Dispatches: From The Grenadines

"Capt. Silas tells me to watch my head as the solid wood boom swings across our stern. This Carriacou sloop is rugged and fast, hand-built by nautical craftsmen, grizzled and tough like the masterpieces they construct. Taught by his father, Silas has been sailing the Caribbean's Grenadine islands since he was 8. Now 32, he can smell direction on the wind, deftly maneuvering through the Tobago Cays, navigating submerged coral heads that could chew through a wooden boat like a T-Rex-size termite.

Despite all this rugged grooming, our intrepid captain commands a vessel dubbed The Pink Lady, his pale-pink polo shirt and the boat's Barbie-pink hull a nod to his all-female racing crew and Silas' daily bit of pride swallowing. 'I just have to remember to change my shirt before I go home,' he says. The color of the boat doesn't characterize the captain, but it sure can embarrass him." —Photographer Zach Stovall