The race committee is headed by past-commodore Dick Neville, who with help from Dave Brennan, Bruce Bingman and Bill Canfield will decide each morning where to place the 13 classes over three course areas off to the southeast of the island. (Something the sailors don’t know that is equally vital to the event is that each year Storm Trysail must petition for permission to hold the event from the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary: the racing is conducted in a protected zone that features 6,000 species of marine flora and fauna unique to the world’s third largest barrier reef system). One group that may not be hiked out quite so hard to enjoy the view of all this sub-tropical ‘activity’ is a new class making its debut this year: the Performance Cruisers. This is a group of boats and teams, sometimes also termed the ‘Navigator class’, who want to race and be part of the event, but on a more casual basis. Accord- ingly, Neville’s committee will set up a start close to the harbour with a simple daily course that will follow a combination of govern- ment buoys and drop marks, with the goal of being back in the harbour after a few hours of sailing around the keys. ‘This is an idea borrowed from Block Island and Charleston, where it’s been very popular and we hope will help open up our own event to a broader mix of participants,’ says Neville. ‘We hope this might attract continued participation among some of the boats who race down the week before in the Lauderdale-Key West Race but are less keen to spend another week racing around buoys.’ This group will use ORC Club handicaps rather than PHRF. The use of ORC Club is another innovation this year to try to reduce perennial complaints about the use of PHRF, which in the US is managed locally and individually in each of dozens of regions across the country. In the past those not entered in a one-design class or IRC or HPR would opt for PHRF, but then have to go through a consortium of handicappers to get a rating assigned to them, since the rating issued by their home fleet was rarely compatible with those of their competitors.
Key West race managers will use ORC time-on-time scoring for the inshore course racing, applying a Light, Medium or Heavy wind multiplier depending on the daily conditions.
At the lower end of the size scale this year are several Jim TP52 Seahorse Advert_Dec2015_v1.eps 1 11/5/15 9:33 AM
Donovan-designed GP26s, built in Turkey at Wraceboats. Not all are the same – there are subtle variations in sail plans and engine type – but the ORC’s experience with their own Sportboat rule should help equalise the 26s with the other entries – that are all under 2,000kg in weight and 9m overall.
At the other end of the scale out on the Division 1 course will be the Maxi 72s. Class manager Rob Weiland says this should be a hard fight among the four well-matched entries. Bristling with the week’s top talent and with well-managed and very professional programmes, this could be one of the most competitive classes and reigning world champion Bella Mentemay very well have their hands full trying to defend their title from 2015. The IRC 1 class will also be hard fought, with three veteran TP52s as well as the smaller but newest and most successful IRC design of 2015, the Botín 44 Interlodge. Even against TPs this team have won every regatta they’ve raced, so the question is can they do the same again in a tight class that includes veterans of the TP52 circuit, one of which is their own last boat, now being raced by Steve and Heidi Benjamin as Spookie.
As usual, the great majority of the 132 Key West entries to date are in the one-design classes. This has been the case with this event for the past decade and more, with the J/70s leading the 2016 entry with 40 boats and probably more by race time; 17 Melges 24s constitute the most international class this year but the 24s are also now making a broader comeback in the US. Among the one-design fleets the Farr 280s (five boats) and C&C 30s (11 boats) are making class debuts at Key West, an encouraging sign that this event is regaining its lustre as a showcase for the latest new designs. Similar in size but different in concept, the 280 brings carbon-fibre sophistication to the light and fast keelboat genre, whereas the C&C 30 features a larger, more offshore-capable platform.
Predicted winners? No way to tell, the competition will honestly be that close among several favourites. But one thing is for sure: after five long days and 10 races, those making it to the podium on Friday night will have cause – and opportunity – to celebrate. Dobbs Davis
Over 500 linear feet of high performance yachts, from eight specific boat types, now under construction.
Built by Premier:
SEAHORSE 21
Photo: TP52 Platoon by Martinez Studio
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