Caribbean season opens in Barbados

As the Caribbean race season opening regatta, Barbados Sailing Week on January 18-21 provides two days of Coastal Races for racing yachts, cruisers, windsurfers, kite surfers, dinghies and paddleboards which is followed by the signature event – the Round Barbados Race.

“As well as running the coastal races so they are all easily visible from shore, these races are shorter than in previous years so there will be less of the long reaching courses that give the bigger boats the advantage whatever the ratings,” said event manager Mike Krimholtz.

Racers keen to enjoy a fun 60nm round the island of Barbados will be following the counterer clockwise course rather than its more usual clock-wise format, so the record of 10 hours and 15 minutes set by a schooner in 1936 is up for grabs, plus a host of other opportunities to establish more records on the ‘new’ course.

By breaking any of the existing Round Barbados records, the record-breaking yacht team will be awarded bottles of Mount Gay Rum Extra Old, equivalent to the weight of the registered skipper as recorded at the official skippers’ weigh-in.

Event details: https://www.roundbarbados.com/

Source: Sue Pelling