CITY Issue 57

THIS SPREAD, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: FALMOTH HARBOR DURING REGATTA WEEK; A SAILOR’S TRUSTED BOOTS; THE WHITEHAWK MID-RACE; BOAT DESIGNER JONTY SHERWILL; THE AUTHOR; AN UNIDENTIFIED OLD SEADOG IN A GIG BOAT; WHITEHAWK OWNER PETER DE SAVARY AT THE HELM. NEXT SPREAD, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: THE WHITEHAWK AND ITS COMPETITION; ANTIGUA’S RENDEZVOUS BAY; A SAILOR’S WORK IS NEVER DONE. / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / ///// APART FROM DESAVARY'S CAPTAIN'S CAP, THE DECK OF THE WHITEHAWK IS QUITE DEMOCRATIC. OLD SALTS, YOUNG AIMLESS SAILORS, AND SEA-LOVING OLIGARCHS — ABOARD A SHIP, IT'S ONLY HOW WELL YOU CAN TRIM A SAILOR TIE A KNOT THAT MATTERS. aged. “This is a gentleman’s ace,” one sailo tells me, my ﬁ st clue that the common bond among the men and women a ound me is a simple love of sailing. “The wind, the sun: It’s p imal,” explains Johnny Summe s, a salty Ve mont seadog with a Hemingway bea d, his eyes scanning the ho izon. The owne s ace fo glo y, not fo money. The g and p ize — a , Lumino w istwatch made by the Italian luxu y watchmake and egatta sponso Pane ai — could be bought on a whim by any of the owne s. In fact, I had accepted Pane ai’s invitation to attend the egatta expecting to uncove a c ass monied wo ld, as epellent as it was p ivileged. I was, howeve , happily disappointed. Inside the gates of the ma ina, an ove whelming ai of cama ade ie pe meates. nd apa t f om PDeS’ captain’s cap, the deck of the Whiteha is quite democ atic. Old salts, young aimless sailo s, and sea-loving oliga chs — aboa d a ship it’s only how well you can t im a sail o tie a knot that matte s. Races a e essentially a high-stakes aquatic pick-up game, with some ships picking up ﬁnal hands only days, and sometimes hou s, befo e the gun ﬁ es. s long as you can play you’ e p etty much assu ed a spot in the game, which makes fo a colo ful, motley c ew. PDeS lives athe comfo tably on boa d: The Whiteha spo ts a ﬁ eplace, a mahogany bath tub, and a king-sized bed. In somewhat smalle qua te s live LT, the (oﬃcial) captain; Mattjis, the tall Dutch ﬁ st mate; lly, the stewa dess; and Ma issa, an aimless -yea -old gi l f om Co nish who ﬁgu ed wo king on the wate beats wo king on land. The est of us a e just along fo the egatta. This includes those who a e expe ienced sailo s: men like Phil Cowpland, a t ee su geon f om B ighton who is p epa ing to c oss the tlantic solo in , and Lucas lexande , who ﬂew in f om Sydney to wo k as a tactician; as well as men like me, to whom the notion of sailing had neve been tainted by actually doing it. The day’s aces sta t at the gentlemanly hou of a.m. and ﬁ nish a ound two o th ee, leaving ample time fo Pimm’s cups at the ha bo . Today’s ace is a double sausage: vessels t ace a st aight six-mile cou se to a buoy, tu n a ound, sail six miles back, and epeat. Though some egattas a e held fo one type of CITY TY WHITEHAWK (ABOVE): PHOTO BY JOHN SNYDER. 55

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CITY Issue 57

City Issue 57 Contents Letter from City Our Friends Action Wanted City Moment Temporary Contemporary In Rouge Fast Food The Amused Bouche How We Live/The Kitchen Taste Test Dessert Wine Going Local Expert Opinion Travel Employees Only Summer Showers Wild Things Be There at 10 P.M. Sharp If... Where To Buy It Icon

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