ENTRIES are still open for the Vasco da Gama Ocean Race 2015, which starts on 25 April.
The Vasco da Gama Ocean Race is the oldest coastal ocean race on the South African sailing calendar and will be sailed for the 44th time this year. It is open to both Monohulls and Multihulls.
For the next three years the race will once again go south from Durban and finish in Port Elizabeth, adding an additional 100 nautical miles to the distance, making it a 400nm ocean race.
The race has caught the imagination of Cape yachtsmen, and if just half the number of potential competitors from the Cape make it to the start line, this race will have more Cape entries than at any other time in its history. But more importantly than this, it has caught the imagination of so many different people who are itching to compete.
“At the Cape Town Boat Show I was chatting to a guy and his wife from Bloemfontein. I enquired where people in that area sailed, and he simply said Gariep Dam. He then went on to say that on Gariep Dam there are a number of biggish keelboats which race once a month, his being a Jeannea Sun Fizz 40 named ‘Star Spirit’. The essence of revealing this is that Willie Pretorius is planning to take the boat from Gariep Dam to the coast for the race. He hopes to be able to compete in the Mykonos Race with his crew, before heading for Durban and the Vasco Race,” said Richard Crockett, chairman of the organising committee.
Another great story is that from Tony Bailes who submitted the third entry. He entered ‘Malgas’ an L34 which he has been prepping for serious racing for some time. But, having entered, the bug bit hard and he thought he would rather sail something a little bigger, so has bought the Fast 42 ‘Nemesis’ which is being prepped in Cape Town. Tony plans to compete in RCYC Summer Regatta, Fling Regatta and Mykonos Race before taking her to his home port of Port Elizabeth for additional crew training prior to sailing to Durban for the Vasco start.
These are just two ‘feel good’ stories which are sweeping the country and which will make this years Vasco da Gama Race the best ever since the days when it went to East London
“The dates for this year’s race were selected very carefully to permit people to sail and take as little leave as possible, and to enable competitors to stay on and compete in the Algoa Bay Week regatta should they wish to. Monday 27 April and Friday 1 May are both public holidays. This means that competitors will need just three days leave for the Vasco da Gama Race, while the Algoa Bay Week Regatta takes place on a public holiday and the weekend 1 to 3 May,” said Crockett.
He said there was still a possibility of a race from Port Elizabeth to Cape Town after the Vasco da Gama Race.
There are eight entries so far and entries close on 27 March at 5pm. If you are interested in entering, contact sailing@pyc.co.za
Information on the race may be obtained from the Vasco da Gama Race secretary, Lucy de Freitas, at the Point Yacht Club on 031 301 4787
