Transpac 2025 — Unplugged No More
“Elon Musk dominates 2025 Transpac.” Well, that is not exactly what it sounds like, but rumor has it that all but one vessel had the Starlink system aboard. This essentially gives you high-speed internet capability no matter where you are in the world.
Define “high speed” and where in the world you are, and maybe there’s more to the story. I can tell you this: Internet accessibility changes the ocean racing game. The Transpac YC committee puts strict limits on what can be accessed. If it provides you with information that will help you win the yacht race and it costs money, then it is off limits. If the information is free and publicly available, have at it. This access brings with it another layer of concern from the captains. Would their crew simply play on their phones, take pictures of sunsets, and surf internet dating sites while racing, or would they concentrate on sail trim and push their vessel onto the podium? Of course, the fast boats were able to find their way out front even with this distraction. Elon was not able to create havoc on the race course, intended or not.
In fact, maybe that was some of the allure of being offshore, to get a break from the it-can-absolutely-positively-be there-overnight world we live in. A typical watch lasts four hours (not on TikTok) on the trip across the pond, and the flight home can be less than six hours. In the ancient history of yacht racing, i.e., the 1980s, many ocean races banned integrated electronics that calculated things like VMG, COG and SOG. LORAN and RDF were allowed, but any kind of satellite communication was strictly forbidden. Now vessels are required to carry tracking devices, and even crew members have personal satellite location devices in case they fall overboard.
Navigation is now perceived to be less daunting. Folks who never would have dared to head offshore with a sextant in one hand and a paper chart in the other are now emboldened by computer screens and the ability to call in the cavalry if they get their butt in a sling.
Historically, we would spread out pilot charts and use historical data from race-winning boats to try to divine trends and tendencies. Ocean Station November and Point Most were the critical areas where it seemed as if most boats did well. Old platitudes like, “Go south till the butter melts, then turn right …” were a guiding principle. Who still brings butter?
The 2025 fleet started on three separate days, slow boats on Tuesday, July 1; these vessels typically take 11–13 days for the passage. Two days later, vessels expecting a 9- or 10-day passage crossed the line, and finally, two days after that, and after taking in the Los Angeles Fourth of July fireworks, the turbo rocket sleds. They started on July 5 and can cover the course in five days or less, given the correct conditions.
This year, the Pacific High pressure system squatted down on the fleet, making for lighter breezes in general and eliminating opportunities for course records. A crescent-shaped piece of the High broke off and drifted down onto the fleet. Some drove north to cross into a better breeze; other vessels dove south to avoid this soft-breeze area, while others held to the rhumb line, hoping the shortest course was the fastest.