When the 44th Annual Peg Legs Round Tortola Race takes place on Saturday November 23, 2013 participants in the 37 mile course will be sailing for the Nanny Cay Challenge and raising money for charity. Photo credit: Broadsword Communications

The event organised by the Royal BVI Yacht Club and sponsored by Nanny Cay, includes threee classes - racing, cruising and multihull, possibly including INTAC and Aiyana, two boats with a history of intense rivalry in the Territory's waters.

INTAC set a new monohull record in the Nanny Cay Challenge with its winning time in the Peg Legs Round Tortola Race but the record was smashed by nearly half an hour by Peter Corr’s Alia 82, Aiyana, in the BVI Spring Regatta’s Round Tortola Race on March 26, 2013. Aiyana set a new record of 3 hours, 29 minutes and 44 seconds for the 37-mile run around Tortola. 

Nanny Cay launched the Nanny Cay Challenge for the round Tortola record in 2010.  Yachts visiting the British Virgin Islands are invited to make an attempt to beat the latest round Tortola records.

It’s an all-comer, any-day event, starting and finishing off Nanny Cay.  Competitors must attempt the record anti-clockwise and round Beef, Scrub Island, Great Camanoe and Guana Island to port. 

As with most sailing events, the reward is in the taking part and bragging rights but record breakers will be able to celebrate their feat with a free dinner at Peg Legs for up to 15 crew members and a jeroboam of champagne compliments of Nanny Cay.  Record breakers also get their name on the perpetual trophy which is on display year-round in Peg Legs Restaurant.

Record Holders

Monohull

Aiyana        Peter Corr                    March 26, 2013    3 hours, 29 mins, 44 secs

Multihull

Triple Jack    Richard Wooldridge/Steve Davis        October 25, 2012    2 hrs, 40 mins, 18 secs

Trimaran, Triple Jack, holds the outright and multihull Round Tortola Record of 2 hours, 40 minutes and 18 seconds.  She snatched her record back on Thursday October 25, 2012 taking 10 minutes off Formula 40 Soma’s record time set in April 2010 (2 hours, 50 minutes and 15 seconds).  The vintage 34-year old Kelsall One-Off shattered her benchmark time of 3 hours and 33 minutes set in the 2009 Round Tortola Race.

Challengers must pay an entry fee of a $250 which is donated to a BVI charity of the challenger’s choice and includes two night’s dockage (before and after attempt) at Nanny Cay.  The charities to benefit so far:

-    RBVIYC Youth Sailing Programme $250 (March 2013)
-    VISAR $250 (March 2013)
-    KATS, $250 (November 2012)
-    BVI Humane Society, $250 (October 2012)
-    VISAR, $250 (April 2010)

As for the 44^th Peg Legs Round Tortola event, the first warning for the start will be at 9am in the Sir Francis Drake Channel off Nanny Cay.  The fleet will then head anti-clockwise around Tortola. After the beat up the Sir Francis Drake Channel, the fleet will turn the corner at Great Camanoe and head on a downwind run to West End where, after a quick wiggle through Soper’s Hole, it will be a beat back to the finish line off Nanny Cay.

In last year’s Peg Legs Round Tortola Race, Melges 32 INTAC vanquished trimaran Triple Jack to take overall honours and set a new monohull record in the Nanny Cay Challenge.  Completing the circumnavigation in 3 hours, 57 minutes and 36 seconds, INTAC took 17 minutes and 29 seconds off the time set by Jurakan, another Melges 32, in the 2009 race.  Triple Jack was first across the line matching her 2009 time of 3 hours and 33 minutes, and 24 minutes ahead of INTAC, but the time difference was not enough to win on corrected time.  Pipe Dream was second overall and Reba was third.  Girasoli won the cruising class.

Sixteen yachts competed last year including IC24s that took over six hours to complete the course; one did not finish.  Diva, the 30 Square Meter, took almost seven hours to finish.  She sailed under jib alone from Cane Garden Bay on the north side of Tortola after a spreader failure and not wanting to risk another Round Tortola Race dismasting.

Registration for this year’s event will be at  Sharky’s at the Royal BVI Yacht Club, Road Reef, from 6pm to 8pm on the Friday.  The prize giving will take place at Nanny Cay’s Beach Bar at 5pm on Saturday.