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Bryon Ehrhart’s LUCKY Retires from Race 30nm From Finish With Rudder Failure

At about 1320 HST the Judel-Vrolijk 72 LUCKY retired from the race, reporting a broken rudder at about 30 miles from the finish. All crew safe on board, and organized a tow to Honolulu. Lucky had been projected to be a top 10 overall finisher and had been ranked first in Class 1 at Friday morning's roll call.

Lucky is first-to-finish in the Transatlantic Race 2015. Photo Lloyd Images.

Lucky takes line honours in Transatlantic Race

Late afternoon, British time, Bryon Ehrhart’s Lucky was the first boat in the Transatlantic Race 2015 to cross the finish line at The Lizard, ending a brutal 8 days 22 hours 5 minutes and 3 seconds at sea on a 2,800-mile eastbound crossing of the North Atlantic, sailed mostly in strong winds.

At present Lucky holds the lead in the Transatlantic Race 2015 under IRC handicap, but the title remains under threat from boats yet to finish. Similarly, her impressive course time is likely to be bettered by the maxis which started four days after her.

“We are excited to have finished; it was an interesting test,” said Ehrhart, who earlier this year acquired his Reichel/Pugh 63 (formerly the 2011 Rolex Sydney Hobart winner, Loki ) with the principle aim of competing in this race. Erhart, a Chicagoan, is a member of the New York Yacht Club and the Royal Ocean Racing Club – two of the four clubs, with the addition of Storm Trysail Club and the Royal Yacht Squadron – that comprised the organizing authority for the race.

Navigator Ian Moore added: “Obviously the whole crew are really excited to have made it to the finish and to be the first boat home. It has been a very long night and a very long day. The beat to the finish felt like it would never end and the wind started to run out. It is a fantastic feeling to finally finish the race.”

Competing in IRC 2, Lucky set off from Newport, R.I., on July 1 with the second group of starters, including Clarke Murphy’s longer and much-higher-rated 100’ Nomad IV . Nomad and Lucky sailed neck and neck for the first few days, but Lucky took a more direct easterly route towards Point Alpha, the ice exclusion, which allowed her to reach its south-western tip 13 miles ahead.

The two boats continued due east after passing the south-eastern corner of the exclusion zone, staying in the best breeze as they determined how cross to a patch of light winds on Sunday, July 5. Ultimately Lucky made the best of it, adding six miles to her lead over Nomad IV . By this stage both boats had passed all of the first starters, which had departed three days before them, with the exception of the biggest boat in the fleet, the 138’ Mariette of 1915 . Lucky finally passed the 100-year-old schooner two days from the finish, at the same time as she was splitting from Nomad IV to head north.

With the Azores High forecast to extend over the western tip of the U.K. as Lucky made her final approach to the finish, she headed north where the breeze would remain strongest for longest. Thanks to this she managed to extend her lead to more than 60 miles, but with the risk that Nomad IV , approaching from the west-southwest would come in with pressure and overtake her.

Lucky lost ground as she headed north of the Scilly Isles early this morning and was forced to beat up the narrow passage between Land’s End and its off-lying Traffic Separation Scheme allowing Nomad IV to close. But it was too little too late.

Lucky crossed the line while Nomad still had 37 miles to sail in a dying breeze. Nonetheless it was close after more than 3,000 miles of racing—in distance sailed—considering the two boats are so different: Lucky , a 63’ long stripped out racer; Nomad IV , at 100’, a much bigger boat but fitted out with a luxury interior, and also having suffered a catalogue of problems on this race.

“It was always in the back of our minds that they were out there charging along,” admitted Moore. “But it would have been a big job for them to catch up 50 miles in 12 hours.”

As to what contributed to Lucky ’s success, Ehrhart commented: “It was everything. The crew is certainly the leading star in this and the boat was well prepared as was the crew. It was a good navigational plan by Soapy [Ian Moore]. We think we sailed as well as we could. They didn’t leave anything out and there was nothing I wish we could have changed. I just hope that the result stands.”

Elsewhere in the fleet, last Sunday’s starters now have the bit between their teeth and are making fast progress. All four boats—the two maxis, Comanche and Rambler 88 , and the two trimarans, Phaedo³ and Paradox —have been eating up the miles, none more so than Lloyd Thornburg’s MOD70 Phaedo³ . In the 24 hours until 1030 ETD (1430 UTC) she had sailed a massive 626 miles at an average speed of 26.5 knots. In the inter-maxi monohull dust-up, Rambler 88 was doing a good of job of staying in touch with the 100’ Comanche , having lost only 30 miles to her in the last 24 hours.

These boats are now picking off the rest of the fleet. Some 275 miles north of Phaedo³ is the current Cruiser class leader, Jack Madden’s Swan 60, Lady B .

“We have been doing well,” reported Lady B ’s navigator J.J. Schock. “We are averaging about high nines speed over ground and everyone is in good health and spirits.” This morning Lady B was seeing 25 knots from the southwest and two-meter seas, which Schock described as having a long period, so “quite comfortable. We are sailing along on starboard tack under main and No. 3. Everything is calm on board and we’re just trying to make good speed.”

Schock acknowledges that this crossing has been particularly breezy, with wind speed having remained in the high 30s for days, occasionally accompanied by squalls into the 40s and one gust reaching 50 knots.

Being in the Cruiser class means they have the luxury of not having to eat reconstituted freeze dried food. “We have a wonderful cook on board and she is taking very good care of us. When it has been rougher, we have been having some peanut butter and jelly and crackers. When it has been nice we have had some nice meals,” said Schock.

Further up the fleet Earl St. Aldwyn’s Shipman 50 Zephyr experienced some drama last night when the shackle on the spinnaker halyard exploded, causing the kite to tumble into the water and for the boat to run over it. “We managed to recover it remarkably with no damage,” reported skipper David Sharples. “We sent George Bullard up the mast to recover the halyard at first light.”

Now up to sixth on the water, Ross Applebey’s Oyster Lightwave 48 Scarlet Oyster was this morning running downwind, but had prudently dropped the spinnaker in the early hours after the breeze had built to 30 knots. “We are pointing at the mark, but it is pretty rolly. I think we have managed to find ourselves a bit of current again, so it is heating up again. We are in pretty good shape,” commented Applebey.

The battle remains relentless against the ocean racing classics Carina and Dorade , but Scarlet Oyster is now ahead of the former on handicap, but still lying third to the immaculate S&S classic in IRC Class 4.

– Race Media

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Published on July 16th, 2015 | by Editor

Transatlantic Race: Bryon Ehrhart’s Lucky claims overall victory

Published on July 16th, 2015 by Editor -->

(July 16, 2015) – Bryon Ehrhart’s Reichel/Pugh 63 Lucky has been confirmed as the winner of the Transatlantic Race 2015 by the event’s four organizers: the Royal Yacht Squadron, the New York Yacht Club, the Royal Ocean Racing Club and the Storm Trysail Club.

Bryon Ehrhart’s Lucky is the overall victor in the Transatlantic Race 2015. (photo credit Hamo Thornycroft)

This almost closes the latest chapter in what is the world’s oldest trans-oceanic yacht race. In 1866, just 15 years after they famously won off the British what would become the America’s Cup, the New York Yacht Club ran its first Transatlantic Race. Since then it has been held irregularly, the most famous occasion being in 1905 when it was of political consequence in the build up to the First World War.

Intended by Kaiser Wilhelm II as a means of illustrating German supremacy at sea at a time when ‘Britannia ruled the waves’, he presented the solid gold ‘Kaiser’s Cup’ as the trophy for which the 1905 event would be raced. Ultimately the Kaiser’s yacht Hamburg was roundly dispatched by American Wilson Marshall’s Atlantic with Charlie Barr, the Russell Coutts of his day, driving the 227’ three-masted schooner from New York to The Lizard in just 12 days, 4 hours, 1 minute and 19 seconds.

The Transatlantic Race 2015 has once again proven that America rules the waves, with Chicagoan Bryon Ehrhart’s Lucky claiming the overall victory under IRC along with a Rolex timepiece. Jim Clark and Kristy Hinze-Clark’s 100’ maxi Comanche recorded the fastest monohull crossing in 7 days 11 hours and 35 minutes (outside of the course record of 6 days 22 hours 8 minutes and 2 seconds set by George David’s Rambler 100 in 2011), and Lloyd Thornburg’s MOD70 trimaran Phaedo³ the fastest multihull in a time of 7 days 2 hours and 4 minutes.

“We are thrilled to have achieved the result in our tenth year of campaigning various versions of Lucky in offshore events,” said Ehrhart. “We have competed in substantially all of the global ocean racing classics; the Transatlantic Race was properly held in our program as the classic of all the classics. We were humbled just to be allowed to compete in the longest standing and most respected ocean race.

Dragon’s Den Winning the unofficial doublehanded sub-division of the Class 40 was Michael Hennessy’s Owen Clarke-designed Dragon, which arrived in 11 days 20 hours and 12 minutes, 1 day and 13 hours after the Class 40 winner Stella Nova.

While the German boat was being sailed by a crew of four, Dragon, along with the other two American Class 40s competing, was racing doublehanded.

“That dictated a lot of our choices,” said Hennessy, who made the crossing with Kyle Hubley. “They [Stella Nova] made the choice to get north in front of the low, so that it would catch up to them, and then ride out the heaviest wind there. Whereas I just felt that would break us and the boat and going doublehanded with a cockpit that has very little protection. I think that Amhas’ experience demonstrated that.” Amhas was the only Class 40 to retire from the race.

As a result Dragon was ‘only’ subject to winds in 30-knot range that briefly built to the 40s in squalls. “It was really the sea state that made it difficult, it was pretty wild in certain places,” said Hennessy.

Otherwise Hennessy felt the trip went well: “It was fantastic. We had a fast passage and nothing broke and I feel like we made the right choices with rig settings. If it wasn’t for Stella Nova putting together the performance of a lifetime we would be really proud of ourselves…”

And overall, their passage between Newport, R.I., and The Lizard was fast, in fact much faster than Hennessy’s expectations: “Before the race I was telling some folks that I was taking food for 18 days, expecting 14 days and on the best possible conditions 12 days. And we beat my best estimate!”

The crew of Lady B celebrates their finish of the Transatlantic Race 2015. (photo credit James Bremridge)

Lady B – Second in Cruising Class Jack Madden’s Swan 60 Lady B was the only boat to arrive in Cowes today, claiming second place in the Cruising Class, behind Earl St. Aldwyn’s Shipman 50 Zephyr.

This was Madden and his crew’s first Transatlantic Race, although he and his crew, who are all from the New York/New England area, have been racing together for many years and have previously competed in the Newport Bermuda Race.

“It went wonderfully, we had a great time, it was a lot of fun,” said Madden. “The crew worked out very well. We didn’t have any major problems whatsoever, only a few minor things, so we are very pleased with that. We were surprised by the intensity of the wind from day two until about day seven or eight. We were also surprised by the lack of sun. We thought there might be sun on the way to the U.K., but we had a grey umbrella with us all the way! But all in all it was great; we had a wonderful time.”

Lady B has a well-appointed interior, with cabins and comfortable beds, and they also had a cook on board to prepare hot meals. “The comaraderie of the crew was great and fun and the entertainment we had teasing each other was wonderful. So the whole experience was a 10,” concluded Madden.

Podium Positions on Corrected Time:

IRC Overall: 1. Lucky, 13d 11h 7m 41s 2. Outsider, 13d 16h 51m 51s 3. Mariette of 1915, 14d 8h 39m 48s

IRC Class 1: 1. Rambler 88, 14d 11h 38m 10s 2. Comanche, 14d 18h 40m 59s

IRC Class 2: 1. Lucky, 13d 11h 7m 41s 2. Outsider, 13d 16h 51m 51s 3. Grey Power, 15d 17h 6m 29s

IRC Class 3: 1. Snow Lion, 14d 21h 44m 0s 2. Maximizer, 15d 12h 59m 30s 3. Prospector, 15d 16h 39m 4s

IRC Class 4: 1. Mariette of 1915, 14d 8h 39m 48s 2. Dorade, 14d 22h 12m 53s 3. Scarlet Oyster, 15d 2h 34m 18s

Class 40: 1. Stella Nova, 10d 7h 11m 44s 2. Visit Brussels, 11d 3h 9m 0s 3. Dragon, 11d 20h 12m 7s

Cruising: 1. Zephyr, 17d 10h 35m 51s 2. Lady B, 17d 16h 11m 35s 3. Charisma, (still to finish)

Classics: 1. Mariette of 1915, 14d 8h 39m 48s 2. Dorade, 14d 22h 12m 53s

Fastest multihull (elapsed time): Phaedo3 7d 2h 4m 5s

Fastest monohull (elapsed time): Comanche 7d 11h 35m 11s

Follow the Race: Event website – Complete results – Entry list – Tracking – Facebook

Report by Media Pro International

Background : The 2796 nm Transatlantic Race 2015 extends west to east across the North Atlantic from Newport, USA to the Lizard, in southwest England. The staggered start plan had 13 boats starting June 28, 20 boats starting on July 1, and the four fastest yachts on July 5.

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Lucky claims Aegean 600 monohull line honours as MODs match race to new record

International Maxi

Finishing at 14:01 local time this afternoon, Bryon Ehrhart’s 88ft Lucky claimed monohull line honours in the Aegean 600 but the former Rambler 88’s elapsed time of 47 hours 31 minutes and six seconds was two hours 26 minutes outside of Leopard 3’s 2023 record.

“It was a very tough race both on the crew and on the boat,” recounted Lucky’s Brazilian tactician Joca Signorini. “It was windy at times and not windy at all at others and very unpredictable. It very complicated passing to the lee of some islands with their big shadows. The wind would change strength often and dramatically, so it was hard to find the right set-up for the boat and sometimes you’d have to take it easy if you didn’t want to get caught with the wrong set-up.”

Lucky’s main competition came from Signorini’s former Volvo Ocean Race winner L4 (ex-Ericsson 4 – although much turboed since). It wasn’t until they were meandering their way north up the course’s eastern part that Lucky was finally able to extend away. However her substantial lead was rapidly eroded as Lucky was becalmed in the lee of Icaria (the large island due east of Mykonos). Signorini explained: “We were ahead of the record for most of the race, but in the end we found ourselves in completely no wind [off Icaria] and there we easily lost four hours just drifting in a very bad sea state with the waves completely against us. So we missed the record, but we are very happy getting line honours.”

L4 finished at 16:42: 38 this afternoon putting her ahead under IRC corrected time.

The Aegean 600 was Lucky’s first race after losing her rig in last autumn’s Rolex Middle Sea Race. The race provided a vigorous shakedown for the new spar and sails but was less traumatic than it was for the more nimble MODs, with Lucky only seeing winds in the high 30s and never getting down to her ultimate J6 and triple reefed mainsail combination. Nonetheless, the conditions did allow her to see peak speeds of 30 knots and sustained speeds of 26-27 knots.

MOD70s may now be flying machines, well outside of their original one design configuration, but you would not have known that, given the multiple lead changes and tightness of their racing in this year’s Aegean 600. Organised by the Hellenic Offshore Racing Club, the race was supported by Olympic Marine and with Rolex as ‘official timepiece’.

Frenchman Erik Maris’ Zoulou arrived back at Sounion in the early hours this morning, just 1 minutes 21 seconds ahead of American Jason Carroll’s Argo after their 605 mile long anti-clockwise lap of the Aegean Sea. This had taken place in dramatically varied conditions from flat calms to 45+ knots negotiating the narrow gate between Mykonos and Delos last night.

As a result, the Aegean 600 got the International Maxi Association’s inaugural Mediterranean Multihull Challenge off to the strongest start: Aside from the closeness, Zoulou also established a new race record of 37 hours 18 minutes and 52 seconds, demolishing the previous 45 hours 5 minutes 25 seconds record set last year by the 100ft maxi monohull Leopard 3.

Essentially Argo led for the first half of the race and Zoulou the second. “We had a small speed deficit initially downwind,” commented Zoulou’s English crewman Ned Collier Wakefield. “We were on the back foot by the time we got to the bottom, but the nice thing about having such changeable conditions is that there are a load of park-ups and opportunities to reshuffle the pack.”

But such varied conditions meant endless changing of gears. “The holes were not really forecastable, so you have 30+ knots landing on you and the next minute you have nothing. We did about 125 sail changes – it was bonkers! Reef 1; reef 2; reef 3; full main; repeat…I don’t think we have ever wound the pedestals so much…”

The experience was similar on Argo. “It was incredibly hard,” commented Chad Corning. “Everyone on board – and we have all been around the block – said it one of the toughest races we’ve ever done. It was blowing 35 knots and then it was blowing 3 knots. You never seemed to have the right set-up – trying to transition out of a light spot or riding depowered because you knew it was about to blow 40. And it blew 40 a lot…in that it becomes a matter of surviving, not racing…”

While Zoulou held a good lead out of the Mykonos gate, the split around the island of Giaros delivered a last roll of the dice. Zoulou went north around Giaros’ windward side while Argo split south. “On the windward side you’d expect there to be breeze, but there was nothing while there was 30 knots behind it – so Argo made a huge gain on us. But that made it fun – for the last hour we were neck and neck at 30+ knots,” recounted Collier Wakefield. Corning agreed: “For the last 30 miles, we were both pushing full main and J1 WAY out of the range. No one could blink to reef or change a sail because that would have lost them the race. It was ‘hair on fire’ stuff!”

While the race may have left their crews slightly broken, both MOD70s were fine. “There is not a dent in a fender on either,” continued Corning. “And the abuse we were hurling at them was amazing.” While Zoulou claimed the all-important line honours, in fact the lower rated Argo won under MOCRA corrected time, giving her an early lead in the IMA Mediterranean Multihull Challenge.

The race for maxi yacht IRC corrected time honours will be resolved tonight bringing with it further points for the IMA’s 2023-24 Mediterranean Maxi Offshore Challenge.

Report by James Boyd/International Maxi Association

LUCKY, Bryon Ehrhart – Photo credit Rolex Rene Rossignaud

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RP Maxis Finish 1st & 2nd at Palermo-Montecarlo

Monte-Carlo (August 24, 2019) – The 15th edition of the Palermo-Montecarlo marked the fifth and final event of the International Maxi Association’s Mediterranean Maxi Offshore Challenge 2018-2019 and fielded fifty-one boats this year.

Miguel Galuccio’s Reichel/Pugh 84’ maxi Vera (formerly My Song ) was first to cross the finish line winning one of the Giuseppe Tasca d’Almerita Trophy . Vera’s crew, including Dutch Volvo Ocean Race legend Bouwe Bekking and Olympic champion Michele Regolo, completed nearly 500 miles of racecourse (on the direct route) in two days, 17 hours and 13 minutes — smashing the record set by Esimit Europa 2 in 2015. Esimit Europa 2 is a Reichel/Pugh-designed 100’ canting keel supermaxi, first launched as Alfa Romeo and is now the Australia-based Black Jack . (more…)

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RP66 Zaraffa Wins Overall ORR Title in Tight Marblehead to Halifax Race (363nm)

Sheldon, who began his sailing career as a student, commissioned Reichel/Pugh Design No. 96 Zaraffa as a dual-purpose racer-cruiser, built by New England Boatworks and launched in 1999. A rugged design, Sheldon never wanted the boat to be the cause of not finishing a race. Zaraffa competed in the 2001 Fastnet race winning class and taking 2 nd overall. She raced the Newport-Bermuda four times, claiming the 2002 Lighthouse Trophy win on the crew’s second attempt. She was also first-to-finish with overall honors on the 2003 North Atlantic Challenge from Newport to Cuxhaven, Germany, and in 2011 Zaraffa was 1st Corrected IRC 3 in the Transatlantic Race. She has also raced the Sydney Hobart, Miami to Montego Bay, Round Gotland Race and the Middle Sea Race. In 2018, after a retrofit for the Transatlantic Race, the Sheldon family bestowed the USNA Sailing Team with the gift of Zaraffa for offshore training. (more…)

The 50th Transpac Kicks Off

Reichel/Pugh racers to watch: Alive – Design 162 – 66’ CBTF Racer (formerly Black Jack & Stark Raving Mad ) Grand Illusion (featuring Reichel/Pugh-designed keel and rudder appendages) Lady Kanon – Design 177 – 45’ IRC Racer Shadow II – Design 122 – TP52 Taxi Dancer – Design 39 – 70’ ULDB Vitesse – Design 199.2 – Southern Cross 52’

Race Tracking Event News Photography

Phillip Turner’s Australian-based Alive Yachting team most notably won the 2018 Sydney-Hobart overall, and recently swept 2019 California Offshore races with back-to-back line honor wins in the SoCal 300 (Santa Barbara to San Diego), Coastal Cup (Monterey to Santa Barbara), Spinnaker Cup (San Francisco Bay to Monterey), and Newport-Ensenada Race.

HIGHLIGHTS OF REICHEL/PUGH TRANSPAC HISTORY

Reichel Pugh Maxi’s have held the Transpac Course Record for nearly two decades, from 1999 (Roy Disney’s 75’ Pyewacket Maxi Sled) until 2017 (broken by Comanche – setting the new Merlin trophy elapsed time record at 5 days 01:55:26). Until 2017, the record had been broken 4 times since 1999 – always by Reichel/Pugh designed yachts. R/P yachts have won the Barn Door Trophy 7 out of 10 editions of the race since 1999.

Reichel/Pugh’s original sled design, the 70’ Taxi Dancer took 1st place in Class A in the 1989 Transpac and second overall, this was during the heyday of the California Sleds when Class A of the 1989 race featured 19 Sleds. Thirty years later, Taxi Dancer is still racing!

2015 – WILD OATS XI – Roy Pat Disney’s and Bob Oatley’s 100’ Canting Keel SuperMaxi Wild Oats XI had the fastest elapsed time of 6d 10h 37m 2s to win the 2015 Merlin Trophy and take first in Division 1 at the Transpac’s Diamond Head finish line. Wild Oats XI is a 100-foot custom design famous for its record nine elapsed time victories in thirteen years (2005-2008, 2018) and three overall fleet wins (2014, 2012 & 2005) in the Sydney-Hobart race.

2015 – GRAND ILLUSION – Ed & James McDowell’s Santa Cruz 70 Grand Illusion was the overall winner. She was designed by Bill Lee and features Reichel/Pugh-designed keel and rudder appendages. Grand Illusion has now equaled the record for most overall Transpac wins, joining the 88′ 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, Ed & James McDowell.

2013 – RP74 WIZARD – David and Peter Askew’s 74’ Reichel/Pugh-designed and New England Boatworks-built Mini-Maxi WIZARD (formerly Bella Mente) finished ‘first’ in the 2013 Transpac Race winning the unique Transpacific Yacht Club’s Perpetual Trophy – a 3.5’ x 4’ plaque of hand carved Hawaiian Koa Wood – better known as the ‘Barn Door.’ This trophy is traditionally awarded to the fixed keel mono-hull employing no stored energy with the fastest elapsed time. Wizard’s elapsed time was 7 days, 7 hours, 53 minutes, 46 seconds, which was 12 hours and 13 minutes slower than Bella Mente’s Barn Door record run of 6 days 19 hours 39 minutes 28 seconds set in 2011.

2011 – RP74 BELLA MENTE – Hap Fauth’s 74’ Mini Maxi BELLA MENTE set a new fixed keel course record of 6 days 19 hours 39 minutes 28 seconds with an average speed of 13.6 knots.

2011 – RPTP52 PATCHES – Jorge Ripsteins R/P-designed TP52 PATCHES won Division 2 followed by R/P designs CRIMINAL MISCHIEF 45’ and VINCITORE 52’.

2011 – GRAND ILLUSION – Ed and James McDowell’s Santa Cruz 70 featuring R/P-designed appendages took first in division and first in fleet overall on corrected time.

2009 – RP100 ALFA ROMEO II – 1st to Finish (Lending Tree got a DNS!) 5 days 14 hours 36m 20s) (Moveable Ballast & Powered Winches Course Record). N. Crichton’s Alfa Romeo II, sailing in the “unlimited” class, was not eligible for the traditional “Barn Door” trophy, but instead was the inaugural winner of a new trophy dedicated by Trisha Steele, called the “Merlin Trophy”. On July 7, 2009, ALFA ROMEO II beat the MORNING GLORY record for best day’s run set in the 2005 race, by sailing 399nm in 24 hours. The next two days she broke her own best-day record by sailing 420nm and 431nm.

2005 – RP86 MORNING GLORY – 1st to Finish (SET NEW RECORD 6 days, 16 hours, 4 minutes, and 11 seconds to win “the Barn Door” trophy) (Moveable Ballast Course Record) – H. Plattner

2005 – RP52 ROSEBUD – 1st Class & 1st Fleet Corrected Overall – R. Sturgeon

2003 – RP77 PEGASUS – 1st to Finish Barn Door Trophy Winner – P. Kahn

2001 – RP75 PEGASUS – 1st to Finish Barn Door Trophy Winner, 2nd Fleet Overall Corrected – P. Kahn

1999 – RP73 PYEWACKET – 1st to Finish Barn Door Trophy Winner (SET NEW RECORD 7 days, 11 hours, 41 minutes, and 27 seconds Ending Merlin’s 20-year record) (Fixed Ballast Course Record) 2nd Fleet Overall Corrected – R. Disney

1995 – RP66 EXILE – 1st Place Class Winner – J. Warwick Miller

1989 – RP70 TAXI DANCER – 1st Place Class Winner (19 Sleds competing), 2nd Place Fleet Overall – M. Rousse

For more information on the yachts contact: [email protected]

ABOUT THE TRANSPAC First organized by the Transpacific Yacht Club in 1906, the Transpacific Yacht Race or Transpac is an offshore sailing race from Point Fermin in Los Angeles to Diamond Head, just east of Honolulu, a distance of 2,225 nm. This is among the world’s great ocean races, and biennially attracts some of the world’s fastest sailing yachts, some of its most talented offshore racing sailors, and a wide variety of offshore sailing adventurers.

photography courtesy of Sharon Green/Ultimate Sailing

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66′ Mini Maxi Alive Sweeps California Offshore Races and Sets New Course Record

San Diego, California (June 2, 2019) – Reichel/Pugh 66’ Canting Keel Mini Maxi ALIVE (formerly Black Jack & Stark Raving Mad) was first to finish (correcting to 7th) in the 5th annual SoCal 300 (300nm), following back-to-back line honor wins in the Spinnaker Cup (San Francisco Bay to Monterey), Coastal Cup (Monterey to Santa Barbara) and Newport-Ensenada. Alive also set a new course record for the 200nm Coastal Cup of 13h 48m 28s. Congratulations to owner Phillip Turner, skipper Duncan Hine and the entire Australian-based Alive Yachting team, who most notably won the 2018 Sydney-Hobart overall. The three-part CA Offshore Race Week now complete, the Alive team is taking on the competitive 17-boat Division 1 in the Transpac Race starting July 10th. (more…)

Alive Wins Newport to Ensenada Race Following Sydney-Hobart Victory

RP100 Black Jack Takes Line Honors in The Brisbane to Gladstone Race

Queensland, Australia (April 20, 2019) – 100’ SuperMaxi Black Jack took line honors in the 71st Brisbane to Gladstone with a time of 16 hours, 56 minutes and 33 seconds—just 2 minutes and 36 seconds outside the 14-year record it broke last year. It was the sixth consecutive Brisbane to Gladstone line-honors victory for last year’s runner-up in the Sydney to Hobart and it marked eight wins for Black Jack’s owner Peter Harburg since 2009. (more…)

Reichel/Pugh Designs Triumph at Les Voiles de St. Barth

Dominating the Maxi Class 2 for the third year was Windfall’s Michael “Mick” Cotter, who humbly attributes much of their success to luck, however this was Mick’s seventh Les Voiles. The Reichel/Pugh-designed production 94’ Windfall was built by Southern Wind, with interiors by Nauta Yachts, Milan and launched in 2013. Results (more…)

Melges 24 Boat of the Week at Charleston Race Week

Travis Weisleder and Lucky Dog/Gill Race Team are Sperry Charleston Race Week 2019 Champions!

Rombelli is 2019 Melges 20 World Champion, Joyce is Corinthian

The winner of the 2019 Melges 20 World Championship is Alessandro Rombelli and the STIG team of Francesco Bruni, Giorgio Tortarolo, and Tea Faoro!

Reichel/Pugh sends best wishes to all competitors at the 2019 Melges 20 Worlds.

MIAMI (April 7, 2019) — Twenty-two teams representing nine countries sailed the 2019 Melges 20 World Championship held April 4-7 hosted by the Coconut Grove Sailing Club in Miami, Florida on Biscayne Bay. Alessandro Rombelli and the Italian STIG team of Francesco Bruni, Giorgio Tortarolo, and Tea Faoro can call themselves world champions! In the all-amatuer Corinthian division, the World title goes to Rhonda Joyce and the GRINNING STREAK team of Jeremy Edwards and Tony Bowman. (more…)

Winning Style | R/P Superyacht Wins Overall at St. Barths

Hetairos 200’ Ketch Wins the St. Barths Bucket Overall. My Song Wins Final Race for 3rd in Class one point behind Hetairos.

My Song and Hetairos approaching finishing of Race 3 – St. Barths Bucket 2019

Gustavia (March 24, 2019) – On the final day of racing at the St. Barths Bucket, Reichel/Pugh Superyachts My Song and Hetairos took first and second place. Hetairos’ win in the first race of the regatta was a good omen as she went on to earn the overall Bucket for winning within the most competitive class. John Reichel raced on a different R/P design each day: Nilaya , Hetairos and Visione, with partner Jim Pugh sailing on the My Song . (more…)

Reichel and Pugh to attend the 2019 St. Barths Bucket Regatta

The R/P Team wishes everyone a fun event and safe racing!

Click for more details about the four R/P superyachts racing and in production.

Nilaya is First In Class at the 2019 Superyacht Challenge Antigua

The Reichel/Pugh-designed 112’ Nilaya, helmed by owner Filip Balcaen, took 1 st place in Class C: Corsairs. Nilaya was built by Baltic Yachts and launched in 2010. (more…)

A Clean Sweep for Reichel/Pugh Designs at the 2018 Rolex Sydney-Hobart

Redemption! Wild Oats XI Wins 9th Line Honors Victory in the 2018 Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race

Three years of trauma and heartache for the Wild Oats XI family has ended, after a premature retirement from the 2015 race with a torn mainsail, followed by Bob Oatley’s death in January 2016 and another race retirement in 2016 due to hydraulic ram issues, and then the much publicized 2017 race when Wild Oats XI was penalized one hour after an incident with Comanche and lost her line honors crown and a new race record to Comanche. Val Oatley described Wild Oats XI 2018 Rolex Sydney Hobart line honors victory perfectly alongside the dock in Hobart this morning: “Three years of misery to this moment,” and you could not wipe the smile from her face or that of her sons Sandy and Ian, as they waited for their Supermaxi to moor alongside the pier. Wild Oat’s skipper Mark ‘Ricko’ Richards handed over the helm to the Late Bob Oatley’s grandson, Daniel (Ian Oatley’s son, on his third Sydney Hobart on the family yacht) on the final leg to the finish. It was a blissful moment for the Oatley family and their supporters as their silver Supermaxi crossed the Hobart finish line at 08:07:21 on Friday, 28 December. (more…)

RORC Transatlantic Record for RP’s 130′ My Song

Pier Luigi Loro Piana’s 130′ Supermaxi My Song finished the 2018 RORC Transatlantic Race on December 4th at 17:47:11 UTC taking Monohull Line Honours. The Baltic 130 owned by Pier Luigi Loro Piana, a member of the International Maxi Association (IMA), has also set a new Monohull Race Record after completing the 3,000 mile race between Lanzarote and Grenada in an elapsed time of 10 days 5 hrs 47 mins 11 secs, shaving 1hr 19mins 48 secs off the previous monohull race record set in the 2015 race by Jean-Paul Riviere’s French Finot-Conq 100, Nomad IV.

My Song, delivered in 2016 and features a rotating retractable propulsion system, high-performance keel and other innovative features. Her naval architecture and engineering is by Reichel/Pugh, Interior, deck design by Nauta Yachts of Milan, and she was built by Baltic Yachts with project management by Nigel Ingram, MCM. Following World Superyacht Awards for Best Sailing Yacht between 30m and 39.9m and the Showboats Design Awards in which she was voted Most Innovative Sailing Yacht and took the Best Exterior Design and Styling award, she also won the International Superyacht Society’s 2017 award for the Best Sailing Yacht between 24m and 40m. (more…)

Perini Navi Announces Sale of the Second 42-Meter E-VOLUTION

PERINI NAVI ANNOUNCES THE SALE OF THE SECOND 42-METER E-VOLUTION – Naval Architecture by Reichel/Pugh Yacht Design

Perini Navi, world leader in the design and construction of sailing and motor ships, announces the sale of the second 42 meter S / Y line of the E-volution line.

The new 42m S/Y, the first unit in the GTS series, has been sold to an expert European owner and will be delivered in spring 2021.

Based on the platform developed for the first 42-meter E-volution, with a concept and styling by Perini Navi and naval architecture by Reichel Pugh, this second unit combines aluminum and carbon to deliver superior performance. (more…)

Reichel/Pugh-designed 86’ Spirit of Portopiccolo Wins the Barcolana, Again!

Trieste, Italy (October 14, 2018) – Warm congratulations goes out to the skipper and crew of the Reichel/Pugh-designed, canting keel 86’ Spirit of Portopiccolo, formerly the Morning Glory, as overall winner of the 50th Barcolana Regatta. This year there was a record 2,689 boats on the starting line. More stunning photos can be found in @studioborlenghi 50th Barcolana album. (more…)

Reichel/Pugh Designs Showcasing at the Monaco Yacht Show

The 28th edition of the Monaco Yacht Show starts this Wednesday and runs through four days showcasing the top superyacht builders, suppliers, brokerage firms and yacht designers.

Reichel/Pugh Yacht Design will be represented at this year’s show by the award winning 130’ My Song.

(more…)

Reichel/Pugh Designs Win at Long Point Race Week

RP Maxis Dominate 33rd Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Race (384nm)

Cruising Yacht Club of Australia/Southport Yacht Club, Sydney-Australia, 384nm (July 28 th – 31, 2018) – Congratulations to the owners and crews of the Reichel/Pugh designed yachts competing in the 2018 Noakes Sydney Gold Coast Race Offshore Classic.

Reichel/Pugh 40’ Chutzpah – Overall Winner
Reichel/Pugh 100’ Black Jack – Line Honours
Reichel/Pugh 100’ Wild Oats XI – 2 nd on Elapsed Time
Reichel/Pugh 63’ Voodoo
Reichel/Pugh 51’ Primitive Cool
Reichel/Pugh Marten 49’ Yarrandi

John Reichel And Naval Architect David Oliver Were All Smiles At The Inaugural Melges 14 Nationals

Geneva Lake, Wisconsin (June 17, 2018) – Reichel/Pugh Founder John Reichel and Naval Architect and Structural Engineer David Oliver were all smiles at the inaugural Melges 14 Nationals held held June 15-17. The event helped to continue to solidify the class as the premier high-performance one-design racing boat just three years after its introduction. Already honored as Sailing World’s 2016 Boat of the Year – Best Dinghy the class attracted over 30 entrants from around the country including Olympians and Olympic hopefuls. (more…)

Reichel/Pugh 68 Fast Performance Cruiser To Be Built By Baltic Yachts

One of the newest Reichel/Pugh projects is a custom 68′ Fast Performance Cruiser to be built by Baltic Yachts in Finland.

The yacht is designed for short-handed long-distance offshore cruising with the ability to very comfortably overnight at weekend destinations. While comfort and aesthetics are the priority, the owner is also focused on a performance design that can excel on the race course. The result is a hi-tech composite structure with a gorgeous interior that will no-doubt provide a highly-rewarding sailing experience.

Reichel/Pugh President Jim Pugh explains that, “The all-carbon composite, fixed keel, twin-rudder sloop with a powerful square-top main ensure exceptional performance on the race course. A captive winch-controlled mainsheet and powered winches provide safe and easy sail handling while cruising with a pin head main and furling jib.” (more…)

My Song Continues to Set the Tone for Performance Superyacting as She Triumphs at the 2018 LORO PIANA SUPERYACHT REGATTA

Porto Cervo (June 13, 2018) – The 130’ MY SONG built by Baltic, designed by Reichel Pugh and Nauta, achieved three first places in three races claiming first overall in Class “A”. MY SONG also claimed the Silver Jubilee Trophy, reserved for the top superyacht from both classes over 100 feet long, and the award for the top placed yacht owned by a YCCS member. (more…)

Andrea Racchelli and Team Altea are the 2018 Melges 24 World Champions

Victoria, BC (June 9, 2018) – Reichel/Pugh wishes to congratulate all competitors at the 2018 Melges 24 Worlds!

Now in its 25th year, the class still boasts one of the most competitive fleets in the world. This year the new Victoria International Marina was host to a fleet of 41 teams from five nations, racing a 10-race World Championship series.

Italian Andrea Racchelli’s Altea and his crew Filippo Togni, Gaudenzio Bomni, Matteo Ramian, Michele Gregoratto are the 2018 Melges World Champions. Alan Field’s WTF took silver, followed by Bruce Ayres’ Monsoon, both from the United States. (more…)

Peter Harburg’s R/P 100’ Black Jack Smashes Brisbane To Gladstone Race Record With An Average Speed Of 22.48 Knots

Reichel/Pugh-Nauta 112’ Nilaya – Built by Baltic Yachts – Helmed by Owner – Dominates the St Barths Bucket Regatta with Triple Class Wins!

St Barths (March 20, 2018) – This past weekend, 26 of the world’s finest sailing yachts gathered for the renowned three-day St Barths Bucket Regatta. Reichel/Pugh-designed 112′ Nilaya won the most competitive Les Gazelles des Mers class and was awarded the overall prize; the Bucket. R/P’s iconic 147’ Visi one also built by Baltic took second and also won the All-Star Crew Award following nominations from each yacht for the most professional service, the best camaraderie, teamwork, and respect. As the regatta organizers said: “This is the yacht that everyone wants to work on!” Visione was the overall winner of the Bucket in 2015. (more…)

Wild Oats X1 Record Ninth Rolex Sydney Hobart Line Honors Victory Overturned, Comanche Declared Winner

VIDEO | Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2017 – Downwind Class

Transatlantic Race: Bryon Ehrhart’s Lucky Claims Overall Victory

Congratulations to Reichel/Pugh 63 LUCKY owner Bryon Ehrhart, navigator Ian Moore and the rest of the crew as they have been confirmed winners of the Transatlantic Race 2015 by the event’s four organizers: the Royal Yacht Squadron, the New York Yacht Club, the Royal Ocean Racing Club and the Storm Trysail Club.

“I remain in awe of the crew that prepared us so well over the last 10 years and led us to the opportunity to compete in the Transatlantic Race 2015. To win the event is well beyond our expectations given the long list of competitors we have come to respect. The win is a testament to the strength of the commitment we have made to the program and to each other,” said Chicagoan Ehrhart, who earlier this year acquired his Reichel/Pugh 63 (formerly the 2011 Rolex Sydney Hobart winner, Loki) with the principle aim of competing in this race. “We were humbled just to be allowed to compete in the longest standing and most respected ocean race,” Ehrhart added.

Race Report by Brad Dellenbaugh

Competing in IRC 2, Lucky set off from Newport, R.I., on July 1 with the second group of starters, including Clarke Murphy’s longer and much-higher-rated 100’ Nomad IV. Nomad and Lucky sailed neck and neck for the first few days, but Lucky took a more direct easterly route towards Point Alpha, the ice exclusion, which allowed her to reach its south-western tip 13 miles ahead.

The two boats continued due east after passing the south-eastern corner of the exclusion zone, staying in the best breeze as they determined how cross to a patch of light winds on Sunday, July 5. Ultimately Lucky made the best of it, adding six miles to her lead over Nomad IV. By this stage both boats had passed all of the first starters, which had departed three days before them, with the exception of the biggest boat in the fleet, the 138’ Mariette of 1915. Lucky finally passed the 100-year-old schooner two days from the finish, at the same time as she was splitting from Nomad IV to head north.

With the Azores High forecast to extend over the western tip of the U.K. as Lucky made her final approach to the finish, she headed north where the breeze would remain strongest for longest. Thanks to this she managed to extend her lead to more than 60 miles, but with the risk that Nomad IV, approaching from the west-southwest would come in with pressure and overtake her.

Lucky crossed the line while Nomad still had 37 miles to sail in a dying breeze. Nonetheless it was close after more than 3,000 miles of racing—in distance sailed—considering the two boats are so different: Lucky, a 63’ long stripped out racer; Nomad IV, at 100’, a much bigger boat but fitted out with a luxury interior, and also having suffered a catalogue of problems on this race.

“It was always in the back of our minds that they were out there charging along,” admitted Moore. “But it would have been a big job for them to catch up 50 miles in 12 hours.”

As to what contributed to Lucky’s success, Ehrhart commented: “It was everything. The crew is certainly the leading star in this and the boat was well prepared as was the crew. It was a good navigational plan by Soapy . We think we sailed as well as we could. They didn’t leave anything out and there was nothing I wish we could have changed.”

Race Website: transatlanticrace.com

Race Results

Yellowbrick Tracking (activated 24 hours before the first start, June 28 at 1400 EDT)

Twitter Handle: @TransatlantRace Instagram: @nyyc_regattas

Source Media Pro International Title start photo © Daniel Forster Finish photo © Lloyd Images Ltd

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Fourth time lucky for 50th Rolex Fastnet Race monohull line honours?

Rambler 88 rounds the Fastnet Rock. She returns this year rechristened Lucky © ROLEX/Kurt Arrigo

While the top prize in the Rolex Fastnet Race is the Fastnet Challenge Cup for the winner of IRC Overall, considerable kudos comes with finishing first on the water. This will be especially true for the monohull line honours winner of this year’s 50th anniversary edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s premier event, who will also receive the Erroll Bruce Cup and a Rolex timepiece.

The first edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race was held in 1925, at a time when yachts that ventured offshore in Europe were typically cruisers. At this point the fastest offshore sailing machines were still pilot cutters, which in the late 19th century would speed out into the Western Approaches to offer their pilotage services to UK-bound commercial vessels. Thus, it was no surprise that Jolie Brise, one of the last sailing pilot cutters launched (in Le Havre in 1913), should win the race’s first edition in the hands of Lt Cdr E. G. Martin, who would soon become the RORC’s first Commodore. She would be victorious again in both 1929 and 1930 (when the race was held annually) by RORC founder member and subsequent Commodore Bobby Somerset. On all three occasions Jolie Brise scored ‘the double’ ie line honours and the overall prize under corrected time.

Jolie Brise has won the race overall and line honours three times. She is also the only boat to have won the race's 'triple' © ROLEX/Daniel Forster

The Fastnet Race ‘double’ has been achieved several times since. In 1957 American Dick Nye scored his second back-to-back overall win aboard Carina II with the added bonus, on that occasion, of being first home too. This was repeated by French legend Eric Tabarly in 1967 with Pen Duick III and then by Bob Bell’s maxi Condor in 1983. The most recent yacht to achieve this was Ludde Ingvall’s maxi Nicorette which picked up most of the race’s silverware in 1995, including IMS and CHS overall prizes and line honours.

Not since Jolie Brise in the first race in 1925 has any yacht secured the ‘triple’ ie overall and line honours plus setting a new record. For example Nicorette’s time of 2d 21h 13m was well outside the race record of 2d 12h 41m set a decade previously by Marvin Green’s maxi Nirvana.

For this year’s historic 50th Rolex Fastnet Race the environment seems right for a yacht to achieve the ‘triple’. Firstly there needs to be a stand-out line honours winner. In recent years for example one of the race’s fastest boat, the Askew brother’s modified VO70 Wizard won overall in 2019 but line honours went for a second consecutive occasion to George David’s Rambler 88. Similarly in 2003, Charles Dunstone's maxi Nokia-Connecting People won the overall prize but was beaten on the water by Neville Crichton's longer maxi Alfa Romeo 1. Then conditions must favour the faster boats with the wind turning light later in the race.

Lucky (ex-Rambler 88) is well suited to tackling the brutal conditions Rolex Fastnet Race competitors can face © ROLEX/Carlo Borlenghi

For 2023 there is a stand-out line honours monohull winner in Lucky, the former Rambler 88, now being campaigned by American Bryan Ehrhart. Her nearest competition, depending upon conditions, will be Peter Morton's Maxi 72 Notorious or the two VO70s Il Mostro and HYPR.

For Ehrhart, this will be his fourth attempt to win the Rolex Fastnet Race, following his first aboard a TP52 in 2009 when he was 30th overall and his last in 2019, aboard a Maxi 72, finishing 15th overall. He admits that in the TP52 the race was a little premature for their campaign while in 2019 they had had to nurse the boat round the course in the brisk conditions. In 2015 his 63 footer achieved great success winning that year’s west to east transatlantic race, but her race around the rock came to an abrupt end on the Shingles. As Ehrhart recalls: “We managed to end up on what on the physical chart was called ‘the Trap’. You would think a sophisticated navigation system might have prevented us from going in there!”

So what is the attraction to Ehrhart of the Rolex Fastnet Race? “It is certainly one of the world’s classics and that is the reason I have been interested in it since I got into offshore sailing - to do the classics and do them well. I have done it three times and I have never done it well, which is why I am back for a fourth time.” Graduating up to his present canting keel 88 footer, offers Ehrhart a boat better optimised for racing offshore and competitive and seaworthy in a wider range of conditions. On board will be many of George David’s former crew, led by Brad Butterworth and packed with America’s Cup and Volvo Ocean Race legends. “They are fantastic sailors. The systems on this boat are complex - definitely an exponential change from the 72 - and it takes really intelligence people to make it do what it can do best. They are full of the knowledge of what it should do and the experience of what it can do.”

Skorpios and Rambler 88 were line honours favourites in the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race © ROLEX/Carlo Borlenghi

In terms of the remote possibility of becoming the first to score the triple since 1925: the record for the present course finishing in Cherbourg was set in 2021 by the ClubSwan 125 Skorpios with a time of 56 hours 33 minutes and 55 seconds. The record for the previous route finishing in Plymouth was set in 2011 by the VO70 Abu Dhabi but this course was 90 miles shorter. Comparing like with like, Skorpios completed the course at an average speed of 12.3 knots compared to Abu Dhabi’s 14.19. To better Abu Dhabi’s average speed for the original course, the monohull line honours winner would have to reach Cherbourg within 49 hours this year.

Over the years some of the world's most significant racing yachts have claimed line honours in the Rolex Fastnet Race. For example in this historic 50th edition, Kialoa II is competing; the predecessor of Jim Kilroy’s Kialoa III which won line honours in 1975. But in terms of outstanding historic line honours winners few surpass the remarkable Stormvogel. Dutch plywood pioneer Cornelius Bruynzeel launched his, for the time, radical 74ft ketch in South Africa only on 3 May 1961. Her shakedown cruise was her delivery to the UK where she not just competed, but won line honours in that August’s Fastnet Race with one Francis Chichester navigating. Stormvogel returned to compete in the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race, celebrating the 60th anniversary of her victory and the image of her hard pressed in the brutal conditions leaving the Solent were one of the top take-aways from that race. Stormvogel returns for this year’s special 50th edition.

Clearly the race is special for the boat, as Ermanno Traverso, the yacht’s custodian since 1982 observes: “The Fastnet was the first race that Stormvogel ever did and she won line honours. It was a complicated race. It was like my early days of sailing around the world in the 1980s, with just a sextant and barometer.” Having owned and raced Stormvogel for more than four decades during Traverso’s tenure, she has undergone several refits which is why she not only appears immaculate, but judging from how she survived the 2021 race, is also just as strong as when she was first launched.

Despite her age, Stormvogel survived the brutal conditions exiting the Solent in 2021© ROLEX/Kurt Arrigo

“I really liked the race two years ago and this year is its 50th edition,” continues Traverso. “Plus I have a UK team and we are coming across to Cowes. I have done a number of ocean races and I love that environment.”

Perhaps most surprising is just how well Stormvogel competes under IRC. For example in the last Rolex Fastnet Race she finished an incredible 7th out of 271 in the full IRC fleet. On Sunday she won her class against several ‘modern classic’ maxis under IRC at Palmavela. “I think my competitors would be surprised!” refutes Traverso. “We are not surprised, because we have raced her a lot in the past - under IRC in Asia constantly against Swan 65s and 68s etc. We know that in certain conditions we are competitive and we know how to sail this boat in light air. And in certain conditions we can be very powerful.”

After four decades one can imagine Stormvogel holds few mysteries from her crew.

Stormvogel rounds the Fastnet Rock in the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race © ROLEX/Kurt Arrigo

1980-2000 coming soon

63rd ANNIVERSARY OFFICIAL SITE OF THE ROLEX CHINA SEA RACE Starts Wednesday 4 March 2026 2026年3月4日星期三开赛

BRYON EHRHART

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 31, 2024

Yachts collide at Herreshoff Classic

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The Lead - Bristol - Aug. 29

American Eagle (left) and Courageous speed neck and neck by the Hog Island Lighthouse during the second race.

The 2024 Herreshoff Classic Yacht Regatta, held Friday, Aug. 23 through Sunday, Aug. 25, looked like it was going to get off to a slow start. Bill Lynn, Executive Director of the Herreshoff Marine Museum, was anchored off Gould Island midday Friday, wondering if the wind was going to fill in enough for the feeder race from Newport to Bristol. Thankfully it did, and Saturday and Sunday too, as forecast. “We got so lucky with the weather,” said Lynn. “We got away with it again.” Following the successful conclusion of the feeder race, competitors and guests enjoyed a Living Boat Show and reception on the Herreshoff docks. More racing followed Saturday and Sunday, with prizes and a barbecue on Saturday evening. “We had five really nice races over three days, really gorgeous, spectacular boats,” said Lynn.

Collision sends American Eagle packing The otherwise great event included one significant low point on Sunday morning when Courageous collided with American Eagle near the middle ground buoy in Bristol Harbor, leaving a roughly 2’ by 4’ gash on Eagle’s port side, forcing Eagle to retire from the race (and the 2024 sailing season.). Friday’s Newport to Bristol feeder race saw Gleam take the top spot in Class 1, while Gamecock won Class 2. With the full fleet assembled for Saturday, boats (and winners) were divided into 6 divisions: Vintage (Gamecock), Classic (American Eagle), Modern Classic (Courageous), Spirit of Tradition (Van Ki Pass), S Class (Aquita), and 15’ Class (Murmer). Sunday’s results are pending the outcome of the protest hearing.

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Fourth time lucky for 50th Rolex Fastnet Race monohull line honours?

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Rolex Fastnet Race features record fleet

July 19, 2023

The Rolex Fastnet Race features its largest entry list to date, with close to 500 boats seeking to sail 695nm from Cowes to Cherbourg via the Fastnet Rock in the 50th edition of the offshore classic.

Rolex Fastnet Race, record fleet, Cowes, Cherbourg, Fastnet Rock, 50th, 500, yachts, Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, July 22, Royal Ocean Racing Club, RORC, Ultime trimarans, Vendée Globe, Ocean Race, Bryon Ehrhart, Lucky, Peter Morton, Maxi 72, Notorious, Japan, Kojiro Shiraishi, DMG Mori Global One, IMOCA 60, Zoë d’Ornano, Lay Koon Tan, Tall Ships Youth Trust, TSYT, Challenger, Paddy Broughton, Kialoa II, Jim Kilroy, Sydney, Rolex Sydney Hobart

Cowes hosts the race start on July 22

Starting in Cowes on the Isle of Wight off England’s south coast, the 50th edition of the biennial Rolex Fastnet Race features a record entry list, with over 490 boats signed up. Setting off on July 22 in eight starts separated by 20-minute intervals, the fleet is set to smash the previous record set in 2019 when the biennial race featured 388 yachts and was the last edition to finish in Plymouth.

This year’s race will again feature a 695nm course heading west to round the Fastnet Rock – Ireland’s most southernmost point – before turning back and heading to Cherbourg-en-Cotentin in northern France, which hosted the finale for the first time in 2021 when 363 yachts competed.

The 695nm race will finish in Cherbourg for a second edition

First held in 1925, the Rolex Fastnet Race – the flagship event of the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) – has by far the biggest fleet among all the world’s classic offshore races and this year is expected to feature over 3,000 sailors from over 30 countries including Japan.

Entries includes the world’s fastest offshore racing yachts, the giant flying Ultime trimarans, as well as about 30 IMOCAs as used in the Vendée Globe and the present Ocean Race, along with privately owned racing machines including Bryon Ehrhart’s 88ft Lucky and Peter Morton’s Maxi 72 Notorious .

Yachts exit The Solent and pass The Needles

French teams again make up the majority of the IMOCA 60 class, which also features leading competitors from the UK and across Europe, while Japan’s Kojiro Shiraishi will compete on DMG Mori Global One , launched in 2019.

Shiraishi sailed the VPLP design to 10th place in the 2020 Vendée Arctique before finishing 16th in the 2020-21 Vendée Globe after sailing solo around the world for almost 95 days. Now 56, the Japanese is competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race for the first time and will sail with French sailor Thierry Duprey du Vorsent.

Kojiro Shiraishi will make his Rolex Fastnet Race debut

“This is my first participation in the race and it’s an honour to be part of it. It will be a great test for myself and to see the new performance of the boat,” said Shiraishi, who said the boat’s modifications over the winter included a new bow and foils.

“It’s such a mythical race with such a rich history, while the 50 th edition makes it more special. I’m looking forward to the start with many boats around, so I hope to start well. It will be an honour for us

to sail past the RORC clubhouse.

Shiraishi will compete on DMG Mori Global One

“I’ve rounded the Fastnet once, but it was nighttime and I could only see the light of the lighthouse, so I’m hoping to see the Fastnet Rock in daylight!”

Meanwhile, teenager Zoë d’Ornano – daughter of Malaysia-born Lay Koon Tan – is again competing with her parents on one of the Tall Ships Youth Trust (TSYT) boats. Two years ago, Zoë, then 12, was the youngest sailor in the race and raised £10,550 to give 12 disadvantaged young people a life changing voyage with TSYT.

Tall Ships Youth Trust has entered three 72ft boats

This year, the youth development sail training charity has entered three of its 72ft Challenger yachts, with Zoë sailing with her parents on one of two boats crewed by adults, who are fundraising to enable a crew of young people aged 16-25 to sail on the third yacht.

“We’ve met the youngsters who’ve been selected and they come from challenging backgrounds,” said Zoë’s mother, Lay Koon Tan.

The IRC fleet competing for the race’s historic top prize, the Fastnet Challenge Cup, features about 370 yachts, making it one of the biggest races ever held under IRC in the 23-year existence of the RORC/UNCL’s rating rule.

For this special edition, entries are coming from across the globe, but few are making a greater effort than Paddy Broughton and his crew on the 73ft maxi yawl Kialoa II . Originally raced by the great maxi yacht campaigner Jim Kilroy from 1963-74, Kialoa II was second home in the 1969 Fastnet Race.

Launched in 1963, Kialoa II has sailed from Sydney to compete

Since 2016 the yacht has been owned by English brothers Paddy and Keith Broughton who have sought to recreate Kilroy’s globe-trotting race programme. She competed in the 2017 Rolex Fastnet Race, while in 2019 she competed in the 50th Transpac and 75th Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.

After competing in the Rolex Sydney Hobart last December, Kialoa II has since been delivered from Sydney, all the way across the Pacific, through the Panama Canal and Caribbean, then across the Atlantic to the UK on her own bottom, a Kilroy tradition.

Yachts pass the Fastnet Rock in Ireland

“The Rolex Fastnet Race is one of the great ocean races, along with our own Rolex Sydney Hobart,” says Paddy Broughton, now also of Australian nationality.

“Tactically, because of the tides and course, it’s probably the most difficult – a real challenge. We really wanted her to be part of RORC’s 50 th Rolex Fastnet Race celebrations and have sailed from Sydney to do so.”

www.rolexfastnetrace.com

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NZ replacing part of yacht's hull after it was dropped by crane on first day of America's Cup

Barcelona, Spain — Emirates Team New Zealand worked on Friday to replace a piece of the hull of its yacht that was damaged in a crane incident after its first warmup race at the America’s Cup .

The mishap happened late on Thursday when the 75-foot yacht named “Taihoro” was being removed from the water after racing.

Team leader Grant Dalton said the multimillion-dollar boat fell some six meters (20 feet) onto the support cradle at their team base inside Barcelona’s old port. Dalton said the impact sounded “like a bomb went off.” The boat was eventually lifted to get the tips of its critically important hydrofoils off the concrete ground.

On Thursday, Dalton believed the repair job could keep his defending champion team sidelined throughout the double round-robin phase that lasts through next week.

But less than 24 hours later, Dalton said enough work was done overnight to give him hope they could be back on the water sooner than he expected.

“It’s possible that we could be back out by tomorrow,” the CEO of the team and race said.

“We're pretty lucky. If it had fallen 200 millimeters to either side it could have been a whole bunch worse, but it fell into the cradle, perfectly into the cradle,” he said. “The guys have literally cut out a hole, it looks like the Titanic.”

Missing any racing time is a setback, but it should be manageable as long as the boat can be refitted in the coming days or even weeks since as defending champions the Kiwis are guaranteed a spot in the finals in October.

The incident means New Zealand didn't participate in the two warmup races it was scheduled for on Friday. That won’t impact the standings since its races don’t count; they are essentially only for practice to keep the team sharp for the final.

One of those races was against INEOS Britannia, which according to the rules had to start the race even though its rival couldn't.

“We were obviously very worried that someone had gotten hurt initially, so we are very happy that everyone was safe,” INEOS helmsman Dylan Fletcher told The Associated Press about how he saw the Kiwis' crane incident.

“You don’t really wish anyone to have bad luck or anything like that to go wrong because you just want to beat them because you're better.”

American Magic got its first point and handed Switzerland's Alinghi Red Bull Racing a second straight defeat after a race where both teams struggled to find wind and spent long periods of time becalmed. The race control shortened the race from six to four legs to keep it from dragging on. It still lasted 31 minutes.

“It wasn’t pretty at all. It’s just tough conditions,” American Magic helmsman Tom Slingsby said. “I would have loved to foil across the line, but we just did what we had to do to get the win.”

The light winds forced the postponement of the Americans' scheduled race against Italy’s Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli later Friday.

One of the five challengers will be eliminated after the opening phase before the final four go to semifinals.

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Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2024

Mister Lucky (TH)

Rohan Wood returns for his second attempt at the two-handed division in this year’s race. His Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600 first competed in the Hobart in 2017, before Wood competed in the 2018 Melbourne to Osaka Yacht Race, finishing 5th overall. After finishing 13th in the 2-handed IRC division last year, Wood will be hoping for a stronger result this year.

Competitor Details

Yacht Name	Mister Lucky (TH)
Sail Number	RQ3600
Owner	Rohan Wood
Skipper	Rohan Wood (9) / Mark Hipgrave (8)
State	QLD
Club	RQYS
Type	Jeanneau Sun Fast 3600
Designer	Andrieu Yacht Design
Builder	Jeanneau
Construction	GRP
LOA	10.8
Beam	3.6
Draft	2.1

OFFICIAL ROLEX SYDNEY HOBART MERCHANDISE

Shop the official clothing range of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race and the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia in person at the Club in New South Head Road, Darling Point or online below.

From casual to technical clothing, there is something for all occasions. Be quick as stock is limited!

Lim’s Bighorn is a shoo-in in lucky last

Luckless at his recent runs, Group 2 winner will find this Class 4 Division 1 contest easier

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Lim’s Bighorn has not lived up to his Group 2 billing at his last three starts, but he did have excuses.

Maybe beating the widest alley to scrape home in the Group 2 Singapore 3YO Classic (1,400m) took something out of him.

There was also the Lim’s Kosciuszko-Lim’s Saltoro crest of a wave he was riding on.

But, truth be told, the only similarity he shares with his illustrious stablemates is the set of silks and being named after a mountain.

A budding champion he was not when he was gobbled up at the 200m of the Group 2 Singapore Guineas (1,600m) but, chances are, he did not see out the trip and burned up too much petrol early.

Trainer Daniel Meagher wisely tipped the son of Better Than Ready out, but he did return for one last crack as a three-year-old in a Class 4 (1,200m) event on July 28. He was caught three wide, but dug deep under the 59kg crushing his 475kg frame, only to be nabbed late by the erratic Stenmark.

Sept 1 SA (Scottsville) form analysis

Related stories, trainer lim stays in full command to the very end, aug 31 south africa (durbanville/turffontein) form analysis, betway summer cup even hotter.

At his last start, he rose in grade in a Class 3 Div 1 race (1,200m).

With regular partner Marc Lerner unable to ride at 53kg, the reins were handed to Wong Chin Chuen.

Lim’s Bighorn powered to his favourite spot in front, but was no match for the big guns Mt Niseko and Asif, and class riser but stunning winner, Big Union.

A return to the easier Class 4 Division 1 (1,200m) – which is probably his mark – in Race 10 on Sept 1 should put him in good stead.

All-the-way last-start winner Last Samurai is the only one who can beat him for speed, especially over the course and distance, but he has drawn to his outside in six.

Any early taunting from either party is unlikely, given they will probably be first and second elects.

But, should they get locked in battle inside the first 200m and, with both shouldering 59kg, Last Samurai may blink first. The heaviest the US-bred carried at his five wins was 57kg while Lim’s Bighorn won once with 59kg.

Despite being the elder statesman of champion trainer Jason Ong’s armada of 43 horses, Per Incrown is still racing with great zest.

The strong finisher ran third at his last three starts, the latest coming in a Class 4 (1,200m) race on Aug 25. If Ong has backed him up, it means the sprightly nine-year-old would rather not take naps.

Stablemate War Star is also back after a one-paced sixth in a Polytrack 1,000m race on Aug 25.

The four-year-old chestnut may have been left with too much to do. From barrier No. 2, apprentice Jerlyn Seow will be able to track into the leaders’ slipstream this time.

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Luxury yachts and other myths: How Republican lawmakers echo Russian propaganda

A woman examines the rubble of a destroyed building

Two senior Republican lawmakers, the chairs of the House Intelligence and Foreign Affairs committees, say their colleagues are echoing Russian state propaganda against Ukraine.

Researchers who study disinformation say Reps. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and Michael McCaul, R-Texas, are merely acknowledging what has been clear for some time: Russian propaganda aimed at undermining U.S. and European support for Ukraine has steadily seeped into America’s political conversation over the past decade, taking on a life of its own.

McCaul, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told Puck News he thinks “Russian propaganda has made its way into the United States, unfortunately, and it’s infected a good chunk of my party’s base.”

Turner, chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, told CNN that anti-Ukraine messages from Russia are “being uttered on the House floor.”

Reps. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, and Mike Turner, R-Ohio, leave a House Republican Conference candidate forum

For the past decade, since Russia’s first military incursion into Ukraine in 2014, Moscow has spread propaganda and disinformation in a bid to undercut U.S. and European military support for Ukraine, according to U.S. and Western officials.

Some of the arguments, distortions and falsehoods spread by Russia have taken root, mostly among right-wing pro-Trump outlets and Republican politicians, researchers say, including that Ukraine’s government is too corrupt to benefit from Western aid and that the Biden family has alleged corrupt ties to Ukraine.

Russia, in keeping with traditional propaganda techniques, seeks to make its case and tarnish Ukraine through a mixture of outright falsehoods, half-truths, inferences or simply amplifying and promoting arguments already being made by American or European commentators and politicians, researchers say.

The propaganda is sometimes spread covertly, through fake online accounts, or openly by Russian officials and state media. As a result, the origin of some allegations or criticisms is often opaque, especially when a certain accusation or perception has gained wide acceptance, leaving no clear fingerprints.

Early in the war, a false story boosted by Russian propaganda — that the U.S. had helped Ukraine build biological weapons labs — gained traction on right-wing social media and was touted by then-Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

Russia also is conducting a parallel propaganda campaign in Europe. Belgium’s prime minister said Thursday that his government is investigating alleged Russian bribes to members of the European Parliament as part of Moscow’s campaign to undermine support for Ukraine. Czech law enforcement officials last month alleged that a former pro-Russian member of Ukraine’s parliament, Viktor Medvedchuk, was behind a Prague-based Russian propaganda network designed to promote opposition to aiding Ukraine.

Here are some examples of Republican lawmakers using arguments often promoted by Russian propaganda:

Buying yachts

When Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with members of Congress behind closed doors in December to appeal for more U.S. help for his country’s troops, some lawmakers raised questions about Ukraine allegedly buying yachts with American aid money.

Zelenskyy made clear that was not the case, according to Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a strong supporter of arming Ukraine. “I think the notion of corruption came up because some have said we can’t do it, because people will buy yachts with the money,” Tillis told CNN. “[Zelenskyy] disabused people of those notions.”

Where did the yacht rumor come from?

Pro-Russian actors and websites promoted a narrative alleging Zelenskyy bought two superyachts with U.S. aid dollars. One Russia-based propaganda site, DC Weekly , published a story last November that included photos of two luxury yachts, called Lucky Me and My Legacy , which it alleged were bought for $75 million.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., a vocal opponent of military aid to Ukraine, in November retweeted a post about the alleged yacht purchase from the Strategic Culture Foundation, a Russian-based propaganda outlet directed by Russia’s intelligence services, according to the Treasury Department. The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the organization, accusing it of spreading disinformation and interfering in U.S. elections.

Another outspoken critic of aid to Ukraine, Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio, also made a similar claim.

In a December interview with former President Donald Trump’s White House adviser Steve Bannon, Vance claimed that members of Congress wanted to cut Social Security benefits to provide more aid to Ukraine, and that money would allegedly be used for Zelenskyy’s ministers to “buy a bigger yacht.”

“There are people who would cut Social Security, throw our grandparents into poverty. Why? So that one of Zelenskyy’s ministers can buy a bigger yacht?” Vance said. “Kiss my ass, Steve. It’s not happening.”

Donald Trump looks as J.D. Vance speaks.

The tale of Zelenskyy’s luxury yacht, however, turned out to be totally false . The yachts cited in the DC Weekly article remain up for sale , the owners told The Associated Press.

Two academics at Clemson University, disinformation researchers Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren, found that DC Weekly ran numerous stories copied from other sites that were rewritten by artificial intelligence engines. The articles had bylines with fake names along with headshots copied from other online sites. DC Weekly appeared to be a Russian effort to launder false information through a seemingly legitimate news site as part of an attempt to undermine U.S. support for Ukraine, according to the researchers .

Asked by reporters about Vance’s comments, Tillis said: “I think it’s bullshit. ...If you’re talking about giving money to Ukrainian ministers — total and unmitigated bullshit.”

Greene’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Vance’s spokesperson said the senator was making a rhetorical point about how he opposed sending U.S. assistance to what he sees as a corrupt country, but was not asserting the yacht stories online were accurate.

Vance’s office referred NBC News to an earlier response to the BBC on the same topic:

“For years, everyone in the West recognized that Ukraine was one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Somehow everyone forgot that just as we started sending them billions of dollars in foreign aid.”

Enabling ‘corruption’

Russian state media for years has painted Ukraine as deeply corrupt, and has argued that the U.S. and its allies are wasting money and military hardware by assisting such an allegedly corrupt government.

“This is absolutely a line that they have pushed, and then once it appears in the Western ecosystem, other [Russian] media picks it up and it gets recycled back,” said Bret Schafer, a senior fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy.

This line of argument has gained traction partly because Ukraine does face a genuine corruption problem.

Russia’s effort to focus attention on corruption in Ukraine reflects a long-established propaganda method of using facts or partial truths to anchor a broader assertion or accusation, sometimes making a leap in logic, Schafer and other researchers said. Russia’s message amounts to: Ukraine is corrupt, therefore U.S. and Western aid will be stolen and wasted.

Schafer said it was ironic for Russia, a country mired in corruption and kleptocracy, to be leveling accusations about corruption.

Republican Rep. Mary Miller has said she strongly opposes more assistance for Ukraine because it amounts to sending cash to “corrupt oligarchs.”

“With Zelensky coming to DC this week to ask for more money, I will continue to vote AGAINST sending your tax $$ to corrupt oligarchs in Ukraine for a proxy war that could have ended in ‘22,” Miller wrote in a post on X in December.

The Illinois lawmaker also echoed another assertion that often appears in Russian media, that the Biden administration allegedly undermined efforts by Russia to avoid war with Ukraine.

“A peace deal was on the table that [Ukraine] and [Russia] were both ready to sign, but Biden said NO,” she wrote.

There was in fact no proposed peace agreement that Russia and Ukraine were prepared to sign before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to U.S. and European officials. As Russian troops massed on the border of Ukraine, Western governments urged Russia not to invade and warned there would be economic and diplomatic consequences.

Reuters has reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected a possible deal to avert a war that had been discussed with Kyiv by Russia’s envoy to Ukraine. The Kremlin said the report was inaccurate and has said Russia tried for years to arrive at an understanding with Ukraine.

As for corruption in Ukraine, Zelenskyy has vowed to tackle the problem, sacking senior officials in some recent cases. But some civil society groups have criticized his approach and Ukrainians say corruption is the country’s second-most serious problem, after the Russian invasion, according to a poll conducted last year.

In an annual survey, Transparency International said Ukraine made progress toward addressing the issue and now ranks 104th out of 180 countries on its Corruption Perceptions Index , climbing 12 places up from its previous ranking.

Ukraine is not alone among countries that receive U.S. and other foreign aid but struggle with corruption. Supporters of assisting Ukraine argue it would undermine America’s influence in the world and its humanitarian efforts if Washington withheld foreign aid from every country where there were reports of corruption.

Miller’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

The Biden family and Ukraine

Republicans have repeatedly alleged that President Joe Biden and his son Hunter have corrupt ties to Ukraine, and that they sought $5 million in bribes from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma to protect the firm from an investigation by Ukraine’s prosecutor general.

There is no credible evidence for the allegations. A key source for the accusations against the Bidens is a former FBI informant, Alexander Smirnov, who was arrested in February on federal charges of fabricating the bribery claims. Smirnov says he was fed information by Russian intelligence.

Republicans had heavily promoted Smirnov’s allegations against the Bidens, seeing them as crucial to a planned impeachment effort against the president that has since fizzled .

“In my estimation, that is probably the clearest example of Russian propaganda working its way into the American political system,” said Emerson Brooking, a resident senior fellow at the Digital Forensic Research Lab of the Atlantic Council.

GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona cited the false bribery allegations in expressing his opposition to providing assistance to Ukraine.

“In exchange for … bribe money from Ukraine, Joe Biden has dished out over $100 billion in taxpayer money to fund the war in Ukraine. I will not assist this corruption by sending more money to the authoritarian Ukrainian regime,” Gosar said in a statement in October.

Gosar’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Dan De Luce is a reporter for the NBC News Investigative Unit.

Syedah Asghar is a Capitol Hill researcher for NBC News and is based in Washington, D.C.

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LUCKY, Bryon Ehrhart - Photo credit Rolex Rene Rossignaud. October 29, 2010. Written by Chelsea Smith. This image is featured as part of the article Rolex Middle Sea Race Class Winners Confirmed.. LUCKY, Bryon Ehrhart - Photo credit Rolex Rene Rossignaud.
Reichel/Pugh Yacht Design · Transatlantic Race: Bryon Ehrhart's Lucky
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The next day, it was picked up by a site called DC Weekly, alongside pictures of the two yachts - called Lucky Me and My Legacy - and documents purportedly confirming the sale of the boats to ...
Home
The Lake Sunapee Star Fleet is an active organization hosted by Lake Sunapee Yacht Club with weekly racing throughout the summer and an end of the year regatta that is open to both members and non-members. Learn More. Address 34 STONE END RD, PO BOX 329, SUNAPEE, NH 03782
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