The 27.6 metre sailing yacht Bequia has been crowned the overall winner of Division Two at the Safe Harbor Race Weekend, which took place between August 12 to 14 around Newport, Rhode Island.
The regatta, which is now in its second year, saw 62 teams in 11 classes participate across three days. Alongside the action on the water, the event hosted a social programme across three venues: Safe Harbor Newport Shipyard, Safe Harbor New England Boatworks, and Safe Harbor Jamestown Boatyard.
Division Two saw six superyachts take to the waters, following a 15 mile circuit along Rhode Island Sound.
“Overall, it was a fantastic regatta,” said Bequia’s tactician Mike Toppa. “The Race Committee did a nice job, modifying the schedule based on the wind forecasts and giving us good, high-quality racing.”
Toppa added that the collective local knowledge allowed the crew to “tack quickly and go into places where some of the other Superyachts didn’t want to go” and noted that the crew was "aggressive" when playing on the currents and wind shifts.
This was particularly evident when Bequia went head to head with the 30 metre Delta House, the yacht which most closely matched speed and performance with Bequia.
Bequia only conceded victory to Delta House on the final day of racing.
A seasoned racer, Bequia was delivered in 2009 by Maine-based shipyard Brooklin Boat Yard. Her complete design package is by Stephens Waring & White.