The Sint Maarten Yacht Club takes pleasure in inviting you to compete in the 30th edition of the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta, March 5th to 7th, and the Commodores Cup March 4th, 2010. The organizing authority is the Sint Maarten Yacht Club.

Rules
The event will be governed by the rules as defined in the ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing (2009-2012), which can be found at www.sailing.org, the Sailing Instructions and its attachments, and the CSA safety rules. RRS 52 (manual power) will not apply.

Advertising
Boats may be required to display advertising provided by the organizing authority as permitted by ISAF Regulation 20.4.1. The organizing authority may charge a fee to permit advertising selected by the competitor to be displayed in the area reserved for advertising to the organizing authority (forward 20% of each side of the hull and the forward 20% on each side of the boom, plus a sponsor’s flag or burgee on the backstay).

Eligibility & Entry
The Regatta will be held for the following Classes that may get subdivided:
CSA MONOHULL:                                 CSA Rating Rule
BARE BOAT*:                                         CSA Bareboat Rating Rule. Boats of this class will be restricted to recognized 
                                                                  bareboat fleets acceptable to the race committee. Only equipment provided
                                                                  as standard by the bareboat company will be allowed. No Spinnakers, spinnaker
                                                                  poles, whisker poles or second headsails will be permitted. The bareboat class
                                                                  is only open to vessels from recognized bareboat companies with crews who
                                                                  have no previous affiliation or familiarity with the vessel being sailed, the sails
                                                                  and/or the standard bareboat equipment. This does not apply to familiarity with
                                                                  the type of vessel but only to familiarity with the specific vessel being sailed.
                                                                  Operators of bareboat companies including employees and persons who have
                                                                  previous experience or affiliation with the vessel being sailed, the sails and/or
                                                                  the standard bareboat equipment are restricted from this class. The evaluation
                                                                  of this familiarity or otherwise will be determined by the race committee and
                                                                  there is no appeal or redress possible from their decision.
MULTIHULL:                                          St.Maarten Multihull Handicap System
OPEN CLASS:                                       Simplified CSA Rating Rule (modified each day according to performance).
                                                                  Intended for live-aboard boats and boats without CSA rating certificates.

Boats may enter by sending their entry to the Sint Maarten Yacht Club by fax, mail or E-mail no later than February 24th 2010. Boats may be accepted after this date by paying a late fee of US$50.00. Entry form is available online or by contacting the regatta office. Telephone 599-544-2075, Fax 599-544-2091, e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Fees
All Classes:       US$7.00 per foot for CSA yacht club members US$8.00 per foot for non CSA yacht club members
                             The entry fee includes a free water taxi pass for all racing crew members
                             The entry fee for the Commodores Cup is a flat fee of US$65.00 per entry.

The entry fee must be paid no later than at registration. The fee is payable in CASH, ST.MAARTEN CHEQUES, TRAVELERS CHEQUE or VISA/MASTER CARD. Entry Fee is in US Dollars.

Bow/Stern Numbers
All boats are required to register their sail numbers for use in identifying their boat. Bareboats, Open class and any other entrants without sail numbers must carry bow and stern numbers for the purpose of identification. RRS Appendix G (Identification on Sails) shall not apply. A cash deposit of US$100.00 is charged at registration for a set of bow/stern numbers. On Sunday, March 7th, after racing, bow/stern numbers must be returned and the deposit will be refunded. The final date to return bow/stern numbers is June 1st 2010, any numbers returned after this date will not have their deposit refunded.

Schedule of Races
Thursday March 4th Commodores Cup for Spinnaker boats only. Friday March 5th, Saturday March 6th and Sunday March 7th St.Maarten Heineken Regatta for all classes. Spinnaker boats participating in racing on Friday March 5th till Sunday March 7th are not required to participate in the Commodores Cup on Thursday March 4th.

Warning signals for the Commodores Cup will not be before 9:50 am. Warning signals for the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta will not be before 8:50 am each day.

Registration
For all participants registration will be open on Wednesday March 3rd and Thursday March 4th from 11:00am to 5:00pm.
An additional registration will be available to those participants entered in the Commodores Cup only. This will take place Wednesday March 3rd from 5:00pm to 7:00pm. Commodores Cup participants also entered in the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta will be able to handle both registrations at this time. Name changes to any boat may not be accepted after February 24th 2010. If any name change is accepted this may be done at an administrative fee of US$50.00 and the acceptance of a name change is at the sole discretion of the Organising Authority.

Rating
Each entry in the Monohull class must have a valid 2010 CSA digitally certified rating certificate. Each entry in the Bareboat class must have a valid 2010 CSA Bareboat digitally certified rating certificate. Each entry in the Multihull class must have a completed Multihull rating form attached to their entry form. Each entry in the Open class must have a completed CSA Simplified rating form attached to their entry form. Each entry which fails to comply with these rules will sail with a rating of 2.000.

For more information on the Caribbean Sailing Association and the CSA Rating Rule and CSA Measurers on all Caribbean Islands please check www.caribbean-sailing.com

If you need your boat measured in St.Maarten please contact
Stuart Knaggs,
Phone: (599) 557-1990, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  or
David de Vries Phone: (599)-520-1927, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or
Alfred Koolen
Phone: (599)-554-2391, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Courses
The race course for the Commodores Cup on Thursday March 4th will be windward – leeward courses

On Friday March 5th, Saturday March 6th and Sunday March 7th, race courses will be on the waters around the island of St.Maarten/Saint Martin, which may include an around the island race, windward leeward races and point to point races. There will be different length courses for the different classes. Sub divided classes may sail different length courses within the classes. The Sailing Instructions and course details will be available at registration.

International Jury
Decisions of the Jury will be final as provided in RRS 70.5

Scoring
For both the Commodores Cup and the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta the low point system of RRS Appendix A will apply. No scores will be excluded. For all classes one race is required to be completed to constitute a series. The Commodores Cup will be scored as a separate event.

Prizes
For the Commodores Cup on Thursday March 4th.Trophies will be awarded to 1st 2nd and 3rd place in each class. When competing in the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta the following prizes will be awarded: The Principal Cup will be the Cup for the “Most Worthy Performance of the Regatta”, as determined by the Organizing Authority in their sole discretion. The Columbus Cup is for the overall winner of the Bareboat Class; this is the only overall class trophy. Trophies will also be awarded to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each class. Every day a “Most Worthy Performance of the Day” Cup will be awarded to the boat that fits this title, in sole discretion of the Organizing Authority. The Around the Island Trophies will be awarded on Sunday to the fastest elapsed timed Spinnaker boat Non-Spinnaker boat, Bareboat and Multihull

Disclaimer of liability
Competitors participate in the Commodores Cup and/or the St.Maarten Heineken Regatta entirely at their own risk. See RRS 4, Decision to Race. The organizing authority will not accept any liability for material damage or personal injury or death sustained in conjunction with or prior to, during, or after the regatta.

Additional Information:

*The Spirit Of Bareboating: Information For The Bareboat Class
In order to ensure that the bareboat class provides sailors an equal opportunity, the Race Committee has established stringent rules to ensure that genuine bareboaters are protected from parties who attempt to arrange for any form of unfair advantage or the provision of superior equipment.
Competitors in the bareboat class should not have any financial or ownership interests in the particular boat being sailed nor have arranged with the charter company to have any equipment installed that might give them any real or perceived advantage.
The boats from the bareboat companies should be allocated to the entrant on a purely random basis. If by some statistical anomaly an entrant is allocated the same boat for two years in a row, the bareboat charter company shall give written notification to the race committee to inform them of the situation. The Race Committee is dedicated to ensuring an equal and fair opportunity for all competitors in the bareboat class.