Six Metres Coming To Falmouth

Photo: © Photolounge

The British International Six Metre Association, whose supporters include Cornwall's multi-medal-winning Olympian Ben Ainslie, has awarded this year's British Open Championship to the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club on Falmouth's Greenbank parade.

Racing will take place in Falmouth Bay and the Carrick Roads from May 18-22. These days the Six Metre class ('6mR') accommodates both 'Classics' which are exquisitely-crafted wooden yachts and the newer sleeker 'Moderns' within its racing fleet. The term 'Six Metre' refers to the measurement rule to which they are built, which actually produces boats about 11 metres (36-ft) long.

The regatta has already 20 yachts registered, bringing in excess of 100 yachtsmen and women, together with their support teams, to Falmouth. It will be the first time the fleet has assembled in Falmouth in such numbers since 1988.

Yachts will be arriving from the Solent, Scotland, the Channel Islands and France as well as from the more local fleets in St Mawes and Fowey.

Great Britain has the largest and most active fleet of Six Metre yachts in the world. Although primarily a championship regatta, the organisers are hoping that this year's event will not only raise the profile of the 6mRs but will also establish the West Country event as a regular feature in the Association's annual sailing programme.

Indeed, there is already talk of a Europeans or World championships coming to Cornwall in 2014.

It is a development class with every boat a unique one-off, attracting kings and entreprenuers as well as top names in the sport and design world, including Ian Howlett, Pelle Peterson, Olin Stephens, Johan Ankers; ex-Whitbread supremo Lawrie Smith; America's Cup stalwart Chris Mason, and businessman Peter de Savary.

Falmouth hosts the first major event of the fleet's 2011 season after which many of the boats will be heading for La Trinite in France for the L'Entente Cordiale and French Open or back to home waters before moving on to Helsinki, Finland, for the World Cup in early August.

General enquiries should be directed to Julie Jones, the British International Six Metre Association class co-ordinator at: julie@6mR.org.uk or the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club at: www.royalcornwallyachtclub.org