Winners and others honored at sold-out awards fete

by Rich Roberts on 31 Jul 2005 From the Barn Door to Bubala and B'Quest, the 43rd Transpacific Yacht Race presented the greatest span of sailing technology and talent in its 100 years, and all received due recognition among 1,040 fellow competitors and guests who packed the Grand Ballroom of the Renaissance Ilikai Hotel for the sold-out awards dinner Friday night.

Bubala, a Cal 40 sailed by six men ages 66 to 72, and B'Quest, Challenged America's team of sailors with disabilities from San Diego, shared the stage with crew members of Morning Glory, Hasso Plattner's maxZ86 that broke Roy Disney's record and collected the Barn Door trophy as the monohull with the fastest elapsed time: 6 days 16 hours 4 minutes 11 seconds and an average of 13.9 knots for the 2,225 nautical miles. Plattner was not present.

The audience saw videos of race highlights and tributes to Disney, who delivered his formal farewell to the event he promoted and helped to reshape in 15 races over 30 years.

‘Did I say I was quitting?’ he dead-panned in opening remarks.

Then, more serious, he said, ‘This race is not about the big boats. It's about the Cal 40s, it's about B'Quest's disabled sailors, it's about Bubala and the old geezers. Keep doing this. I've brought all four of our kids up on it. Thank you, all of you.’

Appropriately, among those honored was Bernardo Guzman, 11, a member of the crew on his father's J/145, Jeito, from Acapulco, Mexico. He is within 9 ½ months of the youngest person ever to sail Transpac.

Later, with Morning Glory boat captain Peter Pendleton, Disney did the honors of updating the hands on the 18th century-style trophy clock he commissioned six years earlier to mark the current record.

Pendleton also received the Don Vaughn Trophy as the outstanding crew member on the fastest boat, chosen by his crew mates.

Ivan Chan Wa, director of pier operations---i.e., maintaining order in the upheaval afflicting the Ala Wai Yacht Harbor, including the displacement of ‘Transpac Row’---was honored as top volunteer on the Honolulu Committee.

A total of 75 boats, second only to 80 in 1979, started the Centennial Transpac. They came from eight countries on four continents and 12 of the United States.

Still, after all the traditional dockside welcome parties were exhausted and all the awards distributed, one remained more than 500 miles at sea. James and Ann Read of San Francisco, sailing their 42-foot boat Camille doublehanded with their little dog, Sweetie Pie, were expected to finish next Wednesday after 22 days.

As the Reads have seen, it wasn't the windiest Transpac, but at the front it was by far the fastest with five boats---including Disney's own maxZ86, Pyewacket---eclipsing his 1999 record, alongside the anomaly of a 68-year-old yawl, Odyssey, finishing just ahead of them with its six-day head start in the Aloha division.

Also noted: along the way, Morning Glory blew away the race's 24-hour distance record when it logged 393 miles on its first full day at sea, July 18, stretching the mark of 356 miles set by Philippe Kahn's Pegasus 77 maxi sled on its second Barn Door romp in 2003.