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Multihull Transpacific Yacht Race

In 1964, the Outrigger Canoe Club began co-hosting the first Multihull Transpacific Yacht Race with the Ocean Racing Catamaran Association.  The race began on July 4 of even numbered years, in contrast to the Transpacific Monohull Yacht Race which was held in odd numbered years.  The race began in San Pedro, California and finished at the Diamond Head Buoy, about a mile from the Outrigger Canoe Club.

A history of the race by Cline Mann follows:

In 1947 there appeared on the beach at Waikiki a twin-hulled beauty which was destined to become the forerunner of all modern catamarans.  Designed and built by Woody Brown and Alfred Kumalae, Manu Kai was an essential part of the beach scene in Waikiki for a decade and captured the imagination of local folks and visitors alike.

To race a catamaran from California to Honolulu was Woody’s goal, and towards that end he and Rudy Choy produced Waikiki Surf .  In June of 1955 this boat made the Honolulu-California passage in a very respectable 18 days.  Unsuccessful in efforts to receive favorable consideration as a participant in the monohull TransPac, Waikiki Surf , skippered by Rich Muirhead, started unofficially after the 55 official starters on what was to become the wildest of TransPac races.

It was in this race that the splendid winds from start to finish propelled Morning Star to an elapsed time record of nine days, 15 hours, 5 minutes and 10 seconds, a record that would stand for ten years until the photo finish of 1965 when Ticonderoga established the record of 9:13:51.2 with Stormvogel a scant one-half mile and four minutes behind.

After passing through almost the entire fleet during the first few days and nights, Waikiki Surf continued into the lead at speeds up to 25 knots until, when approximately 400 miles from Oahu, in the dead of night, a fracture occurred and water poured into the lee hull.  An entire day was lost assessing damage and making repairs, and during this time the lead was lost.  Resuming at reduced speed, Waikiki Surf finally entered the Molokai Channel, and with the smell of land in their nostrils, the crew threw caution to the wind, and passing through the searchlight beam at Diamond Head came home to Waikiki.  She was the fifth boat to finish, ahead of 49 others, in the elapsed time of ten days and 15 hours.

Almost at once another ocean-racing catamaran was on the drawing boards, this one destined to compile an ocean racing/cruising record unparalled to this day.  Aikane , owned and skippered by Kenny Murphy, sailed in the 1957 and 1959 TransPacs, again unofficially.  First to finish in both races, Aikane set a still-unbroken multihull TransPacific course record of nine days, 22 hours, 33 minutes in the 1959 race.

Race Inauguration 1964

In 1964, having decided to abandon efforts to be included as official entries in the 60-year-old TransPac race for conventional ocean racers, the West Coast ocean-racing catamaran owners under the leadership of Jack Swart and Vic Stern decided instead to inaugurate a separate TransPacific rate for multihulls.  At the invitation of this group, which one year later became the Ocean Racing Catamaran Association (ORCA), the Outrigger Canoe Club became an appropriate co-sponsor of the race, the modern catamaran being the descendent of the ancient Polynesian doubles canoes and outriggers.  Moreover the new OCC location was expected to be a spectacular and romantic site for the finishing boats to be received in colorful Hawaiian fashion in the lagoon.

A three-boat start on July 4, 1964 signified inauguration of the biennial Multihull TransPacific Race.  Unhappily, two boats were quickly forced to withdraw as the result of under-strength members cracking in an intense off-shore storm, leaving only Vic Stern’s sturdy Imi Loa to make the crossing.  The winds were good during the first half of the race, but gentled during the second half.  The finish, completed under full sail, was immediately followed by a joyful reception at the Outrigger Canoe Club with a fabulously beautiful sunset as a backdrop. Among the happy crew of Imi Loa were Woody Brown and Alfred Kumalae, finally achieving their ambitions.

Adding great prestige to the event was the presence in the crew of poular Chuck Ullman, in prior years, owner-skipper of Legend , which, under his command, was once overall and twice class winner in the monohull TransPac race.   Imi Loa set the official race record of 10:9:53:15 which stood until Seasmoke’s 1968 crossing narrowly eclipsed it.   Imi Loa’s corrected time of 9.5963 days has yet to be bettered (1970).

With Seal Beach Yacht Club and Waikiki Yacht Club added as co-sponsors, the 1966 race started on July 2 with five boats.  After a promising first three days, the winds died to a near calm for the following three days, but towards the finish were blowing strongly.  Triumphing in a see-saw battle, Patty Cat II finished first followed by Glass Slipper II a few hours later, and both were treated to an Outrigger Canoe Club reception, as was Imi Loa , one night later.

Near the end of the awards banquet at Waikiki Yacht Club, at which Jay Johnson’s Glass Slipper II was given her race winner’s laurels, in came Tri Star which earned a second place trophy by a scant few minutes, necessitating a shuffling of trophies already awarded.  Bringing up the rear was World Cat which since then has completed her historic round-the-world trip.  Light-winded 1966 did not produce any new records.

Having gained the stature of a permanent fixture, the 1968 sailing of the race was made noteworthy by the entry of two new boats whose existence in many ways is owed to the challenge presented by this race:  James Arness’ Seasmoke and Buddy Ebsen’s Polynesian Concept .  In all, there were eight entries including veterans Imi Loa and Glass Slipper II , and newcomers Manu Iwa, Lani Kai, Auriga and Illusion .

Uniformly medium winds produced no challenge to Big Ti’s record, but allowed superfast Seasmoke to lower the race record set by Imi Loa in 1964 from 10:9:53:15 to 10:9:0:23.   Polynesian Concept , dubbed Poly Con by all, though the smallest boat permitted by the race rules to enter, was second in after Seasmoke and, on corrected time, beat the entire classy field of seven finishers.   Illusion broke her new stick in the gusty air at Catalina Island’s West End and was forced to retire.

The 4th Sailing of the Biennial Multihull TransPacific Yacht Race was scheduled to begin on July 4, 1970 at noon at San Pedro, CA.  The race was cancelled and not held again.

• Outrigger Canoe Club Perpetual for Race Winner (First Place Corrected)
• ORCA’s Rich Muirhead Memorial Perpetual and Waikiki Yacht Club Multihull Perpetual (First to Finish Elapsed)
• Seal Beach Yacht Club Perpetual for Race Record
• Elapsed Time (Race) Record: 10 days -9 hours — Seasmoke 1968
• Elapsed Time (Course) Record: 8 days – 18 hours — Pen Duick IV 1969
• Corrected Time Record: 9 days – 14.3 hours — Imi Loa 1964

Full Results

Grunion Sports | On the Water: Newport to Ensenada race begins…

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The Grunion

Grunion sports, grunion sports | on the water: newport to ensenada race begins this weekend.

Race organizers, the Newport Ocean Sailing Association, announced that four skippers will mark at least 40 years sailing the N2E. Another three have sailed for more than 30 years, while a dozen have clocked more than 20 finishes.

“We’re very excited to see the fleet grow this year to over 145 boats,” said NOSA Commodore Phil Herzfeld. “It’s also exciting to see 35 first-time owners competing.”

One of the first timers is Long Beach’s own Bryce Cullinane, sailing his cruising catamaran, a Lagoon 42, with a crew of seven – including his father and cousin. His goal is to have fun and finish.

“The boat is made for comfort, not racing,” Cullinane said, “but we recently picked up a used spinnaker (sail) at Minnie’s in Newport and bought a brand-new code zero (sail), which has greatly improved (the yacht’s) performance. Most of us have never done an overnight passage, so this will be an adventure.”

The Long Beach Yacht Club member shared that the team has done a number of training sails in the last few weeks.

“We’ve been practicing the chaotic process of taking Code Zero in and simultaneously launching the Spinnaker,” he said.

Like many of the competitors, he has a close eye on the weather.

“The wind forecast, right now, is for over 20 knots of wind during the middle of the night, so we will have to be on the top of our game,” Cullinane said. “The wind tends to die off just outside of Ensenada, so my major concern is getting down to Ensenada, with land in sight, but not enough wind to finish.”

Other entries include two skippers from Oregon, two from Mexico, one from Arizona, one from Ontario, Canada – and multiple-time-winning yacht Taniwha, owned by Utah’s Jerry Fiat.

The Taniwha, a 32-foot Ferrier yacht, will return in hopes of back-to-back Ocean Racing Catamaran Association-class wins.

Along with Fiat, the boat will be crewed by Pete Melvin, Mat Bryant and Frank Dryer. The highly experienced crew hopes to claim the elusive “Overall Corrected” honors.

NOSA and its nearly 40-person team of volunteers will present more than 30 trophies on Sunday, April 29. The 17 sailors who chose the shorter course to San Diego will celebrate victories on Sunday at Silverlake Yacht Club.

Ship naming

The 135,000 gross ton ship Carnival Firenze had its naming celebration on Wednesday, April 24, in Long Beach.

Built in 2020, the Carnival Firenze – formerly the Costa Firenze – can accommodate more than 5,000 guests and will sail year-round from Long Beach, offering three- to seven-day Baja Mexico and Mexican Riviera cruises.

Carnival Cruise Line named actor Jonathan Bennett as the ship’s godfather. Carnival Firenze is inspired by the city of Florence, Italy, making it the second Carnival ship to sail with the “Carnival Fun Italian Style” theme.

You might recognize Bennett from the big screen (“Mean Girls”), the small screen (various Hallmark Channel productions) and Broadway (“Spamalot”).

Carnival operations and their passengers have an enormous economic impact on the city, supporting the Queen Mary, downtown and our authentic neighborhood marketplace areas. Carnival is an important part of our community.  The Carnival Firenze will add both fun and sophistication to its already full cruise offerings.

“The City of Long Beach could not be more excited about Carnival hosting its second Vista Class ship at the beautiful and growing Long Beach Cruise Terminal,” said Bo Martinez, the city’s director of economic development. “We are proud of our long term relationship with Carnival and that we have become the busiest single terminal in the country.”

The 1,061-foot ship leaves on its first sailing from Long Beach on Thursday, April 25.

Scotts beam on Sunday

Sunday was a good day to be Scott Dixon.

Dixon “The Iceman” used a fuel-saving strategy to win the 49th edition of the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach.

Dixon “The Mainman” – commodore of the Long Beach Yacht Club – was returning from Catalina with friends when he got the call that not only had his name twin Scott Dixon won the GPLB, but that it was looking like LBYC’s Scott “Kiwiman” Dickson was going to take top honors in the Ficker Cup match race, a qualifier for this week’s Congressional Cup.

Years earlier, media consultant Kevin Wilkinson, who has advised both the GPLB and LBYC, anticipated this day. Both the two-time GPLB winner and the 14-time Ficker Cup winner hail from Auckland, New Zealand, and are about the same age – so Wilkinson thought it would be a great photo to get the two together. The fact that LBYC’s 2024 Commodore is also named Scott Dixon made the story sweeter.

Commodore Dixon went full throttle on Sunday to reach Rainbow Harbor and get in a photo with the Iceman. The Chip Ganassi team, the Committee of 300 media volunteers, photographer Howard Freshman, and GPLB’s media guru Chris Esslinger were all standing by to make the Dixon-Dixon-Dickson photo moment happen.

But ticket checkers on Shoreline Drive stayed true to their job – and despite having identification showing he had the same name as the Grand Prix winner, the commodore couldn’t enter.

About the same time, sailor Scotty Dickson went 12 and 2 in the Ficker Cup’s double round robin, dropping only one match in the semifinals against Australia’s Cole Tapper. Dickson went on to sweep the finals against another New Zealand skipper, Megan Thomson.

By then, race car driver Dixon had left to shower off the champagne residue. The photo envisioned by Wilkinson years ago almost happened – but not quite.

The top-three Ficker Cup skippers received invites to Congressional Cup:  Dickson, Megan Thomson and Cole Tapper.

Congressional Cup racing started on Wednesday ,April 24, and will continue until Sunday. Spectators can watch the Congressional Cup races live for free from Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier starting daily at 11:30 a.m. each day and online at thecongressionalcup.com .

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The Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week returns after a two-year hiatus with an expected 100 boats ready to hit the starting line on June 24. Bronny Daniels Photo

Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week Returns After Two Years

LONG BEACH⸺ Ullman Sails Long Beach Race Week returns after being put on hold for two years to comply with COVID-19 restrictions.

The regatta, set for June 24-26, is sponsored by Ullman Sails and co-hosted by Alamitos Bay Yacht Club and Long Beach Yacht; this will be the 17th iteration of the popular event.

There are seven windward-leeward races scheduled for PHRF and One-Design divisions. In addition, there are four separate racing areas in and around Alamitos Bay.

This regatta is open to the following One-Design classes: Beneteau 36.7, Catalina 37, Farr 40, Flying Tiger, J/120, J/70, Martin 242, Schock 35, Viper 640; boats with a PHRF handicap of 222 or less, and boats that are members of the Ocean Racing Catamaran Association (ORCA) and wish to sail random leg courses.

In an April 4 press release, the clubs shared that One-Design divisions will include Schock 35 and Viper 640 racers vying for their Pacific Coast Championship titles, Beneteau 36.7 sailors racking up scores for their High Point Series, and the Catalina 37 fleet will be racing for the National Championship title.

To avoid late fees, competitors are encouraged to register before June 1, but registration will remain open until June 21 at 6 p.m.

Registration, measurement, and weigh-in for One-Design classes will take place at LBYC on June 23, from 12-6 p.m., and June 24, from 8-10 a.m.

Bruce Cooper will present an Ullman Sails Weather Talk at 10:15 a.m. on June 24, followed by a Skippers’ meeting at 10:30 a.m.

The first warning is at 12:55 p.m. on June 24; on the subsequent days, racing will begin at 11:55 a.m.

Trophies will be presented under categories like: Satariano Boat of the Week : One-design class winner in the division with the closest, most competitive racing. PHRF Boat of the Week : PHRF class winner in the division with the closest, most competitive racing. Kent Golison Family Trophy : Highest placing boat sailed by at least three members of an immediate family. Travel Trophy : Boat owner traveling the furthest from his/her hometown. Yacht Club Challenge : Based on the combined score of three teams – designated prior to racing.

Several festivities are included in entry fees, from music and dancing at ABYC on June 24 to LBYC’s Mt. Gay Rum Party on June 25, culminating with a poolside prize-giving on June 26 at LBYC.  All parties offer food, drinks, and a cash bar. For more information, see www.lbrw.org .

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Photos: champions of the newport to ensenada yacht race, the 52-foot catamaran afterburner received the president of usa trophy for best overall corrected handicap time of 13 hours and 8 minutes..

Nisha Gutierrez-Jaime , Patch Staff

The 66th annual Lexus Newport to Ensenada Race finished successfully over the weekend.

The 125-mile race from Newport Beach to Ensenada featured 203 sailboats, including everything from recreational cruisers to racing maxi sleds. According to race organizers, 185 out of the 203 competitors finished the race by the Sunday 11 a.m. deadline at the Hotel Coral and Marina in Ensenada.

“This is no doubt a highly competitive race with top honors and glory at stake, but the Regatta also fosters a great sense of camaraderie among the sailing community,” Lizette Sanchez, spokeswoman for Hotel Coral and Marina, said. “It gives marina enthusiasts from across the globe the opportunity to come together and celebrate their love of the open ocean.”

Find out what's happening in Newport Beach-Corona Del Mar with free, real-time updates from Patch.

Race Highlights:

• Bill Gibbs’ Ocean Racing Catamaran Association class 52-foot catamaran Afterburner claimed the race's top honors receiving the President of USA Trophy for best overall corrected handicap time of 13 hours and 8 minutes. He was also awarded a two-year lease on a 2014 Lexus IS F Sport.
• Howard Enloe’s ORCA class Loe Real, a Jenn 60 trimarin, became the second vessel in history to sail in before sunset, in just over seven hours. 
• The cruising class winner, Larry Sharpless, who finished his spinnaker Inquisitor in approximately 16 hours and 30 minutes, won a three-night vacation in Hotel Coral’s Master Suite, as well as half-off moorage at the property’s Coral Marina.

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MOCRA - the ultimate racer cruisers

The Ultimes, the world’s fastest offshore racing yachts, may be the pace-setters in next month’s Rolex Fastnet Race with the potential to get around even the new elongated course in less than a day – but not far behind them will be the MOCRA class, mostly racing in considerably more comfort.

Since the MOCRA (Multihull Offshore Cruising and Racing Association) was set up in 1969, multihulls, both catamarans and trimarans, have evolved hugely. Back in the day many of these vessels were often either floating caravans with performance to match, or feather-weight racing machines of questionable construction and engineering. In the intervening decades massive steps forward in design, composite construction and structural engineering and lighter weight everything, from mast tip to foil bottom, have transformed these craft. Today once over the aesthetic differences between monohulls and multihulls, and aware that they can in ultimate circumstances capsize, modern multihulls can simply offer more of everything – dramatically more performance or more space and often both - compared to an equivalent monohull.

One of the MOCRA’s greatest feats is its rule that for decades has allowed profoundly dissimilar multihulls to compete fairly.  In this year’s Rolex Fastnet Race this will be put to the test with boats ranging from Tim Whittle's 30ft T3 Trifoiler L'Albatros to Adrian Keller's 84ft Nigel Irens designed performance cruising catamaran Allegra.

Leading the MOCRA class on the water will certainly be the two MOD70s, from America Jason Carroll’s Argo and from Italy Giovanni Soldini’s Maserati. Neither of these grand prix trimarans is an ‘in class’ MOD70, both having upgraded foil packages to encourage them, if not to fly fully, then, at least to reduce displacement. Of the two, Maserati has the more extreme foil package including a ‘manta’ foil on the daggerboard on her centre hull, which allows her to ‘fly’ on three points (this, plus her leeward foil and rudder).

While the nimble tris, such as the former MOD70s, down to Andrew Fennell’s speedy looking Shuttle 39 trimaran Morpheus, represent the grand prix element of the MOCRA class, the biggest growth area is fast cruiser-racer cats. The concept of performance catamarans with huge interior volume is not new – Tornado Olympic gold medallist Reg White’s company Sailcraft built examples such as the Iroquois and Apache in the 1970s, followed by Derek Kelsall designs and John Shuttleworth’s composite creations like the Spectrum 42 from the 1980s and on, among many others (the latest version of the Spectrum 42, the Pulsar 50, is taking part in Oren Nataf’s Rayon Vert with a crew including Sidney Gavignet). 40-50 years later and with much better understanding of their design, significant improvements across the board mean today’s catamarans of this type, break less, slam less, go upwind, can perform well on all points of sail and capsize about as often as monohulls sink.

Best known of this genre internationally are the Gunboats, but in this year’s Rolex Fastnet Race, the fast cats are largely represented by the four TS42 and TS5s from Lorient-based Marsaudon Composites. In 2019 great supporter of French yachting, Christian Guyader, won the MOCRA class aboard his TS42 Guyader Gastronomie. This year he returns with the newer 50ft TS5 Guyader Mext and a crew once again including former B&Q Castorama boat captain Loick Gallon and pro sailor Gwen Chapalain, who has entered the same boat in next year’s Route du Rhum. Of this year’s Rolex Fastnet Race, Chapalain observes: “We won the last edition on corrected time, but also in real time. This year it will be harder because there are MOD70s that go much faster than us. It's great to finish in Cherbourg. It makes the course a bit longer, but it adds to the game because we can play on the whole width of the Channel. It will be a great party in Cherbourg…”

In this Rolex Fastnet Race the ultimate expression of a modern fast cruising catamaran is Adrian Keller’s palatial Irens-designed 84 footer Allegra. The boat was designed to be faster on all points of sail and more spacious than larger equivalent monohulls and she demonstrated this on her first delivery to the Med when she hit 29 knots. Since then, as her Swiss owner has enjoyed racing her ever more, Allegra has been through a constant program of development including adding 6ft to her transoms, bringing her up to her present length (and thereby reducing transom drag) and fitting a J0 with inboard sheeting.

Racing skipper aboard this 32ft wide, 32 tonne all-carbon fibre monster is the world’s fastest sailor Paul Larsen. “These boats do an amazing job of shifting a luxury apartment at pace around a difficult race course,” explains Larsen, who almost 10 years ago set the present world sailing speed record of 68.33 knots aboard his Sailrocket 2. “I liken them to rally driving Bentley Continentals - they are hugely capable cars with incredible breaks and engines and handling packages, but at the end of the day it is a Bentley Continental and, when things go wrong, it weighs a lot and you are not in the rally car you might have been in, that might have made it out of that situation.”

As a result, Larsen says they are more stressful to push hard than purpose-built, full-on racing trimarans. “These are very complex boats with hydraulics and systems and power packs etc, and a lot of it is fly-by-wire. You are releasing travellers and the mainsheet from up by the helmsman.” Nonetheless, after several years campaigning her, today they are able to throw Allegra around the race course and can sail her to her design limits even in races such as the last windy RORC Caribbean 600.

Another example is the Outremer 5X Racing No Limit, the all-carbon version of the La Grande Motte-based builder's 60ft flagship catamaran model. This is being campaigned by Yann Marilley, former Team Manager for Yann Bourgnon, Alain Gautier and Gitana, who developed the boat with former Elf Aquitaine multihull skipper, the late Jean Maurel.

Among No Limit's crew for the Rolex Fastnet Race will be French offshore legend Loick Peyron. The two time OSTAR winner, Jules Verne Trophy holder, America's Cup helmsman and Vendee Globe competitor has a strong history with the Rolex Fastnet Race. In 2011 he skippered the 40m trimaran Maxi Banque Populaire setting a new outright race record, breaking the previous record he had set in 1999 aboard his ORMA 60 Fujicolor. Peyron's record was only broken by the latest generation Ultime trimarans in 2019.

Not all the fast cruising cats in the Rolex Fastnet Race are Swiss or French. A company producing the most successful examples in the UK is Dazcat just across the Tamar into Cornwall. For Isle of Wight-based James Holder this will be his fourth season and second Rolex Fastnet Race aboard his 42ft Dazcat 1295 Slinky Malinki (named after the cat in Lynley Dodd’s children’s stories). Similar to Allegra, Holder says only now have they been able to reap the benefits of all their development and ‘getting to know the boat’ time of the past seasons.

Holder has been racing multihulls for 20 years but spent much time campaigning Dragonfly and Farrier F24 trimarans before going catamaran. “We wanted a combination of things,” he explains. “The amazing thing about this boat - it is 13m, but if conditions are right you can average 18-20 knots over a sustained period. At the other end of the spectrum, we have probably the equivalent space of a 50-55ft cruising monohull, so we can also enjoy family time – we can go to Salcombe and catch sea bass and have a BBQ on board. It is very flexible machine…” When there’s enough wind (ie 13-14+ knots), Slinky Malinki can hold her own against the pro sailing elite in the upper echelons of the monohull fleet.

Holder says one secret to being competitive on fast cruising cats is to ensure they stay on a strict diet. “We constrain ourselves heavily, we don’t take too much water, so we are not showering during the race and we don’t have a watermaker. We put six beers in the fridge which we have when we finish, and we eat well – that is all part of it, keeping together a great team, being happy and motivated and we enjoy the good things. People are not having to sit in on the rail all night in the wet and the cold which is one of benefits of racing a cat like this.”

It is perhaps hardly surprising that this represents one of the top growth areas within our sport.

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From ocean racing to catamaran cruising: an adventure for all the family

• May 27, 2022

Former offshore racer Nick Bubb has taken his family on a round the world, action-packed cruising catamaran adventure

Nobody could ever accuse my wife Sophie and me of taking the easy route in life. For one of our first proper ‘dates’ we cycled from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and on our honeymoon we hiked Wainwright’s coast to coast across the north of England. I guess they set the benchmark and our idea of fun has only become more ambitious over the years. Except now, it’s a catamaran adventure for the whole family.

A few weeks after setting off on our around the world catamaran adventure, my eight-year-old son and I went on a day-long mountain bike adventure. Over the last few years I’ve got really into bikepack racing, non-stop mountain bike races over distances of around 1,000km. When we were in Lanzarote it felt like the perfect chance to introduce Rory to the sport.

I took Rory along one of my favourite trails, a beer and a lemonade stashed away in our minimalist kit. At first he set a great pace, but as the sun set his energy faded and we nearly ground to a halt in a windswept desert landscape. I was starting to feel really bad about pushing him too far but thankfully after a snack and a quick rest he was happy cycling again.

Nick, Sophie and the boys hiking on their catamaran adventure. Photo: Nick Bubb

We eventually rolled down to my chosen beach and set up our bivvys metres from the surf. We drank our rewards and watched the moon come up, chatting about the power of dreams and adventures until he fell asleep in my lap. Just a few hours later we woke, covered in sand flies but happy as could be. The whole expedition only lasted about 18 hours but Rory still talks about it proudly and his younger brother Billy won’t stop pestering me for his turn.

The whole reason we came on this ‘ocean odyssey’ was to spend more time together as a family and enjoy every moment with the boys before they get bored with us. On the water, biking, or hiking in the jungle, these are special experiences we’ll treasure forever.

Nick aboard the Quickstep Too. Photo: Nick Bubb

How we got here

Ever since I started sailing a Mirror dinghy on the River Deben in Suffolk aged five, I just wanted to go further. Sophie and I had talked about going cruising together since the first months of our friendship, but somehow the timing had never been quite right, until now.

After finishing my engineering degree, I was focussed on competing in the Vendée Globe. I was captivated by Yves Parlier’s heroics in the 2000/01 race, Ellen’s story too, and followed Pete Goss and Mike Golding for years.

Testing the Nautitech’s drying out abilities in the Isles of Scilly. Photo: Nick Bubb

My first step was gaining as many offshore miles as possible. Armed with a small graduate loan I bought my first Mini Transat, and spent a winter refitting it. Four years of Mini sailing later, along with sailing a Maxi cat around the world in the Oryx Quest, and racing everything from 30ft trimarans to Open 60s and eventually the Volvo Ocean Race in 2008/9 (where I met Sophie), I finally felt ready for the Vendée .

I was pushing to get a campaign together, but the global financial crisis was really starting to bite and I struggled to make significant headway. Instead I ended up working with Paul Larsen on SailRocket out in Namibia. This cemented a close friendship and I can’t think of many people more motivated towards a set goal than Paul and his partner Helena.

However, I hadn’t really found my focus. Out of the blue came the chance to skipper the Shackleton Epic expedition in Antarctica with Paul Larsen. Following that was never going to be easy but afterwards I took on a new role with Fauna & Flora International (FFI).

The Quickstep Too under sail with the Bubbs on deck. Photo: Nick Bubb

Like most things in my life, I went all-in and it turned into a huge commitment. Working away a lot, while trying to continue my own adventures, and combine it with family life was difficult and getting harder. Meanwhile, Sophie had been juggling looking after our boys and racing as a professional triathlete and coach. With Covid shutting down her racing season, the time seemed right for us both to take a break and live out our childhood dreams by going sailing.

Making plans

Aside from sharing a great family adventure, we’d visit FFI project sites around the world. Both Sophie and I wanted to ensure the boys see as much of the natural world as possible before it’s gone. That might sound dramatic but thousands of species are becoming extinct each year. We want them to learn first-hand how to conserve nature, and to engage with a diverse mix of cultures.

The Bubb family have been living life to the full on their world travels aboard Quickstep Too. Photo: Nick Bubb

We made grand plans to take bikes, boards, even the boys’ Optimist on the bow, and what felt like most of our garage with us. Most of all, we wanted to figure out a way to make it fun for all and not just a slog around the world as fast as possible. After racing so many miles over the years, with little opportunity to stop and enjoy the good bits, I was excited to explore islands I’d only ever raced past, and was determined that this would start with the Isles of Scilly!

In our search for a catamaran, we wanted space for friends to join us, to stow all our toys, good performance, along with true ‘off-grid’ capability. We decided to go for a Nautitech 40 catamaran from 2015 and happily found one that didn’t need masses of work.

After that, things happened quickly. I reached an agreement at work, Soph pulled out of racing on the Ironman and Skyrunning circuits. We sold our family home in the New Forest and moved aboard Quickstep Too full time in May, in Lymington. Once the school term ended, we left in early August.

Finding time for some light reading on the Quickstep Too. Photo: Nick Bubb

There’s no denying that uprooting your family, especially during Covid, is pretty complicated, but we had a lot of support from family and friends. From day one we had an attitude that our combined skill set and experience had put us in a great position to pull it off, but we needed to remain respectful of what lay ahead, and diligently work through the challenge.

Fundamentally, we’d prepare for it just as we would for any offshore race or long distance endurance event.

Casting off

As I write this, we’re in Shelter Bay Marina just a few miles from the Panama Canal , on the cusp of entering the Pacific, and it feels a little surreal to have come so far aboard our home. We all have mixed emotions about it; the boys are just happy to be back in a marina after so many months at sea or at anchor and have made a load of friends already, I’m mainly relieved to be able to switch off for a few weeks and not stress about all the millions of things that can go wrong. Sophie has a different perspective though, and is worried that it’s all going too fast!

The little known Selvagem Islands were a highlight of the Atlantic. Photo: Nick Bubb

Our adventures started, as planned, with us making it to the Isles of Scilly. After leaving Lymington the day before the Rolex Fastnet Race – we anchored in Studland Bay to watch the fleet crash past in epic conditions – we slowly made our way along the south coast calling at Brixham, Dartmouth and St Mawes. We caught up with old friends as we explored the Carrick Roads and waited for a weather window.

Finally we had our chance in mid-August, and it was magical. We opted to drop anchor in St Helen’s Pool between the islands of Tresco and St Martin’s. A notorious spot for thick kelp, if you can get your anchor to hold there it is one of the few anchorages that gives good shelter from a broad range of conditions.

Sophie relaxing in the sun on the Bubb’s catamaran adventure. Photo: Nick Bubb

Aside from drying out overnight on the sands mid-week, we stayed for six days and didn’t really move until the last night, opting instead to use our tender to get around. Drying out our catamaran wasn’t something we’d done before and I was keen to test it out in case we needed to do it one day to make repairs in a remote location. Happily, all went well, although she sank a little further into the sand than I’d expected!

We spotted a chance to cross Biscay in predominantly north-easterlies and, as it was by then late August, I was keen to take the opportunity. It got a little wild towards the end with well over 30 knots at times but we made landfall in Camarinas, just south of La Coruña. Dolphins greeted us in the anchorage and the boys were happy as could be. Over the following weeks we worked our way along the Spanish rias and offshore islands.

The boys take on a solo sailing adventure on their Optimist. Photo: Nick Bubb

After restocking in Baiona we sailed direct to Porto Santo, Madeira. This hadn’t always been our plan but I was keen to avoid any orca incidents on the Portuguese coast and the forecast was ideal, so we went for it. A few days in Porto Santo gave the boys their first taste of the Atlantic islands and then we moved on to Madeira, so our additional crew, friend Jo Royle, could travel home.

Madeira has very few anchorages and the marinas were full with boats who had their plans disrupted by Covid, so Sophie and the boys explored ashore, while I chose to remain largely on board and look after the boat. My time was not wasted, however, as I developed a plan that had been in my head for several months.

Surfing brothers share a high five. Photo: Nick Bubb

Lying almost directly between Madeira and Lanzarote are the little known Selvagem Islands, a small archipelago designated as a nature reserve. The scientific and natural interest of this tiny group of islands lies in its marine biodiversity, its unique flora and the numerous seabird species that breed on its cliffs, or use them as a migratory stopover.

Island exploration

With the wind in the north-east and due to go very light as we were passing, we decided to give the anchorage to the south-west of the larger island, Selvagem Grande, a go. There is one large mooring buoy available for visitors brave enough to nudge in there.

After a bit of chat with the wardens on the VHF we picked it up and waited nervously as the swell rolled in, taking us close to the rocks. Having monitored things closely for a tense hour or two we decided the mooring was fine, but we’d need to wait for high water to attempt the landing. We’d decided to celebrate Rory’s birthday a day early so had an impromptu celebration on the trampoline as he opened various presents we’d hidden on board.

We went ashore and completed immigration formalities before meeting the wardens who quickly offered to take us on a tour. We ended up having the most amazing few hours hiking amongst juvenile shearwaters and tracking the endemic Selvagem wall geckos.

The Bubb family always find time to cycle on their family adventure. Photo: Nick Bubb

The boys were blown away to discover they were the only children to have landed on the islands all year. To cap a very memorable birthday, we shared cake with the locals during a wonderful little tea party, before picking our spot between the waves to get back out to Quickstep , continuing on to Lanzarote just as the sun set.

Over the next six weeks or so we cruised extensively around Lanzarote, the north of Fuerteventura, Lobos and La Graciosa. We spent many happy days getting the Oppie out for the boys to sail, and surfing for hours on end. Sophie and I took our bikes to explore Lanzarote from end to end while the boys loved the busy Marina Rubicon, where they made many great cruising friends.

We’d decided not to do the ARC . The rally leaves a little too early in the season for us, and more importantly I didn’t want to be committed to a specific date. With work commitments to manage too, our decision was straightforward: we wouldn’t leave Lanzarote until the end of November and would also spend a few days in Cape Verde.

The Cape Verde Islands were another place I’d raced past many times but had never stopped at and was keen to explore a little. With our crew very keen to make it to Antigua for Christmas, we only spent 48 hours in Mindelo but we got up into the hills and loved the vibe around the dock with countless boats nervously preparing for their Atlantic crossing.

Tradewind crossing

Our transatlantic could hardly have been more straightforward. We left Mindelo in ‘muscular’ conditions and flew south-west initially. After clearing the wind shadow off Santo Antao, we hooked into the north-easterly trade winds and never looked back. We made the crossing without a single gybe in a shade over 13 days, having only slowed a little on approach to allow for a daylight arrival.

Securing provisions in the Caribbean. Photo: Nick Bubb

We rolled into Antigua and pretty much straight into the bar at Pigeon Beach. We reflected how – almost without fanfare – the boys were now transatlantic sailors. Whatever happened from now on, we’d all shared the great family adventure we’d dreamed of.

After celebrating Christmas in Antigua , we headed north to Barbuda, seeing in the New Year in splendid isolation at Spanish Point with a handful of cruising friends. The stunning pink and white sands on Barbuda’s coastline are remarkable and despite the devastation caused by Hurricane Irma, we found the local community to be very friendly and upbeat.

Next was Martinique, the cruising mecca that is Le Marin and the beautiful little village of Saint Anne, just a few miles south. We made many friends there and loved exploring the lush green interior and white sand beaches.

Splendid isolation in the Caribbean. Photo: Nick Bubb

Though symptomless, Sophie and Billy both returned positive PCR tests so we quickly moved away from the cruising community, a few miles around the corner to a peaceful anchorage called Anse d’Arlet, which had some of the biggest starfish we’ve ever seen, clear water and excellent shelter close to the cliffs.

Isolation complete, we headed to St Vincent and the Grenadines . More magic days followed in Bequia, Tobago Cays and then Union Island. In Union Island we got to spend time with one of FFI’s local partners and all took a full day hike with a local guide to see the incredible Union Islands geckos and hike up to the highest point in the Grenadines.

The marine park in Tobago Cays is really something very special with turtles and rays constantly surrounding the boat. One of the things we were all desperate to do on this trip was learn to wing-foil. It’s always fun to learn something new together and the logistics are so easy off the back of the cat.

Fun on a wonderful sandbar at Martinique. Photo: Nick Bubb

We started tow-foiling behind the dinghy and the boys refused to let us have all the fun; Rory is now tow-foiling around on his own when conditions are calm and Billy isn’t far behind. Wing-foiling from the boat in Tobago Cays in crystal clear water, having to carve around the turtles as they come up for air, was a very special moment. Sophie and I can both rip along now but neither of us can properly gybe yet, so that’s the next goal!

Panama bound

From here it was all eyes west, as we prepared to start the big move towards the canal. We had a perfect sail down to Bonaire, the kind of trip you dream of with 15 knots, full mainsail, gennaker and flat water the whole way; 400 miles later and we were in diving heaven!

In Bonaire this felt like torture for the boys – they can’t dive with compressed air until their lungs are fully developed (the advice seems to be wait until 12). So the obvious answer seemed to be to try freediving. 

The Bubb children enjoying some freediving. Photo: Nick Bubb

A lovely local instructor came out to the boat and spent an hour with us, teaching us all relaxation and breathing techniques, along with how to safely descend – and ascend – a line. Both boys hit their 5m targets, I got to around 15m, but Sophie discovered yet another sport she excels at and disappeared into the depths! By the end of our stay she was diving down close to 30m and holding her breath at the surface for over three minutes.

All the time there I had my eye on the weather for the last hop west to Colon and the entrance to the Panama Canal. Options included a stop in Cartagena, Columbia and the San Blas Islands but all were weather dependent. In the end, despite waiting for a window, we still had over 30 knots and 3-4m seas at times.

Family photo after a swim in the Caribbean. Photo: Nick Bubb

Our predicted 650 miles became nearly 800 but we rolled into the San Blas after just over four days at sea, as a weary but jubilant crew. The Kuna people were incredibly welcoming and the San Blas is the kind of place you could spend years visiting with close to 300 islands.

In just a few days we still got a real feel for the place and ensured it’s committed to our memories forever. We left with the feeling that we’d probably met our first community who have big challenges just ahead. Most of the islands sit just a few metres above sea level and already it’s hard to see how they will survive living as they do, in the long term.

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Our final stop before Colon was Portobelo. Supposedly named by Columbus and famously Drake’s final resting place, here was a perfect history lesson for the boys all in a morning. With ruins of forts and old cannons to be found all over town, their imaginations ran riot and we surely found gold ingots on every corner, as the life of pirates was brought into sharp focus.

The final few miles to Colon were an easy downwind slide and we entered Shelter Bay Marina at sunset to bring the curtain down on chapter one. Next; the Panama Canal, Las Perlas Islands, the Pacific and on to the Galapagos.

About the author: Nick Bubb

Nick Bubb is a lifelong sailor who has competed in the Volvo Ocean Race, Transat Jacques Vabre, and Route du Rhum among other ocean races. His wife Sophie is a professional ironman athlete and coach. They are documenting their travels on Instagram @OceanOdysseyCrew

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