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Two ‘Big Girls’ Enter Transpac

Neville Crichton’s R/P 100 Alfa Romeo will be the scratch boat for this year’s Transpac.

Alfa Romeo
© Latitude 38 Media, LLC

The ever-growing list of entries for this year’s Transpac just added a few biggies that couldn’t provide a more striking contrast. One comprises carbon fiber, titanium, lead and a little hydraulic fluid. The other: Angelique, Doug Fir, Sitka Spruce and Southern Pine. One will be gunning for the outright race record. The other will be gunning for the race’s first record.

The first is Kiwi Neville Crichton’s R/P 100 Alfa Romeo. The svelte canting-keeled rocketship will be making its West Coast debut as the scratch boat in this year’s fleet, thanks to the race organizers’ efforts at modernizing the race’s entry requirements and allowing boats with powered sailing systems to compete.The race should serve as a bit of a homecoming for Crichton, a car distributor who now does most of his business in Australia. According to a bio on the Alfa stable‘s (there’s also a 69-footer) homepage, Crichton lived in Hawaii for awhile, from which he campaigned the first in a long line of boats that bore the name Shockwave.

The second biggie is the Newport Beach-based square-topsail schooner Lynx. The War of 1812-era design launched in 2001 will be sailing to beat the record set by Lurline in the first edition of the race back in 1906. At 78 feet LOA, and 72 feet LWL, the privateer will be giving up some waterline to Alfa Romeo, but at least she’s bigger on paper in a few areas. She obviously doesn’t have a canting keel, but given that stacking is allowed in the race, and that Lynx carries a full complement of ordinance, we’d hate to be in charge of restacking cannonballs after every tack or jibe . . . The immaculate vessel, which is often found plying the waters of Southern California, will be sailing as an ‘exhibition’ this year, with the idea that, in two years’ time, there could be a dedicated division for tall ships in the race. With 4,669 sq ft of sail area, she’ll probably get to Diamond Head pretty darn quick.

The privateer Lynx, at 122 feet, will be the biggest boat in this year’s Transpac.

Lynx
©2009 Latitude 38 Media, LLC

The Transpacific YC has been working on upping the level of hospitality on the mainland end of things — getting LA’s Rainbow Harbor dredged and securing free berthing there for competitors for the month leading up to the race start; coordinating with the Aquarium of the Pacific to host the skippers’ meeting; and working with local business to raise the profile of the race and provide more of a race villiage-like experience. With under four months to go now, the entry list for this year’s race is shaping up with an emphasis on quality. With over 40 entries already, it doesn’t look like it’ll be short on quantity either. Counting entries from Japan, Mexico, Canada, the UK, and Spain, the international flavor in the Class of 2009 is already looking really strong. Add in a resurgence of ULDB-70s, SC 50s and pocket sleds, and 2009 is shaping up to be strong year for the West Coast’s signature race.

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Craig and Kiki will keep a sharp lookout on their way south. Oya
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