Vladivostok laid on a warm welcome for the fleet taking part in the SCF Far East Tall Ships Regatta 2018 on Sunday to mark the inaugural visit of the Tall Ships to the seafaring city in Russia’s Far East.
Under blue skies and late summer sunshine, Sail Training International Race Chairman Einar Corwin said that he was impressed by the welcome extended to the fleet of vessels from Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Russia which had arrived in the city of Vladivostok ahead of an action-packed six-day programme,
“This is our first time in Vladivostok, but with the warm welcome and professionalism we see here, we hope it will be the first in a number of successful Sail Training events in this seafaring city with its rich maritime history.”
Sail Training International Race Chairman Einar Corwin
At a high-energy Opening Ceremony dancers and acrobats performed a combination of modern and traditional acts to welcome the fleet to the city with 600,000 inhabitants on the eastern coast of Russia.
The Acting Mayor of Vladivostok,Vitaly Verkeenko, said he understood the challenges the crews had faced en route to his city.
“We understand how difficult it is what you do and we appreciate your courage and strength. This is a Regatta that is not only held at sea as there are also plenty of activities organised on shore and we hope that you will participate in those.
“This Regatta is being held at the same time as the Eastern Economic Forum so Vladivostok becomes an important stage for business relationships. You are helping us to promote an international image on the global stage. Welcome to Vladivostok!”
Acting Mayor of Vladivostok Vitaly Verkeenko
Sail Training International Race Director Mike Bowles said the vessels had experienced some challenging conditions on their final approach to Vladivostok. He noted that the Class A vessel Nadezhda (Russia) had taken line honours, but that results remained provisional until the release of final results.
“All ships that raced from Yeosu in the SCF Far East Tall Ships Regatta are now in Vladivostok. The last ship to berth today was Koreana (South Korea). The last 36 hours of racing produced some particularly challenging conditions.
“The ships that finished in the first group benefitted from steadier winds throughout the race whereas the latter finishers had some very variable conditions ranging from light airs to strong squalls. Although there was nothing over a Beaufort Force 5 forecast, some of the ships experienced line squalls and one in particular recorded sustained winds of 40 knots for a period.”
Sail Training International Race Director Mike Bowles
Bima Suci (Indonesia) arrived in spectacular style delighting the gathered crowds with traditional music and dancing as the Indonesian Navy vessel approached the port and came alongside greeted by crowds of cheering Russian sea cadets.
HOW TO FOLLOW THE FLEET
YB TRACKING FOR SCF FAR EAST TALL SHIPS REGATTA 2018 – THE LOW DOWN…
We at Sail Training International, understandably, really get into the Races and Regattas and we love to follow the fleet!
We do this by using YB Tracking. For those of you who are new to the Race and Regattas – we want to share this great tool, which allows us to keep up to date with the racing. We welcome virtual spectators, who can follow the fleet – anytime, anywhere – from now until they arrive in Vladivostok before or on Sunday 9 September 2018.
WHAT IS YB TRACKING?
YB tracking is a self-contained battery operated tracker for vessels, it allows you to track a vessel’s position from anywhere on earth.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
YB “wakes up” on a regular basis (for example, every hour) to obtain a position using the GPS satellite network, and then transmits that position back to an online map (found on the Sail On Board website) during a race, or viewed directly from your mobile phone (if you download the app)
WHO HAS A YB TRACKER?
Every Tall Ship and Small Ship that participates in Sail Training International Races and Regattas uses YB Tracking.
This is your chance to follow the Tall Ships fleet as they make their way along the Yeosu – Vladivostok Regatta route, all thanks to the YB satellite tracking system. YB Tracking will allow you to see who is leading in the race and ensure you miss none of the sailing action.
WHAT TO DO NEXT
YB Tracking features a selection of different sailing events; the event you are interested in should be chosen on your laptop or app home screen by its event name – in this case SCF Far East Tall Ships Regatta 2018
HOW TO DOWNLOAD ON YOUR PHONE
You can also download the YB Tracking app for your phone and tablet from the App Store and Google Play Store. You will find all the functionality of the web dashboards accessible while you’re on the go. You can find instructions on how to use the YB Tracking system over on our YB Tracking page of the Sail on Board website.
ABOUT THE SCF FAR EAST TALL SHIPS REGATTA
The two-port Regatta takes place between Yeosu, South Korea (27 August – 1 September), and Vladivostok, Russia (9-14 September). Primarily state owned vessels are taking part, including ships from Indonesia, Japan, Korea and Russia.
The 4th Eastern Economic Forum is being held in Vladivostok at the same time as the SCF Far East Tall Ships Regatta 2018 (11-13 September), where world leaders are expected to be in attendance.
ABOUT OUR SPONSOR: SOVCOMFLOT
Sovcomflot (SCF) is Russia’s largest shipping company and one of the global leaders in the maritime transportation of hydrocarbons, as well as the servicing oil and gas projects on the continental shelf, including offshore seismic exploration. The world’s leading operator and largest owner of ice-class vessels designed to operate in difficult navigational conditions: 79 ice-class vessels rated from ICE 1C to ARC7 and Icebreaker ICE-15. The Company’s fleet (owned and chartered) specialises in hydrocarbon transportation from regions with challenging icy conditions and includes 147 vessels with a combined deadweight of 12,732,069 tonnes.
The Group has offices in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novorossiysk, Murmansk, Vladivostok, Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Limassol, London and Dubai. Over 7,800 employees at sea and ashore. The Group is one of the largest employers in Russia’s coastal towns of the North-West, Southern and Far Eastern regions.
