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June 23, 2008

Speedboat wins in Bermuda

Alex Jackson’s brand new 100-foot sailing yacht, Speedboat, was the first to finish the 635-mile Newport Bermuda Race, crossing the finish line this morning at 8:12:56, daylight savings time.

The 635-mile race started Friday afternoon off Castle Hill in Newport. Speedboat’s elapsed time was 64 hours, 42 minutes and 56 seconds in light headwinds.

Rambler, the 90-foot maxi owned by George David, finished at 11:45:27, Newport time, with an elapsed time of 69 hours, 5 minutes, 27 seconds to take line honors in the Gibbs Hill Lighthouse division.

After leaving Newport with an upwind speed of 16 knots, Speedboat’s navigator Mike Sanderson relayed back to shore, “She is all very new and it is going to take some learning before we get 100 percent out of her, but there is no doubt in my mind that Speedboat is going to be a great boat.”

Il Mostro – The Monster – with Newport skipper Ken Read, finished about an hour behind Rambler. Read sailed the 90-foot Rambler for most of last year as he auditioned potential crew for Puma Ocean Racing. The team he selected will compete with him in the Volvo Ocean Race around the world, beginning this autumn in Spain. Goetz Custom Boats built The Monster in Bristol.

A pack of five boats was approaching the finish line at 6 p.m.

Posted by Tom Meade  at 6:18 PM | Permalink

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