The Transpacific Yacht Club will host another running of the Transpac Tahiti race in 2020.
Ten yachts have already registered for the 3,570-nm contest from Point Fermin in Los Angeles to Papeete, the capital of French Polynesia on the island of Tahiti. Participants include Matt Brooks’ classic Sparkman & Stephens 52 Dorade and Roy Disney’s modified Volvo Open 70 Pyewacket.
The 2020 race will be the first time multihulls will be allowed to compete. Santiago Becerra’s Atlantic 57 Espiritu Santi and John Sangmeister’s Orma 60 Tritium are the two multihull vessels already registered, with more expected.
The Transpac Tahiti dates back to 1925, and it has been run 16 times since then on an irregular schedule. The last running was in 2012. Several factors influenced its return for 2020, said race spokesman Dobbs Davis.
“One was strong interest and support from the Tahiti Tourism authority for this race to help promote visiting yachtsmen to come to French Polynesia,” he said in a recent interview.
The Transpacific Yacht Club also took note that several of its members showed interest in relaunching the contest for 2020. This club also organizes the biennial Transpac Race covering 2,225 nm from Los Angeles to Honolulu, which was run in July of this year and attracted a record 90 entries.
“When (they) reached a critical mass of interest, it was decided to launch the race and release a Notice of Race and open the race to entries,” Davis said.
For more info on the race, including the Notice of Race and other details, visit www.transpac-tahiti.com.
