By Colin Thompson in Marion, MassachusettsLocal skipper George Cubbon can hardly wait to flex his muscles in this year’s Marion Bermuda Race.The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club (RBYC) sailor is among those making their debuts in the 645-mile ocean race from making Buzzards Bay, Marion, Massachusetts to St David’s Head, Bermuda.Cubbon is at the helm of the Hinckley Bermuda 40 MK III, Alice Kay, that is the sole local entry in the Founders Division.“We are the only Bermuda boat in the Founders Division so I know we’ve got our name on one trophy already,” Cubbon said. “I think the boat is more than capable of doing it and it’s nice that we have at least one Bermuda boat in the classic fleet.”The retired businessman has competed in the Charleston Bermuda Race and Newport Bermuda Race before but has never done the Marion Bermuda Race.Cubbon, 61, cited work commitments as the primary reason for not doing previous Marion Bermuda Races which is no longer an obstacle thanks to retirement.“I retired last year and had time and my partner in the boat (Bill Andrews) is in a similar position to me,” he said. “So we thought it was a good idea to put our time to some use and decided to do the race.”Cubbon is sailing with an experienced crew that also includes father and son Donato and Chris Sgobba, Mark Berry, Irene Conlon and Stephen Benn.Benn is a late replacement for Alice Kay co-owner Andrews who broke ribs in a road accident on his bike several weeks ago. Canadian Benn will serve as navigator while the remaining crew will share watch duties. Canadian Conlon is a certified nurse.“We have a great crew and some of us go back a long time,” Cubbon said. “I’ve sailed with Donato for many years and I think we met when I sold him a boat. Chris sails with me Wednesday evenings and I sailed with Mark’s father for maybe 20 years so I know the family well. I know Irene through the IOD (International One Design) fleet which she races in and she was also in the Charleston Bermuda Race and Newport Bermuda Race that I did along with Donato.”Cubbon warmed up for the race sailing from Bermuda up to Marion along with navigator Donato.During the journey the RBYC sailor encountered challenges associated with sailing through the Gulf Stream.“On the passage up we found we were doing seven or eight knots on the clock on the boat and doing less than two knots over the ground because we’d found a meander in the Gulf Stream was against us,” he said. “That was surprising because I never realized currents in open water could run so quickly. That was a wakeup call and if we can hook up into that on the way back home I think we’ll do pretty well.“We’ll sail as hard as is reasonably prudent and hopefully we‘ll get through the Gulf Stream right so we don’t get held up as we did on the way up.”