Cruising

Caribbean Multihull Challenge - Regatta or rally, the choice is yours!

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Fujin, a 53-foot catamaran with curious-looking bows, won easily on all the courses. This multihull set the time for the Around Saba Dash: the 52-mile route was covered in 3h, 21m and 35s.

Article published on 31/03/2023

By Emmanuel van Deth

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published inn°189may / june

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This event was conceived following a simple observation by the enthusiastic, 82-year-old American Stephen Burzon: that while St. Maarten seems to be the epicenter of multihull sailing, it does not benefit from an event 100% dedicated to catamarans and trimarans. This is why Steve, with the support of the St. Maarten Yacht Club, launched a first edition in 2019, repeating it again in 2020. The dates chosen at that time in mid-February overlapped with those of the Miami Boat Show; however, the event is now held at the beginning of February - this year it took place from February 4 to 6. For this 2023 edition, on the racing side, we counted 6 entrants in the CSA1 class, 5 for the CSA2 and 3 categories and finally 6 among the Diam 24s. This one-design fleet is so active in Sint Maarten - with a very dynamic concentration in Philipsburg - that we’ll be devoting a complete article to it very soon.

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Clearly, nothing can slow the enthusiasm of the organizers and participants - even the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic didn’t cause the event to be canceled. The Caribbean Multihull Challenge, now in its fifth year, has already matured and continues to develop new concepts. This year, the CMC proposed the Around Saba record starting from Simpson Bay. This 52-mile race, called the Around Saba Dash, was won by Fujin, Greg Slyngstad’s 53-foot boat with curiously shaped bows. The catamaran made short work of beating the Gunboat 60 Cui Bono, coming in one hour behind. The first established time for this record is therefore set at 3 hours, 21 minutes and 35 seconds. In the opinion of all the local sailors, this extraordinary time will be difficult to beat... a fact that doesn’t fail to amuse the skipper: “Fujin’s record will stand until we see an MOD70 back on the circuit!” Although the true wind never exceeded 22 knots, the Bieker 53 managed to reach 25 knots. An impressive speed for a cruiser-racer - but still a long way from this all-carbon catamaran’s best top speed of 32 knots... The third day’s racing proved to be the most muscular with gusts over 30 knots. In these conditions, the Diam 24s were asked to stay at anchor... The untouchable Cry Baby was almost certain of victory 10 hours before the prize-giving ceremony! In CSA 2, the venerable Tryst - a Dick Newick design built in Maine in 1969 – was the winner. In CSA 3, the Leopard 50 La Novia had had their work cut out to outrun another particularly fast Leopard - the 47 Seaduction, the previous winner in the 2022 edition.
The 2023 edition of the CMC stood out from previous editions, with the birth of a rally division - in addition to the “traditional” race. This fleet set out from St Martin, but followed an itinerant course, one that became an itinerant course with attractive stopovers – these were at Anse Marcel, on the French side of St. Martin, and on the neighboring island of Anguilla with festivities organized ashore. The rally fleet saw 12 multihulls come together - 11 catamarans and 1 trimaran. Among the former, no less than 6 Balance catamarans were present. Just ahead of the event, the brand, under the impulse of Phil Berman, founder and manager, had organized a gathering in Saint-Martin to mark an anniversary that could not be missed - Balance Catamarans, in fact celebrating their 10th anniversary this year. This strongly represented yard has set a course to be followed. Stephen believes that it’s the boatbuilders who will ensure the future growth of the rally fleet: “The agreement with Balance was incredible, and it’s something we want to offer to other brands in the future. The participants were treated to some amazing parties, live music, dancing, photo shoots, organized games and of course sailing. I really want to involve other brands like HH Catamarans, Lagoon, Fountaine Pajot and others. My plan is to organize this as a rally for as many boaters as possible.” – Watch this ...

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