Long Beach CA (March 18, 1999) -- Roy Disney's new maxi sled Pyewacket tops the list of 24 early entries for this summer's 40th biennial Transpacific Yacht Race to Hawai`i, but smaller boats also are commanding interest. A flock of entries in the 30- and 40-foot ranges has prompted organizers to establish a separate starting day for them on Friday, July 2.

Previously, all monohulls except those in the Cruising class were scheduled to start off Point Fermin on Saturday, July 3. But with 10 30s and 40s already entered and more anticipated, the Transpac board of directors hoped to avoid a starting line congested with boats of disparate size and performance and also compress the finish in Honolulu.

TPYC Commodore L.J. Edgcomb said, "It was a difficult decision, coming so late in the planning process, but the surge in interest from the 30s and 40s left us with a dilemma. We hope this special starting date will make it a more enjoyable experience for them and everybody."

Other starting dates remain the same. The Cruising class for classic displacement-type boats will start June 29. The largest monohulls will start July 3, as originally scheduled, three days before the multihull fleet.

The early entries were received by the March 1 discount deadline and were well ahead of the pace two years ago when 41 boats entered and 38 started the West Coast's most prestigious sailing event. Boats under 50 feet signing up by March 1 paid an entry fee of only $600, compared to $750 now. The fee for boats 50 feet and longer jumped from $800 to $1,000. Members of US Sailing are entitled to $50 discounts.

Entry chairman Dan Nowlan estimated that the final list would approach 50.

"If you look at the boats that aren't entered that you know will enter, you can see that the turbo sled class is going to have three or four more boats, and we expect to have more 50s," Nowlan said.

Among the two-dozen entries to date is William Rawson's Dubois 43 Sweet Caroline from Australia.

Entry forms are available by writing to entry chairman Dan Nowlan at 4224 Point Loma Ave., San Diego, CA 92107. Nowlan also may be contacted by phone or fax at (619) 224-0198 or by e-mail .

Pyewacket, the 75-foot Reichel/Pugh successor to Disney's "turbocharged" 70 that set a Transpac record in '97, has already won the Pineapple Cup from Ft. Lauderdale to Jamaica in near-record time. Also in the maxi class are Doug Baker's Andrews 70 Magnitude, recently first to finish the Marina del Rey to Puerto Vallarta race, and Bob McNeil's and John Parrish's R/P 75 Zephyrus IV. Both lost their masts in the windy '97 Transpac but possess record potential.

Also entered is Bob Lane's Andrews 56 Medicine Man, now turbocharged with water ballast and a mast nine feet taller at 72 feet. With a three-day head start in '97, the blue boat was the first of six to break Merlin's 20-year-old record. It will start on the same day this time.

More Transpac information, including past results and press releases, is available on the race website www.transpacificyc.org.

Publicity:
Rich Roberts
1258 Lakme Ave.
Wilmington, CA 90744
Phone: (310) 835-2526
Fax: (310) 513-1664
E-mail:

Elapsed Time Records

Monohull: Pyewacket, Roy Disney, Los Angeles YC, 1997 7 days 15 hours 24 minutes 40 seconds.

Multihull: Explorer, Bruno Peyron, YC La Baule, 1997 -- 5 days 9 hours 18 minutes 26 seconds.

Cruising Class: Salsipuedes, Fred Frye, San Diego YC, 1997 12 days 6 hours 57 minutes 57 seconds.

Transpac 99
Entries as of March 1, 1999