News
‘I did 20 transatlantic crossings and races by 2000 and then I waited until 2016 to do the 21st and now 2019 for a first Transpac. I will not be waiting so long again. There is something magical about the rhythm of the ocean race that is lost in the frenzy of a Fastnet.’ Gordon Kay enjoyed his first race to Hawaii.
In the end it was all about the finish. After three days’ racing neck and neck with the Botín 65 Caro the last few hours saw us come from behind to cross the finish line just 39 seconds in front. Boat speed in the low 20s, an A2 far beyond its design wind range with a widening hole from a previous repair, and a diminishing amount of track to run all made for an exhilarating final push that none of us will forget.
In those conditions we were always going to be faster, but fast enough to edge in front before the finish line? That was the tricky bit. We had crossed swords with Caro a few times over the years, notably in the 2016 Middle Sea Race – that time we ran out of runway as we caught her at the finish. We tried on several more occasions but until we passed Diamond Head in July we had not finished in front of her on the water. The tale of the tape is 46ft versus 65ft – Caro sporting a deep-draft lifting keel versus the canting keel and DSS of Maverick.
Halfway down the Transpac course Caro caught up with us with around 800nm left to run. For the next couple of days we held a loose cover and while it got close from time to time we held her off until the last night on the approach to Hawaii. Smart work from Caro saw them in front of us as dawn broke with a final challenge of recovering about 1.5nm in 18nm of sailing. For the last gybe into the finish we set up to leeward and behind, both boats carrying A2 and spinnaker staysail in wind around 18kt… but building.
On Maverick we had a few more considerations… ours was a hurriedly repaired A2 from a previous indiscretion a few days earlier, which became ever more apparent. We could also not peel to an A3 as we were down to a single masthead halyard. The breeze built and the speeds built and slowly we hauled through to leeward of Caro who looked magnificent in the morning light, sailing at 20kt+ with the backdrop of the Pacific Ocean and tropical islands. The hole in the tack panel was getting bigger (furling the staysail made it worse… because then we could see it!). In the end it was an exhilarating ride to the finish, obviously made considerably sweeter by finishing ahead of our friends and longterm rivals.
For the old-timers – and there comes a time when one must recognise the unfortunate truth – it can be hard to hand over the wheel to the kids, but Dave Gilmour did an awesome job. Given free rein by the owner, he drove it like he stole it. The finish topped a fantastic race for us. We did not win and we did not achieve all our goals, but the next time Maverick enters this fantastic race we will be wiser and smarter.
We did not optimise the boat for the Transpac, other than build an R1 with Doyle NZ which was invaluable, particularly when the synoptic breeze moved offshore after the start and we spent a critical day ghosting away from the coast. We have conservative spinnaker areas and the boat is still very much in IRC trim from the more varied courses such as the Fastnet and Middle Sea Race.
So what did we learn? Firstly, it might be warm and downwind but this race is by no means a ‘point and shoot’. Stan Honey’s comprehensive navigational tutorials do a very good job of explaining the subtleties of the race and where it can be won and lost, but if we ran our race again we would undoubtedly do a few things differently – and as we learned more about the yacht and how she goes downwind we would have made some other calls.
All invaluable as we continue to learn what makes this rocket tick. The Dynamic Stability System (DSS) makes for an interesting VMG discussion. We know that Maverick, now in her third season, is quicker with the foils VMG downwind – something that is never really shown in the design process but is seen on the water
The question is the crossover. What we found, and talking to other competitors we were not alone, is that in the Transpac the wind at the masthead rarely reflected the wind on deck. It just felt as if the wind was layered and, being a small yacht with a short rig, we felt this keenly compared to our bigger competitors.
Our boat speed could be as much as 2-3kt different but with the same numbers on the wind instruments… throwing out all of your so carefully refined polars.
The Maverick has stages of speed jump from hull speed to planing to foil assisted to full foiling (not flying) and these jumps are significant, a couple of knots at a time. Putting this into perspective, with just a few knots of wind change we could be cruising at 12kt or 18kt which makes quite a difference to our mental health!
If we could run our race again then undoubtedly we would have run bigger spinnakers and even a longer bowsprit to lower the number when you get onto the step and foil. With high-speed foiling, or just foil-assisted yachts, having large downwind sails is generally not the smart thing to do in an all-round offshore environment. Smaller, flatter sails tend to have more value than cramming on area… unless VMG running in 12-18kt of wind, in which case it could be a good thing.
It’s a gamble because if the wind is a few knots higher then smaller VMG sails are very likely to be faster, as once you are on the foil the ability to drive around a range of wind angles to keep the boat flying is very desirable. However, you still need to get there and if the wind is not quite enough then you would do anything for more sail area… then once you have it you don’t need it any more! Something of a paradox and something that keeps heads scratched within the sail development group at Doyle Sails, who do an excellent job of looking after our special little boat
It would generally also be interesting to look at an optimisation programme and see what more could have been done. We were no doubt somewhat relaxed/overconfident/ perplexed (pick your preferred option) after winning the SoCal 300 outright a few weeks earlier, at one point being in front of the excellently sailed Reichel/Pugh 66 Alive, a yacht that thrived in the Transpac itself finishing runner-up in Class 1.
Tactically – especially in such a tactical ocean race – life becomes interesting with the extra speed options one has relative to more traditional designs. But the basics still apply: pressure is always good, get too close to the high and it’s all over before it begins.
The race breaks down into legs where initially you sail in light air from the start to the synoptic breeze from the north. The next phase is the slot car leg where you go JT, FRO, A3 and then you get into the VMG section which takes you to the finish. Of course it is a bit more complicated than that!
We probably got over-excited by the reaching section and spent too long sailing with the A3 where we would have been better bow down with an A2 but pressed on the DSS foil. Offshore we really need a cableless A3 similar to the one we have on Wild Joe now she has the DSS fitted. Average speeds are easier to maintain and the trimmers get an easier ride. This is where we could have done better but hindsight is a wonderful thing and the sailing was fast and fun and we were getting warmer every day. As newbies we did our homework and did not disgrace ourselves.
This longer course reminded many of us that ocean racing has nuances, experiences and emotions that you simply don’t get on a coastal or harbour races. The ‘digital detox’ is an additional bonus in a world where it’s ever harder to get away and for that alone it’s worth doing. The full moon, the lack of light pollution, sailing downwind in shorts at over 20kt hour after hour with good mates; it’s tough to beat that.
Having done my first Atlantic crossing in 1989, which now seems a long time ago, I was looking forward to turning off my phone more than ever before. Certainly there is a clarity of purpose which you have when sailing with a small team across an ocean, but there is more to it than that.
You communicate. It’s an extraordinary thing, you actually do not wait for someone to stop looking at their latest social media faux pas or ‘essential and lifechanging email’ which has to be dealt with immediately. People look up and outwards rather than downwards and inwards. Going sailing for an afternoon does not do this, people carry phones in waterproof cases to tweet their mark rounding. In the words of legendary BBC radio commentator John Humphrys… get a life.
You look people in the eye, listen to what they have to say, talk race tactics, talk speed gains, talk shit. You connect with your team, people you might have known for years or not at all before the start, but you make a bond, something shared, something unique, particularly in this world. I have never been so struck by this.
After a few years in the Mediterranean where Maverick twice had first in class in the Middle Sea Race, first in class in the RORC Transatlantic and a shocker in the Fastnet, she then went to race Newport to Bermuda (where she was put into a class of two) followed by Transpac. Now the road trip continues as this remarkable and remarkably well-travelled little yacht makes her way to Sydney for the Sydney to Hobart… and many more adventures.