Havana Cup seeks a place in history

By DORAN CUSHING

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 7, 2000

It was 70 years and a few months ago that a die-hard fleet of 11 wooden sailboats raced out of Tampa Bay bound for Havana, Cuba. In that first formal race to Cuba, George S. "Gidge" Gandy of the St. Petersburg Yacht Club and Commodoro Rafael Posso of the Havana Yacht Club launched a classic ocean race that survived one world war and, eventually, the revolution in Cuba.

The Southern Ocean Racing Conference (SORC), which offered offshore racing around the southern tip of Florida and into the Bahamas, eventually replaced the Havana race until the format was revived in 1996 by independent sailors from local sailing clubs.

There are no yacht clubs involved in the current race to Cuba, and the event falls a month or so later in the spring calendar. But with more than 200 boats participating in each of the previous two years, the now-titled Havana Cup regatta has revived a piece of history.

It isn't hard to suggest that the direction of Cuba-U.S. relations are still in a tizzy. Despite the vagueness and ambiguity of that policy, some 65 American skippers said "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" as they raced and cruised to our closest southern neighbor in late May.

Despite a U.S. Treasury Department cease-and-desist order against the Havana Cup organizers -- Ocean Racing Ventures, Inc. -- and concerns about government actions against the individual sailors when they returned, more than 300 U.S. sailors made up their own flotilla. Included were more than a dozen boats that raced from Tampa Bay on the morning of May 26.

The flotilla reached Havana's Marina Hemingway on Sunday, May 28, to begin a week of "fully hosted" status at the marina -- meaning the normal fees for dockage and visas were waived.

Commodore Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich, who is in charge of the host Club Nautico de La Habana as well as the marina complex, said, "We are happy that these boats have come to Cuba to continue the friendship between the nautical communities in North America and in Cuba."

Thirty-five international boats and crews also participated in the annual Morro Castle race May 31. They sailed a course close to shore along Havana's bustling waterfront boulevard and up to the mouth of Havana Harbor and El Morro twice before finishing back at Marina Hemingway.

Lyman White's all-carbon F-25 trimaran Silverheels, based in Englewood, was the first to finish the 18-mile course (in less than 2 hours). The Argentine entry Thumper won spinnaker honors, and Tampa Bay-based Noelani II, racing double-handed, took the top non-spinnaker award.

Charlie Clifton's Sarasota-based Morning Glory was the first of a few finishers on the race south from Egmont Key to Marina Hemingway. A lack of wind forced most of the racers to fire up the iron jenny for a powerboat ride across Florida Bay and the straits of Florida.

Most of the U.S.-based boats returned to ports along the Florida coasts June 2-4. No problems were reported by the returning sailors, who had to get clearance from immigration, agriculture and customs agents. U.S. regulations prohibit boaters from bringing any Cuba goods back and from spending any money in Cuba.

Ocean Racing Ventures president Jim Duncan said he is continuing to work with Treasury officials with hopes of resuming the official Havana Cup event later in the year.

WANDERING WARRIORS: The decline in racing action on Tampa Bay during the summer months is tied to the weather -- a prevailing lack of steady wind -- but that doesn't mean the locals stop sailing. They are drawn to spring and summer regattas in the northern United States.

The locals already have begun making waves in major events. Racing aboard the Greek-owned Farr 40 Atalanti XI, Ethan Bixby of St. Petersburg teamed with Olympic medalist Robbie Haines and an international team to take top honors at the Nantucket Gold Regatta. Atalanti XI will be competing in the Farr 40 world championships through Friday at Annapolis, Md., with 28 teams from six countries expected.

Eckerd College's sailing team came up short against the best intercollegiate racers at the North American Women's Dinghy Championship May 28-30. The St. Petersburg team finished 13th in the 18-school event. The double-handed event, sailed in Flying Junior dinghies on the St. Mary's River in Maryland, was won by Dartmouth College.

The team championship followed the women's event at the same venue May 31-June 2, with Ken Ward of Tampa skippering a Georgetown University team to second place in the 12-team field. Sean Doyle of St. Petersburg was a skipper on the third-place Harvard University team.

The Eckerd team finished 11th and was competing in one additional intercollegiate event -- the co-ed championships -- today at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, N.Y.

Zach Railey of Clearwater was the top junior sailor with his fifth-place overall finish in the U.S. Laser national championships June 2-4 at Minneapolis, Minn. Timothy Landt of Tierra Verde was the second-place junior while finishing 15th overall among 83 boats in the seven-race series.

TRANSBAY REGATTA: The Epilepsy TransBay Cup on Saturday marks the final major event in the local sailing season that began some nine months ago with the Bradenton Regatta. Open to all PHRF, MORC and FOMA boats, the one-day event benefits Epilepsy Services Foundation, Inc. of Hillsborough County and the Suncoast Epilepsy Association of Pinellas County..

Racing begins at 2 p.m. Registration forms are available through the St. Petersburg Sailing Squadron. For more details, contact Barbara Bowman at (813) 870-3414 or by e-mail at eswcf@gt=e.net.

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