Race to Alaska and a listing of race entrants so far

There was no wind when we left Victoria, the whole race might have been different had we all had to row against a 25 knot headwind.

We were happy sailing downwind at 15 knots under screecher - fast enough for most people! and we were dry and warm!

I knew we could get into the marina on Saturna without help if there was wind. In the event the wind dropped about 5 miles away so my wife came out in our Skoota 28 powercat and towed us in

RW

 

I know Mark and the spin fin. Weve cruised together. Pedal drives are interesting, getting the prop and gearing right for bigger boats is the main homework. I'm looking at a sort of paddle wheel too as it is simpler and easier to repair.

As soon as I remembered Golden Oldies had a fractional rig I realized they had probably forgotten to rig a way to the top in the hurry of race preparations. It got me thinking about the difference between a backwoods (backwards?) boat and a port maintained racer. For the rugged North anything you can't fix without facilities can be a deal breaker. One of the first things we did was to rebuild and modify our mast so we can raise and lower it ourselves. Being built of that arcane material wood it can also be repaired anywhere.
Many multihulls break deck gear up here because of the shock loads, the slender amas of the Nicol act like a shock absorber. The main thing to do is increase the fitting sizes. Recreational boat gear has the working load rated at 1/3 of the breaking load. Commercial working loads are 1/5th of the breaking load, I suggest this is a better standard for multihulls.
Self sufficient is the Alaskan way, for the rugged coast it is worth contemplating for boat prep. Pedal driven craft should still carry paddles for instance. Of course with the irony of the weather up here as soon as you prep for one thing something else will happen. Having a good all rounder is wise.

 

MOB mentality team on the Farrier F85sr are coming back hard at the Hobie 33 Por Favor and should be able to overhaul them before the finish. An exciting race for the steak knives

http://tracker.r2ak.com/

 

It does show the edge a tri can have for race boat shoppers for r2ak. If Por Favor gets passed someone should run out and get a set of forks because they earned something. I'd like a bigger tri for the rough stuff myself.

 

I heard someone say (not too kindly) that the wood rowboat crowd of Port Townsend ran the r2ak at the same time as the Round Vancouver Island Race so the hot boats couldn't show up thus stacking the deck (they hoped) for oars. Any truth there or just left at the dock grumpiness? If so all the top spots filled with sailing plastic must be annoying...It would be a more interesting race not to have the schedule conflict in the future. Lots of those guys would love to lose the rating for a race.

 

Well certainly the race has proved that a conventional "sail/oar" boat is the slowest option. What I think surprised everyone was that even big boats can be rowed effectively. A 38ft catamaran being rowed at over 3 knots by two people sounds very unlikely until you see it.

If they run the R2Ak next year then I am sure Bad Kitty and Dragonfly, to name but two, will enter. Both boats are faster than Elsie Piddock (nee Makika). When I raced BK in the Swiftsure we beat Makika, as did Dragonfly.

But if they wait 2 years, thus clashing with the Van Isle again, maybe they will loose the momentum and enthusiasm this race has generated.

Maybe they will ban multihulls, or boats over 30ft (as in the Jester class races in the UK)

Maybe they lost so much money putting the race on that this will be a one off.

Much will depend on whether people are entering the R2Ak for the rally/adventure or for a race

We will have to see what happens when the dust settles

Richard Woods of Woods Designs

www.sailingcatamarans.com

 

Yes it should be interesting to see what comes of it. I'm sure there were some "OMG what have we done." moments after the weather kicked in too.
I knew about the manual speed potential of a longer multihull though. When we got the Nicol I was just as surprised I could paddle it faster than my 24 footer.

 

MOB 2nd, Por Favor 3rd. Hard fought to the finish.

 

Marvelous race and marvelous people.
We need something like the R2A starting from Auckland - because we too, have a superb coast line, ideal for such a course.

 

MOB mentality are sharing the steak knives prize with the Por Favor team. A nice gesture for a race which has been conducted with a fantastic Corinthian flavor.

 

There is no doubt about the caliber and class of the contestants. Well done.

 

Team Freeburd are approaching the finish now on their catamaran.

 

The 3 racing for 4th each took a different route towards the end, good info for future racers there. Of course it all depends on the wind and direction.

 

Team Freeburd finished with Team Kohara working their way towards the finish. Those rowing and peddling rigs will be getting a workout if the wind strength indicated on the stations are correct.

 

Mmmmm could be interesting especially round the SW of the South Island, Doubtfull Sound and the extremely wild places....

Interesting race the R2AK, not sure we have enough rough stuff in the Uk, though certain spots say the mouth of Loch Etive might make things lively. Ifyou went a bit Continental, the Alderney race is always good fun too....

Well done to all who competed, and bad luck Richard, thanks for the input and better luck next time!.