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Big and Beautiful

The 186-ft Rosehearty took two out of three firsts in division with Paul Cayard calling tactics. 

© 2016 Jeff Brown / Perini Navi

Thirty-six megayachts and three J Class yachts showed up for St. Barths Bucket last weekend and were treated to near-perfect sailing conditions. Winds of 11-18 knots over the three races meant good speed and relatively little damage to the boats or crews — and once again a big-boat sailing spectacle not seen anywhere else in the world.

Despite her high freeboard, the all-white Unfurled, a combined work of German Frers and Royal Huisman, took overall honors.

latitude/Richard
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC

The one thing the boats had in common was that they were huge and in spectacular condition. How sailmakers can make gigantic sails so perfect on such large yachts is beyond our comprehension. We were told that some of the sails weigh more than two tons!

There were only three J Class yachts at the Bucket, but the class is growing.

latitude/Richard
©Latitude 38 Media, LLC

The racing was mostly close, as often it was only a matter of seconds that separated winners, and four of the six division finishes went to tie-breakers or were razor-thin victories.

You probably can’t even see him, but there’s a guy at the top of the forward mast of the 196-ft ketch Seahawk. You want to know what it’s like to be that high? Take a walk to the midspan of the Golden Gate Bridge and look down. He’s almost that high above the water.

latitude/Richard
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC

A number of San Francisco Bay sailors participated. For the second year Paul Cayard was the tactician on the Perini Navi Rosehearty, which took two of three firsts and class honors in Les Grandes Dames des Mers. Ken Keefe was aboard the Swan 90 Freya, which had three bullets to walk away with Les Mademoiselles des Mers. Rodney Daniel of Oakland crewed aboard the 146-ft Visione. There may have been other Bay sailors, but with 1,500 sailors having flown in for the event, we didn’t get to see them all.

 

When a 218-footer like Hetairos does 20 knots, it looks as though she’s hardly moving. 

latitude/Richard
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC

If you enjoy megayacht sailing, you need to put the Bucket on your bucket list.

When the schooner Meteor came down on the motoryacht A, which is just under 400-ft long, it made for a curious juxtaposition.

latitude/Richard
©2016Latitude 38 Media, LLC

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