Transatlantic Race curtain call and twenty-one gun salute

by Barby MacGowan on 13 Aug 2011 Transatlantic Race this week enjoyed the presentation of awards at the Royal Yacht Squadron’s Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight. The cast of players have taken their final bow, and the production that was the Transatlantic Race 2011 has closed to rave reviews.

The race made history with the establishment of a new record – crossing 2,975 miles of ocean from Newport, R.I. to The Lizard on the south coast of England – and was the result of a successful collaboration between the Royal Yacht Squadron (founded in 1815), the New York Yacht Club (1844), the Royal Ocean Racing Club (1925) and the Storm Trysail Club (1938).

A twenty-one gun salute greeted HRH the Princess Royal, President of the Royal Yachting Association, as she arrived at Cowes Castle for the official Prize Giving Reception. The Princess Royal’s father, HRH Prince Phillip, has been the Admiral of the Royal Yacht Squadron for over 40 years and Princess Anne seemed very much at home as she was introduced to the honored guests before presenting the trophies.

Also officiating at the awards ceremony were the Commodores of the four organizing entities: Michael Campbell of the Royal Yacht Squadron, Robert C. Towse, Jr. of the New York Yacht Club, Andrew McIrvine of the Royal Ocean Racing Club and Eric Kreuter of the Storm Trysail Club.

A glittering array of prizes had been flown across the Atlantic for the awards presentation that was held in the Pavilion, which had opened in 2000 as the venue to enable the Royal Yacht Squadron to cross burgees with New York Yacht Club in celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the America’s Cup. After an enthusiastic assembly showed their appreciation to every winner, competitors and honored guests enjoyed each other’s company on the Squadron’s lawn before retiring to The Castle for the Transatlantic Race Owners’ Dinner.

Transatlantic Race 2011 Review - On June 26, cannon fire from the iconic Castle Hill Lighthouse signaled the beginning of the historic ocean adventure. It was the first of three staggered starts, implemented so that yachts ranging in size from 40’ to 289’ would finish off The Lizard in close proximity to one another.

Representing ten nations, the twenty-six entries were crewed by world-class professionals as well as Corinthian amateurs.

The youngest competitor was just sixteen years of age, the oldest 80, and the fleet was just as diverse: from the 289’ Maltese Falcon that was nearly three times the length of any other participant, to high performance canting keel Maxis to pocket rocket Class 40s.

On Sunday, 10 July, at 16h 08m UTC, Rambler 100 was the first yacht to cross the finish line of the Transatlantic Race 2011. The elapsed time for Rambler 100 was six days, 22 hours, eight minutes and two seconds, which established a new record for the 2,975 nautical mile course from Newport, R.I., to Lizard Point, South Cornwall, U.K. Puma’s Mar Mostro was next across the finish line at The Lizard at 05:40 UTC on July 11, and when calculations proved that none of the 24 yachts still racing could beat them on handicap Mar Mostrowas declared winner of IRC Class One and IRC Overall for the Transatlantic Race 2011.

After twenty-two days, all yachts and sailors were safe in port. The incredible record set by Rambler 100, the milestone marked by all participants, and the bonds forged while racing across the North Atlantic bear witness to having taken on and successfully completed a great challenge.

Transatlantic Race website