CHARLESTON, South Carolina (February 28, 2007)—Turn back the calendar. The residents of Charleston and South Carolina are reconnecting with a bygone era, and in so doing, they intend to address crucial issues in education. In a city known for historic preservation, this initiative isn’t about buildings; this time it involves a ship—the Spirit of South Carolina. When the newly built, 140-foot traditional sailing vessel finally splashes down on Sunday, March 4, it will offer a unique portal into the region’s history, but it will also present a window of opportunity for tackling some vexing problems facing the state’s school systems.
Almost six years in the making, this elegant, robust vessel—envisioned originally as a means of rekindling interest in the region’s rich maritime heritage—will become the first genuine wooden sailing ship to be built here in more than 100 years. Where once there were hundreds of such ships, and many shipyards, now there is just one to call this region home, but it’s a ship worth the wait.
The 150-ton Spirit of South Carolina has been designed and built along the lines of the traditional pilot schooners that served as a vital component of the region’s busy mercantile scene in the 18th and 19th centuries. Like its forerunners, this ship has been built with traditional methods, including lumber grown in South Carolina, and this ship will also have a crucial function—serving to deepen and enhance the education of young students from around the state.
“There’s really nothing like the experience of sailing aboard a classic ship,” explained Brad Van Liew, Executive Director of the South Carolina Maritime Foundation, the organization responsible for building and managing the ship. “For young kids, being part of a crew on a magnificent vessel like the one we are launching, can truly be a transforming experience. It’s challenging and educational, and it provides an environment that fosters important discoveries about yourself and about the natural world. There’s really no other form of education that comes close to the power of a sail training program.”
Beginning in the fall of this year, the Spirit of South Carolina will enter service as a sail training vessel, accommodating fifth and six grade students on day sails out of Charleston and elsewhere along the South Carolina coast. The ship will be staffed with a captain and several mates, as well as a number of purposely trained educators. Math and science lessons will comprise the primary curriculum for these students, but those lessons will also incorporate an understanding of the history and culture of the region.
Sail training is a well established concept for delivering experiential education. It’s practiced throughout the coastal U.S. and abroad. Though various port cities in the southeastern U.S. have frequently played host to sail training vessels, the region truly hasn’t had a full-fledged ship to call its own until now. When it’s launched, the Spirit of South Carolina will be the only fully operational traditional sailing vessel over 100 feet representing the southeastern U.S.
“The student crewmembers who travel aboard this ship,” explained Tony Arrow, captain of the Spirit of South Carolina, “are in for a terrific experience. Sail training not only underscores the important concepts learned in a classroom, but it teaches the qualities of stewardship, resourcefulness, and humility, and it does so in subtle yet enduring ways. We know from experience that these students will gain a greater appreciation for the power, grace, and fragility of their environment, and we know they’ll learn to respect teamwork as well. It may sound like a bold claim, but once you put a sail training program in place, it starts developing leaders—caring, committed individuals who will grow to benefit any community. And in that way, the reach these programs have can be absolutely amazing.”
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico---By no choice of its own, Magnitude 80 is drawing out the drama in its run at the record in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum. Because of the variability of winds across the Gulf of California, the finish time was projected at sometime between 4:30 and 8 a.m. Tuesday morning.
Despite slowing down, Magnitude 80 would need to finish only by noon PST Wednesday (2 p.m. Puerto Vallarta time) to beat the record.
Monday morning's 8 a.m. PST official roll call position report had Doug Bakers' Andrews 80 making only 8.5 knots in 9 knots of breeze---about half what it found in its fun run from the start down to Cabo San Lucas at the tip of Baja California---with 203 nautical miles to go.
Later, at about 2 p.m. PST, the Flagship tracking program showed the Long Beach boat sailing at 103 knots with 135 miles remaining before it could wrest the record from the 22-year grip of Joss, the MacGregor 65 that sailed the 1,125 miles in 4 days 23 hours 14 seconds in 1985.
Magnitude 80 passed Raincloud late Sunday and by Monday afternoon had left Lorenzo Berho's J/145 98 miles behind, with the other boat taking a more northerly course to its home port, making 5.9 knots with 233 miles to go. The Mexican entry had a two-day head start in PHRF-B class.
The Salsa fleet started its third and last leg around mid-day Monday with three boats---Jim Puckett's Amazing Grace (3-1), David Kory's Barking Spider 3 (1-3)and Gil Maguire's Tenacity (2-2)---sharing the lead with four points each in the spinnaker class on overall handicap time. They were expected to cross the gulf in two or more days.
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta Saturday and Sunday. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico---Considering the destination is a balmy seaside resort town with a leisurely lifestyle, things are happening fast on board Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 right now in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum.
Navigator Ernie Richau reported Sunday: "Another fantastic 24 hours of running with the code 2A [spinnaker sail] in 16-22 knots from the northwest. Our first 24-hour 1 p.m. to 1 p.m. run was 393 miles down the course. Any chance you know the record in a Mexican race for 24-hour mileage?"
Officially, the Andrews 80 with the canting keel sailed 364 nautical miles between morning roll calls Saturday and Sunday and was averaging 14.5 knots for the 1,125-mile course, compared to the 9.5 knots Joss averaged when it set the record of 4 days 23 hours 14 seconds in 1985 that has frustrated some supposedly faster boats ever since.
Peggy Redler, the race administrator, said, "We've had big boats in our race but we've never had weather like this. It's been good wind all the way, and even here in the [Banderas] bay it's unusually cool with a good breeze."
Magnitude 80 would need to finish only by 1 p.m. Wednesday PST (3 p.m. Puerto Vallarta time) to beat the record, and they had about three days to sail the last 495 miles. Considering even the 292.64 uncertain miles across the Gulf of California, including the last 20 from Punta Mita, it seemed Magnitude 80 would not be denied.
The other issue is whether Magnitude 80 can win the race's overall honors on corrected handicap time. Since David Janes's Scout Spirit was dismasted on the first day, their only rival for that award is Lorenzo Berho's Raincloud.
Mag owes the J/145 45 hours, but the Puerto Vallarta boat started 48 hours earlier, and at mid-day Sunday Mag had closed steadily to within 46 miles. All Mag needed to do was finish within three hours of Raincloud---slam dunk, right?
Not quite. A lot can happen between Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta. Ask Roy Disney, whose Pyewacket broke its topmast while leading Magnitude 80 two years ago.
With all of that, like the Salsa Division boats, the race's hardcore competitors also have time to enjoy the sights along the way.
Richau noted: "The sea life is starting to show up. Doug was driving as we passed about 100 feet past a BIG whale. We are setting up for the Cabo rounding now and looking into the gulf for weather. All else is well."
The Salsa fleet starts its third and last leg around mid-day Monday with three boats---Jim Puckett's Amazing Grace (3-1), David Kory's Barking Spider 3 (1-3)and Gil Maguire's Tenacity (2-2)---sharing the lead with four points each in the spinnaker class on overall handicap time. They'll re-start the race well rested after a three-day layover in Cabo San Lucas.
"Although we are all relaxed, it is hard not to think about Monday, and the last leg of this race," Kory said by e-mail. "With the three top boats all tied in points, it all boils down to Leg 3, and we are starting to get butterflies."
Yes, the Salsas also take their racing seriously, despite sounding awe-struck by the adventure.
Meredith Ritner, wife of a crew member, Bob Ritner, on Pat Hearne's Far Niente, related a report from the Dana Point, Calif. boat: "Thursday night the seas were pretty rough and a wave nailed them on the starboard quarter causing two crew members to lurch across the cabin. They ended up taking out the salon table and spent the better part of today repairing it.
"They have been awed by the animal life. In addition to seeing lots of whales, they were visited by a pod of dolphins that left bio-luminescent trails through the night seas. [Friday] night they thought they may have seen the Black Pearl, as they saw what appeared to be boat lights approaching them but had no [radar] sighting. Later, they saw a planet setting over the horizon. . . . One member swears and be damned if it wasn’t a UFO. Of course, the UFO phenomenon could be explained by the limited amount of sleep everyone has had—or the bibulous habits of sailors."
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
PUERTO VALLARTA, Mexico---In its battle with Magnitude 80 for the record in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum, the good ship Scout Spirit wound up in an unexpected place: Magnitude 80's slip in Long Beach's Alamitos Bay Marina.
Worse yet, without its mast.
Such are the fortunes when men go to sea to test the natural forces in their meanest state, which dashed the hopes of David Janes and his crew as they hurtled downwind 15 miles past Santa Catalina Island only 3 ½ hours after the start in Santa Monica Bay Friday.
With the wind blowing 20 knots from behind over turbulent seas, Magnitude 80, a slightly larger and faster Andrews 80, was already running away at record speeds, but Scout Spirit, a Reichel/Pugh 77, was also on a wild downhill sleigh ride when suddenly, at about 4:30 p.m., the backstay gave way and the mast fell forward above the lower spreaders about 15 feet above the deck.
Surveying the damage in Long Beach, Pete Heck, the watch captain, said, "We heard this loud bang and looked up to see the backstay let go. Then the mast broke. We were lucky. It fell over the starboard side and not on the deck.
"The crew did a great job and no one got hurt. The boat only has one scratch on it and we saved the new North main [sail]. We had to cut loose the rest of the mast. It weighs about 1,000 pounds and there was no way to get it onboard. We were in pretty rough seas. As soon as we got everything cleared away and secured we started motoring back to Long Beach. It took us eight hours to get back plowing [upwind] through the waves the whole way."
David Janes, the owner and skipper, looked tired and disappointed but was relieved that everyone was okay.
"It was a little hairy for a while in rough seas, but everybody did their job and nobody got hurt," Janes said. "That's the most important thing."
Arriving at Long Beach before dawn, Scout Spirit asked the Harbor Master where they might park their crippled boat.
"Well," they were told, "Magnitude's slip is available right now. They'll be gone for awhile."
Long gone, it seems.
By Saturday afternoon Magnitude 80 was clocking 16.7 knots over the 1,125-nautical mile course, well above the overall average speed of Joss, a MacGregor 65, when it set the record of 4 days 23 hours 14 seconds in 1985 in similar conditions.
That's no guarantee of a record, though. The wind can be treacherously tricky in the Gulf of California past the Baja California peninsula and even less reliable over the last 30 miles in Banderas Bay to the finish line off the beach in front of the Westin Regina Hotel.
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif.---Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 was on a breakaway record pace early Saturday morning in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum, but David Janes's rival Scout Spirit apparently was already out of the race for reasons immediately not known.
There had been no direct communication between Scout Spirit and the Del Rey YC organizers since, according to the Flagship tracking system, Scout Spirit left the race course at 4:30 p.m. Friday about 3 1/2 hours after the start and docked somewhere in the Los Angeles-Long Beach Harbor area.
The tracking system showed the Reichel/Pugh 77 still in that location at 8 a.m. Saturday, while at the same time Magnitude 80 was ripping off the miles at between 15 to 18 knots halfway down the Baja California peninsula opposite Turtle Bay.
Navigator Ernie Richau reported: "It's 0830 on Saturday morning. Yesterday we started with the wind in the upper teens and from the beam. After getting into the San Pedro Channel we set the code 7 A and took down the #2 jib. Ripping along at 20-plus knots is the only way to start off a race to Mexico. Once past Avalon the code 4 was set and we have been running all night [with] 20 knots of wind from the northwest."
So Magnitude 80, an Andrews 80, is on a strong pace to break the record for the 1,125-nautical mile course of 4 days 23 hours 14 seconds set by Dick and Camille Daniels' MacGregor 65, Joss, in 1985.
Joss, a MacGregor 65, averaged 9.5 knots in similar conditions, although Magnitude 80 this time found that it didn't need to go outside Santa Catalina Island to find more favorable breeze but simply shot down the San Pedro Channel between Santa Catalina Island and the mainland on the rhumb (direct) line to Cabo San Lucas at the tip of the peninsula.
Lorenzo Berho's Raincloud, a smaller J/145 that started two days earlier, was sailing at 8.5 knots 575 nautical miles from the finish at 8 a.m. Saturday, 241 miles ahead of Magnitude 80.
No other up-to-date information on the race was immediately available.
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif.---First the rabbit out of the chute, now come the hounds in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum.
Lorenzo Berho's Raincloud, the only starter in Racing Division B, crossed the line at full speed in 11 knots of western breeze Wednesday, setting a pace for the record seekers---Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 and David Janes's Scout Spirit---to follow Friday at 1 p.m. PST.
Magnitude 80, an Andrews 80, owes Raincloud about 45 minutes and Scout Spirit, a Reichel/Pugh 77, about 13 hours in handicap time for the 1,125-nautical mile race. Can the faster boats catch Raincloud with its 48-hour head start?
Berho, whose home port is Puerto Vallarta, was given the option of starting alone Wednesday or with the other two Racing Division A boats Friday. He opted for the former.
"I'd rather be coming to the finish line with Magnitude 80 and Scout Spirit trying to catch me than just following them all the way down to Puerto Vallarta," he said. "That will make it a much more interesting race."
Berho may have made the right call. In Wednesday's surprisingly good conditions, following the Salsa Division starts in excruciatingly light wind last Friday, he has a chance not only to be the first boat to cross the finish line in his hometown but to claim overall victory on corrected handicap time, as well.
The only wrinkle in Berho's gamble is that Magnitude 80 and Scout Spirit may find even stronger breeze on the coattails of a serious rainstorm forecast to blow through Southern California Thursday night---breeze that the bigger boats hope will chase them past Joss's 22-year-old record (4 days 23 hours) and breeze that Raincloud (how ironic is that name?) also would have had if it had started Friday.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif.---After a crisis was resolved in the Salsa Division of Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th International Yacht Race to Puerto Vallarta, presented by Corum---Barking Spider 3's giant inflated Corona bottle broke loose in Turtle Bay---the Racing Division boats will get under way Wednesday and Friday, following their sendoff party Tuesday night.
With an optimistic weather outlook, the stage is set for an assault on the race's 22-year-old record by Doug Baker's Magnitude 80. The Long Beach entry, an Alan Andrews design, had the fastest elapsed time in 2005, completing the 1,125-nautical mile run in 5 days 6 hours 59 minutes 56 seconds, but that was eight hours slower than the record of 4:23:00:14 set by Richard and Camille Daniels' MacGregor 65, Joss, in 1985 in considerably different conditions.
Also in the hunt will be David Janes's Scout Spirit from Newport Beach. The Reichel/Pugh 77 followed Magnitude 80 by about 9 1/2 hours in 2005---close enough to claim overall honors on corrected handicap time.
The current outlook is for favorable northwest winds, like Joss had in '85, ideal for spinnaker running straight down the track. Also, the Sailing Instructions have been changed this year to allow Racing Division boats to go outside Santa Catalina Island and reach the fast lane sooner, as Joss did in '85.
Magnitude 80 and Scout Spirit will start Friday at 1 p.m. Lorenzo Berho's Raincloud, a J/145 from Puerto Vallarta, will start Wednesday at 1 as the lone PHRF B entry, following the withdrawals this week of the smallest boats, the Antrim 27 E.T. and the Synergy 1000 Sapphire.
Meanwhile, skipper David Kory's e-mails from Barking Spider 3 continue to capture the essence of the Salsa Division competition: some serious racing mixed with good fun. After leading the fleet into Turtle Bay late Monday night, Kory wrote:
"[I had] just motored our dinghy over to the [escort vessel] Divergent, turning in my official skipper's log to the race committee, when I heard a call come over the VHF radio, 'Barking Spider calling for David! Barking Spider calling for David! We need you to rescue the Corona bottle!' I looked out the window and, to my horror, I spotted our [inflated] 6-foot tall Corona bottle, a mascot of sorts and quite popular with the locals, that had blown free of its tether on our mast in the gusty local winds and was now surfing crazily across the bay at about 4 knots, wild and free.
"I leapt from the committee boat back into the dinghy, started the outboard motor on the first pull with one hand while untying the mooring line with the other, and was revving the engine and planing across the bay in chase of our Corona, all in the blink of an eye. I caught up with it and on the second pass I captured it like a hotshot cowboy roping a lame steer at the national rodeo. Whew! Saved the day. It's a rough life here in Mexico.
"It was also a day to meet many of the crew of some of the other vessels, whom I had been talking to and competing against the last several days during the race. A lot of good people doing this race, including some very experienced and serious racers, who seemed not entirely pleased that I finished first. They were on stripped-down race boats, so I made sure to innocently work my kayak and dinghy and outboard and granite countertops in the galley and amateur crew into our conversation, just to make them feel better...nyah nyah nyah!
"I also spent a little time on the escort boat Divergent, and what a great bunch of folks they are. Very conscientious about taking care of the fleet, good spirit and hospitality, and very generous as well. Having the escort boat is a great idea for a race like this, and they are doing the job right.
"Mostly it was a relaxing day for all, catching up on sleep and real food, and exploring the dusty little villa here. More of the same for [Tuesday], then the awards in the evening. Wednesday morning starts the next race leg, and we'll be ready."
Official results of the first Salsa leg to Cedros Island, a complex process involving engine use time and boat handicap ratings, were still being computed late Tuesday.
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif.---The Salsa fleet's party two nights earlier was noisier than their start in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th biennial race to Puerto Vallarta Friday. The 11 boats sailed quietly away in shorts and shirtsleeves under a clear sky with a summer-like temperature in the high 70s (C.) and precious little wind---but no problem.
The people on Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 will be far more disappointed if conditions are similar next Friday when they start their bid for Joss's 22-year-old record in the 1,125-nautical mile race.
Maybe Joe Ebin, a local crew member on Hideshige Seki's Japanese entry, Tayana 52 Polaire, had the right attitude for the Salsa boats that will continue to party together on three overnight stops en route to mainland Mexico, motoring part of the way if they must.
"Most of us are serious racers," Ebin said, "but we're looking at this as a party cruise. If you focus on winning, you'll likely be disappointed. But if your focus is on having a good time, your success is guaranteed."
Or, as Jim Puckett, son of local legend Allen Puckett who is sailing his dad's Farr 55, Amazing Grace, said, “This is the best kind of racing. We love it. A race is a race and this is still racing.”
So it was, even as some of the boats struggled to reach the starting line and then sailed into the mist toward the Palos Verdes Peninsula. There they would turn left down the coast toward Mexico through the San Pedro Channel that separates Santa Catalina Island from the mainland.
Breeze for the six spinnaker class Salsas was 4 to 5 knots from the southwest, allowing them to sail hard on what little wind there was straight through the line set square to the course. Ten minutes later the five non-spinnaker boats found only 2 or 3 knots as they drifted out of sight.
Gil Maguire's Tenacity, a J/133 from California Yacht Club, was the early leader, crossing the line on a strong pace and soon pulling away from Amazing Grace and the smaller Voice of Reason, an Ericson 32 sailed by co-owners Jim McCone and Mike Verla from Redondo Beach.
Maguire, perhaps more serious than some of his rivals, had his strategy worked out.
"It looks pretty light, so we won't try to get too far from the coast," he said before leaving the dock in a parade behind a fountain of spray from a Los Angeles County fireboat. "We'll stay in close while watching the [weather forecasts]. It looks like there'll be wind offshore [Saturday]. The weather is so variable that it's too risky to take any flyers."
The Salsa fleet is being escorted by Del Rey YC member Larry Silver's Diver Gent, a power cruiser equipped with radar, sonar, infrared cameras and other electronic gear.
"I can see them all at any time, even underwater," Silver said.
The five Racing Division boats will start Wednesday and Friday at 1 p.m. following their sendoff party Feb. 20.
Non-participants at home will be able to follow both the Salsas and the Racers on the Internet.
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
The operations and history of Torresen Marine The Sailboat Specialists was recently featured in a PodCast. The fifteen minute presentation was published by Inside Muskegon. Jason Piasecki of Qonverge Communication hosts this interview with Torresen Marine COO Larry Larsen.
Listen to this broadcast now, by clicking here.
MARINA DEL REY, Calif.---Eleven Salsa class boats lead off Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th biennial race to Puerto Vallarta this Friday. They'll get into the proper mood with a Latin-flavored pre-race party at the club Wednesday night (Feb. 14).
Overall, the race is energized by some new features. The introduction of Flagship satellite tracking of all boats will allow for automatic position reporting and a new "four races in one" format for the Racing Division.
There also is the prospect of a new elapsed time record as Doug Baker's Magnitude 80, an Andrews 80, and David Janes' Scout Spirit, a Reichel/Pugh 77, set their sights on the incredibly durable record of 4 days 23 hours 4 seconds set by Dick and Camille Daniels' Joss 22 years ago. With reasonable breeze, the record is overdue to fall.
Also, upon arrival in Puerto Vallarta the fleet will be hosted at the new Opequimar Marina and Yacht Club (www.opequimar.com/eng/index.htm) with mooring facilities for all boats and all the amenities of the club, including satellite TV and wi-fi Internet connections, available to the crews.
The Salsa spinnaker boats will start off Marina del Rey at 1 p.m. Friday, followed by the non-spinnaker boats 10 minutes later.
The five Racing Division boats will start Feb. 21 and 23, following their party Feb. 20. While the Salsa fleet must leave Santa Catalina Island to starboard and sail through the channel, the Racing fleet will now be allowed to go outside the island, as Joss did in 1985 when it found an express train of breeze that it rode all the way. It could make the difference for a record.
Joss was a MacGregor 65, like David Kory's Barking Spider 3, one of this year's Salsa entries. But Kory has no designs on the record, opting for the diversions of the Salsa Division with overnight stops at Cedros Island, Cabo San Lazaro and Bahia Santa Maria. When winds are light, Salsa racers may use engine power but pay a penalty added to their time.
"I enjoy this type of racing where you are allowed to use your motor when you need to," Kory said. "I think there should be more of these races."
Kory, from Concord, Calif. in the Bay area, realizes that even though Barking Spider 3 is the same type of boat that holds the record it can't compete with the modern speed potential of Magnitude 80 and Scout Spirit, so he feels at home in the Salsa fleet.
That's not to say he has lacked for adventure. In the previous Puerto Vallarta race, Barking Spider 3 blew out its main sail in 25-knot headwinds south of San Diego and returned to port. But Kory and his crew were so disappointed at the prospect of missing the post-race festivities that they got on a plane and flew to Puerto Vallarta.
Later, in the 2005 Transpacific Yacht Race, they limped into Waikiki without a main after the boom pin sheared off. Then they took three months sailing home by way of Alaska.
"That's were we hit the ice," he said, indicating scratches on the dark blue bow that reflect the spirit of the Salsa fleet.
The Racing Division boats, meanwhile, not only will be competing on overall corrected handicap time for the race but for segments within the race. A new format will incorporate the scope of several other popular races to Mexico with the approximate finishing points at Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas and Punta Mita at the entrance to Banderas Bay marked with navigational “crossing lines” where the boat's satellite transponders will transmit each vessel's date and exact time of crossing.
Non-participants at home will be able to follow both the Salsas and the Racers on the Internet. Scout Spirit will serve as communications vessel for traditional daily morning roll calls of the fleet.
Kory said, "With a lot of luck, I could be the first racer into PV again, and this time with my boat!"
Awards will be presented at separate banquets in Puerto Vallarta March 2 and 3. Corum, the lead sponsor, will present the Admiral's Cup Trophy 41 watch to the winner of each class within each division. The timepiece with a 41mm stainless steel case and nautical pennants instead of numerals to indicate the hours was introduced by Corum before the 2005 race.
Hideshige Seki stands apart from other participants in Del Rey Yacht Club's 19th biennial race to Puerto Vallarta---or perhaps any ocean race ever---as he prepares to join them on the starting line this month as part of his great adventure.
He has never been in a sailboat race. He didn’t even know about this race until a few weeks ago. And he has no illusions about winning.
"My boat is too heavy," he says, "especially downwind."
But it's OK for sailing around the world. Seki will be one of the more experienced ocean sailors in the race. Last year, singlehanded, he sailed his Tayana 52, Polaire, across the Pacific Ocean from Tokyo to North America. It took him 40 memorable days until reaching Victoria, B.C. Then he harbor-hopped down the West Coast, making friends along the way, until arriving in Marina del Rey around the holidays.
That's where Del Rey YC member Hiro Furaoku saw Seki sailing by, flying the Japanese flag---an uncommon local sighting---and said to fellow member Janet Michaelis, "I must go and see if this sailor needs anything."
Furaoku arranged an end-tie for Seki near the club and Michaelis told him about the race.
Why not? Seki thought, it fit right into his plan. He was heading in that general direction, anyway.
"My plan is 10 years," he said---a decade he intends to spend sailing around the world. From Puerto Vallarta he'll sail to the South Pacific and beyond. Way beyond.
Polaire---named for the star---is one of 11 boats entered in the Salsa Division, which will start Feb. 16 and have three layovers along the 1,125-nautical mile voyage to the Mexican mainland. Although Seki has sailed solo so far, for the race he'll have a Del Rey YC veteran crew of Norm Carabet as navigator, along with Jim Cody, Joe Ebin and Rick Toomin.
Race chairman David Ross said, "We are excited to have Polaire as an entry in our race. His is an amazing story and it is wonderful that he has adjusted his schedule to join us. We are honored to be a part of his journey."
The Racing Division, led by Doug Baker's Magnitude 80 and David Janes' Scout Spirit, will have two starts on Feb. 21 and 23, going all out for Joss's 22-year-old record of 4 days 23 hours 4 seconds.
Seki, 56, retired from the Japanese Navy two years ago with the rank of commander, serving as a naval aircraft engineer.
"I started thinking about this when I was 40 years old," he said. "This was my friend's boat. We were going to do this together, but he had heart trouble two years ago. In Japan I sailed south to Okinawa, but this was the first time I was away from land."
Polaire has roller furling for its main sail and jib, but a few days out of Tokyo the jib halyard shredded at the top of the mast and Seki had to haul himself up to replace it, which was good practice for when it broke again before reaching Victoria.
In between he encountered 60-plus knots of wind but was unable to ease the main because of another gear failure, so Polaire was knocked on its side for three days. Prepared for the worst, Seki strapped on his EPIRB (emergency position indicating radio beacon) device and rode out the storm.
Seki said, "I have had 300 plans" before settling on one he has charted in dated detail that will take him around the world and across the Pacific three times before finishing in Toyko in March of 2016. Polaire has a comprehensive navigation station with satellite access.
Seki doesn't expect to be bored. To pass the time, he has 7,000 songs on his iPod and 100 DVDs to play on the TV.
Gull Lake Yacht Club is hosting a US Sailing Judges Seminar on February 24 & 25 at the Kellogg Conference Center on beautiful Gull Lake. This is conveniently located off I-94 about halfway between Detroit and Chicago. This is the only Judges Seminar scheduled at this time in the Midwest and is a great opportunity to bring your protest committee skills up a notch and possibly get certified. If you are interested, details and sign up info are below. If you know of anyone that might be interested, please spread the word.
Event Website
Online Registration
Further proof that sailing can be a spectacular spectator sport will be offered when the 44th biennial Transpacific Yacht Race to Honolulu starts off the Point Fermin Park and historic lighthouse in San Pedro this summer.
At the suggestion of Steve Dair, a San Pedro resident, veteran sailor and Transpac competitor, the event's board of directors voted unanimously to move the starting line from the point on the Palos Verdes Peninsula where the race has started for more than a quarter century back to where races started in the 60s and 70s. The new location will be 2 1/2 miles east closer to Los Angeles Harbor.
The site is where Gaffey Street ends atop the bluffs at the edge of the Pacific Ocean at the southernmost point of Los Angeles County. The park will be more accommodating to spectators with a much closer view, grassy areas for picnicking and shade from the July sun.
Starts for various classes are scheduled Monday, July 9; Thursday, July 12, and Sunday, July 15---the biggest and fastest boats last.
The site of the park was named by British explorer George Vancouver in 1793 for Father Fermin Francisco de Lasuen, and the lighthouse was built in 1874 before San Pedro was a town. The first Transpac was in 1906.
Transpac Commodore Al Garnier, a San Pedro resident, said, "It's a good feeling to bring together all of this seafaring history for today's sailors and the public to appreciate. The sailors will be able to hear the people cheering for their favorites."
Dair said, "That's really exciting. Of all the races I've done Transpac has always been the best to finish, and now the start will be special, too."
The change in location is expected to have little effect on strategy. The move lengthens the 2,225-nautical mile course by only nine-tenths of a mile and alters the compass heading toward the west end of Santa Catalina Island---the only mandatory mark of the course---from 210 to 218 degrees, which in normal conditions would tighten the upwind beat slightly.
Recognizing that the world of competitive sailing is constantly evolving, The Chicago Yacht Club Mackinac Committee is introducing important changes to the 2007 Race to Mackinac, the longest and most prestigious freshwater sailing race in the world.
The Mackinac Committee announces a change in ISAF Advertising Classification, from Category A to Category C. Competitors, whose class rules permit, may now choose to display advertising on hull and sails. The Committee also announces a new bona fide fourth Mac Race division – The Race to Mackinac Cruising Division. These changes allow the inclusion of a broader competitor base and pres erve the Mac's quality and character leading into its 99th running, July 14, 2007.
The advertising change will allow competitors who choose to logo their boats, the ability to enter the Race to Mackinac. Race to Mackinac Chairman Bob Smith affirms, 'Category C will enhance the National and international profile of the Chicago Race to Mackinac by broadening the appeal to larger, well-known boats from around the world. '
The Mackinac Committee has created this new 'Cruising' division, as an avenue of access for less hard-core racing sailors. Smith adds, 'The Mac Race legacy is not just for racing-sailors, it's for all sailors who wish to experience the thrills, experiences and challenges of this marvelous event.' The Cruising Division will have distinct requirements for eligibility and entry.
These changes and more will be reviewed at the Race to Mackinac Panel Discussion held at Strictly Sail Chicago, Saturday, February 3rd at 3:00 PM.