Crucian Jimmy Diaz on his way to victory

Globetrotting pro sailor Jimmy Diaz returned to his roots this summer, to compete in, and win, the annual Highland Spring HIHO windsurfing regatta (June 30 - July 7), an event characterized by near-perfect winds of 15 to 24 knots.

Now based in Maui, Diaz, 33, was born on St. Croix, USVI, where he lived until winning the Junior Division at HIHO 1986. That display of windsurfing prowess immediately earned him full sponsorship, and he has essentially been traveling from one international competition to the next ever since. He had not raced in the HIHO, however, since that life-altering event 16 years ago.

Mirroring the sluggish world economy, HIHO's field of competitors was greatly reduced this year, but it was no less international. Representing 13 nations of Europe, the Americas, and the Caribbean, 47 top amateur racers keep the pressure on Diaz throughout the week-long event.

Team St Martin lost at The Baths, Virgin Gorda

He took bullets in the first five races, but in Race Six, an 18-miler that zigzagged down the Sir Francis Drake Channel past a half-dozen islands and cays, Mike Compton of St. Thomas snuck by Diaz on the final leg to capture first place.

Then, in Race Seven, a lap around idyllic Sandy Cay in variable winds, 17-year-old Julian Quentel of St. Martin used his massive 10.9-meter sail to full potential, and beat Diaz to the finish. The win secured Quentel's status as second in fleet overall and first in the Junior Division. Rianne Bich of Switzerland won the Women's Division.

As always, the HIHO's ambitious itinerary ushered racers -- and an equal number of non-racing family members and friends -- on a grand tour of the BVI's premiere anchorages and attractions, including the Bitter End Yacht Club and The Baths on Virgin Gorda, and Foxy's on Jost Van Dyke. Along the way, participants were accommodated aboard 42- to 48-foot charter catamarans, with all meals provided by top waterside resorts.

They're off!

Although the seven-race series began with two around-the-buoys races in Eustatia Sound, the format soon changed to the long-distance, inter-island races for which the event has become internationally renowned. The most challenging courses this year took the fleet from Gorda Sound to The Baths (8 NM), from Spanish Town to Trellis Bay (11 NM), and from Beef Island to Little Thatch (18 NM).

It is the Highland Spring HIHO after all...

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