MainSail
SHOW #60
Portofino, Italy
Shirley Robertson presents from the Portofino Rolex Trophy, a new regatta dedicated to those yachts which have helped to make history in sailing and now are regarded as classic yachts.
The show will look at the heritage of some of the world's most famous yachts as see how if the relationship between skippers and their yachts has changed as sailboats have become less pieces of art and more bare boned speed machines. Has the soul of the racing yacht gone away?
When Ellen MacArthur completed the Vendée Globe she was in tears when she had to say good bye to the boat that had taken her safely around the world. We will find out what sort of relationship other world class sailors have with the boats they sail, can you have a love affair with a carbon fibre grand prix sailing machine or is that sort of relationship left to the aficionados of the classics.
At the Rolex Regatta, owners invest millions in a love affair with floating works of art. Shirley will sail the 129 foot schooner built for the King of Spain in 1910, which is 200 times heavier than the boats she raced in the Olympic Games. She will try challenging manoevres in the yacht working with a thirty strong crew and see just how the King of Spain did his racing one hundred years ago.
Shirley will then link to our reporter, the Boat Captain of the the current King of Spain's race yacht, modern high tech and perhaps devoid of soul. He will show us what life on the ocean in like for Spanish royalty in the 21st century as King Juan Carlos competes in the Med Cup European circuit. This tour is the most competitive in Europe and we compare its equivalent a century ago with Shirley on board a classic 12 metre yacht in Portofino as part of the crew and playing an active role in a race.
We will also join one of the top sailors from the Volvo Ocean Race who will give CNN MainSail an exclusive insight to an inshore race of the coast of Boston and also provide a news feature on the state of play in the Volvo Ocean Race along with news from the Olympic circuit and America's Cup scene.
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