Superyachts gather in Porto Cervo ahead of the regatta
The glamorous shores of Porto Cervo greeted the sailing yachts that gathered at the YCCS Marina ahead of the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta, hosted by Boat International Media and Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. The owners, their guests and crews of the diverse fleet begin to prepare for four days of racing between some of the most impressive and exciting sailing superyachts in the world.
There are some familiar faces among the yachts – the superyachts Ganesha, Cape Arrow, Inoui, Marie andOhana for example are all previous competitors in the regatta – but for some this will be their first experience. Among the newcomers is Perini Navi’s 45m Clan VIII, Oyster Yachts’ 24.2m Maegan, Wally Yacht’s 24mNahita and Baltic’s 33m WinWin whose stunning lines will make for a beautiful sight on the race course
The regatta also marks the Porto Cervo debut for a new superyacht rating rule. Conceived and refined by the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC), the ORCsy rule combines a sophisticated velocity prediction element with ‘dynamic allowances’ – essentially meaning that allowances are made for yachts that, for example, take longer to tack because they have to furl away their headsails. Each yacht receives a number of ratings covering different wind strengths and sea states to ensure as close and fair racing as possible – no mean feat given the enormous differences between sailing superyachts.
‘The great thing about the new rule,’ said Bruno Finzi, chairman of ORC, ‘is that it is transparent, so each owner can see how the data has been treated and can compare his yacht to all the others.’
Ahead of the excitement tomorrow, this evening owners and their guests enjoyed the sumptuous surroundings of the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda Terrace for welcome drinks overlooking the marina. Racing begins tomorrow, Wednesday 3rd June.
