Round the Island Race - George David’s Rambler to compete

by Barby MacGowan on 13 May 2014 Edgartown Yacht Club’s three day race weekend is coming up and Rambler, George David’s (Hartford, Conn.) 90-foot Reichel-Pugh designed maxi yacht, has confirmed that it will compete in the ‘Round-the-Island Race which is part of the event (July 24-26), thus throwing down the gauntlet for other yachts to top the record it established last year. The ‘Round-the-Island Race, 77 years old, was inspired by a race of similar distance and beauty around the Isle of Wight in Cowes and has been attracting name sailors since 1938 when it was first held.

'We actually broke our own record from 2009, which had been just over five hours,' said Rambler Team Manager Mick Harvey (Newport, R.I.), explaining that the team’s 2013 time of four hours and 10 minutes is now officially the fastest recorded time for the approximately 56 nautical mile circumnavigation of Martha’s Vineyard. 'Our top speed (in average 25+ knot winds) was 27 knots on the north side of the island, after the final corner to the finish. The boat just lit up! We were ripping along with flat water and no waves. George was driving, and he was having the time of his life. It was really, really cool; we were all pinching ourselves in the end.'

By the time Rambler gets to Edgartown, it will have had a chance to break another race record that it holds: one for fastest boat to complete the 186-nautical mile Block Island Race, posted in 2013. (Rambler also established a new time record for the 635-nautical mile Newport Bermuda Race in 2012.).

It’s important to note that racing for records is not typically the priority for most Edgartown Yacht Club Race Weekend participants. The event offers something for every type of sailor, including two days of Big Boat Buoy Races (Friday and Saturday, July 24-25) prior to the ‘Round-the-Island Race (Saturday, July 26), and promotes fun, competitive racing for all sizes of boats in IRC, PHRF, Double-Handed, Classic and Cruising divisions.

The Big Boat Buoy Races are sanctioned as part of the prestigious U.S. IRC Gulf Stream Series, and the ‘Round-the-Island Race, separately scored, is part of the New England Lighthouse Series for PHRF yachts. Deadline for entry is July 23 for the former and July 25 for the latter. (No registration fee is required for the Big Boat Buoy Races.) For more information, go to http://www.rtirace.org or contact raceadministrator@edgartownyc.org

Edgartown Yacht Club has a long history of providing exceptional yacht racing in the waters around Martha’s Vineyard. With roots going back to the turn of the 20th century, the club was officially founded in 1905 by racing members of the original 'Home Club,' to which many prominent summer and permanent residents—both racing and non-racing—belonged. The current clubhouse, completed in 1927, sits magnificently at the foot of Main Street, where in the days of old, the town’s whaling ships berthed.

In 2014, Edgartown Yacht Club will host, in addition to Edgartown Race Weekend, a North Sails J/70 Spring Tune-Up Clinic (June 20-22); the Edgartown Yacht Club 91st Annual Regatta for one-design boats, celebrating the 100th Anniversary of the Wianno Senior class (July 10-12); and the 21st running of the Annual 12 Metre Regatta (August 8-10).

For more information and to register for Edgartown Yacht Club sailing events, click here.