Newport Bermuda Race Competitor Briefing #2: Early bird window closing soon
by Bermuda Race Organizing Committee 6 Sep 11:12 PDT
June 19, 2024
Artemisia at the start of the 2022 Race © Daniel Forster
The Bermuda Race Organizing Committee hopes you had a lovely summer cruising and sailing wherever the wind took you. Now that Labor Day is behind us, it is time to consider next summer and whether you will participate in the 53rd Newport Bermuda Race in June!
Since registration opened, we have had 27 competitors enter via new entry system on BermudaRace.com.
The early bird entry window ends September 22nd, when fees will increase by $5 per foot for all divisions. Refer to the Official Notice Board to find the Notice of Race with details on costs and refund policies.
Skippers and crew alike are enjoying the vastly improved race entry process. The streamlined checklist function and profile pages make registering and finding information easy. We recommend all sailors read the step-by-step guide to the new entry system, create accounts, and enter the race.
Among the 27 entries to date, 20 are returning competitors with either the same or new boats, from Beau Van Metre's classic S&S, Running Tide, to our first double-handed entry, Artemisia, Drew Plominski. Plominski sailed last year in the Finisterre division, finishing 5th overall in the division of 40 boats.
In our most popular St. David's Lighthouse Division, last year's 3rd place finisher, Paul Jennings, with his Cal 40 Towhee, is planning to return. This will be Jennings' 8th Bermuda Race. Since 2022 St. David's Lighthouse champions Stan and Sally Honey have sold their Cal 40 Illusion, all eyes will be to see if Jennings' crew will take home the prestigious silver lighthouse trophy. In 2022, they overcame a broken spinnaker pole to climb onto the podium, so this team's tenacity is one to watch.
In the faster-paced Gibbs Lighthouse Division, a new team to the Newport Bermuda Race but not offshore racing is the Botin 65, Artemis, skippered by Raymond Paul. This west coast-based crew has taken on many of the big offshore races, including multiple Transpacs, Rolex Middle Sea Races and also the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race.
We have started welcoming the teams on our social media channels. Be sure to follow @BermudaRace for fun facts about teams or the "Who's Entered" page, where teams can create their own profiles.
Lastly, it is not too early to be thinking ahead about Safety-At-Sea training. Do not wait as seminars fill up fast. We have posted dates for upcoming seminars on Safety at Sea Resources page.