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The Newland 368 Pegasus Returns to S.F. Bay

Many Bay Area boats sailing the oceans carry a legacy that resonates among those who cruised or raced against or on board them. The Gary Mull-designed Improbable (covered in the April issue of Latitude 38) is one such boat.

At the Delta Doo Dah party at Richmond Yacht Club on Saturday, we saw Steve Lewis, who now owns his second Bay Area legacy boat, Dan and Linda Newland’s Pegasus. (Years ago, Steve owned the renowned 33-ft S&S Spirit.) Dan Newland built and launched Pegasus months ahead of the 1992 Singlehanded TransPac. He went on to win that race by four days! Pegasus came to Steve’s attention after he told his son Patrick that he was kind of looking for a new boat for an adventure such as the 2020 Pacific Cup. It wasn’t long before Patrick found Pegasus for sale by the Newlands in the Pacific Northwest. Coincidentally, Steve, like Dan Newland, works with composites and rockets. It’s not a coincidence that Pegasus was an early, lightweight carbon rocket ship.

Steve Lewis
Lewis was looking like a casual cruiser at the Delta Doo Dah party. Pegasus suggests a speedier intention.
© 2019 Latitude 38 Media LLC / John

Patrick’s own sailing story started with the RYC Junior Program. He worked for Dave Hodges at Santa Cruz Sails, and at West Marine in Mountain View. His first major ocean races were the 2000 and 2002 Pac Cups aboard Spirit when he was 18 and 20. He has subsequently done a couple more Pacific Cups and a Transpac. He’s now working across the street from where he worked for West Marine, except now he’s a mechanical engineer helping build communication satellites at SSL. If he keeps finding boats like this for his dad (he also originally ‘found’ Spirit), he may have a few more Hawaii races ahead of him.

Pegasus at KKMI
Pegasus got tuned up at KKMI in preparation for the Delta Ditch Run.
© 2019 Steve Lewis

Lewis inquired about the boat, found her looking good, and was happy when he received the survey report. Pegasus was immaculate. Pegasus arrived at KKMI in Richmond, and Steve’s going through a checklist of minor issues suggested by the surveyor: Replace the bilge pump handle and the stern light, and a few more projects. But she’s been beautifully maintained and is just about ready to get back on the Bay for the first time in years. For a boat approaching her 20th birthday, with thousands of miles under her keel, she’s pretty spiff. At just about 6,000 lbs. she’s also exceptionally light for her 37 feet and should be a quick ride to both Stockton and Hawaii.

The short list
A half page of mainly simple projects will get Pegasus back out sailing quickly.
© 2019 Latitude 38 Media LLC / John

With a short list and the Delta Ditch Run coming up on June 1, Lewis is ready to launch and sail his new steed. She’s from an entirely different generation of boats than Spirit — which was built of wood in 1960 — but Pegasus also collected plenty of silver in her day. Now she’s back, in new hands, and ready test herself again on familiar waters.

1 Comment

  1. Art McMillan 9 months ago

    Good Luck……I am impressed with your history and boat. I live on Big Island if you need any assistance just let me know. I can Jump on a plane and be in Honolulu in an hour.

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