RORC members John Burnie and Stan Pearson are two well known characters in the yachting community in the Caribbean. They have often talked about an offshore yacht race, something that the Caribbean has never had, there plans devised over a few beers have now become a reality. The RORC Caribbean 600, in association with the Antigua Yacht Club, is now firmly established as annual event.

Mike Slade's 100ft Maxi ICAP Leopard came to Antigua with a clear target; to set a monohull record for a new offshore race, that task is completed. ICAP Leopard needed 44 hours 5 minutes 14 seconds to complete the race course for the first ever RORC Caribbean 600. 13 minutes less than they took to complete the 2007 Rolex Fastnet, a race of roughly the same length but of totally different conditions, this was a breezy race but t-shirts and shorts were the order of the day for competitors.

"A fantastic yacht race" commented ICAP Leopard's boatcaptain Chris Sherlock. "High speed sailing in warm conditions. We might have gone round a bit quicker if we hadn't snagged a fish-trap but if the breeze had been up a bit more then I reckon we could have taken a few hours off the time, let us hope we get some more wind next year."

Click here to read more about the race on the RORC Caribbean 600 Minisite