July 8 Daily Report - The Wind Blows- For Now!

by Race Committee, July 8th, 2014

The fleet is currently heading south along the California coast, about 300 miles west of Cape Mendocino. Longboard has leapt up to the front of the fleet in strong winds over the past 24 hours. But that is where the wind is, not where will the wind be - the story for the next few days will be how long wind will blow along the coast and where will it re-appear.

Right now all boats have decent northerly winds and are making miles down the coast of northern California. But the longer term forecast is for the current winds of 15-25 to ease. And worse, the trade winds that let the boats broach reach towards Hawaii are quite weak. The boats that find the seams in the wind gradient will be the ones that make gains.

As of 1200 HST on Tuesday, the boats are about 300 miles west of Cape Mendocino. The faster boats have started overtaking the boats in the earlier start. Longboard has made the biggest gains by keeping to the left of the fleet and staying in more pressure. Passepartout and Turnagain are sailing side by side and are a little closer to Hawaii and pointing more directly towards it. But Longboard is going south very fast and getting 2 miles closer to Maui than them every hour. Other boats making gains on the left are Anduril and String Theory. Kinetic is the farthest left boat and hoping to keep the strong winds longer as the low pressure that caused the gale warning moves inland. 

While the wind lasts, Kahuna, Jam, and New Haven are also making good time, but are positioned to the west of their main rivals. Bedlam, on the right side, has already decided to seek more wind and has gybed onto port to get closer to the mainland.

Alegria had a halyard-parted-and-sail-over-the-spinnaker incident last night that caused a shoulder injury to the skipper. But the spinnaker was retrieved and Colin Jackson is back on deck with his arm stuck in his PFD, kind of like Lord Nelson. 

But why are these sailors risking injury, living in cramped humid conditions and continually being sleep-deprived? What are they sailing for? Is there Prize Money? 

Yacht racing is a very strange sport. Even at the highest levels like America’s Cup where are unlimited budgets and professionals at every level, there is no prize money. The only silver that sailors compete for are the old dusty trophies in cases in yacht clubs around the world.

The campaigns to compete in Vic-Maui involved extensive preparation and a significant investment in boats and gear. And for what? The answer is Trophies!

One of the two main prizes for Vic-Maui is the Lahaina Yacht Club Trophy. It is given to the boat with the shortest elapsed time to Maui, also known as line honours for being the first to cross the finish line. The other main prize is the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club Trophy, given to the boat that places first overall, after times are corrected for handicaps.

The LYC Trophy usually goes to the biggest, baddest boat with the speed and sex appeal of a thoroughbred. The winner needs to have an abundance of boat speed, but also needs to make important decisions on when to point to Hawaii.

The RVYC Trophy represents the best-sailed race and can be won by any boat in the fleet – if the handicapping is accurate. Not only do all the right tactical decisions have to be made, but every ounce of speed has to be continuously coaxed out of the boat and mistakes have to be absolutely minimized. 

At 1200 HST on Tuesday, Longboard was in the running for both trophies. But calculations are volatile and the winds that gives Longboard a performance advantage are not expected to last. Stay tuned to the Yacht Tracker at www.vicmaui.org

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