We left for Road Town well before the posted start time of 11 AM. Along the way we attempted to recalibrate the windex instrument that sits atop the mast by spinning our 46 foot vessel in small circles, but that didn’t fix it. Our speed indicator wasn’t working either, probably due to algae growth on the hull. I had brushed off the growth I could reach while at the dock, but that was hardly enough. To make matters worse, I hadn’t been at the helm sailing since early August, so a short practice ensued during which the winds blew a strong and steady 18-22 knots, keeping the sails good and full.
Remember, our intentions for sailing in this regatta was for FUN and to join in the festivities at Willy T’s Floating Bar that followed. That seemed to change for Dan the closer it got to the starting gun when he started acting like he wanted us to win or at least place well. The most harrowing part of the regatta for me was the twenty minutes prior to the start when all the participating boats milled around the waters of Road Reef Bay avoiding near collisions. I noticed that most of the other boats had a crew of four or more and all excess items were stripped from their boat decks (i.e., no bimini, dinghy, solar panels, wind generator, BBQ grill). The customary warning horns were blown one to five minutes apart, but they confused us novices- 1 long, 5 short, another long. (So when DO we go?!) We watched the other cruisers sail through the gate and followed the leader.
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| BVI Regatta Google Image...Dan wouldn't let me take my hands off the wheel. |
The one thing Dan did to prepare was to chart the course; however, an error was made in identifying the first marker, so we had to make a few extra tacks. All in all, it was a wonderfully sunny day and the rest of the race was good for me as I watched my fellow competitors from behind the pack. We even got to utilize our new whisker pole to sail wing-and-wing when we rounded the backside of Dead Chest Island as the winddiminished to 2-5 knots.
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| Jorn & Dianna came in 4th on their s/v Scooby II. |
The finish line was NOT located where posted. It seems we had missed an announcement given during registration and cocktails at the Royal BVI Yacht Club last night. We sailed into the Bight of Norman Island among the moorings around Willy T’s. The racers who had finished were relaxing and watching the last of us come in. I turned to starboard to pass behind the bar to head for where we now thought the finish line was, but a sudden strong wind took hold of the sails, so I had to go hard to port to avoid crashing into Willy T’s! Immediately, I started the engine as we were in the midst of boats and moorings and I knew for safety’s sake, I needed to be in total control. Our friends Jorn & Dianna yelled and motioned frantically to us that we must go around by the committee boat, but I chose not to because I was already motoring. I assumed that our disqualification would result since we hadn’t properly crossed the finish line. That was OK with me because, first and foremost, I hadn’t caused any damage to our boat or anyone else’s.
I spoke to the committee boat guy before the results were announced and, thankfully, he saw us come in and didn’t disqualify Exit Strategy. The William Thornton Virgin’s Cup Regatta is all about FUN after all. We declared our goal in Part I of competing for last place. Sadly, we didn’t quite reach it, as there was one boat that finished after us. Oh, well, there’s always next year…
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| A few cool ones made 9th place seem OK. |
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