(Updated) I wish I were there.....where? Where human problems are just distant memories...............

It has been almost a year since Kenny Reid set a new monohull 24 hour distance record during Transatlantic Race 2015 on Jim Clark and Kristy Hinze-Clark's 100 foot Super-maxi ‘Comanche’.

 Video of the latest Race

Official Notice of Race

February 8, 2016 (little history)

In few days some of my friends and people I know will be heading to surf the ocean swell in 20 knots of warm Caribbean tradewinds. The event is called The Royal Ocean Racing Club sailing race. In short RORC Caribbean 600. Thousand of spectators will gather to watch the race in person and thousands more (included myself) will watch this race via video, photographs and blogs from the boats. Even my neighbors from Upper Saddle River and their relatives from Norway traveled there to see this spectacle of speed, endurance and grace. Some of the best and fastests sailboats in the world will participate in the race. According to the official website a record fleet is expected in Antigua for the start in the upcoming exhilarating 600 mile race around 11 Caribbean Island. My eyes will be peeled for my favorite team Comanche and her owners Dr. James Clark and his beautiful and brave wife Kristy Hinze Clark. It was at Rolex Sydney Race Regatta where Kristy Hinze Clark won the race. Jim and Kristy Hinze Clark jointly-own this fastest monohull in the world. It was a monumental effort led by Kristy, mom of two babies, and co-steward of this greyhound Comanche, the brainchild of Dr. James Clark. I Previously wrote a post/appreciation called "Comancheria Nation" but this race is different. Comanche will race with as many as 29 crew, led by legendary skipper Kenny Read. Given the right conditions, Comanche is very capable of not only wining the race but breaking Rambler 100's speed record. Fair Winds and Following Seas my friends! See you soon.

While waiting for the race results, let's reminiscence last year RORC Regatta:

 Also would like to share with you some of my favorite quotes about sailing and the sea:

"Any fool can carry on, but a wise man knows how to shorten sail in time." - Joseph Conrad

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." - Mark Twain

"Man marks the earth with ruin - his control stops with the shore." - Byron

"There is nothing more enticing, disenchanting, and enslaving than the life at sea." - Joseph Conrad

UPDATE: February 24, 2016 Race update and conclusion: They WON!

After we pulled another All-Nighter @classicsailboats.org and watching Comanche on RORC600 boat tracker all I see now is a bluebricktracker in front of my eyes. But Ladies and Gentlemen it was all worth it.

Owner of Comanche, Jim Clark said: “The Comanche crew is a group of people that work really well together; it might as well be a family. Teams are really important; you have to get along and know as second nature what the other team members are doing. In the hi-tech world, one major similarity with yacht racing is 'the team'. A corporation has to have a strong team too, especially a start-up. I have been involved with a number of start-ups with 20 or so people like Comanche and you need smart, dedicated people to make it work, that is one of the basics.

And a co-owner of Comanche Kristy Hinze Clark stated after finishing 1st this morning: “The water and the islands are so beautiful and with a full moon the night time sailing was just spectacular, which was very different from my first experience in the Sydney to Hobart. The crew are great at communicating and they are an exceptional group of professionals. To be able to experience that at first hand during offshore races has been a real pleasure and an honour. I am mildly (sic) competitive and that atmosphere is one that I really enjoy. This boat is like nothing else; Comanche has so much power and speed, it is the coolest thing! I would say to all the girls out there, if this is something you are interested in – do it, chase your dreams.”

Just a little disappointment with the wind......

Personally I am a little bit disappointed with mother nature. When I tweeted in the middle of last night that Comanche's speed was dropping from 18 to 12 knots I didn't want to jinx it but I had a bad feeling that we would see a record braking time. If it not for the beat from St. Maarten to Guadeloupe Islands, Commanche would have shattered Rambler 100 record time for the event.

Even Kenny Read admitted that “Comanche is built to come in first to finish and when Mother Nature co-operates we have the pedigree to break records".

He also promised to be back nest year as reported by RORC Caribbean 600 Minisite: “Going around these islands is a ball; whales breaching, volcanoes smoking, it doesn't get any better than that. We will be back, I promise you – this is a great race."      

UPDATE: December 14, 2017 Bye-bye Comanche. Jim Clark and Kristy Hinze-Clark's 100 foot Super-maxi ‘Comanche’finds new owner Down Under. Good Luck Mr. Cooney! https://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2017/12/14/comanche-finds-new-owner/

https://www.rolexsydneyhobart.com/news/2017/pre-race/jim-cooney-adds-ldv-comanche-to-his-fleet

Comanche winning streak continues under the new ownership. Congratulations to her new owner Jim Cooney!

https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/other-sports/cooney-s-comanche-conquers-the-waves-in-sydney-hobart-race-1.3339839

Comancheria Nation