October 6, 2022
3 minutes reading time
Steering the Course 2022 unites the small island community of St Vincent and the Grenadines
Steering the Course 2022 kicked off in May and one of the biggest success stories has come from the smallest participant. St Vincent and the Grenadines, a tiny chain of islands in the Caribbean, is better known now as a yachting and cruise liner destination but sailing heritage runs deep and until the arrival of engines, all trade and fishing was conducted by sail boats.
The St Vincent and the Grenadines Sailing Association, led by its President, Jennifer Trumble, is aiming to reignite that passion for sailing and has already made great progress in growing and sharing the sport with the locals.
“We had an amazing day, the interest in sailing here is enormous, from all backgrounds and ages,” she explains. “I had produced a flyer for this year’s #SteeringTheCourse and by the time I got approval from the rest of the Sailing Association Exec, word of mouth had over 30 women pre-register. By the time of the event, I had 50 pre-registrations! Luckily a few didn’t turn up because we would have been overwhelmed!”
“Goodness knows what would have happened if it had been advertised. Next year we will plan it better for over a whole weekend,” she adds.
The theme of the event was ‘healthy life, try sailing’. Jenny had originally planned to have fun races, but the numbers were too many. In the end they had to run relays to make sure everyone got a fair turn.
“We started the day with a warm-up with Swoosh Bomb, one of the island’s top trainers, and a woman, which further reinforced the theme of opportunities for women in sailing and sport in general,” Jenny said.
The event brought the island community together. Refreshments included locally-sourced fruit, including bananas, mangos, papaya, pineapples, watermelons, rose apples, guava, and many more, provided by local businesses and suppliers across the island.
“We had 15 boats and we swapped sailors in and out of the boats on the water. We also had a RIB taking the women on trips around the bay, while they weren’t sailing. Everyone had a go sailing and some went back for more.
“It was a blustery day, so there was quite a bit of swimming too. Capsizing was a badge of honour back on shore, the buzz afterwards was fantastic!”
Steering the Course in St Vincent and the Grenadines proved that sailing is a sport for all. Participants ranged from age 6 to 60. Jenny says that eight women and two eight-year-old girls who had never sailed before have already signed up for lessons. She has even started a waiting list.
The St Vincent and the Grenadines Sailing Association now even offers access to a newly-qualified Sports Psychologist who sailed for the first time, loved it, and now wants to help others. Jenny has organised a summer sail camp which will visit the six main islands and involve 60 young sailors. The aim is to get 50% girls at the camp.
“One of the biggest highlights of the day was seeing the pride of the sailors taking their mums for a sail and the pride of the mums seeing the skills their children have gained,” Jenny says with a huge smile on her face.
The St Vincent and the Grenadines Sailing Association is making waves off the water, too. Of the five executives, four are women. Three of them formed the shore crew for the event to show local women that there are opportunities for them to learn sailing and continue to progress with the association.
For a full rundown of the planned events in 2022, please visit the World Sailing website.
There is still time to sign up, just complete the online form and download the World Sailing Steering the Course guide to staging events and organising activities.