Competition Heats Up On Third Day Of 2004 Acura SORC

MIAMI BEACH, FL, February 28, 2004 - Acura SORC sailors completed three races on the third day of the 2004 Acura SORC, raced just off Miami Beach, with wind blowing eight-16 knots. Sunday's final races will be the deciding factors in the outcome of the 63rd edition of this winter ocean racing classic.

The top three boats in the Farr 40 class remain unchanged from Friday's action on the Acura Course. Peter De Ridder's Mean Machine of Monaco stays atop the standings with 48 points overall. John Kilroy Jr.'s Samba Pa Ti, with 57 points, overtook Jim Richardson's Barking Mad who now occupies third place with 59 points. Stuart Townsend's Virago tallied two first place finishes, advancing from 16th to fourth place in the overall standings. HM King Harald V of Norway sits in 17th place overall.

Also sailing on the Acura Course, Daniel Meyers' Numbers is dominating the IMS class. Numbers, featuring Brad Butterworth and Ken Read, is unbeaten in the last five races and knocked Marco Birch's Talisman to second place in the overall standings. George David's Idler, with 20 points, remains in the top three.

The Sailing World Course saw heated competition in the PHRF and J/105 classes. Terrance Smith's Raincloud has yet to finish out of the top three in the PHRF 1 class and sits atop the standings with 10 points overall. Roger Elliott's Crosswave, with 15 points, maintains his first place standing in the PHRF 2 class, tallying first and second place finishes on the day. Just six points separate the top four in the PHRF 3 class. Miami's Bob Berg and Love That Chicken closed the day with two first place finishes and occupy first place in the overall standings with 20 points. Gordon Ettie's Sazerac, also of Miami, trails by just one point.

Richard Bergmann's Zuni Bear remains at first place in the J/105 overall standings, opening the day with a first place finish. Mark Cloutier's Addiction and Jim Doane's Flame both have 21 points overall. Addiction occupies the second place standing with two first place finishes through nine races.

The final day of the 2004 Acura SORC commences on Sunday morning with racing set to start at 10:00am. The public is welcome to join the Acura SORC for the final prize giving ceremony at the Sailing World Race Village on Alton Road at 3:00 p.m.

The Acura SORC, in its 63rd year, is one of the premiere participatory race-weeks in sailing, featuring more than 60 yachts and more than 500 participants including America's Cup sailors, business leaders and ocean navigators from around the world in a week-long lifestyle festival in Miami Beach, Florida.

Provisional results, Acura SORC, Day 3, February 28, (owner name, boat name, city, state, places, points):

Farr 40:
Peter De Ridder, Mean Machine, Monaco, 3-5-2-3-4-15-3-10-3, 48
John Kilroy Jr. CA, Samba Pa Ti, Los Angeles, CA, 14-8-1-10-7-2-4-5-6, 57
Jim Richardson, Barking Mad, Boston, MA, 1-3-4-9-13-8-6-2-13, 59

IMS:
Daniel Meyers, Numbers, Boston, MA, 1-3-2-3-1-1-1-1-1, 11
Marco Birch, Talisman, New York, NY, 2-2-1-1-2-2-4-2-3, 15
George David, Idler, Hartford, CT, 4-1-3-2-6-3-2-3-2, 20

J/105:
Richard Bergmann, Zuni Bear, San Diego, CA, 3-3-1-1-3-5, 16
Mark Cloutier, Addiction, Paget, Bermuda, 4-1-6-5-4-1, 21
Jim Doane, Flame, Naples, FL, 2-2-4-4-1-8, 21

PHRF 1:
Terrance Smith, Raincloud, Isle of Palms, SC, 1-0-1-1-1-2-3-3-1, 10
Michael Brennan, Sjambok, Potomac, MD, 2-0-3-3-3-3-2-1-3, 17
John Halbert, Vitesse Extreme, League City, TX, 4-0-4-4-2-1-1-2-5, 18

PHRF 2:
Roger Elliott, Crosswave, Bryn Mawr, PA, 1-1-2-3-6-1-4-1-2, 15
Stuart Hebb, Thin Ice, Coral Gables, FL, 2-6-1-2-4-6-3-2-4, 24
Gordon Donald, Spinal Shock, Tinton Falls, NJ, 5-3-5-7-3-3-1-4-1, 25

PHRF 3:
Bob Berg, Love That Chicken, Miami, FL, 1-5-5-6-1-4-2-1-1, 20
Gordon Ettie, Sazerac, Miami, FL, 2-2-3-2-4-1-3-4-4, 21
Bill Sweetser, Rush, McLean, VA, 7-4-4-5-2-2-4-2-2, 25

Boats competing at the Acura SORC are racing three-day or four-day series. The Farr 40, IMS and PHRF classes are all racing from Thursday through Sunday. The J/105 class will race Friday through Sunday.

Race management is provided by volunteers from the Biscayne Bay Yacht Club, the Coral Reef Yacht Club, Miami Yacht Club, Lauderdale Yacht Club and Nassau Yacht Club.

The Acura SORC is managed by Octagon, an international event marketing company headquartered in Stamford, CT.

Additional event and registration information is available at www.acurasorc.com