BVI Spring Regatta & Sailing Festival: Fantastic Caribbean conditions turn up fun dial on first day
by Michelle Slade 31 Mar 2018 06:47 BST
26 March - 1 April 2018
Close racing in CSA Racing 1 class on the opening day of the BVI Spring Regatta for Peter Corr's King 40 Blitz and Belgian Swan 45, Samantaga. L to R: Team McFly/El Ocaso, TAZ, Blitz © Alastair Abrehart
A brilliant day on the water made for thrilling starts in the CSA Racing division and close sailing for the top three finishers in all divisions. "It was really a terrific day," Dave Brennan, Principal Race Officer for the Racing Division, said. "We worked in a lot of windward leewards, and sailing around the rocks for some reaching, so a good balance of courses. The breeze was pretty much from the NE at 14 knots throughout the day with a few squalls brushing the course. Tomorrow we expect it to be a little further right, closer to 80-90 degrees."
The competition in CSA Racing 1 was tight, as demonstrated by today's results. Peter Corr, owner/skipper of Blitz said, "We had plenty of good competition and clean starts each race except the third. We could feel we were really on it in race 2 - windward leewards suit us as we're good at fast changes. Going around Ginger Island on race 3 was our best upwind leg all day and I thought we'd get first but as we turned to head down we went a little wide to minimize sail changes which probably hurt us. We found the breeze very shifty which made it hard work on the helm!"
Rob Butler, owner/skipper of Touch2Play, has replaced the J/88 he raced Spring Regatta on last year with a Reflex 38, so the boat is relatively new to he and his crew. "We're enjoying it - the boat goes well for its rating in all conditions. Today was just beautiful Caribbean racing, we saw breeze between 11-17 knots. Our first and second starts were good which helped us strategically vis-à-vis the rest of the fleet. It was tricky behind the islands with cross winds and wind shadow - we had a bit of a tussle with our kite on the first race on the south side of Cooper but that's also the fun of racing around the islands."
Mike Finley, skipper of the IC24 Huron Girl who is in third in CSA Racing 2 with 8 points, said, "We had a great day, the competition was tough, and we tried everything we knew. The starts were very aggressive, I thought our crew work was spot on with only a few mistakes and the courses were perfect. We were having fun with the other IC24 and really didn't expect to do this well in today's breeze - we're surprised and happy!"
Racing in Jib and Main on a boat just three weeks old, Jose Teixidor took two bullets on Cachonda, his new Grand Soleil 52 which he co-skippered with his son Marco. Teixidor, who has been sailing in the area for 30 years, lost his Hanse 45.5 which he'd raced in previous Spring Regatta events in Hurricane Irma. "Cachonda is a very fast boat - as well as an excellent cruising boat - we even have a washer/dryer on board! Today's courses were great, I love racing around the islands, but you have to know all sides of the islands well. The competition is close - we have a sistership in the fleet and Avanti are friends from the US, so we are always watching them closely. Today Marco did all the starts - he's used to sailing an IC24 so this is a little bigger! We're not going to change anything tomorrow, so far so good."
One of the awesome aspects of yacht racing anywhere is the diversity of sailors who participate. On board Team Miami, 81-year Andy Buys is working the traveler and today helped his team race to second place. "I've never seen anyone work harder at sail trim!" skipper Brian McCarthy said. "It's an awesome effort. Today's competition was tough but it's fun - and global! One of our main rivals is Dutch, and the Russian team has given us a hell of a time, and we love the British team Girls For Sail. It was beautiful sailing today, conditions were fantastic, and the courses were well set up. We love the BVI and so glad we came this year in particular - we will be back next year!"
In brief, in CSA Racing 1 (3 races) Blitz, a King 40 is in first with 7 points after scoring 4, 1, and 2 over three races sailed, tied with Samantaga, a Swan 45. In CSA Racing 2, Touch2Play, a Reflex 38 is in first with 4 points, while Boogaloo, a Melges 24 is in second with 6 points. Gunboat 62 Elvis took first in one long course race set for the Offshore Multihulls, and Flow, a Gunboat 60, took second.
In CSA Bareboat 1, the Return of the Macks, a Moorings 51 has 4 points after taking a first and third, and is tied with Breakaway, also a Moorings 51 which scored 2, 2. In CSA Bareboat 2, Maissa, a Sunsail 46, took first with 3 points, while Aquaholics/Joanna Victoria, a Moorings 45, is second with 5 pts tied with Squeakybrat, a Sunsail 47. In CSA Bareboat 3,Gatos del Sol/Makin' Memories, a Sunsail 41, took first, while Team Miami/ZZ Hull 313, is in second.
In the Multihull division, Piglet, a Newick Teegull Tri scored a 2, 1, to tie for first with Lucky 7, a Corsair Sprint 750 which scored a 1, 2. In CSA Jib and Main, Cachondo, a GS 52, took first, while Avanti, a Hanse 43 is in second. In Performance Cruising, Godspeed, a Swan 51, is in first, while Tatonka, a Beneteau Cyclades 50 scored 3, 2 to tie for second with Moxie/Alice D, an Oceanis 440 which scored 2, 3.
After racing, crews looked forward to the Mount Gay Black and Gold Party in the Regatta Village at Nanny Cay, with music by Final Faze.
Racing resumes on Saturday 31st March with the first start at 1000 EST. Day one results from the BVI Spring Regatta can be found here at www.yachtscoring.com/event_results_cumulative.cfm?eID=4419
For more Information visit www.bvispringregatta.org