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17 October 2024 - St. Petersburg, FL, USA - Organizers of the annual Southern Ocean Racing Conference (SORC), the premier ORC-scored winter offshore race series in the US, have announced that due to ongoing weather challenges in central Florida, they have made the difficult decision to cancel and replace this year’s St. Petersburg to Lauderdale Race, initially scheduled for November 20th. They apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate understanding during these difficult times. All paid entries can be refunded or transferred to other races this season.
"Our thoughts are with our fellow sailors and their families in Florida and the other affected states that the recent hurricanes have impacted," said Race Chairman Chris Lewis. "We wish them strength and resilience as they recover."
In place of the St. Petersburg race, SORC organizers are excited to announce the Sailor's Choice Race, which will take place on Thursday, November 21st, starting and finishing in Fort Lauderdale.
From Fort Lauderdale, competitors will sail around Great Isaac, the Ocean Cay mark and the Miami Sea Buoy. The RC will set the direction depending upon conditions. It is a challenging and tactical course that runs you along the Bahamas with the sweet smell of land and barbecues that evening!
There is a ‘bailout course’ if the Gulf Stream is too rough in a strong northeast wind. Previously, the race was run with the option to go around in either direction. This year, we won’t have boats meeting head-on at night!
The Skippers Meeting will be virtual, and the Lauderdale Yacht Club will host a social prize-giving after racing on Saturday evening. Register now and enjoy this race to kick off the SORC Season.
"We hope many of you will join us for this new event," said Lewis. Registration, race documents and more information are published at https://www.sorcsailing.org/sailors-choice-race.”
Organizers plan to use the ORC’s Weather Routing Scoring for this and all races of the SORC series.
