Budget Marine & Marlow Ropes Sponsor Volunteer Shirts for 2019 St. Thomas International Regatta

Volunteer Shirts for 2019 St. Thomas International Regatta © STIR2019

Volunteers are the lifeblood of many Caribbean regattas. This is certainly true of the 2019 St. Thomas International Regatta (STIR), set for March 22-24. To recognize these give-back participants, regatta organizers are pleased to announce that Budget Marine and Marlow Ropes have volunteered to sponsor the regatta volunteer shirts for STIR 2019.

"Nearly 100 volunteers help to make STIR happen on the water and off. We are grateful to all of them and to Budget Marine and Marlow Ropes for enabling us to say, 'thank you' to them in a tangible way," says Margo Lynch, STIR co-director and commodore of STIR host, the St. Thomas Yacht Club (STYC).

Budget Marine's St. Thomas store, which is located adjacent to Independent Boatyard 1.5 miles west of the STYC off Route 32, as well as the St. Maarten-headquartered chandlery's 11 other Caribbean island locations, stocks a comprehensive range of Marlow products and accessories to assist and support sailors throughout the season. These range from Marlow's world class Racing, Cruising and Dinghy ropes to their every-day mooring lines and accessories.

"Marlow Ropes are delighted to sponsor the St Thomas International Regatta 2019 in partnership with Budget Marine," says Emma Donovan, marketing manager Marlow Ropes: "Now in its 46th year, the regatta is one of the greatest competitions for sailboats in the Caribbean and we are looking forward to seeing some great racing in superb conditions."

The spirit of the sea runs strong at Budget Marine as the company has been part of events for years and in many cases initiated them. Company founder and a sailor himself, Robbie Ferron, set the tone from the beginning. He was one of the initiators of the Heineken Regatta in 1980. Last year, although a tough year after the hurricanes, Budget Marine supported close to 40 events big and small throughout the Caribbean. This year, Ferron initiated a new event: the First Caribbean Multihull Challenge.

"We chose to sponsor the volunteer shirts for STIR as the volunteers are the ones making it happen from initiating and planning to doing the work. Getting people excited is always easy but getting things done is a little more difficult and we owe it to those that take the time and put in the effort to make these events work," says Kathy Kurtz, general manager of Budget Marine St. Thomas. "We at Budget Marine pride ourselves in always continuing to develop and promote on the water activities as well as motivate the youth to be part of both the fun events and the serious maritime business. And, of course, there is a big chance that you will see us on the water whether participating in the event or enjoying the outstanding sailing and environmental conditions of the Caribbean!"

Register Now! STIR 2019 offers classes for CSA (Caribbean Sailing Association-handicap) Racing or Cruising; IRC; ORC; Multihull; Beach Cat or One Design classes with a minimum length of 20-feet. Pay US $300 between February 1 and March 20, 2019. Registration for IC24s: US $200, Beach Cats: $200. Register too for the Round the Rocks Race on March 21. To register and to find the NOR, visit: www.stthomasinternationalregatta.com

STIR, celebrating its 46th year, is a globally-recognized regatta renowned for its fantastic racing, first-class race committee and friendly can-do attitude towards its competitors.

STIR is sponsored by the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism; Wyndham Margaritaville Vacation Club; K3 Waterproof Gear; the Moorings; Budget Marine; Marlow Ropes; and Bacardi, Milagro, Stoli and Presidente, distributed by the West Indies Company.