News & Views for Southern Sailors - Southwinds Magazine

Sails reefed in the Family Island Regatta.Family Island Regatta – BahamasBy Betsy MorrisThe National Family Island Regatta is to the Bahamas asthe World Series is to the United States. It is held inGeorge Town, Exumas, in April each year, but theplanning, scheming, second-guessing, and boat tuningbegin much earlier.Some would say it begins in Mangrove Bush, LongIsland, at the innovative Knowles boatyard. Others wouldclaim that the boys at Man-O-War Cay in Abaco have thetouch, or that the folks at Barraterre, Great Exuma, bringtheir special attention to detail, or that the focus of StanielCay’s Brooks Miller, captain of Tidal Wave, is the spark. Theold timers, many of whom were the founding fathers of theregatta in 1954, look to the oldest boats for inspiration, LadyMuriel, Tidal Wave, Good News, Running Tide, and others.All these sloops are built in the Bahamas, framed andplanked in wood (faired with fiberglass and fillers). Thedinghy classes (no jibs) are up to 17 feet in length, the BClass is 21 feet, and the A Class is 28 feet. All are eitherremodeled fishing boats or descendents thereof, with theircuddies removed, designed with the traditional grace andbeauty of the hull and rig foremost in mind; raked bowsand sterns, strong sweep of sheer, “wineglass” curvature tothe transom, with tillers passing through an aperture, andno winches or “modern” instruments. Their booms arealways longer than the length of the boat itself, and many ofthe 28-footers have 60-foot masts, laminated of Sitkaspruce—no spreaders allowed. Depending on wind conditions,they often carry a ton or more of lead ballast, as wellas up to 14 sailors, whose weight, hiked out on pries,attempts to balance the gargantuan spread of canvas aloft.The regatta is three days long, preceded by one day ofspecial races for the Commodore Emeritus, GovernorGeneral, and Prime Minister cups. Before those races comethe National Junior Championships, sailed in the dinghyclasses. This year, seventeen-year old Nioshe Rolle fromStaniel Cay won—the first girl to take the championship.Prior to those events is a frantic week of readiness.George Town is spruced up; dozens of food and drinkshacks are built of plywood, painted, electrified, with fullbars and kitchens installed; and the racers begin to arrive.The Exuma and Long Island racers come on or are towedbehind the local fishing boats. Most other boats are wedgedonto the mailboat. The scheming and second-guessingbegin as these racers are off-loaded by a crane. Everyone onthe dock yells instructions, and gestures fly from thosewhose boats are already launched.In the midst of all this preparation and racing activity,fans arrive from Nassau, Eleuthera, Crooked Island,Acklins, Long Island, Rum Cay, Bimini, Cat Island, Abacos,all the Exuma Cays, and even the Turks and Caicos in supportof their favorite boats. Life in George Town is alteredfor a week: The library closes and AA meetings are suspended,although the reluctant kids still trudge to school;and cruisers from all over the world dot enormousElizabeth Harbour, loathe to leave until the last boat roundsthe last mark on the last day of the regatta.My husband and I planned our spring of 2006 to be inGeorge Town aboard our 39-foot Gulfstar, Salsa, for theNews & Views for Southern Sailors SOUTHWINDS October 2006 45