Superyacht skippers on holiday

Captains of Hyperion and Mirabella charter former Primagaz ORMA 60 for the RORC's Caribbean 600

A team of Superyacht Captains have announced their entry in the newly formed RORC Caribbean 600 Race, sailing on Claude Theiler’s ORMA 60 trimaran Region Guadeloupe. Their aim is to set a multihull course record on this well-known vintage trimaran that once upon a time won the Route du Rhum as Primagaz in the hands of Laurent Bourgnon.

The team, which has been put together by Mark Stevens and John Burnie (one of the founders of the new RORC race), consists of:

Mark Stevens – Captain of Hyperion (54m Huisman)
Ben Cameron – Captain of Mirabella V (75m Holland)
Steve Branagh – Captain of Narida (110ft Wally)
Ian Bradshaw – 2nd Captain of Hyperion

The team will in addition hugely benefit from further crewmembers Ed Danby and Ben Wood, boat builders and multihull specialists par excellence. Ed Danby, among many other sailing credits, is probably best known for the key roles he played on Grant Dalton’s maxicat Club Med, winner of The Race in 1.

French multihull sailor Claude Theiler will sail as Team Captain and the crew line up is completed with Guadeloupe-based navigator Stephane Squarcioni and Antigua Yacht Club member Richard Watson.

Mark Stevens, Captain of Hyperion, said: “Ben, John, Steve and I have know each other for a number of years and have raced together on various vessels at different regattas including Braveheart (76 Truly Classic), Bristolian (93ft Frers) Our Blue Dream (37m Dubois), Wally B (110ft Wally) and more recently Hyperion (54m Huisman). However racing a pedigree ORMA 60 trimaran over 600 miles is very different and really appeals to our aging sense of adventure. It will be a close to the water white knuckle ride - slightly different from Bucket sailing!. We will be looking to the experience of Claude, Ed, Stephane and Ben to see us around the course quickly and safely. The aim clearly is however to be first home and set the multihull record."

The RORC 600 Caribbean Race has attracted wide interest from many differing styles of yachts. Regular Antiguan winner Bernie Evan Wong has already entered his Mumm 36 High Tension - at the upper end entries have been made by Leopard, Sojana, and the Cookson 50 Lee Overlay Partners.

The RORC Caribbean 600 starts in Antigua on 23 February and is open to multihull, mono-hull and two-handed classes.