Durban -
The sailing season has started off with a bash – Bart’s Bash to be more exact – a fundraising and record breaking attempt.
The annual event is held by sailing clubs around the world on behalf of the Andrew Simpson Sailing Foundation.
Last year, thousands of sailors joined in to set a new Guinness world record attempt for the largest sailing race.
The event raises money for charity and honours double Olympic medallist Andrew “Bart” Simpson, who died in an accident while training for the America’s Cup in San Francisco Bay in 2013.
However, the results of Sunday’s world record attempt will only be available after 10 months.
Commodore of the Point Yacht Club, Craig Millar, said although they did not get the numbers they did last year, the turnout was still good, with more than 50 yachts on the waters.
Millar, a founder of Sail Africa, which teaches children how to sail, said the sailing community was small and a death among them affected them all.
Being part of the event was their way of honouring Simpson, he said.
Among the participants on Sunday was KwaMashu resident Thokozani Latha. The 22-year-old sailing instructor described being part of the event as being “priceless”.