Regatta Photo Tour

My Dearest Better Lifers, thanks for your patience as I get caught up after a whirlwind regatta!

As you know, I've had Regatta Fever and have been posting Champion Sailboat Journals, Sailing Videos Clips and more.  Finally, I have sifted through more than 600 personal photographs of the race week to cull them to a far-more-manageable 59 to share with you.  These pics capture the essence of an incredible week.  Of course, NOTHING can convey the excitement, adrenaline, pride and sheer pleasure of being there, but I hope to give you a taste.

Just one picture of many you'll see in the Facebook photo journal.

Better Life Facebook fans got a sneak peek of the pictures.  (Join us by going to the Blog's Facebook page and click to "Like" the Facebook Page!)  It seemed an easier way to post so many photos, and I also wanted to give an early preview treat to those of you who follow the Blog on Facebook and Twitter.

So, today's blog post is a compilation of photo journal excerpts from the race week for you.  All pictures have captions accompanying them, which you'll see if you open the photos individually.  Start your photo tour here! (via www.facebook.com/IslandBlog)

Now that Regatta has officially come to a close, I am back to island living:  going out for junkanoo drums and chicken souse during election celebration; mopping up from floods after three solid days of rain; battling the mosquitoes that are on the attack after the rains; pulling ticks off my little island dog; cleaning house; cooking meals; doing laundry; catching up on emails and writing projects; dealing with taxes, doctors, health insurance, bill-paying, family requests and the usual "life stuff" that follows us to every corner of the world; catching up with friends near and far; planning summer activities for local children; and always, always, always taking time to admire the peaceful surroundings and remind myself how lucky I am and to keep Choosing the Better Life every single day!  

Have a great weekend, friends.

Return from Regatta & Sailing Video

Hellooooooo, Better Lifers!  I've missed you!  

Regatta was wonderful, and I'll fill you in soon.  Weather was pretty tricky - the same front that saturated Florida also doused the Bahamas.  Thankfully, Mother Nature granted enough of a respite that the boats were able to race, but then she kicked in again and delayed our return by several days.  Upon my return, I was greeted with a flooded downstairs in my own home.  Thankfully, my visiting mother had stanched the tide.  I helped with the cleanup and enjoyed the remaining days of her visit.  

It's also been hectic around here as passions run high for the Bahamian national election which takes place today.  Campaigning has been at a fevered pitch.  In this instance, I'm glad that I CAN'T vote and am able to remain peacefully neutral!  

Now, I'm wading through 600+ photographs to cull them down to share the Regatta experience with you.  Meanwhile, here's a video treat . . .

Never seen a Bahamian sloop sail?  Never been to a national regatta?  Never bounced along in the chase boat in the heart of the action?  This will give you a taste of it all!

I remain silent on the video, hoping you could hear the men calling out to one another on the boat.  But, the camera didn't pick that up - voices must have been carried away by the strong winds, which you DO hear.  This was taken during a practice sail on the last day (Saturday, April 28) of the series race.  It was choppy, windy and cloudy, so the typically-turquoise water of the harbor looks dark, too.

The chase boat follows along in case the sailboat needs anything.  (E.g., switch sail size, add or remove lead ballast, etc.)  Once the race starts, the chase boat can't pass anything back and forth, but we stay nearby to follow the action and be available in case anything happens.

What you'll see is a classic Bahamian sloop, all wooden hand-construction, 28 feet on deck, with a 60 foot mast and large boom, the largest A-Class type.  The sailors are all Bahamian, except for the maximum of four foreigners.  The man at the stern (back) is working the main sail and talking to the man just in front of him, the skipper who controls the tiller and captains the boat.  The man standing at the bow (front) is the bowman, the eyes of the boat who calls back to the Captain what he sees so they can strategize.  The other men have various roles, too.  Most apparent in the video are the men shifting their weight on the pry - the long board sticking off the side of the boat - to serve as human ballast and make adjustments as the race proceeds.

You may notice that only men are on this boat.  While that is still the dominant gender in Bahamian sailing, women crew sometimes, too.  Our local C-Class boat even boasts a champion female skipper.

My favorite part of this clip is that it shows you how the sailboats tack, or make a turn.  Here, the boat is on a starboard tack - the wind is coming from the right (starboard) side.  When the captain gives the command, the crew slacks the sail, slides the pry to the next side, swings the boom over, catches the wind in the sail again and the men scramble out on the pry to balance out on the boat.  This is a pretty calm tack.  Sometimes it can be a fierce scramble, especially during a race if another boat is right there.  Exciting stuff!

Have a wonderful day, and I'll share more with you soon.

Regatta Primer

I HAVE REGATTA FEVER!  And you're going to be hearing about it, so I should give you the background scoop now . . .

All over the world, of course, regattas - or sailboat races - take place.  Even within the Bahamas, various regattas occur during the year.  However, in this context, "Regatta" is shorthand for the one-and-only, like-no-other, national sailing championship of the Bahamas that occurs in George Town every April and is more formerly known as the National Family Island Regatta.

Like any sport with a high profile throughout the country, sailboat racing in the Bahamas brings with it fierce competition and immense pride.  The basic rules are that the boats must be Bahamian-made and Bahamian-owned.  They are wooden sloops, approximately 28 feet long, with a seven foot draw, a huge boom and towering 60 foot masts.  The inside of the hull is mostly empty and is also where the crew stores its lead ballast.  The moveable ballast allows the crew to add or remove weight as needed.  Additionally, real live people serve as ballast!  Wooden planks - the pry - lie across the width of the boat and slide from side to side.  The crew pile up on the pry to add weight to the opposite side as the strength of the wind in the sail pushes the boat on a hard lean.  (This is one of the most exciting parts of Bahamian sloop racing!)  The boats harken back to the boats of traditional Bahamian fishermen, and they carry tradition and honor along with the thrill of sport.

The island where I live has a strong tradition of boat-building, skilled craftsmanship, knowledgeable sailors, brilliant racers and championship boats and crews.  The boats of this island are a huge source of local pride and camaraderie.

Regatta offers races in multiple categories, based on the size of the boat.  "A Class" are the largest (28 foot) and our island usually sends a couple A-Class boats to compete, along with an occasional B-Class, a champion C-Class and various others.  I won't attempt to describe the rules because I would surely miss something. If you're a true boater looking for the technical descriptions, the official Regatta website posts the rules and regulations.

Rather, my love of Regatta focuses on the sheer THRILL of the experience, coupled with the community bonding aspect.  My beau and many friends are avid sailors.  They race together and on competing boats, which serves as great fodder for bickering and trash talk at the local bars throughout the year.  But now, as Regatta looms next week, the chatter is at fevered pitch.

I'm so doggone excited!  My beau and the other sailors will help coordinate getting the race boats towed to George Town (which takes almost an entire day), anchored securely and readied for last minute preparations.  Then he'll motorboat back home, and we'll eventually travel down together - leisurely - with friends on their private sailboat.  Once in George Town, we'll reunite with local friends and those we haven't seen in a while who have come in for Regatta.  (Don't worry, I have family visiting and staying in my home to keep Angel company!  She's not low-maintenance enough to go with me!)

And then, let the racing begin!  The Race Committee fires a start gun, the sailors pull hard to raise the spectacular sails, and the boats are off.  I follow along in a "chase boat" in case one of our boats needs anything (e.g., offload lead ballast before the start gun if the boat is sailing too heavy in practice) and just to enjoy the thrill of being up close and personal.

For example, here are just a handful of pics from April 2011's Regatta . . .

Just some of the A-Class boats clustered together during one of the races.

Beautiful water of the Exumas!  Smaller C-Class boats racing here.

A-Class boats rounding an orange buoy.

A beautiful line of A-Class boats on a final leg (with our local boat in the lead)!

So pretty.

Sometimes dangerous and fierce, as these two battle for right-of-way nearing the buoy.

If this little teaser has whet your appetite for more, No Worries Mahn!  Plenty more to come!