ONE DAY. One race. One goal.
Going around Barbados is set to take on new meaning.
The international sailing world is being invited to come and break records as the Barbados Cruising Club prepares to host the first ever Mount Gay Rum Round Barbados Race on January 21 to open the 2011 sailing season.
In recognition of the contributions made to the club by the late Prime Minister David Thompson, the event will be held on Errol Barrow Day.
A major objective of the race is to promote Barbados as a major sailing destination.
“Bringing an international race with a difference to Barbados will help the country as a sailing destination and with sports tourism,” noted race coordinator Howard Palmer at the club’s Aquatic Gap home.
Already, the event has attracted 12 overseas entries, including two from Britain, with interest coming from Puerto Rico, St Thomas and elsewhere in the region.
But it won’t be the first time yachts have officially raced around the island, as the event will mark the 75th anniversary of the first trading schooners that were invited to compete along the shores of Barbados.
“This race is really different from any other across the world [because] normally in a regatta, someone wins it and someone loses it, but nowhere that I can think of is there a record for doing something like this,” Palmer reasoned.
“We want to set records for racing around Barbados and it just so happens that the island is an incredible race course. It provides all the excitement you would need as a sailor. It provides an incredible venue [from which] to watch the race for all Barbadians and it can bring something to racing that isn’t quite there yet,” he added.
Palmer also said that efforts were being made to outfit each of the 20 to 25 competitors with global position system devices so people could keep track of the race on their computers or mobiles.
“A challenge was thrown out to the BTA to find a sailing event every year and this is one of those things that fit into what we are trying to do with sports tourism,” said Senator Peter Gilkes, board member of the Barbados Tourism Authority. (JM)
