40 YEARS. Barbados Youth Yachting Celebrates. By Anne Tindale

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1 Prize giving at the end of a summer course in 1977 (Photo: Ricky McConney) Barbados Youth Yachting Celebrates This year, 2008, marks the 40th anniversary of youth yachting in Barbados. It all began back in 1968 when several world class Barbadian sailors, at that time in their twenties, became very concerned that no programme existed in Barbados to teach sailing to the younger generation. Bill Tempro and Jackie Hoad had just won the GP14 World Championships and Donald Stoute, Francis Deher, and Peter Evelyn had represented Barbados in the Pan Am Games in the Lightning Class. But who was to follow in their footsteps? Concerns turned to action when Peter Evelyn met with Terry Phillips, the Secretary of the Canadian Yachting Association (CYA), and got a wealth of information about the Canadian sailing programme 40 YEARS By Anne Tindale Many familiar names, including the Father of Independence, the Right Honourable Errol Walton Barrow, laid the foundation for youth yachting in Barbados Select Barbados 31

2 Racing Mirror dinghies in the late '70s (Photo: Ricky McConney) from him. Three very keen sailors, Peter Evelyn, Bill Highton and Dennis Lacey, a Canadian on loan from the Canadian Government to the Barbados Income Tax Department, then got together and formed the Barbados Yachting Youth Training Association (BYYTA). The Association was formed as a benevolent organization under the Income Tax Act, which enabled it to obtain tax deductible covenants to be used to purchase the sailing dinghies needed to teach youngsters to sail. Peter Evelyn went on to discuss the establishment of the BYYTA with the founder of the Barbados Cruising Club and Prime Minister at the time, the Right Honourable Errol Walton Barrow, who gave it his full support. The next steps were to find someone to run the sailing courses and to obtain the dinghies to sail. Terry Phillips, in an effort to help, made Madeline MacLaughlin, a member of a famous Canadian sailing family and CYA instructor, available to run the summer sailing programme. Bill Highton was then able to meet Madeline whilst he was on a business trip to Canada and discuss the proposed sailing programme with her. Using covenants from the business community, ten Mirror dinghies were imported from the UK in kit form and put together under a shed at the Barbados Yacht Club. The dinghies had plywood hulls with a wooden mast, boom, and gaff. The main sails and jibs were a distinctive bright red and they carried brightly coloured spinnakers. These were truly excellent boats to teach youngsters the art of sailing. Under Madeline's leadership, the first sailing courses were held during the school holidays in the summer of 1968 from the Barbados Cruising Club. The courses were in such great demand that waiting lists had Bill Highton, one of the founders of BYYTA, presents a prize to Paul 'The Surfer' Bourne at the conclusion of one of the summer sailing courses at Brighton Sailing Centre - the clubhouse is in the background. (Photo: Peter Burke) 32 Select Barbados

3 to be compiled. During the initial discussions with the Prime Minister, a sailor himself, he had expressed his desire to see a wide cross section of the community participating in the courses. To this end, several scholarships were offered to the Sea Scouts, Sherman Hutson being one Sea Scout who enjoyed the sailing so much that he went on to become an instructor. Madeline then returned to Barbados in the summer of 1969 and continued to run the summer sailing courses from the Cruising Club, assisted by Barbados's first local instructor, John Davies. In 1970, the home of the sailing courses moved from the Barbados Cruising Club to the Barbados Yacht Club, and John Davies was employed as BYYTA's first local Chief Instructor. John, who was at University in Canada, was paid $25.00 per week 'pocket money' for his services. Teenagers Richard Evelyn and Andrew Cummins, who had both learnt to sail during the previous summer, were promoted to instructors to assist John. In 1972, BYYTA leased a piece of land from the Barbados Government at Brighton, an ideal location to run the sailing courses. Thanks to the work of Richard Wareham and Mitchell Construction, a clubhouse was erected on the land. This consisted of a concrete bottom on which was placed a wooden chattel house to create a two storey building. The ground floor consisted of one large room for training and storage as well as ladies and gents bathrooms. One main room and two small offices were to be found upstairs. A fence was erected around the property so that the Mirrors could be safely stored, and sheds were later built to protect the boats from the sun and rain, which played havoc with the plywood hulls. In 1972, Richard Evelyn was promoted to Chief Instructor, earning the exorbitant salary of $35.00 per week. He remained as Chief Instructor in 1973 and 1974, during which time a second fleet of ten Mirrors in kit form was purchased. These were assembled, with the help of a Guyanese gentleman known as 'Hope', in various locations including sailors' garages and even their dining rooms. Richard was very ably assisted by other young instructors such as Roger Marshall, Gus Reader, Robert, Brian, and Margot Carter, Rose Mayers, Joanne Highton, Mary and Peggy Ward, Stephen Coghlan, Sherman Hutson, Greville DeGale, Chris Select Barbados 33

4 LEFT: Building a Mirror dinghy in someone's garage; RIGHT: A mirror with spinnaker flying (Photos: Maureen Mackenzie) Nicholls, Andrew Laurie, and Thomas Clarke who, themselves, had learnt to sail during previous courses. In the early '70s Interschool Sailing was also introduced, with boy's teams coming from Presentation College, the Lodge School, Harrison College, and the Polytechnic, and girl's teams from the Ursuline Convent, Queen's College, Foundation, and Codrington College. On Sunday September 1st 1974 the BYYTA created history by organizing Barbados' first ever 'Twelve Hour Relay Race' as a fund raising event, with competitors raising money through individual sponsorship. The race lasted for twelve hours, starting at 6.00 am and ending at 6.00 pm, and included four classes of dinghies, Mirrors, Kingfish, Sunfish, and Fireballs. The event was held in the sea off the Sailing Centre at Brighton with the Jolly Roger moored in the centre of the course. A continuous ferry service operated from the shore to the Jolly Roger to take spectators in and out. Each team consisted of four boats, one from each class, with sailors sailing a triangular course around the Jolly Roger for one hour at a time in continuous rotation: Mirror, then Kingfish, then Sunfish, and then Fireball. A great time was had by all and funds raised were used to maintain and upgrade the fleet of Mirror courses had become true family affairs, with dinghies. Ricky, Suzanne, and Andy's mum, Hazel When Richard 'retired' as Chief McConney, and Alan, Randall, Dane, and Instructor he was replaced by Thomas Karen's mum, Rosemary Valdez, becoming Clarke, who ran the summer programme heavily involved in organizing the 'shore for the next two years. In 1977, Brian side' of the courses. They acted as Crichlow took over, and he was followed secretaries, collected fees, organized by Ricky McConney in 1978 and drinks, and generally supervised events When Ricky 'retired', Alan Valdez assumed ashore. At times, they even ventured on to the role of Chief Instructor until the mid '80s. the water to help with races, starting them During this time, many sailors, all in their and judging the finishes. teenage years, rose from the ranks of Around this same time, youth sailing 'sailors in training' to instructors, including ceased to be restricted to the summer Jolyon Clarke, Stephen Tryhane, Chris courses. On Saturdays throughout the Worme, Randall, Dane and Karen Valdez, sailing season, children who owned their and Suzanne and Andy McConney. own boats, together with those who were By the mid '70s, the summer sailing allowed to borrow one from the BYYTA, Mirror dinghies on Brighton Beach (Photo: Maureen Mackenzie) 34 Select Barbados Select Publishing Inc. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited

5 sailed around the Harbour wall from Brighton to Carlisle Bay to take part in the Yacht Club's 'Round the Buoy' races. At the end of the day they had to sail all the way back to Brighton - a very tiring day, but great fun! In order to keep the summer sailing programme running on an annual basis, the Mirror dinghies, being constructed of wood, were in constant need of repair and maintenance. To this end, the BYYTA enlisted the services of Mr. Courtney Thompson, a carpenter from Coach Hill, St. John. Mr. Thompson, an employee of avid sailor John Still, not only looked after the boats, but also acted as the Sailing Centre's caretaker. In the late '70s, BYYTA's young sailors started to venture further afield, having gained sufficient knowledge and experience to take part in overseas regattas. Thomas Clarke and his crew, Andrew Laurie, won the very first Caribbean Mirror Dinghy Championships, which were held in Jamaica. Stephen Tryhane followed in Thomas' footsteps, winning the Championships when they were held in St Vincent. Other young sailors representing Barbados in St Vincent, and again when the Championships were held in St. Lucia, included Ricky McConney with sister Suzanne as crew, Chris Sisnett, and Paul 'the Surfer' (or 'Sailor'?) Bourne. Maybe dinghies just weren't fast enough for Paul! During this time, BYYTA also played host to the Championships on two occasions. Some of the fondest memories that these now 'not so young' sailors have of their sailing years at Brighton include the indestructible aluminium hulled crash boat which was put to heavy use rescuing sinking Mirrors, having to find their way out through the narrow channel in the sea at Brighton without hitting the reef and then getting out and swimming the boats back in - this being easier than trying to sail them to windward through the channel - and last, but no means least, Sherman Hutson's huge afro hairstyle. The history of Youth Yachting in Barbados from the mid '80s to present will continue in the January, 2009 issue of Select Barbados Select Barbados 35