Dubois Cup 2
Porto Cervo, Italy. 6th June 2011.
Another hugely successful edition of the Dubois Cup closed with the victory of the 44.8-metre ketch Timoneer. Organized by the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda from 4th to 6th June, the Dubois Cup 2011 saw nine sailing superyachts competing and a spectator fleet of sail and motor yachts bringing the total stable of Dubois-designed vessels lining the quays of Porto Cervo Marina to 14. Andrew Cook’s 30-metre Nostromo took second place in the overall classification ahead of Salvatore Trifiro’s 49.7-metre fast cruising sloop Zefira.
Racing got under way on schedule today and the fleet were set a 17 nautical mile course which took them up along the coast of north-east Sardinia, through the strait between Capo Ferro and the Isole delle Bisce islet before an upwind beat to Monaci island and a downwind run to the finish line off Porto Cervo. Northerly breezes of approximately 7 to 8 knots accompanied the fleet at the starting line but began to die out towards the end of the race. The 2010-launched Zefira was the fastest yacht around the course but Timoneer’s handicap rating allowed her to claim overall victory.
As with every edition of the Dubois Cup, Ed Dubois, founder and CEO of Dubois Naval Architects, made a very personal appeal to support research into childhood illness. The Dubois Child Cancer Fund has recently been set up to fund specific research into the childhood cancer Neuroblastoma and the regatta served as a platform to launch the initiative. New for this edition was also the commitment of Dubois Naval Architects and Dubois Yachts Ltd to balancing the event’s carbon footprint, making this one of the first superyacht events to do so.
“It is always a real pleasure for us to host this event. Ed Dubois’ extended family of owners and crews have returned to Porto Cervo to enjoy some wonderful racing in a beautiful setting and to have some fun. This event always brings a real atmosphere of camaraderie and sportsmanship and I am already looking forward to the 2013 edition and an even bigger Dubois fleet.” commented Riccardo Bonadeo, YCCS Commodore.
The Dubois Cup 2011 closed in style with a prize giving ceremony followed by a barbecue and dancing at the YCCS Clubhouse.
The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda’s 2011 sporting calendar continues with the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta taking place from tomorrow, Tuesday 7th June until Saturday 11th June.
For further information, entry lists and full results please visit www.duboiscup.com or www.yccs.com.
About YCCS : The Yacht Club Costa Smeralda was founded in Porto Cervo, Sardinia in 1967 by current president H.H. the Aga Khan and a group of founder-members as a non-profit sporting association for fellow sailing enthusiasts. The YCCS is renowned for organizing international sailing events such as the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup, the Audi Sardinia Cup and the Rolex Swan Cup as well as World and European championships for top one-design fleets. In recent years the Club has focused on promoting new superyacht events such as the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta, the Dubois Cup and the Perini Navi Cup. The Club has also promoted international challenges such as Azzurra – the first Italian challenger for the America’s Cup in 1983 which became a legendary Italian brand and was relaunched by the YCCS in 2009 with a victorious participation in the Louis Vuitton Trophy in Nice, the participation in the Volvo Ocean Race with a two boat campaign one of which had an all-female crew, and the motor yacht Destriero which to this day holds the transatlantic crossing record set in 1992. The YCCS continues to expand its activities in 2011 is scheduled to open a winter base in Virgin Gorda, BVI where it already manages new, purpose-built marina.
