Route Halifax St.Pierre Race Keeps an Eye on Hurricane Arthur’s Potential
Eyes were on Hurricane Arthur as a fleet of ocean racing sail boats were scheduled to leave Halifax harbour on Tues., July 8th, 2014. The fleet for “Route Halifax Saint-Pierre 2014”start Halifax harbour at noon and then race on a 353-mile course to the French islands of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon. This is the seventh edition of this challenging international event that connects American, Canadian and French sailors. Racing takes the boats on the waters of the Atlantic Ocean along Nova Scotia, through the Cabot Strait and on to Saint-Pierre et Miquelon. This is an ISAF Category 2 race.
Race chair Scott MacLeod is skipper of an Oceanis 40 “Easy Company”. MacLeod and Race director Richard Hinterhoeller are watching the weather closely to adjust plans for the weekend social events and make sure all competitors make it safely to Halifax. At this time, it appears the remains of “Arthur” will be well past the race area by the time the boats are ready to go on Tuesday.
MacLeod always has safety on his mind as the weather for the offshore race can be quite variable: “It could be an easy and uneventful passage or it can be very challenging for the ship and her crew. Therefore you have to do everything you can to get them both as ready as humanly possible. Pray for the best but prepare for the worse.”
