Nelson’s Dockyard IN Antigua will take a new look when a brand-new race-management team, and a strong, diverse fleet ranging from the one-design Dragons to the state-of-the-art Grand Prix racers. Yes people, the 42nd consecutive edition of Antigua Sailing Week is shaping up as yet another memorable series. And with the competition scheduled to begin just days from now, on Saturday, April 25th, the event’s organizers are now bracing for the influx of old friends and fresh faces to the windswept Antiguan waters.
The format and the race committee may be new—as are many of the entrants making their debut at Antigua Sailing Week—but there are also many familiar boats and sailors descending on the dramatic and picturesque Caribbean isle. Among them are Mike Slade’s remarkable 100-foot canting-keel maxi, ICAP Leopard; the Grand Soleil 50, Mad IV; and the Rogers 46, Yeoman XXXII. The TP 52, Rio and the renamed Ireland-flagged Cookson 50, Lee Overlay Partners which raced in Antigua two years ago as Chieftain, will test all of them.