Honker In the Strait

Nothing's easy in this year's Oregon Offshore, that's for sure.

Checking overnight wind speeds at Race Rocks; last night it was blowing steadily in excess of 30 knots between 11:30 pm and 2 am with winds that have been steadily exceeding 25 knots out of the WSW for these racers all night making for a fast, wild ride to the finish for the fleet.

Good time to check out the Race Rocks camera...

A & B Fleets Are Coming In

Free Bowl of Soup crossed our line at 4:43 this morning with Riva, Anam Cara, and Time Bandit all finishing with in 30 minutes of each other.

In the early light it looks like rain with sun breaks on a slightly choppy Victoria Bay.

Race Tracker Updates

Kokopelli last updated their race tracker yesterday at 15:26, we're assuming they are actually somewhere nearer to the mouth of the Strait based on the position of the other SC 27's; hopefully they are making or have made the turn for Victoria;

Wyeast updated most recently last night at 10:42 pm so they are also most likely farther north then their position reports;

Ocelot is showing somewhere off of Destruction Island, but they have finished (in record time!);

Passepartout last updated at 9:26 pm, again, we assume they too are farther north than their reported position;

Souffle updated just before 4 am, so they still may be just outside of the Cape;

Panama Red updated last at 11:03 last night; again, we think they have are farther in the Strait than their position reports...

All other trackers seem to be functioning properly at this time.

Cantata's race tracker shows them in Gray's Harbor at 5 am this morning, having progressed south and easterly most of the night; we hope all is well with vessel and crew of Cantata.

Shamrock is in the Strait! So is Aja, Katzenjammer and Kaos

What a difference a few hours makes... after a few bunk hours, here are some updates.

Gary Bruner and the crew of Shamrock have made the turn into the Strait, and are just off of Neah Bay now.

Neptune's Car, ICON and Ocelot have all finished the race now in record time, congrats to the IRC fleet.

Anam Cara appears to have finished or is finishing now, Riva, Time Bandit  Cara and Free Bowl of Soup appear to have possibly dropped back during the night but all are in the vicinity of Race Rocks nearing the finish. Time Bandit is recording speeds in excess of 8 knots this morning at dawn.

Just passing Sooke Harbour is California Girl, Kinetic & Blade Runner, all three are nearing the Race Rocks passage and the final northward turn to the finish.

Tabu, Ion, Siren, Avalon and Velocity are all in the Straits now, as are Pregrine, Sol Pacifico, Shamrock, Kaos & Katzenjammer.

Panama Red hasn't reported since 9 pm last night, got to think they too are nearing the finish.

Still approaching the cape are Wave Dancer, Turn Again, Aja and Passepartout.

Kokopelli, Wyeast and Ocelot are not reporting updates (Ocelot is finished).

Cantata retired and took refuge in Gray's Harbor last night, we hope everyone on board and the boat are safe and sound.

Keep checking for updates as the fleet approached the finish line of the fastest Oregon offshore ever!

Can't wait to hear the stories from this amazing, yet challenging race...

Winds appear to be holding from the west at 18-20 knots all the way to the finish.

Don't forget, you can catch some of the finish action on the Race Rocks live video feed linked from this site.

Good luck to all of the remaining competitors and congratulations to those who have already finished in record time, you're ALL winners in this year's race!

IRC Fleet is in

Icon crossed the finished line at 23:06:20 giving her an un-official elapsed time of 14:56:20 beating Rage's 2000 record by 4:50:21! Neptune's car crossed at 23:13:20 and Ocelot crossed at 23:29:32.

Say goodnight Lucy

ICON ROUNDING RACE ROCKS DOING NEARLY 15 KNOTS!

On pace for a record finish, Neptune's Car and ICON are battling to the end - at night - doing 15 knots - for line honors.

Wow.

Now that's a sailboat race...

Be advised: Neptune's Car's race tracker has not updated since 21:55, this race is closer than it looks!

Neptune's Car has Contacted the Finish Line

Paul LaMarche contacted the finish line as 21:30 indicating that they were 40 minutes from Race Passage. They also indicated that Icon was next to them.

This could lead to an interesting battle for the record time which was set in 2000 by Rage skippered by Steve Rander. The record time was 19 hours, 46 minutes and 41 seconds,

PHRF Fleet Rounds the Corner - RIVA at the Mark!

Free Bowl of Soup has made the turn into the Strait, with Anam Kara and Riva hot on their tail.

Time Bandit and Kinetic appear to have fallen back a bit, but are nearing the entrance at a healthy 9 knots of boat speed.
Panama Red has moved up to pass California Girl, and is closing distance on the other A boats.

Winds at the mouth of the Strait appear to be currently WSW at approximately 18 knots, gusting to 22 knots at Neah Bay.

IT LOOKS LIKE A RECORD SMASHING YEAR FOR NEPTUNE'S CAR IF THEY DON'T PARK AT RACE ROCKS

Neptune's Car and Icon streak toward the finish line of the 2014 Oregon Offshore in anticipation of a record setting race for elapsed time line honors!

Neptune's Car seems to have overtaken ICON in the last 50 miles of the race, and is now heading towards the finish at nearly 12 knots. They estimate their finish time within the next hour.

It's not too late to post your "best guess" about the first boat's finishing time. Looks like I'll be late at 12:15 am. See the previous blog post.

Neptune's Car takes the lead heading towards Race Rocks!

Neptune's Car
Position
48° 16.59' N 123° 42.68' W
Heading
ESE @ 11.7 knts
Fleet
IRC
Status
Racing
Reported
08-May-14 21:55

Icon
Position
48° 16.61' N 123° 42.97' W
Heading
ESE @ 13.6 knts
Fleet
IRC
Status
Racing
Reported
08-May-14 21:51

Cantata Appears to Have Retired

It appears that Cantata has reversed course and is heading for Gray's Harbor. This race committee has made multiple attempts to contact the vessel. Does anyone have word on Cantata's intent and condition?

CURRENT POSITIONS

Current Mid-Race Positions (no boats have finished at this time, no handicap time allowances reflected):

1st: ICON
2nd: NEPTUNE'S CAR (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 20:05)
3rd: FREE BOWL OF SOUP
4th: RIVA
5th: ANAM CARA
6th: TIME BANDIT
7th: KINETIC
8th: CALIFORNIA GIRL
9th: BLADE RUNNER
10th: TABU
11th: VELOCITY
12th: PASSEPARTOUT
13th: ION
14th: PEREGRINE
15th: KAOS
16th: OCELOT (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 14:35)
17th: PANAMA RED (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 18:44)
18th: SIREN
19th: AVALON
20th: SOL PACIFICO
21st: AJA
22nd: SHAMROCK
23rd: SOUFFLE
24th: KATZENJAMMER
25th: WYEAST (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 20:05)
26th: TURNAGAIN (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 15:20)
27th: WAVE DANCER (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 19:04)
28th: CANTATA (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 21:26, HEADING SSE @ 5.5 KTS)
29th: KOKOPELLI (LAST REPORTED POSITION AT 15:26)
30th: COOL CHANGE (DNS)

ALL OTHER TIMES NOT INDICATING A "LAST REPORTED POSITION" HAVE UPDATED SAIL TRACKER POSITIONS WITHIN THE LAST HOUR

Closer Than It Looks! Watch those Sail Tracker Position Times

The most recent sail tracker update from Neptune's Car is (at this time) over an hour old, ICON was recently updated at 9:11 pm and Neptune's Car was updated at 8:05.

As the two lead boats approach race rocks the most recent information shows ICON blasting along at over 12 knots!

Winds are predicted to build again this evening... We'll see...

Make sure you enter your predicted finish time for the lead boat in the previous blog post!

Finish Is Ready Bring it on Icon Neptune's Car

The finish team is in place after a long, hard drive in the rain. The rain has stopped, wind is light and beer is good! We are looking forward to seeing ICON and NEPTUNE'S CAR duking it out in the light wind in the bay for the lead.

Thanks to the tech guys for fixing the glitch with the tracking this morning.

12 Hours & Counting

It's been 12 hours now since I blew the start horn for this year's race.

I'm home now, showered, warm and comfortable.

As I think about this race, and update the posts, I can't help but admire all of the competitors in this year's grueling Oregon Offshore race.

The conditions have been fast, but also cold, windy and wet - for 12 solid hours - some haven't slept, or are coming back on watch, getting into cold soggy foulies to go out on deck for another 3 or 4 hours.

My point is, while we track the leaders of the race, all of the competitors are winners just for having the courage and tenacity to show up at the starting line for this years Oregon Offshore.

For those that have done this race and are home this year, you can imagine what those boats and crews are going through right now; for those who haven't done the race, well, it can be challenging on many levels.

As the sun sets this night, keep these sailors in your thoughts, and let's all celebrate the victories of all of these competitors, regardless of when they cross the finish line.

PHRF Update and Wind Direction Change

Free Bowl of Soup leads the PHRF Fleet approaching Cape Flattery and the turn, looks like some boats may make it to the turn before midnight.

Winds have swung around to the WSW at 18-20 knots; close behind "The Soup" is Riva, Anam Cara and Kinetic, with Time Bandit rounding out the lead PHRF pack. All tracker updates quoted are after 7 pm.

Panama Red, California Girl and the Santa Cruz 27 Blade Runner are the next group.

Wyeast is moving along at a steady 6.8 knots, and is currently the most southerly boat in the race.

Just for Fun

Guess the Finish Time of the First Boat to Cross the Finish Line!

Flamingo Chris says 12:15 a.m... 16 hours, 5 minutes

Who else wants to venture a friendly guess?

I Should Know This, But...

Trackers are updated for the two lead boats, neck and neck going towards Point No Point.

TRIVIA QUESTION:

Who knows the record elapsed time for this race?

We are now at just under 13 hours elapsed time for the 2014 Oregon Offshore

Lost in the mix is Ocelot, last tracker update was 2:45 pm, best guess is they've also made the turn.

Updated Boat Speeds and Headings for the Fleet

ShowYacht NameSail No.RaceDiv.Hdg.Spd.TrackSelect
Icon69189IRCE8.9
Neptune's Car60667IRCN10.7
Ocelot28909IRCN13.6
Souffle223CruisingN6.6
Blade Runner18727Santa Cruz 27NNW8.4
Kaos8341Santa Cruz 27NNW6.4
Kokopelli57138Santa Cruz 27N8.1
Anam Cara79093PHRF ANNW8.3
Kinetic74373PHRF ANNW8.2
Panama Red83184PHRF ANNW8.6
Riva46960PHRF ANNW8.2
Tabu79167PHRF ANNW7.4
Time Bandit50PHRF ANNW8.2
Free Bowl of Soup519PHRF BNNW9.7
Ion74424PHRF BNNW8
Siren134PHRF BNNW7.4
Turnagain74454PHRF BNNW8.2
Velocity28642PHRF BNNW7.5
Wave Dancer36047PHRF BNNW6.8
Avalon74448PHRF CNNW7.3
California Girl6853PHRF CN6.8
Cool Change23723PHRF CSSE0
Passepartout47724PHRF CNNW7.6
Peregrine46726PHRF CNW6.5
Aja79106PHRF DNNW6.9
Cantata77563PHRF DNNW6.6
Katzenjammer59553PHRF DNNW6.3
Shamrock37PHRF DNNW6.2
Sol Pacifico79141PHRF DNNW7
WyEast141PHRF DNNW6.8

Tracker Accuracy

It has been pointed out that the tracker positions are indicated at different times of day and may not be giving the most accurate "real time" data.

Please note the time of the boat's position "fix" relative to other boats when checking progress, as some measurements (ICON & Car, for example) are off by nearly an hour or more. Ocelot last updated before 3 pm.

In any case, it looks like a fast. albeit chilly, soggy race and all competitors are moving up the track in near record times, let's hope the wind holds through the night, tide is slack switching from flood (incoming) to ebb (outgoing) at around 10 pm tonight giving a little extra challenge to those boats making the turn after sunset at 8:42 pm.