Breezing Through St. Tropez
Alessandro Vitelli
02/01/2006

Forget everything you may have heard or read about Saint-Tropez as the noted—and notorious—summer playground of the famous, the almost famous, the wannabes and the inevitable camp followers that attach themselves to the above. This time we are going to take a sailor’s perspective and approach Saint-Tropez as it should be approached, from the sea. It started, after all, as a shipping and fishing port—the tiny old fishing harbor is still visible on the gulf side of town—mentioned in the eleventh century as Ecclesia Sancti Torpetis. The Thermidoriens of 1793 renamed it, more classically, Athenopolis, but the original name is the one that stuck, corrupted into its modern version, Saint-Tropez.

The 90-foot Fife ketch Sumurun sailing the gulf in light air. (Click image to enlarge)

And so from the sea we approached it, aboard the 80-foot Mylne classic yawl Mariella, beating into the gulf in a 40-knot mistral, spray flying, decks awash, right up to the finish line, set up as always between a buoy and the town’s historic landmark, the red-and-yellow clock tower. The event was the annual sailing pageant closing the Mediterranean regatta circuit, Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. Two hundred and eighy-four yachts flying the flags of dozens of nations had gathered for the 2005 edition. Significantly more interesting than the number of nations represented, however, was the incredible variety of yachts participating. A few of the gaff-rigged sloops dated back to the 1890s, joined by a remarkable assembly of vintage designs from such luminaries as William Fife, G.L. Watson, Charles Nicholson, Alfred Mylne, as well as more contemporary classics from Olin Stephens, Philip Rhodes and Bjarne Aas—the list is a compendium of classic yacht designers.

Top photo: The Fife dragon flies proud. Bottom photo: Watching the fashion parade in front of the Hotel de Sube is a great way to enjoy the day. (Click images to enlarge)

While the sweeping grace of the classics dominated the waterfront, more modern cruising and racing yachts (175 of them, to be exact) were hotly competing for line honors on the race course. Divided into five classes, they ranged from 30-foot production boats to the outrageously fast 140-foot schooner Mari-Cha IV. Rounding out the ultra-modern fleet were eight Wally yachts.

Since the classic yachts were given a lay day to recoup from the mistral, we decided to trade our deck shoes for walking shoes and explore the town. Other than the remains of the fishing harbor breakwaters, there is no evidence of the nineteenth-century ship building, which took up most of the waterfront that now comprises the Old Harbor, New Harbor and, regrettably but necessarily, parking lots and other support facilities—these latter a worthwhile sacrifice, as you can walk around town, especially Old Town, in streets and alleys remarkably free of traffic. The town was substantially damaged during the Allied landing of August 1944, although you’d never know it, so successfully has it been rebuilt along its original lines.

Fraise de bois at the vegetable market. (Click image to enlarge)

The main obstacle to exploring the town is the waterfront itself. As you step down the passerelle onto shore, you are faced with an uninterrupted array of outdoor cafés, bars and restaurants, all surveyed by the bronze statue of Le Bailli de Suffren (an eighteenth-century French Admiral who, as was explained to us somewhat humorously, enjoyed the distinction of "not having lost a naval battle to the British"). And while during Les Voiles the town is not as crazily mobbed as it is during the summer, one of the most enjoyable and well-deserved indulgences you can give yourself is a seat at any one of them; a pearly, translucent pastis to get into the local mood; and the time to savor the endless "fashion parade" of people strolling by, gawking at the yachts and being scrutinized in turn.

Top photo: High-tech racing aboard Tiketitan. Bottom photo: Well, Saint-Tropez is, after all, a fishing village. (Click images to enlarge)

Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez is organized and managed by La Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez, which efficiently coordinates the week-long activities on land and water. Its most visible effort, other than the races themselves, is exemplified by the numerous and hard-working port crew, who provide inflatables to assist yachts in docking, catch docklines on shore and offer helpful information about just about anything to the polyglot sailing crowd. In addition, the behind-the-scenes logistics are equally well run, with countless thoughtful details to make the entire experience memorable for all. The spirit of the event was summed up by Société Nautique President André Beaufils in his preamble to this year’s program: "The time has come for us to meet again, for the pleasure of us all—those who sail and those who remain on land, the volunteers, professionals and spectators who would not miss the spectacle you are about to provide for anything in the world."

Of course, there are few yachting venues that can offer so much to both "those who sail and those who remain on land." Inspired by your pastis, a stroll through the winding alleys and cobblestoned streets of Old Town is in order. The layout of Saint-Tropez offers three distinct gathering places. Besides the waterfront, a short walk takes you to the Place des Lices, where on non-market days (more about this later) boules players enjoy the natural arcades of its rows of plane trees. A short uphill climb takes you to La Citadelle, with its commanding overview of the gulf and the town. Even if starting out with good intentions, you may never get to the latter two destinations; there is something to tempt everyone on every street: fashion boutiques, bakeries, bars, booksellers, butchers, restaurants, well, you get the idea. Send your yacht’s chef to one of the many vegetable markets, and he may well come back with a new pair of shoes. A must-visit is the fish market and vegetable and fruit stalls just behind the tourist bureau on the port. It’s marvelous enough to make one forego those shoes.… But we had come to Saint-Tropez for Les Voiles, and so had to steel ourselves against such temptations (easy enough, we’d be back ashore in a few hours!). Courtesy of Wally PR Director Monica Paolazzi, we hitched a ride on Tiketitan, an 88-foot Wally sporting a canting keel and hydraulic canards as part of her bag of ultramodern tricks. Push-button sailing at its best, carbon fiber everywhere, indeed the complete "Wally experience." With Wally’s founder and president, Luca Bassani, at the helm and America’s Cup veteran Harold Cudmore as tactician, the bilingual information flow was as entertaining as it was informative. A tight mark rounding in (very) close proximity with another Wally was "discussed" loudly in a more universal and graphic sailors’ language. Needless to say, once back at the quai, we had to unwind with a pastis.

Top photo: The awards ceremony at La Citadelle with the Gulf of Saint-Tropez in the background. Bottom photo: Taking care of one of the old ladies is an ongoing process. (Click images to enlarge)

One of the challenges posed by Saint-Tropez’ winding narrow streets is navigation. Walking around, one invariably notices tantalizing restaurants, at street level, upstairs, in cellars, everywhere. Especially in the first few days of the regatta, the problem arises later in the evening, and manifests itself by the sight of groups of hungry sailors—no doubt excellent navigators all—cruising in search of that elusive little bistro spotted earlier in the day. Our own food experience ranged from world-class French fries at a tiny hole-in-the-wall to a disappointing dinner at a much-touted Michelin two-star restaurant. Moules frites and a bottle of rosé on the beach at Les Graniers proved to be as excellent as the place was entertaining. Soupe de poissons seemed to be good everywhere, so we ranked it by the quality of the accompanying rouille. The place to be for afternoon cocktails or a final nightcap is unquestionably the Hotel de Sube, overlooking the Old Port, graciously hosted by owner Jean-Louis Carré. Fortune favored us, and we did find a gem: Le Petit Charron, a maman-et-papa 34-seat hideaway. The Benoits, its owners, are among the organizers of the final offshore race of the season, from Saint-Tropez to Malta. We’re so thrilled with our discovery that we won’t tell you where it is. If you can find it, enjoy it.

Top photo: The Wally class got into some pretty tight racing. Bottom photo: Close quarters in the Classic fleet. (Click images to enlarge)

Thursday was devoted to that unique Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez event, the Journée des Défis (day of challenges). Any yacht may challenge another to a match race; the winner has to agree to a rematch the following year if requested. There were multi-boat challenges, as well, for various prizes.

Armin Fischer, captain of the classic 94-foot Fife ketch Sumurun, offered us a spot for Friday’s race, saving us from being too land and restaurant bound. In complete contrast to Tiketitan, there wasn’t a powered winch to be seen, just plenty of winch handles strategically distributed. It was a lumpy, light-air day, not her best conditions, but Sumurun strove mightily, sailing a course crowded by old six-meters, 30-square-meters, 150-foot gaff schooners and everything in between, and finished a creditable ninth in class.

While the Gulf of Saint-Tropez is certainly spacious enough, 284 yachts take up a great deal of pelagic real estate, and the sight of the various classes simultaneously starting, rounding marks, finishing and just sailing around was, for lack of a better word, awesome. Perhaps because it is a rarer sight, the classic yacht fleet was particularly impressive—in number (109) and in the range of sizes encompassed, but mainly in the quality of the boats and the obvious love and effort their owners and crews had devoted to restoring and maintaining them. Varnish glowed softly, brass shone, awnings were taut and all appropriate flags and bunting were snapping in the breeze. At dockside, the juxtaposition of the eight Wally yachts, all moored together, with three gaff-rigged schooners exemplified as much as anything else the spirit and scope of the regatta.

Top photo: The classics, triple head rigs, club topsails and all, are the glamor girls of the regatta. Bottom photo: 80-foot Mylne classic yawl Mariella, the lone entry from Antigua. (Click images to enlarge)

Speaking of spirit, high spirits indeed were evident Friday, the day of the Crews’ Carnival. With much thumping of drums, several crews marched down the waterfront in assorted thematic fashions and proceeded to an evening of merriment at the Place des Lices, consigning the die-hard boules players to the few remaining gaps between the trees. The thumping, which lasted until the wee hours, measured how efficiently Saint-Tropez accommodates all types of activities; by eight the following morning, the justly famous open-air market was set up and active. If you do nothing else while here, you owe it to yourself to walk through the astounding variety of, well, everything: vegetables, shoes, cell phones, sausages, cheeses, straw bags, linen shirts, faux furs—everything. It is all so tempting, it will make you wish you had a larger yacht.

We spent the last day of racing, Saturday, chasing the fleet in a press boat, trying to get in the last few perfect shots of the boats sailing in against the backdrop of the old town, reveling once again in the beauty of the assembled fleet. Sunday morning everyone climbed to the top of La Citadelle for the awards ceremony, which was as smoothly executed as the entire week had been. One could argue that with venues such as these, it’s easy to stage an impressive event, but La Société Nautique takes the beauty of the venues as a challenge, an inspiration for that extra effort. And, after all its achievements, it remains refreshingly humble. This final quote from André Beaufils to the participants says it all: "So now it is up to you—what surprises do you have for us?"