FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
by Rich Roberts

Honolulu Hawai`i (July 11, 1999) - Roy E. Disney steered his 72-foot maxi sled Pyewacket passed the Diamond Head buoy at 9:41 PM HST Saturday night to break the elapsed time for monohulls in the Transpacific Yacht Race.

The time of 7 days 11 hours 41 minutes 27 seconds took 3 hours 43 minutes 15 seconds off the record set by his smaller Pyewacket in the previous race in 1997. His son Roy Pat served as skipper in that race because the elder Disney, now 68, had smashed his right leg in a car crash a few weeks prior to the race and could only wait for his boat to arrive. This race was far more satisfying.

"It became clear about halfway [from Los Angeles] that we were ahead of the record [pace]," Disney said. "But it wasn't my record. It was [the younger] Roy's. "This one is definitely dad's."

On a moonless night under starry skies, he was at the helm the last five miles from Koko Head, and the following wind was howling at 30 knots when he blew past the buoy's flashing red light at 22 knots, the top speed achieved during the entire 2,225 nautical miles. "The wind blew all the way, and this boat is incredibly fast," Disney said.

Doug Baker's 68-foot turbo sled Magnitude from Long Beach Yacht Club also broke the record, finishing 1 hour 5 minutes 40 seconds later. Bob McNeil and John Parrish's 75-foot maxi sled Zephyrus IV, which held the early lead until splitting courses with Pyewacket, was expected to finish about an hour over the old record.

Photos, e-mail from boats, daily progress and position reports, charts, crew lists and other information are available on the race web page.

Arrival Party Photos are at http://holoholo.org/transpac/99arrivals/