Island Volleyball Tournament Helps

Roatan has a lot of young talented volleyball players and not surprisingly the island has been on top of the Honduran Beach Volleyball Tour since 2015. Shanna Rivera (aka Madonna) and Cecille Johnson, are Roatan’s best representation in the female category. They won 2nd place at the U21 Central American Beach Volleyball Tournament in 2018 and placed 4th at the Women’s Central American Beach Volleyball Tournament 2019. “They have made history, the Honduran female teams have never done so well,” said Dennis Hill, defender and the new coach of the BIBVA (Bay Islands Beach Volleyball Association). Alejandra Cruz and Soniva (aka Chubby) also performed very well and competed at U21 Central American Tournament in 2019.

Volleyball offers Roatan youth a way to stay away from drugs and crime and develops ability for them to stay focused. “Playing sports, in general, can rescue a lot of kids from staying out of trouble. It is a great opportunity for the kids to travel, to see more of Central America while playing leagues,” says Giselle Brady, BICA’s program director became part of the Bay Islands Volleyball League (BIVL) in 2011.

The Blue Abyss

Freediving Competition Brings 11 World Records

In August 2019 Roatan hosted the 7th International Annual Caribbean Cup Freediving competition, immediately followed by the CMAS World Cup Freediving Competition. “The conditions are perfect here.The abyssal, dramatic steep walls were an important part of the decision taken by the federations to hold the competitions here,” said Esteban Darhanpé, owner of the Roatan Freediving School.

For the Caribbean Cup there were 68 athletes from 26 countries, and for the CMAS World Championship, 60 athletes from 24 countries. In the Caribbean Cup four new freediving world records were set and in the CMAS World Championship 7 new world records.

Italian Alessia Zecchini and Alenka Artnik from Slovenia shined setting a joint world record of 113 meters in the CWF- constant weight with fins category. “The new Queens of freediving”, says Alex St. Jean freediver and underwater photographer of this event.

Alexey Molchanov from Russia broke a free Immersion descending to 118 meters and staying submerged for 4 minutes 26 seconds.

A competitor surfaces next to the freediving platform.

Breath Hold Divers Break Records off West Bay

Roatan has quickly become one of the top five places in the world to hold a freediving competition. It has consistent 30-40 meter visibility, it is protected from wind, it has low currents, depth drop offs to hundreds of meters less than one kilometer from the beach, it has easy access to emergency vehicles and a clinic is just a couple hundred meters from the beach. It’s also one of the very few places where spectators are allowed to watch the competition from the water or glass bottom boat.

Free divers competed in three categories: constant weight, constant weight without fins and free immersion. The diving is performed off a freediving platform that lowers a guide line to which dive markers are attached and a depth sensor informs the judges if and when a marker has been picked up. Counter ballast attached to the line could be released and can lift a free diver to the surface in case of emergency.

Walid Boudiaf, a Tunisian free diver attempted a 107 meter free immersion dive. He disappeared under the water for 3 minutes and 45 seconds… and when he surfaced, he looked around, but wouldn’t take his breath. “Breathe, breathe!,” shouted his coach. It took 8-10 seconds before Boudiaf took his first breath. “It’s not that you don’t want to breathe, it’s Hypoxia,” explained Alessandro Manzato, a Roatan-based Italian competitor. The next day Boudiaf broke his country’s national record diving to 111 meters in constant weight category.

You call this samba. Your body starts to shake and you sometime pass out

Spain’s Miguel Lozano, 39, attempted to break the world record of 125 meters, but passed out on his way up, 29 meters below the surface. The safety crew helped him onto a platform, but it took Lozano almost three minutes to regain consciousness. Lozano has supported himself with sponsorships, classes, teaching and competitions for a decade.

Several times during competition at 40 meters the current would slow free divers down. “The current really destroys you,” said Manzato. Four safety divers watched over the ascending competitors. “The last 10 meters are the hardest,” said Manzato.

In 2017 Roatan’s Caribbean Cup had World Cup status and attracted over 80 free divers. “They were pushing themselves to the max, the guys were going balls out. Almost half were passing out,” said Alex St Jean, the official photographer of the vent.

Some divers, deprived of oxygen for several minutes, begin shaking and lose ability to control their movements. “You call this samba. Your body starts to shake and you sometime pass out,” said Lucas Bulssau, 19, from France who has been freediving for eight month on Utila and has volunteered as an assistant during the Caribbean Cup.

Esteban Darhampe, organizer of the event, wants to bring back the World Cup status to the Roatan event in 2019 and move it to July-August.Two world record attempts ended up in disqualifications “but just the feeling of having them attempted on the island is great,” said St Jean.

Nathaniel Leazer from USA and Sheena McNally from Canada became this year’s champions summing up most meters in all three freediving categories. Twenty-five national records were registered by AIDA and two world records were attempted.

Eddie Pinnace at his workshop.

Local Artist Creates Art from Cow Horns and Wood

He is 5’-8” tall and wears thick framed glasses. A cap covers his gray hair. His quiet demeanor and measured gait, consistent with his physical appearance, hide the true depth of this inspiring artist. For years, Eddie has been creating unique sculptures with any workable material available including: cow horns, wood and plastic. One of his latest creations is a shark made of cow horns, which he proudly describes, “This one was a little difficult to create. I had to cut two different horns and put them together to get this one,” Eddie says. “This is an island, so I create things from the sea.”

Eddie’s fascination with woodworking begun by chance at the age of 23. While employed on a tanker ship in the Philippines, Eddie watched a man carve a fish out of wood using only a hatchet. He then decided that it was the kind of work he wanted to do.

Once he was back on Roatan, Eddie started creating his own works of art. “My first piece was a shark,” he says. “I sold it to a tourist at a local resort back in ‘73.” Eddie pauses and looks into the sky as if trying to see beyond the clouds. “No! This was in ‘63. I was very young back then.”

To make ends meet, while working at perfecting his craft, Eddie took time off to work as a waiter on a cruise ship and later return to what he really loves. “I loved doing this. I keep working on it and I got pretty good at it.”

Eddie works sitting on an old white plastic chair in his makeshift studio situated below the building that houses his small living quarters and warehouses his completed pieces.

The Sandy Bay native skillfully carves at what will be a pirate ship made of cow horns and wood. His tools are simple: a machete, a small hand saw, a jars of glue, a hammer, sand paper and a sander.

Once completed, the pirate ship, like most of his work, will be sold on one of Roatan’s beaches. “Most of my work is sold on West Bay beach” he said. “My best sales are on Good Friday, when there are more visitors on the island,” says Eddie. “I love doing this and would continue even if I had a million dollars.”

Eddie works on his pieces during days when there are no cruise ships in port and spends cruise ship days showing his work to tourists. His passion allows him to make a living and be independent. “I set my own hours and work as long as I want. I like not having someone tells me when to start working and when to stop,” says Eddie.