After the excitement of the IMA maxi racing at the RORC Nelson’s Cup and Antigua 360 last week, so competition continues today with the start of the ‘main event’ - the Caribbean 600, the 17th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s offshore race.
To break records on modern day sailboats requires a fine balance between strong wind and flat water. Fortunately Friday's 18-20 knot easterly created the perfect compromise for the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s annual anticlockwise lap of Antigua, causing both monohull and multihull records to fall.
Antigua saved the best for last with trade winds edging into the high teens for the third and final day of racing for the IMA Maxi class at the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s Nelson's Cup held off Antigua’s English Harbour.
After day one’s maelstrom, Wednesday's second day of racing for the IMA Maxi class at the RORC Nelson’s Cup in Antigua was less boisterous, with the sun out, generally flat water and a moderate breeze that topped out at 15 knots.
While Antigua is renowned for its brisk trade winds and lively Atlantic swell, the IMA Maxi fleet in the RORC Nelson’s Cup instead found themselves soaked and bewildered as a squall passed through reducing visibility to zero, the wind suddenly blowing 25 knots and an intense tropical deluge.
The 34m Baltic 111 Raven has rewritten the limits of monohull offshore performance, taking monohull line honours to win the IMA Transatlantic Trophy and setting a new monohull race record in the 2026 RORC Transatlantic Race from Lanzarote to Antigua – writes RORC communications manager Louay Habib
A season update from Andrew McIrvine – Secretary General of the International Maxi Association.
A mid-season update from the International Maxi Association from IMA Secretary General, Andrew McIrvine…
