Stamford Denmark Race held in Connecticut

For 47 years, the Stamford Yacht Club, the Stamford Sail & Power Squadrons, The Royal Danish Yacht Club and the Consulate General of Denmark have partnered in hosting a sailing regatta of major proportions.

On Sunday, September 9th, 2012, 84 boats participated in the 47th Valeur-Jensen Stamford Denmark Race at Stamford Yacht Club, CT. The day was blessed with almost perfect weather, clear blue skies with a few feathery dots of clouds which never amounted to anything. The race was slightly delayed because of lack of winds at some point. The sailing regatta was preceded on the Saturday before by a cocktail party and a gala dinner during the late afternoon and evening.

During the past years, this affair has been attended by members of the Royal family from Denmark, but this was not the case in 2012. As always, this festive day starts out with a solid breakfast at the Club and thus fortified the 10-12 guests set out to board the boat “Ocean Drive” owned by Chris Hansen, a long-time correspondent of NBC News Dateline and his charming wife Mary Jo. My attendance of this event has been a long time tradition of almost 10 years started by Werner Valeur-Jensen, who first invited me as his special guest. Chris Hansen is an avid sailor and chairman of the Valeur-Jensen Race Committee. Chris has had a long and illustrious career with NBC where he started in 1993. He was responsible for much of Dateline’s coverage of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and his dramatic investigations and reports have earned him two Emmy awards. He and his wife who live in Connecticut were our gracious hosts for the VIP boat guests, feeding us an endless stream of appetizers, shrimps, sandwiches and cookies washed down with champagne and Carlsberg beer. The race ended at 4 p.m. and was followed by the prize distribution which started after the tired crew had gotten rested and received some food. As always a successful and festive day! Completely in Werner Valeur-Jensen’s spirit! Learn more about the race at: http://www.stamfordyc.cynergynetworks.net/racing/denmark-race