PHOTOS: JEFF BROWN
Silencio has taken the first race in the New Zealand Millennium Cup, which kicked off earlier today. The 164-foot (50-meter) sailing yacht, built by Perini Navi in 2001, was also first off the mark.
Given that this is Silencio’s first time competing in the New Zealand Millennium Cup, her crew is extra-motivated to make an impression. Witness the fact that they performed a haka, a traditional Maiori dance (above), before the warning pistol was even fired. (The haka is often characterized as a war dance, but it’s also a display of a tribe’s pride and unity. It’s further often used on the sports field to put opponents on notice.)
Silencio wasn’t the only sailing superyacht displaying pride on the New Zealand Millennium Cup “battlefield.” As each competitor unfurled her gennaker, race-watchers delighted in seeing the colors: Bliss (bold orange), Steinlager II (bold red), and Janice of Wyoming (a bucking bronco), to name a few.
Fair breezes for the beginning of the race made for good action. Around the first mark, near Motuterakihi Island, Silvertip and Bliss each passed Janice of Wyoming and Sassafras in their division. Silvertip then pulled into the lead prior to reaching Ninepin Island, the second mark. (The New Zealand Millennium Cup is using a combination of buoys, rocks, and islands as the marks. It also follows pursuit racing rules, which allows sailing yachts of different classes to compete against each other. Handicaps are provided by the International Superyacht Rule. Ultimately, this permits the competition to come down to crew skill, not equipment superiority.) Meanwhile, Silencio continued to lead Antaeus and Steinlager II in their division, even through to rounding the third mark.
Winds dropped a bit through the race, so the New Zealand Millennium Cup race organizers eliminated the last mark. Interesting enough, Antaeus pulled ahead of Silencio at this point, despite having started 13 minutes after her. Silencio was not to be outdone, crossing the finish line first and claiming victory in the Millennium Cup division. Antaeus was declared the Pacific division winner on race day one. Third place overall and second in the Pacific division went to Steinlager II. Silvertip was next, taking second in the Millennium Cup division, a victim of the shortened course. The original final mark may have given her the distance she needed to pull ahead.
Not to be outdone: Bliss, crossing the line to the rock anthem “Highway to Hell.”
The New Zealand Millennium Cup thus far has been anything but hellish for all of the attendees, especially Ed Dubois of Dubois Naval Architects. Race day one was dubbed Ed Dubois Day, since he’s designed 37 yachts built in the last three decades in New Zealand. “Ladies and gentlemen, I love New Zealand,” he told the crowd. “It is an honor to have a race named for me, but really it is me who should be thanking the New Zealand marine industry for building such spectacular yachts.” Among the ones he mentioned are three competing in the New Zealand Millennium Cup. They are Bliss, Silvertip, and Janice of Wyoming. All three have competed in previous Cups in the country, too.
We’ll have day two coverage of the New Zealand Millennium Cup tomorrow. Racing is taking place once again in the Bay of Islands, 120 nautical miles north of Auckland. Will Silencio be first off the mark again? Or will one of the long-time Cup competitors cross the finish in spectacular fashion? Stay tuned.
EXTRA PHOTOS: Visit our Facebook page to see spectacular racing shots from today’s New Zealand Millennium Cup race.
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