2020’S SHORT BUT VERY SWEET SAILING SEASON

As usual, the first few months of the year are a busy time for Antigua & Barbuda’s sailors and yachters. Although participants and fans will now have to wait until 2021 to enjoy the islands’ world-famous Antigua Sailing Week, Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta and other major events that usually take place, the waters around the twin islands have been busy so far in 2020. As one of the top sailing destinations worldwide, the steady trade winds and stable weather conditions between December and May ensure optimal conditions for competitive and leisure sailing alike. Whetting the appetite of local sailors for what was to come later in the season, the year kicked off with the annual Round the Island Race in January; a fun, anticlockwise circumnavigation of the island in which the winners take home the skipper’s weight in rum. Moving into February, teams from 37 nations descended on Antigua for the 12th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s RORC Caribbean 600. As the only offshore sailing event in the Caribbean, the event is held in association with the Antigua Yacht Club and starts and finishes in Fort Charlotte near English Harbour, taking in some of the most stunning sailing grounds in the world. As the name suggests, the event is a 600-mile race around the Caribbean, passing 11 spectacular Caribbean islands as far as St Maarten in the north and Guadeloupe in the south. Weaving through these magical islands, the teams navigate turquoise seas and regularly spot whales, dolphins and turtles. By night, the boats continue racing under the twinkling stars of a velvety Caribbean sky.

ALTHOUGH THE SAILING CALENDAR WAS BROUGHT TO A PREMATURE HALT THIS SEASON, YOU CAN BE REST ASSURED THAT ANTIGUA’S WORLD-CLASS SAILING EVENTS WILL BE BACK NEXT YEAR, BIGGER AND BETTER THAN EVER.

This year’s event attracted a spectacular fleet of 73 boats from around the world with over 700 competitors. As overall winner Tilmar Hansen succinctly put it; “It’s a race to get addicted to.” And with the event guaranteed to take place in Antigua for the next five years, the event will continue to be enjoyed by enthusiasts from the world over. A few weeks later, a fleet of incredible vessels sailed to the islands for the 10th anniversary of the Antigua Superyacht Challenge. As the largest collection of superyachts that have ever raced in the islands, the 2020’s record entry had 15 superyachts and four J Class boats. The magnificent fleet takes part in four days of racing and is an exhilarating, but friendly and fun event for the participants with no overall winner and whose class winners’ prizes are barrels of rum. Even the most dedicated and competitive sailor knows that the après-sail entertainment is almost as important as the racing afloat and the Superyacht Challenge doesn’t disappoint in this regard. It is not for nothing that Antigua’s buzzing, but laidback nightlife is legendary amongst the yachties who flock here from all over the world. And the aquamarine waters of Antigua aren’t just reserved for yachts and sailing boats. Hot on the heels of last year’s triumph of the record-breaking Antigua Island Girls, the island greeted the competitors of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge on their arrival to its shores. AKA The World’s Toughest Row, the 3,000-mile race is a gruelling cross-Atlantic row from the Canary Islands to historic Nelson’s Dockyard in Antigua where the teams are all given a true hero’s welcome. The teams set out on December 12th, and the first rowers arrived on Antigua’s shores 32 days later, with the final duo arriving in March, a total of 86 days after the start. One half of this pair’s 64- year old rower broke the records by becoming the oldest woman to row any ocean. Although the sailing calendar was brought to a premature halt this season, you can be rest assured that Antigua’s world-class sailing events will be back next year, bigger and better than ever.