2008 Solo Trans-Pac features GLSS member Eric Thomas
by David Herring and Tony Driza
Now that the Mac Solo Challenges are over, and the Lake Superior Solo Scramble is approximately a month off, one might think there is a lull in solo sailing activity. Perhaps it takes a brief hiatus here on the Great Lakes, but one GLSS member is taking the freshwater skills honed on Lake Superior to compete in the 30th running of the Solo Trans-Pac, from San Francisco to Kauai, Hawaii.
Eric Thomas, or ET (sure makes the typing easier), has always had a hankering for singlehanded sailing and while hatching a plan over the past few years to compete in the Solo Trans-Pac, he has completed GLSS sanctioned solo challenges on Lake Huron (his first Port Huron to Mackinac was in 2002), Lake Superior (two solo challenges) and a Chicago - Mackinac on Lake Michigan. ET's Olsen 30, Polar Bear, has served him well in the freshwater challenges, and first place finishes in his class are not that uncommon. It was also not unusual to see him out on Lake Superior when the conditions were more than most wanted to deal with as he pursued the dream of one day competing in heavy weather conditions in the Pacific.
Getting a vessel prepped for such an event is no small task, but for a skipper who also runs Barker's Island Marina in Duluth outfitting boats of all types, ET was able to draw on a considerable amount of experience, as well as skilled craftsmen and friends to help him along the way. Nothing was too small to be scrutinized, and with an especially keen eye towards minimizing electrical use, ET and company made the necessary improvements to Polar Bear in preparation to trucking it west to California. Hundreds of man hours were spent installing the required communications equipment, as well as updating, testing and checking the rest of the vessel's systems. The only thing he didn't have when he was inspected in Alameda was a spoon, probably to save some weight! GLSS member Tom Agerter helped ET install some of the additional gear, including:
- A second, completely independant autopilot
- Three solar panels, so that ET's projected use will be less than the panels put back into the battery banks
- A Xantrax Power Monitor to keep tabs on the electrical system
- An anti-wrap spinnaker net (I need one of those...)
Polar Bear was trucked from Duluth to Alameda by ET and some friends, and is floating while last minute preparations and inspections are being accomplished. The fleet of 22 skippers will cast off lines for the 30th running of the Singlehanded Sailing Society's Solo Trans-Pac on July 12th, pass out of San Francisco Bay and under the Golden Gate Bridge, and settle in for the 2,120 mile race to a finish off Hanalei Bay, Kauai. The 2006 race was done in a little as 13 days, and the slowest was 23 days - ET is obviously hoping for the former. The fastest time ever by a monohull was turned in by Ray Thayer on an Open 60 Wild Thing in 10 days, 22 hours, 53 minutes; multihuller Steve Fossett left his mark here too with a scorching time of 7 days, 22 hours, 38 minutes on an ORMA 60' trimaran, Lakota. While there aren't any other Olsen 30s in the 2008 version, it has been done in the past with this model doing very well overall. ET has been in touch with these skippers, picking up tips and techniques that have proven to be successful. He has also participated in many conference calls conducted by the SSS, dealing with systems considerations, sail repair, weather, and safety. No stone has been left unturned to prepare both skipper and vessel for the event.
At this time, there are no provisions for real-time tracking, although the fleet will maintain communcations with each other and the race committee. ET will indeed be able to phone home with the satellite communication system now installed aboard Polar Bear, and will also hopefully be able to send email updates which we'll post here on the GLSS website as we can get them. We'll let you know via email when we have some updates for viewing....
At the conclusion of the event, Polar Bear will again be readied for transport, first back to the mainland, and thence trucked back to her freshwater home port of Duluth. This is shaping up to be a grand adventure, and it is an understatement to say that it will be interesting to follow the event as ET and the rest of the skippers race for Hawaii.
For more information on the event, and ET, here are some handy links to bookmark:
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