Forty-one classic and vintage yachts were a graceful sight off Marblehead this past weekend, as yachts of various size and age competed over two days in five divisions in a 25th-anniversary event. Many divisions had a photo finish with close racing throughout, while participants were able to sail hard but also use a pursuit race format that causes less congestion at the start.
“The racing is fun when we start about two minutes apart, and then at the end it can be very close,” said Marblehead sailor Quin Vaillancourt.
A photo finish wasn’t quite what Vaillancourt was expecting when he found himself looking up at the massive bowsprit of the 47-foot Alden Schooner “Spirit” owned by Lars Forsberg as they crossed the finish line together in different divisions.
“It was great to be winning my division and then look up and see the bowsprit of this massive schooner bearing down on me leading another division,” he said.
Vaillancourt ultimately won in his Classic division on board his custom-built L. Francis Herreshoff design “Rozi,” which finished 11 points ahead of over “Abigail,” a 39-foot Alden schooner.
“This is the only event I race in each year, and I love it,” Vaillancourt said. “I can’t wait to come back next year.”
Marblehead’s 12-metre “Valiant,” owned by Gary Gregory and helmed Sunday by famed sailmaker Robbie Doyle, had a special weekend of racing. Not only did it finish first in its division, but Gregory is retiring from 12-metre racing and has donated his vessel to a maritime academy for training.
“It was our last day, and we sailed as good a race as we could. In a pursuit race format, there is much less chance of any damage to the boats,” said Doyle. “There is no reason to put these boats so close together at the start.”
In fact, even without worry of contact at the start and damage to the boats, the races are still extremely close. Valiant finished first with four points, just ahead of Jud Smith on board his Farr 44 “AFRICA” and the 12-metre “Intrepid.”
“It is lower stress at the starting line, but you still must sail fast and take advantage of every wind shift,” said Jud Smith. “In a standard pursuit race, you get a sense you can hold off your opponent and with a handicap built with elapsed time, different sizes in the same division still come out very evenly matched.”
“It is a super fun event,” added Jud Smith. “It is not one-design sailing, but it is the boat you have.”
Bruce Dyson of Marblehead raced on board his IOD “Gypsy” and noted that for him, too, this is one of his favorite events.“I especially love all the wooden boats here,” he said.
Dyson congratulated Gregory on so many years of bringing opportunities to sailors with his beautiful “Valiant” in the harbor all these years.
Peter Forsberg of Connecticut raced his family’s 1934 “Spirit” in the Vintage Division, coming in fifth with 11 points. He and his team are taking part in the Classic yacht racing circuit, which is growing each year. He had raced the boat down from Boothbay Harbor Maine after completing four classic yacht regattas on the Maine coast.
“Today was a wonderful day, as our boat likes to sail slightly ‘off the wind,’ and while yesterday we had a deep finish with the upwind legs, today was much better,” Forsberg said. “We love sailing here, and I love the pursuit race style. It is fun and different, and with the boats being so different we have to really focus on racing our own boat well.”
Race committee and Corinthian Yacht Club member Tony Charmay felt the format of the regatta was great for the sailors because, as the boats are so different in speed, a good start is not quite as critical as it is in one-design racing.
“I am a vintage sailor and appreciate the classic wooden boats and can say that this is one of my favorite events that I look forward to each year,” said Charmay. “The race organizers deserve a lot of credit for the work they do behind the scenes.”
Race organizer Tim Dittrich of the Corinthian Yacht Club was able to helm the beautiful New York 32 “Siren” owned by Peter Cassidy, which placed sixth in the Vintage Class.
“It is a very special feeling to feel yourself gliding along with the wind in a vintage boat,” Dittrich said. “We had great breeze and a great event.”
Added Dittrich, “It is a lot of work behind the scenes and planning starts in December. Our hope is that everyone who came had a fantastic time and will spread the word and come back again next year.”
