Kiwi Spirit Pushes for the Line
by Talbot Wilson
Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club (RHADC) BERMUDA, June 17, 2019: At 1630 ADT Monday afternoon Kiwi Spirit, the Line Honors leader of the Marion Bermuda fleet, was 68 nautical miles from the finish line off St. David’s Lighthouse, Bermuda.
According to ‘Predict Wind’ and YB tracking, Kiwi Spirit was sailing at 7+ kts in a 4.5 kt west-southwest breeze. They are expected to finish in about 10 hours if they average 6.5 kts for estimated arrival off St David’s Lighthouse about 0200 Tuesday. They could be in as early as 0130 ADT.
Times on the Leaderboard are given in EDT… Marion time not Bermuda.
Eugene Berardi’s MachBuster, a Little Harbor 70, is neck and neck Abigail for second place line honors some 20 nautical miles behind the leader.
Abigail, Robert Buck’s Aquidneck 52 from Marion MA, was a little further west than Kiwi Spiritand MachBuster.She has a broader angle to the finish. Abigail is still holding on as the predicted leader of Class A... at this time, according to the predicted data on the YB Tracking.
Ron Wisner’s Hotspur II was 259 miles from a Dark ‘n Stormy.
MachBuster Pushes Kiwi Spirit for Line Honors
by Talbot Wilson
Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club (RHADC) BERMUDA, June 17, 2019: At 0730 ADT Monday morning Kiwi Spirit, the Line Honors leader of the Marion Bermuda fleet, was 125 nautical miles out from the finish. That’s a little more than 143 statute (land) miles.
Finishers are not expected for at least another 20 hours. Estimated time of arrival off St David’s Lighthouse is 0 ‘dark’ 0300 or so.
Kiwi Spirit, designed originally for Dr .Stanley Paris' single-handed circumnavigation, was sailing at 6.6 kts steering a course of 144º. She's sailed by a Riley family crew with 18-year old Jo Riley as the skipper.
Eugene Berardi’s MachBuster, a Little Harbor 70, has moved up into second place for line honors poised to strike some 20 nautical miles behind the leader. At 0730 she was doing 7.4 kts steering 158º. MachBuster will push the Riley's boat hard from behind as winds lighten on the leader as the day develops.
Leaders Approach Half-Way
by Talbot Wilson
Marion MA, June 16, 2019: The 2019 Marion Bermuda Race is shaping up to be a close line honors and handicap race for overall prizes. But with 300 or more miles to go and the Happy Valley/Parking Lot between the fleet and the Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club’s finish line off St. David’s Lighthouse in Bermuda, a lot can happen. The leaders are closing in on the halfway point in the 645-mile race.
The leaders of all four Founders Division classes are sailing only by the stars and the 'Strawberry' full moon. The Marion Bermuda Race is the only US based offshore race that encourages celestial navigation. Boats that elect to use celestial only get a 3% credit on their adjusted elapsed time for the race.
Kiwi Spirit, the Riley Family’s Farr 63, is the scratch (fastest) boat in the fleet and still leads all boats for line honors. Sunday morning, she was 300 miles from Bermuda sailing on starboard tack at 8.6 kts steering a course of 139º. Winds were fresh from the southwest at around 15 kts.
