Let the Party Begin!

The Georgetown Family Island Regatta is an event unique to the Bahamas! It is truly Bahamian, though cruisers are welcome. Particularly extremely competitive races, with a lot of partying. There are Rake-n-Scrapes (Bahamian Dances); there are street parties; there definitely is much bragging and betting, all centered on the racing of the spectacularly, graceful Bahamian sloops.

The boats begin arriving on the mailboats and small freighters several days before the race begins. Cranes are used to offload the boats and it is obvious that the Bahamians never heard of OSHA! People ride the boats down as others stand on the deck and guide the race boats off the side, hoping that the crane does not topple with the weight!

Shacks, in which Bahamian delicacies are served, have been built out of scrap lumber and wooden pallets. As you walk from one end of the street to the other the cacophony of sound assaults your ears, making your heart pound and conversation impossible. The friendly Bahamians banter with each other and by the second day of racing it is apparent that money is changing hands on each race.

The place to be is in town to watch the local action; that is until the races begin. Then you either want to be on a boat or at the windward mark to watch as the racers scurry off the pry and climb to the opposite side of the boat before it capsizes! We were not able to get on boats, but we had fun watching to action.

We had decided as we headed south that we once again wanted to experience the race, so we stuck in Georgetown longer than we normally like. (The race was not starting until 2 weeks after we arrived.) We played with friends, walked a few beaches and otherwise amused ourselves. Shirley even played bridge for the first time in 20 years.

The regatta, though, was worth it!

Now we wait for weather to head east to Long Island. The wind through most of the regatta blew 25-30 and continues to do exactly that! It is expected to lighten to 15 over this next weekend.