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Record Smashed in RORC Transatlantic Race

Multihull Division

On Saturday, January 15, Giovanni Soldini’s Multi70 Maserati crossed the finish line first in the eighth edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race. After an intense Atlantic battle, Maserati finished in Grenada at 05:51:41 UTC to take multihull line honors.

Maserati flares
The first finishers, the crew of Maserati celebrate their arrival in Grenada.
© 2022 Arthur Daniel / RORC

Next to cross the finish line was Peter Cunningham’s MOD70 PowerPlay at 06:46:42 UTC.

Giovanni Soldini and Peter Cunningham
Aboard PowerPlay, owner Peter Cunningham (third from left) congratulates Giovanni Soldini.
© 2022 Arthur Daniel / RORC

Monohull Finish and Record

As mentioned in our ‘Lectronic Latitude report on January 12, the fleet had to dodge large wind gaps to complete the 2,995 miles from the start in Lanzarote, Canary Islands, on January 8 to the finish in Grenada. The light-air zones made it even more of a challenge to break the course record.

Despite the obstacles, Comanche set an astonishing new monohull record of 7 days, 22 hours, 1 minute, 4 seconds. The new record tops the previous one by more than two days.

Comanche finish at night
Comanche arrives in St. George’s on the west coast of Grenada.
© 2022 Arthur Daniel / RORC

Comanche, skippered by Aussie Mitch Booth, took monohull line honors. The 100-ft VPLP Maxi crossed the Grenada finish line at 09:11:04 UTC on Sunday, January 16.

Boats are still on the course, and the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy for the overall IRC winner is still up for grabs. You can follow the action at http://rorctransatlantic.rorc.org.

Eugenia V
As you can see in this screenshot from yesterday morning, Eugenia V, an elegant 1967 Philip Rhodes 72-ft wooden yawl, really took a flyer. Dodging the blue blobs of light air, Eugenia V sailed much farther south than the rest of the fleet. The move is not paying off.
© 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race
Sailing

1 Comment

  1. Christine Weaver 3 years ago

    Nine days after they finished, the Comanche team now knows that they’ve kept the IRC overall win. This is from today’s press release: 25 January 2022, Grenada: The 30.48m (100-ft) VPLP Design/Verdier Maxi Comanche (CAY), skippered by Mitch Booth has achieved the quintuple for the 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race. While three boats are still racing under IRC, none of them can beat Comanche’s corrected time for the RORC Transatlantic Race Trophy. Comanche is also the winner of the IMA Trophy for Monohull Line Honours, IRC Super Zero and the Yacht Club de France Trophy. Comanche has also set a new Monohull Race Record for the RORC Transatlantic Race of 7 days 22 hours 1 minute 4 seconds and with it established the Fully Crewed IRCRecordsâ„¢ corrected time record of 16 days 0 hours 12 minutes 57 seconds.

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