Bring it on

Alaistair Abrehart reviews the line up for tomorrow's BVI Spring Regatta

Registration for the 33rd annual BVI Spring Regatta eventually closed at about 8pm tonight with 132 boats planning to be on the start line tomorrow.

The four boat racing A will pitch Pyewacket against Titan XII, Equation and Chippewa, all in the Caribbean Big Boat Series and out to gain some points against Morning Glory, Spirit and Venom which as BVI no-shows will be penalised class plus one point.

Class B welcomes an interesting group of boats with Swan 45s Vim and Bandit owned by Craig Speck and Andrew Fisher respectively joining the fun in the BVI for the first time. They'll be up against Roger Sturgeon's Transpac 52 Rosebud, the Ker 55 Aera, Richard Matthews Corby 49 Flirt and Les Crouch's Caribbean-built, Reichel Pugh-designed 44-footer Storm. Terry Hutchinson who made an appearance in the BVI last year on Farr 40 Riot is calling the shots on Vim. "It's great here," said Terry. "We¹ve been out
practicing for the last couple of days and the owner already wants to come back." And while the forecast lights winds have him a little concerned against the likes of Storm, Flirt and Aera "at least it's flat water".

Former Team New Corp skipper Jez Fansone is skippering Aera, Storm is carrying some Caribbean racing talent including the boat's builder Paul Amon. Rosebud is coming into this regatta looking strong having beaten both Flirt and Storm at the International Rolex Regatta in St Thomas and placing second in class in St Maarten¹s Heineken Regatta.

Class C is the home of the hot Caribbean boats including Jamie Dobbs from Antigua and his Lost Horizon crew, John Foster¹s Magnificent 7, Jack Bishop's Broken Drum, the BVI's Willy-T. Three Melges 24s and a number of other boats bring the class total to 15. In fact there are only two 'foreign' crews in the class: Mick Schlens in his chartered Express 37 Cosmic Warlord and Heiko Godel's Jeanneau OD 35 Wild at Heart.

Swan 44 Crescendo is up against a number of Beneteau 40.7s in class E. In class F Steve Kuhl and his UK Sunbeat III team will compete against a posse of Caribbean racing veterans ­ Pipe Dream, Diva, Boomerang, Tempest, Dehlerious and Trouble.

35 bareboats will be battling out while in Multihulls a record nine boats are entered with hometown favourite and class winner at the Heineken Regatta, Richard Wooldridge's Triple Jack, expected to do good things.

12 one-design IC-24s will also be in close competition with many skippers looking to reverse the results of last weekend¹s International Rolex Regatta. Seven beach cats will be nipping about while 13 boats in performance cruising and 16 in jib & main round out the classes.

The BVI Spring Regatta is jointly owned by the Royal BVI Yacht Club and the
BVI Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association. The 2004 BVI Spring Regatta
& Sailing Festival is presented by Nanny Cay Marina. The BVI Tourist Board
is a platinum sponsor. The Moorings, Heineken, Mount Gay Rum, First
Caribbean International Bank, The Bitter End Yacht Club, and Road Town
Wholesale (1975) Limited are gold sponsors. Tortola Yacht Services, CCT
Boatphone, Maui Jim Sunglasses, Village Cay Hotel & Marina and Prospect
Reef Hotel are silver sponsors.

Caribbean Star, Fujifilm and Dasani are bronze sponsors.