Cal 40 "Wins" Transpacific

[shemandr]

Here's one for John Shepard. I just got a notice from SAIL Magazine that a Cal 40 won the race. The article doesn't specify if the win is in it's division or if it's a wind overall. The article says "...in their fleet." Nevertheless, a sixty year old design, that was revolutionary at the time it came out, can still can get it done. Pretty impressive.
Unfortunately due to subscription issues I don't get the printed magazine any longer. I do get endless emails with half articles I can read but to finish I need to subscribe. I haven't re-subscribed due to the editorial policy of highlighting female sailing. I'm all for women sailing and had a largely female racing crew 30 years ago. But for this article the story was the boat, not the female skipper. They went the other way.

 

[rgranger]

I haven't re-subscribed due to the editorial policy of highlighting female sailing.

Good for you. You can't fight discrimination with discrimination.

 

[jssailem]

Thank you @shemandr. It is remarkable that these classic hulls still have some ocean creds.

Bill Lapworth designed the Cal 40 in 1963.

It was a revolutionary design for its time, introducing a lightweight, fin keel with spade rudder offshore racer/cruiser that went on to dominate long-distance ocean racing in the 1960s. The Cal 40 became an icon in yacht design.

Corrected‑Time (King Kalakaua Trophy)

• “Restless”, a vintage Cal 40 skippered by Alli Bell, won the overall corrected-time competition, meaning she was fastest after handicap adjustments.
• This historic win makes Alli Bell the first woman skipper ever to win the King Kalakaua Trophy, completing the race in 12 days, 12 hours, 3 minutes elapsed time, with a corrected time of 8 days, 12 hours, 5 minutes, 49 seconds

Thanks for sharing the news.

 

[shemandr]

There was another recent sailing press article about a well credentialed racing couple, with world wide ocean racing experience, choose a Cal (Maybe a 40) for their family cruising boat. I don't have the details at hand but two stories buttress the validity of the work of Bill Lapworth.
I remember another report from an ocean cruiser that the 40 just didn't have any bad habits.
I hope these reports makes the sting of the re-power less painful for John. The boat has good bones. .

 

[dlochner]

Here's one for John Shepard. I just got a notice from SAIL Magazine that a Cal 40 won the race. The article doesn't specify if the win is in it's division or if it's a wind overall. The article says "...in their fleet." Nevertheless, a sixty year old design, that was revolutionary at the time it came out, can still can get it done. Pretty impressive.
Unfortunately due to subscription issues I don't get the printed magazine any longer. I do get endless emails with half articles I can read but to finish I need to subscribe. I haven't re-subscribed due to the editorial policy of highlighting female sailing. I'm all for women sailing and had a largely female racing crew 30 years ago. But for this article the story was the boat, not the female skipper. They went the other way.

I have to differ a bit with you on this. Yes, it is noteworthy that a classic boat, the Cal 40 is still competitive in ocean sailing, it is also quite noteworthy that the boat was skippered by a woman and she was the first woman to skipper a winning boat in the Transpac, which started in 1906. It is hard to say which aspect of the story is most significant, as they both are significant.

 

[shemandr]

Yeah, I probably shouldn't have conflated the story of the Cal 40 with my irritation with SAIL magazine's editorial bent and my irritation with them over my subscription issues.
I'll save that for another post.

 

[dlochner]

Yeah, I probably shouldn't have conflated the story of the Cal 40 with my irritation with SAIL magazine's editorial bent and my irritation with them over my subscription issues.
I'll save that for another post.

The Editor, Wendy Mittman Clarke is trying to keep Sail magazine afloat many other publications folded, Sailing, Good Old Boat, Professional Boatbuilder, to name a few. She is a talented writer, I first discovered many years ago when she wrote for Soundings. In the broader sports world, women sports are gaining more attention, case in point the WBA and the recent accomplishments by women sailors. If there is a shift in focus in Sail's coverage, it is consistent with the shift in the broader sports world.

I dropped my subscriptions to Sail and Cruising World as the bulk of the articles seemed to shift towards what were essentially advertisements for charter companies and boats that I would never be able to afford. Sadly even Practical Sailor seems to have gone this road towards being advertisements used boats.

 

[capta]

I was in Hawaii when the yacht Ticonderoga won the Los Angeles-to-Tahiti yacht race in 1964, setting an elapsed time record for the race that would stand for 30 years. Ti was launched in 1936, meaning it was a 28 year old wooden boat when it achieved this feat.

 

[BigEasy]

I had my first “formal“ sailing instructions aboard a Cal 40, tiller steered, in mid 1970’s.
Sweet boat & salty skipper!

 

[jackhart]

Here's one for John Shepard. I just got a notice from SAIL Magazine that a Cal 40 won the race. The article doesn't specify if the win is in it's division or if it's a wind overall. The article says "...in their fleet." Nevertheless, a sixty year old design, that was revolutionary at the time it came out, can still can get it done. Pretty impressive.
Unfortunately due to subscription issues I don't get the printed magazine any longer. I do get endless emails with half articles I can read but to finish I need to subscribe. I haven't re-subscribed due to the editorial policy of highlighting female sailing. I'm all for women sailing and had a largely female racing crew 30 years ago. But for this article the story was the boat, not the female skipper. They went the other way.

Please explain their 'editorial policy of highlighting female sailing.'
I'm curious.

 

[dlochner]

I was in Hawaii when the yacht Ticonderoga won the Los Angeles-to-Tahiti yacht race in 1964, setting an elapsed time record for the race that would stand for 30 years. Ti was launched in 1936, meaning it was a 28 year old wooden boat when it achieved this feat.

I was in Hawai'i at that time and remember the TransPac being a big deal. As a 12 year old, it was hard to imagine racing a sailboat from LA to Diamond Head.

 

[capta]

I was in Hawai'i at that time and remember the TransPac being a big deal. As a 12 year old, it was hard to imagine racing a sailboat from LA to Diamond Head.

Where did you surf? Wouldn't it be amazing if we'd met back then!

 

[dlochner]

Where did you surf? Wouldn't it be amazing if we'd met back then!

It certainly would be amazing. We lived in Kailua on Oahu. Didn't surf, but did sail an El Toro on Kailua Bay.

 

[capta]

I didn't spend much time there. I lived on a motor boat in the Ala Wai, which I operated for a group of navy guys from Pearl. Between taking them out, catching the morning and evening breaks, spearfishing for breakfast, and teaching tourist gals to surf, we didn't have much time for fun.

 

[dlochner]

I didn't spend much time there. I lived on a motor boat in the Ala Wai, which I operated for a group of navy guys from Pearl. Between taking them out, catching the morning and evening breaks, spearfishing for breakfast, and teaching tourist gals to surf, we didn't have much time for fun.

Tough life. I was a bit young for that when I lived there.

 

[capta]

Tough life. I was a bit young for that when I lived there.

I did my first TransPac (not the race) to Hawaii @ 14, so I was just a couple of years older.