The CARRIACOU Regatta Committee was established in 1965 by the late John Linton. Riggs, a Jamaican born Yachtsman who settled here in the early 1950’s.
Mr. Riggs original plan was to retire peacefully in this beautiful island but as faith would have it, he would end up working and racing for many more years to come. Given the state of the economy Mr. Riggs was genuinely worried about the island and formulated a plan to revitalize the boat building industry to get the economy back on track. As the industry was being rebuilt, he created a regatta for workboats where professional boat builders and skippers could race amongst themselves and have a chance to win cash for their efforts. He traveled from Bequia to Trinidad promoting the event tirelessly. Radio announcements like, “Come race in Carriacou.
You can win good money if you think your boat is fast enough!”, was among messages used. Mr. Riggs was able to also convince two enthusiastic yachtsmen from Trinidad to join the organizing team for the event.
John Watson and Sidney Knox were therefore instrumental in putting on one of the most authentic Caribbean regattas the region would ever see.
After organizing the race for three years, Riggs decided that it was time for him to get into his own race to savour his chances. He then convinced Zepherine McLauren (winner of the large work boat class for three years) to become his partner in the building of their new boat, the Mermaid. The agreement was that Riggs would supply the finances and McLauren, a Master Ship Wright, would build it. As Mermaid was launched, it was evident that she would be the one to beat. With her new technological advances (new Terraline sails ordered from England) Mermaid was a formidable opponent and winner of the next 7 regattas.
The competition was furious that Mermaid could be allowed to sail against them, as they believed that she was more of a yacht than a workboat. This did not stop the Shipwrights and captains of Carriacou who started building bigger and more technologically equipped boats, all with the intention of beating Mermaid. This spirit has lived on today as can he seen on the many workboats that are equipped currently with state of the art sails and equipment.
In 1972, Vaeta, built by Horris Martineau, beat Mermaid in the regatta. This caused quite a stir as the word was out that Mermaid was not the unbeatable titan that everyone knew her to be and that she could indeed be beaten. Of course Riggs and Zepherine were having none of this and went back to the drawing board to make sure that their beloved Mermaid would not be beaten again. Mermaid won the next 2 years in a row and her legend continued to grow. It was not until 1975 that Mermaid was beaten in the regatta. She was whipped by the much bigger and larger canvassed sloop C.C.C. This boat, along with a host of other titans, was built for the explicit purpose of beating this legend. Sadly Riggs became ill later on in the year and died without having a chance to recapture the title which had belonged to him for so many years.
This regatta has gone from strength to strength and has grown over the years to include many onshore activities which include sporting and cultural events. The main aim of the festival is to perpetuate the indigenous art of Boat Building handed down to the inhabitants of Carriacou by their Irish and Scottish Ancestors.
The Regatta Race events focus mainly on the locally built ‘Workboats’ with some fourteen different classes of Boats ranging from 14 to 35 feet in length.
The 2007 festival promises to be one of the greatest as the committee celebrates its 42nd anniversary. A good time is guaranteed for all.
