Strong line up

China Sea Race's IRC Racing Division up to 15 boats

In a reversal of the 2002 entry demographics, this year's China Sea Race will boast a mouthwatering array of 15 big boats in the IRC Racing Division, with the entries in Premier Cruising and HKPN Divisions down 50% on the 21st Race. It's not clear whether this is due to crew being drawn to the elite entrants or to the costs associated with training crew up to the new RORC Category 1 regulations, however all 26 entrants are looking forward to a competitive downhill race.

The Race starts at 1200hrs on Thursday 08th April, in the vicinity of Steep Island (Ching Chau) which lies off the south-eastern tip of Hong Kong's New Territories. Conditions should favour the larger, lighter boats including well-known local entrants Jelik, Jaywalker, and Siren, who will be eyeing up visiting competitors, Australian Maid [Jon Wardill], Maverick II [Brian Petersen], Clariden Karakoa [Ray Ordoveza] and Centennial II [Ernesto Echauz] to see how they fare against the local fleet.

No race is complete without a dark horse or two, and the 2003 Mooloolaba Race PHS winner, Geoff Hill, has left Strewth back home in Australia, choosing instead to put local Farr 40, Time, through her paces over the 565nm race. Robert Knight will also be hoping to spring a few surprises on the way down to Subic Bay with his brand-spanking-new DK46, Drumstick.

The 2004 CSR Race Committee chairman, Neil Pryde, is a past winner of the China Sea Race and will be keen to record a good result, improving Hi Fidelity's position in the Omega Asian Yachting Circuit rankings in the process. Fred Kinmonth and Ray Ordoveza will also be chasing top spot on the podium with Stella Minter Ellison and Clariden Karakoa respectively, Ray Roberts having made a late decision not to enter Hollywood Boulevard into this, the final Circuit event.

IRC Racing Division
Sail No.	Boat Name	Skipper	Design
AUS4100	Australian Maid	Jon Wardill	Cassidy 55
HKG10795	Blue Juice	Will Rawley	J120
PHI9999	Centennial II	Ernesto Echauz	Sydney 46
HKG1998	Drumstick	Robert Knight	DK46
HKG1892	Ffree Fire	Sam Chan	ULDB Sled
HKG1888	Hi Fidelity	Neil Pryde	Bermudian Sloop
HKG1978	Jaywalker	Paul Bankowski	Ker 11.3
HKG600	Jelik	Frank Pong	R/P 75
HKG2011	Kam Loong	Jack Mallee	First 40.7
NZL8660	Maverick II	Brian Petersen	Elliott 45
HKG818	Outrageous	Gerry Daughton	Dubois 44
HKG2199	Siren	Anthony Day	Sayer 13
HKG3815	Stella Minter Ellison	Fred Kinmonth	Sydney 38
HKG2000	Time	Geoff Hill	Farr 40
IRC Premier Cruising Division
Sail No.	Boat Name	Skipper	Design
NZL8811	Intrigue of Stornoway	Ian Nicolson	Warwick 60
CAY8888	Moonblue 2	Peter Churchouse	Warwick 64
HKG1985	Shahtoosh	Peter Cremers	Warwick 55
HKG2018	Polar Star III	T C Leung	First 47.7
HKG8155	Tui Tai	Sandra Stonham	Tayana 47
HKPN
Sail No.	Boat Name	Skipper	Design
HKG1850	Bewitched	Glenn Smith	Catalina 42
HKG1166	Dolphin Six	Wong Sum	Beneteau 47.3
HKG1983	Lady Luck	Ben Barnes	Catalina 42
HKG432	Moxie	John Lampl	Valiant
HKG1198	Windseeker	John Blay	S&S 36
F37	Zuma	Iain MacLeod	Mappas 37