Copyright TheBeachcats.com
Please Support
TheBeachcats.com
Florida 300 Presented by Waves Surf Shop
The Florida 300 is a four day open ocean endurance race sailed on high performance beach catamarans 16 to 22 feet long up the South Florida Atlantic coastline. The race is managed by Sail Series Promotions.
Next week will mark the second running of the Florida 300, starting off in Islamorada, Florida on May 13th and ultimately finishing after four grueling days of sailing at Cocoa Beach, Florida on May 16th. The last leg will start at Vero Beach and include additional competitors on the shorter 50 mile leg dubbed the "Dogfight" race .
The Florida 300 will include last years overall winner, Key Sailing with Kirk Newkirk and Thomas Whitehurst sailing a Nacra 20 Carbon, hoping to fend off a strong field of returnees and newcomers. The competitive fleet will include a variety of catamarans in three classes F18, Nacra 20, and open class. Each class will compete among themselves for line honors and for overall winners based on the Portsmouth handicap system and overall quickest time.
In addition to the classes competing for the overall trophy, an exciting addition to the fleet this year will be two examples of the new generation of foiling beachcats, the Lupe Tortilla Flying Phantom with John Tomko and Ian Billings on board and Papa's Pilar Nacra 20 FCS (Flight Control System) with John Casey and Colin Page. These two boats will form their own "Foiling Class" and compete with each other for line honors, but too little is known about the performance characteristics of these brand new designs to assign them a fair rating to compete for the overall win.
At the Cocoa Beach finish the award ceremony for the classes and overall winner of the Florida 300 will also include the presentation of the awards for the 2014 Endurance Series. To compete for Endurance Series honors, competitors compete in four catamaran distance races, The Florida 300, Gilligan's Run, Hiram's Haul, and Steeplechase. Each day of racing in the multi day events counts toward overall series points.
Fans will be able to "watch" the race from anywhere in the world thanks to live tracking provided by Kattack tracking software. Each boats position will be transmitting in minute increments. Check the www.Florida300.com to follow all the action live.
Besides the live tracking, Damon Linkous from TheBeachcats.com will be providing on-the-scene updates, interviews, pictures, and a daily summary right from the beach. Fans will be able to get in on the action and play commentator by joining the discussion in the forum at www.TheBeachcats.com/forum. Questions posted on the forums will be relayed to the competitors.
Of course all this wouldn't be possible without the contributions of the race sponsors who supply the time, merchandise, and cash money to make it all work. Along with this years title sponsor, Waves Surf Shop, the race appreciates the support of Key Sailing, Kattack, Islander Watersports, Zhik, and Shark Bait Beach Rentals.
For more information on the Florida 300, please check out www.Florida300.com and "Like" www.Facebook.com/Florida300. For more information on Sail Series Promotions, please check out www.SailSeries.com.
See you on the beach!