TANAJ Manos, of the Exuma Sailing Club, is the new Sunfish national champion, winning three of six races completed during the Sunfish Bahamas Nationals August 9-10 in Montagu Bay.

It is the second consecutive year that a sailor from ESC has won the title, which was won last year by Alvington McKenzie.

The top finishers were:

Tanaj Major (Exuma Sailing Club) - 7 points

Mary Jac Nash (Lyford Cay Sailing)  - 12 points (top junior, top female)

Drake Knowles (Long Island) - 16 points (3rd place overall on a tie-break)

Gavin McKinney (Nassau Yacht Club) - 16 points (top Master)

The event showcased a small fleet of 14 competitors, ages 13 to 70-plus years, with tight racing between the juniors and masters and also between Nassau locals and competitors from a variety of Family Islands.  

Conditions on day 1 were light and fluky, requiring mental prowess to adjust to the changes in wind velocity and direction. 

Day two saw pretty perfect conditions if not a little heavy for some of the ligher sailors but the waters on the right side of the course were flatter and the winning sailors made better use of the shifts to their advantage.

Special thanks to the volunteer race committee led by Nico Maritz, BNSS lead instructor Paul Barnes and to the host club Nassau Yacht Club.

Tanaj Manos and Mary Jac Nash are expected to represent The Bahamas in the Sunfish events at the Pre-CAC Qualifer, being held in Las Calderas Bay, Dominican Republic, August 29-31.