Why not race Transpac 2025? A crew of mates for 50 years indicators up
by Transpacific Yacht Membership 28 Nov 11:21 PST
July 1, 2025
Santa Cruz 52 Heroic Coronary heart © Transpacific Yacht Membership
For a lot of Transpac skippers and crew, the race to Hawaii is their first ocean crossing. Not so for the crew of Heroic Coronary heart—which incorporates two units of brothers, Steve Firestone and Dan Firestone, Ron Zamir and John Zamir, Mike Wolfe, Andy Cranmer, Bobby Feinberg, Gil Varon and Sam Attrill.
Although it is their first Transpac, this crew first sailed the LA to Hawaii route collectively 50 years in the past, once they had been simply youngsters.
It was the summer time of 1975 on an 85′ wood schooner, Vltava, which the youngsters and their dad and mom had rebuilt and outfit for lengthy distance voyaging. For the younger crew and their dad and mom, the 1975 crossing kicked off an period of crusing and dealing collectively as a workforce. In 1976, they set sail all over the world because the core crew of Vltava, with their dad and mom and mates becoming a member of them alongside the way in which. The oldest of the crew was 19 years previous, the youngest simply 14, and 17-year-old Steve was elected captain. That 18-month voyage modified their lives, solidifying them as mates for all times and laying the groundwork for a lot of extra achievements in enterprise, whereas rising their households and persevering with to sail the world on greater and larger yachts.
However there was one thing particular about that first 1975 journey from Marina Del Rey to Hawaii: it coincided with the Transpac, which included a number of legendary yachts of the day, resembling Windward Passage, Sorcery, Ondine and Ragtime.
“This was the primary we had heard of Transpac, however all these well-known boats had been racing, and we had been fascinated,” says Steve. That early expertise stayed with them and over time they typically talked about sooner or later competing in Transpac, however life all the time obtained in the way in which. Till now. This similar crew has now teamed as much as compete collectively of their first main offshore race, the 2025 Transpac.
The choice to lastly make this dream a actuality happened when Mike and Dan had been hanging out one afternoon. Mike had simply spoken with a great buddy of his, Invoice Guilfoyle, a veteran of a number of Transpac campaigns and the present Transpacific Yacht Membership Commodore.
“When Mike talked about our crew had all the time been fascinated about doing Transpac, Invoice described the enjoyable and pleasure of the race and inspired him to go for it. The subsequent step was to place our band again collectively,” says Dan. So, he despatched out a textual content to the group: “Mike and I are doing Transpac in the summertime of 2025, and we would love for you be part of us!”
“There was some reluctance at first, as we’re all now in our mid 60s, and with no actual offshore racing expertise, to not point out that we did not actually have a race boat to do it on. However we requested ourselves, ‘Why the hell not?’ And far to our delight, one after the other the remainder of the workforce jumped on board,” Dan says.
They checked out a number of boats together with excessive one-off designs, Santa Cruz 70s, Santa Cruz 50s and a J/140. “After many hours touring boats and numerous conversations, we narrowed it all the way down to the Santa Cruz 52 as a result of it is a good platform for us,” says Mike, who has intensive racing expertise although largely around the buoys in J/24s, Melges and J/70s. “It is comfy, secure, quick, aggressive. They go upwind. They really feel good and look good. It is a bit forgiving.” He tipped a hat to Guilfoyle for his wealth of data on the boat and the race. “The way in which he disseminates info with out making you are feeling small is empowering and he understands our program. He is been a mentor for us,” says Mike.
However the place this voyage actually started, Steve explains: “We grew up in Los Angeles and on the time there have been 5 households that had been very shut. We would take holidays collectively and all the youngsters had been in the identical age group. One of many households wished to purchase a sailboat and stated, ‘Why do not we get a giant one so we are able to all sail collectively.'”
That is once they discovered Vltava, an unfinished wood schooner. The dad and mom, involved about teenage drift and the attract of that period’s growing drug use, determined engaged on the boat and crusing would give the youngsters one thing to focus their energies. “Alongside our dad and mom, we discovered abilities resembling wooden working, plumbing and electrical, and ultimately completed out the boat. On the similar time, we discovered to sail, navigate, methods to preserve the boat and to look out for one another. We began out with native crusing journeys, then ventured all the way down to Mexico, and in the summertime of 1975, we made our first ocean crossing from Los Angeles to Hawaii. With our newfound confidence and love of crusing, the concept of a circumnavigation started to gel. After a lot planning and preparation, that voyage started in November 1976. It was all with the concept to present us a life expertise, and it actually resonated with us.”
They discovered celestial navigation, primary medical abilities and methods to troubleshoot boat repairs. They skilled the hustle of sourcing elements in overseas nations and calling residence through ham radio. They endured terrifying climate and difficult ocean passages. And so they discovered methods to talk with one another, forging friendships that may final for many years.
“That sort of bonding is exclusive—most individuals do not have that chance. You develop into nearer to these folks than another folks in your lives. It gave us an actual sense of ourselves at an early age. We got here residence and began companies collectively and created a dynamic but secure life collectively,” says Steve. Through the years they continued to sail and cruise collectively. They purchased greater and larger yachts, and their children grew up crusing with them, having fun with summers within the Med and winters within the Caribbean.
“We’re all now very enthusiastic about our newest journey, competing in Transpac 2025,” says Steve. They settled on the Santa Cruz 52 Vela, now re-christened Heroic Coronary heart after the road within the Alfred Lord Tennyson poem, “Ulysses.”
We’re not now that energy which in previous days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we’re, we’re
One equal mood of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and destiny, however sturdy in will
To try, to hunt, to seek out, and to not yield.
“That poem is one which we have been uncovered to over time and was quoted in reference to my dad at one time,” says Steve. “It describes us as nicely. We’re in our mid 60s now, and never of the energy we as soon as had been, and but sturdy in will, and never about to yield, so it resonates.”
Primarily based in Santa Barbara, they’ve spent the previous a number of months crusing Heroic Coronary heart as a lot as they will, attending to know the boat and methods to work it collectively. Their Santa Cruz 52 joins two others additionally registered to compete within the 2025 Transpac—Dave Moore’s Westerly and Steve Sellinger’s Triumph, which completed 1st and third, respectively, of their division within the 2023 Transpac. The workforce hopes to be aggressive, however their primary aim is to benefit from the shared expertise and, in fact, full the race. “We’ll be crusing extra on the sting and profiting from having a quick downwind boat,” says Steve. “The racing will likely be a brand new problem however bringing again these previous communication abilities and teamwork—that would be the similar.”
Dan views that as a aggressive benefit. “The truth that we all know one another nicely, that we have all been speaking nicely for 50+ years, is considered one of our strongest belongings. Additionally, we now have hundreds of sea miles, crusing all types of boats, all all over the world, however they have been bigger, offshore cruisers constructed with automated programs and a good quantity of luxurious. We have achieved one thing like 12 ocean crossings to Hawaii, however we have by no means truly sailed your entire route, port to port, crusing from starting to finish. The great thing about this marketing campaign is we’re again to crusing. You pull on a line, you hoist a sail, you steer with precision. We’re actually wanting ahead to racing this boat and we’re falling in love with it. It is the right mixture of dimension and manageability.”
On high of the fun of working collectively once more, Dan says, “I am so excited to be sharing an journey of this type, with this particular group of fellows that I’ve identified nearly all of my life. It is actually a workforce effort—it is not about any considered one of us, it is about all of us collectively.”
Through the winter months, whereas the boat is within the store present process repairs, reinforcements and the set up of key racing gear, the crew is taking the upkeep of their our bodies simply as critically. “We’re very conscious of how, with out correct coaching, you get damage on these boats. It isn’t simply energy, it is flexibility. You may get damage simply simply bending to succeed in one thing. Nearly all the fellows are doing bodily coaching and yoga collectively weekly,” says Mike. Attending the identical yoga class, having dinner collectively afterward, assembly weekly for undertaking progress experiences and speaking nearly each day, preserve them shut and persevering with to bond as they transfer towards the beginning line of the race.
For Mike, that is now the driving motive for doing Transpac. “It is introduced us collectively in a means that solely a standard undertaking can. Everybody respects each other, there’s a number of affirmation and recognition of issues achieved nicely, appreciation for what every individual provides to this system. You already know a number of crusing initiatives are solo or simply two folks and lack that esprit de corps—working collectively on Transpac, everyone seems to be studying and rising. Our friendships are deeper and richer than possibly they’d be if we had been simply mates that get collectively on the weekend or take a day sail. When a gaggle endures hardship collectively, they’re bonded. All of our crusing, preparation, excitements, disappointments are a standard language for us—we are saying, ‘bear in mind after we broke our spinnaker pole within the Ensenada race’ and it takes us all again to that second. We’re sharing and making new recollections and people are the sorts of issues that maintain folks collectively. In the US proper now there’s an isolation epidemic, a despair epidemic, particularly amongst males. We do not have that downside as a result of we’re intentional about exercising {our relationships}. We’re beneficiant with one another.”
However why Transpac and never one other ocean race? “We’re California guys,” says Mike. “Transpac is our large signature race on the West Coast. We grew up with it, folks we all know have achieved it, you get swept up within the fever round city when boats are making ready for it.”
“We could catch the bug and need to do others, however that is all about Transpac,” provides Dan. “Crusing LA to Hawaii, there isn’t any higher route. On daily basis it will get hotter, you could have the wind at your again, it is lengthy sufficient that you simply get into the rhythm of the waves.”
“Plus, who would not like working down wind and browsing waves? It is essentially the most enjoyable on this planet,” says Mike.
And the most important motive: “It is the fiftieth anniversary of our first crossing to Hawaii, so it is very poignant for us. We’re so excited to be part of Transpac 2025,” says Steve.
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