Richard Mille hosted the second edition of the Richard Mille Cup which ran from June 2nd to 15th, 2024, with a fleet of 10 historic yachts racing in stages down the English Channel.
The Richard Mille Cup set up a true racing environment in which the yachts can thrive and perform as they were meant to. The fleet stopped at four historic yacht clubs in England and France - the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club in Falmouth, the Royal Dart Yacht Club in Dartmouth, the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes and finally the Société des Régates du Havre in Le Havre, France.
The yachts, dating from the end of the 19th century to the late 1930s, competed in Schooner and Cutter categories, and included some of the great designs including Mariquita (1911), Moonbeam III (1903) and Moonbeam IV (1920).
The final prize-giving, at the Société des Régates du Havre, took place after a challenging day of racing off the Normandy coast that saw a breathtaking neck-and-neck dash to the line between the two giant gaff cutters Mariquita and Moonbeam IV.
It was a dramatic and fitting finale to the regatta after two weeks that brought many other highlights – a moonlit reach in strong winds past the notorious Portland Bill; an agonizing finish off the Royal Yacht Squadron in light winds and an adverse tide that saw several yachts dragged backwards as they approached the line; and the 100-mile race across the Channel where the tall gaff-riggers finished within minutes of each other in the grey light of dawn.
In the regatta’s class for bigger yachts, Mariquita was dominant, after a series of early victories and consistent racing in week two. The yacht’s young crew were cheered onto the stage through an archway formed by their rivals on Viveka.
In the class for smaller yachts, the win went to Patna, a highly original Charles E. Nicholson design built in 1920, restored and sailed by Greg Powlesland and family. The yacht also came third in the overall rankings for the Richard Mille Cup. The two large schooners Atlantic and Elena fought a duel in the three passage races, and Elena won the special trophy presented for this.
The Richard Mille Cup was won by the 1911 William Fife-designed and built gaff cutter Mariquita on June 15th, after a fortnight of no-holds-barred racing between the cream of the world’s classic yachts.
After just two years the Richard Mille Cup has established itself as the premiere event for serious classic yacht racing which renews the traditions which made the sport.
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