A member of the Osoyoos Sailing Club fights to keep control as high winds tipped over his craft this past Sunday afternoon on Osoyoos Lake. Local sailors were participating in Bart’s Bash, which has been recognized by the Guinness World Book of Records as the world’s largest mass participation sailing event. (Trevor Nichols photo)
The Lake Osoyoos Sailing Club joined hundreds of other clubs around the world this past weekend in an attempt to break the record for the world’s largest sailing race.
For the second year in a row, Bart’s Bash brought sailing enthusiasts from around the world together for a day of racing and fundraising in memory of the late British Olympic sailor Andrew “Bart” Simpson.
In its inaugural event last year, the race attracted 30,734 participants from 68 countries. Those racers sailed a total of 87,228,403 metres and raised more than £365,000 (more than $750,000 Canadian) for the Andrew Simpson Sailing Foundation.
The event set a Guinness World Record as the largest sailing race in history.
This year, organizers hoped to attract even more sailors, and for the first time ever, Osoyoos got in on the action.
“Part of it was just that we love the sport of sailing and the loss of another sailor is a tragedy,” explained Commodore Dr. Chris Scheuren. “So to memorialize him and to celebrate his life and to celebrate and memorialize the sport of sailing, we thought it would be great to do this.”
With wind whipping in gales across the lake, several club members battled their way into position for the race around 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon.
Spectators looked on with a mix of unease and amusement as several sailors fought with capsized boats.
“This has got disaster written all over it; it’s great,” a grinning Peter Gajda commented as he wrestled his boat into the water.
Surveying the scene with bemusement was Garry Ford. He and a few others had completed the 1,400- metre course earlier in the day and Ford recalled getting beat around by the surf.
“The water when we hit a wave was washing right over us,” he said.
The race eventually did start and after 12 greulling minutes, the commodore, aided by his wife Barbara, came out on top, crossing past the finish line just ahead of Rupert Holmes-Smith, with a time of 12:39.
Afterwards, a flushed-faced Scheuren laughed as he remarked on the intense wind and said that Bart’s Bash was more about getting people together to sail than winners or losers.
“It’s just good camaraderie,” he said. “We’re all coming together and we’re going to have fun. It’s not about who’s going to win or who’s going to lose, it’s about coming together as a group. It’s just a great way for like-minded people to come together and have fun.”
Scheuren said there was such good response to the event that he predicts members from the Osoyoos Sailing Club will want to continue participating in Bart’s Bash next year and for many years to come.
With nicer weather, Scheuren believes many more members would participate.
TREVOR NICHOLS
Regional Reporter
Osoyoos Sailing Club members Jeff Mear and Sophie Laurent were two of numerous club members to battle high winds to participate in Bart’s Bash this past Sunday afternoon on Osoyoos Lake. The event has been recognized by the Guinness World Book of Records as the world’s largest mass participation sailing event. Proceeds from the event are used to promote the sport of sailing to young people. (Trevor Nichols photo)
