Spirit of Bermuda Starts Newport Race First
The Newport Bermuda committee, in response to a request by captain Scott Jackson and watch captain Larry Rosenfeld of the Bermuda Training Sloop Spirit of Bermuda, has changed the starting sequence for the 2012 Newport Bermuda Race.
Royal Bermuda Yacht Club Commodore Jonathan Brewin [center] and Vice Commodore Somers Kempe chat with ‘Spirit of Bermuda’ sailors Jay Kemp [L], and Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club Commodore Alan Williams. [Photo: Talbot Wilson]
Spirit of Bermuda — with 32 aboard — will now start first instead of last as originally scheduled. She will start 1/2 hour before Class 1 is scheduled to start.
The photo below was taken at 10.44am today in Newport:
The first warning for Spirit of Bermuda, sailing alone in the new Spirit of Tradition Division, will now be at 12:20 with her start at 12:30 EDT. The change was made when Spirit’s captain raised safety issues and concerns about Spirit a Custom 86′ schooner sailing through the fleet of smaller slower boats during the first night of the race.
Spirit crew 10 minutes before the race start:
The starting sequence for the rest of the fleet remains the same with the first warning scheduled for Class 1 at 12:50AM and their start scheduled for 1:00PM. The remaining 15 classes will start at 10 minute intervals.
Spirit of Bermuda led the fleet away from Newport [Photo: Barry Pickthall/PPL]:
Where are the Children?????? Why didn’t the Children have a chance to experience this??? Wasn’t this ship built for the children??
WONT SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE CHILDREN…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh2sWSVRrmo
Agreed….I guess even our junior sailors you see flying around the harbor in 35knot winter gales aren’t good enough to sail with the good ole boys!
You sound like Josh
I believe this is a competetive race and not suitable for children. I also understand that many of the crew raised or donated money for the privelege of being aboard,thus raising much needed funds to allow for future crossings with the children.
Please make sure that the POLICE pay EXTRA ATTENTION to this ship because as we already know it has already been used as a DRUG AND GUN SMUGGLING SHIP! We don’t need any of that for the summer .
They paid for the privilege