‘ We had a wonderful week and I now know that <strong>Oyster</strong> not only build the best sail boat but put on the best beach party ’ BARRY GREEN, OYSTER 56, KATHARA 34 www.oystermarine.com Mark Blythe, <strong>Oyster</strong> 56 Luskentyre
Green Island Each celebrant held two glasses. One contained water. In the other was a "tot" - one-half gill (one-eighth of an imperial pint) - of Mount Gay Rum, the colour of rich mahogany in the waning sun. Mount Gay had been grudgingly approved for that day by the Royal Navy Tot Club of Antigua and Barbuda, host of this special <strong>Oyster</strong> tot. The club’s rum of choice is Pussars, made to the recipe of the Royal Navy’s official daily rum ration (unpopularly discontinued in 1972). Since Mount Gay is a most welcome sponsor of the <strong>Oyster</strong> Regatta, the club yielded, much to the relief of all who would partake. Antiguan Mike Rose, a dedicated Tot Club stalwart and <strong>Oyster</strong>’s race officer for the week – compatible jobs if ever they existed - read several excerpts of naval encounters with the French from The Royal Navy Day by Day for April 12 in the late 1700s. Then he instructed those gathered to cleanse their palates with a sip of water. He recited the Saturday toast that all repeated: "Sweethearts and wives, may they never meet. And the Queen, God Bless her." On cue, everyone knocked back his half-gill of Mount Gay, and the UBS <strong>Oyster</strong> Regatta Antigua 2003 was off to a lusty, eye-watering start. Mountainous, rocky Antigua was hot and crispy in April. The rainy season had not lived up to expectations, and now the strong wind was incessant under blue skies where puffy white cumulus clouds loomed. Sunday’s run (a non-race) from English Harbour to Green Island off the eastern tip of Antigua was a rolling power reach in 25knots. On board Starry Night, the <strong>Oyster</strong> 68 being sailed for the week by <strong>Oyster</strong> Chairman and founder, Richard Matthews, we were grateful for the shade of the big Bimini. Starry hit double figures on the speedo the whole way under shortened sails, and we were at ease in the big seas. But it was a relief to tuck in under Green Island in time for lunch, and prepare for the afternoon’s Games by inflating eight Lilo swimming pool rafts. It looked like UBS <strong>Oyster</strong> Regatta Antigua 2003 Terry King-Smiths, 62, Dorado Mathilda and Murdo Blythe, with crew Fabrizia Promptly at 1800 on Saturday, April 12, a hundred or more owners and guests participating in the UBS <strong>Oyster</strong> Regatta Antigua 2003 gathered at Nelson’s Dockyard, English Harbour, in an impressive circle around the huge capstans once used for careening ships. In an even more impressive 270º arc behind them, 34 <strong>Oyster</strong> yachts from 39 to 70 feet were moored stern-to along the old stone bulkhead behind a web of crisscrossing lines. The ladies lilo racing was hotly contested an impossible job until Starry Night’s exemplary skipper, Phillip Scully, came up with the perfect electric pump. You need it? Chances are Phillip’s got it. There were more than a dozen children aged from two to twelve on board <strong>Oyster</strong>s in the regatta. With that (and the Easter holiday) in mind, the first event ashore was an egg hunt. Mike Rose and his crew had hit the beach early and hidden six dozen ceramic eggs amid the prickly tangle of foliage behind the beach. On a signal, children and adults crashed into the brush. Soon shrieks of delight mingled with muffled grunts of pain as eggs were discovered, and sharp flora encountered. Next were the Lilo races. The idea was to paddle the flimsy rafts around an anchored boat after a running start off the beach. In the adult division, this event was totally silly, pure Monty Python. After a spirited run with raft poised, when the likes of David Hughes (Miss Molly) and Richard Matthews flopped onto their Lilos , they went down like mighty oaks while the slippery rafts popped to the surface. Richard is still trying to find out who put his name on the entry list. The ladies had better luck, while the children, being the lightest fared the best. The tugs of war brought out the group’s true competitive spirit. Teams of three went at it for more than an hour, alternately gritting their teeth and collapsing with laughter as they tried to drag each other through the shallows. The Games were well attended, participation enthusiastic. Dinner that night was at celebrated Harmony Hall on the mainland toward the western end of Nonsuch Bay. The <strong>Oyster</strong> fleet motored www.oystermarine.com 35
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