(English Harbour, Antigua)- A flash of smoke, high above the "Pillars of
Hercules" announced the start of the 5th edition of the RORC Caribbean
600. Before the start 25 knots of trade winds, gusting close to 30,
provided feisty conditions. Nevertheless, the sailors were quite
excited as this meant the "big boys" would be targeting record-setting
wind conditions for the race-- faster than 42 hours for 600nm!!
"At the moment, the forecasts seem to be quite stable," advised Hugh
Agnew, a renown navigator and veteran offshore racer. "We can expect
20-26 knots of easterly wind, maybe slightly to the south of due east
for the duration of our race. The longest leg of the course is from St.
Barth's to Guadeloupe and with this wind direction, coupled with the
apparent wind created by the boats, it will be forward of the beam, so
many boats will be unlikely to fly a spinnaker. This will slow them
down, but the other side of the coin is that this wind direction may be
beneficial on a crucial part of the course-the south side of Guadeloupe.
If we get a one-sided beat, requiring few tacks, this could really work
in the fleets favor."
It has been a fast race so far on what is a pretty "reach" offshore
course with some long fetches and beats interspersed amongst the
"islands" course. After a yeoman's effort last year, Jonty Layfield's
team from the United Kingdom have continued to modernize their sail
inventory and have their beautiful J/39 SLEEPER VIII rolling along quite
fast! At this moment at 1500 hours on Thursday, Feb 21, their lying
about 75 nm from the finish line and are currently leading IRC 3 Class!
We wish them luck and wish them more Fair Winds & God Speed! you
can
follow them with Race tracking on Yellowbrick Sailing Photo credits- Tim Wright/ Photoaction.com For
more RORC Caribbean 600 sailing information
