Offshore racing action unfurls across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
by David Schmidt 16 Jul 2018 19:00 BST
July 16, 2018
The AAR fleet near the Bermuda start line, with Rambler 88 taking the lead in the Atlantic Anniversary Regatta © John Singleton
While the Volvo Ocean Race might have recently flaked their sails for the final time in the 2017/2018 edition, and while the Clipper Round The World Race has just one final leg (from Derry-Londonderry to Liverpool, which starts on July 22) to go in their 2017/2018 edition, this is an exciting time to follow offshore racing, as two important contests, the Atlantic Anniversary Regatta and the Pacific Cup, are currently unfurling. These races might be heading in opposite directions, but they are both presenting participants with plenty of adventure and challenge.
The Atlantic Anniversary Regatta began in November of 2017 with an east-to-west Atlantic crossing that took the fleet from Lanzarote Island to Grenada. This gave the 23 participating teams the opportunity to enjoy the full Caribbean racing and cruising season before heading back to the Continent on July 7 in a race that stretches from the island nation of Bermuda to Hamburg, Germany.
As of this writing, Jens Kellinghusen's Ker 56 Varuna (GER 7111) was leading the chase, followed by Boris Hermann's IMOCA 60 Mallzia Yacht Club Monaco and Eric de Turckheim's NMYD54 Teasing Machine, however the race has seen two high-profile retirements due to collisions with unidentified floating objects. These included George David's Juan K-designed Rambler 88, which was the line-honors favourite, and Mathias Müller von Blumencron's Class 40 Red.
Some 477 nautical miles separate Varuna's bow from the finishing line, a distance that won't last long given the boat's VMG of 15.7 knots (again, at the time of this writing), however the competition is poised to leap on any tactical errors that may occur. Stay tuned!
Meanwhile, on the West Coast, the final class to start this year's Pacific Cup, which runs from San Francisco, California, to Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Hawaii, using a pursuit-style format, began racing on (lucky) Friday, July 13. In total, 61 boats sailed westbound under the Golden Gate Bridge, with the country's prettiest city vanishing astern as their bows discovered the open-ocean conditions just beyond the Marin Headlands and Point Bonita Lighthouse, however two boats (Cetacea and Venture) were forced to retire from racing.
At the time of this writing, Charles Devanneaux's Figaro Beneteau 3 A Fond le Girafon was leading the charge, followed by Emmanuel Suaquet's Hanse 505 OutreMer and Michael Bacon's Antrim 27 Bacon Burger, however it's important to remember that the Pac Cup uses a pursuit format, meaning that the sharpest blades - including Roy Disney's Andrews 68 Pyewacket and a handful of other 68 and 70ft sleds - will likely catch or pass the first starters before Maui hoves into view.
To date, the Pac Cup fleet has experienced relatively light conditions, but with well over 1,000 nautical miles to go for the bulk of the fleet, there's still plenty of brine left to create tactical and meteorological challenges for the competing crews.
Sail-World.com wishes all teams participating in both of these offshore contests safe and speedy passage, great conditions, and plenty of good luck as they continue to burn off the miles.
May the four winds blow you safely home,
David Schmidt, Sail-World.com North American Editor