The spinnakers of the 2009 St Barths Bucket on the final round island race day.

I have just returned from one of the more fun yachting events in the world – the St. Barths Bucket.  The participants racing on the  34 superyachts were treated to 3 perfect days of 15-20 kt winds, Caribbean blue water and the spirit of taking a 100′+ boat and racing it like a 36′ club champion.   Typically, these yachts live in sailors worlds as the lovely ladies gracing calendar pictures on the walls of our homes and offices, or the screensavers of people wanting the distraction to dream of luxury cruising in million dollar style.  That’s what makes a Bucket Regatta so unique – these boats not built for racing dominate courses and maneuver around marks like their smaller cousins.

This years fleet ranged from the massive 289′ tri-masted MALTESE FALCON to the 76′ W-Class boat Wild Horses.  There were 9 Perini Navi’s, including the new BARRACUDA, unmistakable with its purple sails outfitting the massive ketch rig.  After 3 days of racing, the 2 year old 170′ Huisman-built schooner, METEOR won with a 1-13-4 record.  The race committee was busy as on the final day of racing, the complex handicapping of the fleet paid off having 12 boats cross the finish line within 3 minutes of one another.  That’s an incredibly close finish considering the course was around St. Barths, a 2+ hr trip and piling 12 boats next to each other across the line takes some communication to finish safely.

Look for photos coming to a marine photographers calendar near you and certainly stay tuned for next year.  Much of the industry may be suffering from downturns but this fleet does not seem to be disappearing anytime soon.