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| Clair, Becky, Linda and Emma are ready for Houston. |
With less than two weeks before the big event, the four women representing the BVI and the Bitter End Yacht Club in the Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship are ready, willing and excited. The team of Emma Paull, Becky Roulette, Clair Burke and Linda Phillips will be competing in this world class event in Houston, November 12 – 17. They will be the only team to represent BVI and the Caribbean.
With a large gift from the Bitter End Yacht Club and support from the Royal BVI Yacht Club, the Loyal West End Yacht Club and Doyle Sailmakers, the BVI team have been practicing and planning. “Every chance we get, we are out on the water together,” said skipper, Emma Paul. “We know that the competition will be at an extremely high level and we feel that we’re ready to go and play ball. We have no illusions; we will be racing against world champion sailors but we are happy to be there representing Bitter End Yacht Club, the BVI and the entire Caribbean.”
The team had a very rough start when thrown together for the first time in November 2004 as they competed in the Caribbean Women’s Keelboat Championship in St. Maarten. Although each had a depth of racing experience, this marked the first time all of them were on the same boat. Rather handily the BVI girls swept that event and took home the first place prize. That feat was repeated in 2005 and 2006 and it was after the third win that Emma and Clair decided that the team should stretch and work towards competing in the Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship.
This past weekend, the women competed in an almost all male fleet in the IC24 Drake’s Challenge. Sailing in gusty, rainy and shifty conditions, the women consistently placed mid fleet finishing eighth overall. Given the level of competition, the fact that the most of the skippers have much more time in the IC24’s than Emma does, the women’s team walked away happy with their result.
Explained Linda Phillips, foredeck, “This past weekend at Bitter End was a lot of fun. There was plenty of wind to put us to the test. It was a great warm up for Houston and although we did not end up in the top three, the boys all knew we were there.”
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