WITH 91 days to go before the commencement of the eighth edition of 2018 Mango Bowl Regatta, the word is out that the planning committee is busy organizing the event, but there was a surprised as the word came that the event achieved Silver Certification as a Clean Regatta for the 2017 event.
Last year was the first time the Mango Bowl committee took the initiative to join Sailors for the Sea with assistance from Greening the Caribbean in creating a Clean Regatta. Coming out with Silver Certification is definitely worth celebrating.
Mango Bowl Regatta Director, Lily Bergasse said, “By participating in this programme, we are raising the bar for sustainability; with the help of Greening the Caribbean we are bringing awareness to our participants and our local community of how to reduce waste and help keep our sea clean.”
She continued, “The outreach letter that is sent annually to previous participants as well as other interested organizations had some new steps to help Saint Lucia’s growing Regatta achieve Gold Status in 2018”.
One new addition to steps taken last year is to clean boats using water only to reduce the amount of pollutants affecting water quality in harbors.
Bergasse said, “The Mango Bowl Regatta is Saint Lucia’s biggest home-grown sailing spectacle which, this year, is slated for Friday 30th November to Sunday 2nd December”.
“For the past 7 years at around this time, sailors from across the region and further afield have gathered at the Saint Lucia Yacht Club in Rodney Bay to compete in various classes of keel boat racing. Attracting 38 boats from neighboring islands in 2017: Martinique, Barbados, Saint Vincent and Grenada (12 more than the year before, we are growing!) Among the various classes, J24/ Surprise, Racing and Cruising, the total number of sailors can reach well over 200”. She noted.
There is something for everyone, not only will spectators be able to view the races from the Saint Lucia Yacht Club, there’s great food and cold drinks available too. Plus nightlife at the prizing giving socials on Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd to allow participants and spectators to mix-n-mingle.