Newport Bermuda Race - The Sailing is On!

Boating and Sailing News 20 Jun

Newport tBermuda Race - Newport Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island - The 46th Newport Bermuda Race is under way, with the second largest sailing fleet in the race's 102 year history. With boats ranging from 100' ultra racers to family weekenders and covering 16 classes, there promises to be an interesting procession through the gate in Bermuda. This year, Bermuda Customs officials have wisely pre-cleared the entrants, so the famous wait for the showers will hopefully be less, uh, pungent.

The Newport Bermuda race fleet saw 18 knots out of the Southwest for the start and reasonably calm seas, with the open class starting just moments ago where spectators watched Puma beat Speedboat over the line by a good 200 yards. From the original 218-boat entry fleet, one boat sank on delivery, another was T-boned (on its mooring!), and one had an electrical fire. This, combined with the crews who have dropped out for time reasons, has reduced the fleet by around 20. While the big boats may be pulling in as early as Sunday, the weather reports have the wind building Monday and Tuesday for the little guys who make up the mass of the fleet.

Though the rhumb line seems the obvious choice, it's unlikely to be the route chosen by the winning boats. Obviously the wind will be important, but the Gulf Stream's effect will have to be taken into account as well, and we're seeing both strategic and tactical moves right out of the gate, in what would otherwise appear to be a drag-race course.

Up for grabs in this years Newport Bermuda race are a number of trophies, and of course Pyewacket's 2002 record is in the sights of the big boats. 53 hours, 39 minutes, 22 seconds is the time to beat, and some are predicting the record will be smashed. George David of the 90ft maxi Rambler is optimistic: “The weather will be the deciding factor. In Rambler, we have a big powerful boat, and given the right conditions, we have a good chance.”

While the big, expensive boats will be putting on a show, this is very much an average sailors' race. Fully 90% of the boats in 2006 sailed with amateur crews - friends and family members - and though the race's long history lends it quite a bit of prestige, it is and has always been an amateur's ocean race. We can expect to see sunburns and smiles on the Bermuda side of this 635 mile romp, and perhaps some of the fastest racing of the season along the way.

- B. Hampton exclusively for YachtPals.com

Photos of the Newport Bermuda race by PPL

Yachts Sailing in the 2008 Newport Bermuda Race

Yacht	Yacht Type	Division	Captain
ALIDA	Alden 50	CD	Ratteray, Derek F. P.
AM 3	Apogee 50	CD	Glenn, J. Lee
ANJANEYA	Ben First 42	CD	Schwartz-Leeper, David A.
ATALANTA	LH 54	CD	Volkwein, James F.
ATTITUDE	Beneteau 423	CD	Dahlen, Shawn
AVALON	Baltic 43	CD	Feldman, Barry J
BANDERA	CTM S&S/Hinckley	CD	Watts, John
BERMUDA OYSTER	Oyster 435	CD	Hubbard, Paul. B.
BLUEBIRD	Migrant 45	CD	Bird, Harry
BONSPIEL	Nordic 44	CD	Richter, James J.
BREEZING UP	J 46	CD	Willauer, W. Bradford
CETACEA	Hinckley SW 59	CD	Culver, Christopher J.
CHECKMATE	Alden 44	CD	Flores, Jr, Frank J
DAWN TREADER	Tartan 37	CD	Deichmann, Frederick W.
DIVA	Morris 46	CD	Fischer, MD, Edwin G.
EIDER DOWN	Apogee 50	CD	Robinson, Bruce E.
FIDELIS	Crealock 37	CD	Isacoff, Stephen
FREEDOM	Sabre 452	CD	Thomson, Cary W.
GEM	Najad 380	CD	Markel, Michael
GRYF II	US 46 Yawl	CD	Kaminski, Krzysztof R.
HELDELEINE	Pearson 35	CD	Culpepper, Daniel M.
II BODACIOUS	Sabre 402	CD	Urbina, Jeffrey A
ISOLA	Baltic 52	CD	Eisenberg, Howard M
LAURA B	Island Packet 45	CD	Triggs Jr., Joseph R.
MENSAE	Swan 56	CD	Kristiansen, Erling
MOONRACER	LH 60	CD	Hudner, Michael
NOSTOS	Alden 44	CD	Weisman, Lorenzo D.
NOVA	Swan 56	CD	Distefano, Mark
PILGRIM	CTM Able 58	CD	Wakeman, Andrew L.
POESKE	Ben First 42	CD	Donn, MD, Richard
SHEARWATER	Mason 43	CD	Biemesderfer, Daniel R.
SHEARWATER	Morris 40	CD	Shaw/Stewart, Mark B./Frank C.
SHEILA R	Valiant 42	CD	Flaherty, III, James J
SILHOUETTE	Cherubini	CD	Caso, David M.
SKY	Swan 53	CD	Reiher, Jim
SPIRIT	Morgan 38	CD	Bogdan, Krzysztof
TEMPTRESS	IMX 45	CD	Kits Van Heyningen, Robert W
TENHO	Farr 50 Pilothouse	CD	Howells, William D
THISTLE	Hinckley 48	CD	Middleton, John T
TIGER TOO	CTM 48	CD	Ritter, Toby G
TUCANA	Vindo 65	CD	Murli, Joe
TWILIGHT	Cook 51	CD	Kiley, Robert
WHISPER	Hinckley 48	CD	Vander Salm, Thomas J.
WILD GOOSE II	Jeanneau 40	CD	Walsh, Daniel J
AMHAS	Class 40	DH	Davis, MacKenzie B
DRAGON	J 120	DH	Van Slyke Jr., John
DRAGON	Class 40	DH	Hennessy, Michael S
ESMERALDE	Sabre 386	DH	Beard, Jr., Bruce R.
FREEBIRD	Swan 44	DH	Asche, Philip M
KILLUA	Aphrodite 101	DH	Binch, James G
LORA ANN	Express 37	DH	du Moulin, Richard T
MIREILLE	J 120	DH	Gaynor, E. Hewitt
OCEAN WANDERER1	Montevideo 43	DH	Wanderer, Erwin
OFFBEAT	J 109	DH	Hannah, Doug
PALADIN	J 35	DH	Richter, Jason, A
SECOUDON II	CS 36	DH	Guptill, Fred
THULA	Baltic 39	DH	Little, Adrian J
VALKYRIE	First 40.7	DH	Johnson, Bjorn R.
AQUARIUS	Swan 601CR	GHL	Fleet, Sam
BELLA MENTE	RP 69	GHL	Myles, Robert
BLUE YANKEE	RP66	GHL	Towse, Bob & Farley
CAPTIVITY	CM60	GHL	Byrne, Samuel T
MAGIC	Santa Cruz 52	GHL	Laudon, Kenneth C.
MONEYPENNY	RP 65	GHL	Swartz, Jim
NUMBERS	IRC 66	GHL	Barnitt, John
RAMBLER	CTM 90	GHL	David, George
ROSEBUD/TEAM DYT	STP 65	GHL	Slaughter, Jimmy
SIRENSONG	J 133	GHL	Carroll, Thomas J
SJAMBOK	RP 45	GHL	Brennan, Michael J
SNOW LION	Ker 50	GHL	Huntington, Lawrence S.
SWEET LORRAINE	J 145 C	GHL	Hansen, Mark D
TENACIOUS	First 36.7	GHL	Dougherty, Julien
GRYPHON SOLO	Open Class 50	Open	Harris, Joseph S.
PRIVATEER	Cookson 50	Open	Henderson, Ian A
SPEEDBOAT	JuanK 98	Open	Jackson, Alex
VO 70	VO 70	Open	Read, Ken
ABIGAIL	CTM 52	SDL	Buck, Robert W
ABRACADABRA	J 46	SDL	Knowles, Jonathan D.
ACTAEA	BDA 40	SDL	Cone, Michael M
AFFINITY	J 42	SDL	Iacono, Anthony M .
AKUBRA	J 44	SDL	Goodday, Dr. Reginald H B
ALEXIS	Aerodyne 38	SDL	D'Alessandro, Alfred C.
AMERICAN GIRL	X 37	SDL	Galyon, Daniel
AURORA	Tartan 41	SDL	Kallfelz, Andrew F.
AVRA	J 120	SDL	Petrides, George
BABE	Swan 46	SDL	Couper, Dr. Colin E
BACCHANAL	J 133	SDL	Smeets, Jan K.
BACCI	Swan 53	SDL	Vascotto, lorenzo
BANDANA	Swan 47	SDL	Benson, Charles F
BARLEYCORN	NYYC Swan 42	SDL	Brownyard, Brendan J.
BARRA	Morris 48	SDL	Macneil, Bruce M.
BLACK WATCH	CTM 68	SDL	Breeden, Richard C.
BOMBARDINO	Santa Cruz 52	SDL	Sykes, James and Macrae
BRAND NEW DAY	J 65	SDL	Madden, James
BUENA RACHA	J 145	SDL	Rooney, Francis
CABADY	Taylor 42	SDL	Baldwin, Mathew M
CADENCE	Apogee 50	SDL	Warters, R. David
CARINA	CTM 48	SDL	Potts, Rives
CARINTHIA	J 120	SDL	Kern, Frank
CATAPULT	J 122	SDL	Glimcher, Marc C
CELERITAS	NYYC Swan 42	SDL	Gefter, Malcolm
CEOL MOR	J 42	SDL	Wilson, James C.
CHALLENGE IV	J 44	SDL	Willis, Jeffrey W.
CHARISMA	SS 57	SDL	Perez-Calzada, Alejandro
CHARLIE V	J 44	SDL	Schulman, MD, Norman H.
CHASSEUR	Swan 44	SDL	Keyworth, Michael
CHIPPEWA	Swan 68	SDL	Deutsch, Clayton
CHRISTOPHER DRAGON	J 122	SDL	Weiss, Andrew
CILISTA	J 130	SDL	Eberle, Jeffrey L
CLOVER III	Swan 56	SDL	Finnegan, Neal F
CONSPIRACY	NYYC Swan 42	SDL	Cahoots Syndicate, The
CRAZY HORSE	Frers Comp 45	SDL	Weiss, Ron
CRESCENDO	Swan 44 Mk11	SDL	Jacobson, Martin
CYBELE	IMX 45	SDL	Burnes, Jr, Richard M
CYGNE	Swan 46 CB	SDL	Peterson, Raymond S
CYGNETTE	Swan 441	SDL	Mayer, William J.
DEFIANCE	Navy 44 MKII	SDL	USNA, Arnest
DEFIANCE	J/V 66	SDL	USMMA, Riker/Rego
DELONG SHADOW	J 44	SDL	Hoffmann, Charles
DEVOCEAN	Swan 45	SDL	de Voe, Stephen
DOGSLED	Kaufman	SDL	Barnard, Todd F.
DOLPHIN	J 42	SDL	Morgan, Henry S.
DONNYBROOK	Smith/Lee 73	SDL	Muldoon, James P.
EDEN	Swan 65	SDL	Fan, Allen
EMILY	Nielsen CTM 44	SDL	Gaynor, Edwin S
FAMILY AFFAIR	Tartan 41	SDL	McMahon, Paul M.
FAT CITY TOO	Swan 391	SDL	Sherter, MD, Carl B
FINESSE	J 42	SDL	Merrill, Newton P.S.
FIRST LIGHT	Baltic 55 WK	SDL	Laus, Andre A.
FLYING GOOSE	Derecktor Ctm 56	SDL	Van Starrenburg, Daniel C.
FLYING JENNY VI	J 122	SDL	Askew/Comerford, David/Ken
FURY	Baltic 48 DP	SDL	Gincavage, Ray J.
GALADRIEL	Swan 46	SDL	Santa, John S.
GLORY	J 44	SDL	Neades, Jack
GOLD DIGGER	J 44	SDL	Bishop, James D.
GRACIE	McC&R 69	SDL	Frank, Steve & Simon
GREY GHOST	Zaal 38	SDL	Parish, Philip P
GREY MATTER	470E	SDL	van Breems, Martinus
HEXE	Frers 80	SDL	Plambeck, Norbert
HIGH NOON	Tripp 41C	SDL	Markee, Joe D
HIRO MARU	Swan 43 Classic	SDL	Nakajima, Hiroshi
HOKAHEY	Santa Cruz 52	SDL	Bailey, George
HONAHLEE	J 44	SDL	Devore, H.L.
HOUND	CTM 60	SDL	Eberhart, Frank
JACQUELINE IV	Hinckley SW 42	SDL	Forman, Bob
KODIAK	Sagamore	SDL	Ecclestone, Edwin Llwyd
LINDY	Peterson 38	SDL	Dickerson, David G.
LIVELY LADY II	Carter 37	SDL	Hubbard, III, William N
MARIAH	J 42	SDL	Hoffmaster, James F.
MAXINE	J 44	SDL	Ketcham, William P.
MISCHIEVOUS	CTM 65	SDL	Fitzgibbons, Albert J
MISTY	J 40 SD	SDL	Allardyce, Fred A
MOJOE	Serendipity 43	SDL	Naroski, Joseph M
MOONDANCE	Swan 44	SDL	Crowley, Cliff and Nick
MORGAN'S GHOST	Swan 42	SDL	Hutchings, W. Preston
MUTINY	Swan 42	SDL	Madara, III, Edward S.
NASTY MEDICINE	CTM 40	SDL	Sherwin, Dr. Stephen J.
NATALIE J	N/M 46 C/R	SDL	O'Niel III, Philip D
NIDA	LaCoste 42	SDL	Peleda, Darius
NIGHT TRAIN	C&C 40	SDL	Moore, Paul
NIRVANA	80' Maxi	SDL	Kiefer, Charles
PATRIOT	J 122	SDL	Furnary, Stephen J.
PEREGRINE	J 120	SDL	Giorgio, Brian
PLENTY	Swan 45	SDL	Roepers, Alexander J.
PRIM	MO Owens Cutter	SDL	Gibbons-Neff, Henry
QUEST	Cambria 40 CB	SDL	Powers, Dennis W
REINDEER	Morris 47	SDL	Santry, Parker, Driscoll
RESOLUTE	J 44-WK	SDL	Madeira, Fred
RESOLUTE	J 44	SDL	Rave,Jr./Rave, Donald T./Richard T.
RICOCHET	J 120	SDL	Academy, US Coast Guard
RIMA2	RP 55	SDL	Brim, John G.
RIPPLE	J 37	SDL	Towers, John C.
RUNAWAY	J 44	SDL	Glenn, Lawrence R.
SCARAMOUCHE	CTM 54	SDL	Bauerschmidt, Fred
SCHEMATIC	J 42	SDL	Fox, Bob
SCREAMING EAGLE	J 122	SDL	Chapman, John
SELKIE	CTM 38	SDL	McCurdy, Sheila
SERENGETI	Tripp 60	SDL	Weiss, Chad
SHOCKWAVE 5	R/P 80	SDL	Short, Andrew
SINN FEIN	Cal 40	SDL	Rebovich Sr., Peter S.
SIREN	New York 32	SDL	Cassidy, Peter J
SLIDE RULE	First 44.7	SDL	Bearse, Scott F
SOLUTION	CTM 50	SDL	Bacon, Jr., Carter S.
STAMPEDE	J 44	SDL	Sundstrom, Jimmie l
SWIFT	Navy 44 MKI	SDL	USNA, Poulin
TABASCO	J 46	SDL	Levinson, John
TANGO	Aerodyne 43	SDL	Millet, David F
TICKET TO RIDE	Swan 46	SDL	Whitmore, Edward
TRUE	J 42	SDL	Hodgson, Jr., Howard B.
UPGRADE	Farr 395	SDL	Gibbons-Neff, Peter
VAMP	J 44	SDL	Sitar, Leonard J.
WAZIMO	Aerodyne 38	SDL	Manchester, Robert
WESTER TILL	CTM A&R 48	SDL	Atkins, Fred J
WESTRAY	Concordia Yawl	SDL	Melvin, John
WHIMSICAL OF WIGHT	Malo 45	SDL	Childs, Robert S
WHISPER	Canning 48	SDL	Brotman, Sheldon
WINDBORN	J 120	SDL	Born, Richard W.
XENOPHON	Swan 44 MKII	SDL	Rabuffo MD, Jeffrey V.
YOYO!	First 47.7	SDL	Whitworth, Spencer
ZARAFFA	RP 66	SDL	USNA, Hamlet
ZEST	Hinckley SW 42	SDL	Swiggett, Brian E.
BLUE WHALE	Cape Fear 60	UNK	Mitchell, Kent

Newport Bermuda Race

Submitted By YachtPals on 20 Jun

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Newport Bermuda Race Update

On June 21st, 2008 YachtPals says:

Rambler had 447 miles to go at 0800 EDT today in the Newport Bermuda race, where they were locked in a dead heat with Il Mostro (Puma Racing’s Open Division entry). Skipper Ken Read on Il Mostro is reported to have a “friendly little bet” going with Rambler’s owner George David, who usually has Ken skipper Rambler.

Later this morning the two boats spread out, and wind variable winds between them, it will be interesting to see who's tactic pays off.

These boats have little chance of catching up with Open Division leader Speedboat however, which is the largest, fastest boat in the Newport Bermuda race fleet. Speedboat is currently leading her closest rivals by over 20 miles, but with very light winds (0.8 knots) at the front of the pack, they will need to push hard to beat the record to Bermuda.

Newport Bermuda Race Update

On June 23rd, 2008 YachtPals says:

The sailing crews on Rambler and Speedboat will have to put their record breaking hopes on hold for a couple more years. Light winds have taken away any chance of a new record for them in this years Newport Bermuda Race. Although the yacht Speedboat’s navigator predicted an ETA of 1500 on Sunday, it will most likely not be until Monday at that time before they reach the finish line.

Speedboat Newport Bermuda Race

The fastest boats in the Newport Bermuda race have chosen to ignore the effects of the Gulf Stream, and are instead simply sailing the fastest angle to Bermuda. Speedboat has gone well to the east, and to race chairman Nick Nicholson it appears that navigator Stan Honey is gambling on two things "a weakly-defined area of southward-flowing warm water south and east of the stream, and a potential wind shift into the southeast as the boat approaches Bermuda Sunday afternoon."

Nicholson continues "Andrew Cape, Puma‘s Il Mostro navigator, has been closely following in Speedboat’s wake, but the Volvo 70 can’t match the speed of the new Juan K designed 99-footer. George David’s 90-foot Rambler, the Gibbs Hill Lighthouse division scratch boat, has sailed a more conservative course, and lines up about five mile east of the rhumb line some 25 miles behind Speedboat and eight miles closer to Bermuda than Puma’s Il Mostro at 2000 EDT Saturday. The best action, however, is further back in the field. The Double-Handed Division is tightly packed to the west of the rhumbline, with Bjorn Johnson’s Valkyrie dead even with Jason R Richter's Paladin, some 452 miles from Bermuda. Bruce and Dorsey Beard’s Sabre 386 Esmeralde is close to her rivals, some 13 miles behind. Paladin, a J/35, appears to have the better of her rivals on corrected time at this point."

We'll keep you posted here at YachtPals about the Newport Bermuda race, as the first yachts cross the line in Bermuda on Monday.