May 4, 2009

The Kauai Channel Race is happening July 31

The Kauai Channel Race takes place on July 31. This race will begin at Ko'Olina Marina and Resort on Oahu and ends 78 miles later at the Nawiliwili Harbor,Kauai. Traditionally this is a fun and exciting event organized by the Nawiliwili Yacht Club on Kauai. There were 22 sailboats that participated in last year's race and we anticipate more entries this year. The race begins at 7 AM on Friday, July 31 with the first boat arriving Nawiliwili that afternoon . The boats will be greeted when they arrive Nawiliwili on Friday. On Saturday, August 1 the Nawiliwili Yacht Club will host an awards party with pupus and dancing. As of this writing our sponsors are Ko'Olina Resort and Marina and Hawaii Nui Brewing. For more info. contact Rear Commodore Terry Wells at 808-828-1011.

December 10, 2008

16 early online entries for Transpac 2009

LOS ANGELES---The upgraded online entry system for the Transpacific Yacht Race is off to a vigorous start with 16 boats from five countries already signed up for the next summer's 2,225-nautical mile race to Hawaii.

Those include Ragtime, the Spencer 65 now owned by Chris Welsh of Newport Beach. The two-time Barn Door winner will be extending its record number of Transpacs to 15. The wooden wonder followed its overall victory in this year's Tahiti Race with a homecoming cruise to New Zealand and has enjoyed a Down Under summer of racing to be climaxed by the Sydney-Hobart Race after Christmas.

Ragtime racing in New Zealand; coming up: Sydney-Hobart, then a record 15th Transpac photo by Zoe Hawkins

Also notable: Jim Morgan's Santa Cruz 50 Fortaleza, another Tahiti competitor that was first to sign up, and Challenged America's new boat, B'Quest II, a Nelson/Marek 43 that blind skipper Urban Miyares and his disabled crew will race in their third Transpac. In 2005 they finished fourth among eight boats in Division V.

Other entries have come from Japan, the United Kingdom, Canada and Mexico.

Morning Light the movie dawns in October

One of the sailors, Jesse Fielding, then 20, of Kingston, R.I., said, "People in Rhode Island are very excited, as you can imagine, with all the hometown heroes in the film. For example, my mom has 50 German exchange students in the state and they want to make an outing of it, and home yacht clubs want to see it as a group, and family is flying in to see it as well. So you get the idea."

The world beyond sailing is counting down to the Oct. 17 launch of the film documentary Morning Light in 55 theaters from the U.S. east coast to Honolulu, following special premiere benefit and charity screenings in various locations starting Thursday, Oct. 2.

The high-definition film presents a real-life, unscripted account of the year-long recruitment, tryout selection and training of young sailors ages 15 to 23 to sail a high-performance Transpac 52 called Morning Light in last year's Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii. From the 538 who applied, 15 were trained and 11 sailed and placed third overall in Division 2 (second among TP52s) against boats with professional sailors among their crews. Trailer video (2 minutes 20 seconds)

Morning Light team celebrates its podium finish in the 2007 Transpacific Yacht Race

The special screenings will include an Oct. 15 showing for 600 guests at the Lido Theatre in Newport Beach, Calif. to raise funds for an expanded Transpac Exhibit at the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum and to underscore a new partnership with the museum as a base for the Transpacific Yacht Club.

Click here for the whole Press Release.