Pacific Cup: Mai Tai Storm on the Horizon

The biennial Pacific Cup attracted 64 entrants for the 2070 nm course from San Francisco to Hawaii, with the fleet divided among four staggered starts on July 11, 12, 14, and 15. Here’s a report from July 19.

Hill Blackett’s Class40 California Condor remains the pace car for the fleet with only 400 nm to go before Lahaina tourists must take cover. After a couple gybes to position their track to the north of rhumb line, the Condor is now dead ahead of Manouch Moshayedi’s Rio 100, with their 150 nm lead getting swallowed in 6 nm bites every hour. At Rio’s 17 knot pace, the finish committee better be preparing for the mai tai storm to hit tomorrow night.

Event details – Tracker – Team blogs – Division splits – Facebook

Background: The Pacific Cup Yacht Club is responsible for organizing the biennial Pacific Cup, dubbed the “FUN race to Hawaii.” Since 1980, the Pacific Cup has been sailed from San Francisco Bay to Hawaii every other year, and since 1988 the finish has been at the warm and welcoming Kaneohe Yacht Club on the island of Oahu. With an emphasis on pre-race preparation for the 2070 nm race, PCYC’s volunteer membership has helped to ensure that thousands of racers have been delighted with their Pacific Cup experience.

Source: Pacific Cup Yacht Club