Spectators at the Cayfest Catboat Regatta were treated to a beautiful day of music, food and thrilling catboat racing at the Public Beach on Saturday.
After a series of three races Crosby Ebanks proved he had the fastest cat appropriately named See Her Go. Organized by the Cayman National Cultural Foundation and the Cayman Catboat Club, this is the first ever catboat race during Cayfest.
Ebanks took home $3,000 of a $6,000 purse sponsored by Camana Bay and the Royal Bank of Canada.
Kem Jackson in Captain D easily won the first race leaving the other five boats trailing far behind. The second race was a different story. It quickly became a contest between Jackson and Crosby Ebanks with the lead changing hands a number of times. The second race ended with a thrilling finish that was so close that spectators on the beach didn’t know that Ebanks had won until the final announcement. The third race was Ebanks’.
In the end, Jackson took the second prize of $2,000 and Johnson Mendoza in Mendoza’s Cat won third prize of $1,000. Other competitors were Jerris Miller in Chisholm’s Cat, Austin Ebanks in Brac Cat and Philip Parchment in My Dingy .
The race course ran parallel to the beach about 50 yards from the shoreline which was great for the spectators. For the sailors however, this required the best sailing skills because that close to shore the winds coming off the land were tricky as the catboats sailed in front of casuarinas then buildings.
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