Several beachcats and home built multihulls entering for a 10K cash prize.
http://r2ak.com/

death on the high seas... cool.

Jones Act, anyone?

A bunch of it is through deep ocean passes - not a whole lot of it is open ocean. We looked at it but the time to get there and back home coupled with the wildly unlimited nature of it was a deterrent.

you seen the currents up there? 5kts+

Light air, fog, and nasty current could push a beachcat somewhere bad...

But generally I'm a big fan of adventure races. Few rules, tough choices, and yes - the fear of actual death/injury. Kind of like 'merica the way it used to be...

When you say "wildly unlimited", are you referring to the course, or the boats?

First prize $10,000
(second prize is a set of steak knives)

haha! i hope they are ginsu's at the very least

Boats. The water is deep...there is no physical limit / filter like you get with the Everglades race. A Volvo 60 could meet the entry requirement and complete the course and that demeans posting a winner take all prize because it puts it out of reach of so many people. Then again, we're not doing this for prize money but it makes the whole thing seem a little weird and unbalanced.

But yeah, it would definitely be an adventure in a small boat.

Third place gets eaten by bears, no doubt.

this just got boring

I looked at doing this, having raced around Vancouver Island three times I have experience with at least the first 1/3 of this course.

To say it isn't open water is a little disingenuous. There are some narrow passages going up to Port Hardy but even Georgia Straits are pretty big, and can be very crazy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6R22JdoU1pI). After the north end of Van Isle the ONLY way to win this race is outside. Bella Bella is only a 40 mile detour from completely open ocean sailing from VI to Ketchikan. The winner will NOT be rowing/paddling/sailing the inside passage, its simply too much extra distance and too variable of conditions.

Right now my money is on Dalton and Joe on their Beiker designed proa, and in second Nigel and Simon on their Turn Point catamaran. Both have the same problem that they are still building and not training, and whoever gets on the water first will have a big advantage. You know there are some teams out training right now and that will be a huge advantage when the race starts.

Can't count out Wayne and Janine on their F85SR either. Wayne lives on Van Isle and started the VI360 back in the 90's much in the same vain as R2AK so he knows his stuff.

IMO the best boat for this race is a small, beachable multihull that affords enough protection/comfort to sleep while underway. It MUST be able to be propelled by paddle/oar/human drive system, and I don't mean for an hour or so, but rather for a day or so. There will be times when paddling is the only option. Being able to beach the boat is a HUGE advantage with regards to fixing problems or stopping for weather (I experienced 35 knots against a 4 knot current in Johnstone Strait, I was glad I was on a 65' boat).

It will be an amazing adventure. Joy and I plan to be at the start, whether its with the CirrusR just to sail the first leg to Victoria, or on our powerboat to watch and see how it goes for the competitors. Historic. Wish I had the time and the balls to sail the whole race.

Oh, and weed is legal in WA so no issues there. And, if you really need a hookup in Victoria, I can get you that too. Just make sure you get rid of it all before Ketchikan. Bring your own booze though, stupid expensive in Canada...

Hell, first place may get eaten by a bear.

My man bits are way too small for that kind of adventure. I'll stick with "I wonder if this mayo is still good?"

I can picture it now... dragging the boat up on the beach..."WE MADE IT"

bear roars.... screams... chewing.

this guy was asking on the TheBeachcats.com "what boat would be best for this race", and threw out all sorts of "out of the box" ideas


http://mausails.com/

Who next wants to be first. I got your 10,000 right here.

The poorly kept secret is out! Thanks to Sperry, my brother and I are registered and flying the beachcat flag among a bunch of innovative entries. Lots of concepts and race theories out there, so it should be very interesting race to follow...entries including everything from a Crowther 38' cat to a SUP'er.

Our boat of choice is an ARC22 with a bunch of added go-fast bits. Currently staging out of Ian and Joy's dream shop, Anacortes Rigging. For those interested, we'll be posting updates on FB and our team site here.

Good luck guys! I hope it blows downwind for you the whole way! (you did bring a kite, right?).