Sailors and sailboats of every description will descend on Edgartown and Vineyard Haven this weekend when two big regattas that are mainstay sailing events of summer get under way.
The Edgartown Yacht Club will host its 90th annual regatta, and Sail Martha’s Vineyard will host its annual Vineyard Cup. Both events attract world-class sailors, and the waters from Cow Bay in Edgartown to West Chop in Vineyard Haven will be dotted with colorful sails all weekend.
Fair winds and 74 sailboats with more than 300 sailors on board made for a spectacular sight at Saturday’s Round the Island Race. Beginning with its early morning start, the Edgartown Yacht Club race was quite a spectacle as the boats positioned themselves for eight starts. Winds prevailed for most of the race and all but two boats completed the 56-mile mile course.
Spirited sailors and their sleek sailboats arrive this week for the start of the 86th annual Edgartown Yacht Club Regatta. The regatta appears to be recession-proof. Sailors love to sail, no matter what appears to be going on ashore. Competition begins on Thursday and runs through Saturday. As many as 250 youths and as many people are expected to compete on the water, possibly more than a year ago.
Roughly 50 boats with captains and crew will participate in the day-long ’Round the Island Race, which starts early Saturday morning.
Sunday’s stiff southwest wind more than made up for Saturday’s light air to make the 14th annual Edgartown Yacht Club 12-metre regatta a weekend success. Ten of the fastest sailboats in the region, contenders in past America’s Cup racing, came together on Nantucket Sound to share a moment at the start and race to the finish. Saturday had time for just one race; Sunday had three.
Jeff Randall, a 12-metre enthusiast and event chairman, said the weekend sailing will go down in the yacht club books as one of the best sailing weekends they’ve had.
Sailing already is getting under way this summer.
The Vineyard Haven Yacht Club is observing its 80th summer. The Edgartown Yacht Club is hosting more summer sailing events than it did a year ago. Sail Martha’s Vineyard is gearing up for its big sailing classic Vineyard Cup in mid-July. The Holmes Hole Sailing Association has launched its Sunday and Thursday races.
Across the Island’s harbors, the boats are here. Plenty more are coming. The talk at yacht clubs is about events, wind, markers, crew and gear.
East winds, fog and shifting breezes challenged the best sailors in
last week's 82nd Edgartown Yacht Club Regatta. More than 200
sailboats competed in the one-design sailboat race that ran from
Thursday through Saturday.
