So You Wanna Regatta

Ahoy, and welcome to the weekly roundup! This week, Leopard 3 was the overall winner of the RORC Caribbean 600. The boat and her owner got all the attention. Not much attention went to the crew. So, I would like to honor a member of the winning crew, Mitch Booth. His official race bio is that he is a “part time recreational sailor, and in charge of wine selection.”

Me too Mitch, me too…

In today’s letter:

• So You Wanna Regatta: How to sail international races.

• Race Updates: Quick work in the RORC, Ultim pit stop in the Azores.

• Sailing Snippets: Sinking Tanks & Sailboats, Sherlock Helms & The Case of The Serial Sailboat Deserter, Flettner Rotor Science Corner.

So You Wanna Regatta?

Crewing on international races is easier than you might think.

If you’ve ever wanted to race in an international regatta, then this might tickle your tiller. We always thought that to race in regattas we’d need a huge yacht with a professional crew, and lots of experience. Or, at the very least, a very rich uncle with all of the above. Turns out, it’s something almost any sailor can do.

• In this week’s RORC Caribbean 600, 4 of the 64 yachts racing were charter yachts. 2 of those charter yachts are part of Sail Racing Academy, a non-profit sail racing company.

• They own Sao Jorge, a Harmony 52, and Escapado, a First 40.7. Their mission is to provide safe sailing experiences at an affordable price with their race-outfitted boats.

• For about the cost of a typical charter, you can get in a prestigious international regatta, professional skipper included.

• Before each race, there is 1-2 days of training.

Now, crewing with Sail Racing Academy doesn’t guarantee you’ll win, or even finish the race. Of their two boats in the race, Sao Jorge has retired. Escapado is currently rounding Anguilla as of last check, long after the more glamorous boats have crossed the finish line. But hey, they will all have one heck of a story to tell when they get home.

You can learn more about Sail Racing Academy here, and see the upcoming races they’ll be participating in.

Race Updates

Quick work in the RORC and a pit stop in the Azores.

RORC Caribbean 600: The 15th edition of the RORC Caribbean 600 kicked off last Monday. Over 500 sailors from 26 countries on 64 boats raced non-top around 11 islands. The race course starts in Antigua, goes up to Anguilla, down around Guadeloupe, and ends back in Antigua.

Leopard 3 took monohull line honors with an elapsed time of 02d 01:23:18, surely due in no small part to Mitch Booth. 🍷

ARKEA Ultim Challenge: Race leader Charles Caudrelier on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is taking a technical stopover in the Azores to avoid a depression with 9 meter swell and 50 knot winds.

Global Solo Challenge: William Macbrien has been successfully rescued, and reported back that there were two holes in the hull from a collision. He spent 46 hours semi-submerged and adrift on his sinking boat.

Sailing Snippets

The best clips, clicks and local tidbits from this week. 

⛵️Sinking Tanks & Sailboats: DNR officials sunk a 50’ steel sailboat off the coast of Georgia, as part of an artificial reef they are creating to attract fish. The boat was cleaned of contaminates, and sunk on top of tanks and tugboats. There’s a video of the boat sinking, but a video of a tank sinking would’ve been pretty cool too.

🧑‍🦯 The Serial Sailboat Deserter: The renegade sailboat that’s been causing mayhem since May has finally been removed by a crane and barge. Hundreds of man hours have been spent trying to find the owner, who’s apparently hiding out in the Keys, and abandoned the boat. Even stranger, it’s the second time he’s abandoned a boat. The whole very strange local tale is here. Sounds like this is a case for Sherlock Helms.

🔬 Flettner Rotor: In this week’s science corner we have a German shipping company that will be outfitting their cement carrier with a Norsepower rotor sail. The rotor sail is an electric version of a Flettner Rotor, which generates force when wind hits a perpendicular spinning cylinder at a right angle.

I’m pretty sure I got that right. If not, then as Mitch would say “I’m just a recreational sailor in charge of the wine selection.” That’s my excuse, and I’m sticking to it.

That’s all for today, stay safe out there and we’ll Ketch ya next week folks!

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