5245_BB_SailLeisureMOCKV11

SAIL
+LEISURE INTERNATIONAL
THE RACE
Organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club
in conjunction with the Antigua Yacht Club,
apart from the three multihulls, which
included two MOD 70s, the race is raced
under the IRC rules and the ISAF Offshore
Special Regulations and any amendments
thereto for 2015, and RORC Prescriptions
Category 3 plus Category 2 Liferaft, EPIRB
and AIS Transponder.
The Caribbean weather during February
is extremely predictable, with the prevailing
easterly a constant. Yet its tendency to veer
to the east-south-east is not uncommon.
Thic can have a huge effect on any race
planning, especially around sail choices. The
Caribbean 600 has many corners with
relatively short legs, so forward planning is
vital for smooth transitions. The navigator,
Matt Wachowicz, and the team management
were thorough in sourcing their weather
forecasts from the top meteorologists
around the world. They went to great pains
in explaining and predicting each leg at our
team briefings.
On an 82-foot boat with 20 crew, clear
and concise communication is essential to
successful manoeuvring and keeping all in
loop. The task of ensuring that all
instructions were relayed successfully fell to
our crew boss Paul Standbridge, who is not
unfamiliar to this role. It was comforting to
note that the crew instantly fell into “race
mode” when instructed, and Paul’s clear
instructions were dealt with in an efficient
and precise manner.
During our practise sessions, I was the
allocated helmsman for two of the three
days. I relished the opportunity to drive a
machine such as Fling, and my slight
nervousness was quickly overcome by
surprise at how easily the boat tracks and
sails under her 40-metre mast with
downwind sails totalling 925 square metres.
Our tactician, Peter Holmberg, describes
his experience of the race: “We had
prepared our inshore boat pretty well for
this offshore test, but knew that we would
be up against more than just the
competition. We had a pleasant start and
were in a tight pack with the four Maxi 72s
for most of the race, having a race within a
race, which is always good for pushing
yourself. We were leading our pack into
Guadeloupe, with only a couple more legs to
go in the race, when we had problems with
our rigging holding up the mast and had to
retire. This was a real shame, as we were
probably looking at a top three result, and
our boat and team had been performing so
well. But even this disappointment won’t
erase the sweet memories of rounding Saint
Kitts and Nevis at sunset, rounding Saba at
10pm only a couple-hundred feet from
shore, rounding St Barths and St Maarten in
darkness, racing just metres from our pack
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SAIL+LEISURE