RACE TO ALASKA 2018 and Seventy48 Race

H

hardee

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Races – Race To Alaska and Seventy48

This year the Northwest Maritime Center in Port Townsend, WA is adding another race to the already highly followed Race to Alaska. The first race is the Seventy48, people powered so paddle, row or peddle, no sails. 70 miles and runs over 48 hours. The start is at 5:30 PM Monday in Tacoma and the course runs north through the Puget Sound for 70 miles to the Port Townsend City Dock with an ending time of 5:30 PM on Wednesday just 12 hours before the Race to Alaska starts at 0500 on Thursday morning in Port Townsend.

Race to Alaska 2018 starts at 0500 Thursday morning from the Maritime Center start line and finishes at the dock in front of the Parliament Buildings in Victoria BC. The ending cut off time is 5 PM Friday.

For those who are interested I will post the links. Both races will be available to follow via a tracking website.

The Seventy48 will be a people powered only race and has some very interesting vessels. There are only about a 125 so it will only take a few minutes to go through and peek at the entries. There is a laydown paddler, a recycled beach plastic boat and an 80 year old.

Seventy48 for info:
https://www.seventy48.com/

for tracking:
https://www.seventy48.com/follow-the-race/


The Race to Alaska is using the same rules as last year, no motor allowed.
For info:
https://r2ak.com/

…for tracking, well, It’s not set up on the site yet. I believe it will be at the same place as the tracking for the Seventy48 and will be active after that race is completed. Guess you will have to check the site to find out for sure.

SleepyC will be doing Safety Boat service again this year, for the R2AK and for the new race, the Seventy48. This will be interesting, a marathon patrol.

Harvey
SleepyC:moon

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Harvey,
Thanks so much for the info on these two very interesting races. I get so enthused that I often wake up in the middle of the night to check positions.

For those who have not followed the R2AK, it is a saga of sheer human determination and physical skills to win, or even finish in many cases. The first prize is $10,000. The second place is a set of steak knives.

There is a thread, with many inside comments on Sailing Anarchy, which may be worth reading: here. There is information on many of the boats, and skippers/crew, as well as posts from the percipients themselves at times. There are already 7 pages of comments!

I am sure that all percipients thank Harvey and the rest of the safety crew! There are only safety boats for the first legs--after that, the racers are on their own!
 
Thanks Harvey!

I've been eagerly anticipating this year's R2AK for a while now, but have just been too busy to post the link or anything. Like Bob, I just get cranked up thinking about the effort, determination, and skill needed to do something like this. I'm trying to find time to get up to Port Townsend on Wednesday to check out the R2AK boats and maybe watch a few of the finishers in the Tacoma-to-PT race.
 
Thanks Harvey!

I've been eagerly anticipating this year's R2AK for a while now, but have just been too busy to post the link or anything. Like Bob, I just get cranked up thinking about the effort, determination, and skill needed to do something like this. I'm trying to find time to get up to Port Townsend on Wednesday to check out the R2AK boats and maybe watch a few of the finishers in the Tacoma-to-PT race.
 
Will the human powered boats leaving Tacoma go up the west side of Vashon Island? If so there are a number of good spots to watch as they pass Blake Island.
 
They have all passed Vashion Island, The tail end charlies are mostly around Bainbridge Island. One boat looks to have stopped at Blake Island.. Yes, they went to the West side--many at night. The first had finished by dawn, and over 30 have finished currently.
 
WOW, what a race (Seventy48). It all happened and mostly at night First boat in was about 10 hours. Figure that 7 mph average speed, and for about 5 hours against a 3 knot tidal flow. Yup, west side of Bainbridge for a check point, and then through the Port Townsend Cut, (another check point) west side of Indian Island also and that had a near (3.9 mph) opposing current drift when we checked it at mid tide. It was a good day, BUT, the saftey crews were released prior to the proposed race finish (-48 hours from start) and not having I-net on board, we took the safety coordinators word, pulled the boat, washed down, tied onto the trailer and then got a call from a secondary safety asking for us to drop down and check the southern portion of the course -- AHH not now -- and we passed it back to a sailboat that was about 25 miles south of us and still on the course. A bit of a administrative fooopaw, and will be brought up in the aftermath meeting.

Thanks following on the site. Both are exciting races. Enjoy.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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What another Day. It started early, I was at the stated park dock so that I could get an early start without doing the launch routine, and the alarm was set for 0400 BUT I woke at 0300 so up early. The early morning boat bath, the cold dark, and starting the OB's at 0330 IN THE DARK. Oh that's fun, yeah and checking to see if the motors are peeing and OH YES, sparkles and then an idea -- stay tied to the dock and put the wheels in gear -- COOL glow from the excited bio-luminescence and when the 1 inch squid and shrimp go through the fans, bright sparkles; almost more fun that freeing the lines and heading off into the dark. Slow and easy, but riding infront and over that glow. Never get over that.

And then, the race. Started way off over the mountain, so we didn't see or hear, and had to get the confirmation over the VHF. Then the sun came up with a bright yellow peek through the morning clouds leaving streaks in the sky and shiny on the water, AND there were sails in silhouette. Mostly crossing the strait of Juan heading northerly. Water conditions were good, mostly. and since we were west of the start by several miles (by design), we had time for some scenery watching. The radio was busy with starting issues, and a half dozen zodiacs and the coordinator continuously.

As the race progressed westerly, we were tasked with making contact with the "out of the pack" individual denoted by their SPOT trackers. The most notable was this one... we found in a big tidal rip, 4-6 foot waves, the proverbial washing machine, and he is up on his (YUP) SUP, and stroking full strokes, and not missing a beat! (Read the Link!)

https://r2ak.com/2018-teams-full-race/team-torrent-2/

Read the link. I hadn't read it until tonight AFTER we met the man -- in the waves and I cried. This guy is guts, determination and dedication and then some. Special and spectacular.

And then we picked up the caboose. One with an hour late start, and not evidencing good technique. I confirmed with the Race Control and he is officially in the running, so we watch .... ..... watch closely for several hours. Eventually he crosses the shipping lanes and I can turn him over to the USCG cutter. What a day, and then he winds up in Sequim Bay, "whoda thunk it?"

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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After meeting many of these folks I am convinced that they are not in it to win it, but just to do it, which is a huge accomplishment in itself.

It is an experience unto itself. Yet if you look at the bios of the entry crews, many of them have lived a life on the edge, and this is not unlike the rest of their life stories.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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chromer":350hilbo said:
I agree with your Harvey on the mindset. Why didn't you follow them to at least Port Harvey BC vicinity ?
Click to expand...

I followed "try harder" for something over 2 hours, plenty long enough to observe a certain level of skill. My last contact with him was that he was going to go north across the strait and camp on an island then get a tide ride into Victoria in the morning. A doable plan with a rather exerted effort requirement. I offered that if it was me, I would ride the big flood tide eddy from our position south and west to the shoreline northwest of Sequim Bay or to the Dungeness light/spit area. He preferred north, and we watched him paddle north until he crossed the shipping lane separation zone. At that point I turned him over to the CG Cutter and we returned to John Wayne at Sequim Bay. Several hours later (5-6) when I was home and all put away I checked the tracker only to find him at John Wayne marina :shock: :?

I would loved to have followed him to Port Harvey, but no way he would have made that and back to Victoria in time for the 1700 check in time at the Victoria Inner Harbor on Friday.

If you know someone who wants Safety Boat coverage from here to Port Harvey I would consider it most anytime.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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I get it, Harvey. That said, the ease/efficiency/comfort etc at which a kayak will traverse this vs the inefficiency etc of a SUP; no comparison.
 
Agree. Windage effect, alone, on a SUP rig, kills their ability to make headway. OTOH, in following sea and wind, the greater leverage of a stroke while standing, and ability to surf swell, maybe an SUP can defeat a conventional kayak using wing paddles, even. But, a surfski and wing paddles will wipe an SUP every time. Freya Hoffmeister makes 30 miles a day, routinely in flat conditions in a surfski in her circumnavigations of continents. Milking whatever following swell she can find, add in another 10 miles, routinely. She is strong, skilled, and has incredible drive and tenacity. An ordinary kayaker could never make those miles.
 
Beginning at noon tomorrow there is going to be some telling. With a pretty stable high pressure system moving slowly over the course, the sailboats will have to be rowing/paddling. The paddle craft and SUP's will be in their prime environment. Should be and interesting first few days.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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