Caribbean Multihull Challenge: It's a wrap!
by Caribbean Multihull Challenge 1 Mar 2025 15:01 GMT
January 29 - February 2, 2025
Caribbean Multihull Challenge © Laurens Morel /
www.saltycolours.com
Caribbean Multihull Challenge: It's a wrap!
Unique by its magnitude and design—a dedicated cruising rally run in conjunction with the racing regatta that's been the hallmark of the event—the seventh edition of the annual Caribbean Multihull Challenge Race and Rally, which took place from January 30 to February 2, was an undeniable success.
As the event continues to grow and evolve, it's an ideal time to look back at what transpired this year and ahead to the next edition, scheduled to take place next January 28 - February 1, 2026.
Discerning sailors have already saved these dates!
CSA Race: classic winds, modern wins
The entries in this racing division have been fighting for four days to get top honors.
Having a look at the variety of boat designs, one may wonder how to compensate the difference between "scratch results" - time to sail from start to finish line - and "corrected time" deciding the "real" winner. Here is the explanation:
Boat length, sail area, appendage type, etc. are different from one boat to another. Every single boat has its own speed potential. To take that into account and to be able to reward the most performant crew, CSA (Caribbean Sailing Association) has set up a rule.
The intent of this Rule is to handicap fairly the broad variety of multihull yachts which
race within the Caribbean region. The rule will compute a RATING for each yacht which is
intended to be representative of its true speed potential. "The real star of the show is the CSA rating rule that is excellent and making it possible for a variety of multihulls to compete fairly on our courses. Congratulations to all at the CSA!' says Robbie Ferron, CMC Race Director.
As a matter of fact, CSA works great Eg: HH66 LEE OVERLAY PARTNERS has been crossing the finish line first in most of the races, but its rating says it should give time back to other boats, while old-school looking design like Crowther design OCEANS TRIBUTE, skippered by Guy Chester, has benefited from a bonus. Hence the final results: GUNBOAT72 LAYLA becomes the overall winner. Owners Andrew and Anne, newcomers to the CMC, loved it: "it's been a fantastic week, our crew had so much fun. We'll definitely talk about the CMC to our friends and other multihull owners, hoping to see more yachts next year on the starting line". Loud and clear!
Diam24: Navigating success one race at a time
With a successful number of participants (9 entries), this racing division has been exciting to watch. With a mix of beach-side and offshore coastal races, the show was permanent for spectators, and the adrenaline spikes are a routine for racing crews.
Pierre Altier, CMC's Steering Committee member, and key to this one-design rebirth in the Caribbean region, is confident in the further development of this section: "I'm delighted to see that this class has been a success in this year's edition. No need to spend fortunes to have fun: this little sporty and affordable trimaran (that can be traveled in a container) has it all! We'll continue to import and refit more of these, as the World Diam Tour is attracting more and more crews from all over the world".
As for the CMC, although competition has been fierce, the scoreboard has never been so easy to read: except a disqualification in race #4, Argentinian skipper Jan Sotelo and his crew have placed their Diam24 ANOMALY in first position in the remaining 11 races! "Of course, we'll be back next year" said Sotelo at the prize-giving ceremony.
Rally: Sun-kissed and sea-pawed
The growing success of this division means that CMC's future is solid and promising. When CSA has its ratings and rules, the Rally has his own, too: fun, fun and fun!
Sailing from bay to bay, hopping from one island to another, enjoying beach parties and time trials during transits have made the Rally program appealing for an eclectic and diverse fleet.
No matter the boat size and the crew's background, all they have in common now are unforgettable memories, shared emotions and more than 70 nautical miles under the hulls!
"It's not about the destination, it's all about the journey" summarized CMC's steering committee member Petro Jonker, responsible for the rally activities.
What to expect for the next edition? More participating crews, more surprises, and maybe an extended rally where sailors would navigate further and longer. Why limit the fun?
See results here
From the desk of Robbie Ferron
We have recently concluded the 7th annual Caribbean Multihull Challenge
In seven years of sailing the Caribbean Multihull Challenge we observed that the results were very spread out and inconsistent. Much searching was done for improvement of the rating and it appeared to be difficult. This year the CSA brains group reviewed the multihull rule which resulted in very close and varying results. These results allow us to be much more optimistic about the future of multihull sailing in the Caribbean.
There were five boats in the Racing CSA class. (There was also a Rally Cruising Class) They all had experienced and talented sailors. There were four catamarans ranging from a 72 ft Gunboat to a 52ft ORC and a 47 ft trimaran. They sailed four races in moderate and strong conditions. Three of the boats ended up with the same number of points (one was a trimaran) in the last two races and the winner had four less points. In race three which was a 5 hour race the corrected times of the first four boats differed by 21 minutes. This is close racing!
We are sure that these results tell us that the CSA rating system has made a big forward jump and we have to thank the President Bastien Pouthier and Chief Measurer David Walworth who regularly supports this regatta.
The rest of the season will see multihulls in various racing events in the Caribbean like the BVI, Stir, Rorc 600 and we expect that their racing will also take an upward quality. The Windies Multihull trophy will have a good result as it captures the results and makes a regional award.
This encourages us to plan for the 8th annual Caribbean Multihull Challenge which will take place Jan 28- Feb 1, 2026. We see a great future in Multihull Racing in the Caribbean.
Robbie Ferron
Race Director 2025 Caribbean Multihull Challenge
2025 Highlights
See more images here
At the opening Press Conference for this year's Caribbean Multihull Challenge Race & Rally, the assembled audience was pleased to hear directly from Mrs. Grisha Heyliger-Marten, the Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport, and Telecommunication (TEATT) as she spoke about the growth of the CMC and its initiative to embark on a new feature of the CMC Rally; i.e. the CMC Great Bay Beach and Boardwalk Jamboree set for the opening day of the Rally.
Mrs Heyliger-Marten praised the CMC for creating an event in Philipsburg to bring more activity to the town stating that the Jamboree was right on the St Maarten Government's strategy of re-invigorating that part of country St Maarten. Later on the next evening the Minister attended the Jamboree VIP and Sponsor's Party to help usher the event in and to enjoy the evening's Fireworks Show.
We could not be more excited about the Minister's presence and support. We hope she will join us in 2026 for CMC VIII 28 January to 1 February, 2026.
NEW FOR 2026!
Whats new in for the 2025 edition of the Caribbean Multihull Challenge?
Save the dates Jan 29 - Feb 1st 2026
St Maarten Yacht Club announces Caribbean Multihull Challenge VIII with new, lower entry fees
Coming off a sensational 7th edition of the Caribbean Multihull Challenge Race & Rally, the organizers are happy to announce the dates for CMC VIII, which are 28 January to 1 February 2026. Racing - including the long-distance CMC Trifecta™ for CSA 1 vessels - will continue for four days, beginning and ending in Simpson Bay. The four-day rally will see that fleet stop in Simpson and Great Bay in Dutch St Maarten, Marigot Bay in French St Martin, and another overnight in St. Barth's.
A highlight for the cruising rally will be on Saturday, the 31st, with an all-day Great Bay event called the 2nd annual Great Bay Beach and Boardwalk Jamboree featuring 'Stadium-Style' Diam 24 racing in the Bay close to shoreside viewing spots. Plus, we will repeat this year's popular beach sports competition in the Government Sports Park on the beach and the spectacular Fireworks Show to end the day.
Meanwhile at the St Maarten Yacht Club, 1600 sf the sailing school dock will be outfitted with a full tent making an event and meeting space that will hold among other things a pop-up Boat Show featuring displays from the CMC's selected sponsors. Between the race and rally evening shoreside activities everywhere, CMC organizers will be planning eight parties - each with music, foods, and beverages! All of this is planned with a new entry fee structure lower than CMC VII's in 2025!
Multihulls entering and paying before 1 December 2025 (now $8.00/ft) will receive a substantial 33% discount from the 2025 cost of $12.00 per foot. For entrance after 1 December up to Registration Day on the 28th of January, the 2026 fee will be only $12.00/ft (a 20% discount from 2025). As always, all proceeds of the CMC go directly to the not-for-profit SMYC to cover the equipment and costs of its 32 year-old award-winning youth sailing program.
New Rally Schedule planned
With every year comes slight changes to the program with the hopes that it will always be an improvement to the event. For 2026 the team here at the Sint Maarten Yacht Club put our heads together and tweaked the program for the Rally portion of the event. The proposed new schedule will be as follows:
Thursday- Simpson Bay to Marigot and back to Simpson Bay
Friday- Simpson Bay to St. Barths
Saturday- St. Barths to Great Bay for the 2nd edition of the Jamboree
Sunday- Great Bay back to Simpson Bay
Stay tuned for more details as we put the final touches on the schedule.