by Richard Crockett
Many of us would relish the chance of sailing on one of the old classic 12-metre yachts, yet South African Nick Leggatt went one better and competed aboard ‘Wings’ in the America’s Cup 150th Jubilee Regatta off Cowes.
“With no cockpit, other than a small one for the helmsman and main trimmer, and no guardrails, life for a crewman on a classic 12 Metre is precarious! With the heavy displacement, narrow hull·and low freeboard these boats blast through waves rather than ride over them and standing on the varnished sidedecks one seems to stay aboard through will power alone!” said Leggatt.
He concluded his report as follows: “When America won in 1851, Queen Victoria had asked who had come second. She was told, “Ma’am, there is no second.” 150 years later, results mattered little in a race that saw many of the greatest yachts ever built racing together in a remarkable spectacle. But when all was said and done we were the fifth Classic 12 Metre to finish, behind ‘Nyala’, ‘Vanity V’, ‘Sovereign’ and ‘Flicka II’.
This is a really good feature to sit back with a cup of coffee and enjoy.
READ IT ALL HERE: 2002 03 – SAILING Magazine – OCR