You probably know Antigua Week and its 300 sailing boats: classics, racers and bareboats. Normal, this event is already 30 years old... but Saint-Barth, a little bit the tropical annex of Saint-Tropez, is back in the dance with its Sails... Bateaux.com has followed for you the eighth edition of this prestigious regatta, imagined by two Saint-Barth (we call so the residents of the island, finally the natives and the"old" locals) passionate of beautiful sailboats, François Tolède and Luc Poupon (the latter is a well-known skipper of the world ocean racing). This year, the regattas took place from 10 to 15 April 2017.
Exceptional yachts only
Les Voiles de Saint-Barth bet from the outset on exceptional sailing boats: we meet on the water such prestigious units as Rambler, Proteus... in all about fifteen maxis, a Swan armada - including a splendid 65 of the seventies equipped with a carbon mast - but also more discreet racers, just like a beautiful fleet of Melges 24.
Obviously, between the super yachts accompanied by their container-workshop and the small monotypes which join the island since Saint-Martin, only 15 miles to the North, with just the few personal effects of their crew wedged on the benches, there is like a world... But we have to deal with powerful sailboats: no question here of welcoming the rental sailboats with their deformed Dacron sails, their three-bladed propellers and without spikes. There would be a lack of taste, it seems..
A party both on the water and on land
The organizers notice, with the wire of the editions, that the participants join the island earlier and earlier, and more often in family thanks to a rent of villa. This is the secret of Sails: a subtle marriage between sailing on an exceptional body of water and conviviality on land. Every evening, the bar at the foot of the harbour master's office fills up and the live concerts warm up the atmosphere.
And then there is the famous"day off". On Thursday, all the crews are invited to a gigantic beach party with nautical jousting on giant inflatable paddles, treasure dives to find immersed champagne bottles... And then there are the sponsors: Richard Mille, the watch manufacturer, is nevertheless offering the winner all class - Proteus this year - an RM 60-01 Flyback Chronograph. The other class winners put Veuve Cliquot's magnums on ice while Gaastra offers polos and shirts in the event's colours.
The pleasure of racing in the tropics
On the water, the 21 courses take the competitors to the rocks and islets around Saint-Barth. Turning in the surf! Even though the trade wind, like last year, was not in Olympic shape, the 66 boats were able to race three of the four days planned.
From the very first tack, the water is a pure delight, both for the eyes and for the tacticians' brains: wind, heading effects, accelerations, chop... You dream of going there? It's possible: rent a beautiful canoe in Saint-Martin and join the Maxis dance! In 2018, the regattas will be held from 9 to 14 April.
