Well, today has certainly been very exciting! After a slow night with boats

over taking us we soon got our act together early this morning by reaching

up to the Barbuda laid mark with our big yellow spinnaker. We were creaming

along at 14knts trying to reach up to the buoy. We hadn't left much in the

bag I can tell you! We were fully on the edge with Derek showing us what he

can really do on the helm and Arien trimming that bad boy (I hope she is

talking about the spinnaker not Derek!). Everybody else was hiking as hard

as they possibly could as far back as they possibly could to keep the mighty

Incisor going. We reeled in Northern Child with ease and were hot on their

heels around the mark. At the mark we dropped to get some more height ready

for the banana spinnaker to be deployed. We held Northern who still had

their spinnaker up. After half an hour we launched the banana and were on a

tight reach again, however to fly the bloody thing we were 30 degrees off

course, but then again, we were going really fast and it was really fun.

After 15 minutes we decided that we better get on course and save that for

another day- the rum punches are a calling. After dropping we pulled away

from Northern and still continue to do so and are reeling in the next

victim. As well as hunting competitors down we are also currently trying to

avoid a great big coral bank which lies in front of Redonda. Once we have

rounded Redonda we will be on the home straight, and guess what, more

beating. Yay.

Jon (Bilbao Jon) made a delicious dinner last night. We gave him the

crappiest ingredients to work with and he pulled through! We had tinned

steak in gravy with baked beans, onions, and mushrooms all mixed together

with smash on top. We loved it but he said his mother would have been

disappointed, so we can't wait to see what he can rustle up with some proper

ingredients! Sam is currently preparing lunch on this tack and will cook it

on the next tack. This cooking and beating malarkey may seem all very

tactical but the cooker is one side and our only work surface on the other

you see.

As I say the next leg will be a hard 30 mile beat back to the finish line at

English Harbour in Antigua. The wind has picked up and we may have to reef

so hopefully we can maintain a good speed and heading to get to those rum

punches quickly!

Brace yourself Antigua Incisor are almost home - bring me that finish line!

Hello from the barmy, wet, windy, sunny Caribbean on the mighty Incisor.

We are currently beating down the west coast of Guadalupe to reach the Saints.

Then a beat up the south side. I tell you there is a lot of beating in this race

and I think we are getting really good at it now! Yesterday was a beautiful day

but was masked by the long long long 180 mile beat from St Maarten down to

Guadalupe ( I will just repeat again that it was very very long) But we have

finally reached The south side of Guadalupe and are finally turning that last

tough corner. Whilst coming down past Guadalupe we were becalmed. This was the

perfect opportunity to do some whale and dolphin watching - which is another

thing the mighty Incisor is quite good at as a humongous humpback came to greet

Lawrence on the bow and 6 dolphins just after! Being becalmed also meant that

James was able to jump in and check that the lobster pot was completely free of

the rudder and the prop. Now we can make sure all systems are a go and we can't

wait to put the engine on to moor up ready for the24 hour bar! I think secretly

everyone was glad we were becalmed because for about 2 hours we could actually

stand up downstairs and go to the toilet in peace. A slice of heaven. It really

is the little things! To be honest I was more pleased about that than the whale!

Today has been a busy day, not just the whale watching and swimming but there

have been a lot of sail changes and we finally got to eat our Spaghetti

Bolognese at half past 11 this morning. It was worth the wait. Just eating sugar

coated strawberry sweets and hob-nobs were just not cutting it last night.

The wind is still fluctuating from 10-15knts but at the moment we are doing

6.5knts with the wind at 170 degrees.

Everyone is doing a really good job at keeping the boat going and chipping in

with cooking and cleaning and most importantly we are learning lots!

Signing off now as it's a little choppy and very hot down here. Keep on tracking

us on the yellow brick and keep cheering us on!

The Incisor crew

Lost all power and were steering and navigating in the traditional way last

night –n which i think was good for everyone’s steering! Eventually got it back

on during the spinny run from St Barths to St Maarten and there were lots of

cheers! During that time we lost a bit of ground but are gaining with the spinny

up now.

We have had a top speed from James of 17.5 knots and doing a steady 11. Getting

the spinny down soon onto a tight reach up the north west side of St Maarten and

then onto a long fetch down to Guadeloupe.

We are now 2.5hrs ahead of Sandy’s predictions so we are all very pleased.

Dinner was delicious last night (chicken and chorizo and rice). It was certainly

worth the wait with only one gas burner! It was made even more exciting by

playing cat and mouse with Quokka 8 all night long on the spinnaker leg. Also

picked up a lobster pot last night – i tell you it’s was all going on! But we

managed to get free of it.

Wind is steady 18knts and at 106.

Hello from the mighty Incisor!

We are going a steady 10 knotts on our spinnaker run towards Nevis from the laid

mark off of Barbuda. We have completed all manoeuvres so far with success so our

two days of training last week paid off! Especially considering we could only

get a kite up on the second day! So that’s 2.5 of the 13 legs done already!

Sandy the Caribbean rating measurer has predicated wh at times we will get to

each mark and so far his first predication has been bang on, so bring on Nevis

at half 10 this evening!

Everyone is doing a great job and crew spirits are extremely high – especially

the skipper Derek who has had lots of cups of tea to keep him happy! We had

ordered rotis from the lady on the dock but it all fell through, but alas Jon

saved the day and made some delicious cheese and ham rolls with a snickers for

dessert – an even happier skipper after that!

Our start was great and it was so exciting! Helicopters skimming the water with

film crews on and boats to watch out for left right and centre, we felt like the

professionals!

The ladies on board (Hazel, Pippa and Sam) are holding their own against the

chaps by grinding their hearts out, packing spinnakers at record speeds, making

teas and more importantly keeping the chat going. Although saying that. Lawrence

and Jon are also quite the chatterboxes!

On our wildlife watch, so far we have seen a turtle. To be honest they aren't

that exciting, just a brown blob in the water – don’t feel too bad you're

missing out on that at home, but the weather is lovely!

Josh has been trying to keep dry all day by wearing his oilies in the blistering

heat as soon as we left the dock – however 4 hours in and the heat gets to him,

he takes his jacket off, goes on the bow and gets drenched. Tee Hee!

Mike is doing sterling work on navigation and Derek, Arien, Martin, James and

Jon (we have two Jons so have had to split them up on watches so we don’t get

confused!) are keeping the boat going with their expert knowledge and

enthusiasm!

Signing off now as the crew are getting hungry as it is almost dinner time!

Until tomorrow from Incisor’s Caribbean 600 adventure.

Since I last put pen to paper yesterday as we were approaching Monserrat,

we have battled our way down the tricky coast of Guadeloupe, sailed clean

past our competitors aboard Selene, rounded Les Saintes and La Desirade and

are now on course for Barbuda. As Ben and I began our watch yesterday

afternoon with Guadeloupe in sight, we set ourselves the challenge of

making up the two mile deficit we trailed Selene by the end of our three

hours on deck. We could see the wind ahead looking patchy and fickle so we

got the binoculars on the case. With both of us having the sailed the race

several times before we knew that heading towards the shore should pay

off. As Selene sailed a straight course towards the SW corner of

Guadeloupe, we turned Dorade towards the shore and picked up a fantastic

breeze line and a significant lift. The AIS also revealed that we were now

sailing some six knots faster than our competitors and within the first

hour of our watch we had surpassed the challenge we set ourselves.

Of course navigating down that coastline can be very tricky and needless to

say it took us a long time. Somewhere in the region of eight hours to

escape the clutches of the wind hole. But we stuck to our strategy of

staying just off the beach and it paid off. A little after a spectacular

sunset, we spotted a small but distinct breeze line moving towards us from

the shore. It was enough to fill the new 'weapon sail' our windseeker and

we crawled our way past the corner and on towards Les Saintes. Zero to

seventeen knots of wind feels epic and soon enough half of us were up on

the foredeck submerged changing from the J2 to the GS and then finally to

the J4 in the lee of Les Saintes. Having a low freeboard, big sea states

can be somewhat daunting on Dorade and it felt as if we were being swamped

as we headed out of the lee of these small islands and on towards La

Desirade. We had not been looking forward to tacking our way up this leg

of the race however the wind gods dealt us a good hand and the one tack we

put in was enough to set us up on a perfect forty six mile layline.

We surfed past La Desirade not long after dawn hearing the crunch of the

waves against the rocks that mark the corner of the island and hoisted our

two A2's. One off the main mast and the second off the mizzen. For a

couple of hours we were making good speed up towards Barbuda but a vicious

squall that hit bringing with it a sudden wind shift nearly threw us into

our first ever full blown wipe out. Saved by a quick drop of the mizzen

spinnaker, the new wind direction put an end to our spinnaker fun and now

we are reaching under J2, GS, full main, mizzen jib and mizzen main.

Breakfast burritos have gone down well and we are starting to contemplate

our final leg strategy and allow ourselves to think about that cold beer at

the finish. For now we are pushing hard and aiming for that class win.

Hannah

Hello from the barmy, wet, windy, sunny Caribbean on the mighty Incisor.

We are currently beating down the west coast of Guadalupe to reach the Saints the a beat up the south side. I tell you there is a lot of beating in this race and I think we are getting really good at it now! Yesterday was a beautiful day but was masked by the long long long 180 mile beat from St Marrten down to Guadalupe (I will just repeat again that it was very very long) But we have finally reached The south side of Guadalupe and are finally turning that last tough corner. Whilst coming down past Guadalupe we were becalmed. This was the perfect opportunity to do some whale and dolphin watching - which is another thing the mighty Incisor is quite good at as a humongous humpback came to greet Lawrence on the bow and 6 dolphins just after! Being becalmed also meant that James was able to jump in and check that the lobster pot was completely free of the rudder and the prop. No we can make sure all systems are a go for putting the engine on to moor up ready for the24hour bar! I think secretly everyone was glad we were becalmed because for about 2 hours we could actually stand up downstairs and go to the toilet in peace. A slice of heaven. It really is the little things! To be honest I was more pleased about that than the whale!

Today has been a busy day, not just the whale watching and swimming but there have been a lot of sail changes and we finally got to eat our spaghetti Bolognese at half past 11 this morning. It was worth the wait. Just eating sugar coated strawberry sweets and hob-nobs were just not cutting it last night.

The wind is still fluctuating from 10-15knts but at the moment we are doing 6.5knts with the wind at 170 degrees.

Everyone is doing a really good job at keeping the boat going and chipping in with cooking and cleaning and most importantly we are learning lots!

Singing off now as it's a little choppy and very hot down here. Keep on tracking us on the yellow brick and keep cheering us on!

The Incisor crew

time 17.21 local time
Pos 16.32.98 N : 62.11.29 W
SOG 12.3 COG 160 TWS 19-20 kts TWD 085

Don't race the RORC 600 if you do not like port tack! Leaving St. Maarten to starboard it was a perfect early morning sail. Fabrizio had the pleasure to clear the rocky NW point of the island before heading to Tintamare. Tintamare was left to starboard and we started our 160 nm port tack upwind leg. Wind is quite regular, never less than 13 kts and, in the afternoon, often just below 20 kts.

Genoa and full main still power us full speed in a wide upwind sailing. Speed is seldom below 12 kts. High Spirit Team is doing a good job, alternating helm and main sail trimming with the rest of the Italian racing team.

Tactical call suggested to pass leeward to Montserrat. It looks like the rest of the fleet passed windward. This morning Nefertiti was ahead of us 12 nm, now she is only about 5.

Montserrat west coast is quite amazing. The famous eruption of Soufrière Hills Volcano destroyed part of the island in 1995. The new land, into the cone of destruction, is quite stunning. Our windward passage granted us an hour of smooth sailing in strong breeze and flat water.

We are heading to Les Saintes (Guadeloupe), when race will be decided by how well the fleet passes the massive wind shadow of the island. Francesco just started eating with the excuse of getting ready for the passage, which will start in less than 3 hour.

Fleet tracking system censors each yacht passage in order not to give any advantage to followers. Do not worry if we disappear from RORC 600 tracking system for a while.

A little note about the hard racing experience on Cape Arrow: have you ever been trimming genoa while chef is offering you fresh watermelon or sandwiches? Have you ever waken up during the race with crew offering you a warm toast? Last dinner was lasagne, tonight we are looking forward to learn what Sophie has prepared for us!

Cheers!!

PS: today a family of dolphins played on our bow for 10 minutes just to celebrate St. Maarten rounding!

• Click to open image! Click to open image!
•  

What a night! Great sailing downwind in 15-18 tws all the 50 miles to Nevis. No waves, therefore no surfs but steady 12-14.5 knots of speed with few times just above 15. Igor did a great job on the helm although conditions approaching Nevis were tricky with plenty of wind shift. No moon to help us but nice stars and very mild weather. Nevis has a big mountain which was capped at sunset and it was a nice picture.

We lost contact with Nefertiti, we wonder if we passed her or not. What we know is that we were passed by the huge Athos and Adela. Adela's crew did a gybe peel! Can you imagine? Masts were lightened up like a Christmas tree. I wonder how many radios they have on board to coordinate manouvers among crew members.

From Nevis to Saba we left St. Christopher on starboard and we enjoyed the fantastic reaching with our A3, all away around the little island. Then, just in time for my turn of rest we started beating towards St. Barths.

Few tacks and 30 miles after (much less than 3 hours later) we started the easy approach but incredibly tricky rounding of St. Barths. Rocks, reef, no moon, many lights ashore, a buoy and a few other difficulties. Francesco Mongelli, guided us through the difficulties like he was playing with a 100 footer remote controlled model!

A2 was set up on starboard tack and once again we started regularly seeing 14 and 15 on our log.

Asking to captain for a word, he smiled and commented his swapping gennaker sheets after a gybe peel: "it was nice to hang again a gennaker sheet on after few years". We took pictures to prove how elegant he was!!!

A2 was dropped smootly and we started again sailing up wind to round St. Maarten to starboard, welcomed by a nice sunrise.

11.30 - Start

Weather could not be better, 15-18 TWS blowing from 110, sun, little waves. I am sure nobody on board is regretting being here and not in the offices! Unfortunately Claudio did not recover and he quit. Walter, Fabrizio and first mate Carlos Carrer will handle the bow on their own.

Heading out the harbour we passed by the jury for safety check. As per Notice of Race the 16 of us wore lifejackets and was on starboard guardrail for the count.

After clearing Kettle Bottom Shoals we headed at good 10.5 kts close hauling and then fetching to Barbuda. As soon as wind was coming from wider angles we switched on outboard short sheet and then we deployed staysail too. Angles allowed sailing deeper and after some time gaining water and sailing higher than to buoy, we hoisted A3 gaining a good 10% on VMG to bouy. Nefertiti was fighting with Idea and they were sailing a bit higher than us to defend their position, leaving us the room to get closer and closer, reducing the gap they gained upwind.

Mark rounding saw us engaged with Nefertiti. She passed first but we were about to overlap her. On the buoy we beard away, hoisted our A2, gybed, dropped A3 and opened A2. A perfect customized gybe set (we are using snuffers!).

Now we are reaching trying to close the gap with Nefertiti. Sunset is coming. Lights are getting milder and milder. My wife would say: "c'e' una luce dooolce!".

Stay tuned!!! See you in St.Kitts and Nevis