Six months and eight days to go. But who’s counting? The Superyacht Cup Palma regatta organizing team, and the 11 sailing superyachts already registered, are.
Heading into its 21st year, the race takes place June 21 to 24 off of Palma de Mallorca, Spain. While neither the timing nor location are new, something else is. The Superyacht Cup Palma will incorporate the Corinthian Spirit Class. Briefly, this initiative makes it easier for owners to have their yachts participate in friendly racing. In fact, the idea is for owners to essentially just show up with their yachts, without a lot of gear prep, or hiring experienced racing hands. (For more on this, see our article “Corinthian Spirit Class to Increase Fun Factor at Regattas.”)
Because of the Corinthian Spirit Class, the Superyacht Cup Palma regatta should see more variety among the competitors. Although, it’s important to note that owners and crew who like being a bit aggressive are still welcome.
In fact, some seasoned competitors are coming back for 2017. Among them:
- Borkumriff IV (above), a 164-footer who, race organizers say, “blasted” around the bay two years ago
- Kiboko Dos, a 92-footer who has raced in the Cup many a time; she even took third place in her class earlier this year
- P2, a 125-footer who has several regattas under her belt
- Saudade, a 148-footer marking her fourth Palma event in a row
- Win Win, a 108-footer that emerged victorious at this past June’s Cup.
Among the newcomers is Highland Fling XV, the third delivery in the Swan 115 series. Her owner is no stranger to racing, having christened a number of sailing yachts “Highland Fling.”
Besides enjoying cocktails and other social activities on land, the owners and crews can support ocean conservation. The Superyacht Cup Palma is in the Clean Regattas program, therefore striving to reduce plastic pollution. Yachts opting to participate get free refillable water bottles to use onboard.
In the meantime, the regatta still has racing slots open, but expects them to fill quickly.
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