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21st March 2007

Bear of Britain’s new owner reveals his plans for the yacht’s future

Bear of Britain, the well known racing yacht, will continue to provide unique racing opportunities for young people just as her former owner would have wanted, thanks to Isle of Wight businessman Andrew Palmer. He is keen for the yacht, formerly owned by Kit Hobday, to continue to play a key role alongside Chernikeeff 2 in the Cowes based GBR Yacht Racing Academy. This youth racing scheme originally conceived by Kit, is now being run, managed and developed by the UKSA, thanks to the support of Peter Harrison.

Andrew has always had a love of the sea which he now hopes to combine with his business acumen to launch an ambitious project to raise the profile of match racing within the UK. He hopes to open up this exciting aspect of yacht racing to as many people as possible. Speaking about his decision to purchase Bear of Britain, Andrew commented, “Part of the appeal of buying Bear of Britain was the yacht’s competitive history and the exciting way in which she was always crewed by young people. I met Kit in 2006, his passion for both the yacht and the scheme for young racers was crucial to the generation of my ideas for Bear’s future use.”

As well as making Bear available to the GBR Yacht Racing Academy for youth development, Andrew also plans to launch an exciting charter opportunity called the ‘Match Racing Challenge’. “Using Chernikeeff 2 alongside Bear of Britain”, explains Andrew, “will enable corporate groups to experience racing at the highest level in one of the best racing locations in the world. Guests will stay at my hotel, the Priory Bay Hotel, where they can take advantage of the conference facilities, top class restaurant and leisure facilities – non race participants can even view all the action from the hotel’s beachside bar.”

Andrew’s new venture is unique in that corporate clients will be playing a part in the development of youth racing in Great Britain. Funds from the joint charter will go towards providing opportunities for young people from all backgrounds to experience big boat racing.

The first selection weekend for this year’s Academy is on 24 March 2007. There is still time for budding young racers aged 18 – 25 to apply, they simply need to visit www.yachtracingacademy.org and complete the application form. To date, the response has been excellent, as Ben Willows who manages the Academy at UKSA explains, “The standard of applicants so far has been terrific, the response has been so good that we are considering putting on another selection weekend later in the year.”

Bear of Britain and Chernikeeff 2 will be competing in over 10 racing events throughout the 2007 season as part of the GBR Yacht Racing Academy. Both yachts are available for charter individually or as a pair for match racing challenges. For more details on the various charter opportunities contact Ben Willows on 01983 294941.