Chester Race Week -Only two weeks to the starting gun

Chester Race Week Heather McGuire Photography

Peter Wickwire and crewmates Matthew Cairney, Rick Echard and Greg Lawrence show their colours in Bermuda in May © Colin Thompson

Wickwire is the first Canadian skipper to win the coveted Vrengen Gold Cup (14­race International One Design class) at the 2014 Bermuda International Invitational Race Week that ran from May 3-9, hosted by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club. He is looking forward to applying his Bermuda experience during Chester Race Week, and will compete against his friend, Rick Thompson, the Bermudian who introduced Wickwire to the IOD class in Chester last year. Indeed, Wickwire’s race week boat Squall, is one of Thompson’s two IODs.

Thompson will be racing the IOD Mighty Mo and he is what’s known as a boating class 'builder', someone who advocates for and promotes the growth of a class of boat racing. 'Rick is ‘Mister IOD’ both in Canada and Bermuda, and the class owes a lot to him,' Wickwire added.

When asked if he plans to race in the upcoming 2014 IOD North American Invitational Regatta that will also be held in Chester this September, Wickwire said he’d love to, but he would need to be invited as his club (the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron) does not have its own IOD fleet.

For those J24 racers who might be resting a little easier knowing Wickwire won’t be steering a J24 at Chester Race Week this year, Wickwire is clear to point out that he is not giving up racing J24s.

Virginia Chester Race Week © Heather McGuire Photography

How to get better results at Race Week: daily racing seminars

Andreas Josenhans ­ 1976 Olympian, 1992 America’s Cup winner and two­time World Soling champion sailor (1977, 1980) ­ will be on the water every day with his video camera capturing the good, the bad and the ugly to use in his daily racing seminars. Seminars start at 9:00 a.m. at the Chester Yacht Club, are free and open to the public.

Virginia Chester Race Week © Heather McGuire Photography

International 14 demo class: a gateway to regatta growth

To grow further in size and stature, 2014 will see Chester Race Week hosting a demonstration class for International 14s, a leading­ edge, high ­performance, one­ design, tandem racing dinghy that can reach speeds up to 25 knots (50 km/h). While the 'fourteen' is not a keel boat, many fourteen sailors also own keel boats. Attracting International 14 sailors from New England and Ontario to the beauty and competitive sailing of Chester Race Week will result in some returning with their bigger keel boats.

Chester Race Week - Bluenose Class fleet © Heather McGuire Photography

Public welcome to come for the racing, stay for the fun

- The public are welcome to watch the races from the dock or from inside the Chester Yacht Club, which is open to the public from 9am to 9pm daily. After 9pm, the live music continues inside.

- Wed, Fri nights: The Hopping Penguins

- Thurs: Asia and NuGruv Sat: Party Boots

- Swim and sun bathe at Freda’s Beach or in Chester’s outdoor, salt­water lido pool, shop, dine and tour the pretty Village of Chester

While there are a total of 33 trophies up for grabs over the four days of competition, the following trophies will be awarded to Chester Race Week’s overall winners for 2014:

Virginia Chester Race Week © Heather McGuire Photography

2014 fleets:
Alpha fleet - Round the buoy and up wind, down wind for the fastest handicapped boats
Bravo fleet - Round the Buoy and up wind for boats with higher handicaps
Charlie fleet - Bluenose class boats in Chester harbour (our largest one ­design fleet)
Delta fleet - Classics, Cruisers and IODs
One ­design fleets - J24, Farr 30, International 14’s
Event website