The classic S&S yawl Dorade won the 1936 TransPac. Now, 77 years later, she has not only claimed victory for a second time but has blown her own record out of the water.
The TransPac, is a 2225-mile, biennial, offshore yacht race from Los Angeles to Honolulu. Organised by the Transpacific Yacht Club, the first race was in 1906 and has since grown to become one of yachting’s premier offshore races attracting sailors from around the world.
Matt Brooks’ 1930 Sparkman and Stephens-designed 52ft wooden yawl is not quite what she was in 1936. She’s better. She completed the race in an elapsed time of 12d 5hr 28min 8sec, recording an average speed of 7.8 knots, 8.1% faster than her performance in 1936.
Bought in 2010 by Brooks and his wife Pam, she had undergone an extensive refit and refinement over the last three years, including a number of sea trials. And throughout, every effort has been made to retain her classic features. Their hard work had clearly paid off, "She didn’t disappoint us" said Brooks. "She performed flawlessly". Who said you can’t teach and old yacht new tricks?
Original article by Holly Overton on July 24, 2013 on www.yachtingworld.com found here.