A Corinthian Cruise Across The Channel

A stunning group of classic cruising yachts will sail to Brittany for a week of fun in the Classic Channel Regatta, says Peter Cumberlidge

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In our frantic age of medals, awards and intense competition, it’s a treat to join a highly sociable yacht regatta founded in true amateur spirit. Cricket was once like this, the Olympics too, so the ‘gentlemen’s racing’ ethos of the Classic Channel Regatta is both pleasingly nostalgic and a breath of fresh air.

The 2017 races from Dartmouth to Guernsey and Paimpol run from Saturday 8 to Friday 14 July. Brittany enthusiasts will spot that the finale in Paimpol on Bastille Day promises lively celebrations in the best traditions of Entente Cordiale.

This regatta feels like a mini Voiles de St Tropez series but in more interesting waters. Its amiable 'Franglais' atmosphere is familiar hereabouts because many West Country owners look naturally to Brittany for summer cruising, while Breton yachts with hardy Gallic crews have tacked into Devon and Cornish harbours since the 1920s. Both regions have a sense of independence and a shared history of trading by sea, with or without excise duties. Each is renowned for their shipwright skills and enthusiasm for classic boats.

Classics new and old

While the regatta celebrates genuine old timers such as the sleek 1904 Alfred Mylne cutter Kelpie, or the beautiful 1948 Spark man and Stephens yawl Argyll, it also welcomes many GRP classics. You’ll see Nicholsons, Van de Stadts like the Pioneer 10 and Excalibur 36, plus a range of Holman or Holman and Pye favourites including Twisters and early Bowmans. Tough Peter Brett Rivals are popular in Class 3. There may be Breton yachts from the 1950s and 60s, elegant cruiser-racers with similar lines to Illingworth or Buchanan.