Lighter Boats Gaining an Edge

The scenario Hal Ward and Roy Disney were counting on has started to come through in the 38th Transpacific Yacht Race.

Ward, an Arcadia eye surgeon sailing Cheval 95, and Disney, vice chairman of the board of the Walt Disney Co. who is skippering Pyewacket, figured that their light, upgraded ULDB 70s would gain an edge over the heavier Trader and Sayonara when they got into substantial tradewinds with the breeze behind them filling their huge spinnakers in the second third of the 2,225-mile race to Honolulu.

In Thursday morning’s position report, Cheval 95 and Pyewacket had slipped past Trader and Sayonara into first and second place in the race’s top ILC 70 class. Cheval 95 had a 13-mile lead over Pyewacket, which led Trader and Sayonara by seven miles.

With winds improving across the course, Ralph Schmitt’s J-35 Air Stripper from Oxnard was the race leader overall with 1,304 miles to go after taking a four-day head start on the fastest monohulls, which were expected to overtake them Thursday or early today.