China Coast Race Week Starts Tomorrow!

The 26th Edition of the China Coast Regatta starts tomorrow and the forecast looks promising with a freshening northeasterly monsoon of 15 to 20kts, which is predicted to blow all weekend and possibly strengthen throughout the regatta.

35 yachts will compete across seven divisions, with the biggest contingent coming from IRC Division 1. Joining IRC Division 1, Fred Kinmonth and Nick Burns’ GTS Mandrake III will be hunting down the hat trick after taking first place in their division in the 2016 and 2017 regatta.

We caught up with Mandrake III co-owner and China Coast Regatta Chairman, Fred Kinmonth on his past China Coast Regatta experiences. “The best part of the regatta? First, putting yourself up against your best sailing mates from Hong Kong and overseas. Second, enjoying the wonderful sailing venue south of Hong Kong. Third, the excitement before the first race, when you are facing the unknown once again. How do we decide who gets to drive, we religiously take it in turns, every race we swap over. The best part of winning our division, I suppose it’s beating our friends on board Mills 41 Ambush.

In IRC Division 0 with a huge size gap, the entrants have a wide variety of strengths that should feature throughout the weekend. Frank Pong’s Custom 75 Jelik previously Roy Disney’s Pyewacket 75, handles great in light reaching conditions, Shawn Kang’s Ker 46+ Lighthorse Alpha Plus can give other boats a run for their money with their quick acceleration. Adding the two TP52s to the mix, Ark323 and Free Fire should spice up the competition.

Racing will take place in the waters to the east and south of Hong Kong Island, with some islands courses extending into the waters to the east of Sai Kung.

Keep up with the latest news on the China Coast Regatta visit: https://www.chinacoastraceweek.com/news

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