Misplaced Pages

#379620

76-669: Bob Salmon developed the idea of a mini-transatlantic race in the late 1970s in England with the intent of promoting affordable offshore solo racing. It was partially conceived as a response to the trend for bigger and more expensive boats such as sailed in the OSTAR race that seemed to exclude ocean racing for sailors with moderate budgets. The first Mini Transat started from the Penzance Sailing Club in 1977 and races have since been run biannually in odd-numbered years. There

152-507: A course marked by buoys or other fixed navigational devices or racing longer distances across open water from point-to-point. It can involve a series of races with buoy racing or multiple legs when point-to-point racing. Yachting , that is, recreational boating, is very old, as exemplified in the ancient poem Catullus 4 : The yacht you see there, friends, says that she's been The fastest piece of timber ever seen; She swears that once she could have overhauled All rival boats, whether

228-501: A crew of 820), this modern boat was expressly designed for easy handling. At the start of the race, during login, in it was discovered that one of the entrants, David Sandeman, was under age at 17 years and 176 days, which was 189 days or 6 months under the youngest age permitted at the time. He had entered "Sea Raider", a 35 ft monohull which had very carefully been equipped and prepared in Jersey, Channel Islands for this race. David

304-601: A distance of around 2,225 nautical miles (2,560 mi; 4,121 km). It is one of yachting's premier offshore races, attracting entrants from all over the world. Started in 1906, the race is organized by the Transpacific Yacht Club . Fastnet was established in 1924 with 7 boats. The race covers approximately 600 miles starting at Cowes on the Isle of Wight, rounding Fastnet rock on the southern coast of Ireland, and finishing at Cherbourg, France. Until 2019,

380-401: A distance of over 682 nautical miles (1,263 km; 785 mi). The Newport to Bermuda race started in 1906. It runs from Newport, Rhode Island to Bermuda . The Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac was founded in 1898 with five boats. The race runs over 300 miles, from Chicago to Mackinac Island on the northern tip of the lower peninsula of Michigan. The Marblehead to Halifax race

456-412: A formula by which most racing/cruising boats were designed during that period. After its descendant, the mathematically complex International Offshore Rule (IOR) of the 1970s, contributed to much decreased seaworthiness (and even speed), the simpler Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) system was adopted. The PHRF uses only proven performance characteristics, especially theoretical sailing speed, as

532-610: A handsome margin." Subsequently, the Cup races were conducted, usually every three to four years, based on a challenge issued by one club to the current Cup holder, which until 1983 was the NYYC. As at 2017, the La Ciotat Based Yacht Partridge 1885 is documented as being the world's oldest, still fully operational classic racing yacht. As yacht racing became more prevalent, and yacht design more diverse, it

608-538: A means to allow dissimilar yachts—typically crewed by friends and families at clubs rather than by professional crews—to race together. Most popular family-oriented cruising sailboats will have a rating filed with a local chapter of the PHRF. The most prevalent handicap rating systems today are the Offshore Racing Congress (ORC), Offshore Racing Rule (ORR), International Rating Certificate (IRC), and

684-403: A milestone in sailing , being the first single-handed ocean yacht race . One hundred and fifteen people expressed an interest in the race, and there were eight entries, of whom five actually took part. Only four were at the starting line on June 11, however, as Jean Lacombe arrived late and started three days after the others. All of the boats were monohulls ; this was to be the only edition of

760-532: A time of 28 days., RWYC OSTAR Race Results - 1980 Dame Naomi James , who became the second lady to circumnavigate the globe single-handedly in 1977/78 was reunited with the Express Crusader (fitted out and renamed Kriter Lady) for the race. She was the first woman back and broke the women's speed record. Her husband Rob James also competed in that race, finishing twelfth in the trimaran Boatfile. Canadian skippers Mike Birch and Bob Lush were

836-399: Is allowed to send one team and three boats of a chosen one-design class. Formerly it was raced every two years. It appears that due to international disagreements that this event no longer takes place. The America's Cup was established in 1851. This is the oldest, and arguably the most prestigious, event in yacht racing. Participants are restricted to a measurement formula for the boats, and

SECTION 10

#1732782608380

912-464: Is also noteworthy that Tabarly and Jean Lacombe were the only French entrants in this race; Tabarly's success was instrumental in popularising the sport in France, the country which in future years would come to dominate it. This was to be the year in which several future trends were established. Multihulls made their first appearance — sailing in the same class as the other boats; and the race featured

988-606: Is believed to have started with sailboats in the Netherlands sometime in the 17th century. Soon, in England , custom-built racing "yachts" began to emerge and the Royal Yacht Squadron was established in 1815. In 1661 John Evelyn recorded a competition between Katherine and Anne , two large royal sailing vessels both of English design, "…the wager 100-1; the race from Greenwich to Gravesend and back." One of

1064-605: Is considered an incubator for professional ocean racing as a proving ground for sailing skills, as well as a test platform for larger ocean classes such as the Open 60 . Other than the single-handed transatlantic crossing , there are a number of other races held for the class. In-between years see double-handed events, such as the Mini Fastnet, Mini Barcelona, Select 650 and Open Demi-Cle. The Transat years incorporate more single-handed events. For its intended use, racing across

1140-554: Is more liberal with respect to dimensions, such as keel depth and mast height, and it allows for advanced technology such as "canting" keels and carbon-fibre masts. The prototype class is approximately 7% faster. By far, the most successful mini design is the commercially produced Pogo 2 designed by Jean-Marie Finot of Groupe Finot (now Finot-Conq) in 1995. In response to the perceived challenge of sailing small high-performance single handed boats, Classemini has created rigorous trials, equipment, and inspection requirements to add sanity to

1216-537: Is no longer permitted in most "unassisted" races, it is now routine for ocean sailors to do similar analyses using their on-board computers to process public weather information. Williams created another story by his use of the "shortcut" through the Nantucket Shoal. This dangerous route was supposed to be illegal, but due to an error the race instructions required skippers only to keep south of Nantucket, instead of Nantucket Light. Williams successfully navigated

1292-588: Is primarily a single-handed race, but crewed boats do compete. It starts in France's north coast and runs to Guadeloupe, a French Island in the Caribbean. The race covers about 3700 miles. Mini Transat started in 1977 and runs every two years. This is a singlehanded race that crosses the Atlantic on a similar route as the Route Du Rhum. This race is broken up into two legs, the first going from France to

1368-747: The J/22 and J/24 , the Etchells , and the Star and New York 30 of Nathanael Herreshoff are examples of one-design boats. In general, modern yacht-racing contests are conducted according to the Racing Rules of Sailing , first established in 1928. Though complex, the RRS are intended primarily simply ensure fairness and safety. The Rules are revised and updated every four years by the body now known as World Sailing . Some yacht-racing rules give "line honours" to

1444-634: The Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF). Many countries organise their own handicap systems which do not take into account the size, weight, or sail area of the yacht, but performance is measured on the basis of previous race results. The Irish E.C.H.O. system is such a handicap system. One-design racing was invented by Thomas (Ben) Middleton in 1886 in Killiney Bay close to Dublin City, Republic of Ireland. Middleton

1520-552: The Sunday Times Golden Globe Race , the other major single-handed sailing event of the year. Tabarly's trimaran Pen Duick IV made a return to the race in 1972, sailed by Alain Colas, at the head of a strong French contingent; of the 55 entrants, 12 were French, and the top three finishers were all French. The average boat size was increasing rapidly, as longer boats are capable of higher speeds. A sign of

1596-528: The 'Flying Start' used today. Bringing yacht racing to the forefront of public life, the America's Cup was first raced in 1851 between the New York Yacht Club and the Royal Yacht Squadron . Not ruled or regulated by measurement criteria as today, it is the second-place finisher was Aurora, "and but for the fact that time allowance had been waived for the race she would have been the winner by

SECTION 20

#1732782608380

1672-536: The 2011 race suffered no casualties. OSTAR The Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race (STAR) is an east-to-west yacht race across the North Atlantic . When inaugurated in 1960, it was the first single-handed ocean yacht race; it is run from Plymouth in England to Newport, Rhode Island in the United States, and has generally been held on a four yearly basis. The race is organised by

1748-529: The Atlantic Ocean, the Mini 6.50 is very short and beamy , being nearly half as wide as it is long. Its width carries to the stern , providing sufficient stability that the boats can plane as a fast motorboat does: Minis are capable of sailing as fast as 25 knots. They typically have two connected rudders and a narrow steel or iron fin keel with a lead bulb at the end, with a mast height typically twice

1824-626: The CSTAR, Europe 1 STAR, and the Europe 1 New Man STAR. The professional event has been run as The Transat from 2004, while the race smaller boats is run as the OSTAR. Throughout its history, however, the essentials of the race have remained the same. It has also become known as a test-bed for new innovations in yacht racing; many new ideas started out in "the STAR". The course of the race is westwards against

1900-462: The French, many of whom opted to sail instead in the new Route du Rhum race. The race was once again dominated by multihulls, with the top five places all taken by trimarans, and marked the end of even competition between monos and multis. Éric Tabarly was to compete, aboard the hydrofoil trimaran Paul Ricard , but was unable to enter due to injury. The race continued its history of innovation with

1976-480: The Mini's length. They also have a retractable bowsprit that extends a spinnaker -genoa "kite" two or more meters beyond the bow. Minis must be self-righting when capsized , and this is tested by pushing the end of the mast under water with the vessel's hatches open; this design avoids the possibility of turtling . There are two divisions: production and prototype. Production boats use approved designs and comparatively conservative materials. The prototype division

2052-711: The Royal Western Yacht Club and was originally sponsored by the UK-based newspaper The Observer , and known as the Observer Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race; due to changes in sponsorship, it has been known as the CSTAR, Europe 1 STAR, and the Europe 1 New Man STAR. After the 2000 edition, the RWYC took the decision to split the race into two events, one using smaller boats and intended for amateurs and young sailors,

2128-665: The West German Edith Baumann , aboard her 39-foot trimaran "Koala III". Although won by a monohull, this race saw the multihulls firmly established on the scene. Thirteen of the thirty-five boats entered were multihulls, led by the controversial proa Cheers ; many observers felt that a proa was entirely unsuitable for ocean sailing, but she made a fast time along the Azores route. The 17 non-finishers included Éric Tabarly on Pen Duick IV , and Alex Carozzo of Italy on San Giorgio . Carozzo went on to compete in

2204-485: The challenge called For racing under canvas or with oars. (trans. James Michie) "Yacht" is referred to as deriving from either Norwegian ("jagt"), Middle Low German ("jaght") or from the Dutch word jacht, which means "a swift light vessel of war, commerce or pleasure. The sporting element in the word lies in the derivation of jaght from the root jaghen, which means to hunt, chase or pursue…." The formal racing of boats

2280-422: The changing times was that the rules had a minimum size, to deter unsafe entries, but no maximum; and so the star of the monohull fleet was Vendredi Treize (Friday the 13th), a 128-foot (39 m) three-masted schooner — a huge boat for a single-hander. However, the race was now dominated by the multihulls, with Colas winning on a trimaran and four of the top six finishers being multis. The 55 entrants included

2356-435: The competitors. Buoys were laid in a straight line, to which the competitors attached their yachts by means of spring ropes. The yachts were required to keep all the sails forward of the mainmast on deck until the starting signal was given. The Yacht Racing Association was founded in 1875 by Prince Batthyany-Strattman, Captain J. W. Hughes, and Mr. Dixon Kemp. The Y.R.A. wrote standardised yacht racing rules which included

Mini Transat Race - Misplaced Pages Continue

2432-419: The conditions to make the top ten finishers: With sponsorship from Europe 1 and New Man, a French sportswear manufacturer, the fortieth anniversary edition of the OSTAR was run under the title Europe 1 New Man STAR . A surprising total of 24 Open 60 monohulls entered the race; most of these were using the event as a qualifying run for the 2000-2001 Vendée Globe starting later in the year. One of these

2508-469: The finish line first, much as in foot and horse races, should suffice to win the contest. As a result, both ratings and “ one-design ” competition were developed. Ratings systems rely upon some formulaic analysis of usually very specific yacht-design parameters such as length, sail area , displacement , and hull shape. During the 1920s and through the 1970s the Cruising Club of America established

2584-749: The finish line was in New York). It is a single-handed race against the prevailing wind and current in the North Atlantic. The race is held every 4 years but has become an amateur race in the early 21st century. Originally, the Ostar was the main race for offshore sailors, but has meanwhile lost its status to the Route du Rhum. The race covers about 3,000 miles. Route Du Rhum was established in 1978. This race happens every four years, starting in November. It

2660-676: The finish line) was his second; it was also the last win for a monohull. Clare Francis in Robertson's Golly ( Ohlson 38 ) finished 13th and broke the women's single-handed transatlantic record by three days. The top finishers (including the top three of each class): The 1980 race introduced a length limit of 56 feet overall, to curb the excesses of previous races. The class sizes were adjusted downwards: Jester (J): up to 32 ft (10 m); Gipsy Moth (G): 32 to 44 ft (13 m); Penduick (P): 44 to 56 ft (17 m). The new restrictions were unpopular with some sailors, particularly

2736-404: The finish — Philippe Poupon, sailing the 56-foot (17 m) trimaran Fleury Michon VI , arrived first with a time of 16 days 12 hours, and went to bed thinking that he had won. But the race was awarded to Yvon Fauconnier, who finished 10 hours later but was given a 16-hour time allowance for rendering assistance to Philippe Jeantot , whose catamaran Credit Agricole had capsized. The winner among

2812-556: The first boat to cross the finish line and "handicap honours" to the corrected time winner, which may be a slower boat with a lower handicap. The major races of today can be classified as inshore, offshore, ocean, and around the world. They adhere to one set of rules, but use diverse handicapping standards. The Admiral's Cup was created in 1957 by the Admiral of the Royal Ocean Racing Club . Each country involved

2888-534: The first female finishers, two French and one Polish. Sir Francis Chichester , now 70 years old, sailed with the fleet in Gipsy Moth V ; however, he was unable to complete what was to be his last race, and he died later the same year. Peter Crowther made the longest crossing in the race's history while sailing the oldest boat, the 66-year-old gaff cutter Golden Vanity ; his crossing took 88 days. The top ten finishers: There were eleven retirements, and one boat

2964-411: The first in its history. Englishman Mike Flanagan , brother of renowned sculptor Barry Flanagan , was lost overboard from Galloping Gael . A particularly sad story was that of Mike McMullen, whose wife Lizzie was electrocuted and killed while helping him to prepare Three Cheers for the race, just two days before the start. Believing that Lizzie would have wanted him to go on, he started the race, but

3040-575: The first use of the Argos satellite-based tracking system ; this system allows boats to be tracked during the race, and can also be used to signal distress. The use of this system has now become a major feature of many ocean races, such as the Vendée Globe . The cost of the system was covered by introducing a new race sponsor, the radio station Europe 1 , in conjunction with the Observer. The winner

3116-485: The fleet beset by a full range of hazards — storms, icebergs, trawlers, fog and whales hit boats on the northern route, before they were finally becalmed off Newfoundland . The monohulls managed the heavy conditions and crosswinds quite well, but the multis were plagued with capsizes and damage. Yves Parlier was the top monohull skipper in a new Open 60 , setting a monohull record time of 14 days 16 hours. The top ten finishers included two monohulls: Loïck Peyron , on

Mini Transat Race - Misplaced Pages Continue

3192-568: The main hazards of the race was damage by whales ; Mike Birch's Fujicolor was damaged by a whale, forcing him to retire from the race; and David Sellings was forced to abandon Hyccup after she was sunk by an aggressive pod of whales. Mike Richey's original Jester , which had taken part in every edition of the race, was lost in heavy weather in the tail-end of the fleet. The top eleven finishers were all Class 1 multihulls. The top five were: The fastest monohull, UAP 1992 , finished 13th. The top five monohulls: The Europe 1 Star of 1992 saw

3268-507: The management of the Royal Western Yacht Club of England, the Observer Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race , or OSTAR, was on. The first run of the race was a great success; since then, it has run every four years, and has become firmly established as one of the major events on the yachting calendar. The name of the event has changed several times due to changes in main sponsor; it has been known as

3344-507: The monohulls was Warren Luhrs, in his 60-footer Thursday's Child . With Carlsberg taking over as main sponsor, the Carlsberg Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race of 1988 saw 95 entrants, with custom-built multihulls again dominating. Favourable weather made ideal conditions for a fast pace, and indeed Philippe Poupon's winning time set a new race record of 10 days, 9 hours and 10 minutes. One of

3420-467: The other for professionals. The amateur event was raced as The OSTAR ("Original STAR") from 2005. The professional version is raced as The Transat starting in 2004. The 2020 races were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic . The Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race was conceived by Herbert "Blondie" Hasler in 1956. The whole idea of a single-handed ocean yacht race was a revolutionary concept at

3496-420: The prevailing winds of the north Atlantic over a distance of around 3,000 nautical miles (5,600 km). The first edition of the race was from Plymouth United Kingdom to New York City ; the editions from 1964 to 2000 were sailed from Plymouth to Newport, Rhode Island ; the 2004 event sailed from Plymouth to Boston, Massachusetts . The actual course steered is the decision of the individual skipper, and

3572-479: The race finished at Plymouth. The Tour De France A La Voile was established in 1978 with 20 boats. The race parallels the cycling event and takes place along France's three coasts: English Channel, Atlantic Ocean, and the Mediterranean. It covers over 1000 miles. The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race was established in 1945. This Australian race runs from Sydney , New South Wales to Hobart , Tasmania —

3648-486: The race in Cotonella , taking 17 days and 21 hours to finish. The 2005 race featured the first single-handed, trans-atlantic crossing by a profoundly deaf person: Gerry Hughes . Yacht racing Yacht racing is a sailing sport involving sailing yachts and larger sailboats , as distinguished from dinghy racing , which involves open boats. It is composed of multiple yachts, in direct competition, racing around

3724-501: The race to Peyron. Peyron's time of 10 days, 10 hours and 5 minutes, was just 50 minutes short of the course record. Peyron was the first person to win two successive editions of the race, and only the second to win twice. Gerry Roufs won the monohull division, sailing the 60-foot (18 m) Groupe LG2 . Italian Giovanni Soldini won the 50-foot (15 m) monohull class, in Telecom Italia . Only three multihulls overcame

3800-467: The race without multihulls . It was also the only edition of the race sailed from Plymouth to New York City . The skippers tried a variety of routing strategies. Hasler chose the northern route, to avoid the depressions; Chichester and Lewis stayed closer to the great circle; Lacombe and Howells chose more southerly routes. Hasler sailed his junk-rigged Jester ; Chichester had by far the longest boat, his 40-foot (12 m) Gipsy Moth III , and this

3876-411: The race, and a race completion is seen as a personal or national victory that comes with intangible rewards. Non-completion means, at very least, loss of the mini. The race is considered dangerous and there was a drowning during the first leg of the 2009 race. Racers typically sleep only 20 minutes at a time and rely on computerized autopilot systems to keep the craft on course while they sleep. The class

SECTION 50

#1732782608380

3952-514: The race. Also, it might be said that the division within the class, production vs. prototype, unnecessarily divides the race. The mini Transat remains a largely French race with only about 30% non-French racers. The 650 class is admitted to be a "test bed" for mechanisms to be used on bigger and far more expensive open classes. On the other hand, David Raison's Mini introduces a whole new hull shape with its 2011 victory, which may, in fact, revolutionize open ocean racing if not sailing altogether; and

4028-410: The removal of restrictions on bow and stern overhangs; yachts were divided into five classes, but still with no distinction between monohulls and multihulls. Europe 1 continued to support the race, and Argos beacons were again used by all boats. The first day of the race saw several dismastings in strong gales, and several skippers were awarded time for rescuing other racers. This resulted in an upset at

4104-401: The result of the race can hinge on the chosen route: This variety of routes is one of the factors which makes an east-to-west north Atlantic crossing interesting, as different skippers try different strategies against each other. In practice, though, the winning route is usually somewhere between the great circle and the rhumb line. The Observer Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race of 1960 was

4180-479: The rules concerning this formula have been controversial since the beginning. The English, who were the challengers for the first 132 years of the race, commented "England rules the waves, but America waives the rules." This race was not traditionally an inshore race, due to the requirement that the British boat would sail to the racing area, which involved sailing trans-Atlantically. The Auckland Anniversary Regatta

4256-461: The same trimaran Fujicolor II , for the 1996 edition of the race; and he led at the start, passing the Eddystone lighthouse at 28 knots (52 km/h). However, Francis Joyon dominated the race, and 600 miles (970 km) from the finish seemed set to win, at which point he was 24 hours ahead of his nearest rival; but his trimaran Banque Populaire was capsized by a gust off Nova Scotia, leaving

4332-423: The subject of a National Film Board of Canada documentary Singlehanders , released in 1982. The 1984 race saw the pace of technical innovation continue to accelerate. Custom-built trimarans were again the main force, but the monohulls also advanced, with the introduction of water ballast and other innovations. Some controversy over the size limitations in the previous race resulted in slightly larger classes, and

4408-408: The time, as the idea was thought to be extremely impractical; but this was especially true given the adverse conditions of their proposed route — a westward crossing of the north Atlantic Ocean , against the prevailing winds. Hasler sought sponsorship for a race, but by 1959, no-one had been prepared to back the race. Finally, though, The Observer newspaper provided sponsorship, and in 1960, under

4484-404: The treacherous route in a gale. Gales were a major feature of the race, with a large storm on the 11th of June, and Hurricane Brenda, both contributing to the large number of retired and abandoned boats. One casualty was Éric Tabarly , aboard his new trimaran Pen Duick IV , who collided with a cargo and sailed back to England with structural damage. Another was the first woman to have taken part,

4560-610: The use of radio, for the first time, by several competitors who gave daily progress reports to their sponsors. The race was by now acquiring a reputation for pushing forward the technology of ocean sailing, and the 1968 edition featured the first use of computer-based weather routing. A far cry from today's laptop-laden yachts, this consisted of a land-based mainframe computer, the English Electric KDF9 , linked by radio to Geoffrey Williams in his boat Sir Thomas Lipton . Although outside private routing advice of this kind

4636-586: The vessels was owned, and sometimes steered, by Charles II . In 1782, the Cumberland Fleet , a class of sailing vessel known for its ability to sail close to the wind, were painted racing up the Thames River with spectators viewing from a bridge. Much like today, this obsession with sailing close to the wind with speed and efficiency fueled the racing community. In the 19th century, most yacht races were started by allotting starting positions to

SECTION 60

#1732782608380

4712-443: Was American Phil Weld, in only his second OSTAR , whose trimaran Moxie was custom built to the 56-foot (17 m) limit; he set a new course record of 18 days. Many were impressed by this popular sailor's win at the age of 65. The preponderance of larger boats, and particularly multihulls, left the smaller Jesters seriously outclassed; the highest-placed was Free Newspapers , sailed by John Chaundy, who finished in 29th place, with

4788-572: Was a move to Brest, France in 1985, and since then, it has started at various locations in France, such as Brittany , La Rochelle or Charente-Maritime , with a stop at the Canary Islands or Madeira , ending in the West Indies or Brazil . The Miniclasse 6.50 closely monitors the craft but applies minimal design restrictions, such as length (6.5m), beam (3.0m), draft (approximately 2.0m) The race runs in odd-numbered years, and

4864-469: Was a trimaran of the smallest class, and perhaps even more so that third place went to a monohull from the same class. Two major depressions hit the race and caused a record fifty retirements. Yvon Fauconnier and Jean-Yves Terlain , two of the top favorites, lost their boats due to structural failure and were rescued by the same Soviet cargo ship. Tony Bullimore was rescued by a passing ship after his boat caught fire. The race also suffered two fatalities,

4940-419: Was abandoned. 1976 saw the biggest edition of the race, in all senses. 125 boats entered, and the 128-foot (39 m) Vendredi Treize returned as ITT Oceanic . However, the all-time size record for the race, and probably for any single-hander, was set by Alain Colas, sailing the 236-foot (72 m) four-masted schooner Club Mediterranée . Although about the same overall length as HMS Victory (which had

5016-490: Was concerned that winning a yacht race was more reliant on having an expensive new yacht, than it was on the skill of the yachtsman. One design yacht racing is conducted with classes of similar boats, all built—often via mass-production—to the same design, with the same sail area and rig, and the same number of crew, so that crew ability and tactical expertise are more likely to decide a race than boat type, or age, or even weather. Popular racing boats such as The Water Wag, Laser,

5092-502: Was firmly established on the racing scene. All of the five original competitors entered, and all five improved their original times; but the show was stolen by French naval officer Éric Tabarly , who entered a custom-built 44-foot (13 m) plywood ketch, Pen Duick II . The days of racers sailing the family boat were numbered following Tabarly's performance, for which he was awarded the Legion of Honour by president Charles de Gaulle . It

5168-825: Was founded in 1840. It includes the Heather Cup, which has been contested on over 170 yearly occasions since establishment. (It was halted briefly during the Second Boer War .) The Vic-Maui Yacht Race runs from Victoria, Canada to Lahaina, Hawaii — a distance of 2,308 nautical miles ((4,274 km)). The race was started in 1965 and is held every other year. It is the longest of the Pacific-Hawaii races. The Transpacific Yacht Race (Transpac) starts off Point Fermin ( San Pedro , near Los Angeles ) and ends off Diamond Head Lighthouse in Honolulu —

5244-525: Was founded in 1905. The race runs for over 360 miles, from Marblehead, Massachusetts to Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Coastal Classic , started in 1982, is held in New Zealand. At about 125 miles, it is shorter than most offshore races. It runs north from Auckland to Russell, which is at the northern tip of New Zealand's North Island. Ostar was organised by the Royal Western Yacht Club and first held in 1960. The Ostar runs from Plymouth to Newport (in 1960

5320-490: Was later listed in the Guinness Book of Records as being the youngest person to single-handedly sail the Atlantic between Jersey, UK, and Rhode Island. The race was organised into three classes: Jester (J): up to 38 ft (12 m); Gipsy Moth (G): 38 to 65 ft (20 m); and Penduick (P): over 65 ft, unlimited. Monohulls and multihulls were not segregated. It is notable that the second-placed boat overall

5396-467: Was most recently completed in 2019. Sailors had to qualify by covering one of two specified 1,000-mile courses, in addition to having 1,500 miles of ocean racing experience, much of it solo. There are no prizes and the Mini Transat is not necessarily considered a race for the win. Sailors are competitive yet mutually supportive during training and preparations, they tend to be closely grouped during

5472-484: Was necessary to establish systems of measurements and time allowances due to the differences in boat design. Longer yachts are inherently faster than shorter ones; therefore, in the interests of fairness, in the 1820s a “primitive system of time allowance was introduced on the Solent .” Larger yachts were handicapped; but owners with the biggest vessels had a problem with the allowance system, for they preferred that crossing

5548-559: Was never seen again. Colas in Club Mediterranée was plagued by halyard problems; although 330 miles (531 km) in the lead, he was forced to pull into Halifax, Nova Scotia to make repairs, and was penalised 10% of his elapsed time (58 hours) for accepting help, which dropped him from second to fifth place. The race went to Éric Tabarly , whose surprise win on the 73-foot (22 m) Pen Duick VI (his radio had broken down and no one knew of his whereabouts until he crossed

5624-493: Was not allowed to officially start, but he crossed the line unofficially after the last boat had left. Halfway across the Atlantic a Russian trawler ran into him in the dark during a storm after being warned with a red spotlight. The Russian crew never saw him, but their ship damaged the starboard mast halyards, which required substantial work by the Russian crew to repair the boat sufficiently to allow it to continue. David Sandeman

5700-409: Was reflected in the results: The race had a huge impact on ocean sailing, and in particular solo sailing. Hasler's wind-vane self-steering gear revolutionised short-handed sailing, and his other major innovation — using a junk rig for safer and more manageable shorthanded sailing — influenced many subsequent sailors. Thirteen competitors started the next edition of the race in 1964, which by now

5776-489: Was the youngest racer in the fleet at age 23, Ellen MacArthur in her new Owen-Clarke designed Open 60 Kingfisher ; she beat the big names to become the surprise winner of the monohull division, and the youngest ever winner of the race. The overall winner was Francis Joyon, in his trimaran Eure et Loir . The 2005 event was the first held for smaller boats, again under the name OSTAR, sponsored by Faraday Mill. 35 boats took part with 16 forced to retire. Franco Manzoli won

#379620