Just over a month to go … and all the sailing will be in Santa Margherita

We walk along the Santa Margherita Ligure harbor cove, a beautiful sunshine warming us. They are in the company of Roberto Beccari, managing director of TAG Heuer, a partner in the VELAFestival, and the mayor of the Ligurian town, Paolo Donadoni. Ours is supposed to be a business visit but it is turning into a pleasant stroll through one of the most charming seaside villages in Italy and the Mediterranean. There is little I can do about it, I tell myself: no Saint Tropez can hold a candle to it, and not even the precious little port of Hydra in Greece can hold a candle to this resort in eastern Liguria. Finally, I say to myself, this is the right place for the TAG Heuer VELAFestival, now in its third year, which takes place May 7-10. Because the values of tradition, innovation, technology, precision, beauty, performance, fun, ecology, and freedom that anyone who sets foot on a boat and begins to sail it will have their natural stage here. Those same elements that turn an experience into an enduring and incompressible passion. What we are preparing, “dressing up” the whole town of Santa Margherita, will not distort but enhance the flavor of the sea here. Because, we never stop reminding everyone, the VELAFestival is not a boat show or even a mere social event. VELAFestival is the time where enthusiasts and exhibitors, professionals and sailors come together to speak the same language, that of passion for the sea and for sailing. A party, on land and at sea, in the heart of an ideal harbor where the protagonists are boats, accessories, famous sailors and, above all, you who follow us. Enthusiasts like us. Because VELAFestival is the logical real-life extension of what we tell you every day on the web and every month with this newspaper. This year the reasons to meet are even more. Then there will be two events in the event that take place during the VELAFestival: the Sailor of the Year and the VELA Cup. The first event is the highest recognition given to an Italian sailor. This year we started with 100 applicants, and on May 8 you will be able to see live and chat with the winners. It will be a great party for everyone and a unique opportunity to connect with the best Italian sailors. And then, the next day, the party will continue at sea with the VELA Cup. It doesn’t matter what boat you have, your age or the age of your hull. It doesn’t even matter how good you are at turning a buoy. This time there is room for everyone and there is a ranking for everyone. Participating will mean you have already won before you leave.