Remembering the 2001 America’s Cup Jubilee – by Karin Olsen Campia, USA 266, Renaissance

In June 2001, our family, consisting of my husband, Kenneth M. Campia, myself and our two young daughters, (10 and 12), sailed trans-Atlantic from Newport, RI to Ireland on our Frers 73, Renaissance, with 7 close friends. We took a short detour to the Azores for 3 days to avoid a confluence of 3 storms that were developing in the North Atlantic, north of our original course with winds in excess of 60 knots. It took us nine days to sail to the Azores, where we reprovisioned, did small repairs and, from there, sailed 6 days on port tack to Kinsale, Ireland.

 We cruised the west coast of Ireland and south coast of England, before sailing to Cowes, Isle of Wight. Our plan was to race in the 2001 AC Jubilee in August, which was commemorating the 150th anniversary of the original America’s Cup held in 1851. Yachts were arriving from all over the world, some under sail and others were delivered via ship transport.

 Racing in the AC Jubilee was a terrific event that we remember vividly. A total of 208 yachts competed in different divisions which included J-Class yachts, Twelve Metres, classic and modern yachts, the International America’s Cup Class boats and a variety of historical vessels.

 Every day, before the race week began, was filled with activities in provisioning the boat, and lining up additional crew (we had 27 to 30 people on board on any given day). We were fortunate that our longtime friend, Lowell North was available to sail with us as tactician. We also made sure every piece of equipment including sails were in good working order. The regatta lasted 10 days with 7 days of pretty intense racing. Our division, the Modern Class, consisted of 30 competitive yachts of different lengths, from 40 footers to the 90’ sloop Stealth.  

 The Race Around the Isle of Wight on August 22 was the highlight of the regatta, with the entire fleet racing. The conditions were challenging to say the least: the current was incredibly strong, winds were moderate with freshening conditions. There were tactical advantages in knowing where you could sail close to shore and where it was too dangerous. One stunning experience we had was crossing tacks with the 3-masted barquentine, Leeuwin II, from Freemantle, Western Australia, carrying all 810 square meters of sail.  She was glorious and a sight to behold!

 It was a fabulous once-in-a-lifetime experience racing in the AC Jubilee off Cowes, Isle of Wight, almost 25 years ago. We shall treasure those memories forever!