies  and  invited  Philppe  de  Saint  Lager  of  Panerai  to present the main prizes.

Each of the winning yachts received a Panerai Plate in addition to their class trophy. The Lutine Cup for Class 1 went to Sean McMillan’s Spirit 52 Flight of Ufford. Giovanni Belgrano’s Whooper won the Corinthian Cup for Class 2 and Michael Brigg’s 1904 Clyde Fife Linear 30 Mikado was all conquering in Class 3, receiving the Commodore’s Cup. Jonathan and Scilla Dyke’s with with Cereste in Class 4 earned them the Cereste Trophy. 

Robin Richardson’s Howlett designed St Kitts won the Event Trophy for the 6 Metre Class and Murdoch McKillop’s 1931 Fife designed Saskia was presented with the Universal 8 Cup for the 8 Metre Class.   Saskia also won the International Metre Trophy for the highest placed Metre boat at the regatta, while Mark Tyndall’s  1904  Bristol  Channel  Pilot  Cutter  Mascotte  received  the  Brian Keelan Memorial Trophy for the highest placed Gaffer.
 

The regatta has attracted entrants from as mainland Europe, Scandinavia and the USA, plus two crews from The Classic Yacht Club of Australia and one from The Classic Yacht Club of New Zealand, who raced in three chartered 1959 Morgan Giles 42’ Bermudan Sloops – Gryphis, Leopard and Pegasus. As well as racing in Class 3 the boats also competed amongst themselves for The Classic Sail Match Race Challenge Trophy which was won by Leopard skippered by Doug Shields and his crew from Australia.

In addition to the racing prizes a number of special trophies were presented including the Cetewayo Trophy for the yacht with that certain Je Ne Sais Quoi, which was won by Martin Thomas’ Archie designed 8 Metre Cruiser Racer Charm of Rhu.

The Stiff Drink Trophy is a silver hip flask donated by Spirit Yachts and went to  Martin  Ryan’s  Pegasus  for  her  spectacular  effort  in  blowing  out  a spinnaker, parts of which had to be retrieved from the Solent by the media boat.

The Seamanship Award presented by Classic Boat went to James Kelman’s 1947 Dervin cutter Croix des Gardes for sailing the Long Inshore Race only three up and with her lady helm wearing a very elegant dress!

Finally came the most prestigious prize of the event. The British Classic Yacht Club Racing Trophy and a Panerai Luminor Marina 1950 3 Days Automatic Acciaio – 44mm watch for the Overall Winner of Panerai British Classic Week 2016 was presented to Giovanni Belgrano of the 1939 Laurent Giles 39’ one- off Whooper, who had a clean sweep in Class 2 and was the top scoring yacht in the combined fleet races.
 

This is the second time that Giovanni and his team have won the week overall and he was effusive in his praise for the organisers and his fellow competitors. “The   conditions   have   been   outstanding,   the   organisation   has   been outstanding and the competition has been outstanding. Outstanding truly is the word for this regatta. From a technical point of view we were very lucky, we had the perfect conditions for the boat to win.

The event offers a unique combination. It’s different to anything else, it’s stylish, it’s attractive. It’s a chain reaction, it keeps attracting better boats because it’s stylish and it looks more stylish because it attracts better boats. The people who own them are lovely people and hopefully the event will just continue on this upwards spiral. There is no other regatta where we can have such an experience.”

Panerai British Classic Week 2017 will take place from 8 to 15 July 2017. News, results and photographs from Panerai British Classic Week are posted at the regatta website www.britishclassicyachtclub.org/regatta. Those wishing to receive  additional  information  should  contact  Mary  Scott-Jackson on mary@msjevents.co.uk.  

Regatta enquiries should be directed to:

Mary Scott-Jackson

MSJ Events

Regatta House, 18 Bath Road, Cowes, Isle of Wight, PO31 7QN

mary@msjevents.co.uk

T: +44 (0) 1983 245 100

Mob: +44 (0) 7790 770 526

Press enquiries should be directed to:

Fiona Brown

Regatta Press Officer Fiona Brown

Mob: +44 (0)7711 718470

Panerai UK Press Office:

Marie Huth / Jakob Huth

marie@sidhuandsimon.com

Sidhu & Simon Communications  

Jakob@sidhuandsimon.com

T: +44 (0) 207 629 3599

THE BRITISH CLASSIC YACHT CLUB

The British Classic Yacht Club was formed in 2001 to provide a congenial environment for owners and other classic yacht enthusiasts to share experiences and enjoy each other's company. Affiliated to the RYA, the BCYC strives to represent the interests of classic yacht owners and has developed good relationships with many leading yacht clubs in the UK and abroad. The officers of the BCYC are actively involved in both national and international discussions about the future development of classic yachting.

The membership of the BCYC now consists of more than eighty boats. In addition to the Club’s flagship annual regatta held in Cowes each July, the Club also organises a full programme of other racing, cruising and social activities in the Solent and on the East Coast, and supports the popular East Coast Classic Regatta in early June. BCYC yachts also participate in many important sailing events, including classic regattas in the Channel, Mediterranean and West Indies.

www.britishclassicyachtclub.org

OFFICINE PANERAI

Founded in Florence in 1860 as a workshop, shop and school of watch-making, for many decades Officine Panerai supplied the Italian Navy in general, and its specialist diving corps in particular, with precision instruments. The designs developed by Panerai in that time, including the Luminor and Radiomir, were covered by the Military Secrets Act for many years and were launched on the international market only after the brand was acquired by the Richemont Group in 1997. Today Officine Panerai develops and crafts its movements and watches at its Neuchâtel manufacture. The latter are a seamless melding of Italian design flair and history with Swiss horological expertise. Panerai watches are sold across the world through an exclusive network of distributors and Panerai boutiques.  www.panerai.com

PANERAI CLASSIC YACHTS CHALLENGE

In honour of its historic links to the sea, Officine Panerai has promoted classic sailing culture for many years through its sponsorship of the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge, the leading international circuit for these vintage craft. In 2007, the company also acquired and restored the Bermudan ketch Eilean. Built in 1936 by the legendary Fife yard at Fairlie in Scotland, she is now the brand’s ambassador at vintage and classic boat rallies and regattas.

Panerai British Classic Week Gallery

www.paneraiclassicyachtschallenge.com