- The great spirit of sportsmanship and camaraderie that characterizes this regatta prevailed, with groups of crew members relieving the heat with dips in the sea.
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The forecast for the coming days is that the wind will pick up and allow the race to be carried out normally.
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Hallowe’en and Bon Temps celebrate 100 years and do so sailing in the Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona.
Today, Barcelona, and more specifically the RCNB, has kicked off the XIX PuIg Vela Clàssica Edition, gathering more than 400 sailors participating in this edition on the first day of competition.
However, unfavorable weather conditions have prevented the 45 participating boats from starting this first test. This situation adds more excitement, if possible, to the future duels that will take place over the next two days, in what is the classic regatta par excellence.
Punctually, at 1 p.m., the scheduled time to begin the starting procedure, the race committee of the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona hoisted the postponement flag due to lack of wind. At that moment, barely two knots of intensity were blowing, increasing the feeling of heat on the boats’ decks. In good spirits, some crew members cooled off by plunging into the sea and seeking the shade of makeshift awnings to cover the decks.
The wind timidly increased, and at the stroke of 3 p.m. it seemed that a Garbí (Southwest) was establishing itself, already reaching five knots of intensity. Movement began aboard the boats, hoisting sails and starting to take the pulse of the racecourse, maneuvering on different courses to optimize the set-up thinking about the possible start of the regatta. But try as he might, Aeolus could not overcome the effect of the tremendous heat, which at altitude prevented the formation of an air current that would accelerate the wind. Thus, at 3:55 p.m., the race committee wisely decided to suspend the day and send the fleet back to the Barcelona yacht club.
Tomorrow, the start is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. and everything suggests that the temperature will drop slightly, which will allow at least that little bit more wind to pick up, ensuring a minimum of six knots so that the participating categories -Big Boats, Bermudian Epoch and Gaff Epoch, and the various Classic categories- can compete in good conditions.
Hallowe’en: The aristocrat who won the Fastnet and was captained by a future king
Hallowe’en is one of the great legends of international classic sailing and celebrates an exceptional milestone this year: one hundred years of sailing. Launched in 1926, it demonstrated extraordinary performance from the very first moment. In its debut year, it won the Fastnet Race, one of the most prestigious ocean races in the world, crossing the finish line almost ten hours ahead of its immediate pursuer and setting a record that would remain valid for more than a decade. William Fife’s “perfect jewel” even sailed in Norway under the command of Prince Olaf, future King of Norway.
Its relationship with the Puig Vela Clàssica has been especially successful, reaching the podium on eight occasions and achieving victory in 2018 and 2022, where it was proclaimed absolute winner of the Big Boat category. In 2025, it was back on the podium, qualifying in second position in Big Boat, only surpassed by Mariska. For all this, it is not difficult to understand that its crew has chosen to celebrate the boat’s centenary in the privileged setting offered by this regatta.
u relación con la Puig Vela Clàssica ha sido especialmente exitosa. Consiguiendo podio en ocho ocasiones y alzándose con la victoria en 2018 y en 2022 donde se proclamó vencedor absoluto de la categoría Big Boat. En 2025 volvió a subir al podio al calificar en segunda posición en Big Boat, únicamente superado por el Mariska. Por todo esto, no resulta difícil entender que su tripulación haya elegido celebrar el centenario del barco en el escenario privilegiado que ofrece esta regata.
Bon Temps (1926-2026) The prodigal son, back a hundred years later
Bon Temps represents one of the most emotional stories in the entire European classic fleet. Built in Mallorca in 1926 by the renowned master Pere Nicolau Mandilego, this wooden ketch was commissioned by the great-grandfather of the current owner, Santiago Godó. However, for decades the boat remained away from the family. Godó’s father managed to locate it in Santander and tried to acquire it without success, but he never gave up hope. He even kept an empty mooring for years waiting for the return of the boat. Some time later, Santiago Godó discovered that Bon Temps was for sale again and managed to recover the sailboat to return it to the family that had commissioned it a hundred years earlier.
The reunion was especially moving. According to the owner himself, his father had been waiting for more than fifty years to see the boat again. When it finally arrived at the port, he watched it from home through tears, put on his old captain’s hat, and sailed aboard again accompanied by friends from his youth. Since then, Bon Temps has become an element of union for the whole family and a heritage recovery project developed with enormous dedication. Now, in the year of its hundredth birthday, Bon Temps will try to celebrate with a victory in its category.
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