Press Releases of The British Classic Yacht Club Panerai Cowes Regatta 2010

Entries for the 2010 British Classic Yacht Club Panerai Cowes Regatta 2010 are flooding in from both seasoned regulars and newcomers to the annual gathering of vintage yachts. Now in its ninth year, the regatta runs from Sunday 18th July to Saturday 24th July, with racing taking place in and around the Solent and competing yachts once again berthed at the Cowes Yacht Haven. In 2009 over sixty yachts took part and organisers are quietly confident of beating that total this year.

This year, for the first time, the regatta forms part of the high profile 2010 Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge Series, which as well as the Cowes event, features some of the world’s leading classic yacht regattas, including the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta and the Regates Royale, Cannes.

An early entry, certain to be amongst the most competitively raced yachts taking part in this year’s regatta, is the 47.6 foot Laurent Giles designed sloop, Cetewayo, which in many ways typifies the true spirit of the British Classic Yacht Club. Built on the Clyde in 1957 by Morris & Lorrimar she was successfully campaigned as Zulu by her original owner, Sir Henry Spurrier. After falling into almost terminal disrepair she was eventually discovered in 1989, abandoned and rotting away on Pembroke Dock, by her current owner, BCYC Commodore David Murrin.

Despite her then sorry state, Murrin undertook to restore the yacht to her former glory and after eight months of painstaking effort and dedication, she was renamed Cetewayo and sailed to her new home on the south coast of England. A season of racing in and around the Solent was followed by a winter of more hard work making the changes necessary to optimise Cetewayo for CHS. The development process which has been ongoing ever since, includes a new keel and engine, the addition of dual cockpits, as well as an update to the winch layout to facilitate the use of more powerful Mylar race sails.

Murrin neatly sums up the end result like this ‘The original Laurent Giles design for Zulu has been synchronised with advancements in modern technology. Whilst always retaining her classic wooden heritage, Cetewayo is once again a powerful racing yacht, which can compete extremely effectively against modern fibreglass competitors.

Amongst the other entries already confirmed for this year’s regatta are Darryl Hughes’s 1937 gaff-rigged ketch Maybird, David Sherriff’s 1897 Cork Harbour One-Design gaff-cutter Jap and Barry Bristow’s 1937 Dallimore designed Bermudan cutter Foglio.

More details of the British Classic Yacht Club Panerai Cowes Regatta 2010, including the official Notice of Race can be found at the official regatta website at: www.britishclassicyachtclub.org/regatta

Entry forms can be obtained from:

Mary Scott-Jackson
MSJ Event Management
Regatta House, 18 Bath Road, Cowes, Isle of Wight, PO31 7QN info@msjeventmanagement.co.uk
Office: 01983 245 100
Fax: 01983 295 329
Mob: 07790 770526
Skype: marysj1

About the British Classic Yacht Club Panerai Cowes Regatta 2010
The British Classic Yacht Club Panerai Cowes Regatta 2010 will run from Sunday 18th July to Saturday 24th July. Competing yachts will be berthed at the Cowes Yacht Haven.

More details about the regatta can be found at the official regatta website www.britishclassicyachtclub.org/regatta. Results and images from the regatta will be posted on the official website each day. High-resolution images are available on request.

Press enquiries should be directed to:
Justin Chisholm
Regatta Press Officer
justin@justinchisholmsolutions.com

Martha Williamson
Sidhu & Simon Communications (For Panerai)
martha@sidhuandsimon.com
0207 491 9934

About the British Classic Yacht Club
The British Classic Yacht Club was formed in 2001 to provide a congenial environment for owners and other classic yacht enthusiasts to share experiences and enjoy each other's company. Affiliated to the RYA, the BCYC strives to represent the interests of classic yacht owners and has developed good relationships with many leading yacht clubs in the UK and abroad. The officers of the BCYC are actively involved in both national and international discussions about the future development of classic yachting.

The membership of the BCYC now consists of more than eighty boats. In addition to the Club’s flagship annual regatta held in Cowes each July, the Club also organises a full programme of other racing, cruising and social activities in the Solent and on the East Coast, including the popular East Coast Classic Regatta in early June. BCYC yachts also participate in many important sailing events, including classic regattas in the Channel, Mediterranean and West Indies.

About Officine Panerai
Founded in Florence in 1860, Officine Panerai was for many years the official supplier of precision instruments for the Italian Navy. Purchased by the Richemont Group in 1997 and subsequently launched on the international market, Officine Panerai is now Italy’s only fine watch making company. Developing and producing its own movements and watches, Officine Panerai uniquely blends Italian history and design with renowned Swiss craftsmanship.

About the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge
2010 sees the first inclusion of the British Classic Yacht Club Cowes Regatta in the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge Series. Sponsored by Panerai since 2005, this high profile series features some of the world’s leading classic yacht regattas, including the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta and the Regates Royale, Cannes.