From May 17th till 22th the Florida 300 Long Distance race will be held in the U.S. Four Formula 18 catamarans signed up for this event. In perfect conditions they started in Islamorada to finish in Key Biscayne on the first day. On May 21th they’ll finish in Daytona Beach.
Long distance sailing really is the basis for Formula 18. F18s can sail the beaches of Florida and Texas, or the Islands of the Archipelago, or the rugged coastline of Brittany (Costarmoricaine and Carnac) at speeds cruisers can only dream of. You aren’t limited to windward leeward courses with umpteen general recalls at all. The most important advice sailors always get at these long distance races is: ‘Just remember to pull up the dagger boards before you surf up the beach!‘ After a long day on the water and a finish on the beach this is sometimes forgotten.
Results of day 1 are not online yet.
Course
Florida 300
- May 17th 2016 – Islamorada (start) to Key Biscayne
- May 18th 2016 – Key Biscayne to Palm Beach Shore
- May 19th 2016 – Palm Beach Shores to Vero Beach
- May 20th 2016 – Vero Beach FL to Cocoa Beach
- May 21th 2016 – Cocoa Beach to Daytona Beach (finish)
A nice first drone video is online already:
Daily photos are published here. Follow the event Facebook page for instant updates.
Drone coverage: Nick Bowers
Photo credits: www.thebeachcats.com