SORC Islands in the Stream Series still on!
by J/Boats 21 Dec 2019 07:37 PST
SORC Islands in the Stream Series © SORC Sailing
A new season of SORC sailing is upon us, bringing with it a mix of tradition and change for the 2019-2020 Islands in the Stream Series.
The series kicked off with the Nassau Cup Ocean Race on November 14th, 2019. It was the 78th edition of the race and it was a windy one at that...with the fleet buffeted by a storm/ frontal passage for the first part of the race, producing strong winds on the nose as the fleet beat across the very rough Gulf Stream to the Bahamas Bank. After 24 hours of sailing, most of the fleet got freed up from the Berry Islands southeast down to Nassau, Bahamas.
Then, nearly a month later, the fleet sailed the very light and drawn out Wirth M Munroe Palm Beach Race, the so-called "Race to the Buffet" that started on Friday December 6th. Most boats were late for the Sailfish Club of Florida's legendary party, feast and awards presentation.
The series then heads south for some island time in the Florida Keys. The next event is the 160.0nm Ft. Lauderdale to Key West Race on January 23rd, 2020. The tropics in January provide the perfect spot to unwind with the Conch Grinder Race, and to enjoy the treasures and pleasures of Key West before the awards party at First Flight Island Bar and Restaurant (formerly Kelly's Caribbean).
The series then finally wraps up with another trip to the Bahamas with the inaugural Eleuthera Race, starting off South Beach, Miami on March 11th, 2020 and finishing at the Cape Eleuthera Resort and Marina. The race and series awards party will take place on the beach overlooking Exuma Sound!
The host clubs for the series includes Coral Reef Yacht Club, Nassau Yacht Club, Storm Trysail Club, Biscayne Bay Yacht Club, Sailfish Club of Florida, and Lauderdale Yacht Club.
On an overall basis after the first two races, Chris Lewis's J/44 Kenai from Houston, Texas is sitting in a fourth place tie-breaker with Joe Brito's J/121 Incognito from Bristol, Rhode Island, both boats have 13 pts total.
Just two points back is Brad & Angie Stowers' J/92 Hillbilly from Melbourne Yacht Club in Melbourne, Florida, sitting in sixth place with 15 pts total; their crew consists of David Nesbitt, Karl Krahmer, Brad Bristol, Sebastian Gauza, and Marty "Kiwi" Stoll. Finally, Seth Hall & Tom Pollack's J/124 Marisol currently sits in eighth place with 17 pts. At the completion of the series, three of the four races will be counted.
More information at sorcsailing.org and Facebook page.