TRANSATLANTIC RACE 2011

While a variety of notable events and attractions engage visitors in the City By The Sea, one event in particular is shaping up to be one of this summer’s biggest draws: the Transatlantic Race 2011

If you think the water views from along Newport Harbor are already magnificent, they will be absolutely breathtaking in late June and early July when 33 ocean-going yachts set sail on a course stretching 2,975 nautical miles from Newport to the Lizard in England.

For the diverse fleet, which runs the gamut from traditional designs to superyachts, there will be three staggered starts (June 26, June 29, and July 3) just off Fort Adams.

This history-making race is hosted by the New York Yacht Club, Royal Yacht Squadron, Royal Ocean Racing Club and the Storm Trysail Club and will mark the 12th time the New York Yacht Club has been involved in the running of a transatlantic race for crewed monohull yachts (starting with the very first race in 1866). This competition will also set a new standard for transatlantic racing with the creation of a new record – from Newport to the Lizard – to be ratified by the World Speed Sailing Council.....

Among those first to start will be two classic yachts, Nordwind and Sumurun, which took home first and second place, respectively, in the classic division of the Rolex Transatlantic Challenge in 2005 (a race that took the fleet from New York City to the Lizard). The second start, on June 29, will include the jaw-dropping ultra-modern 289’ clipper sailing yacht Maltese Falcon, with a mast so high (190’) that it cannot sail under the high-soaring Newport-Pell Bridge.

In the final group to depart, on July 3, the PUMA Ocean Racing Team – the Newport-based second-place finisher in the 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race and entrant in the next edition as well – takes the stage against Rambler 100 and a number of other incredible yachts and high-profile professional sailors.

Challenging both mentally and physically, the voyage is expected to take between eight and 14 days and may take the competitors past icebergs, which are still a danger in the North Atlantic in June...As one of the most memorable fleets in recent memory departs Newport for their place in the record books, the spectacle will be best viewed from Ft. Adams, Goat Island and Jamestown’s Beavertail.

For more information, visit: TransatlanticRace.org

ABOVE:Greg Manning's (Wickford R.I.) team aboard X-41 Sarah won the Youth Challenge and placed third in the PHRF division in 2010. PHOTO:Robbie Benjamin on behalf of the Ida Lewis Distance Race

Ida Lewis Distance Race

This summer, junior sailors will broaden their horizons—literally—as they escape the confines of Narragansett Bay to embark on an offshore adventure covering up to 177 nautical miles. The Organizing Committee of the Ida Lewis Distance Race introduced its Youth Challenge last year, and it was met with huge success when six boats out of a fleet of 35 signed up to compete. It will be repeated this year when the seventh edition of the Ida Lewis Distance Race starts Friday, August 19 and sends competitors on a choice of four coastal race courses between 104 nm and 177 nm over some of the most storied and beautiful sailing grounds in the world.

With a spectacular start off Fort Adams in Narragansett Bay, the race includes turning marks at Castle Hill, Brenton Reef, Block Island, Montauk Point, Martha’s Vineyard and Buzzards Tower on its way to a signature champagne finish inside Newport Harbor off the historic Ida Lewis Yacht Club.

Classes are for IRC, PHRF (including Cruising Spinnaker and a Youth Challenge division), One Design and Double-Handed boats of 28 feet or longer. It is a qualifier for the New England Lighthouse Series (PHRF); the Northern and Double-Handed Ocean Racing Trophies (IRC); and the US-IRC Gulf Stream Series.

For more information, visit: ildistancerace.org

ABOVE: Hand controls allow a paraplegic sailor to sail a SKUD-18 in the Clagett Regatta. PHOTO: Dan Nerney/Clagett Regatta

C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Memorial Clinic and Regatta

Living in a waterfront community has obvious lifestyle and health benefits, not the least of which is taking part in activities centered in and on the water. Especially for sailors with a disability, the water is both a liberator and an equalizer where they can find an unmatched freedom in leaving a wheelchair behind as they sail away from the dock and reclaim responsibility for their personal safety from the hands of caregivers.

Significantly, the water provides a level playing field for sailors to challenge themselves both physically and mentally in a sport that is frequently described as chess on water. Making that kind of competitive opportunity a reality is what the C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Memorial Clinic and Regatta is all about.

In its ninth consecutive year “The Clagett” is widely respected as North America’s premier event for sailors with disabilities. It began as an event for a single class of boat with a stated mission of assisting sailors in realizing their potential on the water by providing them – through the one-day clinic that precedes racing – both the knowledge and tools to improve their skills, and the opportunity to test them in competition. The event has expanded to include all three boats that have been chosen as the equipment of the Paralympic Regatta: The three-person Sonar, the two-person SKUD-18, and the singlehanded 2.4 Metre. And, since 2008, blind sailors are also included as they race J/22s with sighted guides for the Sail Newport Blind National Sailing Championship.

Not only has The Clagett formula paid off with medal success by event veterans at the 2008 Paralympic Games in China, it has, according to competitors, improved their quality of life as they apply what is achieved on the water to everyday situations. The pre-race clinic, run by world champion sailors who share their expertise on everything from the racing rules to match racing techniques, is followed by on-the-water coaching during the three days of racing. The inclusion of able-bodied sailors in both the 2.4 Metre and Sonar fleets raises the competitive bar even higher. For the casual observer there is little to distinguish the sailors with disabilities from the able-bodied competitors.

Sailing is a sport that allows anyone with a disability to participate; so the next time you see a dock littered with wheelchairs and prosthetics, you can be sure someone is out harnessing the wind, getting wet and having a blast.

The C. Thomas Clagett Jr. Memorial Clinic and Regatta takes place August 20-23, 2011, at Sail Newport, Rhode Island’s community sailing center.

For more information: ClagettRegatta.org