Dream winds for Antigua Bermuda Race

Fort Charlotte, Antigua (May 8, 2019) – The 2019 Antigua Bermuda Race fleet set off today with a perfect start in brilliant sunshine and 20 knots trade winds for the 11-boat international fleet. Close to a hundred sailors from Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Hong Kong, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, Russia, and the USA are taking part in the 935nm offshore race from Antigua to Bermuda.

The start featured yachts hugging the rugged coastline of south Antigua, making gains from the lifting pressure rolling down the cliffs. The 100ft canting keel flyer SHK Scallywag (HKG) got away as did Gilles Barbot’s Volvo 60 Esprit de Corps IV (CAN), and as the fleet reached Green Island, they eased sheets and hoisted downwind sails to accelerate into a power reach that should last for at over 300 miles.

According to weather forecasts, they are in for a spectacular treat of superb sailing on a beam reach in tropical heat, surfing through the Atlantic Ocean.

Three hours into the race, all of the yachts were hitting double-digit speed, blasting through two-metre waves in 29°C air temperature. Sun glasses on, lapping up the sunshine, and relishing the prospect of a first night at sea under a carpet of stars.

Supermaxi SHK Scallywag skippered by David Witt (AUS) passed Barbuda to starboard, covering over 50 miles in the first three hours. Afansay Isaev’s Maxi Weddell (RUS) and Esprit de Corps IV (CAN) split paths to round different sides of Barbuda and were 20 miles behind the leader. On corrected time, Lombard 46 Pata Negra (GBR) was the early leader in the IRC Division and Carlo Falcone’s 1938 yawl Mariella was going well in the CSA Class.

All of the teams racing in the 2019 Antigua Bermuda Race are expected to pass Barbuda before dusk; the next land they will see is likely to be Gibbs Hill Lighthouse on Bermuda.

Race details/ – Entry list – Tracker – Facebook

The third edition of the 935-mile Antigua Bermuda Race will start on the May 8 and is organized in association with Antigua Sailing Week and is supported by the Bermuda Tourism Authority. Yachts of 40-feet and over will be racing under the IRC Rating Rule, MOCRA and the CSA Racing Rule, with the latter amended to permit boats to use their engines, subject to a time penalty.

The 2019 Atlantic Ocean Racing Series will consist of five races: RORC Caribbean 600, Antigua Bermuda Race, Transatlantic Race 2019, Rolex Fastnet Race, and Rolex Middle Sea Race. Three races, including the Transatlantic Race (weighted 1.5), will be required to qualify.

Source: Louay Habib