42th Biennial Transpacific Yacht Race / Los Angeles to Hawaii Transpacific Yacht Club, Brad Avery, Commodore June 4, 2003
B'QUEST: A TRANSPAC TEAM WITH AN ATTITUDE LONG BEACH, Calif.---The 60-boat fleet for the 42nd biennial TranspacificYacht Race to Hawaii starting July 1, 4 and 6 includes crews of various nationalities and personal profiles, some of world-class stature. But the B'Quest team is unique. One crew member is a quadriplegic, another a paraplegic. A diminutive third member is a victim of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, a fourth is missing an arm and a watch captain is legally and totally blind. The skipper, Josh Ross, is able-bodied, but he says, "Eventually, I want to step off the boat"---not because it's too much trouble but because the others are almost ready to take care of themselves. B'Quest, a Tripp 40, is entered in Division 4, a racing division. Brian and Suzanne Hull of Coronado, Calif. donated it to Challenged America, the San Diego-based organization B'Quest represents, with this goal in mind.
Challenged America is a charitable, therapeutic and recreational rehabilitation sailing program for active adults and children with disabilities, as well as their loved ones, friends and supporters. It was founded in 1990 by disabled Vietnam veterans and is sponsored by the Disabled Businesspersons Association at San Diego State University, Interwork Institute. Its Web site is www.ChallengedAmerica.org. The president is Urban Miyares, who co-founded the organization with fellow Vietnam veteran Bob Hettiger. Miyares has been sailing for more than 40 years, since before he went to Vietnam and lost his sight, some of his hearing and the feeling in his legs to Agent Orange. "I've had a stroke and some other things---diabetes, kidney disease," Miyares said. "But I feel great!"
The crew also will include Greg Scott (rheumatoid arthritis), Scott Meide, who lost his left arm in Vietnam, and Sam Gloor, the quad who finds sailing a bit mild for his taste. "He's a very athletic quadriplegic," Miyares said. "He can't use his arms and legs very well, but he's trying out for the U.S. Paralympic team in quad rugby. It's like rugby but played in wheelchairs. It's a very violent game. They fall out of their chairs. We call it Crash and Burn." It's apparent that this is a team with an attitude. They are the core survivors of a two-year tryout and training program that included the last two Newport to Ensenada races. "We had over 30 people try out for the positions," Miyares said. "Five or six people didn’t want to let the public know about their disabilities. But we're a rehab program. This is part of the rehab." B'Quest has been modified to their needs with a motorized helmsman's chair, a companionway elevator and other devices. "We even made the head accessible so nobody falls off the seat in rough weather," Miyares said. "In the Ensenada race a quadriplegic fell off the toilet seat and they sent me, the blind guy, down there to clean up the mess."
"Each day's a miracle because we don't know where the next funding is coming from. Then someone sponsors us with a watermaker. People loan us their raft. Someone else buys us a single sideband [radio]." B'Quest will start with Divisions 3 and 4 on the Fourth of July---and this, Ross said, is only the beginning. "Just to do it is our goal this time, and then the next time is to be competitive."
TRANSPAC NOTES BILL BIEWENGA of Commanders' Weather, Transpac's official weather service, reports: "During April and May, 2003, the eastern North Pacific high has been relatively weak. There have been days where the strong NW winds are only 50-60 miles offshore and other days where the strong NW winds are not occurring. This is a function of the weaker than normal high pressure area. This means the staggered starts of the 2003 Transpac will see a variety of routes and distances from the start line into the stronger NW winds." More: www.wxadvantage.com/ . . . The Aloha sendoff dinner is scheduled Saturday, June 28, 6 p.m., at the new Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach Resort, 21500 Pacific Coast Highway in Huntington Beach. Tickets are available to race non-participants by contacting AL GARNIER at (310) 816-6515. The price is $52. . . . The 10 Cal 40s will be sailing in their own class for a new prize: the Jensen-Lapworth Perpetual trophy, named for the designer, BILL LAPWORTH, and builder, JACK JENSEN. The runner-up will receive the Hawaii Prince Perpetual trophy. The Cal 40s also will be eligible for the Governor of Hawaii trophy for first place overall on corrected time, which they won in 1965, '67 and '69. . . . Windborne, a Gulfstar 50 from Marina del Rey, Calif. was withdrawn by owner TOM RYAN. That leaves the fleet count at 60, the most boats since 64 sailed in 1985. . . . The last Safety at Sea seminar before Transpac---required of 30 per cent of the crew and both members of a doublehanded crew within the last five years---is scheduled June 28 at the Orange Coast College of Sailing and Seamanship in Newport Beach. Those interested are urged to sign up by phone at (949) 645-9412, ext. 2. EDITORS: Photos in high and low resolution are available. Please contact the press officer (below). OFFICIAL ENTRIES (as of June 4, 2003): (Some division assignments provisional) RACING DIVISION Division 1 (start July 6)
Division 2 (start July 6)
Division 3 (start July 4)
Division 4 (start July 4)
Division 5 (start July 1)
CAL 40 (start July 1)
ALOHA DIVISION (start July 1) Aloha A
Aloha B
DH---Doublehanded.
Transpac Documentary Video/DVD The two-hour historical documentary "Transpac/A Century Across the Pacific" is on sale in marine stores and nautical museums or may be ordered online with a credit card through a link on the Web site home page www.transpacificyc.org. The Web site also has a mail-order form. The video format $39.95, DVD $49.95 and PAL $49.95 for countries requiring that medium. COMMODOREBrad Avery (949) 645-9412 brad@occsailing.com ENTRIES PRESS OFFICER WEB PAGE
The official 2003 TransPac Yacht Race Website http://www.transpacificyc.org
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