35th Annual St. Maarten Heineken Regatta Updates Logistics and Safety Rules

Last year's St. Maarten Heineken Regatta. Photo Credit: www.heinekenregatta.com

The 35th Annual St. Maarten Heineken Regatta will take place March 5-8, 2015.

To celebrate 35 years, St. Maarten Heineken Regatta officials have announced changes to the racing, logistics and safety rules, all which were developed based on feedback from past competitors and spectators.

Race organizers have confirmed that the Gill Commodore's Cup will be open to all Regatta participants (except Lottery class). In an effort to make racing more competitive, organizers will also offer an additional sailing event on Sunday for various racing classes (weather permitting). These new events offer sailors the opportunity to race in six races over the course of four days.

To accommodate additional sailors in these races and the 200-plus entries that the main event receives each year, registration will open a day early on Tuesday, March 3, and run through March 5. This information, including the new opening hours of registration, can be found in the Notice of Race on the Regatta website, www.heinekenregatta.com.

To improve crew scheduling, this year all races will start and finish at Simpson Bay. This change will also mean sailing crews and vessels can remain in Simpson Bay every evening, allowing for easier hotel and berthing arrangements.

Additional changes have also been made to the Official Safety Rules that will be implemented on all racing days. These rules can be found on the registration website at https://app.regattaguru.com/heineken/100083/docs. Race organizers urge all participants to download the new safety rules and review them to make sure all crew members and vessels comply.
 
The St. Maarten Heineken Regatta competition consists of round-the-buoys contests and point-to-point destination races against the backdrop of St. Maarten's coastal views.

Visit www.VacationStMaarten.com and www.heinekenregatta.com.