Howth Yacht Club J/109 skipper Simon Knowles – the inshore and offshore campaigner of Indian in Irish waters – and noted Pwllheli father-and-son offshore team of Andrew and Sam Hall, will be ensuring that the Irish Sea is well represented with two boats in the RORC Caribbean 600 Race 2024 from Antigua on Monday 19th February.
Simon Knowles is leading a Howth team charter of the successful J/122 El Ocaso, which won her class in Antigua Week 2023. And the ever-enthusiastic Hall clan – Sam is current ISORA “Sailor of the Year” - will be racing their rather special Lombard 45 Pata Negra, designed by France’s Marc Lombard, whose reputation is currently flying high with the Lombard 34 Mistral’s impressive win of the Two-Handed Division in the 2023 Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.
Andrew & Sam Hall’s Lombard 45 Pata Negra racing on a grey day in the Solent. Her design relationship to the Marc Lombard-designed Hobart Race Two-Handed winner Mistral’s boxy sections is unmistakable
Simon Knowles will be racing with a crew of many talents, as the lineup on El Ocaso includes Howth 17 owner-skipper Rima Macken, and J/109 sailors Roger and Kate Smith. Meanwhile, there’s word on the grapevine that a renowned Howth international offshore campaigning team are lining up a challenge for the 2026 Bermuda Race - believed to be the first ever Irish entry in that great American classic - but there’s much work to be done before it becomes reality.
NEW WIZARD AND OLD GREEN DRAGON IN THE HUNT
For now, we note that the Caribbean entry includes former winner Warrior Won, Chris Sheehan’s PAC52 aboard which Don Street of Glandore’s grandson Dylan Vogel sails as bowman, while Fastnet Race 2019 winners Peter & David Askew (USA) are back with a different different Wizard, for having won the Fastnet with a former Volvo 70, the newly-named Wizard is a Botin 52.
Also in the listings is the gallant old warhorse Green Dragon, once upon a time the Irish-Chinese round the world Volvo 70, and now campaigned by Austria’s Johannes Schwarz.
