Record Pusser's Painkiller Thriller Takes Place in Trying Conditions

On Saturday May 27, a record twenty-five hardy souls entered the 2006 Pusser's Painkiller Thriller, a twenty-mile downwind windsurfing race in the British Virgin Islands. Nineteen finished, last year's winner defended his title and some do or die sailors landed at Nanny Cay beach over fours after they left the start line.

Tortola, British Virgin Islands (PRWEB) May 30, 2006 -- On Saturday May 27, a record twenty-five hardy souls entered the 2006 Pusser's Painkiller Thriller, a twenty-mile downwind windsurfing race in the British Virgin Islands. Nineteen finished, last year's winner defended his title and some do or die sailors landed at Nanny Cay beach over fours after they left the start line.

Last year's event took place in grueling 30 knot winds and 4-6 foot standing seas but this year conditions were more killin' than thrillin'. The race started in solid planing conditions with an upwind beat from the mouth of Trellis Bay to Beef Island Bluff. The lead was won and lost several times as the fleet approached the lighter and fluky conditions off the Bluff. Last year's winner, Ewan Anderson, was the first to emerge and managed to hold his lead in the downwind sprint all the way to the finish in a time of one hour and three minutes. Next to finish was Rusty Henderson followed by Bill Bailey.

"Coming round Beef Island Bluff there was deep water and no wind with the wind buffeting off the bluff and you had to keep high of that to get past it," said Anderson. "I managed to tack high enough and fortunately Rusty got stuck in the hole there and I managed to get past him. Then it was a matter of using all the islands, and the lifts off the islands, to keep as deep as I can. I went deep all they way. I took a lift off [Road Town, took a lift off Dead Chest, came in here to the bay at Sea Cow's Bay and then another lift down round to the finish here."

Ewan's sons Sean and Alec finished fourth and seventh respectively.

The first half a dozen sailors finished in what were described as "technical" planing conditions but the wind started to die and the rest of the fleet was left with painfully light conditions. After an hour of light wind, it rallied and brought the middle of the fleet to the finish - and then finally died for the rest of the day. Some of the tail-enders turned back, while the rest battled to the finish. Craig Chomiak, the last to finish, staggered up the beach with his Camelbak hydration pack drained, three hours and fifteen minutes after Anderson. "I'll die trying," were his final words as he left the beach before the start; he didn't finish the race last year.

This windsurfing event in the British Virgin Islands was resurrected in 2005 and takes competitors from Pusser's Marina Cay to Nanny Cay Marina, home of the event's organizers Island Surf & Sail. This year's event was postponed from its original date of April 29 due to extremely light wind conditions.

Pusser's Rum is the Original Navy Rum that was served onboard ships of the Royal Navy for 330 years. The "single malt of rum" and father of grog, Pusser's Rum is recognized as the world's most rich and full-flavoured rum - and it's all natural, no flavouring agents are used.

Pusser's owes its rich and unique flavour to its distillation in wood. It is the only rum, and as a matter of fact the only spirit, that is still distilled in wood; hand-crafted in the inefficient and costly old way in wooden pot-stills. Pusser's alcohol recovery is a mere 57% in contrast to the 99% or better of modern industrial metal column stills. Today, every other rum comes from modern metal stills that are low on cost and short on flavour. As a result, most popular rum brands today have to add flavouring to increase their taste.

Pusser's was recently chosen by Forbes Magazine as "One of the World's 10 Remarkable Rums", while the Financial Times chose Pusser's as "one of the choice morsels from the enduring and the rare" in its "The Best of Spirits" feature article published on November 18th, 2005.

For more information on Pusser's Rum visit: http://www.pussers.com.

For more information on windsurfing in the British Virgin Islands and information on equipment rental for the Pusser's Painkiller Thriller, visit Island Surf And Sail online: http://www.surfandsailbvi.com

2006 Pusser's Painkiller Thriller Results

1. Ewan Anderson

2. Rusty Henderson

3. Bill Bailey

4. Sean Anderson

5. Owen Waters

6. Roy Keegan

7. Alec Anderson

8. Chad Emmanuel

9. Eric Spencer

10. Chris Simpson

11. Dave Pettigrew

12. Mirko Sangers

13. Ben Butler

14. Carolina Pettigrew

15. Eddy Brockbank

16. Tom Merrigan

17. Dara Thomas

18. Simon Cook

19. Craig Chomiak

Did not finish (no order):

Mattieu Saunterre

Gareth Thomas

Andrew Stanbury

Yegane Guley

Rod Lang

Did not start (no order):

Chris Cormack

Chris Brockbank

For high resolution photos to accompany this press release visit:

http://www.broadswordcommunications.com/ppt2006/index.htm

or contact:

Alastair Abrehart

Broadsword Communications

Tel: (284) 495 1090

For further information on Pusser’s contact:

Charles Tobias

Pusser’s West Indies Ltd

Tel: (284) 494 3184

For more information on Island Surf And Sail contact:

Owen Waters

Chairman Of Boards

Tel: (284) 494 0123

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