Course change for Transatlantic Race
Published on January 5th, 2024
A threatening weather forecast has prompted an amendment to the course for the 2024 RORC Transatlantic Race which starts on January 7. This change after the start from Lanzarote will offer a safer exit from the Canary Islands for the 3,000 nm course across the Atlantic Ocean to Grenada, West Indies.
The requirement to leave the Canary Islands to port has been removed, as the original course will send the very diverse fleet into two unusually deep depressions with the possibilities of winds exceeding 40 knots and a potential wave height of eight metres.
With this revised course, the fleet can still take a westerly route if desired but also opens an option for boats to head immediately south after the first mark.
The Farr 100 canting keel maxi Leopard 3 (MON), skippered by Chris Sherlock is the hot favorite for monohull line honours and has the potential to set a new race record for the RORC Transatlantic Race. Leopard 3’s navigator, Will Best commented that sea state for a northerly route will be the deciding factor for his team.
Predictions of a excessive wave height on the northerly route will massively affect the speed of Leopard 3, but it is not just the wave height, but the wave direction as low pressure systems from the north are expected to introduce a cross current that may create a messy sea state for the 2024 race.
The Monohull Race Record for the RORC Transatlantic Race is 7 days 22 hrs 01 mins 04 secs, achieved by Comanche in 2022. Mitch Booth was the skipper for the record run and Mitch is part of the crew on Leopard 3 for the 2024 race.
Three MOD70s in the race are favorites for Multihull Line Honours. Skipper of MOD70 Limosa (FRA), Alexia Barrier, believes that that the disruption to the tradewinds will increase their chances of success for the race. Limosa is in original MOD70 (non-foiling) configuration, but their immediate competition – Jason Carroll’s Argo (USA) and Erik Maris’ Zoulou (FRA) – both have lifting foils midships and on their rudders. Argo and Zoulou are potentially much faster reaching in normal tradewinds.
“It’s a very complex weather system; we have a lot of things still to be decided,” reports Barrier. “There will be a lot of transition for us, but as we are not the ‘king of the class’, I think we have more chance to be at the front because there will be many big choices to be made.
“The northerly route is looking very dangerous for the MOD70s with waves predicted over 8 meters. The three MOD 70 skippers are having a discussion and we hope to have an agreement before the race start, that we will all go south of a GPS waypoint.”
Christopher Sheehan’s PAC52 Warrior Won (USA) has a stellar crew, including Canadian tactician Richard Clarke. Warrior Won must be considered as one of the favorites for the overall win under IRC. However, the complex weather is bound to create a race with numerous strategic conditions.
“The weather is looking brutal; a stormy North Atlantic,” commented Clarke. “The greatest challenge is to keep the foot on the gas in a race of this length; to continue to focus and to battle the elements. Looking at the forecast, it is a massive accomplishment to race across an ocean and the Warrior Won team is prepared to pull it off, that is the number one task.”
Race details – Entry list – Tracker – Facebook
The 10th edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race will start January 7 from the Spanish island of Lanzarote of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, with 22 teams competing on the 3,000 nm course to Grenada. France has the most entrants with eight boats with other teams representing Austria, Great Britain, Germany, Monaco, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United States of America.
The Multihull elapsed record is 5 days 5 hours 46 mins 26 secs set in 2023 by Giovanni Soldini’s Maserati Multi70.
The Monohull elapsed record is 7 days, 22 hrs, 01 mins, 04 secs set in 2022 by the 100ft VPLP Design/Verdier Comanche, skippered by Mitch Booth.
Source: RORC