Bella Mente and the IRC Z fleet after today’s start
This morning (Monday, February 23) at 11:30 a.m. Bella Mente Racing kicked off the RORC Caribbean 600 in IRC Z. The race starts off Fort Charlotte, Antigua and takes its fleet on a 600-mile coastal course around 11 Caribbean islands. The team, led by owner/driver Hap Fauth, spent the last two days making unexpected boat repairs to their Maxi 72 namesake.
RORC Caribbean 600 – 2015 Pre Start Highlights
“I would say our biggest competition would be ourselves for this race,” said Tactician Terry Hutchinson adding that the team had hoped to spend its weekend practice session testing offshore inventory and understanding the new mast and set up of the sails. “Although we have a very talented group of sailors we still need practice, and our time off the water over the last 55 hours has made that difficult.”
Bella Mente Racing has been the overall runner up for the race on two occasions.
“In 2014 we sailed a great race and were first to the finish, which was a great result considering that there was a 90-foot boat in the race,” said Hutchinson. “Our goal this year is to beat our previous time around the racecourse while continuing to develop as a team and build on our success in Key West. Crisp boat handling, methodical decision making and determination will keep us going in the right direction.”
Flashback video to Bella Mente at the 2014 RORC Caribbean 600
Hutchinson added that the weather forecast is predicting a moderate trade wind throughout the race, with the windiest part being the first ten hours. From there the breeze eases to between 10 and 16 knots.
When asked what he thought the biggest challenges would be this week Hutchinson said, “Overcoming our lack of time on the water and racing the boat hard. This is a sprint race and we set a high standard last year with our boat handling so to match that is going to be tough. In addition to that, we are racing against some very good teams so the win will take a combination of great sailing, boat speed and a little intervention from the wind gods.”
