Argos, Gipsy, Rowdy and Tuiga begin imposing their law on the first day of the Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona

The rain has been the greatest enemy of the day, although it has not prevented these ‘legends of the sea’ from competing (14/07/2010)

• The water of the Port Vell (Old Harbor) has become a major gangway through which the greatest international sailing stars have filed past, bringing together these historic gems to Barcelona’s inhabitants

The Real Club Náutico de Barcelona has hosted since this morning the fifty classic and vintage boats participating in the IV edition of the regatta Puig Vela Clàssica. Despite the day has dawned rainy, more than 600 sailors have worked from first thing in the morning to set their craft ready before going out to participate in the first leg of this yacht race, a competition that is included on the official RFEV calendar and is scoring for the Spain’s Championship of Classic and Vintage Boats and for the trophy Clásicos Mare Nostrum.

El Paseo Colón is packed of spectators in a “soft-boiled” day

Despite the rainy start to the day, the mood of the sailors, who came from France, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Ireland, United States, Germany, Monaco and Italy, did not decline at anytime during this first day. Finally, these fifty boats were able to contest the first leg of this regatta, which brought together the international elite of the classic and vintage boat worlds.

The rain has not been a barrier to the locals, who have decided to come out to the Paseo Colón in order to see this unique spectacle from front line. Puig and the Real Club Nautico de Barcelona have wanted to involve the Catalan society more than ever, and to do so, the Port Vell has become a gangway through which these museum pieces have filed past.

Top leaders of the general classification

The IV edition of the regatta Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona already has the first leaders of the provisional general: the Argos in the Classics division; the Rowdy (Royal Thames Y.C.) in the Marconi’s time (triangular sails); the Gipsy (R.C.M. Santander ) in Cangreja’s time(trapezoidal sails) and the Tuiga (Y.C.Mónaco) in Big Boats (greats lengths).

A capricious wind has caused trouble on the first day of the IV Regatta Puig Vela Clàssica, which started in front of the beaches of Barcelona’s coast. Influenced by the heavy showers, competitors’ were required to wait two hours until the wind calmed enough to be able to start the competition. Finally, at 3.00 p.m. the first exit was given, where the majestic “Big Boats” category opened the regatta with a faint wind of 8 knots. The following categories convened in this prestigious international regatta were leaving every ten minutes. The second turn went to the Classics, and then to the Marconi and Ketch categories of Vintage Boats.

The wind, which began blowing from the east (150 °), was veering gradually to the south, leading to a very technical race course due to the continuous changes of wind speed, which, at the end of the first of four sections of the course, was just shy of five knots. Fortunately, when the role was consolidated to the South, the wind increased to gusts of 10 knots and the fleet was able to regain the great pace.

The Monegascos, Tuiga and the Mariquita, kept a tight duel in the Big Boats category, which was decided by a slim margin of 17 seconds in favor of the Tuiga after the two hours they took to complete the 8-mile route. The podium of this first day was completed by Moonbeam IV, which ended up 2:19 behind the winner-

The Classic category saw the triumph of the Argos, in which a smart first sailing upwind could defend itself against the tight-knit group, which was formed by the Guia, Yanira and Outlaw, after escaping from the rest of the fleet finishing the first leg. The Yanira earned it 33 seconds to qualify second ahead of the Guide, after the British Outlaw ran out of steam in the second half of the course.

The Rowdy had no problems in prevailing in the Marconi Vintage category, containing Peter’s harassment, who skippered Mauro Pelaschier, one of the legends of the Italian sailing. To more than nine minutes after the time offset, the third place went to The Blue Peter, who made good on its strategy to contain the Cometa.

The Gispy, boat from Santander, had an outstanding performance even though it did not have any rival today among the Cangreja’s time, reading Barcelona’s race course perfectly. The Tigris could beat the Windekind in order to win the second place in this category, where the navigating sailboats have a very popular stamp.

A unique coincidence of two sea legends

There are very few occasions throughout history where sailing enthusiasts can enjoy two classic gems of the sea simultaneously; two sailboats designed and built by the also legendary Fife & Sons’ shipyard from Scotland, the Moonbeam III and IV, are two such legends.

These two vessels, the ” Rayos de Luna ” (Moonbeam), were originally commissioned by its first owner the British lawyer Charles Plumtre Johnson (in 1903 and 1914 -although it could not be launched until 1924 because of the First World War)- Both of these ships are racing for the IV edition of the Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona.

Both have lived an eventful life of ownership changes over the past century, until reaching the hands of its current owners, who have lovingly restored them. Restoring all their splendor for enjoyment not only of their owners, but of the thousands of fans that recognize the sailboats with satisfaction in the most significant events of the classic circuit. While one replaced the other one in the attention of its first owner, who was ignorant of its future as a boat race well into the 21st century, both boats were born in order to enjoy the long crossings with the maximum comfort, as well as to participate in vintage yacht racing.

The ‘Moonbeam IV’ was the latest and greatest of the ‘Moonbeams’ built. It was considered one of the most beautiful ships in the world, not only for its exterior but also for its luxurious details. Its lining was waxed of Palo Santo wood, Persian rugs, ancient lamps and leather upholstery. It was one of the most competitive ‘cutters’ in the twentieth century. It won the prestigious King’s British Cup in 1920 and 1923, both played in Cowes.

In 1950 Prince Rainier of Monaco bought the boat and called it ‘Deo Juvante’, the Grimaldi’s family motto. This was the place where he spent his honeymoon with Grace Kelly. After passing through several ship-owners, it still being the ‘cutter’ world’s largest gaff-rigged (áurico/marconi).

Results and rankings at the end of the first day

La V Edición de la regata Puig Vela Clássica

del 11 al 14 de julio 2012 en Barcelona
Todo de las regatas Puig Vela Clássica BCN

La regata en 2011:

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Publicado por nauticweb en julio 14 2011. Puesto en Noticias, Regatas, Regatas con foto, Vela Clasica. Puede sequir las respuestas de esta noticia pulsando en RSS 2.0. Puede dejar una respuesta o tracback a esta noticia