Please select your home edition
Edition
Maritimo 2023 M600 LEADERBOARD

Pacific Cup 2024 - its a wrap!

by Pacific Cup 3 Aug 23:02 UTC 4 August 2024
2024 Pacific Cup Awards Ceremony © Irina Potekhina

From July 15th's light wind first starts to the final days of the race with 15 foot swells and unrelenting winds on the approach to Kaneohe Yacht Club, the 2024 Pacific Cup Race was nothing short of an adventure.

We spoke with Peter and Velina Barnes, the owners of Second Wind, and asked what their Pacific Cup experience was like. Velina said, "I kept saying the word glorious - just the privilege of being in that ocean, and the uniqueness of every day. The strength of the ocean, the strength of our boat, was really special."

Peter shared his angle on offshore racing, "my mind is moment to moment, and at the same time, and there is a turn coming up: I don't know if it's going to be a day or three days from now and what's that gonna look like? Things are wearing out, got to do the deck walk and look for chafe. It was stressful being responsible for all the crew and the boat."

Of course, there's winning and then there's success. They both agree that it's really the crew and the collaborative work that determines the success of your voyage-it's what makes it all so fun as you make decisions on-the-go.

Monday's first starters began frustratingly, with barely any wind to propel them past the Farallon Islands. Once the fleets worked their way to reasonable winds, the race was on. The heavier wind challenged the crews in a totally different way, straining gear and crew. We saw a much higher than usual rate of breakage, but very few injuries. Apart from the early turnbacks for failed steering, all boats overcame their damage and sailed into Kaneohe. Crews stayed positive along the way with halfway rituals and by imagining those warm, refreshing land showers, burgers, and mai tais awaiting at their finish.

The Pac Cup continued its strong tradition of double-handed racing with 16 finishers in that category. While sailing with only two on board can be an exhausting task, the weight saved on the boat (about 500 lb per person with food and gear) can be significant.

Overall, the top boats' courses tended to dip fairly far south in search of wind early on. Once they found that favorable wind, they'd slowly curve around it, taking advantage of the tradewinds (and squalls) until they'd gybe, making the turn for the finish. Others stayed to the north, likely in hopes of saving miles or seeing the Pacific High recede northward, leaving them closer than others to the finish with great winds; unfortunately the wind stayed lighter there, leaving that wing of the fleet to fall behind.

Winners

"First across the line" is a great feeling, and Velvet Hammer was well positioned to collect it, along with an anticipated clean sweep of race honors. "Not so fast," said Saga, who started a day later but threatened to overtake the Hammer at the finish line. Saga did eventually pass Velvet Hammer, but finished only about an hour and a half ahead: a fairly close finish after 2,070 miles. After handicapping was applied, Velvet Hammer took the overall prize.

Perpetual Trophies:

  • Pacific Cup: Velvet Hammer, J/125
  • Fastest Passage Trophy: Saga, TP52
  • Corinthian Trophy: the Boss, J/35
  • Carl Schumacher Trophy: Mudshark, Express 37
  • Bill Lee "Wizard" Trophy: J World's Hula Girl, Santa Cruz 50
  • First Moore 24 Trophy: Accelerando, Moore 24
  • Team Trophy: StFYC: Story Maker, Tartan 101; Lucky Duck, Rogers 46; Viva, Cal 40
  • Pacific Cup Navigator's Award: Jeff Thorpe, Lucky Duck, Rogers 46
  • George R. Barrett Memorial Trophy: Hill "Buzz" Blackett
  • Doug Vann Memorial Trophy: Beau Lani Barker

Division Awards:

  • Mahina Double Handed 1

      1st: Accelerando, Moore 24
      2nd: Wilder, Santa Cruz 27
      3rd: Hula, Westsail 32

  • Pasha Hawaii Double Handed 2

      1st: Moonshine, Dogpatch 26
      2nd: Wolfpack, Donovan 30
      3rd: Pell Mell, Pt Bonita 27

  • Weems & Plath PHRF 1

      1st: Azure, Cal 40
      2nd: Viva, Cal 40
      3rd: Vera Cruz, Jeanneau 349

  • Goslings PHRF 2

      1st: Tweety, Olson 30
      2nd: Hultaj, Figaro One
      3rd: Young Betty, Express 27

  • Svendsen's Bay Marine PHRF 3

      1st: the Boss, J/35
      2nd: Jubilant, J/112e
      3rd: Joy Ride, J/122e

  • NAOS PHRF 4

      1st: Translated 9, Swan 65
      2nd: Shadowfax, Jeanneau 43
      3rd: Planet Express, Beneteau 43

  • Ocean Navigator ORR 1

      1st: Velvet Hammer, J/125
      2nd: J World's Hula Girl, Santa Cruz 50
      3rd: Halawa, Andrews 56

  • Hoku Pa'a Multihull

      1st: Presto, Chris White Voyager 48

  • Ocean Navigator ORR 2

      1st: Lucky Duck, Rogers 46
      2nd: Rage, Wylie 70
      3rd: Saga, TP52

"Best" Awards:

  • Latitude 38 Performance Trophy: Lucky Duck
  • Bobbi Tosse PHRF Trophy: the Boss
  • Pacific Cup Corinthian Trophy: the Boss
  • Bjorn Johnson Best ORR Trophy: Velvet Hammer
  • Best First Passage: Jubilant
  • Best Prepared Yacht; The Fugitive

"They were the best prepared of the boats I've inspected for this race (or ever, actually), everything was organized and 100% checked off. The crew was also involved, which is always a great help," said Jim Quanci, the Pacific Cup Yacht Club Staff Commodore.

  • Fastest Family Afloat Trophy: Jubilant

For description of all the trophies see pacificcup.org/trophies
For the full standings, admin.pacificcup.org/standings
Event website: pacificcup.org

Related Articles

J/Teams crush Pacific Cup Race
J/125 wins ORC overall, J/112E takes silver! The 2024 Pacific Cup Race fleet dashed out to the first turning mark just offshore of that infamous pile of rocks known as the Farallon Islands, then turned left to catch the trade winds flowing from the NNE to Hawaii about 2,277nm away! Posted on 12 Aug
Translated 9 leads the way in the Pacific Cup 2024
Following the spirit of the OGR Award, Translated 9 continues to shine Translated 9 made its mark in the Pacific Cup. Following the spirit of the OGR Award, Translated 9 continues to shine. Posted on 29 Jul
Pacific Cup day 2
Fast Times at Pacific High Midway through the 2024 Pacific Cup, some leaders are solidifying their positions. While the starting weather was somewhat random, the mid-course conditions have lived up to "the brochure" offering great downwind sails. Posted on 24 Jul
2024 Pacific Cup Day 1
Off to a slow start due to a lull in the coastal winds Day one of the 2024 Pacific Cup was off to a slow start due to a lull in the coastal winds, leaving first competitors to start with virtually no wind for the first 24 hours. Overall, four divisions and 32 boats started on Day 1. Posted on 22 Jul
Cayard to skipper Translated 9 in the Pacific Cup
Paul Cayard to skipper Ocean Globe Race entrant Translated 9 in Pacific Cup starting Wednesday A thrilling ocean adventure awaits Translated, owned by Marco Trombetti and Isabelle Andrieu. Tomorrow, Translated's Swan 65, known as Translated 9, will embark on a journey from San Francisco to Hawaii, competing in the prestigious Pacific Cup. Posted on 18 Jul
Pacific Cup celebrates 44yrs of thrilling racing
The Fun Race from California to Hawaii The Pacific Cup, known as the Fun Race to Hawaii, runs every even year. Posted on 10 Jul
Pacific Cup announces start date for 2024 Race
The 2,070 nautical mile race to Hawaii runs every even year San Francisco - Pacific Cup race organizers announced that the first starts for the 2024 Pacific Cup, dubbed "the FUN race to Hawaii," will be Monday, July 15, on the San Francisco cityfront. Posted on 8 Nov 2022
Taking MLB's All-Star Game seriously
Some thoughts on summer sailing in our North America newsletter As a kid, Major League Baseball's annual All-Star Game became a sort of halfway point of my summer... as in, I could take things easy until the All-Star Game, but afterwards, I'd better make each day of junior sailing count. Posted on 19 Jul 2022
Pacific Cup J/111 doublehanded team crushing it!
2,070nm biennial "fun race to Hawaii" goes from San Francisco to Kaneohe The Pacific Cup is now under way for the entire fleet of sixty-two boats! The 2,070nm biennial "fun race to Hawaii" goes from San Francisco to the lush, tropical paradise of Kaneohe, Hawaii on Oahu's famous North Shore. Posted on 15 Jul 2022
Celebrating North American distance racing
The days are long and so are the racecourses The days are long and so are the racecourses. The dust may have barely settled on the Newport Bermuda Race and the Race to Alaska, however the American and Canadian distance-racing circuits have already geared up for some great events in July. Posted on 5 Jul 2022
Savvy Navvy 2024Maritimo 2023 S600 FOOTER