Caribbean Compass Yachting Magazine October 2016

— Continued from previous page
Countdown On for 30th Antigua Classics
Preparations are in full swing for the 2017 Antigua
Classic Yacht Regatta, sponsored by Panerai, which
will hold its landmark 30th annual event April 19th
through 25th.
Scores of vintage vessels are set to descend on the
international sailing hub for an extra-special edition of
what has become a highlight of the global classic
sailing calendar.
This unique regatta — hosted by Antigua Yacht Club
— will see a diverse range of competitors including
the traditional island craft, classic ketches, sloops,
schooners and yawls together with the graceful Tall
Ships, J Class and Spirit of Tradition yachts.
Together, these boats make a wonderful spectacle
powered by the region’s tradewinds and spectacular
sailing conditions. The slew of races, combined with
Antigua’s famous hospitality and sunshine, places the
Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta in a class of its own
and is a testament to keeping traditions alive —
remembering the skills and passion of designers and
shipwrights from years gone by.
The regatta evolved from Antigua Sailing Week,
which dates back to 1967. Back then, all of the yachts
were classics but as the years passed they were slowly
outnumbered by modern racing yachts. In 1987, three
veteran captains — Uli Pruesse, Tony Fincham and
Kenny Coombs — joined forces to create a specialized
race for classic boats. With a total of eight entries
in the first year, the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta
was born.
Over the years, the event has grown with the help of
a faithful and long-standing committee, a host of
enthusiastic volunteers and the passion of classic
yacht owners and their crew. In 1996 a new class of
yachts was allowed to enter for the first time, opening
up the regatta to an even wider audience. This Spirit
of Tradition Class, first developed in Antigua, has now
been adopted by many other classic regattas across
the world, giving new yachts, built along the lines of
the old, a chance to sail alongside their grand older
sisters. In 1999, Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta hosted
the first race between the J Class yachts in 60 years.
Visit www.antiguaclassics.com for more information.
YOUTH SAILING NEWS
Young Belizean in Top Ten at Canada’s CORK
Forrest Jones reports: Young Optimist sailor Kevin
Velasquez, 14, who trains at San Pedro’s Belize Sailing
School, tacked and trimmed his boat to finish seventh
overall, out of 127 international competitors in the
“Canada’s Olympic Regattas, Kingston” (CORK) 2016
International Optimist Regatta. Sailors from the USA
Clockwise from left: The Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta
will celebrate 30 years in 2017; up-and-coming racer
Caroline Sersland also represented Belize at CORK;
Antigua’s newest Dinghy and Keelboat Sailing
Instructors with their RYA coaches
and Bermuda were the only ones who topped him.
Meanwhile, in a gracious salute to Belize for participating
in Canadian regattas for the very first time, the
host organization chose Blanca Velasquez, 16, a Laser
sailor from San Pedro, Ambergris Caye, to be its standard
bearer at the opening ceremonies of the 2016
Sail Canada International Youth Championship
Regattas in Kingston, Ontario, on August 14th. In this
regatta, Blanca finished 42nd out of 146 Laser sailors,
male and female, in total.
Antiguan Students Achieve RYA Qualifications
Antigua’s National Sailing Academy is pleased to
announce that six of its students, all Antiguans, aged
16 to 18 years, have now achieved their Royal
Yachting Association (RYA) qualifications as certified
Dinghy and Keelboat Sailing Instructors.
Two RYA Coach/Assessors from the UK delivered the
course, which took place in August over a period of
ten days. The first day of sailing assessment required
the students to demonstrate that they had sufficient
sailing skills to enable them to teach others and the
remainder of the time was “teaching them to teach”.
The RYA Sailing Instructor Certificate gives them the
credentials to gain employment anywhere in the
world that teaches Dinghy/Keelboat Sailing. As this
course was previously held at the Academy in 2014,
when three candidates qualified as Instructors, they
now have a total of nine graduating from the course.
Of the Programme, President of the National Sailing
Academy, Elizabeth Jordan says, “The Academy regards
this as the first rung on the ladder of qualifications that we
would like them to obtain in their chosen fields of sailing/
yachting — thus underlining the fact that sailing is the
only sport in Antigua that can lead to well-paid employment
for significant numbers of our young people.”
She went on to say, “I am delighted that so many
young Antiguan youths who learnt to sail in the
Academy Programme are now being able to use it as
a major stepping stone for their future careers. It is
very satisfying to see that the vision we had for the
Programme is now bearing fruit.”
The Academy and the students would like to thank
their sponsors for this opportunity, Lloyd Thornburg of
Phaedo3 and The Kappa Cup event.
The candidates were Jules Mitchell, age 17; Tyrese
Loctar, age 16; Joshua Daniels, age 17; Maliek
Patterson, age 18; Kumar James, age 18; and Judean
Jeffers, age 17.
OCTOBER 2016 CARIBBEAN COMPASS PAGE 15