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Paths to Success in the 48th Transpac

Honolulu, HI – As the three remaining boats traverse the remaining 200 miles towards the finish line to come in sometime pre-dawn tonight, all nine division winners have been determined for the 48th edition of the 2225-mile biennial LA-Honolulu Transpac.

These include the following: Division 1: Roy P. Disney and Robert Oately’s R/P 100 Wild Oats; Division 2: Craig Reynolds’s TP 52 Bolt; Division 3: James MacDowell’s Santa Cruz 70 Grand Illusion; Division 4: Greg Slyngstad’s J/125 Hamachi; Division 5: Eric Gray’s Santa Cruz 50 Allure (who won by a mere 2 min 52 sec after nearly 7 days of racing!); Division 6: John Chamberlain and Dean Fargo’s Swan 651 Second Wind; Division 7: Harry Zanville’s Santa Cruz 37 Celerity; Division 8: Tracy Obert’s BBY Custom 59-foot ketch Marjorie; and Lloyd Thornburg’s Gunboat 66 Phaedo in the multihull Division 0.

Grand Illusion has now equaled the record for most overall wins, joining the 88-foot Lurline which won the first two races in 1906 and 1908, and again in 1912. However, Grand Illusion holds the status alone for winning overall three times under the same Owner/Skipper.

What was the pathway to success in this race, given the unusual weather patterns this year? The answers are somewhat varied for each division winner, but in general a northerly route without straying too far kept the right balance between sailing excess distance versus sailing faster by being in stronger winds.

Transpac 2015 Incident Report

Monday July 13 Start

Yacht Sleeper flew protest flag reported that they had completed two turns.

Picante taking on water around keel.  Returned to San Pedro, all crew well, boat returned safely.

Vivacia taking on water from deck.  Returned to So Cal, all crew well, boat returned safely.

Avanti had rudder structure damage, taking on water.  Returned to Marina del Rey, all crew well, boat returned safely.

Bazinga suffered rudder failure.  Returned to San Diego.  All crew well, boat returned safely.

Sleds & TP52’s Lead Provisional Results

Honolulu, HI – Boats from the two classes that symbolize Transpac more than any other have taken the top of the leaderboard in the 48th edition of this biennial ocean racing classic. Local-based James McDowell on his Santa Cruz 70 Grand Illusion has taken the top of the provisional results in overall ORR scoring, followed by Chuck Nichols racing the Andrews 70 Pyewacket, with Craig Reynolds’s TP52 Bolt in third place.

Results are considered Provisional untill all boats are finished and any protests have been resolved by organizers from the Transpacific YC.

Half the Fleet Finished But Overall Title Still Contested

Honolulu, HI – At just about two weeks from the first start of the 48th Transpac, more than half the fleet will by midnight local time tonight be still at sea making their way to the finish of this biennial 2225-mile race from LA to Honolulu. Since Harry Zanville’s Santa Cruz 37 Celerity was the first to cross the finish line in the early hours of Friday, boats from the Monday, July 13th start for Divisions 7 and 8, and starters on Saturday, July 18th in Divisions 0, 1, and 2 have crossed the finish line at Diamond Head.

One of the boats to finish today in Division 8, the Aloha Division, after nearly two weeks at sea was Ross Pearlman’s Jeanneau 52 Between the Sheets, a perennial competitor in the Aloha Division of Transpac. Pearlman was unable to make the race, and turned over the skippering responsibilities to Kerry Deaver, a regular member of the Between the Sheets team. Deaver was thankful for the opportunity to skipper, despite some rough first days on this trip.

Blood Orange Phaedo wins class

Phaedo wins class in Transpac

Lloyd Thornburg and the crew of his blood orange Gunboat 66 Phaedo came from behind in the final hours of the 2015 Transpac to win the Multihull Divison 0 of the classic biannual race. And Thronburg admits the win is just a little sweeter since he and his team had to come all they way back from being dismasted in the 2013 Transpac