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Pye shares focus with Mag 80, Holua, ML vs. Samba

HONOLULU---Here's where Pyewacket stood at Friday morning's position reports for the 44th Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawaii: Barn Door? With a 109-nautical mile lead over Doug Baker's Magnitude 80, almost certain. Record? Probably not.

As Roy E. Disney waits in Waikiki, his team is urging all speed possible out of the radically modified 94-foot onetime maxZ86, but even with favorable northeast trade winds kicking in for the second half of the race, that apparently won't be enough to get Pyewacket to the finish line off Diamond Head by 2:04 a.m. Hawaii time Sunday and reclaim the record.

Twenty-four hours earlier it was calculated that Pyewacket had to average 17.97 knots the rest of the way; it averaged 15.2 in the latest report.

Also, Mag 80 should win Division 1 on corrected handicap time, although Brack Duker's Santa Cruz 70, Holua, in Division 2 is the overall leader among the 69 boats still racing, recalling the glory days of the "sleds" of the 80s and 90s.

Better news for Disney is the ding-dong dogfight for second place in Division 2 between his Morning Light team and John Kilroy Jr.'s Samba Pa Ti, both Transpac 52s in lockstep only 19 miles behind Holua and well within sight of each other.

Disney's navigator, Stan Honey, has an interest in both boats. As a coach for the Morning Light team of young sailors he helped to train navigators Piet van Os of La Jolla, Calif. and Chris Branning of Sarasota, Fla.

"It is an unusual Transpac," said the man who has won a couple, plus the last Volvo Ocean Race---as has, by the way, Mark Rudiger, his friend and counterpart on Holua who navigated Assa Abloy's victory with Paul Cayard in the previous Volvo.

Honey said in a message from the boat: "As far as I can recall, this is the first time in a July race that it was tempting to try to go north of the eastern lobe of the high and cut across the east-west ridge right at the cold front. All navigators that I chatted with were considering such a move but were sensibly frightened by the fact that it was such an unusual approach for a Transpac.

"On the morning of the start we had a combined Pyewacket and Morning Light weather and strategy meeting at which the Pyewacket afterguard decided to follow the more conventional southern course. The Morning Light afterguard sounded as if they had decided to take the northern route. When I last spoke to the navigators on Morning Light about 30 minutes before the preparatory signal for the start, I confirmed that Pyewacket was heading south."

Oops!

Honey continued: "When we analyzed the 18Z GFS model run which we received at 1700 PDT after our start on Sunday, we on Pyewacket changed our plan and off we went on the northern course, [which] looked like it would be very slow in the vicinity of the trough, but if we were able to cross the trough without stopping for too long, the net passage would be as much as 12-18 hours faster than the southern route. It's worth noting that the boats that started earlier really didn't have an attractive option to take the northern course because of the location of the light wind area that was in the eastern lobe of the high. By the time of our start that light air area had moved far enough south so that it was feasible for us to sail over it.

"In working with the kids we discussed that the northern course would likely be more appropriate for Morning Light than it would be for Pyewacket, [which] was configured for a light air downwind race and the upwind work of the northern course would not suit her, whereas Morning Light and her crew were fully prepared for a long upwind thrash. Having completed the Molokai course three times and a trip to Hilo and back, all in over 30 knots, the 'kids' were well prepared to race upwind in a near-gale.

"So the race initially unfolded very differently than we discussed. Pyewacket headed north, the kids headed south, the opposite of what both boats initially planned."

There has been no communication between Pyewacket and Morning Light since the start last Sunday.

"I was, and in fact still am, a bit concerned that the kids will be upset that I said that Pyewacket was going south and then instead headed north," Honey said. "On the other hand, I suppose that is why boats still carry navigators onboard so that they can evolve strategies as new information becomes available."

Honey also commented on the performance of Steve Manson, a Morning Light alternate who wound up on Pyewacket.

"We've had endless conversations onboard with Steve about the outlook for the kids. They have a real race on their hands with the guys on Samba.

"Steve is working on his bowman techniques with Jerry Kirby and Rick Brent, and has also been adopted by the grinders. Steve is a natural athlete and he only needs to see somebody do something exactly right once or twice and then Steve can nail it. Steve also keeps his eyes open the way that many good sailors do and sees rigging problems early when working on the bow."

Transblogs from the boats

Denali (Bill McKinley): "We survived another night and maintained our first-in-division [3] position. So far so good, and we currently like our position on the race track for the next 24 hours. We put our A2 kite up last night and have only had it down for a brief period to thread a line between two rain cells at dawn. It was a dicey position to be in but we dodged a bullet. The next two days are going to really set up the boats for their final push into Hawaii. Fortunes will be won and lost over the next 48 hours."

Peregrine (Jeff Westbrook): Trade winds continue to build. We're now getting 20K regular breeze and surfing down long rollers at a top speed achieved (by your humble correspondent) of 14.7K, accompanied by a yell of "yikes!" It's a drag race to the finish.

Psyche (Bill Wright): Steve Calhoun is off watch and is up on deck taking a bath. This is a pretty exciting affair. Not Steve, the bath. You go up on deck with a bucket and a bottle of camp suds, half or completely naked, depending on your level of insecurity. Just the act of standing on the foredeck of a bucking seahorse when the wind is high is quite a trick to keep standing. Sometimes you have to just sit down. First you take a bucket with a strong rope, tied to your hand, and fetch some water, then you pour the bucket over your head. This feels REALLY good. Cool tropical water. Then you get the camp suds and cover yourself. After a couple of suds, rinses, you are ready to rinse yourself with fresh water. Steve has one of those amazingly simple inventions called a solar shower. Nothing more than a plastic sack, clear on one side, and black on the other, full of freshly made water. After a surprisingly short time of this sack sitting on the deck with its clear side up, the water is piping hot. Hoist the sack on the spinnaker pole and open its spigot on the bottom, and out pours really nice hot water for the final rinse. Do it completely, because we are making new water every day. What a luxury this is.

Tango (Phil and Mike, both 70): Halfway there! Martini anyone? Last night a storm came through with a lot of wind and rain. We had to sail conservatively and lost some ground to the young and the brave. Mike is doing such a good job with the food that there will not be the hoped-for weight loss on the trip; in fact, it may be the other way around.

Reinrag2 (Dr. Data?): We had our halfway party yesterday with lots to celebrate. Still going to Hawaii fast and trying to get faster. Can't ask for better weather position with just the right amount of wind to let R^2 fly. All the while lots of great (and not so great) jokes and laughter. We're sorry that you guys can't see us on the transponder anymore. Just imagine us jamming ahead.

The Minnow: (Bob Webster) Mom and Dad tried to raise us not to follow the crowd. As you can see, we are taking the scenic route in order to give the other boats a chance. Notice that we are no longer the farthest from Hawaii! We finally passed some boats! (Mike Webster) It was still cool inside after the movie so I started playing the piano. Playing the piano must be hard work for me, because it always makes me hot. I'm working my way through a Beethoven piano sonata book. This morning I played two more of them and then went outside to cool off. Crisis on the Minnow: Bob's toilet started acting up a couple of days ago. For nearly 24 hours we shared a toilet. It was disgusting! Today he decided to find and fix the problem. Thank goodness the crisis is over now. We are not sharing a toilet anymore. Has anyone ever fished for seven straight days without a single bite? I started John Jourdane's "Sailing with Scoundrel's and Kings" today. It has lots of entertaining stories, which I am enjoying.

The Transpacific Yacht Club has joined with Casio Computer Co., Ltd., in a sponsorship agreement to make the company's Oceanus watch the official timekeeper of the 44th biennial race. The Oceanus is a solar-powered chronograph watch with a time signal-calibration function developed by making full use of Casio's advanced electronic technologies. News and product information: http://world.casio.com/

Transpac supporters also include the Long Beach Sea Festival 2007, Gladstone's Restaurant, Ayres Hotels and L. Gaylord Sportswear.

Archived press releases: http://www.underthesunphotos.com/Press%20Releases/PR-index.htm

More information: www.transpacificyc.org

Transpac 2007 standings

(By corrected handicap time. ORR rating allowances in parentheses in days:hours:minutes:seconds based on handicap distance of 2,300 n.m.; subtract time allowance from actual final elapsed time to determine corrected handicap time)

(positions at 6 a.m. PDT Friday)

Division 1 (Started July 15)

1. Magnitude 80 (Andrews 80), Doug Baker, Long Beach, Calif. (00:4:32:33), 984 miles to go.

2. Peligroso (Kernan 70), Mike Campbell/Dale Williams, Long Beach (1:05:17:12), 1,153.

3. Pyewacket (Reichel/Pugh 90), Roy E. Disney, Burbank, Calif. (minus-00:21:09:13), 875.

4. Medicine Man (Andrews 63), Bob Lane, Long Beach (1:07:02:37), 1,259.

5. Rosebud (STP 65), Roger Sturgeon, Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (1:04:09:36), 1,290.

Division 2 (Started July 15)

1. Holua (Santa Cruz 70), Brack Duker, Pasadena, Calif. (2:08:51:12), 1,245.

2. Morning Light (Transpac 52), Jeremy Wilmot, Honolulu (2:05:27:19), 1,264.

3. Samba Pa Ti (Transpac 52), John Kilroy Jr., Los Angeles (2:04:02:17), 1,264.

4. Hugo Boss (Volvo 60), Andy Tourell, Gosport, UK (1:23:10:32), 1,371.

5. Skylark (Santa Cruz 70), Doug Ayres, Newport Beach, Calif. (2:06:24:05), 1,394.

6. DH-Pegasus 101 (Open 50), Philippe Kahn/Richard Clarke, Honolulu (2:00:47:54), 1,389.

7. Westerly (Santa Cruz 70), Thomas and Timothy Hogan, Newport Beach (2:06:06:45), 1,413.

8. Lucky (Transpac 52), Bryon Ehrhart, Chicago (2:05:26:28), 1,417.

9. Trader (Transpac 52), Fred Detwiler, Pompano Beach, Fla. (2:09:31:32), 1,487.

Division 3 (Started July 15)

1. Denali (Nelson/Marek 70), William McKinley, Grosse Pointe, Mich. (2:13:37:33), 1,309.

2. It's OK (Andrews 50), Tres Gordo Sailing, Glendora, Calif. (2:14:25:31), 1,373.

3. Cheetah (ULDB 70), Chris Slagerman, Los Angeles (2:18:18:28), 1,417. 4. Ragtime (Spencer 65), Chris Welsh, Newport Beach (2:23:51:49), 1,434.
5. Pendragon IV (Davidson 52), John MacLaurin, Encino, Calif. (2:19:54:52), 1,437.

6. Locomotion (Andrews 45), Ed Feo, Long Beach (3:03:56:13), 1,490.

7. Bengal 7 (Ohashi 46), Yoshihiko Murase, Nagoya, Japan (3:03:43:16), 1,514.

Yumehyotan (Nelson/Marek 68), Yasuo Sano, Osaka, Japan (2:22:57:25), NO REPORT (radio problem).

Division 4 (Started July 12)

1. Reinrag2 (J/125), Tom Garnier, Wilsonville, Ore. (3:22:20:02), 727.

2. Cipango (Andrews 56), Bob & Rob Barton, Santa Rosa, Calif. (3:16:51:29), 701.

3. Verizon Wireless (ex-Stealth Chicken; Perry 56), Timothy Beatty, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (3:08:33:34), 773.

4. Ruahatú (Concordia 47), Ricardo Brockmann, Acapulco, Mexico (3:23:58:37), 850.

5. Raincloud (J/48), Lorenzo Berho Corona, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (3:22:26:21), 1,070.

6. Bolt (Nelson/Marek 55), Craig Reynolds, Newport Beach (4:00:24:09), 1,117.

RETIRED ---Lucky Dog (J/125), Colin Shanner, San Diego (3:21:37:33).

RETIRED---Delicate Balance (Andrews 56), DBB Transpac LLC, San Rafael, Calif. (3:20:58:21).

Division 50/52 (Started July 12)

1. Kokopelli 2 (Santa Cruz 52), S.A. (Chip) Megeath, Tiburon, Calif. (3:03:55:25), 658.

2. Horizon (Santa Cruz 50), Jack Taylor, Dana Point, Calif. (4:00:14:46), 781.

3. Fortaleza (Santa Cruz 50), Jim Morgan, Long Beach (4:00:12:42), 790. 4. Hula Girl (Santa Cruz 50T), Beau Gayner, Newport Beach (3:17:23:38), 768.

5. Passion (Santa Cruz 50), Steve Hastings, Corpus Christi, Tex. (3:20:35:39), 800.

6. Tachyon III (Santa Cruz 52), Kazumasa Nishioka, Tokyo (3:18:57:36), 796.

7. Stags' Leap Winery (ex-Chasch Mer; Santa Cruz 50), Gib Black, Honolulu (4:05:22:35), 869.

8. Adrenalin (Santa Cruz 50), David Clark, Newport Beach (3:19:43:59), 1,061.

9. Relentless (Santa Cruz 52), Will Durant/Rick Brizendine, Long Beach (3:16:42:19), 1,057.

Division 5 (Started July 12)

1. Tower (Lidgard 45), Doug Grant, San Pedro, Calif. (4:10:51:22), 852. 2. Rancho Deluxe (Swan 45), Mike Diepenbrock, Sacramento, Calif. (4:10:34:37), 863.

3. Paddy Wagon (Ross 40), Richard Mainland, Los Angeles (4:15:58:16), 942.

4. On the Edge of Destiny (1D35), Sean Doyle, Kailua, H.I. (5:00:05:40), 982.

5. Recidivist (Schumacher 39), Ken Olcott, Los Altos, Calif. (5:09:17:24), 1,020.

6. DH-Tango (J/133), Michael Abraham/Phillip Rowe, Newport Beach (4:19:58:16), 1,017.

7. DH-Narrow Escape (Fast 40), Allen Lehman Sr. and Jr., Payson, Ariz. (4:20:59:25), 1,109.

8. Tabasco (1D35), Gary Fanger, San Francisco (5:02:01:10), 1,173.

9. Uncontrollable Urge (Columbia 30), James/Chris Gilmore, Carlsbad, Calif. (4:23:42:31), 1,270.

Division 6 (Started July 9)

1. Far Far (Cal 40), Don Grind, Placerville, Calif. (7:02:47:32), 836.

2. Psyche (Cal 40), Steve Calhoun, Palos Verdes Estates, Calif. (7:03:57:50), 867.

3. Peregrine (Hobie 33), Simon Garland, San Diego (5:21:13:46), 780.

4. Inspired Environments (Beneteau First 40.7), Timothy Ballard, Sausalito, Calif. (5:20:14:31), 850.

5. DH-Brilliant (J/100), Tim Fuller/Erik Shampain, Murrieta, Calif. (5:21:44:43), 887.

6. California Girl (Cal 40), Don and Betty Lessley, Novato, Calif. (7:01:16:11), 996.

7. Brown Sugar (Express 37), Steve Brown, Santa Ana, Calif. (6:03:41:56), 945.

8. DH-X Dream (X-119), Steen Moller/Bob MacDonald, Point Richmond, Calif. (5:12:37:00), 930.

9. Shanti (Olson 911S), Jon Eberly, Greenbrae, Calif. (7:17:47:09), 1,112.

Aloha A (Started July 9)

1. Between the Sheets (Jeanneau 52), Ross Pearlman, Marina del Rey (5:12:56:15), 759.

2. Ariadne (Ladd 73), Frank Easterbrook, Newport Beach (4:08:39:09), 654.

3. Windswept (Sean 57), Maxwell Phelps, Jamul, Calif. (5:06:21:29), 751. 4. French Kiss (Beneteau 50), Bryan Daniels, Alamo, Calif. (5:11:59:45), 803.