David v Goliath transat
The 2022 RORC Transatlantic Race turned into a nail-biting contest between one of the largest racing yachts on the water, the 100ft Comanche, and a 48ft Oyster Lightwave, built in 1987.
The eighth running of the RORC Transatlantic Race saw the race come of age, attracting its strongest ever fleet, with a diverse and highly competitive line up that ranged from MOD70 trimarans to a double-handed team on the 32ft JPK 10.10 Jangada.
Thirty teams, with crew from 27 nations, set off from Lanzarote to Grenada, on Saturday, 8 January. First into Port Louis in Grenada was the Italian Multi 70 Maserati, skippered by Giovanni Soldini, which finished on 15 January to take multihull line honours.
The modified foil-asssited MOD70 overhauled the more conventionally set up Powerplay, which led for the majority of the 3,000 mile race, and Argo, despite suffering damage to its port rudder. The three 70ft trimarans developed an intense mid-atlantic sprint race over the final 500 miles, at speeds frequently topping 30 knots.
As Powerplay’s Paul Larsen reported from on board: “We’ve effectively got a new race start with around 500 miles to go. Everyone’s pumped and Powerplay is at 100%. This has already been a belter of a race. Looking like it’s going to be like that all the way to the end. [We are] the hunted, but the hounds are all around!”
First of the monohulls to finish was Comanche. The 100ft Vplp/verdier-designed Maxi, skippered by Mitch Booth, set a new race record when they crossed the Grenada finish line after 7d 22h 1m 4s.
Skipper Mitch Booth commented after finishing: “Comanche is an absolute weapon in the open ocean; the benchmark in non-foiling offshore monohulls.
“The Comanche crew is a mix of very experienced offshore sailors, grand prix inshore sailors and a few newcomers. We’re not in set roles; everyone is trimming and on the helm. We are mixing it up, having a great time. It’s been really fun sailing together. Setting Atlantic records is iconic and very special.”
From Comanche’s finish on 16 January it was a long wait to see if their corrected time could be beaten, until Ross Applebey’s Oyster 48 Scarlet Oyster came seriously close to overhauling the Maxi for the overall IRC win.
Applebey’s team, which is made up of paying guests, raced hard for the entire 3,000-mile crossing – peeling to a reaching spinnaker on the final approach to the line to try and gain some extra minutes.