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The Royal Vancouver Yacht Club and the Lahaina Yacht Club are pleased to announce the 2014 Vic-Maui International Yacht Race.
The key dates for the 2014 Vic-Maui race are:
- Starts – July 3-7, 2014
- Finish time limit – July 24, 2014 at 2330 HST
- Awards banquet – July 26, 2014
Vic-Maui, first contested in 1968 and run every second year since, is the pinnacle of Pacific Northwest ocean racing. The Vic-Maui race challenges sailors to demonstrate their skills by beating out of the Juan De Fuca Strait, reaching around the Pacific High Pressure zone and running the trades to Hawaii.
The 2012 Vic-Maui race enjoyed excellent wind conditions, with "Double Take", skippered by Tom Huseby and sailing out of the Seattle Yacht Club, capturing line honors, the overall win, and the racing division class 1 win in an elapsed time of ten days and twelve hours. "Kinetic", skippered by David Sutcliffe and sailing out of the Royal Vancouver Yacht Club, took the racing division class 2 win, and "Radiance", skippered by Mark Ward and sailing out of the William H. Seward Yacht Club (Alaska) sailed to the inaugural cruising division title. Vic-Maui records, including the "Grand Illusion" elapsed time of nine days, two hours, eight minutes and twenty seven seconds, are waiting to be broken in 2014!
The Vic-Maui adventure begins during the long days of mid-summer and each day of the passage South towards the tropics brings warmer temperatures. The days pass quickly with the fleet surrounded by dolphins and albatross, spectacular sunrises, sunsets and brilliant starlit nights. Teamwork gets the boats to the finish line near Lahaina, where day or night each arriving boat is greeted with an outstanding Hawaiian welcoming party.
Family and friends see the racers off from Victoria and meet the racers in Lahaina to celebrate their arrival with hugs, leis and mai-tais. The whole fleet attends the awards banquet, another fantastic Hawaiian gathering. Many crew stay on to spend more time enjoying Maui with their families. Some boats continue on to the South Pacific while others return to their home ports.
Preparing a yacht and crew for a major ocean race is a significant undertaking. Vic-Maui fosters a spirit of cooperation among competitors, with past competitors acting as mentors to first time entrants. Many successful teams start their boat preparation and crew training a year or more in advance. They also establish an early relationship with a marine insurer who underwrites ocean racing.
Race after race, participants describe the Vic-Maui as their most memorable sailing experience and as the adventure of a lifetime. It is our sincere hope that you will be among the sailors who share in the challenge, adventure and teamwork of competing in this world-class event.
See vicmaui.org for more information.
