“On a weekend when sailing conditions could not have been better Team Coors Light skippered by Frits Bus came away with the top honors at the 10th Annual Anguilla Regatta, sponsored by the Anguilla Tourist Board.
If there’s one thing the Anguilla Regatta is famous for, its perfect sailing conditions and this year’s regatta was no exception. With clear skies and winds ranging in 15 -20kts for all three days of the regatta, the racing was spectacular for all 17 boats entered in the spinnaker, non-spinnaker and multi-hull classes. This year’s return of the A class Anguilla Race Boats on Sunday completed a perfect weekend of sailing.
The weekend was not without it’s share of highlights beginning Friday when Kick ‘em Jenny, the Benneteau 36.7 skippered by Ian Hope-Ross, having suffered an engine loss on it’s way from St. Maarten to Anguilla, arrived just minutes before the racing began. Dropping their dingy at the Committee Boat to make the start on time included an early morning dunking for crewmember Lee Hallam. Despite a day ruled by Murphys law, Kick ‘em Jenny was still able to get across the start line with the rest of the spinnaker class and managed to race their way into a third place finish.
Saturday’s triangle course was shortened and moved between the mouth ofRoadBayHarbourandSandyIsland. With four races completed that day, spectators and competitors both enjoyed some terrific sailing.
Immense jockeying around the start line was an exhibition of spectacular helmsmanship for all classes. Particularly dramatic was when Bel Aurora, the Jenneau Select, skippered by Roger Petit ofSt. Martingot caught in a luff and lightly nudged the transom of the Committee Boat.
In the Multi-hull Class, Robbie Ferron’s Katzenellenbogen, (Cat’s elbow, for those of us who don’t speak Dutch) had a string of first place finishes and controlled Saturday’s race in the Multi-Hull Class, despite the ferocious battle fought between himself, Erick Clement of Dauphin Telecom, and Petro Jonker’s Quality Time.
While St. Barth’s Speedy Nemo , with Raymond Magras at the helm, handily stole Saturday’s first race from Team Coors Light with only a one second lead in corrected time, the rest of the day it was Kick ‘em Jenny who put constant pressure on Fritz Bus’s team.
In the Non-spinnaker class, Colin Percy’s Nonsuch, Antares managed the first win of the day, but struggled the rest of the day with a placing of 5th, 4th, and 7th. And while Ben Jelic’s new crew of young students from the Anguilla Youth Sailing School may have been getting accustomed to sailing the Custom J 120, Jaguar Island Water World and placing last in the first race of the day, Jelic had them trained fast and took the 3rd, 2nd and 4th place slot for the next three races. Battling it out with Jaguar Island Water World was Sir Robert Velazquez on the Beneteau, L’Esperance and Nico Corlever’s 61’ X-Yacht, Nix. Final results of the day showed L’Esperance in the lead with scores of 3rd, 2nd, and two 1st place finishes, while Nix finished 6th, 1st, 3rd and 2nd.
Sunday’s final race had even more exciting starts when Dauphin Telecom and Quality Time tried valiantly to squeeze out Katzenellenbogen at the start line. Ferron found a sliver of space and squeezed through the line with a clear start, but the other two multi-hulls strategies’ failed them when they crossed the line seconds too early resulting in a clear and resounding win for Katzenellenbogen.
Another spectacular start was between Nix, Jaguar Island Water World and Charm III in the non-spinnaker class. And while Nix and Jaguar Island Water World did their very best to jog their way to the start line, resulting in almost blocking Charm III, Richard West managed to find the narrowest opening to find his place on the line. His starting strategy was brilliant as the cranse iron of his bowsprit hit the start line just as the whistle blew, despite the heart pounding seconds when Charm III scraped by the committee boat with only an inch to spare, much to the chagrin of his First Mate, Maryse. Unfortunately, a perfect start wasn’t enough to take the race and West’s placed 6th in the final race. Nix took the first spot with L’Esperance in 2nd, and Jaguar Island Water World in 3rd.
Sunday also featured Anguilla A Class boat racing shortly after the finishes for the other classes. One of the crew from Charm III, Starlin Rosario, was playing double duty and quickly needed to get aboard the local boat, Satellite. In a fantastic dive into the water from the deck of Charm III as she sat on her mooring, and while Satellite sailed by at 8knts, Rosario grabbed a tow line from Satellite’s stern and was quickly hauled aboard all while the helmsman narrowly avoided the rigging of Kick ‘em Jenny, also at anchor.
This year, a new award was created in memory of former Anguilla Sailing Association Board Member, Fred Randall, who passed away earlier this year. The Fred Randall Award was for the best all around performance by a single boat in the regatta. Team Coors Light, skippered by Fritz Bus graciously accepted this top honor in addition to his win in the Spinnaker Class.
Final weekend results can be found at www.anguillaregatta.com
Donald Curtis, President of the ASA, was very excited by the incredible sportsmanship of all the competitors. “While Coors Light may have won the top prizes the real winners were the students of theAnguillaYouthSailingSchool. This year, seventeen students were invited to crew for all three days of racing on six boats who were shorthanded. The students not only got to see first hand how it felt to sail on yachts that have competed all over the Caribbean but the funds raised by the regatta will be used to make sure that the sailing school survives and grows as it continues in its mission to teach sailing to the next generation of Anguillians.”
Curtis also announced that next year’s Regatta will be held February 22-24th, 2013 and promised an even more exciting event for the Anguilla Regatta’s 10th Anniversary.
– Press Release
(Published without editing by The Anguillian.)
