SIMPSON BAY--Over a 100 boats set sail on Thursday for the first day of the 2025 Heineken Regatta. Sailors were greeted with overcast skies and a light breeze that increased by mid-morning.
Normally the around the island race would not take place on Thursday, but the race committee decided to send all the CSA classes and the Diam 24 fleet around the island, since the forecast for the rest of the weekend is even lighter wind.
Bareboats 1 and 2 and Multihull 2 were sent off to Blowing Rock off Anguilla and back, with a weather mark leg to do on the return before the finish. The Island Time did a shorter course in Simpson Bay.
All classes began with a downwind start. With the breeze freshening to around 12 knots, and helped by a mini squall that came through at the tip of Lowlands there was some exciting racing among the big boats on the beat up to Marigot, before a lull in the Anguilla channel around Grand Case.
The Beneteau 40 “Escapado” was over early on their start in CSA 5, and lost control of their spinnaker. It took some time to haul it back in so they could restart their race.
As expected the Diam 24 fleet of 11 trimarans raced around the island at a blistering pace, with line honours going to Benoit Champanac on the Zee Best team. They led the race with a huge margin ahead of the second and third boats. There are three French Diam champions racing in the regatta and its evident to see that their skill level is much higher than their rivals. “Look up” from St. Barths was second and Buzz Race team from the BVI in third.
Frits Bus’s Island Water World prevailed in the Melges 24 class, beating rival Jolyon Ferron on Budget Marine into second place and FKG in third place. The Puerto Rican Melges 24 Exodus with Enrique Figueroa did not do as well as expected, coming in fourth.
Complete results from day one are on yachtscoring.com on the Heineken Regatta website.
