Sailor man Anthony Howes and his team from Point Yacht Club have been hard at work, steering the organising for the big offshore yachting event, the annual MSC Week Regatta, starting on Sunday with the practice race, the Commodore’s Cup. Racing proper begins on Monday. Howes is the MSC Week race organising committee chairman, and his team is ready to welcome more than 20 yachts from around the country. MSC Week began in 1976 and gives sailors five days of offshore sailing at its finest in Durban’s magnificent winter conditions. Picture: Shelley Kjonstad Independent Newspapers
Durban — Eager sailors hope for fair winds when they race their yachts offshore of Durban in the MSC Week Regatta.
The annual event, hosted by the Point Yacht Club from Sunday until Friday, aims to bring together sailing enthusiasts, yacht club members and participants from various backgrounds to celebrate and promote the sport.
The regatta is one of the biggest sailing events in South Africa and this year holds the L26 regionals competition, ORC Nationals, MSC Week 24 and MSC 2 Day 24.
The week-long regatta will have about 120 sailors racing in a variety of competitive classes. It is a multi-class regatta for keel boats and multihulls, offering round-the-cans racing and medium-distance races.
The regatta was first hosted by the Point Yacht Club in the early 1980s.
Race officer Kevin Bingham said the different classes of boats (some ranked on handicap) sail a variety of prescribed courses over the five days, after which the category winners and place finishers are decided.
“It’s a week of sailing racing, ordinarily in varying conditions, across varying courses, in the best sailing waters in the world,” said Bingham.
He said this was his third time officiating the MSC regatta. His next prestigious event will be the Mirror Class Worlds in Durban next year.
UKZN Yacht Club Commodore Keyuren Maharaj, skipper of UKZN’s racing team on the yacht SLFC Spindrift, said for the first time the team was mostly women and showcased students from all backgrounds and races.
The SLFC Spindrift is an L26, a highly competitive racing yacht.
“There are four females on the six-member team. We are a fairly new team with only two members from last year, but I am comfortable and happy with my crew. This race is very technical and involves a lot of pre-planning. The challenge for any team is getting the crew to work well together,” he said.
Maharaj said this would be his eighth MSC Week Regatta and his third as part of the UKZN team.
“In the previous two years we placed fourth. This year we are looking for a spot in the top three. This is the first time in five years that 12 boats will be racing in our L26 category. Tomorrow (Sunday) is the practice race, also known as the Commodore’s Cup, and we will be able to see which teams work well together and which boats are faster,” said Maharaj.
He said a skipper’s first and foremost duty was ensuring safety and knowing the limits and boundaries of the crew and the boat.
Maharaj will race against his brother, Seshen Maharaj, who is in Grade 11 at Glenwood High School and will be sailing in his school’s team.
An avid sailor, Keyuren’s passion for the sport started while at Glenwood High School when he joined their sailing club, captaining the school’s sailing team.
Keyuren holds a South African medal for sailing in addition to numerous provincial and interschool awards, showcasing his talent for the sport.
“We hope residents of Durban will come out to the beach next week and watch the yachts racing offshore from uShaka up north towards Virginia Beach,” he said.
Jessica Fennessy, 20, from Durban North, is among the six-member UKZN Yacht Club crew.
“I am looking forward to building friendships with my fellow teammates and hopefully winning. I have been sailing with my family from a young age and participated in the regatta in 2018. This is my first time with the UKZN club. I have a passion for the ocean and sailing helps to be on the ocean,” said Fennessy.
Independent on Saturday