Transpac Race

Transpac Race

Begins early July in odd-numbered yearsIt was in 1906, the year of the great San Francisco earthquake, that the first yacht race across the Pacific was held. Because of the earthquake, only three yachts participated, ranging in length from 48 feet to 115 feet overall. The course was from Los Angeles to Honolulu.
The Transpac Race was originally held in even-numbered years, with a long break between 1912 and 1923, and another interruption, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, between 1941 and 1947. It is currently held in odd-numbered years and is sponsored by the Transpacific Yacht Club.
The finish can be close: in the 1965 race, with 55 yachts participating, there were fewer than 100 yards between the first two finishers as they struggled up the Molokai Channel. One had lost her main boom and the other's boom was badly damaged.
CONTACTS:
Transpacific Yacht Club
430 Catalina Dr.
San Pedro, CA 92663
949-646-5129; fax: 949-646-0089
www.transpacificyc.org
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