For Immediate Release:
October 22nd, 1996
V.I. CHALLENGE TOURS BRITISH VIRGINS
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands - Globetrotting Virgin Islands America's Cup Challenge match racers Peter Holmberg and John Cutler will be the October 25 guests of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Yacht Club to update members and guests on the Cup campaign's progress and opportunities for Caribbean sailors.
A familiar face among BVI-island yachtsmen, Holmberg is expected to introduce John Cutler -- the V.I. Challenge's new Director of Sailing Operations and former skipper for the Nippon America's Cup syndicate -- as well key syndicate member Steve Morton, the Director of V.I. Operations.
Holmberg and Cutler return to the BVI as celebrity sailors for the October 30-November 1 10th Annual Bitter End Yacht Club (BEYC) Pro-Am Regatta in Virgin Gorda -- the only event in the world where paying guests can crew with sailing 'super-stars' from the America's Cup and Olympic competitions, including Holmberg, who won a silver medal at the 1988 Olympics and the Pro-Am Regatta trophy in 1993.
Other Pro-Am skippers drawn from the sailing world's elite include Russell Coutts of New Zealand (top-ranked match racer in the world and winner of 1995 America's Cup aboard Kiwi Magic), John Kolius of Hawaii (newly-announced skipper of the Waikiki Yacht Club's America's Cup Challenge), husband Peter Isler (ESPN's America's Cup analyst), and U.S. Olympic sailor Mark Reynolds. St. Thomas' Henry Menin will joining Tortola's Robin Tattersail as on-the-water umpires for Race Committee co-chairman Bob Phillips.
The BEYC Pro-Am concludes the VIACC Sailing Team's Red Hook Agencies-sponsored 1996 tour that saw Holmberg climb to 10th on the Omega World Match Race Ranking with impressive performances at California's Congressional Cup and Croatia's World Championship in Match Race Sailing.
The BEYC and BVI Yacht Club also invite boaters to register for the October 29 Defiance Day Regatta held in North Sound prior to the Pro-Am. Defiance Day is open to charter boats (monohull, multihull, bareboat and crewed), as well as local racing and cruising boats. For information, call Nick Trotter (809-494-2746) or John Glynn (203-656-0799) and ask about discount room rates and free moorings.
For information on the Virgin Islands America's Cup Challenge, contact Steve Morton, V.I. Operations Manager, at
(809) 774-9090
Fax: (809) 777-5089
E-mail: 105036.1105@compuserve.com
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