Save the Dates for 2013 Skipper's Meeting - November 6th Race Starts - November 7th Awards Ceremony - November 9th

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Recent Race News:

More photos are available here.

November 13, 2012
Final Report From Paradise
All the boats are home and in safe harbor following another unprecedented regatta in this year’s 79th Annual Nassau Cup Ocean Race. On November 8th, headed by PRO Ken Batzer and his Race Committee, the day brought sunny skies and a beautiful NW 15 knot breeze off Miami’s Government Cut where fourteen boats were off and beam-reaching across the Gulfstream, then around Great Isaacs, Great Stirrup and down for the final run to the Nassau Harbour where a long-standing record was broken by the first boat to finish, Privateer, a 50’ Cookson. Their official time, recorded by the finish boat with Race officials Paul Hutton, John Lawrence and Brent Burrows, was 13 hours 31 minutes and 30 seconds beating the previous record by nearly one hour on the 176nm course. Followed closely behind and only missing the prior record by 20 minutes, was the second boat to finish, Decision, a Carkeek 40’.  Different Drummer was recorded as the first PHRF boat to finish just at sunrise, although they were short of the overall PHRF lowest finish which was won by Silhouette, a 44’ Cherubini with a corrected time of 15:33:57. All of the boats finished in due course with the last finisher, Mystiko, having been delayed by a “recovery” of their spinnaker which seemed to have mysteriously left the boat during their run from Great Isaac.  Everyone cleared customs expeditiously, stowed gear and headed for hot showers and the hospitality of the Nassau Yacht Club for some well deserved cocktails and a Bahamian style buffet dinner.

Saturday morning brought overcast skies and a 20 knot breeze, but eventually cleared in enough time for the Annual J22 Match Race. It seems many were laying low from the previous busy night, as the Committee was only able to rustle up four braves teams of three for the match race. This actually worked out well as during the second rotation of the race, the starboard shroud on one of the boats let go and the mast came tumbling down, ending the Championship a little short of a full regatta. A trophy was presented to the winner of the first race; and the team of Victory, helmed by Buddy Cribb and teammates Jim Bill and Scott Gehring were happy to collect a “not so hard-fought” title. With a little time still left before the Awards Ceremony, many of the sailors walked over to Montagu Beach to watch the conclusion of the 40th Annual Nassau Sloop Regatta which is sailed in Class A, B and C Bahamian workboats. It was a quite a sight to see with all the crews out on the prys in the windy conditions.

Saturday night’s festivities began with flowing drinks at an open bar and table after table of delectable hot and cold hors d’oeuvres, including shot glasses filled with freshly made conch salad, all courtesy of the Bahamian Ministry of Tourism with representation from the Director of Sports Tourism, Tyrone Sawyer. After welcoming everyone to the Bahamas trophies were presented, which were signed photographs from the glory days of the Miami Nassau Race taken by legendary photographer, Roland Rose. Perpetual trophies retained at the Nassau Yacht Club include the historic Nassau Cup for the first IRC boat on corrected time, the Arthur Bosworth trophy for the first in PHRF, and the Coral Harbour Yacht Club Trophy for the first yacht to finish. The evening went on late into the night with music from local DJ Vince Ritchie. Had there been prizes for dancing, they would certainly have gone to the party crew from Pilgrim, Rim Shot and Different Drummer.

Dates for next year’s race have been set for November 6-9, 2013.

November 12, 2012
And the Winners Are...
Congratulations to the winners of the fastest Nassau Cup ever:

Photo courtesy of Cai Svendsen

Coral Harbour Yacht Club Trophy
First monohull boat to finish
Privateer

Nassau Cup
First place corrected time in the IRC division
Privateer

Arthur Bosworth Trophy
First place corrected time in the PHRF division
Silhouette

Half Hull Perpetual
Best performance by a Bahamian boat
Ocean Warrior

November 10, 2012
New Elapsed Time Record as All Boats Arrived in Nassau
All fifteen boats that departed Miami, bound for Nassau in the 79th Anniversary Nassau Cup Ocean Race yesterday morning, have arrived in Nassau safely and are enjoying the Bahamian hospitality. The breeze was stiff along the course and shifted from a start of NNW to N, then NE as the boats made their turns to starboard providing for a fast ride.  Ron O’Hanley’s Privateer (Cookson 50) was first to finish and broke the previous elapsed time record of Boomerang with a time of 13 hours, 31 minutes and 30 seconds. Mirage’s tracker did not function for much of the trip, worrying friends and family, but it also added the element of surprise for all of us following race tracking. Frank Atkinson’s Different Drummer (Cape Bay Fast 40) was first to finish in the PHRF class. John Lawrence, Co-chair from Nassau Yacht Club, says he has seen only smiling faces from all competitors.  Customs and Immigration did a great job getting everyone cleared in and the crew is set with beer and rum on this Chamber of Commerce Day in the Bahamas!

November 9, 2012
Two Fleets Are In
The IRC and PHRF 1 fleets are all safely into Nassau Harbor.  The last few PHRF 2 boats are making 7 knots toward the finish.  A few more hours and all results will be in: click on Live Race Results above for the official times.

November 9, 2012
New Record!
It’s official, Privateer has broken Boomerang's elapsed time record set in 1986. They finished the race in 13 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds! Decision is not far behind.  Stay tuned as the breeze brings the rest of the fleet flying into Nassau.

November 8, 2012
Record Setting?
Privateer is out in front, more than halfway to Nassau after only 6 hours. There may be some record breaking this year if the breeze keeps up as our sponsor Weather Routing predicts. The current course record holder is George Coumantaros on Boomerang with an elapsed time of 14 hours, 26 minutes and 39 seconds. Different Drummer  and Ocean Warrior are in close proximity to each other after they passed Great Isaacs, with a group of boats approaching the same. The sailors will be looking forward to the rum when the reach the dock in Nassau for sure!

November 8, 2012
And Away They Go

Photo courtesy of Christine Stewart.

We had a beautiful , brisk day here in sunny Miami for the start of the 2012 Nassau Cup.  In wind NNW around 15 kts, fifteen boats departed in two good starts. The IRC fleet tightly bunched in mostly single file, right at the boat, led by Privateer, Decision and Thin Ice. The PHRF fleet a bit more spread out, but even more aggressive. The Beneteau 43 Sunquest led across the line early. All boats looking ready for a sporty ride across the Gulf Stream. Keep updated on the progress with the SORC Facebook page and Race Tracking.

November 7, 2012
Skipper's Meeting
Coral Reef Yacht Club hosted the Skipper’s Meeting for the 79th Anniversary Nassau Cup Ocean Race.  The breeze was already blowing and the temperature dipping as sailors enjoyed Goslings beverages and received final sailing instructions from the PRO Ken Batzer.  NNW at 14-19 should make for a great start just after 11 am tomorrow.  Follow the fleet to Nassau  with race tracking here.

November 6, 2012
The Weather Is Here
Scratch Sheets are ready and the bags are packed!  The Skipper’s Meeting will begin at 6pm tomorrow at the Coral Reef Yacht Club.  Race Chairman, Carol Ewing has a positive outlook on the weather,  “It looks like we will have a fairly light start to the race, but the direction will be good and the wind will be building – by the time they get on the Bahamas side, the wind should be up pretty nicely. AND it looks like the wind will be clocking so they will get a perfect direction for the ride home on Sunday -  ENE.”  We can’t ask Mother Nature for more than that.  See you at the Skipper’s Meeting!

Photo courtesy of Robert Dunkley

October 26, 2012
Set Sail for the Bahamas
With the start of the 79th Annual Nassau Cup Ocean Race on November 8th, final preparations are in the works. Participation is up from last year and camaraderie and competition will make for a great race. Hurricane Sandy will be long past and hopefully there won’t be another one following her path.  Once again there will be race tracking available with Kattak. And don’t forget to follow the participants updates and chatter on our facebook page.

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Since 1934, some of the best offshore sailors in the world have battled for the prestigious Miami to Nassau Cup, including Ted Turner, Dennis Conner, Dick Bertram, and Ted Hood, aboard legendary boats like Running Tide, Windward Passage, Tenacious, and Boomerang.  Half a generation after World War II forced a short intermission, the race became part of the fabled Southern Ocean Racing Conference in the 1980s until the series’ dissolution in the 1980s.  Building on the race’s welcome rebirth in 2003, the new SORC, a group of race-veteran race managers, announced its management of the Nassau Cup Race in 2010. 

Starting in South Florida, racers leave Great Isaacs Light to starboard and proceed past Great Stirrup Light, finally finishing at Nassau harbor. The current course record is held by George S. Coumantaros on the yacht Boomerang with an elapsed time of 14 hours, 26 minutes and 39 seconds in 1986.  Today’s modern boats just need the right conditions to claim this legendary prize, and racers of all types will enjoy the navigational and crew challenge of the race across the Gulf Stream. 

For a list of past winners of the Miami-Nassau Cup Race, click here. 

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