True Offshore

[MikeyFIN]

I think it would be great to list here those Current races that are going on which are True offshore races, meaning out in the open or a good course that goes more than back and forth meaning it´s a True course with varying conditions.
And take this also as a hint of racing global...

Here´s my picks

1. Roslagsloppet
2. Round Britain Race
3. Cowes Torquey Cowes Race
4. Don Aronow Memorial or what´s it called ?

Others ?

[Sean H]

The Great Race, Trinidad to Tobago. If you can see land, you're not ocean racing.

[Ratickle]

If you can see land, you're not ocean racing.

Two new ones come to mind from HORBA.

Around Long Island and Miami to Key West.


And you can see land a lot of the time (just like around Britain).....

[Sean Stinson]

The Bahamas race has some grumblings about coming back

[Sean Stinson]

The old KW course was great......I got this photo from Jimmy Speros

[MikeyFIN]

The Great Race, Trinidad to Tobago. If you can see land, you're not ocean racing.

Thank you both Seans, keep them picks coming even from old.
Yeah 99/100 your SAILING then offshore.

Mr. Stinson keep them coming, I was in my mind hoping some of you would put the REAL Key West map on here.

This is what Seriousoffshore is all about.
Heres the map of the U.I.M Class3C Europeans in Finland 8/14-16 2009

[MOBILEMERCMAN]

I miss open water races. There used to be a few real good courses in the states. All of them have come closer to shore and have been shortened to make it more fan friendly. Sadly, Offshore has been lost.

Key West used to be Great. Sean thanks for sharing the course I posted from the KW program.

MikeyFin that course looks fantastic. I too am curious how many more there really are.

Great thread.

[MOBILEMERCMAN]

Here is the following year in Key West.



The Miami course in '86 raced out Government Cut about 10 miles to a channel mark turned North toward Ft Laud., returned down the beach and back in the Cut. Cool Course.

Back then first aid kits, sea anchors, inflatable splints and life rafts were mandatory inspected equipment. Races were true tests of endurance for both man and machine.

I witnessed the tail end of the Old Long Courses as I fell in love with Offshore. I would have loved to have witnessed some of the older stuff. Pre mid 80's.

[MikeyFIN]

Thanks Jim!

Yes it is and we intend to keep our courses like that.
Only problem with our archipelago is they are infested with rocks. Some Marked and some unmarked and in the races you´r allowed to short cut every other way but the rounding marks at your own risk... sometimes this happens at triple digits and sometimes they just let off by themselves....

"Maps" of Roslagsloppet that I found ( it´s a multipage maplet for the racers...) the first is from the 60´s
The darker is land and in the last pic the red dot is the Finish, start at Stockholm, the course is @ 150 miles.

[Sean Stinson]

I know the old Pt Pleasant course used to run from there to Seasise and back!!!!!

[skaterdave]

watched that race as a kid many times. would be cool to see some version of the old school "offshore" be included.

on top of the big true offshore courses mentioned above, the mileage is also a great equalizing factor. other races might be competive with the big wallet teams. most of todays equipment seems to be a cross between a drag boat offshore.

[Sean H]

watched that race as a kid many times. would be cool to see some version of the old school "offshore" be included.

on top of the big true offshore courses mentioned above, the mileage is also a great equalizing factor. other races might be competive with the big wallet teams. most of todays equipment seems to be a cross between a drag boat offshore.

I was thinking about this last week in trinidad, how many times do we see a large number of boats not finish the first lap or second with laps only being 5 or 6 miles? I have seen races lately that half the field didn't finish a 40 or 50 mile race, quite entertaining. Can you imagine those same teams running a 15-20 mile lap or longer? or in the open ocean?

and just FYI, the Great Race is 93 miles one way, you still have to get back home. True offshore puts an emphasis on realibilty, navigation and skill as much as just pure speed.

Unfortunetly, the ocean racing is horrible for spectators who can basically only see a start and finish, but no racing.

[skaterdave]

Unfortunetly, the ocean racing is horrible for spectators who can basically only see a start and finish, but no racing.[/QUOTE]


sean, most of the races i been to lately, seem from a fan's perspective to be more revovled around drinking and party-ing than the actual race. outside of the few die-hard fans, i would go out on a limb here and say - 95% of the people attending the races have no clue whos racing who. i highly question the whole idea of "fan friendly" courses, since if you put all the racers out at one time(in timed intervals) theres bound to be enough boats circling threw the viewing areas to draw the fans. plus of course having beer tents would help!!

[smokeybandit]

The true test of man and machine is out in the open water. Whether it's in the ocean or a lake. There needs to be at least 1 long leg in every race. As Dave said, go back to a staggered start and you will always have boats going by. Do the "fans" really care who is going past? Do they know who is in the lead? NO and NO. On most of todays courses you could have unlimited hydro's racing against these boats. Personally, I am not a fan of this new style of "offshore" racing. That does not mean that I don't love the boats. I do. I also have a great respect for the racers. They are out there laying on the line. The problem is that it just is not offshore racing. Recategorize it. Reclassify it. Just don't call it offshore.

[Top Banana]

I know the old Pt Pleasant course used to run from there to Seasise and back!!!!!

The old Pt Pleasant course ran from Seaside to Fire Island.

HORBA www.historicraceboats.com

[smokeybandit]

Charlie,

That course looks like a blast. That even makes the course we ran in the 80' look tame. Throw out the GPS's and put a navigator in the boat. Add some fog and some rollers and you have a great race.

Then you wait 2-3 weeks for Phil to get you the video at which time you have a party with all of your friends and tell them all of the war stories from the race.

[MikeyFIN]

Hey guys,

How could you go wrong with a true offshore race where the pits have beer tents with screens and there´s choppers out there feeding live picture, it can be made nowadays!
There´s other sports who do it ( American Football and Auto racing ) so why not offshore racing?

[Buoy]

Hey guys,

How could you go wrong with a true offshore race where the pits have beer tents with screens and there´s choppers out there feeding live picture, it can be made nowadays!
There´s other sports who do it ( American Football and Auto racing ) so why not offshore racing?

I've been thinking the same thing for a few years now.
It just takes $$$.
Find someone willing to spend the money, and you've got one helluva party.
But, choppers and safety crews on the ocean aren't going to be cheap.
It's going to turn into a sport that only rich men can even be a spectator (cost of admission to the "beer tent with big-screens and live feeds").
I'd love to see it happen, but I'm not a rich man, so though it could happen, I likely will not be able to see it.

[Dude! Sweet!]

Hey guys,

How could you go wrong with a true offshore race where the pits have beer tents with screens and there´s choppers out there feeding live picture, it can be made nowadays!
There´s other sports who do it ( American Football and Auto racing ) so why not offshore racing?

That's exactly what they do at the Catalina Ski race. There's a big screen TV and a beer tent.

And as I've heard in the past, most big offshore races look like helicopter races that happen to have boats under them anyhow... So it doesn't seem like it would be that tough to put a copter in the air.

Maybe a feed to a local access sattelite channel too so people on the specator boats can watch?

It's funny... I'd call the Rum Run a true offshore race (from Long Beach to the northern tip of Catalina... 30 miles, down the lee side of Catalina... guessing 5 - 10 miles and back to Long Beach for another 30 mile leg). And they can't even get some of the west coast teams to come out and use it as a test and tune session (I'm guessitmating no more than 10 boats in the race).

[MOBILEMERCMAN]

The Volvo Ocean race boats are tracked around the world.

These people as well as the original Offshore guys didn't do it for the fans it was the test and competition.

As far as the safety thing goes. Fend for your self like in the old days. Competitors used to have to carry first aid kits, stay current with a CPR certificate and even provide your own life raft and locating beacons. It was a true test of man and machine. It didn't matter how fast you could go. It matter more how well you could handle the seas including not destroying yourself and your boat.

Even now the fastest boats can NOT compare with the average speeds the older boats carried over great distances. The line has been blurred between shoot-out boats and offshore boats.