St. Thomas Team was in fine form, taking top place in the Gold fleet for the 2008 Premier's Cup.

From Trinidad to Puerto Rico, they came- nine teams in all to compete in the 10th Premier’s International Cup (formally known as the Chief Minister’s International Cup) at Nanny Cay in the British Virgin Islands. Organized by the Rotary Clubs of Road Town and Tortola and the KATS (Kids and the Sea) Program, the event attracted teams from nine different Caribbean islands. Fifty-one young sailors, ages 8 – 18 competed in near perfect conditions, lots of sunshine, very little chop and 10 – 15 knots of steady breeze. Racing in IC24’s, once again the big winner of the event was a very strong St. Thomas team. Although this was the fourth year in a row the St. Thomas team took the top spot, this year there was more of a tussle.

The racing began on Saturday morning. After a series five races the nine team pack was divided into the Gold and Silver fleets. The Gold fleet was comprised of BVI, St. Thomas, St. Croix, Trinidad & Tobago and St. Lucia. The Caymen Islands, Anguilla, Bequia and Puerto Rico comprised the Silver Fleet. With a clean slate, afternoon racing began. Both fleets raced together but were scored separately.

It was obvious from the start of the afternoon series that this was an aggressive bunch. OCS (over early) calls were common and more times than not, at least one team approached the start/finish boat after each race to inform the committee of a protest. Racing a short windward-leeward course, most of the incidences occurred at the leeward mark where the rules state that if an inside boat establishes an overlap within a two boat length circle, room must be given on the inside for the mark rounding. More than once, this did not happen and the result might be called an “international incident”.

All of the top teams were involved in at least one protest hearing and by the end of the series, the judges had tossed BVI, St. Croix, Anguilla, St. Thomas and St. Lucia from one race. From the Gold fleet, only the Trinidadian team managed to escape a DSQ (disqualification).

In the end, St. Thomas won the Gold Fleet as they finished in the top three consistently. BVI would have finished second but a DSQ and a very late start due to an OSC dropped them into third place. Trinidad ended up in second, narrowly beating the BVI team by 3/4 of a point.

In the Silver fleet, the Caymen Islands team dominated the competition. Anguilla was second and the Puerto Rico team third.

Bob Phillips, PRO for the event summed up the weekend, “The quality of the racing has improved dramatically in the ten years we've held the event, with three and four boats trying to round a mark at the same time being the norm this year and all of the boats finishing within seconds of each other. While the St. Thomas sailors showed their international regatta experience, the rest of the teams were in the hunt. Short courses, good breeze and spirited competitiveness made for very exciting racing.”

The Premier’s International Youth Regatta is a sailing event that provides an opportunity for young sailors from throughout the Caribbean to live, compete and play together for a weekend. All of the teams were fed, housed and had the opportunity to race throughout the weekend through the joint efforts of the Rotary Clubs of Road Town and Tortola and the KATS Program. Countless volunteers set up tents, cooked breakfast lunch and dinner, picked up trash and provided entertainment for more than 100 young (and not so young) people throughout the weekend.

Results:
Gold Fleet
1. St. Thomas, 24
2. Trinidad, 29.25
3. BVI, 30
4. St. Lucia, 36.75
5. St. Croix, 37

Silver Fleet
1. Caymen Islands, 12.25
2. Anguilla, 24.5
3. Puerto Rico, 27.5
4. Bequia, 32.5

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