Press Information 2013

 THE SUPERYACHT CUP PALMA JUNE 19 – 22 2013 PRESS INFORMATION EVENT CONTACTS Kate Branagh Event Director Jane Thompson Sponsorship Manager Katrina Arens Int. Press Coordinator Brenda Berta Spanish Press Amanda Picornell Event Coordinator [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] m: +34 620 103 958 m:+34 605 223 202 m: +34 617 787 952 m:+34 645 576 635 m: +34 616.190.141 Welcome to the Superyacht Cup Palma 2013 Running since 1997, it is the longest running superyacht regatta in Europe and continues to attract yachts from all over the world. As always the fleet is made up of yachts from different designers and shipyards, the yachts varying in size from 24m to over 40m. The 2013 fleet is a mix of regular SYC participants and new yachts to the event. This year is very special having 5 of the J Class yachts attending, something that has never happened in Europe before. Hanuman, Ranger, Velsheda, Rainbow and Lionheart raced together for the first time in St Barth´s in the Caribbean earlier this year and having the 5 yachts together is sure to be a spectacular sight. For more information on the J class visit: http://www.jclassyachts.com/ The J Class yachts will be racing an extra day on Wednesday 19th June and will be sailing a separate course to the superyachts. The 15 superyachts will be racing in two classes under the ISYR rules. This year we have introduced a staggered start sequence, which means the time interval between the first boat starting and the last boat starting will be shorter and should ensure that yachts should start in more similar wind conditions producing fairer results. It is always a difficult job to produce a fair system for racing such vastly different yachts and this year significant changes have been made to the race format to improve the racing for everyone. Scorpione de Mari is back for the 6th time, having competed every SYC Palma since 2007 with the exception of 2009. More than half the fleet has attended more than two SYC regattas showing the popularity of Palma to these globe-­‐trotting yachts. This year the new comers are Freya, Rainbow, Penelope, Only Now and Hanuman. We hope that you will enjoy watching these truly incredible yachts competing in the Bay of Palma and have a wonderful time on this very special Mediterranean island. PRESS BOATS We have very limited press boats and places in the SYC RIBs are reserved for our Official Media Partners. RIB SUPPORT is our preferred supplier and can offer you a private RIB or a place on a shared RIB with a professional driver. Please contact: [email protected] or visit www.RIBSUPPORT.com PRESS PASSES Press passes will be allocated to accredited media on a first come first served basis as we have strict number restrictions this year, we can not guarantee your access even after applying for accreditation. Priority will be given to our Official Media Partners. PHOTOGRAPHS High resolution editorial use photographs of The Superyacht Cup can be obtained from our official Photographer, Claire Matches: [email protected] and www.clairematches.com SOME FACTS AND FIGURES Scorpione Dei Mari, Castro/Jongert 29m -­‐ has competed in the most Superyacht Cup events and was the winner in 2010. With their bright green crew uniform the Scorpione crew race hard and play hard in the true spirit of the Superyacht Cup. Atalante, Truly Classic 90 – another regular to Palma, Atalante took 2nd place last year in class and overall as well as winning the Hoek Cup for the best placed Hoek design. Firefly, Hoek/Claasen Shipyard 35m-­‐ First of the new F class, launched in Holland in 2011. She made her racing debut at this regatta in 2011 coming 3rd in class. This elegant design and fast racing yacht is one to watch out for. Drumfire, Truly Classic 78 – At 24m Drumfire is one of the smallest yachts in the fleet, but nothing deters from her competitiveness, winner of Superyacht Cup in 2011 and the only yacht to compete in both the SYC Palma and SYC Cowes in 2012 she is well sailed in every regatta. Heartbeat, Truly Classic 78 – Sister ship to Drumfire Heartbeat also took part in SYC Cowes last year and in Palma in 2011. Reesle, Classic 100 – Reesle was built more for space and comfort than speed but still she loves the racing competition and has competed in Palma in 2011 and 2012, winning the first race in 2012. Rebecca, Frers/Pendennis – Rebecca is well known on the Caribbean racing circuit, always well sailed and immaculately presented she is a stunning ketch with power and speed. At 43m she is one of the largest yachts this year and will be a competitive entry to beat. Hoek Design – once again this year, the Hoek Design office have the most representation, this year 5 of the fleet are from their drawing boards. Tulip – a new comer to SYC and a very beautifully proportioned modern yacht. Designed by Frers and build by K&M Yachts at 88ft Tulip is their biggest boat yet. This will be Tulips first regatta and hopefully she will become a regular at the Superyacht regattas around the world. Nationalities of participating yachts – The nationalities are broken down to the following: Holland x 7, UK x 5, German x 2, Belguim x 1, USA x 5 HISTORY OF THE SUPERYACHT CUP PALMA The Superyacht Cup is now in it’s 17th year; starting out as an 'end of season' party for yachts leaving the Mediterranean for the Caribbean, it has grown into one of the highlights of the European superyacht summer schedule. Back in 1995 the idea of fleet racing was far too serious, many of the boats were taking part without the owner's being present so the simpler and safer option of a pursuit race was devised. Simple principal -­‐ the smallest and slowest boat starts first, the larger faster boats starting at specific time intervals afterwards to 'try and catch up'. The time differences in these early days were simply based on an estimate of the time taken to get around the course and were adjusted daily. At the end of the day the captains and crew met for a beer or two on the dock and the party began. Over the years the event has grown in popularity and the trend in performance-­‐orientated yachts has brought many new entries. A new organization, the Superyacht Racing Association (SYRA) http://www.superyra.org/ has been formed to represent the interests of those taking part in Superyacht regattas all around the world, addressing and improving the safety issues and aiming to enhance the enjoyment for the owners with fair, safe racing. The ISYR www.internationalsuperyachtrule.com/ ratings are worked out very accurately using a vast amount of actual data gathered from the yachts as well as input on design parameters to produce a prediction of performance at different wind speeds and on different points of sail, over a specific distance. The science is not exact, but with such hugely differing designs and sizes of yachts it is a very complex task. Changes in format of racing, such as introducing staggered starts, aims to improve the fairness by having yachts race in more similar conditions as the start sequence is shortened significantly. The most important aspect of the event still remains, that it is a ‘fun’ regatta both on and off the water and sailing safely in the spirit of the event is the focus. THE SUPERYACHT CUP PALMA WINNERS 1998 – 2011 1997 IMAGINE 2001 KOKOMO 2005 ALL SMOKE 2009 GLISS 1998 SOVEREIGN 2002 TIMONEER 2006 HYPERION 2010 SCORPIONE DEI MARI 1999 BOLERO 2003 UNFURLED 2007 HETAIROS 2011 DRUMFIRE 2000 KOKOMO 2004 TIMONEER 2008 HYPERION 2012 MARIA CATTIVA