 Cutter Loose arrived overnight last night, with Pendragon and Blackrose within minutes of each other early this morning. Only three boats left at sea now as the Nanny Cay program continues in Tortola!
Pendragon and Blackrose battled it out as they approached the finish line.
"We were in sight of them for a while, and had been chatting on the VHF for a few days," said Scott and Jen on Pendragon. "I think we took them in the end by 6 minutes!"
Both boats arrived into Nanny Cay Marina one after another, tied up right next to each other and shared their welcome rum punch on the dock, finally putting faces to the people they'd been chatting with on the radio for so long.
"it was a great trip," said Scott, who was happy to be at the dock. They'd already shared their own rum punch on the boat on the way into the marina, but we're glad for seconds. "Of course, we sailed through one last squall last night, but what's a little rain!?" he said.
Randy Jo arrived just after dawn this morning during a rainy spell here in Tortola. For the most part the weather has been sunny on-island, with a few scattered showers. But those lasted only minutes before the sun came out.
 "I think we brought the rain with us!" said the crew of Randy Jo. They enjoyed their punch in the dry cockpit of the big Lagoon catamaran, and the rain stopped shortly thereafter.
The first island tour for Wednesday is fully booked now, and the rally office has opened up another for Thursday. The popularity is great, as it gives crews a chance to get out and see the islands they just sailed to. Each participant gets a discounted rate through BVI Tours, and a specialized itinerary specifically tailored to the sailors, which includes free beer and soft drinks on the way, and a stop at a local rum distillery.
Avanti, the only double-handed crew in this year's 1500, are due in this evening sometime, and are likely looking forward to the break.
"We're doing great," said skipper Jeremi in at email he sent from the boat, "but a little tired." Avanti apparently lost their autopilot and are hand-steering, a tiring task with a full crew, exhausting with a shorthanded crew. They will certainly received a raucous welcome tonight when they finally make it in.
Moonshadow and Coulicou will round out the fleet tomorrow, and are due in around midday.
Meanwhile, in the ARC Bahamas class, the last two boats - Turbo's Tub and T'ai Chi - look to be on the Bahama Banks and in sight of the Abacos now. They should arrive in Green Turtle Cay sometime today. Mariannina and Susie Q led the fleet in, taking a straight route from Hampton and foregoing the stop in Beaufort.
The gamble on the weather worked, and they had following breezes the whole way south.
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