Inaugural St. James’s Place China Coastal Race
It was a beautiful day at Shek O Rock with blue skies and an easterly breeze of 16 to 20kts for the start of inaugural St. James’s Place China Coastal Race - a Category 3 offshore race which starts and finishes in Hong Kong waters, exploring the beautiful islands around Hong Kong.
With the influence of monsoon, the sea was quite rough with big swell up to 3m. The horn sounded at 1100hrs and the three competing yachts, Ambush, Jinn and Whiskey Jack, set off on the 100nm racecourse which will see them sail up to Ping Chau, Round Island, Shek Ngau Chau, coming down to round Po Toi and Tau Lo Chau at south of Lantau Island before finishing at TCS 2 near Tung Lung Chau.
Three participating yachts are not new to long distance racing. Joachim Isler and Andrew Taylor’s Mills 41 Ambush has a long offshore racing history and has participating in all offshore racing organised by Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club in recent years. Ambush took the IRC Overall 1st place in 2018 Hong Kong to Hainan Race and won IRC Race 1 division 1st place in both 2017 and 2019 Hong Kong to Vietnam Race.
Fresh from lifting the trophy in St. James’s Place China Coast Regatta IRC Racer 3 division last week, Nick Southward’s J-109 Whiskey Jack has previously joined two Rolex China Sea Races, taking 2nd in IRC 2 Division in 2012 and 3rd in IRC 2 Division in 2016 as a double-handed entry.
In comparison, Nicolas Cohen-Addad's J122e Jinn has a relatively shorter history in offshore sailing but they lifted the trophy in IRC Racer 2 division in their first attempt in the Hong Kong to Vietnam Race 2019.
The St. James’s Place China Coastal Race forms part of St. James’s Place China Coast Race Week. Boats which compete in both the St. James's Place China Coast Regatta and the St. James's Place China Coastal Race will automatically be entered in the St. James's Place China Coast Race Week 2020 and will be eligible for prizes under IRC and HKPN handicap.
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