Officine Panerai kicked off its title sponsorship of the 2011 Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge in North America on August 12 with the Corinthian Classic Yacht Regatta at Marblehead, Massachusetts. The race attracted 65 classic and vintage boats. On Saturday night, the captains and crews enjoyed an elegant dinner with honored guest and speaker, the legendary yachtsman Ted Hood.
Hood enthralled the crowd with his tales of the early days and his most memorable races, including his design and skippering of Courageous and its famous America’s Cup win in 1974.
The event culminated on Sunday evening with the Awards Party at the Corinthian Yacht Club where the 68’ winning yacht Black Watch, co-owned and skippered by Trevor Fetter of Dallas, was awarded the overall prize: a Radiomir 8 Days GMT (PAM169), as well as a Panerai Barometer for placing first in its vintage class.
In addition to Black Watch, the competition showcased an impressive range of beautiful vintage, classic and yachts – from the Antigua-based 1938 vintage yacht, Mariella, to international one designs such as Tango, to the Sparkman and Stephens 12-meter yacht Valiant, as well as the “Spirit of Tradition” yachts Vigor, White Wings and Wild Horses.
First-place winners in other classes included Only Time for the Modern Classic division, owned by Rob Gorman; Sagacious, owned by Timmy Dittrich, won for the Classic International One Design Division, and Amazing Grace, owned by Hoff Stauffer won for the “Spirit of Tradition” division. Each winner of the respective classes was awarded a classically-designed Panerai Barometer.
The Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge sails next to Nantucket, MA for the Opera House Cup August 19th – 21st, followed by Newport, RI for the Museum of Yachting Classic Yacht Regatta on September 2nd-4th. The North American Circuit, comprised of the most revered regattas in the U.S. and Caribbean, kicked off this year in mid-April with the Antigua Classic Yachts Regatta.
Black Watch co-owner and skipper Trevor Fetter receiving the Panerai Radiomir 8 Days GMT.
The winning 68′ yacht Black Watch.
