Marion MA, April 23, 2019: From its dramatic front cover painting by renowned artist Willard Bond to the back cover ad reminding readers of those Gosling Dark ‘n Stormy cocktails waiting in Bermuda this June, the new 2019 Marion Bermuda Race Book is a 110 page tribute to sailors, to the sea and to a race bringing all participants and volunteers on a Voyage of Discovery. There are shared stories of experiences from many of the 22 races spanning 42 years.
Editor Deborah Bennett Elfers writes:
“There are veteran racers who have seen it all in this race; they’ve been becalmed for days, sailed in more wind than they thought was possible, skirted storms, and triumphantly crossed the finish line to tell their tales. But there are also racers who will be participating in the Marion Bermuda Race for the first time, who are lured by their dream of sailing away offshore, far from the comforts of home, wishing for the endless stars of night, and an ocean as far as the eye can see. There are many pathways to this race. Every sailor has arrived at the starting line with a different story, and a different dream; in this book you will read just a few of them.”
“A common theme among these shared stories is the intangible but defining culture of the Marion Bermuda Race, where fellow sailors, family, and friends help each other to achieve what they might once have thought to be impossible. It is the mix of generations of family sailing together, and of mentoring, where the more skilled pass their knowledge to those who are eager to learn, underscored by a true Corinthian spirit, and all skillfully packaged into a well-respected and serious offshore race. Parents and grandparents pave the way for their children. Veterans encourage new skippers, gifting their knowledge to new teams, so that together they can achieve their goal of racing from Marion to Bermuda.”
Click here— Marion Bermuda 2019— to download your copy and catch the feeling of Marion Bermuda, a great ocean race.
Competition for special awards is a unique attraction for the Marion-Bermuda Race. The Notice of Racehas all the details.
Go to the website for photos and descriptions of the trophies and the competition for them.
The R&W Rope Rigging Solutions Team Trophy is offered for established yacht clubs or sailing organizations that form a team of three member yachts. The team whose three yachts have the lowest corrected time total will be the winner.
Yachts sailing with a crew of two, a crew of three or four or an all-female crew of any number may compete in the double-handed, short-handed, and all-female competitions respectively. Prizes are the Double-Handed Trophy, the short-handed L. Bryon Kingery, Jr. Memorial Trophy and the Commodore Faith Paulsen Trophy for the ladies.
A “family” yacht racing for the Beverly Family Trophy is one with a crew of five or more with all or all-but-one being members of a single household or a single family may race for the family prize. Persons related to a common grandparent and spouses of these “family”, too.
The Offshore Youth Challenge Trophy encourages youth participation. A “Youth” yacht has at least four youths aboard with at least 66% of the crew qualified as youths. A youth sailor must be 16 years of age or older but not more than 23 years old by June 14, 2019. One or more adults at least 23 years old by June 14, 2019 must be on board.
The Beverly Yacht Club Polaris Trophy is a prize for stargazers. If a yacht has elected to be celestially navigated, she will receive a 3% favorable adjustment to her ORR rating.
About the Marion Bermuda Race
The 2019 race is the 22nd Marion Bermuda Race and the 42nd year for the 645-mile open ocean challenge for cruiser type yachts.
The first Marion-Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race in 1977 saw 104 starters cross the line. Over the forty-two years since that first race the race has evolved into a true offshore challenge for cruising yachts, amateur, family and youth sailors. Special prizes abound to emphasis celestial navigation, short handed sailing, family crews and regional competition. The race is handicapped under the ORR rating system to assure the fairest scoring available for ocean racing yachts.
About the Marion Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race Association
The Marion Bermuda Race encourages the development of blue-water sailing skills on seaworthy yachts that can be handled safely offshore with limited crew. The Marion Bermuda Race is a 501(c)(3) organization and among other educational efforts, supports and encourages Youth Sailing programs. The Marion to Bermuda Race is organized and run entirely by hundreds of volunteering members of The Beverly Yacht Club (BYC), The Blue Water Sailing Club (BWSC) and The Royal Hamilton Amateur Dinghy Club (RHADC) for the Marion Bermuda Cruising Yacht Race Association.
