Top Sailors and Fun Racing at The 51st BVI Spring Regatta
By Jane Bakewell
The 51st BVI Spring Regatta and Sailing Festival, which was held this year from April 1st to the 7th, is the BVI’s biggest sailing event and attracts sailors from around the world. In attendance were Olympians and world champions of the sailing world including Peter Holmberg, Alec Anderson, Luke Patience, Stu Bithell, Terry McLaughlin, Charlie Enright, Cameron Appleton, Paul Larsen and Ryan Breymaier.
Firmly at the helm of the Spring Regatta is the new Director, Cayley Smit who worked with a team to implement some exciting new ideas. Cayley has replaced long-time Spring Regatta Director Judy Petz, who steered the regatta for the previous years, bowing out following last year’s 50th anniversary event.
Originally from South Africa, Cayley has been in the BVI for years working in the private charter industry with her husband. A nurse in health and wellness, she also is an assistant in the Governor’s Office. In her “spare time” as a wife and mother, her passion is organizing small charitable events enabling surgeries for BVI residents who need care abroad.
Excited about the scope and vision of this year’s regatta, Cayley laid out the week-long events as follows. The first three days encapsulates the Sailing Festival which is a fun preamble and shake down, so to speak, for the three days of serious racing that follows – The BVI Spring Regatta.
The festivities began Day One on April Ist at Nanny Cay, the host marina for the event, with bands, rollicking music, vendor booths and lots of camaraderie where international sailors come to greet each other annually. Registration and sailor packets were also given out. Entertainment and good food and drink continued each evening throughout the event, so even non-sailors were able to participate in the fun.
Tuesday, April 2 started the Sailing Festival, a preamble to the main event, the BVI Spring Regatta. Brisk winds greeted the first race in the series, the historic Round Tortola Race (37 nautical miles) which has a much humorous history. One story in local racing lore tells of a veteran racer who sailed beneath the bridge which connects Beef Island and Tortola, (the small single lane bridge had to be raised by a cooperative bridge keeper). Not having to sail around Beef Island saved a lot of time, but needless to say racing officials were not happy.
Wednesday, the 3rd, was the more relaxed Scrub Island Invitational, a short 12 nautical miles sail north to Scrub Island. Sailors celebrated that afternoon with a party-central event hosted by Scrub Island Resort.
The fourth day was a second registration day for the Regatta and also a Lay Day with many fun activities. Sailors took a break with friends and family to explore the beaches of the BVI or took part in some of the fun events that had been planned. Among these were hydro foiling and kite surfing, which might be new sports to some but popular with those in the know.
The final days over the weekend featured the main event – the BVI Spring Regatta. The three-day competition was the most prestigious racing event in the BVI and one of several top sailing competitions in the Caribbean. Unfortunately, the wind dropped for this segment, but in spite disappointment over the light breeze, sailors maintained their good spirits.
The Regatta culminated in an award ceremony Sunday evening, and which was as much fun as ever. Award winners included, the young BVI veteran sailor, Sam Talbot, who helmed Spike. The boat, a J111 finally took its first win in class. Michael and Helen Wilson racing their Cape 31 Shotgunn in the BVI for the first time out flanked the highly competitive Flying Jenny.
Chris Haycraft, BVI Spring Regatta Chairman and owner/skipper of Ting A Ling II, a Corsair F31, won first class in Sport Multihull and snagged The Best BVI Boat award.
The boat Bad Decisions, a J30 from St Croix skippered by Fuzzy Stoddard, was presented the Guy Eldridge Spirit of Enthusiasm Award. The award goes to an individual or individuals who exemplify the spirit of the sport and have stepped out and gone beyond.
Cayley explained that much of the vision for the regatta in the future is spurring the interest of and training the BVI youth in sailing. Working closely with Tamsin Rand of the Royal BVI Yacht Club, Youth Sailing Program, local youth have already begun to compete internationally and garnered significant awards.
Another project includes building a large platform and erecting large digital screens so more sailors and visitors can watch the sailing starts and finishes. Environmental sustainability projects are also underway spurred by the Green Rangers, a youth group that sets up containers and collects the plastic, aluminum and glass waste from the Regatta’s week-long events for recycling.
The BVI spring Regatta relies for support not only on visiting sailors but on important sponsors such as Mount Gay, Nanny Cay Resort and Marina, Scrub Island Resort and many others including the BVI Chamber of Commerce & Hotel Association, now separate organizations.
Fifty-one years is quite a milestone for the BVI Spring Regatta. The Regatta is a tradition that has brought sailors from throughout the world to the many small islands that make up the British Virgin Islands – the “Sailing Capital of the World.”
Go to https://bvispringregatta.org for full list of winners and information on this year’s Regatta as will as how to register for the 52nd BVI Spring Regatta to be held from March 31st to April 6th 2025.
Read about last year’s 50th anniversary BVI Spring Regatta at
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