Tomorrow, at approximately 11:30 a.m., Bella Mente Racing will sail through the starting line, in Fort Charlotte, Antigua, for the sixth edition of the RORC Caribbean 600. The 600 mile distance race takes competitors around eleven Caribbean islands, and is hosting a record number of yachts this year.
“We have had three days (in Antigua) to prepare Bella Mente for racing,” said the team’s Tactician, Terry Hutchinson, adding that this event marks the first offshore race of the season for Bella Mente Racing. “The race is fairly straight forward but what makes it unique is the boat handling element, as there is only one leg that is around 100 miles. Because of this, the team must be on its toes throughout the entire event.
“We are fortunate to have a couple key guys onboard with a lot of ocean racing experience,” added Hutchinson. “It will take teamwork to win this event, but we are confident that we have all the tools to hopefully succeed.”
Last year, Bella Mente Racing won IRC 0 and finished second overall for IRC, and this year its sights are set on not only the RORC Caribbean 600 Trophy but also the inaugural Bella Mente Trophy. However, there will be lots of direct competition on the racecourse in IRC, including U.S. entries Rambler, Shockwave, and Privateer.
“Out of all the events on our calendar for the year this one for sure feels like we have come back for unfinished business,” said the team’s Offshore Helmsman Mike Sanderson. “Last year we lost IRC overall by five minutes on corrected time, which was brutal after all we had put into it. However, we have learned, done more homework, sailed more as a team and feel very ready to take it on. It is a great race with great competition and it’s going to be quite a battle.”
The forecast is calling for traditional Caribbean sea breeze, around 15 to 18 knots (with some lighter patches over the course of the race). Current routing has Bella Mente finishing the 600 mile course in about 48 hours, but this is condition dependent.
Follow the event on real time at http://caribbean600.rorc.org/2014-fleet-tracking.html and follow the team on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates
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