Registration is Open! $200 Discount for Early Registration by February 28th!

Youth Team Discounts Again This Year. Last years the three youth teams kicked absolute butt on their borrowed Nacra 20's, a bunch great young sailors who had never raced cats schooled some of the old-timers.

This year's race has a modified course due to hurricane damage in the Florida Keys.

Instead of starting in Islamorada Florida in the Keys we will be starting at Palm Beach Shores, FL and finishing at Fernandina Beach, FL instead of Daytona Beach, FL.

This course will have the advantage of moving a little North and avoiding Miami traffic, so will make it a little easier on the ground crew (and reporters).

Also, starting from Palm Beach Shores means we can have a true beach start on the first day for the first time, meaning that it will be a lot easier to attract spectators and publicity for the event and sponsors.

You know you've wanted to do a 300 mile, five day race right!
Videos and More Information About the Race.

Register Now For The Florida 300.
https://www.sailseriespromotions.com/races/florida-300/florida-300-registration/

If you are on Facebook, please like and share the event for the Florida 300.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1971360076415185/

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Is anyone planning on racing?

Is anyone planning on racing?

I saw the NOR, but no “registered” page.

The Sonnenklars are in early preparations.

Glad to see people back and posting

The registration page is linked from the front page and the Florida 300 page. Is it hard to find?

Florida 300 front page:
https://www.sailseriespromotions.com/races/florida-300/

Direct link to registration:
https://www.sailseriespromotions.com/races/florida-300/florida-300-registration/

I know May 8th seems a long time away and most of us are freezing our butts off instead of sailing, but please sign up now!

Substantial entry fee discounts for early registration by the end of February.

Youth teams (at least one crew 21 or under) get an additional discount.

See you there!

I’m sorry, I can see where to register (working on it but not a list of who has registered!

Thank you for getting the site back running, and taking the time and effort for the 300 even with the hurricane destruction :p

You are right, no one has registered yet so I haven't added the team list page for 2018 yet. I'll go ahead and do it so you will show up as soon as you register.

I've updated the Florida 300 section of the Sail Series Promotions USA site to include the registered team list.

You can be the first team on the list and save $100 in the process!

https://www.sailseriespromotions.com/races/florida-300/

team cyberspeed registered. We are doing the Miami-Key Largo Race, the added Key Largo-Miami Race, then sail up to Singer Island as a shakedown/get-in-shape run.

Thanks for breaking the ice! We now have four teams registered.
https://www.sailseriespromotions.com/races/florida-300/florida-300-entries-2018/

Always hard to get folks to commit early but it's extremely helpful to organize and promote the event.

I know there are others out there waiting in the wings, how bout some west coast boats? Euro boats? Any foilers tough enough to try this?

We had two foilers three years ago, with so much progress, why not? Both of those boats (Nacra 20 FCS and original Flying Phantom) had bottom entry foils.

Foiling beachcats with top entry lifting foils should be able to handle the surf no problem? How about some Nacra 17's? Why not? You aren't all going to the Olympics!

A teaser from 2016. Thanks for letting us use some of your footage Damon. Hopefully this year we won't have to go on another rescue mission but all makes for a good story.

2018 FLORIDA 300
TEAM CYBERSPEED is officially entered in the 2018 Florida 300. Because the Islander Resort in Islamorada suffered major damage during hurricane Irma, the starting line has been moved to Palm Beach Shores. St. Augustine and Fernandina Beach stops have been added to complete the 300 mile course. Craig Van Eaton, Rob Behrend, Mark Herendeen and Mike Shappell are the core of the Singer Island based team and looking forward to having the start a few hundred yards from where the boat is based. TEAM CYBERSPEED is looking to improve their 3rd place in class and 9th place overall results from 2016.

PALM BEACH SHORES/SINGER ISLAND
Both Craig Van Eaton and Mike Shappell have been sailing off Palm Beach Shores for decades and are excited about having the race start in Palm Beach Shores instead of just stopping there. Craig Van Eaton was also instrumental in bringing the Florida 300 to Palm Beach Shores when he was helping to organize the race in it’s initial years. Having the start at Palm Beach Shores will give the teams a better feel for Singer Island. Instead of one night, some of the teams will spend the entire weekend before the race setting up and getting a feel for the coastal waters which are much different than the Keys.

MIAMI-KEY LARGO
In order to prepare for a major race, much preparation and training is needed. Preparations have been in the works since the Supercat 20 catamaran was taken off the beach two days before Hurricane Irma. The major training comes into play when the team head down to Miami for the Miami-Key Largo race. This year, Miami Yacht Club, decided to extend the race for the catamarans by racing back to Miami on the following day making it the Miami-Key Largo-Miami Race. In order to keep the momentum going, TEAM CYBERSPEED is going to continue the journey by sailing back to Palm Beach Shores to put the boat on the starting line for the Florida 300. Craig and Rob have raced the Miami-Key Largo many times and look forward to adding the additional two legs.

WORRELL REUNION
Another benefit of the Northern start is that the teams will get to get a taste of the coastal landscape past Daytona. Plans are in the works for 2019 to bring back a version of the 1000 mile race that has fueled passion and extinguished dreams. Mark Herendeen knows what lies ahead because he has finished one Worrell 1000 along with three Tybee 500’s and two Florida 300’s. The last Florida 300 was done with TEAM CYBERSPEED.

PRESENT AND FUTURE
TEAM CYBERSPEED is looking for sponsorship for this year’s Florida 300 with an eye for the Worrell 1000 Reunion. Having the starting line off the beaches of West Palm Beach this year presents new opportunities that could lead to even greater adventures. There are both team and race sponsorships available. Please contact Craig Van Eaton for more information.

SPECIAL THANKS:
Dennis Green, Calvert Sails, Kettle Cinema, Damon Linkous and the entire Florida 300 team. Looking forward to another year of adventure!

Great Vid!

Thanks!

We have six teams and need four more teams to guarantee the race happening. If someone from this forum registers this week. Team Cyberspeed will throw a Gumbo Party before the race in your honor...

From the Florida 300 Board:


I am still doing the Miami-Key Largo, Key Largo-Miami races then sail the boat back up to Singer Island.

That's a total shame. The race organizers should very seriously look at the R2AK style for the 2019 races. Minimal race crew, minimal stops, minimal cost, maximum fun.

My thought has also recently been to open up the boat types to include other boats than just a set type(s) of catamarans and the conversations I've had in the past was that organizers didn't want to have around the clock finish line teams and manage the logistics of when to be at which stop. I certainly understand that. However, most of these adventure races are honor system - you sign a log book when you arrive and you leave whenever you want. Just pound a stake in the sand with a log book in a box - maybe go so far as put a reflector on it to make it a little easier to find at night and if you REALLY want to be detailed and rule minded, setup a motion camera that time stamps :-).

That said, logistically, I'm not sure how you would approach a modified race format that marries the Water Tribe style races and a structured race like the Florida 300...there are technicalities like permits from local municipalities to allow beach use, deals to work out with hotels...how would the teams plan their trips and their overnight lodging where you can't legally tent camp and the only reasonable options are hotels? The lack of race structure could be an issue on what is a very structured coastline...which is probably a part of the reason that the adventure style races happen across pretty unstructured wilderness.

Jake,

Your last paragraph is certainly where my concern lies as the coast is now very different from what it used to be. My proposal would eliminate structured hotels from the picture altogether-you run what you bring, and get there when you want. If you want to check into a hotel you still can, but that is on you and your ground crew. Checkpoints would need to be approved by the local authorities to allow beach/launch landing. Time of year would need to be carefully chosen. For the moment, ignoring winds, I would look at mid to late October. The summer crowds have died down, breeze is usually still up and temperatures (air+water) are still warm. Early May works okay too, but it is getting close to the start of beach season and municipalities get worrisome over boat+swimmer injuries. Keeping the number of checkpoints to a minimum reduces the paperwork burden.

I would do a trial run from Wrightsville Beach to Virginia Beach next year with one checkpoint just north of Caper Hatteras. This is mostly deserted beach/wildlife/federal land, which carries its own issues, but may be easier to get approval, then push to the full race in 2020.

I would think this would get a reasonable amount of buy-in from the sailors, as its a pretty short race (i.e can be done over a weekend), its centrally located (so teams aren't driving 18-24 hours to get to Florida), the coastline is relatively remote and rounding Cape Hatteras is no easy feet. Doing the race later in the season, despite the hurricane risk-which is real, I grant that, but October is the better month compared with August and September, tends to fit team calendars better, and most importantly, gives teams a full sailing season to train up. I could see a future where this style race is held every other year as part of the F18 Raid World Series, and on alternative years the standard F18 Nationals is held.

I can't help it...

Mark looks like he has boobs in the youtube preview thumbnail.