Power Move: The Irens-Designed Trimaran Sophia Routs CSA 1 Racing Class and Named Most Worthy Performer

SINT MAARTEN (SIMPSON BAY) - As is so often the case in international, close-quarters, competitive sailing regattas, the eighth running of the Caribbean Multihull Challenge Race and Rally came down to the very last day. With so much at stake in the CSA 1 and 2 Racing classes, as well as the Diam 24 one-design division, only an epic day of conditions would suffice. And as it also almost always does, the white-capped turquoise waters and stiff southeasterly trades that are the hallmark of unparalleled Caribbean yacht racing did not disappoint. 

Once those cards were dealt, the race committee fired off a pair of contests with the entire fleet sharing the same racecourses: the first a 19-nautical-mile round-the buoys excursion along St. Maarten’s southern shores, and the second a quick 6-mile windward/leeward race out of Simpson Bay.

After those courses were set, and the top boats were poised to snatch their moments at the front of the fleet and claim their winnings, there was only one thing left to do: Let the games begin. With that, the spray was flying as the catamarans and trimarans sheeted in and blasted to weather, they were underway.

When all was said and done, there was an unmistakable trio of winners. In CSA 1, Marcos Sirota’s Sophia shook off a second on the first day of racing to notch three consecutive bullets to take the big-boat prize in resounding fashion; with victory assured, Sophia watched the final race sidelined with her sails furled.

The CSA 2 story unfolded in similar fashion, as Sam Talbot’s BVI-based Rapido 40, Spike, rebounded from a pair of seconds in the opening contests to win two consecutive races in its ascent to the top of the class. Spike also sat out the final race with its winning score assured. 

In the hyper-competitive Diam 24 class, a pair of boats were in contention for the series win: Miha Krumpak’s Fastnet, with Diam 24 ace and previous CMC winner Benoit Champanhac at the helm; and Ted Reshetiloff’s Buzz Race Team, with its own ringer, the fleet’s youngest sailor, 12-year-old Porter Cross (whose dad, Andy, is a St. Maarten YC staffer). It was Fastnet that matched the same feat as Sophia and Spike, sealing the win with a pair of firsts to complete the strenuous, 12-race series. Buzz claimed second.

With dominating results in all three racing classes, it was difficult to pick a top honoree for the series’ top prize—the Most Worthy Performer—which represents the regatta’s overall CMC winner. But its scintillating performance over all four days of the event was at first consistent and then dominant, which put the matter to rest: Sophia is the CMC’s 2026 Most Worthy Performer in this latest edition of the annual Caribbean classic.

“Sophia rose to the top of a very competitive class that had a lot of variations,” said CMC Race Director Robbie Ferron. “There was a foiling cat in Falcon; a pair of well-sailed ORC 50 catamarans, Malolo and Wa-kan; and of course the powerful Gunboat 72, Layla, which has done so well here in previous CMC’s. But in many ways Sophia came completely out of nowhere and just burst onto the scene. And what could be worthier than that?” 

Along with its MWP prize and its First Place award for winning CSA 1, Sophia’s hardware haul also included the Trifecta FKG trophy as the winner of the regatta’s three longest races. Remarkably, it was not Sophia’s first appearance in the CMC. In 2020, then called Shockwave, the Nigel Irens-designed tri was racing around the island when, in a 40-knot gust, it broke its boom and was forced to retire.

It started a new journey and two changes of ownership before making its way back to St. Maarten. Now, Sirota has traded up from his former Corsair folding trimaran and is at the very top of the CMC standings. “This one is really for my crew,” he said. “They keep the boat moving and everything very calm, and I just had to keep steering with two fingers.”

Other notable awards presented at the St. Maarten Yacht Club included the Windies Multihull Trophy, a season championship for offshore multihulls racing at existing events throughout the Caribbean. The Over 60-foot winner was Andrew Anne’s Gunboat 72, Layla; the Under 60-footer prize went to Georges Coutu’s Leopard 50, La Novia. And the Line Honors award, presented to the vessel achieving “across the line” firsts in the most races during the event went to the Diam 24, Fastnet.

Of course, the Racing component of the CMC is just one segment of the event, and the Rally participants were also duly recognized at the prize-giving ceremony. The big winner, far and away, was the all-women contingent Team Island Water World, a 35-foot cat representing the SMYC.

The team won the Bingo Card challenge on land, and the Time Trials Mariner prize on the water, a “predicted-times” pursuit race that showcased their sailing prowess. From their great reactions to their achievements, and also their excitement supporting all their fellow sailors, if there was a Spirit Prize, they would’ve won that too.

The battle between Buzz Race Team and Fastnet came down to the last two races. Image by Andre Dede Knol.

The Rally participants enjoyed an afternoon at anchor on the last day. Image by Andre Dede Knol.