Chief Minister's Cup

Nine teams, sixty children, five J-24s, sixteen races and an army of volunteers marked the second annual Rotary- and KATS-sponsored (Kids And The Sea) Chief Minister's Cup, an international youth regatta held on Tortola in the British Virgin Islands on the weekend of July 15/16. Competitors from the Cayman Islands, Dominican Republic, St. Lucia, Antigua, Virgin Gorda, Tortola and the three USVI islands of St Croix, St Thomas and St John gathered at Nanny Cay Marina on Tortola to compete; some for the first time. Each team was sponsored by a Rotary club from their respective island.

For the second year in a row, Team St. Croix sailed away with first place and the Chief Minister's Cup after two days of intense racing on the Sir Francis Drake Channel in perfect conditions - moderate seas and winds; they notched up 14 points winning three out of their nine races. Team St. Croix was skippered by Scott Stanton who stepped into the shoes of elder brother Chris, last year's winning skipper, who is now at college. Scott's twin Peter was jib trimmer and tactician, and they were joined by Jason Perez, Arianna Smith and Curtis Diaz; coach was Doug Dertu.

"There are very few racing formats where sailors have the opportunity to compete in sixteen races in two days and allow this many teams to spend as much time on the water as they did," explained race officer Bob Phillips. "The racing was excellent with a minimum of errors (one collision and one lost halyard) and the kids giving it their very best".

Second placers Team St. John with 16 points were under the direction of Fletcher and Robin Pitts. Ian Beam skippered with Tiffany Baranowski, Sarah Swan, Echo Bachaschmid, Angelo Raimondi and Valerie Trahan as crew. Team Bitter End (22 points), the Virgin Gorda entry, had Jesse Oliver as coach and Tassan Creque as captain. Crew was Chad Emmanuel, Sam Pugsley, Allington Creque, Uri Peters and Jessica Hortow.

The awards ceremony was held on Sunday evening with KATS chairman and Rotarian, John Lewis, presiding. BVI Chief Minister, Ralph T. O'Neal, presented the awards while Tom Gerker, Rotarian and founder of the BVI KATS program, recognized the many sponsors and volunteers, including over 50 Rotarians and spouses, that gave their time and money to make this successful event. In the words of Chief Minister Ralph O'Neal: "It is a tribute to the BVI that so many people can get together and give so much of their time. This is the true spirit of Rotary and something that we must keep up." He then challenged each team to return to their countries and begin getting ready for next year.

Dates for the 3rd annual Chief Minister's Cup are set for July 7/8, 2001 and interested teams are encouraged to attend. "Although it would be nice to have a thirty team regatta comprising solely entrants from KATS programs, we know at this stage it's not possible. We welcome teams from any organizations that teach children to sail and promote water safety. This is a Rotary-organized youth regatta with an emphasis on fellowship and 'friendly competition'," said Tom Gerker. "Anyone that can field a team of under-18s is welcome to attend".

Competitors were accommodated on charter yachts. The committee boat ReAction, a Lagoon 55 catamaran, was donated by John & Anita Straub. Gold sponsor was CCT Boatphone and silver sponsors were Nagico Insurance, HSBC Guyerzeller Bank (BVI) Ltd., Century House Montessori School, Arias Fabrega & Fabrega, Road Town Wholesale (1975) Ltd. and the BVI Tourist Board.

FINAL RESULTS