Changes to rules for 2013 Transpac
Fleet features 64 entries from 7 countries
Los Angeles, CA -- Organizers from the Transpacific YC have announced some minor rule changes for the 2013 Transpacific Yacht Race, which have been posted on the event website as Amendment No. 1 to the Notice of Race. Many changes involve merely a re-numbering of rules from the 2009-12 Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) to the current 2013-16 version of the RRS, including US prescriptions to the RRS, and the 2012-13 Offshore Special Regulations (OSR).
However, a new section defining Penalties has been written to better anticipate scenarios that may arise during the race to allow the Protest Committee to provide fair and timely rulings.
The section on Communications Restrictions has also been clarified to reflect that no communication vessel will be accompanying the fleet in this year’s race. All entries will still be required to carry a VHF transceiver with a minimum 25 watts power and a masthead antenna, either a 100 W SSB transceiver or a satphone, and have e-mail send and receive capability.
“These changes should help both the competitors and us organizers with our planning for the race, which looks now to exceed the size of the last race,” said Dave Cort, Race Chairman for the 2013 Transpac. “We are excited about this group of entries at all levels and from many countries who have chosen to challenge themselves in this great race.”
First run in 1904, there are currently 58 monohull and 3 multihull entries for the 2013 edition of this iconic 2225-mile sprint from Los Angeles to Honolulu that biennially continues to attract the interest of offshore sailors around the world. Teams are coming from Canada, Mexico, Japan, Australia, Germany and Italy as well as from throughout the US for this year’s race.
Classes have not yet been announced, but the slowest will start on Monday, July 8th, the next group on Thursday, July 11th, and the fastest on Friday, July 12th.
Awards in Honolulu at The Modern Hotel will be held on Thursday, July 25th.
For more information on the 2013 Transpac, visit www.transpacrace.com.
Bam! Straight out of the box she foils!
Virtually all new-to-the-market, high-performance catamarans have some kind of growing pains. Innovation can sometimes cause trouble once the new product hits the market and is subject to the rigors of real life sailing. Rudders, crossbars, masts and a whole variety of accoutrements can break. Bits and pieces that looked good on the drafting table, can show their weakness while blasting across the water. The new Olympic class Nacra 17 is no exception to this rule, and has had some failures; mostly daggerboards and masts and rudders. There is so much load placed on the curved foils and high-aspect rudders that we're entering a new era of design and construction. And to jive with the whims desires of the Olympic Committee, Nacra offered the 17 with a two piece carbon rig...that didn't quite work out so well.
The early carbon masts on the Nacra 17 had a tendency to splinter, so the Nacra decided to go to an aluminum spar until something could be worked out. Well, we're happy to note that something has indeed been worked out, and Hall Spars has taken over the construction of the new Nacra 17 carbon masts. Ben Hall, an avid A Class sailor knows a thing or two about building carbon spars, and we're sure that what the Nacra 17 masts hit the market, they'll be a thing of beauty.
Like we said, almost all new boats have some element of growing pain, and in this case Nacra has stepped up to make things right for their Olympic Class multihull owners. Here's some of the text from their recent press release:
This letter is to notify all parties involved with the Nacra 17. The specification and supplier changes below have been made in consultation with the International Sailing Federation (ISAF).
Curved Dagger boards
Nacra would like to inform all parties involved that a revision has been made to the specification of the dagger boards, the new dagger boards are named revision 2 or for short “REV2” [and therefore naming the original specification REV1]
The “REV1” dagger boards may fail under buckling and compression of the inside skin, this is due to the manufacturing method combined with the high loads and aggressive lift of the boat.
The main differences between REV1 and REV2 is that the length has been changed from 1800 mm to 1675 mm, and the internal structure and building method of the boards has been changed. This is resulting in stiffer and much stronger boards, causing less aggressive lift of the boat but containing the semi-foiling character.
These “REV2’ boards were satisfactorily used for the first time in competition during the ISAF Sailing World Cup - Miami. All REV1 boards will be replaced by REV2 boards to comply with the revised class rules. This will be done prior to the next ISAF Sailing World Cup in Palma, where only REV2 boards will be permitted. The REV2 boards can be identified by the serial number that comes with a board.
All customers who have REV1 boards will be contacted individually to agree upon delivery of the REV2 boards. All REV1 dagger boards will be taken out of commission and not permitted within the Nacra 17 class rules.
Rudder
In some rudders, the rudder head cracked, due to sheer loads. The issue has been solved on all rudders supplied. This may not cause an issue any longer with the reinforcement now made around the seam in the head of the rudder. All customers that still need rudder blades to be replaced will be contacted individually.
Mast
We are more than happy to announce that we have partnered up with “Hall Spar”, known as an established mast manufacturer to redevelop and produce the all new carbon mast according to Nacra standards. The current planning is, providing all testing is finalized with good results, that all teams will receive their carbon mast replacing the alloy mast immediately after the 2013 Nacra 17 Worlds in July 2013. The Nacra 17 Worlds 2013 will still be sailed with the alloy mast as earlier announced in December 2012. More information on the mast specifications will follow as soon as possible.
Having sailed offshore on some pretty powerful 70 footers, we're especially intrigued by these guys that attempt various record-setting runs. Virtually everyone that has the fuerte to hop on a sailboat for a week or more and cross an ocean is a little bit off kilter. By that we mean different than the normal, TV watching, go-to-work-everyday, try-to-keep-up-with-the-Joneses, American existence. Generally, people that have crossed oceans, have a certain understanding that, "Hey, there's something bigger out there!" They're down to earth, salt of the earth types, that interact with the general population on an enlightened level. Oftentimes they're humble, because they've been humbled by the sea.
The Maserati crew is no different! Check out these two interviews that we snagged just as Maserati hit the docks in San Francisco after a record setting run from NY to SF! Enjoy!
This press release for the Mini Transpac was just sent to up by our friend Nick Vale from Open Sailing! We'll be on the docks in Marina Del Rey checking out the boats, and getting a first hand view of this incredible single-handed fleet.
For the first time in the USA, a group of singlehanded sailors from all over the country are going to race from California to Hawaii onboard Mini Transat 6.50s – 21-foot ocean capable sailboats that are barely larger than the average suburban vehicle. The 2013 Mini Transpac Race is being organized by the North American Mini 6.50 Class Association and the start is scheduled for July 6th 2013 - less that 150 days from now.
There are many different Mini Transat 6.50s, or "Minis" for short, available from various boat builders around the world, but they are all designed to meet a set of strict box rules. The boat cannot be longer than 21.3 feet (6.50 meters) and can't be wider than 9.84 feet (3 meters). There are also restrictions for mast height, draft, shape of cabin-top, size of companionway, and also safety constraints such as positive flotation, righting moment and escape hatch specifications to name a few. The innovations developed in Mini class, have influenced the entire offshore sailing industry - Open 60s, Volvo 70s, and production cruising boats have all taken a page or two from the Mini playbook.
This race is going to be a real adventure of all those involved. Racing across the Pacific with a crew is challenging enough but now imagine racing offshore singlehanded in a boat this small. For most of these racers the 2013 Mini Transpac Race will be their first singlehanded voyage of this magnitude. Beyond the crossing itself, just getting to the start-line will be no small order. All boats have to meet safety requirements and sailors must prove that they can indeed spend 15-20 days alone at sea by completing a 500nm qualifier. Some of the world’s most notable and legendary offshore sailors including Ellen MacArthur, Sam Davies and Michel Desjoyeaux started their careers by sailing a Mini Transat 6.50 offshore.
The race has already begun and boats are already starting to gather at the start in Marina del Rey. All the sailors are updating equipment, tuning instruments, and logging hours on the water to prepare for the start in July. All of the build up to the race and the race itself will be online at www.minitranspacrace.com. Visit the race website to learn about the sailors who are completing, find out more about the Mini Transat 6.50 boats, and watch the story unfold as the start approaches. The actual race will feature LIVE tracking so you can keep tabs on your favorite sailors, as well as LIVE coverage from the sailors themselves as they experience everything the Pacific Ocean can offer.