The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

MONTAGU Bay will again come alive with sloop sailing action to fill a busy and festive Easter Holiday weekend.

Eleazor "Sailing Barber" Johnson, in conjunction with the Burns House Group of Companies, is all set to host the Easter Fiesta April 7-8 at Montagu foreshore.

The event is expected to feature a number of C Class sloops from across the Family Islands in competition.

While the focus will be on the sloops, Johnson said he wanted to create a family atmosphere for the spectators as well. "We want everyone there to come down to Montagu and have a good time. We want you to focus on the boats in the water of course, but on the shore there will be a lot of things for the fans and especially for the children to participate in.

"We will have people from all over the Bahamas in Nassau for this event so a full slate of activities will be down at Montagu for those two days," he said. "The Lady Nathalie may even make an appearance so the competition will be good. C Class boats are always competitive so we expect it to be an exciting time during the holiday period."

Johnson said he has been eager to host another event at the Montagu venue since the St Valentine's Jubilee regatta in February.

"These events fill a void for many people so we love to put them on. With the Valentine's regatta many years ago as a sailor from the island of Acklins to Nassau, I came together with the late Hezron Moxey and others and we sat down and came up with the idea.

"In Nassau after junkanoo there was nothing to do in those days during those months. One year I thought about how we could take advantage of this. We started with just a few boats and every year it started growing and growing more. We want the same type of growth and momentum to happen with the Easter Fiesta," Johnson said.

During the regatta, the Red Stripe caught the Lady Nathalie after its customary headstart.