- Boat type — Carriacou sloop, wooden hull
- Original name — Super Mac
- Launching — 1975, on Windward Beach, in Carriacou
- Length — 37 feet — approx. 11.3 m
- Built by — Ellis McLawrence
- Home port — Palm Island, in the Grenadines
A fishing boat turned pink
The sloop was built in 1975 on Windward Beach, in Carriacou, under the name Super Mac. The boat was originally used for fishing. Some Windward residents remember working on it in their youth, back when this sloop was still a fishing boat.
Bought by the Palm Island resort
Robert "Rob" Barrett, owner of the Palm Island resort in the Grenadines, bought the boat around the year 2000. He had it painted pink and renamed it Pink Lady. The sloop then took resort guests on day trips and picked them up at Union Island. After that, it remained at anchor, unused.
The Antigua Classic 2010
The project began at the Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta. Kirsty Morrison, a charter skipper, discovered Carriacou sloops there and fell in love with their colors and traditional construction, including internal ballast and deadeyes. She initially considered buying one, or having one built, before stumbling upon this one anchored off Palm Island, where it was enjoying a peaceful retirement after a long fishing career.
It took a year of negotiations to obtain Rob Barrett's permission to sail the boat to Antigua. The sloop was then towed to Carriacou and hauled out of the water at Tyrrel Bay. The builder's son re-caulked the hull. The hull and deck were repainted; the rigging, lines, cleats, and pulleys were replaced. Still without an engine, the boat sailed to Bequia to find used sails, whose battens were replaced with PVC tubing. It finally reached Saint Vincent, where an engine was installed in record time.
At the 2010 Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta, the crew was entirely female and raced in pink bikinis. The boat didn't win or place, but the organizers created a prize for this crew that hadn't previously existed. According to its skipper, Pink Lady was then the oldest sloop still afloat in the fleet, and the only one racing in Antigua without a winch.
The voyage to Antigua was made in rough weather: thirty knots of wind, very choppy seas, and a loose engine coupling. On board were battery-powered navigation lights, a handheld GPS, and a compass. The sloop entered Falmouth Harbour in the middle of the night.
Then there's customs. The boat has never been registered: there is a bill of sale, but no registration number to enter on the form. After consulting a senior officer, the box is filled in with five zeros.
The crew remained secret until the day before the first race: ten women from several continents boarded the boat in pink bikinis, miniskirts, and t-shirts. As soon as they left the dock, a buoy caught in the propeller sent several people into the water to free the boat.
After the first round, seventy-five Pink Lady caps were circulating in the port. The next day, a magenta marker appeared on board and each woman wrote her nickname on her t-shirt: Psycho Betty, Killer Bee, Scary Mary, Tipsy Gypsy, Thirsty Kirsty.
The prize invented for this crew was offered by D. Randy West and rewarded the most enthusiastic participants. The story then made four magazine covers, was shown on the giant screens of Times Square, and ended up on the magazine cover. Classic Boat.
What remains to be established
The year of the pink campaign. Jan Hein's report traces Kirsty Morrison's initial infatuation back to the 2007 Antigua Classic, then mentions a year of negotiations with Rob Barrett. However, race reports and the resort's press release place the pink campaign in 2010.
Where he is today. No source consulted says what happened to the boat after 2015. If you know, write to us.
Sources
- Classic Sailor, April 19, 2018, Kirsty Morrison — When Antigua was in the pink
- All At Sea, May 2010 — First Class All the Way for Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta 2010
- PR Newswire, April 22, 2010 — Palm Island Pink Ladies Cause Caribbean Stir
- Jan Hein — «The Spirit of the Regatta» and «Pretty in Pink», press report reproduced at the bottom of this page
- All At Sea, December 22, 2015, Jan Hein — The Cinderella Sailor
Jan Hein's report
Jan Hein was on board. She recounted the adventure in two articles, reproduced here. Click on a page to enlarge it, then click again to zoom in and read the text.
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Local stories say the boat sank during Hurricane Beryl on July 2, 2024, off Palm Island, where it was being used for charter by the Palm Island Resort.
Contact — Pink Lady
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