|
 Published:  Swans Flock to Bitter End  Moondance crossing the finish line. Twenty beautiful Swan yachts, ranging in size from 44 to 82 feet, made the scene at the 3rd Annual ClubSwan Caribbean Rendezvous, hosted by Bitter End. Hot on the heels of the BVI Spring Regatta, some of the boats immediately converted from racing to cruising mode, though the majority of the fleet were roller-furled, bimini-topped cruising rigs. In addition to the many opportunities to socialize with fellow Swan owners, the week’s activities included a visit to Foxy’s on Jost Van Dyke, a GPS Adventure Hunt, a small boat regatta in Lasers and the “Around Virgin Gorda Race” -– a highlight of the week. The 26-mile course takes racers out of sheltered North Sound and clockwise around Virgin Gorda. This year, steady and potent 15-20 knot northeasterlies kept the Swans on their toes. And the start line was quite a spectacle, as many of the bigger boats pushed the committee boat end, resulting in one minor fiberglass-rending altercation between the Swan 68 Y2K, and the Swan 44MkII Lizika. The scratch boat, Don Opatrny’s 82RS, jumped ahead of the pack – so much so that she not only took line honors, she smashed what was considered an unbeatable course record of 3 hours, 21 minutes, set two years ago by a Swan 112. Moondance shaved it down to 3 hours, 9 minutes, 12 seconds. When corrected times were tallied (using the Caribbean Sailing Association handicap rule), Moondance slipped to second, with the well-sailed Swan 51 Delawana, skippered by John Cumming, winning overall. Taking third, after a hasty duct-tape repair, was the Bruce Robinson-helmed Swan 44 Lizika. If you own a Swan, or are keen on the Swan lifestyle, join us next year for this fantastic event, March 20 – 25, 2006
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top of Page | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A bevy of Swans at rest at the Bitter End's Quarterdeck Marina.
