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Official OSTAR 2009 website
Dutchman Jankees Lampe is the first OSTAR competitor to reach Rhode Island
At 0510 hrs UT this morning (0110 hrs Newport time), Dutchman Jankees Lampe sailed into Newport, Rhode Island, and was officially announced the Winner of OSTAR 2009 in just 17 days, 17 hours and 40 mins. He broke the previous record for a 40’ boat set by Simon Van Hagen in “Seatalk” in 1992 of 19 days, 11 hours and 19 minutes.
JanKees, 40, is a happily married father of two boys and an entrepreneur from Amsterdam in Holland. He is a passionate sailor and loves to be out at sea. He believes the that The Royal Western Yacht Club OSTAR has it all – a mostly heavy start, sailing through at least three depressions, and the challenge of thick fog and lighter winds during the last part of the race. He finished fourth overall in the classic Royal Western Yacht Club Round Britain & Ireland Race in 2006 and took line honours in the Azores and Back Race 2007.
The remaining 24 competitors are still battling their way to the finish line with British Rob Craigie, skippering ‘JBellino’ expected next into Newport. Following him is Italian Roberto Westerman, skippering ‘Spinning Wheel’. Geoff Alcorn, from Northern Ireland, skippering ‘Wind of Lorne’ is at the rear of the group with 1,500 nautical miles still to sail.
The competitors had a very tough first few days with gale force winds and, as a result, several retired including the two trimarans. This was followed by strong reaching winds. The final 1,000 nautical miles became a tactical battle with calms, headwinds, an adverse Gulf Stream, ice and dense fog.
Although Jankees Lampe will be crowned the overall winner other prizes will be awarded to competitors based on corrected time in each class*. There will also be a prize for the overall IRC** handicap winner on corrected time.
David Southwood, Race Director of OSTAR 2009, commented: “This has been a nail biting race with a number of twists. We expected the trimarans to do particularly well and it was a shame to lose them so early in the race. Congratulations go out to Jankees Lampe for being the first to reach Newport. We look forward eagerly to the arrival of the next brave competitors.”
Trackers have been fitted to all boats and can be viewed on the OSTAR 2009 website (www.ostar2009.com). Keep watching to see who will be next to shore.
The competitors are also blogging on popular website Blogstar (www.blogstar.org.uk) so keep visiting the site to hear the latest adventures.
* Traditionally the OSTAR was split into classes based on waterline length, and the winners were the yachts which arrived first in each class. In 2005 the Royal Western Yacht Club reverted to running the OSTAR by splitting the classes on the basis of IRC handicap. There are five classes in total although, as all trimarans dropped out in the first week of racing, only four remain. Each class has been given a name associated with a famous OSTAR yacht from previous races. The classes are:-
IRC 1 PENDUICK
IRC 2 GYPSY MOTH
IRC 3 JESTER
IRC 4 EIRA
Corrected time is the time which takes the handicap into account.
**IRC is a system of handicapping sailboats and yachts for the purpose of racing. It is managed by the Royal Ocean Racing Club in the United Kingdom through their dedicated Rating Office. Technically, IRC does not officially stand for anything.
The OSTAR, run exclusively by the Royal Western Yacht Club since its inception in 1960, is the Original Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race. This event, which is the oldest solo ocean race in history and Corinthian in nature, is primarily for amateur sailors and aspiring professionals and follows in the tradition of the original ‘half crown’ bet between Blondie Haslar and Francis Chichester. The OSTAR 2009 will be the thirteenth edition of the race and follows the traditional route from Plymouth to Newport, Rhode Island.
The OSTAR left Plymouth on Monday 25th May 2009.
