'Lady Anne', 'Chinook,' 'Comet,' 'Argos,' and 'Happy Forever' Claim Victory at the Copa del Rey Reps

"Classic sailing is a hobby that grows on you; once you start to like it, it's a lifelong passion," said Gonzalo Botín, skipper of the Lady Anne, who declared his love for historic sailing after winning this afternoon's 20th Copa del Rey Repsol de Barcos de Época in the Big Boats class.

The experienced Spanish sailor praised his crew's skill and the excellent preservation of the boat, an F15 designed and built by William Fife III in 1912, which has reached our times in full form as if it had just left the shipyard. Its last restoration was in 1999, and since then, it has only required minor maintenance touches.

It had been 11 years since the "Lady Anne" last competed in the waters of Mahón. Then, it also competed in the F15 class and took the victory. This year's performance was almost perfect, if perfection exists in a sport subject to as many variables as sailing. It won all three races (on different courses and with varying winds), always leading the fleet of the seven Big Boats gathered at the Club Marítimo de Mahón. The supremacy of Lady Anne was only briefly threatened by its twin "Mariska" (1908), skippered by Dan Pojsak, who had to settle for the runner-up spot. Keith Mills' "Viveka," which performed excellently in today's 17-mile course along Menorca's north coast and crossed the finish line in second place, completed the Big Boats podium.

Another protagonist of the 20th Copa del Rey Repsol was "Chinook," the winner in the Época Cangreja class. Its three partial victories, however, are not the reflection of overwhelming superiority. Its side-by-side duel with "Rowdy" has been one of the most thrilling ever seen in the history of the competition in Mahón. Both boats were designed and built by Herreshoff in 1916 for the legendary NY40 series, but they had never faced each other in the Copa del Rey because "Rowdy" had a Bermuda rig until two years ago. Now that both present the characteristic early 20th-century trapezoidal rigging, the differences are minimal, as evidenced by today's real-time result, in which "Chinook" prevailed by seven seconds after a nearly 14-mile journey, although time compensation extended the lead to two minutes.

"Comet" (1946) reaffirmed last year's victory in the Época Bermudiana class by winning all three races of the Copa del Rey Repsol. The Sparkman & Stephens yacht skippered by Marc Marciano always sailed ahead of its main rival, the Sonata (1937), owned by Jordi Cabau, due to its greater speed, although it also defended its rating very well. Today, it beat its rival by eleven minutes in real time and five in compensated time. Tara Getty's "Baruma" (1938), freshly launched after a seven-year restoration, finally stepped onto the third podium spot.

The news of the day in the Classics was the seventh consecutive victory of "Argos" in the Copa del Rey Repsol de Barcos de Época. The crew of Bárbara Trilling was second in today's final race and ended the competition with four points, one less than "Crivizza" (1966), skippered by Gigi Rolandi. It's rare for the Holman & Pie-designed vessel built in 1964 at Carabela shipyards to yield the lead, not even in a single race, hence the achievement of the "Crivizza" team in proving that "Argos" can be beaten. The third place, six points behind the champion, was for "Clarionet," a Sparkman & Stephens from 1966 skippered by David Miles, which proved to have a competent crew.

"Happy Forever" (2008) finally thwarted "Calima" (1970), which will have to wait for another opportunity to claim its fifteenth victory in the Copa del Rey Repsol de Barcos de Época. Neither had their best day today. "Happy Forever," owned and skippered by Christian Oldendorff, finished third in the 14-mile race along the north coast of Mallorca, while Calima, skippered by Pachi Rivero, crossed the finish line in fifth place. It's the first time that Oldendorff's crew has been crowned champion of the Copa del Rey Repsol in the Spirit of Tradition category, followed by "Calima," second, and "Celeste di Mare" (1971), by Amador Magraner, completing the podium thanks to its victory in the last partial.