2020 IDA LEWIS YACHT CLUB DISTANCE RACE
Newport, RI (August 16, 2020) – A total of 65 boats started the 2020 Ida Lewis Distance Race presented by Jeanneau America on August 15 in a building northeasterly that dished out 20-22 knots of breeze throughout most of the day and into the evening and overnight.
By the time racing had finished for two offshore classes (IRC and PHRF Doublehanded) and three inshore classes (PHRF Aloha, PHRF Coronet, and PHRF Cruising Spinnaker), 16 boats had retired; however, plenty of teams were left to beam about their accomplishments, each one crossing the finish line in Newport Harbor, near where they started, and receiving – no matter what the hour – a congratulatory bottle of Prosecco delivered to them on the water by Ida Lewis Yacht Club volunteers.
“The conditions were incredible,” said Ron O’Hanley (Boston, Mass.), skipper of the Cookson 50 Privateer, which decidedly won PHRF Coronet Class, taking home both the Lime Rock Trophy for best corrected time and the Lois J. Muessel Memorial Trophy for best elapsed time among that class’s 21 entries. “On races like this, you just have to make sure nothing goes wrong. You have to make sure your tacks and jibes and spinnaker takedowns go right.”
O’Hanley had originally signed up for the IRC class (which sailed the “Montauk Course” of 169 nautical miles), but while the forecast “was terrific for Privateer and its core crew,” it promised to be too much of a test for three of O’Hanley’s novice guests, and he switched gears to sail the newly added inshore course of 33 nautical miles (around Conanicut, Prudence and Patience Islands in Narragansett Bay).
“Fortunately, we were able to renew our PHRF certificate, change to the Narragansett Bay course, and still give our guests a taste of offshore sailing while doing so safely. Our guests are hooked!”
O’Hanley said he found the inshore course to be different than any other that has been typically held in the Bay and feels it allowed a lot of people to sail who otherwise wouldn’t have been able to, especially those who had to sail with fewer crew in order to stay with those in their social bubbles. “Everyone’s idea of distance racing is different. For our crew, we’re used to 100-mile races, but for others 10 miles is as much as they’ve done.
“I give the Ida Lewis Yacht Club and its Race Committee so much credit for adding formats to ensure COVID safety and draw more participants into distance racing. I recognize that it’s complicated for the Race Committee to run so many different courses, but Ida Lewis has always sought ways to make distance racing more inclusive, and 2020 was yet another high-water mark.”
Winning the 13-boat PHRF Aloha Class and the Arthur Curtiss James Trophy for best corrected time was the 45’ wooden yawl Zingara, skippered by Bill Hainie (Newport, R.I.)
Also sailing the inshore course was PHRF Cruising Spinnaker Class with eight boats.
Winner Masquerade, a Baltic 47 co-skippered by Newport’s Peter Gerard and Andy Burton. “It was spectacular,” said Gerard. “We had 400 years of experience in a crew of seven people. It was tough conditions, but a great test, and we’re all very sore.”
Winning the offshore IRC Class and the Russell J. Hoyt and Commodore’s Trophies for best elapsed and corrected time (respectively) in IRC was the Pac 52 Warrior Won, skippered by Chris Sheehan (Larchmont, N.Y.). “We’ve put quite a bit of time into boat handling and sail design since last October,” said Collin Leon, the boat’s captain. “There have been lots of cancellations of sailboat racing but our training has paid dividends.
“During the downwind start Warrior Won’s spinnaker was up and hauling 15 seconds before the boat hit the line. “We were ripping,” said Leon, describing the first downwind leg to Point Judith. “Aurora (which eventually retired) was close behind, but we had a few miles on them by Montauk. By then we weren’t really focused on anyone else except ourselves. Our primary focus is offshore distance racing. This was more or less the perfect distance and the perfect breeze.”
The 16-boat Doublehanded Class was won by the Jeanneau Sun Fast 3300 Alchemist, sailed by Ken Read and Suzy Leech (Newport). This team also took first among three Mixed (Co-ed) Doublehanded crews. This category was included in a nod to a new such class at the 2024 Olympics.
Background:
This is the 16th running of the Ida Lewis Distance Race, which is for boats 28 feet or longer and is certified as a “Clean Regatta” by the Sailors for the Sea organization. It begins off Fort Adams and ends just inside Newport Harbor where Ida Lewis Yacht Club volunteers can site the finish line from their clubhouse on Lime Rock before greeting each team on the water with a congratulatory bottle of Prosecco.