Lucky Strikes Gold to take RORC Caribbean 600 Monohull Line Honours
by Louay Habib / RORC 26 Feb 2025 16:33 GMT
26 February 2025
Juan K 88 Lucky, skippered by Bryon Ehrhart, has taken Monohull Line Honours in the 2025 RORC Caribbean 600 in an elapsed time of 01 Day 17 Hrs 14 Mins and 12 Secs.
Lucky Crew: Bryon Ehrhart, Antonio Cuervas Mons, Brad Butterworth, Brian Giorgio, Charlie Enright, Daniele Raddavero, Dean Phipps, Jan Dekker, John Hele, Jonathan Clough, Jonathan Rankine, Juan Vila, Luke Tougas, Mark Bradford, Mark Newbrook, Sam Mason, Scott Beavis, Simon Daubney, Stuart Wilson and Will McCarthy.
Farr 100 Leopard 3, skippered by Joost Schuijff, fought tooth and nail to retain their title from 2024, but ended the race in a fierce battle with Roy P. Disney's Volvo 70 Pyewacket 70. Pyewacket 70 and Leopard 3 rounded the final island of Redonda literally side by side. However, Leopard held off Pyewacket's challenge to be second across the line, just over 30 minutes ahead of Pyewacket.
Bryon Ehrhart was understandably delighted to take Monohull Line Honours for the 2025 RORC Caribbean 600. This victory follows their record run and Monohull Line Honours for the RORC Transatlantic Race.
"On Lucky (88-ft) you have to be surprised to cross the finish line against a hundred-foot boat; the conditions have to be just right, the navigation accurate and the whole team has to perform perfectly," commented Bryon Ehrhart. "We had very fast boats against us and I have admired and had the greatest respect for the Leopard programme since the 52-foot Lucky tied up next to her looking like a dinghy! This is the fourth race for my team and we have always enjoyed the ability to have a good race."
Ehrhart believes that rounding Guadeloupe was a key moment in the race. "Approaching Guadeloupe in first place, you become the guinea pig; people see where you decide to go and Leopard saw us slow down and stayed a bit more offshore. Leopard saw that we were in trouble there, but with Juan (Vila) making the judgements, we were able to stay in just enough breeze and only slowed down for a limited time and did not do any extra miles."
"This race came together for us," smiled Ehrhart. "Leopard is a great competitor that has done so many great things over the years. I didn't think we would come ahead of Leopard in this line honours duel. We congratulate them on a great effort; we respected the competition, that's what we love."
Quite surprisingly, this was Juan Vila's first RORC Caribbean 600. Lucky's navigator is one of a very small number of sailors that has won the America's Cup, Volvo Ocean Race and Jules Verne Trophy. "The RORC Caribbean 600 is amazing. For navigators it's non-stop, one thing after another. No time to relax. It's all about the next move, the next challenge, avoiding rocks, managing wind shadows, and reacting to changing conditions," commented Juan Vila.
Lucky opted for a conservative start but pulled the trigger as the boat went for a triple-headed set at Green Island. Lucky, Farr 100 Leopard and Wally 93 Bullitt were screaming along at well-over 20 knots of boat speed.
"After Green Island there was more reaching, which suited Lucky very, very well," commented Vila. "As soon as we could crack sheets, we sailed past Leopard and put on some distance. You feel that the boat's got some serious power, going very fast on the reach; it was wet on deck, so you just get yourself in your foul weather gear, and off you go!"
Lucky pulled the trigger as the boat went for a triple-headed set at Green Island © Arthur Daniel/RORC
At the top of the course, the chicane through St Barths and on to St. Martin is the most complex part of the course, where gains can be made and lost. "St Barts and St Martin is very tricky," continued Vila. "We had small showers that made a big difference in the wind over a small area. You have to choose your gybes carefully, play with the shifts, and read the weather, especially at night."
Lucky pulled away from Leopard on the leg down to Guadeloupe, completing the leg 44 minutes quicker than Leopard down to Guadeloupe. The wind shadow at Guadeloupe is a notorious part of the course and although Vila had never experienced it before, he had done a huge amount of research before the race.
"To be honest, I was a bit nervous passing Guadeloupe," admitted Vila. "You do your homework about how it's worked in past years, but you never really know. You make your call, and then just cross your fingers."
Lucky completed the leg, rounding Guadeloupe nearly five minutes quicker than Leopard, but it was the leg up to Barbuda for the second time where Lucky all but sealed Monohull Line honours victory, stretching their lead by nearly 40 minutes on Leopard.
"Conditions were very tricky, with a lot of showers and shifts. Our track probably looks like an 'S' sometimes, but we were trying to stay in the pressure and avoid getting caught in the bad spots behind the showers."
Juan Vila's conclusion about beating Leopard to the finish line: "The key to being ahead of Leopard in this race was having quite a few reaching legs, which suited our speed. Plus, we got a bit lucky with showers and headlands and we nailed the passage past Guadeloupe, which can change everything."
Follow the RORC Caribbean 600 via the official website for the latest pictures and videos of the action including the competitors' live blog. All of the boats can be tracked via the race player.
caribbean600.rorc.org
Past Winners:
RORC CARIBBEAN 600 TROPHY - IRC OVERALL: (Best corrected time under IRC)
2024 - Joost Schuijff, Farr 100 Leopard 3 (MON)
2023 - Roy P. Disney, Volvo 70, Pyewacket (USA)
2022 - Christopher Sheehan, Warrior Won, Pac52 (USA)
2020 - Tilmar Hansen, Outsider, TP52 (GER)
2019 - David and Peter Askew, Wizard, Volvo 70 (USA)
2018 - George David, Rambler 88, Maxi (USA)
2017 - Hap Fauth, Bella Mente, JV72 (USA)
2016 - George Sakellaris, Maxi 72, Proteus (USA)
2015 - Hap Fauth, JV72, Bella Mente (USA)
2014 - George Sakellaris, RP72, Shockwave (USA)
2013 - Ron O'Hanley, Privateer, Cookson 50 (USA)
2012 - Niklas Zennström's JV72, Rán (GBR)
2011 - George David, Rambler 100, JK 100 (USA)
2010 - Karl C L Kwok, Beau Geste, Farr 80 (HKG)
2009 - Adrian Lee, Lee Overlay Partners, Cookson 50 (IRL)
For more stunning pictures from the start of the 2025 RORc Caribbean 600 visit the gallery here.