Sick, broken: At least 18 boats quit Chicago to Mackinac race
We list which sailors retired and why
As of midnight Sunday, the sailboat tracker for the Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac showed 18 boats had retired from the long-distance event that began for cruising boats on Friday and racing boats on Saturday.
Shifting Gears reviewed the tracker data and interactive map and found three more boats appear to have left the course.
The official number of registered boats from throughout the U.S. at the start of the weekend totaled 285. Based on the latest data, that number appears to have dropped to 264 boats racing the 289.4 nautical mile course (or 333 statute miles).
Race organizers called Sunday “a slow-motion thriller” with light winds that left sailors struggling to “claw their way through the Manitou Passage and up into the Mackinac Straits.”
Race Chair Winn Soldani said at 9:30 p.m. Sunday in a statement, “Wow, it’s really something out there. On the tracker I am watching boats going backwards. It’s crazy, but it happens during the Race to Mackinac.”
He predicted some boats would finish Monday morning but the rest would likely arrive as late as early Tuesday if current weather conditions continue.
Here is the list of retired competitors, according to the race website:
Break Away, a North American 40 owned by David Jankura of the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club. “Retired. Crew safe, boat heading to Muskegon.” (Class 9)
Brutus, a Tartan 10 owned by Brett Pauls of the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club. No explanation listed. (Class T10)
Denali 3, a Ker 46 owned by William McKinley of the Little Traverse Yacht Club. “Crew illness. Heading into Ludington.” (Class 1) Note: Denali 3 sailed the Port Huron to Mackinac race a week ago, placing 10th. (Class A)
Entourage 3, a Transpac 52 owned by Michael Dannecker of the Chicago Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Mechanical failure. Boat headed to Muskegon.” (Class GL52)
Far Reach, a Corsair F-28R owned by Michael Beuerlien of the Austin Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Technical problem. Boat going to Ludington.” (Multihull Class 2)
Invictus, a C&C Landfall Center Cockpit, owned by Aaron Cruthers of the Racine Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Electrical failures. Heading to Muskegon.” (Cruising 3)
Le Reve, a Jeanneau Sun Fast 3300 owned by Vanessa Gates and Patrick Breslau of the Columbia Yacht Club. “Crew illness. Heading to St. Joe.” (Class 7)
Nighthawk, a C&C 115 owned by Larry and Judy Berliant of the Anchorage Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Heading to Muskegon.” (Class 7)
No Bad Days, a Sun Odyssey 469 owned by Jerry Gurthet and Shelby Rogers of the Chicago Yacht Club. “Crew injury but safe. Heading to Mac Island.” (Cruising 1)
No Quarter, a J/111 owned by Colin Caliban of the South Haven Yacht Club. No explanation listed. (Class J/111)
Out of the Blue, a Tartan 10 owned by George Jackowiec and Mary Jo Ardizzone of the Columbia Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Boat headed to Muskegon.” (Class T10)
Perspicacity, a Tartan 10 owned by Robert Cohen of the Columbia Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Equipment failure. Headed to Pentwater.” (Class T10)
Pinnacle, a Tartan 4100 owned by Peter Torosian of the Blue Water Sail Club, is listed as retired on one race page and finished in 10th place on another. (Class 9) Note: Pinnacle sailed the Port Huron to Mackinac race a week ago, placing 3rd. (Class G)
Rebel, a Catalina 309 owned by Jerome Rand and Jozef Stawarz of the Belmont Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Retiring for time constraints.” (Cruising 3)
Relentless, a Schock 40 owned by Mark Hagan of the Grand Traverse Yacht Club. “Retired to Ludington. Crew OK. Keel failure.” (Class 3) Note: Relentless sailed the Port Huron to Mackinac race a week ago, placing 9th. (Class A)
Swiftsure, a Nelson Marek 50 IOR owned by Ronald C. Ehlert of the Bayshore Yacht Club. “Mechanical.” (Class 3) Note: Swiftsure sailed the Port Huron to Mackinac race a week ago, placing 14th. (Class B)
Tres Equis, a Corsair 880 owned by Chad Wilson of the Lakewood Yacht Club, is listed as retired on one race page and racing on another. Shifting Gears did confirm visually by tracker that the boat had left the race course. It appeared to be anchored near Ludington.
Waco Kid, a Jeanneau Sun Fast 3200 owned by Martin Grow of the Michigan City Yacht Club. “Crew safe. Boat retired.” (Class 8)
But wait, there’s more
In addition to the official list on the race website’s leaderboard page listed above, Shifting Gears reviewed race trackers and found:
Little Houligan, a J/105 owned by Joel Carroll of the Milwaukee Yacht Club, was listed as racing but the boat appeared to be docked near Ludington. (Class 8)
MOOvin, a J/110 owned by Pete Thompson of the Kenosha Yacht Club was listed as racing but the boat appeared to be docked near Pentwater. (Class 9)
Bud, a Tartan 10 owned by Johanri Gerber and Steven Robbins of the Chicago Corinthian Yacht Club, was listed as racing but appeared to have left the race course. (Class T10)
A race spokesperson couldn't be immediately reached early Monday for comment on the discrepancy. Sailors must notify organizers when they retire, and it was late.
Meanwhile, the 116th Chicago Yacht Club Race to Mackinac presented by Wintrust announced on Sunday two boats completing the race:
Whitehawk, the wooden 104-foot ketch yacht owned by Peter Thornton of the Chicago Yacht Club, finished in 1 day, 20 hours, 31 minutes, 45 seconds.
Cynthia Lyn, a Beneteau First 53, owned by John Nadeau Jr. of the Chicago Yacht Club, finished in 2 days, 2 hours, 59 minutes, 28 seconds.
These are among 41 boats in the cruising class, a group that started sailing on Friday.
Nearly 2,500 sailors are competing from all over the U.S. and 14 countries including Australia, China, Ireland and New Zealand. Competitors range in age from 14 to 88.
UPDATE: Little Hooligan, MOOVin and Bud all officially listed on the race website as retired by Monday.
Phoebe Wall Howard covered sailing for The Detroit Free Press for seven years, until 2024.
Find her recent sailing stories here.
Seems like there was more wind for longer for the first start than the second. Huge storms or no wind at all kind of thing but post race interviews might turn up more about what happened.
Good to know. There's probably a great interview in which an expert veteran racer can explain what was going on. The worst is almost reaching good wind and see it abruptly disappear. Or be in good wind and have it abruptly disappear. Maybe if how this year's race was so different from last year's if the veteran could explain from having raced in both.