Beautiful Bucket Weather

About the only thing that could have made the 20th annual St. Barth Bucket for megayachts more perfect would have been another couple of knots of wind. After all, the 36 boats from 91 to 194 feet in length were diverse and fantastic, the skies were blue, and the seas were flat. The average wind speed decreased over the course of the three days of racing from about 16 knots to about 11 knots. Even the behemoths weighing up to 550 metric tons move surprisingly well in such light conditions, but another five knots would have been better.

As if the spectacle of yachts worth tens of millions of dollars going at it weren’t enough, for three days the fleet and spectators were treated to the sight — and one full-on show — of nine World War II planes recreating bombing runs and dogfights. They came within 300 feet of us on ’ti Profligate, their radial engines roaring.

If you’re a sailor, the Bucket certainly belongs on your bucket list.