Caribbean Compass Yachting Magazine - May/June 2022

2022 ANTIGUA CLASSIC YACHT REGATTA
MAY/JUNE 2022 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 18
It Was Exhausting.
It Was Exciting!
by David H. Lyman
Due to strong winds, the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta 2022 got underway on
March 31st with the cancellation of the single-handed race. And the winds kept
blowing for the next two days, testing boats, gear and crews. We’ll get into that in a
bit. First, some background on this very special event in Antigua’s jam-packed
calendar of sailboat races.
This was the 33rd running of the Classic, back on course after a two-year break
due to the pandemic. Participation was down from previous years, but enthusiasm
remained high as 35 boats raced in seven classes: Classic GRP, Traditional, Historic,
Vintage, Spirit of Tradition, Schooner and Tall Ships. One–design Dragons also raced
The 141-foot gaff schooner Columbia is a replica
of the original Starling Burgess design.
LUCY TULLOCH / WWW.THELUCY.COM (2)
(see sidebar).
For the Classic GRP Class, boats must
have a full long keel with a keel-hung
rudder, and be a descendant of a
wooden boat design. Traditional is for
Carriacou sloops and other indigenous
craft; Historic is for yachts designed and
built before the end of 1976 in any
material with any keel configuration. To
be eligible for Vintage, Traditional and
Tall Ship classes, boats shall have a full
keel, be of moderate to heavy
displacement, built of wood or steel, and
have a traditional rig and appearance.
Old craft using modern materials, such
as epoxy or glass sheathing, or new
craft built along the lines of an old
design, are acceptable. Boats built of
other materials may be acceptable if
they have a gaff or traditional schooner
rig. Schooner Class is self-explanatory.
All boats in the Classic are monohulls.
The Classic broke away from Antigua
Sailing Week years ago when one of the
big boats, the 114-foot schooner Aschanti
IV, driven by Uli Pruesse, had to make an
emergency maneuver to avoid one of the
bareboats that was racing. Later that
day, the owners and skippers of the
larger boats came together in Aschanti’s
cabin to discuss the need for a separate
category for the large, traditional sailing
yachts. The Classic Regatta was added to
the beginning of Sailing Week as a
separate three-day event.
More recently, the Classic Regatta
was moved a month earlier in the
calendar, as skippers of the large
yachts wanted to leave for the
transatlantic voyage to the Med earlier
than mid-May.
This sailing event now is one of the
Caribbean’s standout regattas, drawing
classic yachts large and small. Each year crews and boats from around the world
end up in Antigua just for this gathering of like-minded sailors and their boats. “It’s
the boats that draw them here,” Jane Coombs told me. She and her late husband,
Kenny, founded the Classic with a few others back in 1996. “The racing is just an
excuse to gather,” she added.
The 2022 Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta encompassed three days of round-thebuoys
racing with a party each evening. It was exhausting. It was exciting.
“That’s the way!”
Aboard the 1954
staysail schooner
Aschanti on her way
to an overall win
in Schooner Class.
The Old Road course’s
downwind legs weren’t
quite long enough to give
Columbia a chance to
catch Aschanti.
Each year, the Classic draws a variety of ketches, sloops, schooners and yawls,
including traditional craft from the islands. Tall Ships, more newly built Spirit of
Tradition yachts, and a fleet of Dragon Class racing sloops also get out on the water.
Thursday, March 31st
The single-handed race was to have been the kick-off event, but strong winds
prompted officials to cancel. So, there was just a party…
…and, of course, the Concours D’Elegance. Since it’s all about the boats, the
Classic has a Concours D’Elegance judging to award recognition to crews and
skippers on how well they care for and present their yachts. Varnished trim,
scrubbed decks, coiled lines, polished brass, cabins clean and organized,
it all counts.
Gold winners were the 2003 Nat Benjamin gaff schooner Juno, the 1983 46-foot
gaff cutter Windbreker, the 1936 Herreshoff ketch Ticonderoga, the 1936 H.
Rasmussen Seefalke, the 2004 40-foot sloop Freya of Midgard, the 2010 32-foot
Carriacou sloop New Moon and the 1973 Swan 48 Montana. The Arne Frissel award
for the most seaworthy vessel went to Vela, a 112-foot sail-training schooner built in
2020. The overall winner of the Locman Italy watch was Ticonderoga.
Friday, April 1st
The first race, the Old Road course, started off Rendevous Bay and wound around
three marks. Winds were east, brisk, 20 to 28 knots, gusting to 35.
—Continued on next page