Marion Bermuda Race - First to finish
by Marion Bermuda Race 25 Jun 21:53 AEST
Ker 50 Redwood, skippered by Beverly Yacht Club Member Pike Severance, crossed the Marion Bermuda Race © Fran Grenon / Spectrum Photo / Marion Bermuda Race
The Ker 50 Redwood, skippered by Beverly Yacht Club Member Pike Severance, crossed the Marion Bermuda Race finish line off of St. David's Head in Bermuda this morning at 7:13 with an elapsed sailing time of 4d 18h 33m 42s.
Light breeze made Redwood's strategy of chasing the wind, despite sailing a longer distance (704NM total, whereas the rhumb line was 645 NM), deliver them across the finish line first.
We can expect Integrity (Nancy Rhodes, Jordan Hall), Gallant (Matthew Irving, Olivia Schuchard), Defiance (Sammy Mentel, Maddy Nienow), and Lyric (Jay Hansen), to cross the finish line this morning. However, a dying morning breeze will likely make the finish a true test of patience and skill. Notably, Integrity, Gallant, and Defiance are all Navy 44s, skippered by sailors from the US Naval Academy, and are all celestially navigated.
Line honors are just one component of scoring in the Marion Bermuda Race. Each vessel is assigned a unique offshore rating, which reflects its predicted performance based on design characteristics such as length, age, displacement, and sail area. Celestially navigated boats are also given an additional scoring adjustment. Corrected times are officially calculated post-race, with some boats owing time to others or receiving time allowances, thereby normalizing performance across a diverse fleet.
In addition, the race employs the Forecast Time Correction Factor (F-TCF) system. This methodology enables the race committee to analyze prevailing wind conditions throughout the race and apply dynamic adjustments to each boat's rating, ensuring that corrected times more accurately reflect relative performance under the observed weather scenario.
The fleet can be tracked using Yellow Brick Tracking at yb.tl/MBR25 or through the YB Tracker App.
A full NOR, as well as further information about the race and its surrounding events, is on the race website.
Scratch sheets by class with skipper names are available here