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First Team Regatta
a
battle of eras in big boat sailing
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June
5, 2007
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NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. —The past, present
and future of big boat
grandeur on the West Coast of the U.S. will be on competitive
display in the second biennial First Team Real Estate Invitational
Regatta for the Hoag Cup Friday through Sunday.
The schedule calls for five races around a closed course---two
Friday, two Saturday and one Sunday---starting at 1 p.m., conditions
permitting. Racing may be viewed from the Newport Pier, the beach
or spectator boats, a rare opportunity for this level of sailing seldom
seen this close to shore.
The organizing Balboa and Newport Harbor Yacht Clubs have
assembled a lineup of 15 boats that marks historic leaps from wood
to fiberglass to carbon fiber and canting keels: at one end of the
scale Ragtime, winner of consecutive Transpacific Yacht Races in
1973 and '75, plus three ULDB 70 "sleds" from the 80s and 90s, and
at the top end Magnitude 80, which this year shattered the 22-
year- old record for the Marina del Rey to Puerto Vallarta race.
This will be a marked change of pace for some of them.
Doug Baker, Magnitude 80's Long Beach-based owner-skipper, said,
"Buoy racing in these boats is not always easy if there's a lot of
traffic, and they want traffic because it's good for the spectators.
Caution is the byword [with] a lot of big fast boats, and when you're
racing around the buoys things can happen pretty quickly, so you
need to be on your toes."
The tight maneuvering also requires more manpower.
"We'll probably have 20 people on the boat, while for Transpac we'll
have 14," Baker said. "You need four grinders when you're going
around the buoys. It's not our usual thing, but I'm looking forward to
it."
Another entry brings a social statement for sailboat racing.
Morning Light, a Transpac 52,
will be raced by a crew of
15 young men and women selected from 538 applicants
to sail Transpac this summer as part of a documentary
theater film being produced by Roy E. Disney, the Class
1 winner in 2005 who is honorary chairman this time.
Other top competitors include Oscar Krinsky and Chris
Redman's
1D48, Chayah, which won Class 3 in the inaugural First Team
Regatta in 2005, and Doug Ayres' Santa Cruz 70, Skylark, third in
Class 2.
Ragtime's latest owner is Chris Welsh of Newport Beach.
Theoretically, with ORR handicap ratings computed, his 42-year- old
classic will be racing on even terms where finishing first isn't as
important as correcting out on handicap time. Mag 80, for example,
will be giving everybody time, although specific ratings are as yet
undetermined.
Three rivals are new boats that hit the water just this year with
familiar names but new manifestations. Two years ago Roger
Sturgeon's Rosebud was a Transpac 52 that finished second in
Class 2; this time it's an STP 65 in its maiden regatta.
Jim Madden, the event chairman this year, raced a J/145 called
Stark Raving Mad in Class 3; now it's Stark Raving Mad III, a
Reichel/Pugh 66 competing at a higher level.
In 2005 Lew Beery of Balboa sailed a different It's OK, a 1D48, to
second place behind Chayah; now it's an Andrews 50 with Beery
taking on local veterans Andy Rose and Tom
Purcell as co-owners under the flag of Tres Gordos Sailing LLC.
The new It's OK may be a cut apart from its rivals.
"All the other boats we’re going to
be racing against are stripped
out," Beery said. "But my partner, Andy Rose, said if I'm gonna build
a boat it's gonna have comfort. We have hot and cold running water,
a shower, a refrigeration unit, a microwave, a dinette and everything.
It's a comfortable boat."
Normally, adding the weight of such luxuries would mean sacrificing
speed for comfort. They aren't likely to need a dinette this weekend.
"We built it for the [overnight] Mexican races and Transpac," Beery
said. "[So far] we find it's very good at running [downwind] and
reaching"---but maybe not so good upwind, which is called for about
half the time in this event.
"We have no idea at all how we'll do," Beery said.
The collaborative effort among First Team Real Estate, Hoag
Hospital Foundation, Newport Harbor Yacht Club and Balboa Yacht
Club will benefit Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute, which realized
more than $250,000 net proceeds from the 2005 regatta.
As the facilitating yacht clubs, Newport Harbor and Balboa YCs will
provide on- the-water race management. First Team Real Estate is
the title sponsor. Other sponsors include Accretive, Bank of
America, Countrywide, Warmington Homes, Wells Fargo Bank,
Mellon Bank and MKA Capital. West Marine is also a supporter.
More information: www.firstteamregatta.com
About Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian
Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian
(www.hoaghospital.org) is a 511-bed, not-
for- profit, acute care hospital located in Newport Beach, Calif. Fully accredited by
the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) and
designated as a Magnet hospital by the American Nurses Credentialing Center
(ANCC), Hoag offers a comprehensive mix of health care services, including
Centers of Excellence in cancer, heart and vascular, neurosciences, orthopedics
and women’s health services. A recent study released by HealthGrades placed
Hoag among the top 5% of hospitals in the nation and a recipient of the 2007
Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence. National Research
Corporation has endorsed Hoag as Orange County’s most preferred hospital for
the past 10 consecutive years. And for an unprecedented 11 years, residents of
Orange County have chosen Hoag as the county’s best hospital in a local
newspaper survey.
About First Team Real
Estate
As the number one independent in California,
First Team Real Estate is one of the
largest privately held real estate companies in the country. According to the last
National Real Estate and Relocation Magazine Power Broker Report, First Team is
the #11 independent real estate company in the nation for overall sales. Founded
in 1976 with five agents in one office, First Team is now home to over 2,000 sales
associates and over 300 employees in 38 offices across the region.
General Media ContactAmy McKibbin, Hoag Hospital
949/244-3234
Rich Roberts, Press Officer
310/835-2526
cell 310/766-6547
richsail@earthlink.net
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Newport Pier spectators have
a front row seat for the racing
Magnitude 80 arrives on a roll
Ragtime blasting from
the past
A new It's OK tests the water
(starting Friday
night)
Event information
Visit
the title sponsor
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2007 entries to date
(Divisions to be determined)
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Chayah (1D48), Oscar
Krinsky/ChrisRedman, Long Beach
Grand Illusion (SC 70), Patrick
O'Brien/Ed McDowell, Redondo Beach,
Calif.
Holua (SC 70), Brack Duker, Marina
del Rey, Calif.
It's OK (Andrews 50), Tres Gordos
Sailing, Balboa, Calif.
Magnitude 80 (Andrews 80), Doug
Baker, Long Beach
Morning Light (Transpac 52),
Jeremy Wilmot, Waikiki, H.I.
Peligroso (Kernan 68), Mike
Campbell/Dale Williams, Long Beach
Pendragon IV (Davidson 52), John
MacLaurin, Encino, Calif.
Ragtime (Spencer 65), Chris Welsh,
Honolulu, H.I.
Rosebud (STP 65), Roger Sturgeon,
Hyannis, Mass.
Skylark (SC 70), Doug Ayres,
Newport Beach, Calif.
Stark Raving Mad III (Reichel/Pugh
66), Oyster Bay, N.Y.
Trader (Transpac 52), Fred Detwiler,
Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
Valkyrie (DK 46), Andy and Camille
Rasdal, San Diego
Vicki (Andrews 68), Al and Vicki
Schultz, Long Beach
Westerly (SC 70), Tim and Tom
Hogan, Newport Beach, Calif.
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TRANSPAC RACE STATUS
