Rolex Maxi Yacht Cup: a feast for the eyes

Walk the hallowed docks of Sardinia’s Yacht Club Costa Smeralda during the Rolex Maxi Yacht Cup and it was impossible to get anywhere fast. The collection of maxi yachts this year was truly fascinating, each one worth more than a glance. As a result, the army of top professional sailors assembled was literally a who’s who of generations of stars of the America’s Cup, Ocean Race and Olympic sailing.

Leaving the real world and immersing yourself in the bubble of Porto Cervo is something special. Even the graying, white-haired pros who remember the formative years of the “Maxi Worlds” and who come year after year, show no complacency. They love it and will always love it because it is the pinnacle event of the maxi race.

After the pandemic, more than ever, there is a renewed appreciation for this spectacular event. Here, there are no distractions beyond the rugged, windblown granite landscape, turquoise waters and rocky network of islands that form the La Maddalena Archipelago.

The 32nd Rolex Maxi Yacht Cup wasn’t the biggest ever, bringing together 46 racing maxis across six classes, but it was almost certainly the most competitive event for many years, with in-depth quality in each of the divisions.

The fleet was also more diverse than ever. For the first time since 2014, four J-Class yachts were competing under their own JCA handicap – an elegant throwback in stark contrast to the first foiler Flying Nikka, which raced in its own class, and the mighty ClubSwan 80 which has just to be launched. My song who were part of the maxi fleet of 13 boats.

A different league

“It is certain that after the pandemic, it seems that there are more people who want to sail big boats than ever before and who have the means to do so. And this regatta was in a different league to previous events in terms of quality,” noted International Maxi Association General Secretary Andrew McIrvine.

“An interesting development now is to have absorbed the Wally class – which had an 80 foot group and a 100 foot group running together – and bringing them into performance classes, rather than size related class, we have a good maximum of 13 class boats, which is certainly better.

Flying Nikka foiling raced in a class of its own

“And we have a more race-oriented fleet, there were cruiser maxis, and we have more professionals, whether you consider that a good thing or not. We’re still very strict on the owner-driver rule, except in the Super Maxi fleet where in fact the two best owners are young and still manage their boat.

In a typical September week at the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, there will be days of light winds and very often days lost due to the Mistral. A fixed Thursday may seem like an anomaly, but many owners – and their crews – start to feel their age mid-week. This edition was no different, early starts took advantage of the Mistral building on Friday, but Saturday proved unnavigable.

Undoubtedly, the level of boat and sail handling improves every year. To see the J-Class rivals tackle “Bomb Alley”, as the rock-strewn passage north of Porto Cervo through the La Maddalena Archipelago and Caprera is known, in 18 knots of breeze and water flat – seemingly at a touching distance from the shore – is incredible.

Highland Fling of Lord Irvine Laidlaw XI. Photo: Carlo Borlenghi

Running downwind, America’s Cup rivals Peter Holmberg and Ed Baird showed Laser-like precision in positioning their boat, while choreographing nearly 30 crew members. Are there elements of cunning or bravado? Maybe, but the truth is that many of the afterguard crew will have raced these waters dozens of times, and taking a turn when others can’t will reap a dividend of many boat lengths.

The Super Maxi Division win was the biggest win yet for a ‘young’ Swedish owner (just 50) on his Swan 115 Shamanna.

He also owns the well-known Spirit 100 Gaia and Gerdney, a 95-foot Skerries classic Swedish cruiser. He’s racing Shamanna with eight of his longtime friends – including a cardiac anesthesiologist, a pal who was “The Bachelor” on the Swedish reality TV show of the same name – and a group of good pros led by former Briton Volvo/ Whitbread, America’s Cup ace Guy Baron.

The custom 82ft Wally Highland Fling XI. Photo: Luca Butto

Raising the standards

Barron sought to continue to raise the standards of “amateurs” so that they were fully integrated and respected by the pros, rather than allowing a “them and us” scenario to develop. Barron sailed with the owner and his friends originally in Sweden and was able to pass on his knowledge and involve them in a way that became prominent on the great Swan. “We sat down and said let’s make sure your guys train and are part of it. So enter Shamanna and Gaia we share the same pros, the same group and we are all used to sailing with each other.

Barron estimates – after some math – that he has now run from Sardinia 34 times, first at the 12m Worlds in 1987. “It’s one of the best venues in the world and I never get tired of running through Bomb Alley. It’s breathtaking. I remember I was on Boomerang and we had THE crash.

Close fleet action. Photo: Luca Butto

“We hit a rock at 9.5 knots, when we had just reached full speed, we came to a dead stop. We pulled the engine from the stand, cracked every frame of the boat, blew the bollards off the top of the batteries, flattened the wheel, pedestals, grabbed the mainsail sheet and skid winch. I ended up in an ambulance with George Coumantaros the owner. He had fallen and reversed his cheek. I slid towards the front I hit the solid stainless steel stanchion and luckily I didn’t break my leg. I pass by and still hear the noises in my head. It’s a really wonderful place to navigate!

Mini maxi rivalry

The Mini Maxi 1 six-boat division is the domain of what was previously the Maxi 72 class. Now only Jim Swartz Vespers and hull sister of George Sakellaris protea are close to the Maxi 72 version, all the other four boats have undergone significant modifications. Ironically, the top two overall were Vesperswith Gavin Brady as tactician, and protea.

The changes in the rest of the fleet were diverse: Peter Dubens’ North Star is the first boat to now use stored energy for running rigging and sails with seven fewer crew members – which, at Maxi Worlds, gives four point credit. Spirit of Jethou (23.5m), Cannonball (22.86m) and Bella Mente (22.55m) have all been lengthened and have deeper keels. Bella Mente has a higher platform, just like Cannonball which can also now carry 1,000 kg of water ballast per side.

Despite their differences, this was a very competitive class of boat, designed as the ultimate in maxi racing and richly loaded with talent.

The Rolex Maxi Yacht Cup regatta in the fleet in the archipelago of La Maddalena in Sardinia. Photo: Carlo Borlenghi

“We were lucky to be consistent. We didn’t mess up,” smiled Gavin Brady after the race. “In fact, the boat is probably the same as when he won the world championships five years ago (like momo). It’s cool, I think, for Vespers win the world championship with the same keel, the same mast, the same sails.

“Our sport needs some durability and it’s a good message that if you have something that works and you sail well, you don’t need to change the mast and the keel. That’s something special for Jim because he doesn’t want to engage in the “arms race.” He wants to go racing, and for the best team to win.

“This fleet of seven boats has evolved. Clearly owners want to develop their boats the way they want and not be told what to do by a box rule. You have Jethou at one end and North Star to each other and we all passed the top buoy at 30 second intervals. It’s not the rule of the Maxi 72 box of yore, but it works and we have happy owners.

Crew on the rail of the iconic J Class Velsheda. Photo: Carlo Borlenghi

Water ballast, and how it is treated in the rating systems, is a factor that many Grand Prix teams watch carefully, ready to adapt their boats. “Water ballast is the elephant in the room right now,” says Brady.

“Everyone tries to be secretive but we all know what’s going on. Everyone has designs for putting water in everything from a TP52 to a maxi but we just don’t know what the ruler will do. I think this is a good, clean way to make the boats go faster. Salt water is in abundance and if we want to pump water into the boat to make it faster and more fun, it’s much more durable than carbon fiber and sails that will go to the landfill.

Lord Irvine Laidlaw bid farewell to his trusty Reichel Pugh 82ft custom Wally Highland Fling XI with a swan song victory in the 13-boat maxi class. Cameron Appleton calls the tactic alongside navigator Andrew Cape: “Porto Cervo is a unique place that usually offers a real range of conditions, coastal races and navigation type courses, and you have to be good at every step,” recalled Appleton .

“You get to know the tricks of where and where the wind bends are, but it’s how you get there to use them that is the skill.”

With co-owner Niklas Zennström at the wheel of his first regatta Sveaflying the flag of his native Sweden, the J-Class title was never really in doubt, although the race was always close.

Svea seems to have a speed advantage and has a large crew assembled by Bouwe Bekking. Class J is aiming for a world championship in Barcelona during the 37th America’s Cup with potentially seven or eight boats. The next homecoming will be Rainbowpurchased by Kiwi owner Neville Crichton, who is refitting the boat in Palma to be ready for the latter part of next season.

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