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Wherever you live in the Caribbean you’re never far from water, so why not make the most of it? Whether you’re a complete beginner or an experienced sailor, there’s a boating activity out there to suit you… Words: Carol Bareuther
The Caribbean islands are stepping-stones straddling the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Hoisting a sail, pointing a bow and travelling over the water were once the only means of island hopping. Today, there are much faster modes of transportation, yet the sea still beckons. Whether you’re already a keen and experienced yachtsman or whether you’ve never set foot on a boat before, there are plenty of ways you can enjoy this age-old water sport. THE COMPLETE BEGINNER You see sailboats. You imagine yourself at the helm with tiller in hand. You even picture the whole family aboard enjoying quality time together out on the sea. How do you get there? Take lessons. “People often ask, ‘What is sailing really like?’” says Hedge Shuter, assistant manager at the Trinidad & Tobago Youth Sailing School (TTYSS). “Well, the answer is that it’s a safe, fun, challenging and exhilarating way to develop mind and body in children and adults alike.” And it doesn’t take long to get hooked. Pre-requisites for a beginner sailor are pretty much zero, explains Alison Knights-Bramble, a founding member of the BVI Watersports Center (BVIWC) on Tortola. “An interest in discovering how it feels to be afloat in a small, responsive boat is all you need. Swimming ability is not crucial. Nobody goes near a dock, let alone a boat, without a properly-fitted, flotation device. Confidence in water wearing a buoyancy aid is all we expect. After all, the idea is to stay with the boat not swim home!” At the BVIWC, Knights-Bramble says, “Our method of teaching hinges on getting afloat – hands on, practical stuff is the only way to go. The sooner those students are on the water and doing things in their dinghy or keelboat, the sooner the apprehension melts away.” OnDeck in Antigua offers year-round sailing courses that are multi-day. Tracy Guerrero, owner of Indigo Event Services, took the beginners’ Competent Crew course. “After a morning of briefings and safety checks, we left the Antigua Yacht Club Marina and sailed over to Carlisle Bay.” Tracy remembers. “I took the helm for about 15 minutes, and while it was scary to start – you have so many things to think of and do at once – I got to feel a little more confident, although I was teased about not really joining in the conversation with the other students.” So now that you’ve taken your baby steps, what can you do once you know how to sail? “Different people get hooked on different aspects of the sport,” says Knights Bramble. “Sailing boats are diverse and there is one for everyone. Sailors who are naturally competitive discover the world of racing through local yacht clubs. Cruising sailors migrate to larger yachts designed to travel greater distances. Some people, like myself, never grow out of small dinghies!” THE EXPERT The Caribbean boasts some of the best sailing conditions in the world: steady trade winds, warm sunny weather and usually calm seas. It’s no wonder that ardent racers from around the globe – as well as from throughout the region – fly or sail in to compete in high calibre regattas such as the Antigua Sailing Week and the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta. So how can you compete? “In Antigua,” says Bernie Evan-Wong, local dentist and highly competitive skipper, “we have a range of boats that enter the higher profile events such as the Antigua Sailing Week. These range from heavy cruisers, cruiser racers and all-out racers.” Tanner Jones, an Antiguan who owns a J/30 sailboat, Blue Peter, adds, “The fun of big regattas is the chance to test your skills against boats we normally don’t see.” The good news is, anyone can sail in one of the major Caribbean regattas. “Entering any boat, professional or charter, is extremely simple,” says Heather Tackling, director of the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta. “Our entry form is online and once the required fields are completed, the entry is confirmed and listed.” What if you don’t have a boat or can’t take your boat to the race venue? The answer is to charter. “Chartering is fairly simple these days,” says Tackling. “Most charter companies have race packages available so that the customer only has to show up and sign the paperwork, pay the rental fees and deposit and they are ready to sail.” THE BUDGET OPTION If you want to get involved in sailing without it costing a lot of money, go for the ‘rail meat’ experience. That is, join the crew and sit on the rail of the sailboat as the skipper sails into the wind. Angelique ‘Niki’ Borde, manager of the Trinidad & Tobago-based Regatta Promoters, who mounted the new Tobago Carnival Regatta last year remembers how this resulted in the experience of a lifetime for one young man. “He approached me on the beach after registration for the regatta,” Angelique remembers, “and asked me how he could get on a boat. He was 14 years old, had sailed Optimist dinghies when he was younger, and lived in Tobago. I told him to ask the captain of a big beautiful Farr 64. He did and he ended up sailing with the crew who eventually won the regatta. It was the experience of his lifetime.” So how do you find skippers who need crew? Jerry Clifford, a skipper based at St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, recommends that you call the local yacht club, get the telephone numbers of a few people who race and network from there. “You can also go to regatta pre-race festivities and look on the ‘Crew Wanted’ posting board.” He explains. “Many Caribbean regattas also have ‘Crew Wanted’ sections on their websites.” The great news is, you don’t have to worry about having any special skills. “I like a combination of experienced and ‘newbie’ crew,” says Clifford. “I want people who just love sailing. They must have a basic athletic ability and aptitude, a competitive yet cooperative spirit and be in good physical shape and have the endurance to cope with the rigours of boat handling in sometimes difficult conditions like heavy winds and seas.” Crewing might sound harder than it is. But then again, there’s always that rainbow on the horizon to chase. “When we do well or even win,” says Clifford, “it’s a huge pride boost for everyone involved.” GO LOCAL Forget the factory-built fibreglass-fabricated production boats. There are plenty of sailors throughout the Caribbean who swear by the historic tradition of wood. “Puerto Rico’s chalanas date back to the sugar era,” says Carlos Marrero, president of the Puerto Rico Chalana Association. “Workers used to transport sugar cane to the refinery by boat. They used flat-bottomed boats made from the wood of the frescura or emajagüilla tree, that could be sailed right up to the beach near the cane fields to make the on-loading of the cane easier.” A century later the flat-bottomed chalana evolved into a fisherman’s vessel. “Many of the poorer neighbourhood fishermen used boats with sails because they could not afford outboard engines,” Marrero explains. “By the early 1970s, the fishermen started to compete for fun on the weekends. Crowds gathered to cheer their favourites. Over the years, the mayors of all the south coast towns that had beaches included chalana competition as part of their carnival or fiestas patronales.” Similarly, wooden sailboats or ‘work boats’ have long been part of the culture in the southern Caribbean. Sarah Baker, who organises the Port Louis Grenada Sailing Festival held each January, says, “Sailing has always been a big part of life in traditional fishing communities like Gouyave and Sauteurs on the West Coast, Woburn on the East and of course Carriacou and Petite Martinique. The competitive spirit between communities has always been strong and this has translated over the years into competitive recreational sailing.” Puerto Rico’s chalanas, says Marrero, “are still backyard-built. A group of guys get together to build a chalana. One maybe contributes the money, another the knowledge of how to build it and another the actual work.” Today, there are over 75 chalanas in Puerto Rico, 50 that actively sail and about 25 that race at any one time. There are different classes of chalanas, such as 16-footers, 20-footers, 24-footers and 28-footers. However the 24-footers are most common and most active as a group. In Grenada, says Baker, “some guys build their own, but usually there is someone in the area who is well known and builds boats for others. Many communities in Grenada host small local regattas throughout the year. Then there’s the big Digicel Work Boat Regatta held as part of the Port Louis Grenada Sailing Festival. “We probably get an average of 36 to 40 boats in total,” says Baker. “We have one day of community-class racing, where boats from each of the communities race off to see who will be the representative in the Match Race Finals. As you can imagine, this is major. There’s serious racing, but it’s still tremendous fun and done in great spirit. We have the Le Mans style start off the beach, which is one of the best sights to watch. The day of racing for the Finals ends with the naming of a champion National Team – both Junior and Senior – and the naming of the ‘Skipper of the Year’. These titles carry huge bragging rights. One year the winning skipper came from Gouyave and the supporting crowd carried him and his boat along the beach in triumph. The sight still stays with me!” THE SPECIAL OCCASION The joy of living in the Caribbean is that there isn’t just one place to party, there are two – land and sea – and day sailboats are definitely not just for international visitors. Michael Green, a two-time Olympic sailor who runs Endless Summer Cruises out of Rodney Bay, says, “Our boats are Catamarans and can hold anything from a couple to small groups or groups of 65 to 85 people. The Catamarans are large, wide and very stable, so it’s very rare for anyone to feel seasick. Perfect for a great day out.” Pearl Rambally, assistant to the general manager at East Winds Inn on St. Lucia agrees. “A day cruise is always the most popular choice for our annual staff activity,” she says. “A boat ride incorporates all aspects of a house party – music, dancing, food and drink, etc. It also takes in aspects of a beach party. Then, there’s the enjoyment of sailing along the scenic coastline. It gives the staff an opportunity to enjoy themselves in a completely different environment. The boat was very large and allowed us to sit in the shaded deck area or out in the open deck taking advantage of the view.” Sailing south to Soufriere, Rambally says, “there was activity in every corner of the boat. Some chose to dance, play cards or have casual conversations while others napped with the breeze gently blowing over them. What really added to the excitement was the occasional dolphin or school of fish jumping out of the water right in front of us.” The boat docked mid-day in Soufriere and gave employees a chance to walk around this historic town. Lunch was supplied by a local restaurant and served aboard after the boat set sail. “We sailed to a point where the Pitons were visible,” says Rambally. “Lunch was served and you could not ask for a restaurant with a better view.” After lunch, the captain sailed the boat for a short distance and then docked at a private beach accessible only by water. “We were the only ones there,” says Rambally of the idyllic destination. “Some employees snorkeled, some went for a swim and others played football or cricket on the sand. Still others chose to stay on board and just relax. On the way home, we all shared the same sentiment. We couldn’t wait for another boat ride. |
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