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T
r a n s p a c 2 0 0 7
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44th Transpacific Yacht Race
Starts July 9, 12 and 15, 2007
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Los Angeles to Honolulu
2,225 nautical miles
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A
second century of sailing across the Pacific
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Nov. 13 , 2006
NOR up, entries open; sat tracking,
STP 65 new in 2007
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The TP 52 Morning Light (formerly
Pegasus) is ready for Transpac 2007
New look for Transpac:
Storm Trysail 65
2005 Under The Sun Photo
Gallery
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LOS ANGELES —The Notice of Race for the 44th Transpacific Yacht
Race from Los Angeles to Honolulu next summer has been posted at
www.transpacificyc.orgalong with
an online entry program.
Entries may be submitted after clicking "On Line Login" on the left
side of the home page.
Significant changes for this race include the addition of the STP 65, a
"box" rule class, and a reduction in the minimum length of monohulls
from 30 to 26 feet, plus satellite tracking by Flagship (details in next
item below).
One assured entry is Roger Sturgeon's new STP 65, Rosebud,
currently under construction as a successor to Sturgeon's Transpac
52 of the same name that in 2005 won the Governor of Hawaii Canoe
and King Kalakaua Perpetual
Trophy for first place overall on corrected handicap time.
The Storm Trysail Club, based in Larchmont, N.Y., partnered with
Transpacific Yacht Club to refine the Storm Trysail 65 box rule, which
was introduced last summer and modified to become the Storm
Trysail Transpac 65 (STP65) Rule.
Storm Trysail Club Commodore Rich du Moulin said, “The obvious
benefit of a ‘box’ design rule---one that limits factors such as length,
minimum displacement, draft, sail area, etc.---is that it maximizes
performance. Perhaps more important, however, is that it promotes
very similar yachts which makes for fantastic racing, and creates a
boat that stands up to the test of time rather than one that has a brief
competitive racing life."
TPYC Commodore Al Garnier, noting the enormous success of the
Transpac 52 worldwide, said, "In 2005 it was recommended that we
move up in range to the 65-foot class, with the main requirement that
the boat also meet the needs of West Coast owners."
The STP65 is a high-performance 65-footer with all the modern racing
amenities and a standard underwater package, meaning no canting
keel, just a “lifting” keel and standard rudder configuration.
Bill Lee, Transpac race entry chairman and a leader in ultralight
design, said, “The boat should begin planing slightly earlier than the
TP52, yet have very similar upwind stability numbers.”
Lee participated with a consortium of designers in streamlining the
original Storm Trysail 65 Rule.
The NOR also notes the early entry deadline of March 9 for
discounted fees and contains a schedule of key events leading up to
the race in July, starting with the Orange Coast College Safety at Sea
Seminar Jan. 13.
A new 'voice' for Transpac as tracking kicks in The Transpacific Yacht
Race's adaptation to satellite tracking of boats follows the recent
passing of Grant Baldwin, the "radio voice of Transpac," but his
tradition will live on.
Baldwin died in July a year after serving as communications officer for
his 14th Transpac over 26 years. In 2007 he will be replaced by David
Lee aboard the sailing vessel Alaska Eagle that accompanies the
fleet, but the job description will be updated by the advance of
technology in Transpac's second century.
Now that Transpac has signed an agreement with FIS Tracking LLC
for its Flagship race tracking services, instead of the communications
officer recording each boat's reported position by hand in daily
morning roll calls, positions will be marked every four hours by
satellite reception from transponders mounted on each boat. However,
Lee will continue to perform the usual morning roll calls to exchange
other pertinent information, such as weather updates.
Transpac Commodore Al Garnier said, "We will know where the boats
are every four hours, but I see the new system as expediting the time
the navigators will need to be on the radio waiting to report their
positions."
The information will be integrated into fleet standings automatically
computed by an upgraded scoring program. The tracking reports will
be publicly available worldwide on the Internet. Boats without Internet
capability may receive the reports by radio at the morning roll call.
For a quarter century Baldwin's voice---deep, measured, clear and, in
times of stress, reassuring---was the only official outside contact for
competitors visually alone in the vast Pacific. Lee, who accompanied
Baldwin aboard Alaska Eagle in the 2003 race, hopes to follow that
tradition.
Brad Avery, director of the Orange Coast College School of Sailing &
Seamanship that owns Alaska Eagle, said of Lee, "He's been on the
boat, he's comfortable on a boat and he's great with people."
And Transpac competitors will get to know him well by the end of
their 2,225 nautical mile adventure, as Flagship marks their progress.
For the past 20 years, the Illinois-based Flagship Integration Services
Inc. has combined the smart use of emerging technologies with best
business practices to produce high-integrity, integrated solutions for
worldwide corporations.
Further, Gerard Wolf of Flagship said, "We are also sailors, we have
many years of sailing experience all over the world and the unique
combination of our racing and technological expertise has resulted in
us developing ideas for a better racing experience."
Morning Light crew and their TP 52 going to Hawaii
The Morning Light team's Transpac 52 of the same name is refitted
and repainted and will be shipped from San Diego to Hawaii Nov. 28
for crew training, a few days after the crew experiences Polynesian
sailing the old- fashioned way.
To get the feel of traditional Hawaiian sailing, the crew will sail a
Polynesian canoe called Hokule'a from Maui to Honolulu via Molokai
over Thanksgiving weekend this month. Click for much more about
Morning Light.
Later, the team of 13 men and two women---aiming to be the
youngest crew ever to sail Transpac---will race the boat to Hawaii next
summer in a project backed by Roy Disney to produce a
documentary theater film of their entire experience. The same boat,
then sailing as Pegasus under owner Philippe Kahn, finished second
overall in corrected handicap time in the 2005 Transpac.
COMMODORE
Al Garnier
(310) 600-0158
ENTRIES CHAIRMAN
Bill Lee
(831) 476-9639
PRESS OFFICER
Rich Roberts
(310) 835-2526
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TRANSPAC RACE STATUS
