A regatta was held on Simpson Bay Lagoon on Saturday, March 31. Many of the sailors, who took part in the regatta, were from the youth sailing program. Only three of the youngsters were under the age of 12.
Cai Banting sailed with his dad in this regatta. Emma and James Lennox arrived at the yacht club to sail in the regatta. Emma is 11 and usually sails the optimist yachts. Unfortunately, there were no other sailors in her class. Sail instructor Renier told her not to worry as he had a solution – sail a bigger boat with a crew. A very nervous Emma took her seven-year-old brother out to sail in this regatta, which were four back-to-back starts.
This young team did well and came in 2nd place in the Pico class.
The Optimist is a small, single-handed sailing dinghy. Children up to the age of 15 can sail this boat (as long as they have not grown too tall). It is one of the most popular sailing dinghies in the world. The Optimist is recognized as an International Class by the International Sailing Federation.
The Laser Pico dinghy is a small sailing used for training and day sailing. It can be crewed by one or two children or an adult. It has two sails, a mainsail and a jib.
Here are some pictures of the regatta.
If you would like to learn to sail, contact the St. Maarten Yacht Club (next to the Simpson Bay bridge).
