On February 6 the Nautical Center of Saint Barth (CNSB) organized the sixth event in the Saint Barth Windsurfing Championship. The course was long, starting in front of Tortue, then around the buoys at Toc Vert, Pointe Milou, Frégate, Lorient, and near Bonhomme, then on to the final buoy in the Marine Park at Colombier. This magnificent ten nautical mile course was completed by 16 serious windsurfers, including three from Saint Martin: Jean-Marc Peyronnet and Ricardi Maricel (regular participants in windsurfing regattas in Saint Barth), and Julien Quentel, overall champion of France 2010, European slalom champion, and world vice-champion for IFCA slalom in 2010. Also on hand was Saint Barth's local champ, Antoine Questel, vice-champion of France 2010 and fourth in the World Slalom 2010, and Delphine Cousin, French junior champion 2010, who was in Saint Barth training with Questel.
Starting at noon, with winds gusting to 30 knots and a rain shower, conditions were strenuous. Antoine Questel and Julien Quentel quickly took the lead, making it a two-man race. In the end, Quentel took the lead with Questel right on his heels, and Théo Reynal in third.
After the event, the CNSB offered their thanks Christophe Baudouin, Bosco Yacht, the Saint Barth Yacht Club and all the volunteers who helped make the event possible.
Ellen Lampert-Gréaux lives in Saint Barthélemy where she is editor-in-chief of Harbour Magazine, and has been a regular contributor to All At Sea since 2000. She also writes regularly about entertainment design and technology for Live Design magazine, and about Caribbean architecture for MACO, a Trinidad-based lifestyle magazine.