Get me to the Caribbean 600 Prizegiving!
by Louay Habib / RORC 28 Feb 18:02 UTC
28 February 2025
IRC One winners in the 2025 RORC Caribbean 600 - Philippe Franz's NM43 Albator © Tim Wright / Photoaction.com
Congratulations to the latest class winners to be announced: Thomas Kassberg's ORC 50 Malolo, Philippe Franz's NM43 Albator, Team Scarlet on Emily, skippered by Ross Applebey, Ulysse Pozzoli's Class40 Team Renovatec and Jeremi Jablonski's Hanse 430 Avanti.
Class winners may have been established, but some teams are still at sea, battling the course and nearby rivals. They are all as keen as mustard to make it to the legendary RORC Caribbean 600 Prizegiving.
Multihull
The multihull battle came to a conclusion with Marc Guillemot's MG5 Wellness Training taking Multihull Line Honours in an elapsed time of 2 Days 7 hrs 51 Mins 17 secs. Thomas Kassberg's ORC 50 Malolo was just over 20 minutes behind, but after MOCRA time correction was the winner of the Multihull Class. Timo Tavio & Kimmo Nordstrom's ORC 50 was third.
"It was super to finish the race first after a really close battle and after the tough conditions with big waves and a lot of manoeuvres," commented Guillemot, a veteran of three Vendée Globe Races. "However, we did not break anything, so we are really pleased with the boat. I am so proud of this crew and also of this boat because it is like my baby, as I built her and live on the boat as well. We hope we can come back next year; maybe with some new sails, so she will be even quicker!"
Malolo and Wellness Training swapped the lead on the water multiple times during the race. In summary, Malolo managed to stay in touch with the faster Wellness Training up to St Martin but lost miles on the leg south. At Monserrat both boats went west of the island but Malolo got into the lead by staying close to the shore. Malolo pulled the same tactics out of the bag at Guadeloupe by staying inshore. Wellness Training caught up on the long leg to Barbuda and by Redonda, Wellness Training had caught up. Malolo's owner Tom Kassberg takes up the story:
"The start was just fantastic with amazing boats and sailors throughout all the classes," commented Kassberg. "Our plan was to keep it simple and not make any big mistakes, but we needed to sail smart, especially against Wellness Training which is a faster boat. Will (Harris) did a great job on tactics, especially at Montserrat and Guadeloupe. However, the beat to the finish was pretty much a foot race and one that we knew we would get caught. However, by sailing smart we had done enough to win after time correction. We enjoyed a beer with Marc (Guillemot) and his team after the race and we have really enjoyed the whole experience. I would love to come back and do the RORC Caribbean 600 again."
IRC One
After a three-way battle for class honours in IRC One, Philippe Franz's NM43 Albator was first to finish in IRC One in an elapsed time of 2 Days 22 Hrs 44 Mins 33 Secs. Class40 Tquila, co-skippered by Alister Richardson & Chris Sheehan was next to finish, just 31 minutes after Albator. Tquila was second in class after IRC time correction after an epic battle with Albator. Andrew & Sam Hall's Lombard 46 Pata Negra was third to finish and came very close to beating Tquila after IRC time correction. Pata Negra was just 10 minutes behind Tquila after time correction, taking third place for the class.
For Philippe Franz this was his second IRC One class victory in the RORC Caribbean 600 with Albator. "The spirit on Albator is excellent, the crew compliment each other very well. We come from different sailing backgrounds, from dinghies to round the world races, but we all weld together. It works very well," commented Frantz.
"Tquila was very fast downwind but with good tactics we managed to stay with them and get ahead upwind, which is in the DNA of Albator. We are very happy to win as this is always a beautiful race, but this year it was a very bumpy, tough ride down to Guadeloupe, but we are very happy to be here racing with the RORC."
Ablator's Tactician is Alexis Loison who is about to embark on his 19th Solitaire du Figaro campaign. Last year Loison was part of the winning team on Class40 Sogestran Seafrigo which beat the Class40 Tquila in a tense final few hours.
"The RORC Caribbean 600 is always a race where you are pushing very hard and you don't sleep a lot, but the Albator crew has sailed together for a long time and the win was a great achievement," commented Loison."
Class40 Tquila had led Albator on the water for most of the race but the defining moment came in the wind shadow of Guadeloupe where Albator took up a lead, which the French team refused to relinquish.
"Last year, I was racing on Class40 Sogestran Seafrigo against Tquila and they did a good job passing us behind Guadeloupe by going inshore. This year on Albator we saw Tquila go a little offshore, so we got right inside them and made a big gain. That was a good revenge move!" continued Loison.
Albator completed the sector of the race 24 minutes quicker than Tquila. Tquila caught up somewhat on the reaching leg to the mark at Barbuda and the leg to Redonda. However, the last upwind leg in light airs suited Albator's design far more than Tquila.
IRC Two
Elan 450 Team Scarlet on Emily, skippered by Ross Applebey won the class after IRC time correction. The two other podium places were decided by a full-on battle for IRC Two Line Honours between two J/122s. Peter Dunlop & Victoria Cox, racing Mojito with a crew from the Pwllheli Sailing Club, Wales and El Ocaso skippered by Nikki Henderson with a charter crew from 59 North. Mojito crossed the finish line just before midnight on the fifth day of racing to take IRC Two Line Honours and second for the class. El Ocaso finished just 28 minutes after Mojito to complete the podium.
Ross Applebey has won his class on nine occasions, arguably the most successful skipper in the history of the RORC Caribbean 600, but this was the first time he had raced the '600 on Emily of Cowes, which was chartered for the race from owner Richard Oswald.
"It's always a great race and that's why we keep coming back," commented Ross Applebey. "This year was different; the wind was further south, which changed the course quite a bit. We expected more upwind and downwind legs, but instead, there was less reaching, which wasn't ideal but made it interesting in its own way. The leg south was a long slog and the wind shadow near Guadeloupe was trickier than expected - we got stuck sooner than we thought, which was frustrating. But we had a decent passage after that, so we can't complain," admitted Applebey.
"This was a new boat for most of us, except for Neil (Maher) and Jane (Desnoyers). Learning its quirks, especially with twin rudders, was a challenge, but we found strengths and weaknesses along the way. The final beat was tough, but overall, it was a great race. Racing alongside Mojito and El Ocaso made it even more exciting. We kept trading places; Mojito would pull away and we'd reel them back in. The start was a real highlight; we crossed the whole fleet, which set the tone for the race. A huge thanks to the team and Richard for providing a great boat. We'll be back for more!"
With the RORC Caribbean 600 set for tonight, Friday 28th February, 11 boats are still out on the race course. Hot tired and thirsty, all of the sailors racing will have their hearts set on making the big night. Clipper 60 Bluejay of Portsmouth and Swan 47 Sassafras have about 60 miles to go and should make the prize-giving before Itchy Feet, featuring Asha Otto complete their live performance on the main stage.
For more stunning pictures from the start of the 2025 RORC Caribbean 600 visit the gallery HERE.
Website: caribbean600.rorc.org