Don’t miss the boat! Register now to join the fleet of 80 junior sailors from throughout the Caribbean, U.S. and Europe who are already signed-up to race in the 2012 Scotiabank International Optimist Regatta (SIOR), June 22 to 24, and race prep Sea Star Clinic and Sea Star Team Race, June 18 to 21. Entrants [...]
From our feature, Beautiful BUT Deadly Lionfish are taking over the Caribbean, Alarm bells are sounding throughout the Atlantic and Caribbean. Lionfish is an incredibly dangerous, invasive species in Caribbean waters! The beautiful yet deadly Lionfish’s native range is the Indo-Pacific. Most of the Lionfish now found in the Atlantic and Caribbean were proven, through DNA [...]
The Leverick Bay Poker Run has turned into a Must Do Monster Event – Held annually on the Sunday of Memorial Day, The Leverick Bay Poker Run is a blast for family and friends. PLUS – it supports a great cause. The LOCAL support is amazing with boats entering from the BVI, USVI and Puerto [...]
Register now! Internationally traveled anglers are already marking their calendars for the three days before the September full moon and one day after, also booking their flights to Puerto Rico. These incredibly productive marlin fishing dates is when Club Nautico de San Juan hosts its prestigious 59th International Billfish Tournament (IBT). Set for September 23 [...]
What a crazy few months. I can’t open my mailbox without news of yet another regatta and the thrilling exploits of those who take their pleasure on the race course. Looking for a word to sum it up, I would say ‘evolving’ fits the bill. Regattas are being forced to change with the times and [...]
Vanishing Sail Antigua – Sailing enthusiasts interested in supporting the arts are now able to make the transition from interested observer to active patron with just a click of the mouse. Independent film maker, Alexis Andrews, is in the final stages of filming his documentary, Vanishing Sail: A Caribbean Tradition on the Verge of Extinction, [...]
St Thomas Yacht Club welcomes new Sailing Coach Augustin (Argy) Resano is back at the St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC). The professional coach, from Argentina, adds his weight to the team of accomplished sailing instructors. With over ten years of international coaching experience, Resano has coached Optimist, 420, and J-24 class sailing in the US, [...]
Gill Commodores Cup is a Breezy opening to 32nd St. Maarten Heineken Regatta There are many adjectives one might employ to describe the sailing conditions in Simpson Bay, off the south coast of St. Maarten, for the running of the Gill Commodores Cup, the kick-off to the 32nd annual St. Maarten Heineken Regatta. “Sporty, sunny, [...]
RORC Caribbean 600 – The Caribbean’s only offshore race attracted 578 sailors from 36 countries including a number of world-class Spanish sailors racing on the Volvo 70, Gran Jotiti and Swan 56, Clem. Some of world’s most extraordinary yachts, five over 100ft, entered the race. The 214ft Baltic, Hetairos, skippered by Vincent Fauquenoy, took line [...]
In absolutely perfect Caribbean racing conditions, with steady trades pumping out of the east at anywhere from 12 to 25 knots, a solid fleet just shy of 200 boats—including a record-setting twenty catamarans and trimarans—set sail in early March in the waters off St. Maarten for the 32nd annual running of the sudsy St. Maarten [...]
I recently had the honor of giving the Keynote address at the NW Maritime’s Spring Symposium in Port Townsend, Washington. I’m happy to report I fell in love with the place, people, and organization – a finer group of sailors could not be found. Most of all, I fell in love with the town itself. [...]
Charlie was a teenager in the late 60s and early 70s and, according to recent wisdom; it was the best time to be growing up – if you weren’t drafted into a questionable war, that is. It was the time of ‘peace and love’, getting high and great music. It was cool to drop out, [...]
The annual migration of billfish and gamefish along the Caribbean island chain makes for great fishing year-round. Even more fun are the tournaments that combine fantastic fishing with nightly dock parties and prizes that span from spiffy trophies to luxury gifts, cash and of course bragging rights until the next tournament rolls around. Here’s a [...]
How to Shoot Underwater Photography – Unless one is an accomplished free-diver with exceptional breath holding skills, the first step for a budding underwater photographer is learning to scuba dive and, secondly, learning and mastering buoyancy and breath control. Without these two skills, the resultant underwater photographs will strike fear in the hearts of those [...]
Although many British Virgin Islanders today prefer sleek, racy motorboats, just over a half-century ago, small, locally-constructed sailboats dominated these waters. Visiting yachtsman painted colorful descriptions: boats overloaded with cargo that could include paying passengers, ‘ground provisions’ (starchy root vegetables like cassava, yam and potato), charcoal, straps of fish and even livestock. Following Emancipation, newly [...]
After years in the Eastern Caribbean and finally sailing west, many cruisers find themselves in Panama where they face an important decision: do we go to the other side or not? Others have planned their Panama Canal transit months or years ahead and there is no doubt in their minds about swapping oceans. Whether you [...]
There’s nothing like the wind in your hair, sea spray on your face, and that feeling of sheer adrenalin-pumping exhilaration when the start gun sounds and you’re off racing. Unfortunately, there are downsides to competitive sailing. Boom bangs, sunburn and seasickness, to name a few, can wreak havoc with having fun let alone winning. Here’s [...]
His goal was to achieve the Gold Fleet at the Perth 2011 International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Sailing World Championships, an Olympic qualifier held in Australia last fall. Instead, after three days of racing, the Virgin Islands’ Cy Thompson made only the Silver Fleet, but that didn’t mean he was out of the game in terms [...]
Finding a place to dock at Virgin Gorda’s Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS) on March 14th -17th was not easy. That’s because 26 superyachts and megayachts—most of them more than 100ft long—were tied up for the second annual Loro Piana Caribbean Superyacht Regatta and Rendezvous. One of the smaller boats, Andrea Recordati’s Indio, took first [...]
As some Caribbean regattas struggle this season, it was encouraging to see the St. Maarten Multihull Regatta continuing to grow and attract sponsors. Although in the shadow of the Heineken Regatta a week later, the event, now in its third year, generated much excitement and earned praise from the participants. Ten multihulls, in two classes, [...]
Largest St. Barth fleet ever at the St. Barth Bucket The 2012 St Barth Bucket got off to a soggy start with a day of pouring rain on Friday, March 23rd, but skies were sunny for the rest of the weekend, with great racing conditions for the fleet. Peter Craig, of Premiere Racing, served as [...]
Anse a L’Ane, Anse Mitan & Trois Islet Opposite Martinique’s capital Fort De France, on the other side of the bay, are three anchorages that are often overlooked. Each have their own character but all with the same sophisticated charm that is expected of the French West Indies. Trois Islet, Anse Mitan and Anse L’Ane [...]
The fourth annual South Grenada Regatta (SGR), held February 23rd – 26th out of Le Phare Bleu Marina, proved a history-maker by adding for the first time – and a first for Grenada – match racing to the sailing competition. The Moorings and Sunsail donated two of their 41.3ft Beneteau charter yachts for the competition, [...]
Challenging conditions with winds swinging from four to nearly 20 knots out of the west, east and then north, created keen competition for the 21 boats taking part in the Trinidad and Tobago Sailing Association’s (TTSA) Trinidad Carnival Regatta, held out of Hart’s Cut, Chaguaramas, in February. This regatta, now in its second year, replaces [...]
All hands on deck! The wonderful thing about being on a yacht, whether it is a cruising boat or a charter boat is that the view always changes. It is Mother’s Day this month, so here is a choice of recipes that you can fix for her. SURE FIRE PRIME RIB ROAST This works for [...]
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. The catch of a 15.9-pound dolphin (mahi-mahi) earned St. Thomas angler, Joseph Lee, Top Angler and a $1,000 cash prize at the Virgin Islands Game Fishing Club’s (VIGFC) Dolphin Derby Fishing Tournament sponsored by Budget Car & Truck Rental, and fished April 22.. Fishing aboard the 32’ Phoenix, Southern Belle, [...]
The 1st Annual BVI Yacht Brokerage Showcase wrapped up on Sunday afternoon at the Bitter End Yacht Club. The four day event saw crowds of people walk the docks, viewing a great selection of pre-owned yachts. Three BVI-based yacht brokers (BVI Yacht Sales, 123 Hulls, and Moorings Brokerage) participated, listing 16 boats (one sold on [...]
TENTH ANNUAL ANGUILLA REGATTA SET FOR 11, 12, 13 MAY ‘RACE FAST, LIME SLOW’ In collaboration with the Anguilla Tourist Board, the Anguilla Sailing Association is proud to announce the tenth Annual Anguilla Regatta – known to be one of the best in the Caribbean. The Anguilla Regatta is famous for exciting courses and testing [...]
Nevis Yacht Club has surprised the regatta scene with a NEW regatta. Welcome to Booby Island! The “Booby Island Regata” is coming up quick on May 6, 2012. THE KEY PART – ALL Proceeds going to the Nevis Yacht Club Youth Development Program. So come on out and support the Boobies! Registration is prior to [...]
PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG announced today that Shannon Falcone will sail on board PUMA’s Mar Mostro for Leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 from Itajaí, Brazil, to Miami, Florida, USA. Falcone takes the place of bowman Casey Smith who injured his back during the last leg of the race from Auckland, [...]
Grenada is being promoted at two of the world’s most prestigious regattas in a very unique way. On Friday April 13th, Danny Donelan, Assistant Manager at Camper & Nicholsons Port Louis Marina, left Grenada aboard the sailing yacht Savvy for the Antigua Classic Regatta and the St. Barth’s West Indies Regatta. Savvy, a classic Carriacou [...]
World’s first dual color flood lights Feature DeckSweep Technology Lumitec, a leading designer and manufacturer of marine LED lighting solutions, announces the debut of their two newest flood lights: the Caprera2 cockpit flood light and the Capri2 flush mount cockpit flood light. The Caprera2 and the Capri2 are extensions of the top selling Caprera and [...]
There are many things I like about being editor of this great magazine not least of which is the diversity of our writers who month after month contribute to its success. On my watch I have got to know many of them quite well yet have met few in person. Like most sailors everywhere, we [...]
Budget Marine’s Annual Customer Party – A Rocking Success Sint Maarten –Budget Marine treated their customers to a Rock Star Party for their Annual Customer Appreciation night in February. Guests were encouraged to turn up dressed like rock stars and many spared no effort to do just that, the crew of the Mega Yacht Paraffin [...]
Cap’n Fatty Goodlander takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the rise of Bareboat The recent ‘open season’ (February 12th to April 18th) declared on bareboaters by the WWPA (Water and Wildlife Protection Agency) of the Lesser Antilles has sparked far more controversy than anticipated. There have been riots on a number of dinghy docks in St. [...]
Charlie has noticed a pattern of behavior when he gets a couple on board to begin a ‘learn to sail,’ live-aboard sailing course. That is that the wife or female partner always tends to hang back when it comes to getting involved with practical aspects of sailing. Even when Charlie names the female in question, [...]
Wind and excitement peak at back-to-back regattas Sailors got a one-two punch at the recent Grenada Sailing Festival Camper & Nicholsons Racing Series 2012. Strong winds reigned over both weekends, providing dynamic conditions and excitement for the 19th annual event. Originally the regattas were held simultaneously. But three years ago organizers decided to split them [...]
St. Thomas is known for its hot blue marlin bite in the summer. Yet anglers who want to get a jump on catching and releasing these blue behemoths should head 40 miles south to St. Croix earlier in the year. A whopping twenty-four blue marlin were raised by anglers aboard seven boats competing in the [...]
It wasn’t the wave of a wand, but the reel of a rod that won the Trinidad & Tobago-based team aboard the 54ft Bertram, Abracadabra, the coveted Top Boat and Top Angler prizes in the Budget Marine Spice Island Billfish Tournament (BMSIBT), January 25th to 29th. Abracadabra was one of 50 boats and 256 anglers [...]
LIFE … before GPS Forty years ago the Global Positioning System, a satellite computerized mapping system was not even on the horizon, so to speak, for the private yachtsman. If you wanted to cruise offshore you had to know celestial navigation. And the knowledge of this art/science kept many would-be cruising sailors either coastwise sailing [...]
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