May The Fastest Yacht Win: The Inaugural Richard Mille Cup
Where best to celebrate the beginning of summer than by the sea? For fifteen days in mid-June, Richard Mille will host its very own regatta on both sides of the Channel for the first time. The first edition of the Richard Mille Cup takes place from the 10th to the 25th June and many more nautical events are meant to follow in the next years.
Ahoy, Mate!
Richard Mille has already successfully sponsored Les Voiles de St Barth and set up the Richard Mille Fife Regatta with Fife organizer and historical yacht restaurateur William Collier. For this year’s exclusive event, Mille and Collier have partnered again. This time, the focus is not on modern yachts but on historical ones from pre-war times. Therefore, the invited participants of the regatta are owners and charterers with original vessels that were built before 1939 or faithful replicas. More than 200 sailors will join the tournament, including the sailor and brand ambassador Pierre Casiraghi on the Yacht Club de Monaco’s famous flagship vessel Tuiga. Alongside the race’s participants, collectors of historic yachts, and sailing enthusiasts, members of the Richard Mille family will be attending the event as well.
Cast off!
As mentioned above, the historical yachts take center stage. It is all about highlighting the authentic beauty of these historical pre-war boats. As William Collier emphasizes, “The Richard Mille Cup strives to recapture the spirit of the pre-war British racing circuit. We see these yachts as important cultural artefacts”. Thus, 15 yachts built (or lookalikes thereof) between the late 19th century and late 1930s will compete in the Schooner and Cutter categories. Highlights of this fleet will include two impressive 60-meter-long three masters and restored boats designed by the renowned Scottish 20th-century yacht designer William Fife III. One of them is the large classic gaff cutter Moonbeam IV which won the British King’s Cup in 1920 and 1923.
Set sail!
To accomplish a revival of the grandeur of the pre-war regatta circuits, the setting is equally important. Therefore, the tournament is organized in cooperation with famed yacht clubs that hold a long tradition. The 245 NM long route for the cup runs famous sailing landmarks on the English and French coast, starting on the Cornish shore in Falmouth. There, the opening and registration take place at the National Maritime Museum Falmouth on 10th June. They are followed by three days of inshore racing. Subsequently on 14th June, the competitors will set sail for the first offshore race to Dartmouth, where the Royal Dart Yacht Club resides, and the Coronation Regatta of 1937 took place. Again, three days of inshore racing are held before the fleet takes off for an offshore competition to Cowes on 16th June. After a short break, the race commences with three inshore racing days on the Solent and possibly around the Isle of Wright. Here, the Royal Yacht Squadron serves as location with a rich history as it is set at the base of the castle and is central to British yachting culture.
The finish line
The final stage is an offshore race across the Channel to the French coast on 23rd June. At Le Havre, the participants will be welcomed at France’s oldest saltwater racing yacht club – The Societé des Régates du Havre. As a competitive event is nothing without a prize, Richard Mille especially commissioned a trophy at British crown jeweler and iconic trophy maker Garrard. The award is made of sterling silver and measures one meter in height. The boats participating in the race inspired the design. While the upper half is reminiscent of the sails, the lower part of the trophy is embellished with an engraved wave motif. The lucky winner of the competition will be awarded on the 25th June. As this is a perpetual trophy, the winner will also receive a 40 cm-high replica by Garrard.
As this cup is the first of its kind it will be exciting to see what Richard Mille will come up with in the future. Until then, may the fastest yacht win!
Museums are a popular way to spend one’s weekend. A place to take the kids, discover key moments in history, and immerse oneself in everything from portraits at the Louvre to mummified priests at the British Museum. The Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva, however, attracts rather a different crowd. The museum has drawn in countless…
Independent watchmaker Oris is introducing a new calibre, entirely created in-house – the Oris Calibre 400. Watchmakers at the Swiss horology house based near Basel have created a movement that is highly efficient and highly anti-magnetic. The other big news is that the watches using the movement will only requires 10-year servicing intervals. New Movement,…
The Swiss watch brand Tudor is celebrating a milestone in Berlin: in partnership with retailer Wempe, the brand unveiled its first monobrand boutique in the German capital on 25 November 2024. Situated at the exclusive address Kurfürstendamm 26a, the boutique becomes the fourth of its kind in Germany and marks the latest addition to Tudor’s…
The La Chaux-de-Fonds-based watch brand Corum is celebrating its 70th birthday this year with a very special surprise. Following a management buy-out, the company is once again 100 per cent under Swiss management. Golden Bridge Serpent from 2024 Corum stands for unusual designs as well as innovative technologies. Examples include the Golden Bridge with a…
Since November 4, 2019, for each purchase of a new Ulysse Nardin watch from an official reseller network, a free and tamper-proof extended warranty certificate, anchored in the most widely used and robust public blockchain, is generated and digitally signed by Ulysse Nardin. The certificate is then emailed to the customer or sent to their…
Only a few weeks ago, the Swatch Group announced the cancelation of their new fair “Time To Move” – and now, also the new format “Watches & Wonders Geneva” (formerly SIHH) will not take place from April 25th to 29th 2020. The final decision of Baselworld fair remains to be seen. Due to the latest…
This year's ‘Only Watch’ charity-auction has become a double record breaker. Not only that it has in its 8th edition collected almost as much proceeds as in the past 13 years together: Also, the most expensive watch was sold, that ever went on auction. A unique piece from Patek Philippe in steel. Sold for 31…
Contemporary and independent watchmaker Ressence has sold its unique timepiece, created in collaboration with Sotheby's, of the #WatchesAgainstCovid19 competition. The winning watch, Raymond Ramsden's Type 1 Slim “Artyon & Finlay”, sold for 45,500 Swiss francs, and was purchased by an online bidder. The auction took place on 11 July, 2020, at Sotheby's Hong Kong ‘Important Watches’.…
After “Time To Move” and “Watches & Wonders Geneva” have already cancelled their fairs, today, also the board of direction at MCH has announced the cancelation of “Baselworld” fair 2020 due to concerns related to Coronavirus. The start of construction in the halls and of the stands was scheduled to commence next week (start of…
Following the AP House in Munich and the AP Boutique in Frankfurt, the new AP House in Hamburg is now open to customers just in time for the festive season. The Swiss haute horlogerie manufacture now operates 18 AP Houses worldwide, including cities such as Los Angeles, Bangkok, Barcelona, London, Tokyo and even St Barths.…
The trading of pre-owned watches has exploded in recent years – and this upward trend is still ongoing. In a recent industry report, Deloitte predicts that the annual turnover with pre-owned watches will increase from the current 20 billion Swiss francs to 35 billion Swiss francs by 2030. This means that the market for pre-owned…
Swiss Jura-based manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre is settling into its new Bavarian home as it opens a boutique at Munich's most prestigious address, on the glamorous Maximilianstrasse 24. The world-renowned shopping street in Germany, which comprises one of Munich's four royal avenues, counts the likes of Chanel, Hermès, Omega and Ralph Lauren amongst its affluent residents, while…
On 2 October, what had long been rumoured became a reality: LVMH and Formula 1 have entered into a partnership. As Formula 1 prepares for its 75th anniversary in 2025, this global partnership not only marks the end of one era but also heralds a new beginning. In this billion-euro deal, which binds LVMH to…