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Too good to miss Bill Canfield and the irresistible lure of a Caribbean race programme
The Caribbean racing season is rapidly approaching and it is not too soon to pick the events for your 2015-2016 winter programme. The islands offer an ever-expanding and moveable feast of 11 regattas in a 12-week period from mid-January through April. One thing we can almost guarantee is perfect sailing conditions in our wonderful trade winds and crystal clear water. That alone should have you buying your tickets and packing your bags but there is far more to our racing season that you will enjoy. Let me start by bragging a bit and telling you how Caribbean racing has evolved for the better over the past decade:
Rating system
The Caribbean Sailing Association employs its own handicap rule and it is extremely easy to get measured in the water and obtain your certificate the same day. The CSA rule is now over 50 years old and it has been constantly tweaked to keep up with trends and changes in raceboat design. The CSA rule is well accepted by our visiting yachts and is now used at every Caribbean event. IRC and ORC are also on offer in St. Thomas but most boats choose CSA. This is also one of the few rules that accommodates catamarans. For more info go to
Caribbean-Sailing.com or email a measurer and make an appointment to get measured when you arrive.
Race management
The whole Caribbean has made huge improvements in this area and the days of amateurism among our race committees and juries are long gone. Seasoned race officers and judges are flown in to all of our events and work alongside and also train up local race teams to ensure quality courses wherever you choose to compete. It is now increasingly common to find an International Jury at
44 SEAHORSE
Caribbean events and we can now guarantee well run and fair racing throughout the islands.
Fun factor
The theme at the Heineken Regatta is ‘serious fun’ and at St Thomas International it’s ‘we love it here’. In spite of increasing professionalism among both organisers and competitors, our events continue to maintain a very relaxed attitude compared to the US and Europe. Most teams stay within walking distance of their boats, starting times are usually 11am and the social side is how we show off our culture to visitors. We all will incorporate our island rums, the white sand beaches and top-notch local music into the party mix. Put away your inhibitions and get out on the dance floor. If you don’t you will miss the true nature of Caribbean sailing. And no one will tell…
Pick your sailing discipline
The Caribbean season offers it all. Our events combine a great mix of windward-leeward courses, point to point racing, round the rocks courses and even distance races like the RORC Caribbean 600. Each day is different, equally exciting and always centres on our clear water, trade winds and beautiful coastlines. If you are a cruising non-spinnaker sailor or an out-and-out Grand Prix racer each regatta has a class for you. And you can charter a bare boat or a high tech ocean racer if you’re not ready to bring your own boat to our area. We also continue to explore new ideas and classes even as I write. The new VH1 class is bringing 18-boats to
St.Thomas and BVI Spring Regatta and the fast little C&C 30s are also exploring the idea of class racing in the Caribbean this year. We also welcome Melges 32s, IC24s, J24s and other one design classes to our
TOD VAN SICKLE
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