SailOnline to provide virtual race mirroring the 52nd Newport Bermuda Race

SailOnline to provide virtual race mirroring the 52nd Newport Bermuda Race © SailOnline

The Bermuda Race Organizing Committee (comprised of members of the Cruising Club of America and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club) has teamed with Sailonline, a community-owned navigation-simulator game, to provide a virtual race that will mirror the 52nd Newport Bermuda Race, scheduled to start Friday, June 17.

The 2022 Online Newport Bermuda Race offered by Sailonline is open to anyone around the world who wishes to race the fleet on the 635-nautical mile voyage to Bermuda that crosses the Gulf Stream in what is one of the most realistic sailing navigation simulator games on the internet. Gamers can enter any one of four divisions—Double-Handed, Finisterre (cruising), Gibbs Hill Lighthouse or St. David's Lighthouse—depending on their preferred style of racing.

Registration for the race is currently open at Sailonline, and the portal will open for pre-race practice on Thursday, June 9, at 2300 UTC, or 1900 ET. Prizes will be awarded to the top three in each division, including a technical bag for first place from sponsors BankNewport and Team One Newport, a canvas bag for second place from sponsor Barton & Gray Mariners Club, and a race cap for third place from the Bermuda Race Organizing Committee. Additionally, all 12 winners will receive a poster of the race.

To be eligible for prizes and recognition, competitors should be sure to also register at Bermuda Race Prizes.

Originally created in Sweden, Sailonline is a navigation-simulator game for ocean racing that provides a realistic, entertaining and educational platform for those who love the sea and sailing. The simulator runs in real time, which means that a race can be ongoing for days or even weeks. To enable realistic sailing, the weather in which the boats sail is authentic, along with both the charts and the boat's performance. Hence, Sailonline lets you race the boats you otherwise just see from a distance.

One of the unique features of Sailonline is the ability to run different yacht polars in the same race, and as the Bermuda Race has traditionally been conducted in four major divisions, this year's virtual race will again feature four divisions:

• Double-Handed Division: Sun Fast 3300
• Finisterre (Cruising) Division: Delphia 47
• Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Division: Reichel/Pugh 66
• St. David's Lighthouse Division: First 44.7 Asymmetric

For more information about each yacht and a view of the polar diagram that will apply online, please click on the yacht type name.

Note that the First 44.7 utilizes the polar diagram of Slide Rule, which will be competing in the actual race with SailOnline regular, Scott Bearse, at the helm. A Sunfast 3300 is also racing "in real life"; Alchemist has a crew of four in the Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Division including Glenn Walters, head of Bluenose Yacht Sales, the race's Official Race Tracker Sponsor.

Interested competitors are reminded to register both at Sailonline or the Bermuda Race website.