CARIBBEAN RACING SEASON PREVIEW
Wind, warm water, and sunshine. Set your out-of-office and escape to the Caribbean with North Sails.
With two of the most experienced leaders at North Sails heading out to the Caribbean to sail with the biggest and best yachts in the world, we sat down with North Sails President Ken Read and superyacht expert Mike Toppa to discover what makes these Spring regattas so unique.
WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE CARIBBEAN THAT MAKES FOR SUCH SPECTACULAR SAILING?
Ken Read (KR): Very few experiences compare to sailing in the Caribbean. Leave your jackets and foul-weather pants at home to rip around in trade winds, warm water, and bright sunshine.
Mike Toppa (MT): The Caribbean puts on fantastic events: very well run, beautiful places to sail, and always windy and warm. It's hard to beat! I'm sitting in my office at the Newport Shipyard right now, and it's 20° outside. In places like St. Barths, the people are so lovely, the scenery is excellent, the food is fantastic, and it's very eclectic.
SO WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE "CARIBBEAN SEASON," WHAT DOES THIS MEAN, AND WHICH EVENTS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO THE MOST?
KR: The season is different for every boat length and boat type. There are really regattas for anybody, even in one design class like the RC44s. Typically, the level of competition in the Caribbean is near the top of the list of any competition anywhere because people have to normally sail or ship their boats there, which means they're making a sizable investment just to get to the starting line. Typically, this means well-prepared boats, teams, sails, and everything that goes along with it.
KR: The 2025 Caribbean sailing season will be slightly different this year as several 100ft Maxis are showing up to race in a few regattas, commencing with the Nelson's Cup in Antigua. Some boats are then off to the Caribbean 600, which is a phenomenal race in its own right. Then, the fleet of big boats will meet up at the North Sound Regatta, a brand new event in the British Virgin Islands, to be raced around the Bitter End Yacht Club, which, by all accounts, will be spectacular.
MT: I've been at just about every superyacht regatta in the Caribbean for the last 20 years. St. Barths is kind of the grandfather of the regattas and the premier event of the season. A highlight for 2025 is the Wally 100 fleet coming over from Europe - a competitive, fast fleet that races a lot in the Med. It'll be fun to see them on the racetrack.
But none of this sailing is possible without top-tier race management. The season-on-season success is a testament to the people who organize and run the events. They've developed a safe, fun, and competitive racing format for a collection of big sailboats. There's nothing like it.
WHICH BOATS AND EVENTS WILL YOU BE COMPETING ON?
MT: I'm sailing on Rebecca, a 140 ft Ketch in Antigua, and then a 56m Perini in St. Barths called Rosehearty. There's a lot of North Sails staff and clients on the racecourse, and everybody wants to win. Nothing beats winning.
KR: I'm sailing three events this winter on a 100ft Maxi boat called V, a Mills Design. We've had a spectacular and fun ride the last couple of years, not just improving the boat but assembling a team that has stuck together along with an owner who's new to the sport. We've developed a camaraderie within the circuit, and everybody decided to go to the Caribbean this year, which is a dream ride. So let's hope the trades are in, which will make for photography that's out of this world.
HOW DOES NORTH SAILS SUPPORT ITS CLIENTS IN THE CARIBBEAN?
KR: North Sails has pretty much helped to make regattas in the Caribbean possible for as long as I can remember. For example, we've always shipped down a pop-up Regatta Repair loft, which includes materials, machinery, and personnel for the St Barths Bucket. And we'll do the same for the new North Sound Regatta. Coupled with the fact that the North Sails loft in Antigua does incredible work all winter long, North Sails has both a permanent presence and ships in a presence to ensure that sail repairs can happen and be raced hard.
MT: One of the strengths of North Sails is that we have a roster of excellent sailors: Olympic medallists, America's Cup winners, and around-the-world race winners. We nurture our client relationships and our talent, so when a superyacht owner wants to go sailing, we can help them get the best sailors onboard. And by the way, the North sailmakers are usually the best sailors! As Kenny mentioned, Andrew Dove in Antigua is an expert at superyacht sail care and repair, and we're shoreside to keep our clients race-ready with overnight service.
WHAT TRENDS AND INNOVATIONS MIGHT WE SEE ON THE WATER THIS YEAR?
KR: We are testing a line of Helix downwind sails. These are soft sails with structured luffs that help with stability downwind, especially fast boats that pull the apparent wind forward very far. It's an exciting concept. We're also working on a new layout that generates a smoother sail with a more dynamic shape. And a lot of these ideas came straight from the America's Cup. It's exciting times at North Sails with constant evolution, whether it's upwind or downwind products.
MT: North Sails has the majority of market share in the superyacht space. That results from our vast efforts with 3Di SY and finishing details for the world's largest sails. Every big boat and superyacht crew knows it's a feat to change sails out just for a weekend event or 4-day regatta. 3Di is durable yet high-performance, allowing these programs to have the same sails they would cruise around the world with and suddenly rock up to a regatta and be competitive. These boats go around the world multiple times, and we see the sails last five, six, seven years and still perform on the racetrack.
Can't get a ride this winter but want to experience sailing in the Caribbean? Follow @NorthSails on Instagram for a front-row seat.
