US Virgin Islands News

Zuber, Gracie win St. John’s 8 Tuff Miles

Jeremy Zuber of St. John won Saturday’s 13th annual 8 Tuff Miles race.  It is the sixth time in a row the 28-year-old Caneel Bay employee has won the race.  His time for the 8.38 mile Cruz Bay to Coral Bay course was 49 minutes 35 seconds. That was 12 seconds slower than his time last year. 

The race's finish report says Zuber's pace was 5.5 miles an hour - which doesn't make sense to me.  You run almost 8 miles in less than an hour, your place should be better than 8 mile san hour. No?

Among women, Heather Gracie of Peapack, New Jersey was first.  Her finishing time of 1 hours 3 minutes and 40 seconds gave her a reported pace of 7.36 miles an hour (Again, i don't trust this.).

Other ‘notable’ finishers include Luigi Costello, owner of Verace Jewelers at Wharfside.  He offered to match contributions made in support of other runners who beat him across the finish line.  Costello finished 60th overall.  There were some 800 entrants in the race; 782 finished..

The youngest competitors to finish were six-year-olds Kyle Sapio, Kai Copeland, Terra Ehrhart, and Lily Schutt.  Each lives on the island.

The most senior finisher was Velma Pullen, also of St. John.  The 80-year-old had a time of two hours, 28 minutes 9 seconds and a pace of 17.41 miles an hour.

Video of the start of the race posted on YouTube by Steve Simonsen.

Full race results are available at http://www.8tuffmiles.com/2009 OVERALL FINISH.HTM

The best St. John Trip Report ever

Forums at Virgin-Islands-On-Line and VI Now are terrific resources for visitors.  But they’re after the fact, past tense.  So, when you read them you don’t get a sense of “Being There” because it all happened some time ago.

Shelley McLennan’s online report is not like that, at all. She’s “live blogging” her family’s vacation, right now.

I became acquainted with Shelley and her husband Rob last fall.  They were staying at Blue Tang when there was a hurricane scare, and they spent a night at the Westin.

Well they’re back at Blue Tang again, and she's brought along her DSLR, an awful lot of energy and sense of adventure.  It's all there online  for us to “read along.” Shelley and the family are going from one end of the island to the other every day, with side trips to other islands like Jost.

She's got great shots of Cinnamon and Trunk bays, plantation ruins, Coral Bay, the Soggy Dollar and more. If it’s cold or rainy or gray where you are, click onto Adventures from an ... Island Girl at http://islandgirl.typepad.com/stjohnusvi/. 

It’s a mini-vacation by itself.

Rockin’ at the Cruz Bay roundabout

Believe it or don’t, but it seems they’re working seven days a week constructing the traffic roundabout in Cruz Bay.  I've seen guys building walls along the ball field and snack bar structure on the corner on Sundays.

Some nice rock wall work has already been done around the school building across from the ball field, and the old O’Connor Texaco station has been pretty well dug up. 

Most of the excavation now is along the road which borders Boulon Center.  The contractor is lowering the road grade.  That road is temporarily one-way from the barge dock up to the intersection.

Predictably, there are small traffic jams at the intersection where five roads converge, especially during the afternoons when street crossing guards are helping the kids.

One source at Public Works says the project is ahead of schedule because estimates of the work to be done were higher than what’s actually needed.

After the “Boulon” road is done, they’ll move go across and work on changing the grade of the road down to the fire station.

Whales sited in Coral Bay

Another Deputy of the Inquiring Iguana was out early Wednesday on whale watch in Coral Bay ... and scored!!!  

Jennifer Dale, a crack marketing guru, this morning sent these photos.

Click on the images for larger versions.

"I first saw them out my window about 9:15am, between St. John (Friis Bay) and Le Duc island," she said. "They're still out there - I just got a phone call from Cheryl Geller at The Tourist Trap, who said they can see the whales right off Johns Folly.  At first the pod came into Coral Bay as far as Shipwreck Landing, which was surprising, but then they turned around.  Right now they're just off of St. John, north of Ram Head. There are at least 5, and one is absolutely huge - very long. My phone has been ringing off the hook with neighbors spreading the news - it's just the coolest thing."

"Whales travel near Thatch Cay, just northeast of Coki Point on St. Thomas, and St. John residents have reported whales southwest of the island as well," according to story published by Virgin Islands This Week. "Other likely places to spot a whale are the North Drop, Congo and Lovango Cays. Whether you will see wales really depends on how close to shore the whales swim this year."

Cruz Bay gridlock

Work on the Roundabout, where five roads converge, results in backups several times a day, especially when kids are getting out of school.  The backup can extend from the intersection where the Texaco used to be, down the road past Woody's.

Which is where Public Works decided to do some road patching Tuesday, blocking delivery trucks, safari buses, touring taxicabs, and locals with their Sidekicks and F0-150s.

 Inquiring Iguana Inez commented, "So, beside closing the road from the Catholic Church down to Worst Bank, traffic was diverted up from the dock to Connections.  They repaved that intersection right in the middle of the morning, along with tree trimming.  This lasted a few hours, which I suppose is quick for here.  People were STRESSED to say the least.  Town was complete gridlock."

Beat goes on at the Beach Bar

We noticed how busy Coral Bay was earlier in the week; Cruz Bay was jammed over the weekend, too. 

The Arts festival brought a lot of people to Franklin Powell Park - so did all the music.  And on Sunday, at the Beach Bar, it was standing room only - inside ... and outside on the beach. 

Blues boss Steve Simon was back on stage, even as he's planning another Bluesapalooza-like tour off island, WAY off-island.

Getting psyched for 8 Tuff Miles

A pre-8 Tuff Miles kickoff event tomorrow night at Pastory Gardens will feature the screening of Spirit of the Marathon, a documentary film focused on the annual 26.2 mile Chicago race.  Skinny Legs founder Mo Chabuz will be on hand to introduce the free movie, part of the newly-organized St. John Film Society’s efforts.

"As six unique stories unfold, each runner prepares for and ultimately faces the challenge of the Chicago Marathon. More than a sports movie, Spirit of the Marathon is an inspirational journey of perseverance and personal triumph; a spectacle that will be embraced by runners and non-runners alike."

Chabuz is working on a 8 Tuff Miles film and is expected to show a preview of it.  Jeremy Zuber, odds-on favorite to win the annual St. John road race for the 6th time in  a row, will also be on hand to offer inspiration to the 837 other expected race participants. And Peter Alter, 8 Tuff Miles’ founder, will talk about the upcoming race, scheduled for Feb. 28.  The event begins at 7 p.m.

Web site: 8tuffmiles.com

The weekend: Arts festival and waste recycling

In Cruz Bay, the ninth annual St. John Arts Festival began Friday and continues through Sunday. It’s three days of arts, crafts, locally-made items, special foods, and music.  The event is organized by Frank Langley.  Performers on the bandstand in Frank Powell Park will include Innervisions, Love City Pan Dragons, Samba Combo and Koko and the Sunshine Band.

On Saturday evening, at the Westin Resort, the St. John School of the Arts holds a “Dance-a-thon”.

On Sunday, Langley said, “Choirs from the local churches will celebrate the spiritual life of the people of St. John which remains unchanged.” In the evening at the Westin there will be a performance by the colorful and vibrant Caribbean Ritual Dancers.

Langley said he launched the festival many years ago after seeing changes and development on St. John.  He wanted to showcase the culture and history of the island, to encourage its development and continuation.
Web site: www.stjohnartsfestival.org

Meanwhile, the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority has chosen Saturday morning for a recycling drive.  Folks who have old computers, monitors, copiers, and TV sets can bring them to the Bandstand in the Park for collection.

PhotoWalk: Ditleff, Trunk Bay, Annaberg

A dozen photographers joined Steve Simonsen for a PhotoWalk on St. John on Wednesday morning.

Our first site was Ditleff Point, where we greeted the day. Then, onto a deserted Trunk Bay and a somewhat active ocean. Finally, we beat the tourists to Annaberg Plantation where we had the place to ourselves.

We're each still sifting thru our best shots of the day, for uploading to a Gallery here.  Here's what we've got so far.  Check back for the next few days for more: St. John PhotoWalk Album.  (Click on any image to see a larger version.)

Busy, busy Coral Bay

Shipwreck Landing had 15-minute waits for lunch at 2 p.m., Jolly Dog's store was slammed, and there were two (!) yachts in Coral Bay harbor. 

Whether it was the President’s Day week or day trippers from four of the world’s biggest cruise ships carrying 10,000 passengers docked in St. Thomas, the quiet east end of St. John was jammed.

We visited with Sean and Sue at Donkey Diner ... more to come (much more news!) about this great, hard-working couple.  Went to Jolly Dog and grabbed some hats and T’s (future giveaways here) and enjoyed fresh, grilled Mahi Mahi and a home-made Taco shell filled with spicy salad at Shipwreck.  BTW, don’t forget, Steve Simon and the Jazz Islanders play there Wednesday evenings ... the same crew that makes music Sundays at the Beach Bar.