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Six intrepid skippers first raced the 480nm from Hong Kong to San Fernando in 1977. The biennial ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Category 1 race was used as part of the Clipper Round The World Race in 2001 and would have been similarly assimilated in 2003, had the threat of SARS not brought inter-Asian travel to a grinding halt and forced the Clipper fleet to Singapore instead.

Having had no choice but to divert the rest of the fleet to Macau in 2003, the Organising Committee is delighted that the Philippine port of San Fernando, in Luzon province, will once again welcome competitors at the end of this great downhill race.

Line honours' favourite and holder of the 49:55:12 monohull record, Ffree Fire, skippered by Sam CHAN, will face fierce competition from the Farr-Mills 51, Mandrake, racing her first San Fernando under the guidance of Fred KINMONTH. They would also be unwise to discount Robert KNIGHT'S DK52, Drumstick, which will be hoping for some silverware after missing the 2004 China Sea Race and the 2004 Hong Kong to Vietnam Race.

The 2005 San Fernando Race will start at 1200hrs on Thursday 24 March. The San Fernando Race is not just about having fun. As they have been doing since 1993, sailors will be raising funds for building works at an orphanage and for donations of books and games for the children at the Full Gospel Faith Temple Orphanage in San Fernando.