It’s Sunday February 23rd and those tiny sailboats that have been hanging around Falmouth began their around the world race. First stop Panama and yes, in keeping with the news from Washington about the canal, they will get very special treatment crossing Panama.
Actually, given how small these boats are, less than 20′ long, they will simply be pulled out of the water and put on a truck that will bring them over the mountains where they will be launched into the Pacific Ocean.
And, speaking of the Panama Canal, I am trying to imagine how these boats would handle the line handlers necessary for navigating the canal. Not a lot of room on board, that’s for sure.
All of these boats, here in Antigua, completed a qualifying passage, most leaving from Logos Portugal. Everyone made it here safely.
Perhaps a good place to begin is with a short video of highlights of the qualifying voyage “race” to Antigua.
The start was at the mouth of Falmouth Harbor and began with a parade of all participants out to the starting line. I ran, err walked, up the Goat Trail to the lookout to see the procession.
Even big boats look tiny from up high. But these, well teeny tiny. Not a lot larger than the dinks following them to the start.
By way of contrast, some of the Caribbean 600 race boats were out practicing. Their crew involves more individuals than the entire fleet of minis, by about double.
And, surely this spinnaker on the 100’+ Leopard surely cost more than the entire budget of the mini fleet.
With about 40 minutes to start, I scrambled, and nearly ran, down the trail, jumped into my dink and motored out to the starting line to watch the participants jockey for position.
There was a lot of action and loads of spectator boats trying to stay out of the way. I expect that this is about as close to another participant any of these boats is going to be until they are on the dock in Panama.
Spectator boats are always packed with crew and this one a very capable offshore boat itself.
A few minutes before the 5 minute gun.
Almost to the line.
And they’re off…
So funny to see the jockeying to be the first over the line with so many miles to go.
Heading off toward the horizon.
Almost gone… Next stop, Panama and the end of leg one.
I am really looking forward to following the fleet for the next year. The other night there was a meet and greet at the Sailing Academy where many of the skippers shared their stories and why they were embarking on this remarkable journey.
Some may say that to take on the ocean in such a small boat is foolhardy but having spent time understanding the design and meeting the skippers, many of whom built their own boats, it seems to me that while there is surely risk, these boats and hopefully the skippers that sail them are plenty tough for the trip.
My plan is to follow the fleet and report on what I learn and expect that there will be a continual flow of information and photos in the coming months so stand by.
Of course, you too can follow the boats using the “yellow brick” tracking app. Install it where you get your tablet or phone apps. After you download the app select the “mini-globe race” and select leg one to see where the boats are.
God speed to them all.
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I mentioned that a number of really tiny sailboats were arriving in Antigua over the last week or so and marveled at how mini they really are.
And, they seem particularly mini when the harbor is so full of maxi and super and maximum maxi.
These boats, and there are 18 of them here now, have just finished a qualifying run to Antigua from Logos in Southern Portugal, in order to participate in the Mini Globe round-the-world race that starts from Antigua next week.
I am told that the race will begin off of Pigeon Beach which is right near Pandora.
Each of these boats are of the exact same design and yesterday I stopped over at the Sailing Academy in Falmouth, where they are all docked, to have a look at the fleet.
They are set up to be water tight. A good idea given the fact that they are likely to be banged around quite a bit as they make their way around the world. I’m imaging how it would feel to be inverted… Not great.
Even the companionway down below is a waterproof hatch so nothing will cause them to down-flood if they roll, and given how tiny these boats are, it seems to me that rolling might be likely.
I am sure that they will run into some pretty sporty conditions. I found this photo. And the waves aren’t even that big. Big wave, little boat.
It seems that Niels Kamphuis (#163 Biggest Monkey) met up mid ocean 1500 miles from Antigua with the World’s Youghest Row support team and photographed him. They were in 4-5m swells and 25-30 knt tradewinds. Neils was surfing the long smooth swells at times hitting 16 knots…
With my own trans-Atlantic run to the Azores coming up, I continue to think about the threat of an orca biting off my rudder. These minis have a rudder as well as two dagger-boards on the stern, I guess for stability. I wonder if the “eyes” on these are to deter orcas or at least make them think twice about taking a chomp.
And, speaking of visibility, some of them have plexiglass domes on the cabin top so they can peek out when things are unpleasant. Perhaps they can also keep an eye on orcas if the boat is upside down.
These boats are a “one design” and are all built from the exact same plans. Many of them are home built and all are made from plywood. My impression is that they are finished to a very high degree.
While the group in the race number under 20, more than 100 of these boats have been built, many from pre-cut kits.
Not a lot of room below. To see them up close makes them look even smaller.
But the route is anything but small.
I met one of the skippers/owner, a guy named Jakub, born in Poland but hailing from Ireland with his boat “BiBi of Cork”. I should have taken a photo of him, but I didn’t. This is his photo on the race website.
His boat, on the outside rafted up, #185.
This is a short video that describes these boats in some detail.
These minis are not the only ones preparing to race in Antigua as they prepare for their Monday start, bound for Panama. If you want to keep track of the boats once they leave on Monday February 24th, follow this link.
Monday is also the start for the RORC Caribbean 600 ocean race and it has attracted a big crowd of yachts that are anything but mini. Try super-maxi. And, to track them as well. This link will be live as of Monday too, I expect.
This is considered one of the toughest ocean races in the world. The course, 600 miles, winds itself around a number of islands and back to Antigua.
There are dozens of go fast machines leaving and returning to the harbor every day as they participate in tune-up races.
The boats and crew are maxi in every way.
Tall mast, really tall…
And, they seem even taller when you note the tiny crew member perched up high on the mast.
One after another, they come back after a day or racing, accompanied by their entourage. And, all their “stuff” is carted around the world in big 40′ shipping containers. This one has a small dink…
Others, three engine dinks… I guess that they ship those in a container too. And most if not all of the crew are professional. A campaign, racing around the world must cost millions.
Well, there you have it, racing all over the world, or around the world. I guess with the Mini class you can even do it with a modest budget.
Me, I’d rather sit at anchor and watch the “boys with their toys” pass me by.
I understand that both the Caribben 600 and the mini race both start here on Monday. The mini race just off of Pigeon beach, behind Pandora and the 600 outside of the harbor. I hope I can somehow see both.
The action will surely be great. See this video of last year’s Caribbean 600 race. Many of the same boats are here again.
It is quite a show.
So, how big is Pandora? That’s a question I get asked a lot.
Well, compared to Minis, she’s a maxi but to others a mini.
Mini perhaps but not all that mini but big enough for me.
I can’t believe that Brenda and I will have been in Antigua for a month and, as of yet, have not left the mooring. It’s Valentines day and we are still experiencing Christmas Winds.
What did we get for Valentines day? Wind, just wind. And food.
Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoy Antigua but to be here for this long without even turning on the engine, is not quite what we are used to. How many times can I motor to the marina and back in my dink?
At least the view is always wonderful at night, especially when a full moon is rising from the east.
We had thought about making a dash to Guadeloupe a few weeks ago when there was a two day lull in the wind, but those who did head south reported that it was “lumpy”, “sporty”, “challenging”. Whatever it was, had we left it would have been a CLM “career limiting move” for me with Brenda as we tried to claw our way back just a few weeks later as it’s still really breezy.
So, here we are, making the best we can although I will admit that I am going a bit stir crazy and have done more “busy work” to keep my self occupied than I normally do.
In addition to the many things, all small, that have been in my plate for the last month, I have enjoyed “yacht spotting” as Pandora’s mooring is directly adjacent to the main channel heading out, or into, Falmouth Harbor.
Because of the wind, there have been very few cruisers heading out but the big boats continue to come and go.
As it’s been so busy this season, with every slip in the marina fully occupied, there are always a number of really big boats anchored near the mouth of the harbor.
With the waves breaking over the reef at the entrance of Falmouth, large rollers are causing these huge yachts to rock from side to side, sometimes quite alarmingly.
One that seems to be pretty stable is Kaos, as huge as she is, is just over half the length the largest yacht in the world. Of course, that yacht is owned by someone from the middle east.
Many yachts are lit up brilliantly at night but none more dramatically than Kaos. Their bespoke launch is also a sight to behold at night, with lights under and above water. Sadly, I haven’t taken a photo.
Kaos is unique as she is classified as a ship as opposed to as a yacht. This is because she is in excess of 300 gross tons and therefore has to comply with a lot more rules, which is a very expensive proposition, I am told. However, he guest capacity is nearly double that of mere yachts, 31 guests, not counting crew.
As I mentioned in a prior post, Kaos is owned by Nancy Walton, heiress to the Walmart family fortune. Well, at least part of it. Enough, it seems.
At over 360′ long Kaos is huge, carries a compliment of 45 crew attending to a maximum of 31 guests. Imagine the complexity of such a vessel. And, at $300m an expensive one at that.
Well, is it sufficient to say that Antigua caters to the mega yacht crowd and Nancy and her “boat” are at the top of the pack.
Ok, enough about yachtspotting.
What about our plans this spring?
As I have mentioned in previous posts, I am leading the first ever Salty Dawg Rally to the Azores, scheduled to depart from Bermuda on or about June 1st. After the 2000 mile Atlantic crossing and arriving in Horta, Brenda will fly and meet me for a month of cruising the islands before she wings to Scotland for a few weeks of touring with an old friend. At that point, I will continue on to Spain, likely Almeria about 150 miles past Gibraltar, in Southern Spain.
Why Almeria? Well, there is a website/app Navily that combines Google Earth images of the coastline overlayed with anchorages and marinas for the entire Mediterranean, and other areas. A terrific feature of the program is that you can fill in the details of your boat and inquire about dockage at any particular marina with a few clicks. Using this service I methodically worked through just about all of the marinas between Gibraltar and as far north as Barcelona, literally dozens of marinas, asking about pricing for the 7 months that Pandora will be laid up from early August until the following spring.
Each of the symbols mean anchorages, marinas and other features that you can zoom in on. This is a Google shot of Almeria, well part of the city.
I heard back from nearly all of them and learned that pricing for storage, most commonly in-water, ranged from a low of about 4,000 euros to more than 8,000. I have also spoken to a number of cruisers with experience in this area and Almeria came up time and time again as a good place to store for the winter.
The marina, Puerto Deportivo Almerimar was on the low end of pricing and also offers both in-water storage and on-the-hard. With 7 months away and basically unsupervised, I am inclined to have Pandora hauled instead of worrying that something might happen with her so far away. And, with her floating (hopefully) for that long, I’d feel compelled to have someone keep an eye on her and that would surely add up to even more money over the many months.
The marina is positively huge with over 1,100 slips. They also have space on land if I choose that route. Note that the marina is protected from the Med Sea by a large breakwater. Given the relatively featureless coastline, without any natural inlets, the only option for marinas is to build one into the coastline and that’s what nearly all of them look like, large or small.
This photo gives a feel for just how many slips there are.
The marina is not directly in the city with the beautiful historical architecture as that one is twice the price. and it’s not worth the extra cost to be closer to the attractions. One option, when we are aboard, is to move to the more expensive marina in city center or rent a car.
Based on some of the videos that we have watched, there are lots of beautiful places to visit a short distance from the marina. This video gives a good feel for what’s in store, as near as I can figure.
Lots to look forward to but for now, here we are in very windy Antigua. Not a bad thing in late February when it’s snowy at home.
Better think about Valentine’s Day and sunny beaches.
It’s time to go for a swim and think about what is to come.
We have been in Falmouth Antigua for nearly a month and the winds have been pretty relentless.
Just about every day, and overnight too, we have short but intense rain showers. They arrive all of a sudden and depart just as fast, leaving a lovely rainbow, or two.
At daybreak the view is pretty nice too.
And at night.
Even the clouds look wonderful at night thanks to my “Night Site” photo capability on my phone.
Even though we have been sitting here, unmoved, for weeks now, the scenery changes with the hours. Huge yachts coming and going and a constant parade of tiny boats from the Yacht Club buzzing around the harbor
We have been enjoying an occasional Tot Club event and one that really stood out was aboard a megayacht. The yacht was out on the pier in Nelson’s Dockyard. Huge sailing yachts lined up like “mega sardines”.
The captain and first mate had joined the Tot Club the prior evening and invited all of us to visit for a cocktail party and Tot ceremony. Everyone huddled inside due to the, you guessed it, a brief rain shower.
The boat was huge, nearly 200′ long. Long expanse of teak up to the bow. We were told that forward, set into the deck, were compartments that open up to reveal a crane that launches 30′ tenders, his and hers. The level of sophistication of these yachts is amazing.
At the end of the night, everyone “walked the plank”, back to the dock.
Nice neighborhood. A massive open expanse of decking aft on this yacht.
Not all the yachts in the harbor are huge. With the strong wind there are foil sail boards. They zip along the surface at an alarming pace. Pretty amazing.
And some really tiny yachts showed up over the last few days. These boats, and two have come in already, are finishing up a qualifying passage from Logos Portugal to Antigua. Those that “qualify” can compete in The Mini Globe, 2025, round-the-world race beginning here.
The race, as crazy as it may seem, is for tiny, 19′ tiny,, single handed boats, doing a series of legs that takes them around the world, beginning and ending in Antigua. Well, at least they are going thru the Panama Canal, instead of around Cape Horn.
For the moment, I will just say that compared to the “world’s toughest row” that race with rowing boats from the Canaries to Antigua, seems like a “walk in the park”. Those rowboats are longer than these boats. Crazy. More to come as I learn more.
Imagine sailing a tiny homemade plywood boat, matching a design from 1955, around the world?
And it’s a very long way…
● Leg One, Antigua to Panama, 1300 miles. Truck across Panama, keels on, rigs o. (organizers will pre-book Trucking, but entrants are responsible for loading and transport costs). ● Leg Two, Panama to a ‘mystery island’ of entrant’s choice (8 day stop) then to Tahiti, total 5200 miles, 7 day pit stop, then to Tonga , 1500 miles, 8 day pit stop, then to Fiji, 500 miles. ● Leg Three, Fiji to Darwin 3000 miles, 8 day pit stop, then to Mauritius 4200, 10 day pit stop, then to Durban, 1500 miles, 14 days pit stop, then to Cape Town, 1000 miles, ( this can be anywhere or nowhere depending on the weather, but if a sailor sails direct to Cape Town and makes NO pit stops , no advantage is gained. ) ● Leg Four, Cape Town to St. Helena, 1800 miles, 8 days pit stop, then to Recife, 1800 miles. ● Leg Five, Recife to Antigua, 2500 miles. ● Total 23500 miles
And here we sit, with the wind howling while these intrepid sailors slog their way here, just to prove that they can.
With regards to going somewhere, with Brenda flying out on March 1st, we have to take a short term view of the weather and with no end in sight for the moment regarding the unusually strong “Christmas Winds”, late this year, we really can’t head south to Guadeloupe, where I had hoped to spend a week or two before coming back to Antigua later this month. As the winds are likely to be strong thru the end of the month, I couldn’t take the risk of heading south only to learn that getting back to Antigua would be a slog. I really don’t want Brenda’s last time aboard in the Caribbean this year to be unpleasant.
Several friends who ventured south over the last week reported that it was indeed, “salty” so our plan to stick close to home was a good one.
So, here we sit on our mooring.
The weather has been lovely with days in the mid 80s and nights in the 70s. Except for the passing shower, it’s been relentlessly sunny so between the wind and sun, the batteries have been up to snuff every day.
What will we do next? Who knows but it’s good to know that it’s not snowing here, unlike at home where there is the expectation of upwards of 6-8″ of snow.
Yup, all dressed up and nowhere to go. At least there is a happy hour to look forward to.
And, while we wait I can focus on finding a leak in our dink, fixing a leaky pump on the watermaker, cleaning the bottom for the second time, even if it didn’t need it, along with cutting off the engine lock that I lost the key for, picking up stuff for dinner, getting laundry done…
Oh yeah, and the occasional trip to the beach to languish in the gentle surf.
“Oh Bob, shut up, just shut up! It’s frigging snowing up here…”
Our son Christopher has often said that many boats look more like a sneaker than a boat, referring to many runabouts that we have seen over the years.
Recently, a superyacht Captain made a similar remark to me the other day when talking about many of the contemporary yachts that have launched over the last few years. In spite of the massive amount of money it takes to purchase and run one of these massive yachts, 100 will launch this year alone. That’s a lot of billionaires flexing their muscle and looking to make a statement.
Not unsurprisingly, he is skipper of a beautiful, and I’d say timeless, sailing yacht, one of the largest in the world. He’s been in the business for many years now and has captained both motor and sailing yachts all over the world.
His comment, aside from reminding me of Christopher’s comments, got me thinking about which designs will stand the test of time.
Over the last few years, it seems that many of the huge yachts, and they are getting bigger every year, are straying far from what had traditionally been seen as “classic”.
This one, dare I say, does look like a sneaker. Perhaps on the cutting edge of “different” I do wonder if this design will be considered “cutting edge” in a few years or just “out of fashion”. I guess that time will tell.
She is Sea Wolf X a new launch in 2024. Built in Italy, she was designed to be as fuel efficient as possible and her catamaran shape does save a lot of fuel relative to other similarly sized boats.
She is certainly a unique design and I wonder how she will wear in a decade or two.
The owner of Norn surely tossed out the norms when he commissioned his newest yacht a few years ago. In my opinion, she is impressive and in her own right will stand the test of time.
His last boat, Scat, looked similar and turned a lot of heads when she launched more than a dozen years ago. You can see the resemblance. I do think that these designs, in spite of looking so different than the typical white yacht, are unique in a good way.
Of course, what is now considered classic these days might have been considered groundbreaking when they hit the water so long ago.
For me, I tend to favor those that look what I would call “classic” with beautiful sweeping lines and stunning transoms.
One that comes to mind is Nahlin, which I have written about a number of times. This yacht was launched in 1930 and after nearly 100 years still turns heads wherever she goes. She is classic in every way and as long as she has an owner that can support her needs, I expect that 100 years from now she will still be considered beautiful.
She didn’t always look like she does now back before Dyson rescued her from oblivion.
She looks much the same now as she did when she was launched back in 1930. Of course, her steam engines have been replaced by modern diesels.
Nahlin has a lovely figurehead. The name Nahlin has native American roots, hence the figurehead.
Next to her is Sea Wolf, who just came in today. She was built in 1957 as a commercial ship and ultimately underwent a major refit in 2019 to change her into a proper yacht. To me, she has beautiful lines and clearly follows the idea that “form follows function”. This link takes you to a bit of background about the boat and owner. It’s unclear to me if the same owner has her now. Interestingly, he also founded a flight museum in Canada, Vintage wings of Canada, with an impressive collection. I guess he likes classic stuff of all types. Nice boat too.
Her engine compartment.
Under way. A beautiful go-anywhere yacht that has clearly been everywhere.
Another favorite is Talitha, built in 1930 looks a lot like Nahlin, but with two funnels. She has had a number of owners over the years but since the late 80s she has been owned by Getty family of Getty Images fame, now into her second generation with them. Her first owner was the head of the Packard motor car company and for a while she was owned by Woolworth department store family.
Crew tend to be shared between these classic yachts, with members serving on various boats over time. As Talitha pulled into the marina the other day I could see crew on other boats shouting welcomes to the crew of Talitha. I guess it’s like a reunion when they congregate in a harbor.
And speaking of reunions, the skipper of EOS arranged a fun run and dock party last week to raise money for two local charities, one, The National Sailing Academy of Antigua and the other, The International Yacht Restoration School , IYRS, out of Newport RI, that brings Antiguan youth to the US to be trained in Marine Systems so that they can return to Antigua to work on yachts.
I am particularly excited about the IYRS charity as I started a this program a few years ago with a friend, to bring youth from Antigua to Newport for a 6 month program in the Marine Trades to help feed the next generation of marine tradespeople in Antigua. We have our first graduate and another on the way to Newport in the spring. After three years of working on the program, it seems to be really taking off.
Our first IYRS graduate, Ishmael, on the right, with his mom and brother at the party. HIs brother is also going to join the program. As you can imagine, their Mom is very proud.
The evening, following a 4k fun run with perhaps 200 people, mostly crew from other yachts.
It was a very festive evening.
Captain Martin of Eos, asking everyone to donate.
And, giving out raffle prizes.
The biggest “kiddy pool” of beer I’ve ever seen.
Eos on the dock. She will surely stand the test of time as a beautiful yacht.
EOS towers over the dock. Note the figurehead. Diane, I believe.
And now, to the left Talitha.
This is just a few examples of beautiful yachts that have stood the test of time. There are many yachts whos designs test the limits of what should a yacht look like and I wonder how they will be viewed in a few decades.
Obsidian, is also a new build and quite arresting to look at. As she is so sleek looking, I expect that she will stand the test of time but I guess it’s still too early to tell as she is only two years old. One of the crew members told me that he unusual metallic paintjob is so difficult to patch, that if she is scratched she will have to be fully repainted.
Cutting edge yes. But a sleek look.
Not your “father’s yacht”. Interesting but does look a bit sneaker like.
Interestingly, in order to keep a yacht looking tip-top, it has to be completely painted every 4-5 years. With that in mind, the owner will only have to live with a scratch for a few years.
With a big yacht, and they are getting bigger every year, monthly expenses run upwards of $500,000. And that doesn’t even count new paintjobs to fix those scratches.
Well, I could go on and on about all the yachts in Antigua but one thing for sure is that this whole business of mega yacht ownership is growing every year and it’s hard to imagine how these harbors, already packed, will address the influx of new hardware.
Like the smaller cruising boats that we have, they don’t go away after a decade so the total number is growing every year and the harbors aren’t getting any bigger.
I guess I will have to just remain content with little old Pandora for the foreseeable future.
Not bad for an old girl. And, to my eye, she doesn’t look much like a sneaker.
