Anyone who had the opportunity to watch the New Zealand Millennium Cup, in which Sea Eagle, the 81-metre Royal Huisman-built yacht, will understand the elegance of these big boats. This year's Bucket Regatta 30 strong lineup includes everything from sleek performance racers to elegant cruisers.
The Origins of the Bucket
The Bucket Regatta is not as old as, say, the America's Cup whose inaugural event was held in 1851. No, it is quite young in comparison. In August 1986 in Nantucket (which is an island to the east of Martha's Vineyard), Massachusetts, the inaugural race was born out of an impromptu discussion among yacht owners at a birthday celebration hosted by Nelson Doubleday, American book publisher and president of Doubleday Company from 1922–1946. The 25-metre Royal Huisman-built
Volador
, owned by American, Charles Butt, was one of the original yachts that participated in that infamous ‘for fun only’ race. A superyacht is generally defined as a large, luxurious pleasure vessel, typically exceeding 24-metres in length, caracterised by its opulence, luxury amenities, and a high level of service. But this is not necessarily always the case, some yachts which race in superyacht regattas are built to race; take New Zealand's Steinlager 2, for example, which has a length overall of 25.48-metres but would probably not be characterised as luxurious. Steinlager 2, and its sister-yacht, Lion New Zealand both participated in this year's New Zealand Millennium Cup.
What began as an informal 13-nautical mile race with seven superyachts, marked by a spare bucket as a trophy, has evolved into one of the most prestigious regattas on the superyacht circuit.
After its origins in Nantucket, the event was held in Newport, Rhode Island (a more inland state to the east of Martha's Vineyard), from 2002 to 2014. Meanwhile, in 1995, St Barths hosted its first Bucket Regatta with only four yachts,
Sariyah, Gleam, Mandalay, and Parlay.
The island has been the permanent home for this celebrated event every March since then.
In this year's event, at the top of the size chart is
Triumph
, a 65-metre Cassetta-designed Benetti, entered in the social class. At the other end, two 27-metre yachts share the title of smallest in the fleet:
Hummingbird
, a Frers-designed Nautor Swan, and
Prevail
, a Tripp-designed YYachts—both competing in the 90' class.
Among the 'more interesting to New Zealand' entries this year is
Symmetry
, a 29-metre Frers-designed yacht built by New Zealand’s Yachting Developments. Entered in the Corinthian Spirit class,
Symmetry
carries a piece of New Zealand’s reputation for world-class composite yacht construction. Yachting Developments has built a series of notable motoryachts and multihulls, including the 35-metre
Gramac VII
, the 38.7-metre
Lanakai
—the world’s biggest carbon sportfisher—and the 33-metre
Al Duhail
. With its high-quality craftsmanship and performance pedigree,
Symmetry
will be one to watch.
The 2025 fleet is packed with variety. Three of the largest yachts—
Burrasca
,
Panthalassa
, and
Rosehearty
—are all 56-metre Perini Navi yachts, designed by Holland. The list also features nine Frers-designed yachts, five from Dykstra NA, and three each from Holland and Tripp. On the builder side, Nautor Swan leads with six yachts (four of them Frers-designed), followed by Royal Huisman, Baltic Yachts, Perini Navi, and Pendennis, each with three entries.
Fleet breakdown and classes
The 2025 St Barths Bucket will be divided into eight racing classes:
- Class A - Les Cent Pied (100’ Racing Class): Two WallyCento yachts making their debut, competing in short windward/leeward races before joining the main fleet for coastal racing.
- Class B - Les Gazelles des Mers: Three high-performance sloops with some of the fastest ratings in the fleet, including a J-Class yacht with unique measurement values.
- Class C - Les Elegantes des Mers: Four large-displacement sloops and a schooner, similar in size and racing characteristics.
- Class D - Les Petites Dames (90’ Class): Four tightly matched sloops in the 90' range with near-identical rating values.
- Class E - L’Esprit (Corinthian Spirit Class): Five non-spinnaker entries, all light-displacement sloops around 30 metres. Three of them will be racing with headsails set flying instead of spinnakers.
- Class F - Les Mademoiselles des Mers: Four sloops with similar LOA and sail area-to-displacement ratios.
- Class G - Les Grande Dames des Mers: Three of the largest yachts in the fleet—all Perini Navi builds—racing with a close rating spread.
- Class O - Les Performances Ouvertes: A mix of two Class A racers and three Class B cruisers, scored separately but competing under ORCsy rules.
The racing will follow the Bucket’s signature pursuit format, where yachts in each class start at staggered times and aim to finish together. It’s a system that ensures close, competitive racing without the chaos of a mass fleet start.
Looking back at 2024
Last year’s regatta saw some standout performances.
Gelliceaux
, from Class D L’Esprit 1, took the overall 2024 Bucket win. Special awards went to
Perseverance 1
for Best Owner Driver and
Hanuman
for Best Starter. Some of the yachts returning this year already have a winning pedigree. The 39-metre
Velsheda
, a Dykstra NA-designed, Camper & Nicholson-built classic, dominated Class B: Les Elegantes with a perfect 1-1-1 score across three races. Similarly,
Freya
, a 28-metre Frers-designed Nautor Swan, took top honours in Class C: Les Petites Dames with an undefeated record.
Anticipation builds for 2025
With a stacked fleet, returning champions, and fresh competition, the 2025 St Barths Bucket is shaping up to be an unforgettable event. For those who love big boat racing, this is the regatta to watch. Will
Symmetry
make a mark for New Zealand boatbuilding? Can past winners defend their titles? We’ll find out soon enough, as the countdown to race day begins.
