(Palm Beach, FL)- The Sailfish Club in Palm Beach hosted their annual
sprint up the coast that runs from Fort Lauderdale up the famously
rugged, fast Gulf Stream to Palm Beach. The Wirth Munroe Memorial Yacht
Race is held on the first Friday in December. First sailed in 1957, the
race begins the winter ocean racing circuit in South Florida. The
course, from Ft. Lauderdale to Palm Beach, presents challenging
conditions as yachts must consider the vagaries of the Gulf Stream and
the passing of the season’s first frontal systems.
In
1957, members of the Florida Station of the Cruising Club of America,
led by Dick Bertram, decided to sponsor a race from Miami to Palm Beach
and to hold it in early December as racing yachts from the north had
arrived by then in preparation for the Southern Ocean Racing Conference
held in January and February. Over the years, yachts have raced under
numerous rating rules, CCA, IOR, IMS, and now sail in three classes,
IRC, PHRF, and Multihull. The original course has been shortened and now
starts in Ft. Lauderdale to allow the yachts to finish before dark. In
the 1960’s the Sailfish Club of Florida became a co-sponsor of the race
and hosts the well known awards party following the finish.The J/44 WHITE GOLD sailed by Jamestown YC's & Sailfish Club's Jim Bishop sailed to a 5th overall in IRC against some of the hottest offshore boats on the market, including a slew of the new High-Performance Rule 40 footers, TP 52s and a Mini-Maxi. Interestingly, over 75% of the IRC fleet was comprised of current and former J/Boats owners with boats that range from J/22s to J/105s and from J/125s to J/65s! For more Sailfish Club Wirth Munro Race sailing information.
