NEWPORT, R.I., June 11, 2014 – Carina, the sturdy black-hulled McCurdy Rhodes 48 foot sloop now owned by Rives Potts of Westbrook CT, has sailed the classic Newport Bermuda Race 20 times, more than any other boat. Under her original owner, Richard Nye she won the St. David’s Lighthouse Trophy in 1970. Potts won the trophy with Carina in 2010 and 2012. Now he is poised for a triple. If he makes it, he will break or tie some records along the way.
The race starts in Newport June 20th off Castle Hill, in the mouth of Narragansett Bay.We’ll see what the outcome will be when Potts, Carina and crew cross the line off St. David’s Lighthouse in Bermuda. Only time will tell.
Here are the stats from race historian John Rousmaniere:
Most victories for a skipper:
3 (tie): John Alden in three Malabars (1923, 1926, 1932), and Carleton Mitchell in Finisterre (1956, 1958, 1960)
2 (tie): Robert N. Bavier Sr., Memory (1924) and Edlu (1934); Richard S. Nye, Carina (1952, 1970); Peter Rebovich, Sinn Fein (St. David’s Lighthouse Division 2006, 2008); Rives Potts, Carina (St. David’s Lighthouse Division, 2010, 2012)
Most victories for a boat:
3: Finisterre (1956, 1958, 1960), Carina (1970, and St. David’s Lighthouse Division, 2010, 2012)
2 (tie): Baruna (1938, 1948) and Sinn Fein, Peter Rebovich (2006, 2008)
Most successive victories in the same boat
3: Finisterre (1956, 1958, 1960)
2: Sinn Fein (2006, 2008), Carina (2010, 2012)
Newport, R.I., June 10, 2014: With the June 20th start of the Newport Bermuda Race fast approaching, 165 boats are entered for the 49th sprint to the finish off St. David’s Head, Bermuda. The start will be off Castle Hill, in the mouth of Narragansett Bay.
Organized by the Cruising Club of America and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, the 635-mile Newport Bermuda Race is sailed almost entirely out of sight of land and across the Gulf Stream. Explains race chairman Fred Deichmann, “We evaluate the crew and inspect the boats because, as the Notice of Race states, ‘The Newport Bermuda Race is not a race for novices.’” There are no novices here. Eighty-one of the skippers listed in the May 9 entry list competed in the very rough 2012 race, and 36 of the boats have already done five or more Bermuda Races. Yet there is also new blood, with 42 new entries. The average overall length of the boats on the list is 47 feet, one foot less than the average length in 2012.
Twenty-one states from Maine to California are represented in the fleet, with especially strong turnouts from New England (67 boats) and the Chesapeake Bay area (20). The 16 entries from outside the United States include one boat each from Austria, Germany, Russia, and Spain; three from Bermuda; four boats from the U.K.; and five boats from Canada.
Newport RI, June 7, 2014: Entries close Monday, June 9 at 5PM EDT for the New York Yacht Club 160th Annual Regatta presented by Rolex, Stage 1 of the Onion Patch Series. The first IRC division race on Saturday June 14th and the first IRC division race on Sunday June 15th count as the first stage of the traditional Onion Patch Series. The new Navigator’s Division races sailed under ORR in the New York Yacht Club Regatta are part of the new Navigator’s Division in the 2014 Onion Patch Series.
2014 marks the 50th year since the Onion Patch Series was founded— see www.onionpatchseries.com
This is the 25th biennial celebration of the series, now offering exceptional racing in three world class events… the New York Yacht Club 160th Annual Regatta presented by Rolex, the 49th Newport Bermuda Race organized by the Cruising Club of America and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, now celebrating 170 years as a Royal Yacht Club, and the RBYC Anniversary Regatta.
All boats racing in the combined St. David’s Lighthouse or Gibbs Hill Lighthouse Divisions of the 2014 Newport Bermuda Race that are scored under IRC are eligible to race in the traditional Onion Patch Series.