WORLD W
ith reports this month on High-Performance Bareboat Racing in the British Virgins, a look at the 2019 Caribbean Regatta Calendar, Thoughts on Sailing the 'Uncrowded' Virgin Islands, and miscellaneous Charter Notes.
Southern California Sailors Support BVI Recovery Helen Brierley and Dan McGanty of Pacific Palisades, California, manage to sail roughly 100 races during the season on Mistral, their Tartan 101. Members of the California Yacht Club, they’re also fond of chartering overseas during the off-season to keep their skills fresh and try something different. While the couple had chartered in the British Virgin Islands many times on family vacations, they had never sailed in a regatta there — until this year. Prior to Hurricane Irma last September, they signed up for the BVI Spring Regatta, and arranged to charter Lancelot 2, a Beneteau First 40, from Performance Yacht Charter.
Major Caribbean Regattas in 2019; Racing Is Only Half the Fun As you can tell by the story and photos above, competing in a regatta in the 'barefoot latitudes' of the Eastern Caribbean is great fun, even if you don't end up anywhere near a podium finish. In addition to the novelty of tradewind racing in shorts and T -shirts, inter-island courses take you past stunningly beautiful anchorages, islets and headlands. And the rum-fueled international camaraderie at the daily post-race parties is often as much fun as the racing itself. You've probably heard all about the
biggest annual events, such as Antigua Sailing Week, the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta and the BVI Spring Regatta — all of which have special divisions for international bareboaters. But there are also at least a dozen other annual sailing events well worth attending via a bareboat or crewed yacht, for reasons other than competition. Rubbing shoulders with local racers and boatbuilders at smaller, more intimate events such as the Bequia Easter Regatta (in the Grenadines) can be both fun and culturally rewarding. At the opposite end of the spectrum, your charter boat can serve as a comfy spectator
ALL PHOTOS COUTREST BVI SPRING REGATTA
Every spring racers come from North America, Europe and all over the Caribbean to compete in the BVI's annual Spring Regatta.
Given that the storm completely devastated Tortola and caused major destruction to Nanny Cay, home base for the BVI Spring Regatta, they felt fortunate to be able to make the trip to support the recovery in the area. "The welcome we got everywhere was great,"said Helen. "The locals were obviously really happy to see all the racers who made it there. They are still struggling there tremendously, but are getting back on their feet." Lancelot 2 was well set up for racing, although Helen and Dan were required to have an owner's rep from the charter company on board during racing. "I usually drive and Dan does tactics," Helen explained. "While we knew we had to have a rep on board, we didn’t want him to do anything, we wanted to be in charge! In the end he had a good time on the rail and soon figured out we knew what we were doing!" With a crew made up of friends from the US and UK, some racers and others not, Team Lancelot 2 finished in the middle of the pack in class, which was just fine with the crew. As Helen put it, they weren’t there to win,
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Latitude 38
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but to have a good time. For obvious reasons, fewer boats than usual participated this year, so the fleets were a little compromised. Lancelot 2, which is on the heavy side, found herself in a fleet with much lighter boats. "In what proved to be a light-air week, the lighter boats prevailed, making good value of time allowances of up to 15% on the larger boats," Dan said. "Lancelot battled commendably, finishing second of the five ‘heavyweights’ in our tenboat class." Team Lancelot 2 thor oughly enjoyed the racing, noting that the race committee did a great job running the races. "The breeze there is fantastic, although some thought it was a little light for the time of year," Helen said. "It’s always such a pleasure to be there in those gorgeous turquoise waters!" While Helen and Dan always choose to stay ashore rather on the boat they charter to race, Lancelot 2 was berthed in the new marina at Nanny Cay, just a stone’s throw from the new temporary regatta village and, importantly, the parties and bar. A successful regatta aside, observing first-hand the scars left from Irma even six months after the storm was sobering. "It was impossible to imagine the scene immediately after the storm," vessel on the periphery of flashy, worldrenowned events such as Les Voiles de St. Barth and the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta. We suggest you have a look at the menu of upcoming events that follows, then check out their websites for some added inspiration. And remember to book well in advance in order to secure an ideal boat for your group. • Jan 12 — Round the Island Race, Antigua Yacht Club • Jan 16 — Barbados Sailing Week, Barbados CC
